Quick & Easy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies for One: Your Perfect Small Batch Treat

Indulge your sweet tooth without the fuss of a full batch with this incredibly simple and quick vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe for one. Designed for instant gratification, this recipe yields either two perfectly sized cookies or one gloriously giant cookie, ensuring you always have a warm, freshly baked treat ready when a craving strikes. Made with basic storecupboard ingredients, these eggless and dairy-free delights are your go-to solution for a fast, delicious, and satisfying dessert experience.

Why a Small Batch Cookie Recipe is Your Best Friend

Have you ever found yourself with an intense craving for a warm, gooey chocolate chip cookie, but hesitated because you didn’t want to bake a whole dozen? This “cookies for one” recipe is the ultimate answer to that dilemma! It’s specifically designed for those moments when you need a sweet treat, but don’t want the excess, the extra cleanup, or the temptation of an entire tray of cookies. Whether you live alone, are the only one in your household with a sweet tooth, or simply want to practice portion control, this small batch approach is incredibly convenient.

In under half an hour, you can go from craving to enjoying a delightful cookie that’s crisp and chewy around the edges, yet wonderfully soft and melty in the middle – just like the best cookies should be. It’s about satisfying that immediate desire for something sweet and comforting without any waste or complicated steps. This recipe makes the joy of fresh baking accessible any time, without the commitment of a large-scale project.

The Magic of Vegan & Allergy-Friendly Baking

What makes these cookies even more special is their vegan nature. This means they are completely free from eggs and dairy, making them suitable for those with dietary restrictions, allergies, or anyone choosing a plant-based lifestyle. We achieve this deliciousness by using readily available plant-based alternatives:

• Vegan Block Butter: This replaces traditional dairy butter, providing the necessary fat content for a rich flavor and tender crumb. Many excellent brands are available in most supermarkets, offering a taste and texture remarkably similar to dairy butter.
• Non-Dairy Milk: A small splash of almond, soy, oat, or any other plant-based milk adds moisture and helps bind the dough, ensuring a smooth consistency without needing dairy. It also contributes to the overall richness without adding any animal products.

You won’t miss the traditional ingredients; these cookies prove that vegan baking can be just as, if not more, indulgent and satisfying. Plus, using simple storecupboard ingredients means you likely already have everything you need on hand, eliminating the need for a special grocery run. Enjoying a plant-based cookie is not only delicious but also a great way to explore sustainable eating practices.

Crafting Your Perfect Single-Serve Cookie: A Step-by-Step Guide

Creating these delightful cookies is incredibly straightforward. Here’s a closer look at each step, along with tips to ensure perfect results every time, from ingredient selection to the final delicious bite.

Essential Ingredients & Why They Work

• Vegan Block Butter (softened): This is crucial for achieving that classic cookie texture and richness. Softened butter creams beautifully with sugar, creating air pockets that contribute to a lighter, chewier texture. If you don’t have block butter, a neutral-flavored oil like sunflower, canola, or even melted coconut oil can be substituted, though the texture might vary slightly. Ensure it’s truly softened, not melted, for the best results when creaming.
• Light Brown Soft Sugar: This type of sugar is a game-changer for cookie texture. Its molasses content provides moisture, contributing significantly to the chewy interior of the cookie and adding a lovely depth of flavor with subtle caramel notes.
• Caster (Superfine) Sugar: The finer texture of caster sugar helps create a slightly crisper edge on the cookie and aids in even mixing with the butter, dissolving more easily than granulated sugar.
• Vanilla Extract: An essential flavor enhancer that brings warmth and sweetness to the chocolate and balances the overall taste of the cookie. A good quality vanilla can elevate your cookie experience significantly, so don’t skip it!
• Non-Dairy Milk: Just a touch of plant milk helps to bring the dough together, ensuring it’s not too dry and bakes evenly. It also helps achieve the desired consistency when creaming the butter and sugars.
• Plain (All-Purpose) Flour: The structural base of your cookie. Accurate measurement here is paramount for the right consistency. Too much flour can make the cookies dry and crumbly, while too little can make them spread too much.
• Cornflour (Cornstarch): A secret ingredient for many cookie recipes! Cornflour helps to tenderize the cookie, making it exceptionally soft and slightly chewy, and prevents it from becoming too cakey or dry. It contributes to that desirable melt-in-your-mouth quality.
• Baking Powder: Our primary leavening agent. This chemical leavener reacts with moisture and heat to create carbon dioxide bubbles, providing a slight lift and contributing to the cookie’s soft, airy interior.
• Pinch of Salt: Often overlooked, salt is crucial for balancing the sweetness and enhancing all the other flavors, especially the rich dark chocolate. It prevents the cookie from tasting flat and brings out its best qualities.
• Dark Chocolate (chopped or chips): While chocolate chips are convenient, chopping a bar of good quality dark chocolate provides varying sizes of chocolate pieces, leading to delightful pockets of melted chocolate throughout the cookie. Choose a vegan-friendly dark chocolate with at least 70% cocoa solids for a rich, intense flavor.

The Simple Process

Before you begin your delicious journey, remember to preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas Mark 4) and line a baking sheet with baking parchment. This ensures your cookies bake evenly, prevents sticking, and makes for easy cleanup.

1. Cream the Wet Ingredients: In a small bowl, combine your softened vegan block butter (or oil), light brown soft sugar, caster sugar, vanilla extract, and non-dairy milk. Mix these together thoroughly until they are smooth and well combined. Don’t worry if the mixture looks a little curdled at first; this is perfectly normal due to the small liquid content and won’t affect the final cookie.
2. Combine Dry Ingredients: Add the plain flour, cornflour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt to the wet mixture. Mix gently until a stiff dough forms. Be careful not to overmix, as this can develop the gluten in the flour, leading to tougher cookies. Stop mixing as soon as the flour streaks disappear.
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4. Add the Chocolate: Fold in most of the chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips. For an extra aesthetic touch and to ensure beautiful pools of melted chocolate on top, reserve a few chocolate chunks to press into the top of the cookie before baking. This makes for a more visually appealing cookie that truly looks irresistible.
5. Shape Your Cookies: You have a delightful choice here! You can divide the dough precisely in half and roll it into two separate balls for two perfectly portioned cookies, ideal for sharing or saving one for later. Alternatively, roll the entire batch into one large ball for a truly indulgent giant cookie experience. Place them spaced apart on your prepared baking sheet. If you reserved chocolate chunks, gently press them into the tops of the dough balls now for that bakery-style finish.
6. Bake to Perfection: Place your baking sheet in the preheated oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes if you are making two smaller cookies, or 15-18 minutes for one giant cookie. Look for golden edges as an indicator that they are done. The center might still look slightly soft and underbaked, but resist the urge to bake longer; they will firm up as they cool.
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8. Cool and Enjoy: This is arguably the hardest part of the process! Allow your cookies to cool on the baking sheet for at least ten minutes before attempting to move or eat them. This crucial cooling time allows the cookies to set, firm up, and fully develop their ideal chewy-soft texture. Dig in too soon, and they might fall apart, still too delicate from the oven’s heat. Once cooled, they are ready to be savored!

Tips for Achieving the Ultimate Cookie Texture

The hallmark of a truly great chocolate chip cookie is its texture: perfectly crisp and chewy around the edges, yielding to a soft, gooey center. Here’s how to ensure your single-serve cookies hit all the right notes every single time:

• Accurate Measurements are Key: Given the incredibly small quantities in this recipe, precision is paramount. Using a digital kitchen scale for gram measurements whenever possible will yield the most consistent and accurate results. Small deviations in ingredients can significantly impact the final texture of these delicate cookies.
• Don’t Overmix the Dough: Once you add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mix just until combined. Overmixing the flour develops gluten, which can lead to a tough, dense cookie rather than a tender one. Stop mixing as soon as there are no visible streaks of dry flour.
• Embrace the Cooling Time: Resist the urge to eat them straight out of the oven! The cookies are still very fragile and hot. The residual heat continues to cook the cookies, and the cooling process allows them to set, firm up, and achieve that perfect chewy-soft balance. This step is non-negotiable for optimal texture.

Variations & Customizations for Your Single Treat

While classic chocolate chip is always a winner, don’t hesitate to get creative with your single-serve cookie! Here are a few ideas to personalize your treat and make it uniquely yours:

• Nutty Delight: Add a tablespoon of finely chopped walnuts, pecans, or almonds to the dough for extra crunch, texture, and a nutty depth of flavor.
• Dried Fruit Infusion: Incorporate a few dried cranberries, cherries, or raisins for a chewy, fruity twist that complements the chocolate beautifully.
• Spice It Up: A tiny pinch of cinnamon, a dash of nutmeg, or even a hint of espresso powder can add a warm, complex layer of flavor to your cookie, elevating its profile.
• Different Chocolates: Experiment with vegan white chocolate chips, vegan “milk” chocolate alternatives, or even a mix of dark and “milk” chocolate for varied sweetness and flavor profiles.

Need A Bigger Batch? We’ve Got You Covered!

Sometimes, two cookies (or one giant one) just aren’t enough, especially if you’re hosting a small gathering or feeding a larger family. If you find yourself needing more, our full-sized vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe is perfect, yielding 8 delicious cookies. You can even easily double that recipe to make 16, ensuring there’s enough for everyone! For ultimate convenience, the dough for larger batches can often be frozen in individual portions and the cookies baked directly from the freezer whenever a craving strikes, ensuring you always have a stash of homemade goodness ready to go. No more last-minute baking panics!

Beyond cookies, you might also love my small batch vegan brownies recipe – it makes just four perfectly fudgy brownies, another ideal treat for one or two!

More Vegan Cookie Inspirations

If you’ve fallen in love with these single-serve wonders and are looking for more plant-based baking adventures, explore more of our delightful vegan cookie creations. There’s a world of eggless and dairy-free deliciousness waiting to be discovered:

• Classic Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
• Chocolate Raspberry Skillet Cookie for Two
• Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you tried this recipe, we’d absolutely love to see your creations! Tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and use the hashtag #domesticgothess to share your delicious cookies with our community. Happy baking!

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