Say hello to the BEST Vegan Red Velvet Cookies. My recipe for Red Velvet Cookies is both easy to make and indulgent! They’re rich and moist, filled with white chocolate chips and a hidden cream cheese filling. Each bite is filled with delicious red velvet flavour, it’s hard to believe they contain no-egg, no dairy and are easy to make! They’re just PERFECT!
Vegan Red Velvet Cookies
Red velvet cookies are a red, chewy cookie with a slight hint of cocoa and pools of melty white chocolate chips. They’re perfect for Valentine’s Day, or any day really! They’re made in one bowl, baked in under 15 minutes and can be made in under half an hour. Imagine, in half an hour, you could be sat with a cup of tea / coffee with a warm chewy, gooey and melty red velvet cookie. Doesn’t it sound heavenly?!! These cookies are perfect for anyone who has a sweet tooth and love’s a filled, decadent dessert. The cream cheese is an absolutely delicious addition and really brings the classic ‘red velvet’ vibe to life.
Looking for more red velvet recipes, check out my Mini Red Velvet Cheesecakes and Vegan Red Velvet Cake and Vegan Hidden Heart Cupcakes.
What is red velvet?
Red velvet has grown in popularity in recent years, especially in the USA. Traditional red velvet is a red cake which has elements of a chocolate cake with red food colour served with a ermine icing. The flavour of red velvet is a light cocoa and vanilla. It’s called red velvet because the original red velvet cakes got the “velvet” part of their name because they resembled bright red velvet dresses, fancy right?! These cookies embrace all of the classic red velvet elements from the red colour, cream cheese addition and flavour.
Why you’ll love these cookies:
Oh my goodness, I just have so many reasons why these are the BEST EVER vegan red velvet cookies, but to save me the time of writing them all out and you reading them, I’ll simply list my top 10 reasons below:
- They’re vegan : This recipe doesn’t contain any animal derived ingredients.
- Super easy to make : Cookie dough can be made in minutes. Mind BLOWN!
- 0 chill time needed : Simply make and bake, no chilling time needed!
- Red velvet cake, but cookies : They have the classic red velvet look and taste!!
- Cream cheese filling is insane – The filling is so perfect, i never want a plain / unfilled cookie ever again!
- Perfectly red : Made using a high pigmented vegan food gel from Rainbow Dust.. so good!
- Gorgeous flavour : The subtle hint of cocoa paired with the vanilla cream cheese filling is heavenly.
- Perfect for storing : They are great and taste amazing when stored in an air-tight / sealed container for a few days.
- Chewy center, crispy edges : These cookies have THE perfect texture. The centers are chewy and the edges have the perfect amount of crisp.
- Perfect for Valentines Day / Mothers day : A great cookie for any occasion.
How to make filled cookies
The best part about this recipe is that the cookies have a hidden center of cream cheese. It’s so smooth and creamy, it pairs so well with the subtle cocoa flavour of the cookie. It’s a delicious addition which if you leave it out, you’re totally missing out on the EPIC red velvet experience. The filling is mixed and combined, added into a piping bag and piped in the cookies before baking. Find the full written recipe in the red card at the bottom of the page.
- Mix the ingredients
In a bowl, add in the flour, cream cheese and sugar. Mix until paste like.
- Transfer into piping bag
Add the filling into a piping bag and snip off the tip.
- Pipe
Once you have rolled the cookie dough into balls, flatten the ball slightly, pipe some of the cream in the middle and fold the cookie dough over the cream cheese to hide. Make sure the cream cheese is fully hidden, if not it could ooze out when baking.
- Bake and enjoy
Bake the cookies, allow to cool and enjoy!
Red velvet cookie FAQ
What red food gel to use?
- You want to use a red food gel as opposed to liquid food colour. Liquid isn’t as pigmented meaning you’ll need more in order to get a vibrant colour, which will effect the consistency and texture of the bake. You only need a tiny drop of red food gel for a ultra red cookie. I have linked my go-to red food colour here. Make sure your colour is vegan as a-lot of red colours contain an e number called Carmine (crushed beetles).
Can I use a natural colour?
- I would say no as these cookies rely on a bight red colour. You could use something like beet powder, but it wont give the same effect and may effect the flavour of the cookie too.
How to store the cookies?
- As the cookies contain the cream cheese filling, keep them fresh by storing in an air tight / sealed container in the fridge. Allow the cookies to come to room temperature before enjoying.
What white chocolate to use?
- You want to use a good quality vegan / dairy-free white chocolate which melts when baked. My favourites are the iChoc Vanilla, Sainsburys Own Free From white bars / buttons and Moo Free White Choc Drops. Simply use you’re favourite!
Can I make the cookies ahead of time?
- You sure can! You can make the cookie dough, and freeze then defrost before baking!!! It means you can have cookies whenever you get a craving for something sweet. I would just ay to make the cream cheese filling fresh, day you plan to bake.
Can I leave out the cream cheese filling?
- Of course, this is an optional extra which is absolutely delicious but if you wanted a simple red velvet & white chocolate cookie, by all means simply leave out the filling step!
If you make, and love this recipe, please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating below. Thank you & happy baking! Make sure to tag me in your photos on Instagram , TikTok and Facebook! Pin this recipe for later, you can use the button on the recipe card, above or below this post, or on any of the photos. Happy baking all!
Print
Vegan Red Velvet Cookies
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Lean how to make the most delicious vegan red velvet cookies filled with white chocolate chips, a subtle cocoa flavour and hidden cream cheese filling! They’re addictive!
Ingredients
Ingredients for the cookie
- 2 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 6 tablespoon water
- 100g of dairy-free butter (softened)
- Drop of red food gel
- 250g of all purpose / plain flour
- 150g of caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract / essence
- 35g of cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
- 80g of dairy-free white chocolate chips / chunks
Ingredients for the cream cheese filling
- 60g of dairy-free cream cheese (I use Violife)
- 50g of caster sugar
- 40g of all purpose / plain flour
Instructions
Method (cream cheese filling)
- In a small bowl, add in the dairy-free cream cheese, sugar and flour. Beat to combine until a smooth / thick paste consistency.
- Transfer the filling into a piping bag and snip off the tip. You can always use spoons if you don’t have piping bags.
- Set aside while you make the cookies.
Method (cookies)
- Preheat oven to 180°C fan and line 2 baking trays with grease proof paper. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, add in the ground flaxseed along with the water, stir to combine then set aside for 5-10 minutes to thicken.
- In a medium sized mixing bowl, add in the softened butter, drop of red food gel and flax mixture. Mix to combine.
- Add in the flour, sugar, vanilla, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Beat until a cookie dough is formed. You can use a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or simply with a spatula.
- Fold in the white chocolate chunks, and beat until they’re distributed well.
- Weigh your cookies out until they’re about 80g each! This will give you 8 cookies. If you don’t want them as big, feel free to make them smaller.
- Use your thumb to flatten them (watch video for reference). Pipe / spoon some of the cream cheese into the middle then pinch the cookie dough over the filling to cover. Make sure there isn’t any gaps so the cream cheese doesn’t ooze out the cookie when baking.
- Once they’re rolled into balls, place onto the lined tray, giving them space. Optional: you can add some more white chocolate chunks to the tops of the cookies before baking.
- Use your hands or back of the spoon to gently press then down to flatten.
- Bake the cookies in the middle of the oven for 10-12 minutes.
- Once baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool fully for at least 30 minutes on the tray before lifting off.
- Enjoy!!!
Notes
How to tell if the cookies have baked: The cookies will be soft when first out of the oven but will crisp as they cool. The edges should look crisp and the middle slightly gooey. 10-12 minutes should be perfect baking time, but if you need longer, pop them in for a further 5 minutes or so.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
- Category: cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
