No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies

No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies

Today we are making No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies! Traditionally, a vegan gingersnap cookie recipe uses ingredients such as all purpose flour, brown sugar, white sugar, vegan butter or coconut oil, flax egg or some other egg replacer and the likes. But this vegan recipe for gingerbread cookies is both no bake and vegan, using only dates, spices, almond flour and molasses! Now this recipe is almost a raw recipe save for the molasses – some big differences in the non-raw versus raw ingredients. Sometimes, you just want an energy bite-like snack without any added sugar, and no turning on the oven or following the recipe card to turn on the stand mixer, place the cookies on the cooling rack or use a cookie scoop to make mounds of cookie goodness, right?

So Much Molasses

So I’ve had a jar of molasses sitting in my cupboard for who knows how long, with my mom having bought it to use as a sweetener. But you can’t sweeten anything without making it taste like a gingerbread cookie, right? Alas, the only thing I can use it for is gingerbread flavored desserts.

But where does molasses even come from? The flavor is intense and I can’t place my finger on what it actually tastes like. So I did some research and apparently it just forms as a byproduct of the sugar making process, from crushed sugar cane or sugar beets to extract the juice, which is then boiled to form sugar crystals. Once these crystals are removed from the leftover juice, the syrup left behind is molasses! There are many different varieties: Light, dark, blackstrap and sulfured.

How is it Made?

Light molasses is made from the first boiling, and has the lightest color and sweetest taste, commonly used in baking. Dark molasses comes from boiling it the second time around, and is thicker, darker, and not as sweet. It can also be used in baking, but has a more distinct flavor. Blackstrap molasses is made from the third boiling. It’s the thickest, darkest type, and is a little bitter. It’s been touted to have the most health benefits. Lastly, sulfured molasses contains sulfur dioxide, which is a preservative to stop the molasses from spoiling.

Did you know that molasses can also be made from sorghum, pomegranates, carob, and dates? I’ll have to buy myself a jar of pomegranate molasses … that sounds interesting. For today though, let’s keep it simple with some 15-minute vegan cookies!

Why You’ll Love These No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies

Healthy Vegan Holiday Snack: Gingersnap cookies are a sweet treat, usually being reserved for the holidays with ginger popping up around the fall and winter seasons. But you can make ginger-flavored treats year round!

This recipe uses minimal effort, just a couple ingredients and brings the flavors and holiday spices of ginger, cinnamon and molasses, but in a healthy snack that you can eat anytime of the year with your hot chocolate or hot cup of coffee (no more waiting for that time of year to get your hands on the gingerbread cookies)!

Substitutions: Wet Ingredients

Vanilla Extract: I use alcohol-free vanilla flavor without added colors or dyes. Alternatively, use vanilla powder (like from Organic Traditions brand) or a freshly scraped vanilla bean.

Dates: Use soft, pitted Medjool dates. These are the most caramel-like as compared to other dates. Plump black raisins may also work to hold the dough together instead.

When all the ingredients are mixed together, it becomes a sort of gingersnap cookie dough because the dates create a chewier cookie texture!

Molasses: I used light molasses, which was found in the baking aisle. This is the most common type of molasses to use in cookies. You can also use dark molasses, depending on how strong you prefer the molasses flavor.

Substitutions: Dry Ingredients

Almond Flour: Use almond flour to get a buttery texture. Bob’s Red Mill is a great brand that makes almond flour and can be found at health food stores or in the natural aisle of many grocery stores.

Other gluten-free options that may work are almond meal, or quick-cooking oats or rolled oats to keep it nut-free. If using rolled oats, which are larger flake, pulse them in the blender first to get them into smaller pieces before blending with the rest of the recipe (or use oat flour). I haven’t tried this myself though.

For those with a gluten allergy, look for a specifically labeled gluten-free version of oats, due to cross contamination.

Ginger: Use ginger powder (ground ginger). This blends the best to incorporate into the dough, which freshly grated ginger does not.

Cinnamon: Use cinnamon powder (ground cinnamon). To make this at home, take fresh cinnamon sticks and add them to a spice grinder until a powder forms. The fresher the spice, the better a recipe tastes!

No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies Notes

• Top your cookies with a little bit of goji berries and hemp seeds, as in the photos. Or with cacao nibs, pumpkin seeds or other raw toppings!
• Roll the cookies in coarse sugar to get a crunchy exterior!

More Cookie Recipes & Desserts You’ll Love

Chickpea Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

No Bake Decadent Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

No Bake Butter Pecan Cookie Bites

Raw Salted Caramel Brownies

3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies

Chocolate Chip Oat Cranberry Bars

No Bake Cashew Banana Cookies

If you make these No Bake Vegan Gingersnap Cookies, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!