Vegan Pecan Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. The most amazing rich and buttery cookies but with NO butter or added oil. You have to taste them to truly believe it! Pecan butter does some serious magic.
These pecan butter chocolate chip cookies will shock and amaze you. While they may be without any butter, are oil-free and refined sugar-free, they taste 1000% better than any cookie I’ve had with those ingredients. I also love that they are thick, fat and chunky…..just the way I like my vegan chocolate chip cookies to be. They are like no other cookie out there, they are serious crowd-pleasers.
WHAT MAKES THESE COOKIES SO MAGICAL?
The secret to these cookies is the pecan butter and cornstarch. The flavor rivals a typical buttery cookie that is achieved from roasted pecans. The touch of cornstarch gives them a phenomenal tender bite and crispy edges.
These chocolate chip cookies were inspired by my Roasted Pecan Butter recipe I posted yesterday. They are so “buttery” I had to pinch myself. It really is hard to believe how these are so rich, so moist and so full of flavor….without a drop of butter.
This ingredient is the absolute star and simply cannot be replaced!
You only need 8 ingredients (+salt) to make these amazing Pecan Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies!
Simply divine.
YOU WILL LOVE THESE PECAN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
I have no doubt you will absolutely love these Vegan Pecan Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. These are an unconventional way to make classic chocolate chip cookies, but are in fact BETTER. Try them yourself and see! Please, leave feedback below after you make them! Or tag me on Instagram #thevegan8!
MORE VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
- Crispy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Grain-free Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Coconut Cookies
- Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Best Vegan Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies….rated BEST gluten-free chocolate chip cookies by readers!
- Pumpkin Pie Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cinnamon Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Dark Chocolate Molasses Cookies
- Cashew Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vegan Pecan Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (256g) roasted pecan butter (see NOTE)
- 1/2 cup (64g) whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (120g) pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips plus extra to stick on the top if desired
- I use this scale.
NOTE: Click on the pecan butter link in the post to see how to make this. Pecan butter is creamier and oilier than other nut butters, so it makes a BIG difference in these. Do not use store-bought, unless you find one without added oils
Instructions
- Tip: The key to getting these as chunky and thick is to follow the exact steps. You must chill the dough first and also only divide the dough into no more than 14 cookies. If you make more than that they won't be as fluffy.First you will need to make the pecan butter. Do it the day before to save time and so it has completely cooled. You don't want hot pecan butter when making the cookies.
- After making the roasted pecan butter, make sure to measure 1 cup in case you made more than that in the food processor. Add it to a bowl with the syrup and vanilla. Stir until well combined. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt and whisk very well. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Stir the chocolate chips into the flour mixture. Now add the flour into the wet ingredients a small amount at a time, stirring until just combined. Put the bowl into the fridge for 20 minutes to chill only.
- Pre-heat the oven to 375°F and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Depending on how creamy you pulsed your pecan butter, your batter may be a bit crumbly. If so, just press the dough together roughly with your hands by large spoonfuls. Divide the dough into 12-14 cookies only, if you want them thick and fluffy. I added a few extra chocolate chips on top of the cookies too. Do NOT flatten or spread out the dough, leave it piled high. They should bake high and fluffy as in the pictures. I made 3 batches and they all turned out fabulously fluffy. Bake for 11 to 12 minutes or until just starting to turn golden brown around the edges. Mine were perfect just at 11 minutes. Do not over bake!
- Cool 10 minutes and transfer to cool completely on a cooling rack before handling...if you can contain yourself! After they have cooled, place them on a paper towel to drain any extra pecan butter. The pecan butter makes these VERY buttery, so it's best to keep them on a papertowel while storing them.
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These look very delicious esp because of the roasted pecan butter, yum!
Thank you Natalie! The pecan butter definitely is the magic and makes them like no other chocolate chip cookie I’ve ever had! I hope you try them 🙂
These look amazing – really delicious! I wonder if they’d work with spelt flour?
Thank you! Yes, I’m sure spelt flour would work…since it has less gluten than whole wheat pastry flour though, you might not have as much structure or fluff and may need to add a tiny bit more of spelt flour. Try it out and let me know! One other reader had success using a commercial gluten free blend but I haven’t tried it yet.
Oh, my gosh these look fantastic!! As soon as I’m off this cleanse I’m making these! Pecan Butter.. I need that!! xx
Just the photo makes me hungry. Do you think arrowroot would sub for the cornstarch?
Hi Letty! It will slightly change the texture, the cornstarch gives them a really tender crispness and arrowroot will make them slightly chewier/drier maybe, but I think it should still work since the pecan butter provides so much moisture. Do you have potato starch? That would be even better. Let me know if you try them!
Oh my gosh Brandi, i just made these cookies as practice for my cookie exchange…when i tasted one, my eyes rolled to the back of head….they are soooooooo awesome…and i don’t even make cookies…..Thank you once again for an awesome recipe.
Haha! Awesome Elilta! Thank you so much for making them and I’m so glad you enjoyed them! They are definitely one of the best, if not the best, cookies I’ve ever had!
I’ve only had marginal success with vegan baking, but after making these cookies, I feel brilliant in the kitchen. LOL. So rich and well-balanced! Easy peasy, too!
I’ve vowed to stay away from the dessert section in your blog from now on ;), but have my eye on the lentil loaf next.
Thank you for another extraordinary recipe! You are truly gifted!
Caroline-that is so wonderful to hear!! I’m so happy you loved the cookies so much and feel so successful! They really are some of my favorite cookies ever! Thank you so much for your incredibly kind compliments too!
These are my new favorite cookies of all time – they are incredible beyond belief! I shared them with several people – all of whom were blown away! I am now in Paris and cannot find pecan butter anywhere to make sure! I know you mentioned some substitutions that did not work – are there any that might work? I found a butter is 70% walnut and 30% sesame seeds – any bets if that will work? http://www.naturalia.fr/bio-puree-noix-200g_6386_5_573.htm My guess is almond butter wouldn’t have quite enough fat. Thank you!!
Hi Melinda! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback! These are my alltime favorite cookies I’ve ever made or had either! I definitely wouldn’t use cashew butter, since it is the driest of all nut butters. Actually, a really creamy almond butter would be best since they have lots of natural oil in them. Just make sure it’s really creamy and not overly thick since the pecan butter is so drippy. You could always decrease the flour by a tablespoon or two in case, to get the same texture of batter and that should work too. I actually have tested this recipe with half pecan butter and half peanut butter and they were excellent, so I think all almond butter would work well. Not sure about the link that you sent, so I think I’d stick with almond butter. Let me know how it turns out with that 🙂
Or cashew butter? (Also with no added oil)
http://www.naturalia.fr/bio-puree-noix-cajou-300g_4212_1_506.htm
I made them at home with pecan butter that had some cashews in it (though I don’t know the percentage) and that worked quite well! I’ve also made cookies with cashew butter before that I loved!
Thank you!
Beautiful oldie, Brandi! 🙂 I love pecan butter, especially with chocolate — I bet these taste just amazing!
These are awesome!! Third time was a charm!! The second ones were not bad, it’s just I didn’t let the pecans cool enough when I made the butter that when mixing, the chips melted!! :). A new variation?? I was getting use to a new oven and I found a ice cream scoop helped to make them uniformed!! I eat vegan and I’m hoping these will take the place of my hubbies chocolate chip cookies made with white flour and refind sugar!!
Wonderful! Oh yes, definitely let the pecan butter cool first or it will melt the chips! I always keep a batch of pecan butter in my fridge, so it’s cooled and ready to go for recipes. I’m so happy you loved these cookies so much, they are the most popular cookies among my family! Thank you so much for making them!
Whole wheat pastry flour is not gluten free. What flout do I sub?
Hi Charis! Yes, that is correct, this one is not listed as gluten-free. This is one of my oldest recipes from my old blog that I transferred over to this one which I started October 2013, which from that date forward, all recipes are gluten-free. Although, there are very few on the entire blog that have gluten. For this particular recipe, I have not tested it with gluten-free flour, but I believe a reader way above made these with a commercial gluten-free all purpose flour mix with great success, but I personally have not, so I can’t vouch for those results.
I do have another recipe that I just posted, which are also chocolate chip cookies and they are gluten-free and absolutely delicious. Here is the link for those: https://thevegan8.com/2015/05/23/oat-free-vegan-classic-chocolate-chip-cookies/
I made these last night for my husband, and they turned out GREAT! I special ordered a fresh batch of nuts from the Houston Pecan company after I saw this recipe.
The dough and cookies were really quite greasy from the pecans, so next time I might use a little less pecans or more flour. thank you so much – they are delicious!!
SO glad to hear you all loved them! Thank you so much for the feedback! Yes, the pecan butter makes these very, very buttery, which is a great thing, but also a tad messy, lol! That’s why I suggest keeping them stored on a papertowel, it will help to absorb the excess pecan butter 🙂 Thanks so much again!
These were amazing! They tasted so rich and buttery! I will be making these again 🙂
Thank you so much Megan, I’m so happy to hear you loved these and your comment on Instagram and pic were amazing, so glad these are some of the best cookies you’ve ever had, thank you for leaving feedback!
These cookies are absolutely delicious!! I have made them 3 times in the last three weeks! They are perfect for our family because my son has food allergy and I didn’t have to make any substitutions because he is not allergic to any of the ingredients. Both of my kids love these cookies and request these instead of our usual chocolate chip cookies. Thanks to you this is our new favorite cookie!!
That is so awesome to hear Kay! Thank you so much for this amazing feedback! These are all of my family’s favorite cookies too, they are so buttery and rich that they can’t believe they are vegan!
I was craving something sweet and just so happened to have a huge bag of pecans that needed to be used… Making these cookies was the best decision all week for me. I’ve never been a big fan of chocolate chip cookies, but these were phenomenal! I am going to make these for my nonvegan family and show them how delicious vegan food is, free of guilt! Thank you so much for creating this recipe!
Yay, I loved reading this feedback Sara, it made my day! SO thrilled these were such a hit! These literally stop everybody in their tracks when I serve them to family and friends…all non-vegan of course! They are the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve truly ever eaten! I’m so glad you loved them too!
These cookies are delicious. I too ate 4 or more. How many calories is in one?
So glad you loved them Yolanda! I do not have the nutrition on these cookies, but you can input the ingredients into caloriecount.com or fitnesspal and get an estimate.
Literally the BEST cookies I’ve ever had, vegan or not!!!! Thank you for your amazing recipe!!!! ***I did sub the whole wheat flour for very finely ground oats!*** AMAAAAAZING!
Wow, that just made my day! Thank you so much for the feedback Annie! These are absolutely in my top 2 cookies of all time. That pecan butter is just so magical. I love that your sub of oat flour worked so well in place of the wheat, too! I need to try that! I actually wrote a gluten-free version of these to be shared on the blog next year! Thank you again for the feedback!
We absolutely LOVE these cookies! I’m too lazy to make pecan butter and too impatient to wait 20 minutes. We use Georgia Grinders Pecan Butter (available on Amazon.com, GeorgiaGrinders.com and other sites). The only ingredients are pecans and sea salt – no oil. We have made these several times and they have turned out perfect every time!
Hi Jenny! Yay! So very happy to hear that! Oh that is great, yes, as long as you found oil-free, that is perfect. Thank you so much for the awesome review and star rating, I so appreciate it!
Made these and shared with coworkers and family. Everyone loved them. They were so soft and so good. Nobody could believe they didn’t have oil or butter in them. Will definitely be making these again.
Wonderful recipe and I look forward to trying it, granted I can make some substitutions. I have food allergies so I was wondering if I could use: gluten free flour and tapioca starch instead of cornstarch? I also just happen to make some pecan butter for the first time tonight! Pretty much a similar recipe to yours, no added oil! It was also 3 cups of raw pecans to start with. Is end result equivalent to about one whole cup of pecan butter?!
Thanks for any advice/ input!
I have not tested this with gluten-free flour so unfortunately I can’t say whether it would work or not with an all-purpose gluten-free flour and give equal results as the wheat flour. However, I believe you can try using superfine oat flour. Another reader had success doing that. I haven’t tried it personally, but she loved them. Yes, tapioca can be subbed for cornstarch. As long as you measure out the 1 cup of pecan butter, that is good. I believe it makes around 1 1/2 cups, so you will have plenty to make the cookies.
These sound and look amazing! As do all of the recipes I have seen on your site. Would it work to use Walnut butter instead? I have all of the ingredients at home except pecans. I would love to make them today without having to run to the store.
Thank you! I’ve never tried it with walnut butter but you can try it. I think it would work since they are both a really smooth nut butter. As long as it’s homemade nut butter that has no added oil.
I can’t wait to try these! Can I sub arrowroot or ground flax for the corn starch?
Hi Jennifer! Do you have tapioca starch? That would be a better sub, as it’s the closest to cornstarch in small quantities. If not, I’d try arrowroot, but just keep in mind I’ve not tested it, so it will change the texture a bit, I imagine. Let me know how they turn out! I would not do flax, the starch is what gives amazing texture and crisp to the edges.
I do have tapioca starch! I’ll try that. Thank you!
I used tapioca flour in place of corn starch (2:1). AMAZING COOKIES!!! Thank you!