These Chewy Chai Snickerdoodles are soft, cinnamon-y and lightly spiced with a glittery sugar coating. They are also vegan and gluten free, however you’d never be able to tell!
THE ULTIMATE SNICKERDOODLE RECIPE
I’m taking a classic cookie flavour and adding just a little more spice to it. The base tastes like a vanilla sugar cookie, with warming spices to add a little flavour. They are gluten free and vegan, however you’d never know it with the right ingredients. They make for the perfect treat this holiday season!
CHAI SPICE AND EVERYTHING NICE
Chai is typically comprised of black tea, milk and spices plus sweetener as desired. Some of the most common spices include cardamom, ginger, clove, anise, black pepper and coriander, but typically it varies person to person. As such, you can modify your chai spice mix to taste, but I’ve included a base recipe suggestion in the recipe notes. Alternatively, you can use a pre-blended chai spice mix to save you time, but I find that doing it yourself is the best way to adjust it according to your taste buds. It’s also best enjoyed when freshly ground, but this can mean a bit of an investment in the various whole spices.
IMPORTANT INGREDIENTS
- Gluten free flour → 1:1 ratio, one with xanthan gum in it.
- Flax egg → In place of a regular egg, we’re using a flax egg!
- Chai spice mix → You can either use a pre-made chai spice mix, or blend your own. I’ve included a suggested recipe using pre-ground spices below.
- Cream of tartar → This is one ingredient you can omit, however this is part of what makes a snickerdoodle a snickerdoodle! Cream of tartar is a leavening agent, which helps to give some lift to the cookie and chew. You can substitute with lemon juice if you don’t have cream of tartar on hand.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- If you don't have any cream of tartar, no stress. Just use lemon juice instead!
- Feel free to substitute flax egg for a real egg if you aren’t vegan.
- You can also substitute regular butter for the vegan butter.
- Be sure to refrigerate your dough for 30 minutes before cooking. This is a key step in the recipe!
INGREDIENTS:
Chai spice blend- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- Pinch of black pepper
Cookies
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup cane sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg OR flax "egg" at room temperature (1 Tbsp flax + 3 Tbsp warm water)
- 1 1/2 cups flour + 3 tbsp 1:1 gluten free flour blend.
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar (can sub 1 tsp lemon juice)
- 1 tsp chai spice blend
For rolling
- 3 tbsp cane sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp chai spice mix
DIRECTIONS:
- Prepare chai spice mix. Set aside.
- In a bowl, combine butter and sugar. Mix until light and fluffy. Add vanilla extract, cream of tartar and flax egg. Combine until no chunks remain. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine your dry ingredients.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients until well mixed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together sugar and chai spice mix until evenly incorporated.
- When your dough is chilled, preheat over to 350 degrees F.
- Line a baking pan with parchment paper and roll dough into balls (About 1 1/2 tsp per ball)
- Roll balls into sugar mix.
- Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes. Let cool on cooling rack for five minutes. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Serving (about 1 cookie)
Calories: 110 kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g