Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies (Bakery-Style)

These Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies are deliciously crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside – just like your favorite bakery-style cookies! Learn how to bake the best egg-free chocolate chip cookies with these tips and tricks. 

Whether you have an egg allergy, are following a vegan diet, or just can’t keep up with the high price of eggs, you don’t have to give up your favorite cookie recipes. Or maybe you just ran out of eggs when your sweet tooth hit!

With a few simple adjustments, you can make deliciously sweet, perfectly chewy eggless chocolate chip cookies at home.

There’s also an option to turn these into vegan chocolate chip cookies! Let’s get started.

Why This Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Works

Eggs are key to baking for a few reasons: the fat and protein help give baked goods their structure, plus eggs add moisture. They can also act as a leavening agent, helping the dough rise up as it bakes for an air-filled, fluffy texture.

When you’re baking vegan recipes or eggless recipes, it’s important to use an egg substitute that mimics these characteristics. Learn more about replacing eggs in recipes in this post, which covers different egg substitutes and common swaps like a flax egg, applesauce, and more. 

Here’s what makes this eggless chocolate chip cookie recipe work so well:

• Dark brown sugar adds some moisture and helps get that nice golden brown color like regular chocolate chip cookies. 
• The peanut butter (or nut butter or tahini) adds much-needed fat since there is no egg yolk. The flavor is noticeable but subtle, so you still get the familiar flavor you’re craving.
• Resting the dough for at least an hour is key for chewy cookies. The sugar starts to dissolve, which helps it retain moisture during baking. Instead of crumbly, dry cookies, they should be nice and soft with crispy edges that hold together. 

The final result should be the best eggless chocolate chip cookies you’ve ever made. No special ingredients or equipment needed!

As written, this recipe is intended to make cookies that are taller, fluffier, and more cake-like. If you’re looking for a cookie that’s denser and chewier, check the recipe card notes for alterations!

Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients

Nothing fancy here, just the same simple ingredients you’ll recognize from recipes for classic chocolate chip cookies:

• All-purpose flour
• Brown sugar and white sugar
• Unsalted butter or a vegan butter alternative
• Creamy peanut butter, nut butter (like almond butter), or tahini
• Vanilla extract
• Semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
• Baking soda, baking powder, salt, and a little bit of water

(full ingredient list and quantities can be found in the recipe card below)

Street Smart Nutrition Tip: Measuring flour can be highly variable based on the method. If using measuring cups (by volume) sift or spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level off with the back of a knife to avoid packing down the flour. If measuring by weight using a kitchen scale, use 300 grams. This helps you avoid accidentally using too much flour and ending up with a dry, crumbly dough.

Swaps and Substitutions

Just like with any other chocolate chip cookie recipe, there are plenty of things you can mix in or add!

• Chopped nuts, like pecans or walnuts
• Rolled oats for eggless oatmeal chocolate chip cookies
• M&Ms or small pieces of your favorite candy bar
• Add a sprinkle of sea salt if you’re craving that sweet & salty combo

This eggless chocolate chip cookie recipe is 100% vegan and plant-based if you use a vegan butter alternative. You can also use melted coconut oil.

​For a gluten-free version, switch to your preferred GF flour. I usually use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour because it’s an easy conversion.

How to Make Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies

This easy recipe follows the same steps as regular cookies – you just don’t have to crack any eggs! Here’s my step-by-step guide:

1. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. 
2. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar (dark brown and white), butter or vegan butter alternative, nut butter, water, and vanilla. Whisk together until smooth and thick. Note: if you start with softened butter, you can do this with a whisk or fork. But use a hand mixer or electric mixer if needed.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the larger mixing bowl with the dry ingredients. Fold together until mostly combined, then add the chocolate chips and mix until a thick, dense dough forms.
4. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour (or up to two hours).
5. To bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion out the cookie dough, about two tablespoons each. Gently roll the dough into balls and place 2″ apart and don’t press down. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges are browned but the centers are still soft. 
7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheet to finish setting. 

These eggless chocolate chip cookies won’t spread much during baking. But don’t crowd your oven! Bake one tray at a time to allow for proper air circulation and even baking.

Once they’re cool, they’re ready to enjoy! The best part is breaking apart a warm cookie, fresh out of the oven, and seeing the melty chocolate chips inside. I serve mine with a glass of ice cold milk, but use a non-dairy milk alternative if you’re keeping it vegan. 

Baking Tips

It takes some practice to make the perfect cookie! Here are my best tips to help you get great results with this eggless chocolate chip cookie recipe:

• Use a cookie scoop to make sure the cookie dough balls are all the same size. This helps them bake evenly in the same amount of time. 
• Don’t put your baking sheet on the bottom rack. It’s too close to the heat source in most ovens, and the bottoms may darken or even burn.
• For soft cookies with chewy centers, slightly underbake the cookies. Let them cool on the baking sheet (as opposed to transferring them to a cooling rack).
• Don’t skip the chill time! It’s what helps get the perfect texture.
• Always start with a preheated oven so the oven temperature is the same throughout baking. Start with 12-14 minutes, but adjust the baking time as needed to avoid under- or overbaking your cookies.

And if you’re baking cookies like these often, it might be worth investing in a reusable silicone baking mat. It’s a great option for easy cleanup but doesn’t create as much waste as parchment paper since you can use it over and over again. 

Storing Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies

Stash your extra cookies in an airtight container. They can stay out on the countertop for 3-4 days. But good luck getting them to last that long!

I hope you agree that these are the best eggless cookies out there! The first time I made them, friends and family couldn’t even tell there were no eggs in the dough. I’d love to know what you think, so leave me a comment or rating at the bottom of this post!

As always, thanks for stopping by the Street Smart Nutrition blog. Cheers to more fearlessly nourishing meals!