Tweak to bake either on the thin and crispy side or chunky and with a bit of chew: either way, these scrumptious monster cookies deliver gleeful delight—vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free, and easily made from wholesome ingredients!

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When it comes to evoking nostalgia, home-baked cookies are right up there. You don’t even need the signature wafting aromas—although the scents of vanilla, warm spices, and chocolate never fail to offer heady sensations of anticipatory delight. Even, and sometimes especially, no-bake refrigerator cookies do the trick. Just thinking of my mom’s butterscotch cornflake or chocolate oatmeal peanut butter cookies in summer, I feel like a kid wrapped up in a bear hug. While one of the many beauties of cookies is the endless rainbow variety, certain classics are indisputably a must for every cookie-baking repetoire. I most certainly count Monster Cookies among those gems. So does my son, which I still kick myself for realizing a little bit late.

Growing up, I probably took it too much for granted that we enjoyed home-cooked meals on the regular. We weren’t plant-based, but we could probably call ourselves plant-strong. We had traditional Asian and American foods. My mom was pretty health-conscious and extremely budget sensitive, so there weren’t a lot of splurges on store-bought snacks, at least when there were two of us kids (once we were three, all bets were off for a while). Nevertheless, we were sometimes allowed to indulge in what was typical junk food treats. I don’t think of them as special, but I can admit to a little bit of occasional nostalgia for Little Debbie cupcakes, Nutter Butters, even Chips Ahoy.

Not long after our son was born, Dave and I went fully vegan. As F grew, he was fiercely committed to the diet, foremost for the animals and to a lesser degree because of a dairy allergy. As I love to cook, I delighted in being able to make vegan versions of whatever snacks we wanted. Our son’s sparkling smiles were like endorphins; he’s nearly a teen now, and they still have the power to buoy me up like nothing else.

It never occurred to me that F wouldn’t tell me about a treat he really wanted. Then one day, maybe in third grade, he shyly asked, “Is there any way we could find vegan M&Ms? So we can put them in chocolate chip cookies? You know, like the big grocery store ones in the clear plastic boxes? The birthday ones?” It was just a simple question but the way it was asked—so unassuming and soft—really tugged my heart. It turned out there had been a handful of class celebrations with monster cookies, and F had politely abstained. Quick to peer at labels, he refused the butter and milk, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t quietly longing. Obviously, I jumped to the challenge of ripping through numerous variations of monster cookies to taste test, each representing differing degrees of “healthy-for-cookies” attributes. This one is my favorite—a compromise that really isn’t. Everyone wins wholeheartedly.

What Makes these Vegan, Gluten-Free Monster Cookies Better

This isn't your average sugar-bomb monster cookie; it’s more of a nutrient-dense glow-up of the childhood classic. Creamy tahini lends a luxurious, binding texture packed with heart-healthy fats and essential minerals like calcium and iron. A wholesome blend of gluten-free flour, almond flour, and oats offers a complex carbohydrate profile and a solid hit of plant-based protein and fiber that won't send your blood sugar on a roller coaster.

Speaking of sugar, this recipe keeps things incredibly mindful: a mere half-cup of pure maple syrup sweetens the entire dozen. Date sugar works, too, but you may need to add a little bit of liquid (water or plant milk) or tahini. I won’t pretend the yummy yields are a health food, but they’re much more wholesome than most, and you can upgrade the traditional addends, too. I’ve just discovered Just Date organic, date-sweetened dark chocolate chips, and wow! I’ve wanted to try for some time, but they seemed like too much of a splurge. Now, though, all chocolate chips seem steep, so given the price tag was going to be what it was regardless, why not go for the best? For the M&M substitutes, we’re so lucky to have options like the Unreal Dark Chocolate Peanut Gems or Dark Chocolate Crispy Quinoa Gems. Between these, you all the nostalgic, chocolatey crunch of a traditional monster cookie without the artificial dyes, hydrogenated oils, or refined sugar crash.

Adjusting Texture to Taste

I shouldn’t get ahead of myself, but in case you’re like us and find you like to alternate between cookies that spread more thinly and those that remain chunky, we’re stumbled on a trick with this recipe. The secret’s in the chia “egg”—at least, this small adjustment has worked for us so far.

Here it is: include the chia seeds either way, but let the seeds set in the water for a few minutes as a standard chia egg before mixing for a chunkier cookier. If you want your batter to spread more thinly, getting that crisper finish, add the chia seeds to the mix and carefully add up to the two and a half tablespoons of water as you mix to achieve a spreadable consistency—you don’t want it to be too runny! There are other factors that will play into the end result—the runniness of the tahini, even the room temperature. Good news, this is a very forgiving recipe. You can adjust by adding oats, almond flour, gluten-free flour, or liquid a little bit here and there while trusting the end result will be yummiliscious.

Same blend mixed just a little differently results in a thinner consistency—both equally yumazing!

Whenever I bake a batch of these, invariably I flash back to that small but revealing moment when F asked if we could please find a way to make Monster Cookies. I think of the unspoilt sweetness in the delivery, and of that strong, little human dedication of his. But also, I look back with appreciative understanding that we don’t have to want the reality of something to feel outside of the fun. How lucky we are to have the abilities to notice barriers to any kind of welcome, and to create new open doors. Someimes they’re just the smallest, gentlest of offerings—a simple cookie alongside everyone else—but such small somethings can be also extraordinary. xo

Yield: 12

Author: Wendy McMillan

Healthier Monster Cookies (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined-Sugar Free)

Made with wholesome ingredients, these scrumptious monster cookies are a delight!

Prep time: 7 MinCook time: 12 MinTotal time: 19 Min

Ingredients

1/2 Cup runny tahini
1/2 Cup pure maple syrup
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon chia seeds (plus 2.5 Tablespoons water, see note for options)
1/2 Cup gluten-free flour (I've used a blend and also oat flour successfully)
1/4 Cup almond flour
3/4 Cup rolled oats (can reduce if you prefer a thinner cookie)
3/4 Teaspoon baking soda
Pinch sea salt
1/2 to 3/4 Cup combination of dairy-free chocolate chips and vegan M&M style candies, such as Unreal gems

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment or silpat and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, ad the tahini, maple syrup, vanilla, and chia seeds in 2.5 Tablespoons water. (Note, prepare this as a chia "egg" and let sit a couple of minutes before mixing if you want a chunkier cookie. If you prefer a more spreadable batter for a thinner cookie, I've found just stirring in the chia seeds and adding water at the same time helps achieve this.) Stir to combine.
On top of the wet mixture, lightly add the gluten-free and almond flours, baking soda, and salt. Carefully give just these dry ingredients a light whisk or stir, then stir to mix in with the wet, forming a sticky dough.
Stir in the chocolate chips and candies. Drop large spoonfuls on the baking sheet. Bake 12 minutes. Let cool slightly before enjoying.

Notes

These store great in the freezer, up to 3 months if you can make them last that long!

Nutrition Facts

Calories

172

Fat

4 g

Sat. Fat

2 g

Carbs

33 g

Fiber

2 g

Net carbs

31 g

Sugar

24 g

Protein

2 g

Sodium

74 mg

Cholesterol

0 mg

Gluten-Free, Vegan, Lower Sugar/Refined Sugar-Free Monster Cookies