These Vegan Pecan Cookies are the ultimate combination of sweet and crunchy goodness. These delicious vegan cookies are the perfect healthy fall dessert for cookie season. This easy recipe is made with clean and simple ingredients, and they're so good nobody will even know they're vegan or healthy!
I've been on a bit of a mission to create a variety of nut butter cookies after seeing how many of you loved my Gluten-Free Vegan Pistachio Cookies and my Sunflower Seed Cookies.
However, since pecans are my favorite nuts, I knew this chewy cookie recipe had to be extra special. I recently made Healthy Maple Candied Pecans, and I knew they'd be the perfect addition to today's cookie recipe!
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Vegan Maple Candied Pecan Cookies Ingredients:
These maple pecan cookies are one of my favorite cookie recipes because they are super easy to make, only require a few simple ingredients, and taste like they're straight from a bakery!
Wet Ingredients:
- Coconut Butter - I like to use coconut butter because it works a lot like coconut oil, except it contains more fiber and nutrients. This helps to make the cookies more filling and wholesome.
- Pecan Butter - The key ingredient in this cookie recipe is the Wilderness Poets pecan butter. This pecan nut butter is a mix of raw pecans and raw cashews. This makes it super smooth and creamy. Not only does this nut butter have the ultimate creamy texture, but it's made with the best quality pecans. They are organic, and the nut butter is processed at a low temperature to retain as many of the nutrients as possible.
- Vanilla Extract - I always recommend using Mexican Vanilla extract when baking. It has a much richer flavor and instantly elevates any baked good.
- Water - You will need water to create the flax egg.
Dry Ingredients:
- Maple Crystals - Another key ingredient in this vegan pecan cookie recipe is maple crystals. It's no secret that maple crystals are my favorite natural sweetener to use in baking. I tell everyone about them because they truly are game-changing. Maple crystals are crystallized maple tree sap (aka pure maple syrup). This means they retain all the vitamins and minerals and are not refined sugar. However, they work just like cane sugar, yet are sweeter and lower in calories and don't spike your blood sugar as much. It works as a 1:1 substitute for white sugar and tastes amazing!
- Gluten-Free Flour - Most gluten-free flour blends will work for this recipe. I have linked my go-to gluten-free flour. I love this one because it is made with good quality and wholesome ingredients, and tastes the most like all-purpose flour.
- Ground Flaxseed - You will need ground flaxseed to make the flax egg which is a vegan egg substitute.
- Baking Soda - This will help the cookies to spread and bake evenly.
- Cornstarch - I love adding cornstarch to my cookie recipes because it makes them perfectly chewy.
- Cinnamon - Is there a better combo than pecans and cinnamon? I don't think so! Cinnamon helps to make these candied pecan cookies the perfect holiday cookie.
- Sea Salt - Salt is another necessity in any good cookie recipe. A pinch of salt brings all the flavors together and helps the baking process.
- Healthy Maple Candied Pecans - The ingredient that sets these cookies apart from other vegan pecan cookies is the candied pecans. These healthy, crunchy nuts are the perfect addition to this recipe. If you can't make the candied pecans, you can simply use pecan halves from Wilderness Poets.
See the recipe card for quantities.
How To Make Candied Pecan Cookies:
These candied pecan cookies may seem a bit intimidating; however, they are super easy to make!
1. Begin by making the flax egg by combining the ground flaxseed and water together in a small bowl and setting aside for 10 minutes.
2. Add the flax egg and remaining wet ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Use an electric mixer to mix the wet ingredients together for a couple of minutes on medium speed until the mixture becomes fluffy.
4. Sift the dry ingredients into the large mixing bowl and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.
5. Place pecans on a cutting board and roughly chop. Add the chopped pecans to the cookie dough. Mix until combined. Let the cookie dough sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350.
6. Scoop dough out with a small cookie scoop (these cookies spread, so make sure to give them plenty of room when baking) and place the cookie dough balls on a baking sheet.
7. Place in the oven to bake for 12 minutes. Once baked and golden brown, remove from the heat and allow the baked cookies to cool on a wire rack. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Hint: If you want large cookies, use a bigger scoop, and let the cookie dough sit at room temperature. If you want smaller cookies, use a small scoop and let them sit in the fridge - this will also give you thick cookies.
Vegan Pecan Cookies Substitutions:
There are a variety of easy substitutions that can be made to this candied pecan cookie recipe.
- Sweetener - If you can't get your hands on maple crystals in time to make this recipe, there are some sweeteners that'll work. I still recommend maple crystals, because they will result in the best flavor. However, you can use coconut sugar or white sugar. Dark brown sugar will also work; however, since it is a little bit more dense I recommended removing 2 tablespoons from the original measurements.
- Flour - If you don't follow a gluten-free diet, you don't have to use gluten-free flour. You can use all-purpose flour for this recipe, or even whole wheat. If using all-purpose flour, use 1:1, and if you're using whole wheat, subtract ¼ cup from the original recipe.
- Egg - The flax egg can be replaced with either a regular egg (if you're not vegan), or a chia egg. To make a chia egg, add the chia seeds to a blender and blend until they form a powder. Use the same measurements for making the chia egg.
Variations:
These delicious cookies are perfect just the way they are. However, there are still some easy ways to mix it up.
- Vegan Butter Pecan Cookies - You can replace the coconut butter with 2 tablespoons of cashew milk-based vegan butter for the perfect buttery cookies. I like using unsalted butter since the recipe already calls for sea salt.
- Chocolate Pecan - Similar to my Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies, you can add about ⅓ cup of dark chocolate chips for the perfect mix of pecan pieces and chewy chocolate chip cookies. The dark chocolate chunks will melt and bring out the candied pecan flavor.
See my Maple Pecan Cookies for a similar vegan pecan cookie variation.
Equipment:
These vegan pecan cookies are the perfect cookies because they don't require any crazy equipment, and they're super easy.
- Mixing Bowls - You will need a small bowl and a large or medium bowl.
- Electric Mixer - You can either use a handheld mixer or a stand mixer. A whisk will also work, but it will be significantly more work.
- Large Baking Sheet - You will need a baking sheet or cookie sheet to make these cookies. If it is not a non-stick, I recommend lining the cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Cooling Rack - You will need a cooling rack of some sort. I recommend a wire rack.
Storage:
These candied pecan cookies are one of my favorite cookie recipes because they keep very well. They have crunchy pecan bits, crispy edges, and a soft chewy center. If you store these cookies properly, you preserve all these delicious textures.
The best way to store these candied pecan cookies is in an airtight container. This helps to preserve the great texture of the cookies and retain their freshness. I personally prefer chilled cookies over warm cookies, so I store mine in the fridge; however, they will keep just fine on the countertop. They will keep for about 2 weeks.
Another option is to wrap the cookies individually in plastic wrap; however, this is quite tedious. When all else fails, a plastic bag will work fine as well.
These cookies can also be frozen. If you plan to freeze them, I recommend wrapping them in plastic wrap and then storing them in a plastic bag with the air sucked out. The cookies will keep for 3 months like this.
Top Tip:
When the cookies are fresh out of the oven, use a mason jar ring and spin it around the cookies. This will give you perfectly round cookies.
Frequently Asked Questions:
If you run into the problem of your candied pecans being chewy instead of crunchy, it's most likely because you didn't cook them long enough. It's better to overcook the pecans than undercook.
To make it as simple as possible, chilling cookie dough helps to control the spreading of the cookies while baking. If you like thick cookies, I recommend chilling them; however, if you like them thin and crispy, don't refrigerate.
Related Recipes Using Maple Crystals:
Looking for other amazing recipes to make with your maple crystals? Try these:
If you try this Vegan Maple Candied Pecan Cookie recipe, I'd really love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. I'd also really appreciate a recipe card rating! Thank you for supporting The All Natural Vegan!
Vegan Maple Candied Pecan Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients:
- ¼ cup coconut butter
- ⅔ cup pecan butter
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoon water
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cup maple crystals
- 1 cup gluten-free flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tsps baking soda
- 2 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup maple candied pecans
Instructions
- Begin by making the flax egg by combining the ground flaxseed and water together in a small bowl and setting aside for 10 minutes.
- Add the flax egg and remaining wet ingredients together in a large bowl.
- Use an electric mixer to mix the wet ingredients together for a couple of minutes on medium speed until the mixture becomes fluffy.
- Sift the dry ingredients into the large mixing bowl and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.
- Place pecans on a cutting board and roughly chop. Add the chopped pecans to the cookie dough. Mix until combined. Let the cookie dough sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350.
- Scoop dough out with a small cookie scoop (these cookies spread, so make sure to give them plenty of room when baking) and place the cookie dough balls on a baking sheet.
- Place in the oven to bake for 12 minutes. Once baked and golden brown, remove from heat and allow the baked cookies to cool on a wire rack. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
More Delicious Pecan Recipes:
Looking for more delicious recipes using pecans? Try these:
Paula Rothman says
there are no pecans listed in the dry ingredients
Katie says
fixed it!