Chewy Brown Sugar Cookies (Gluten-Free, Vegan)

These unbelievably soft and chewy Brown Sugar Cookies are gluten-free, vegan, and allergy-free! Rich dark brown sugar keeps these eggless cookies extra chewy and moist with delicious notes of caramel and molasses flavor. Buttery and sweet with a perfect crinkle top, these quick and easy brown sugar cookies have 8 ingredients and bake up in 10 minutes!

Almost like a perfect chocolate chip cookie, without the chocolate chips! Made with all dark brown sugar these vegan cookies have an outrageously chewy texture and deep caramel flavor. Rolled in a bit of granulated sugar to give the edges a slight golden crisp before you bite into that gooey, chewy center! They're one of my favorite cookies to bake and one of the easiest cookies for the holidays or your next cookie exchange!

Why You'll Love These Vegan Brown Sugar Cookies

These cookies are so easy and only have 8 ingredients! Moist, chewy, perfectly sweet, no gluten, eggs, or dairy! Their rich deep flavor makes them taste ultra-luxurious and their butteriness feels indulgent! They only need about 10 minutes of baking time and it's 100% acceptable to eat them while they're still warm from the oven! These homemade cookies are:

• Gluten-Free
• Vegan & Vegetarian
• Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Corn-Free, Coconut-Free)
• Sugar-Free Option
• Oil-Free
• Kid-Friendly
• Quick & Easy, Just 7 Ingredients
• Make-Ahead, Freezer-Friendly, & Giftable
• Simple Dessert For Holidays, Potlucks, and Cookie Exchanges

Ingredients In Brown Sugar Cookies

• Gluten-Free Flour: Your favorite blend of gluten-free all-purpose flour is the base of these gluten-free brown sugar cookies.
• Dark Brown Sugar: Using dark brown sugar is key if you want the most caramel, molasses, and rich flavor! See further explanation below!
• Baking Soda + Salt: To give the cookies a slight lift so they don't become totally flat, baking soda and a pinch of salt are here to help!
• Cornstarch: Cornstarch, or arrowroot starch for a corn-free option, is used to keep the cookies light and soft, and adds additional support for countering any spreading.
• Vegan Butter: For an ultra buttery and rich gooey center, melted vegan butter keeps these cookies soft and allows you to skip creaming the butter with the sugar.
• Vegan Cream Cheese: The secret to perfectly eggless cookies that still come out chewy and don't fall apart? Cream cheese of course! Dairy-free cream cheese is the best egg-free option for delicious vegan cookies.
• Vanilla: What's a cookie without a splash of vanilla extract? A little bit goes a long way!
• Granulated Sugar: The only reason we're using white sugar here is to lightly roll the brown sugar cookies in the granulated sugar before we bake them in the oven! It adds a nice little sparkle and crisp edge to the cookies. (You can also use sugar-free granulated sweetener here).

What Does Brown Sugar Do In Cookies?

Brown sugar is denser than white sugar, so fewer air pockets are created in the cookie dough. This leads to flatter cookies that tend to spread more, but it allows them to retain their moisture and chewiness.

Dark Brown Sugar vs. Light Brown Sugar

The difference between dark and light brown sugar is the amount of molasses! Dark brown sugar typically contains 6% to 10% molasses, while light brown sugar contains 3% to 4%. This is why dark brown sugar has a deeper and richer caramel-like flavor and darker color. Since these are brown sugar cookies, we really want the most rich brown sugar flavor we can get!

Can I Substitute Brown Sugar?

Okay, so this is a brown sugar cookie recipe, but here are your options:

• Use Light Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar is totally acceptable and won't change the recipe too much. The cookies will come out lighter in color and may be puffier and less chewy (but just a bit). You can always add 1-2 tablespoons of molasses to counter this.
• Make Your Own Brown Sugar: Dark brown sugar is just 1 cup of white granulated sugar mixed with 2 tablespoons of molasses. Light brown sugar is 1 cup of white granulated sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon of molasses. You can use this ratio as a rule of thumb if you run out of brown sugar or literally have none (hopefully you have molasses though).
• Sugar-Free Brown Sugar: As I'm always here to give you a sugar-free recipe option, you can use Swerve brown sugar! This brown-sugar style erythritol is delicious and will cut down on calories and sugar. If you want to just reduce the sugar, I suggest using half Swerve and half real sugar!

How To Make Brown Sugar Cookies

1. Whisk together the gluten-free flour, baking soda, starch, and salt in a large bowl.
2. Melt the vegan butter in the microwave and add the dark brown sugar and vanilla. Mix until the sugar is melted.

3. Add the room-temperature vegan cream cheese to the hot butter and sugar mixture (microwave again if needed), and mix until fully combined.
4. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and gently mix until combined.

5. Place the bowl of cookie dough in the freezer to chill while you preheat your own to 350°F. Once the dough is chilled, use a 1-tablespoon-sized cookie scoop to scoop out balls of cookie dough, and roll the dough balls in the granulated sugar before placing them on a lined baking sheet.
6. Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Make sure you don't overbake them!

7. Allow the cookies to cool on the sheet pan for 1-2 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely before storing.

Recipe Tips & Tricks

• If your vegan cream cheese is still too cold to mix easily into the melted sugar and sugar, put the bowl back into the microwave for about 30 seconds and you'll be good!
• Freezing the dough before scooping speeds up the typical chilling process and makes it super easy to scoop. Just about 15 minutes in the freezer and your dough will be easy and ready to scoop. It also gives you time to preheat the oven!
• Don't overcrowd your baking sheet. These cookies do spread so I ended up doing 2 batches.
• DO NOT overbake the cookies! If you leave them in the oven for too long, they will not be chewy and will turn into crunchy cookies. Just about 10 minutes if the dough is chilled in the freezer properly. If the dough isn't completely chilled, bake them for about 8-9 minutes. The edges should be slightly golden brown and the center still wet and gooey (you can see this via the crankles on the surface of the cookies).

How To Store Chewy Brown Sugar Cookies

Once the cookies have cooled to room temperature, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 5-7 days. You can freeze leftover baked cookies by wrapping them in wax paper and stacking them in a freezer-storage bag or container for 4-6 months. Allow them to thaw at room temperature before serving (or toss one in the microwave to reheat quickly if you need a sweet chewy treat!)

How To Make The Cookies Ahead Of Time

You can prep the cookie dough 2-3 days in advance and keep it covered in the fridge. You can also scoop the cookie dough into balls and freeze them on a baking sheet before transferring them into a freezer-safe storage bag for up to 4 months. When ready to use, take the cookie dough balls out and allow them to thaw slightly at room temperature before rolling them in sugar and baking as instructed.

More Delicious Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes:

• Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Vegan White Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
• S'mores Cookies
• 3-Ingredient Classic Shortbread Cookies
• Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
• Soft Molasses Cookies

Print

The last thing to do is grab a warm chewy brown sugar cookie, savor the rich caramel-y toffee-like flavor, and be amazed that they're gluten-free and vegan!

So tell me:

+ Brown sugar vs white sugar? Any time I get to use brown sugar...I'm all in!

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