Why have 1 flavour when you can have three? Vanilla, chocolate and strawberry cookies with a sprinkling on sugar, with a Neapolitan Swiss buttercream swirl. Super easy to make, easy to enjoy under half and hour!
Watch me make these cookies here!
What happens when you take three of the tastiest cookie flavours and blend them into one? You get my mouthwateringly delicious Neapolitan cookies! These are inspired by the famous Neapolitan ice cream flavours of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry – a true tasty summer classic.
What is Neapolitan?
Neapolitan is its own flavour, made up of three flavours- Strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. It’s most popular in ice cream flavours, but many people come up with various bakes using these three flavours.
Even-though there are three flavours to Neapolitan, each flavour is pretty distinctive which is why I love it!
To make these cookies, it’s simpler than you might expect. You create a batch of vanilla cookie dough, divide it into 3 separate bowls, and flavour each dough strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. You then use a spoon to add a scoop of each flavour onto your baking tray, and lightly blend them together, forming a round cookie shape – then you’re ready to bake your batch, and enjoy!
Jot these ingredients on your shopping list:
- Plain flour
- Dairy-free butter / margarine
- Vanilla extract
- Caster sugar
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Flaxseeds
- Pink food gel
- Cocoa powder
- Strawberry flavouring
- 1 can of chickpeas
- Grease proof paper
- Piping bags
- 1 star tip piping nozzle
I decided to sandwich these cookies with a deliciously light and creamy vegan Neapolitan Swiss meringue buttercream, as the cookies themselves are thick and are chewy. You’re going to absolutely LOVE them! They’re the perfect dessert for summer.
Why not go all out and sandwich them with ice cream- Y U M!
Why you should make these Neapolitan cookies:
- They are extremely easy to make, yet look really impressive
- The cookies can be baked in under 15 minutes (big win!)
- The tri-flavour makes for the most delicious cookie (your taste buds will be tingling)
- Swiss meringue swirl is easy to make and pairs deliciously with the soft and chewy cookie
- They are crowd pleasers, both visually and for your taste buds
Looking for more cookie recipes? Look no further:
White Chocolate + Biscoff Cookies
The BEST Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Easy Neapolitan Cookies
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 8–10 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
How to make THE BEST Neapolitan Cookies, which are super easy!
Ingredients
Ingredients for the cookies
- 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon of flaxseed + 3 tablespoons of water
- 110g of dairy-free butter / margarine
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 180g of caster sugar
- 220g of plain flour
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
- 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
- Pink food gel*
- Strawberry flavouring
- Cocoa powder
Ingredients for the swirl
- 120g of dairy-free butter
- 40ml of chickpea brine (aquafaba)*
- 180g of icing sugar
Instructions
Method (cookies)
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees c fan and line two baking trays with grease proof paper. Add the flaxseed and water in a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside for 10 minutes. It will jellify and this acts as the egg replacement.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl ,add in the dairy-free butter, sugar, vanilla extract and flax egg. Cream / beat together for a few minutes until light and pale in colour. I use a stand mixer with the balloon whisk attachment, but a hand held whisk or spatula will work great.
- Sift in the flour, salt, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Mix until a cookie dough forms.
- Divide the cookie dough into 3 separate bowls. Leave one bowl plain vanilla. Add a drop of pink food gel along with a drop of strawberry flavouring into the second bowl. Add a few teaspoon of cocoa powder into the third bowl making a chocolate cookie dough.
- Spoon a teaspoon of each colour and place into a triangle on some grease proof paper. using your hands, shape and press them together gently to create a cookie shape. Repeat for all of the cookies.
- Place onto the lined baking trays. Space them out as these cookies do spread.Sprinkle some sugar over the cookies (optional).
- Place one tray at a time in the middle of the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes. once baked, remove the tray from the oven, tap the tray on the worktop to flatten the cookies slightly and set aside to cool. Wait about 5 minutes before transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack. Allow the cookies to cool fully before filling.
Method (buttercream swirl)
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the dairy-free butter and whip until creamy, then whip in the aquafaba. I use a stand mixer with a balloon whisk attachment, a hand mixer will work great too.
- Add in the icing sugar and whip on high speed for 5-8 minutes to incorporate it. If the buttercream feels too thick, add a few more chunks of butter. The texture should be very light and airy.
- Divide the buttercream equally into 3 separate bowls.
- Add a drop of pink food gel and strawberry flavouring to one bowl, a few teaspoons of cocoa powder to the second bowl and leave the last bowl plain white.
- Transfer the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a star tip nozzle. Pipe a swirl of buttercream onto half go the cookies and use the other halves to create a sandwich.
- Pop into the fridge for 10 minutes to let the buttercream firm up.
Notes
To store: Store these cookies in a sealed container in the fridge and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Un-iced cookies can be left at room temperature. Best eaten within 2 days of making.
What is Aquafaba: Aquafaba is the water from a can/tin of Chickpeas. The Chickpea water or brine as it’s called, acts as an amazing egg substitute for cakes, cupcakes and this delicious meringue buttercream. You can also get aquafaba in a carton for easy use. Check it out here
What food gel should I use? For these cookies, you’ll want to pick up a food gel. I have tried liquid food colouring and for me, it never works. Liquid food gels don’t give you the pigment so you end up adding more which changes the texture of the batter. Food gels on the other hand are highly pigmented and you only need a little bit, so it won’t change the texture of the bake. Pro Gel from Rainbow Dust Colours are my go-to’s. Check out all of their colours here.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
- Category: cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Is there an alternate to the 40ml of chickpea brine (aquafab? It doesn't have to be vegan (for my non-vegan family members) Tia!
I would suggest using the aquafaba anyway as non-vegan people can eat vegan food too!
How do you think powdered freeze dried strawberries would work?