Vegan Ube Crinkle Cookies, a Filipino and vegan twist to the classic crinkle cookie! These cookies are so soft, moist, and bursting with ube flavors. It's the perfect combination by using Filipino flavors in a traditional American-style cookie. Trust me, they are so good, it'll be hard to eat just one!
What is ube?
Pronounced as: “OO-BEH”, ube is a purple yam and is a staple ingredient for Filipino desserts. They are usually boiled and mashed and are used a lot in jams or to color sweet treats. It has a mild and sweet flavor, which some have said is a cross between vanilla and pistachio. Another thing, most people confuse it with taro, and the short answer is, no, they are not the same. Taro is often used in savory cooking, while ube is used for sweets.
What is ube halaya?
Ube halaya (oo-beh ha-lah-yah) is essentially ube jam and is a base for most ube flavored treats. It's not the type of jam you normally use on toast, I mean, you can if you wanted to! However, it's more eaten as a dessert, yes it can be eaten on its own. The way they make this jam is by boiling and mashing purple yam. Adding dairy and sugar and cooked over a stovetop until it's well combined and you get a creamy and thick jam! I've eaten this topped with cheese and even latik (coconut curds), so good!
I grew up eating a lot of Filipino treats, halo-halo, macapuno cake, buko pandan, puto, leche flan, kutsinta, taho, sapin-sapin, the list can go on. However, my favorite Filipino flavor is ube. Ube is top tier for me, I just love the flavor, and nothing can compare to it. It explains why I have so many ube flavored treats on my blog because it's just that good. And making these treats brings me closer to home. And I wanted to share this experience with you guys!
Top tips for making vegan ube crinkle cookies:
Making these cookies is quite simple and easy to make, and yes, making them vegan is possible! Here are some of my top tips for making a successful vegan ube crinkle cookie.
- Use a food scale. Using a food scale will be your best friend in this recipe. It's much more precise than using measuring cups. Why? In short, if you using measuring cups you can be adding way more ingredients, such as flour or sugar than intended. Which will cause the cookies or whatever you're baking to look completely different. If you've been following for some time now, I highly suggest investing in a food scale. It'll change your baking life!
- Get good quality and best-flavored ube halaya (and make sure it's vegan). Ube halaya is a key ingredient, it's the main component that gives these cookies their ube flavor. Without it, it'll just taste like a regular vanilla cookie. I've tried using various ube halaya, and my best advice is to get a brand that you trust. Why do I say that? Because some brands don't have a good ube flavor, and it doesn't give these cookies justice!
- Use ube extract. This just enhances the flavor even more, if you don't want to use it that's fine! You'll just get a little less flavor.
- Where to find ube halaya and ube extract? I found my key ingredients at my local Filipino store! You can most likely find these ingredients at your local Asian market. I don't recommend buying it online because they really jack up the price.
- Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer. This type of cookie uses the creaming method, which means combining butter and sugar until you get a light and creamy texture. Using a machine for this will make the process go by faster, otherwise, you'll be using a lot of arm muscle to get it at the right texture.
- Chilling the dough. This cookie dough is quite soft and sticky and to reduce this, chilling the dough for 30 minutes will help. Not only that, but allowing the dough to rest in the fridge will also build up the flavors.
- Two-step coating process. I like to toss my cookie dough in both granulated sugar and powdered sugar. Using granulated sugar first helps produce the perfect crackly texture and also keeps the powdered sugar in place!
- You can store these cookies in an airtight container. The longer they sit, the flavor will deepen, and will the ube flavor will be more distinct!
If you enjoyed this vegan ube crinkle cookie recipe, check these out:
If you’d tried this recipe out let me know in the comments! Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram @flouredframe and don’t forget to tag me when you create my recipes! Happy cooking!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Ube Crinkle Cookies
Equipment
- Food scale highly recommended
- Measuring spoons
- Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- Rubber spatula
- Bowl cover or plastic wrap
- Medium cookie scoop
- Parchment Paper or silpat mat
- Rimmed baking sheet
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
- 320 grams all-purpose flour (fluffed, spooned, and leveled, see notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 113 grams vegan butter (softened at room temperature)
- 200 grams granulated sugar
- 60 grams non-dairy milk ( lukewarm)
- 160 grams ube halaya (ube jam)
- 1 tablespoon ube extract (see notes)
- 50 grams granulated sugar (to coat)
- 50 grams powdered sugar, (to coat)
Instructions
- If you haven’t already, remove 1 stick of butter from the fridge and allow it to soften to room temp. It’ll take about 30-45 minutes.
- While you wait, in a medium mixing bowl mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside until ready to use.
- In a large bowl, whip the softened butter until light and creamy. Add in the granulated sugar and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- Next, add in the non-dairy milk and mix. Scraping down the bowl if needed.
- Then, add in the ube halaya and ube extract and mix until well combined.
- At low speed, add in the flour mixture in batches until fully incorporated. At this stage, the dough will be very sticky.
- Cover the surface of the dough with plastic wrap (or cover the bowl with a reusable bowl cover) and place it in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill. see notes
- In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit and prep a baking sheet with a Silpat or a piece of parchment paper. Also prep one bowl of granulated sugar and another bowl with powdered sugar. Set aside until ready to use.
- Once the dough is ready, remove it from the fridge and uncover the bowl. Using a medium-sized cookie scoop, scoop out some dough and with your hands shape it into a round ball. Place it on the baking sheet and repeat.
- Roll the dough balls in the granulated sugar first and then in the powdered sugar. Place it back on the baking sheet and repeat. Make sure to have the dough balls 1-2 inches apart.
- Bake 15-17 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and cracked on top. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to wire cooling racks, to cool completely. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Use a food scale. Using a food scale will be your best friend in this recipe. It's much more precise than using measuring cups. Why? In short, if you using measuring cups you can be adding way more ingredients, such as flour or sugar than intended. Which will cause the cookies or whatever you're baking to look completely different. If you've been following for some time now, I highly suggest investing in a food scale. It'll change your baking life!
- If you don't have a food scale, please watch this video before starting! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdgJkooeWG8
- Get good quality and best-flavored ube halaya (and make sure it's vegan). Ube halaya is a key ingredient, it's the main component that gives these cookies its ube flavor. Without it, it'll just taste like a regular vanilla cookie. I've tried using various ube halaya, and my best advice is to get a brand that you trust. Why do I say that? Because there are some brands that don't have a good ube flavor, and it doesn't give these cookies justice!
- Use ube extract. This just enhances the flavor even more, if you don't want to use it that's fine! You'll just get a little less flavor.
- Where to find ube halaya and ube extract? I found my key ingredients at my local Filipino store! You can most likely find these ingredients at your local Asian market. I don't recommend buying it online because they jack up the price.
- Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer. This type of cookie uses the creaming method, which basically means combining butter and sugar together until you get a light and creamy texture. Using a machine for this will make the process go by faster, otherwise, you'll be using a lot of arm muscle to get it at the right texture.
- Chilling the dough. This cookie dough is quite soft and sticky and to reduce this, chilling the dough for 30 minutes will help. Not only that, but allowing the dough to rest in the fridge will also build up the flavors.
- Two-step coating process. I like to toss my cookie dough in both granulated sugar and powdered sugar. Using granulated sugar first helps produce the perfect crackly texture and also keeps the powdered sugar in place!
- You can store these cookies in an airtight container. The longer they sit, the flavor will deepen and will the ube flavor will be more distinct!
Sierra says
Can we use different flavors too? Like pineapple or even passionfruit?
Floured Frame says
Hi there, so this recipe is specifically made for ube. There is an added ingredient that this recipe has that can't be substituted.
Alexia says
I made these for my family and they were a hit! Thank you
Floured Frame says
Thank you for making this recipe! I'm so glad it's a hit with your family. It's definitely a hit with mine! 🙂
kitty says
your recipe asks for both baking powder and baking soda but the instructions only mention the powder! i assumed they both go in with the flour but just wanted to point that out so you could make the instructions clearer for beginners like me 🙂
Floured Frame says
Thank you for spotting that! I will make that fix.
AA says
Made these and everyone liked them more than a non-vegan version I made! The texture was slightly crispy but chewy/moist on the inside. I made some with and without granulated sugar coating and they were fine with just the powdered sugar coating too. Can these be made with gluten-free flour?
Floured Frame says
I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe! These are definitely a hit whenever I bring them to a party. As for gluten-free flour, I haven't tried it, but you can try the 1-to-1 all-purpose gluten-free flour. It might work!
Kristine B. says
What brand of vegan ube halaya did you use for this recipe? Do you have a preferred brand as well for non-vegan ube halaya?
Floured Frame says
Hi! I actually have my own vegan ube halaya recipe, which I use for all my ube recipes. https://flouredframe.com/vegan-ube-halaya/
Arisha Alam says
Honestly, I'm 13, and I really want to gobble this up, taking every bite of the cookie, and feeling its softness, chewiness, etc. Whenever I lose some more weight tho
Floured Frame says
I'm so glad you enjoyed these cookies!