Chewy Vegan Snickerdoodles--egg-free, dairy-free

Snickerdoodles are such a fond remnant of childhood.  I rediscovered them on our Sacramento trip on the Polar Express ride, as they served hot cocoa and snickerdoodles on board as a holiday treat for all of the passengers.  Since the boys couldn't partake in the treats because of their food allergies, I was immediately determined to bake my own version.  They were the perfect conclusion to our Christmas Eve dinner, and consequently served double duty as a delicious snack for Santa, alongside some baby carrots based on Tristan's insistence that Santa needed to eat a bit healthier (not going to vouch for that pairing).

When searching for allergy-friendly recipes, I usually search the Web for a top-rated recipe, and see if it's simple enough to try a few substitutions to make it allergy-safe for my kids (egg, dairy, nut, and shellfish free).  Since this snickerdoodle recipe has only 9 ingredients, it was easy to modify.  And because it's a chewy cookie, I didn't have a problem with a crumbly texture as with some baked goods when eggs are omitted.

I replaced the eggs with Ener-G Egg Replacer, and the butter with Earth Balance.  To make it soy-free as well, you may use soy-free Earth Balance.  I thought I had enough cream of tartar for the recipe, but because I only had half of what the recipe called for, I added double the baking soda.  I haven't had time to try it again with the right amount of baking soda, but plan to.

I do hope that Snickerdoodles become one of your children's favorites as they did mine.

Chewy Vegan Snickerdoodles--No egg, dairy, or nuts (can be made soy-free), adapted from Soft Snickerdoodles Cookies

1 cup Earth Balance (regular or soy-free)

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon Ener-G Egg Replacer plus 4 tablespoons warm water, whisked together

2 3/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2.  Mix Earth Balance, sugar, and Ener-G and water mixture together.

3.  Combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in another bowl.

4.  Stir the dry ingredients into the Earth Balance mixture.

5.  Chill the dough and the baking sheets in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.

6.  While the dough and sheets are chilling, mix the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.

7.  Roll the dough into one inch balls, then coat with the cinnamon sugar mixture.

8.  Place on the chilled baking sheet lined with parchment, and bake for 10 minutes.


After about 10 minutes, the cookies may not seem done, but if you give them a couple of minutes to cool on the hot baking sheets before moving them to the cooling racks, they will come out perfectly.  Try not to leave them in the oven longer than 12 minutes.  They will be nice and chewy while hot, but will harden too much after they have completely cooled.