These Eggless Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies are soft, fudgy, and beautifully festive—perfect for holiday baking without the stress. They’re made with simple pantry ingredients, no eggs, and a rich red velvet flavor that feels cozy and special. The powdered-sugar “snowy” crinkles make them look straight off Santa’s plate, and the chewy brownie-like centers guarantee they’ll disappear fast. Ideal for allergy-friendly cookie swaps, kid helpers, and busy December afternoons.

This recipe is part of The Great Eggless Holiday Cookie Bake-Off 2025! Let’s make this season extra sweet together. And if you’re building cookie boxes this year, don’t miss my Holiday Egg-Free Cookie Box Guide — it’ll help you put everything together beautifully.

A stack of three eggless red velvet crinkle cookies coated in powdered sugar sits on a cooling rack, with more cookies in the background.

Oriana’s Thoughts On The Recipe

These Eggless Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies have become a favorite in my home because they bring that classic red velvet charm with a fun, crinkly, powdered-sugar coat. They are fudgy inside with those slightly crisp, snowy tops we all love.

And truly, this recipe is as approachable as it gets. No fancy steps. No special ingredients. Everything comes together easily, even if your holiday to-do list is overflowing. These cookies bring a little joy, a little color, and a whole lot of “everyone can enjoy this” to your holiday table.

Why You’ll Want to Try My Recipe

Crispy Meets Fudgy: The edges have a subtle crunch, while the inside stays soft, moist, and brownie-like. Total cookie perfection.
Festive look: Classic red velvet color with snowy crinkles.
Easy ingredients: Everything is pantry-friendly.
Egg-Free, Easily Allergy-Friendly: Completely eggless and easy to make dairy-free and even gluten-free with simple swaps.
Kid-approved: Perfect for little helpers to roll and coat.
Holiday-ready: Ideal for cookie trays, swaps, and gifting.

Ingredients You’ll Need, Substitutions & Notes

Top-down view of labeled baking ingredients in bowls for Eggless Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies, including flour, salt, baking powder, cocoa powder, vanilla, red gel food coloring, sugars, evaporated milk, and oil.

Scroll down to the recipe card for all the details, including measurements and instructions.

Oil (Vegetable or Canola): Keeps the cookies soft and moist. Oil also helps prevent drying out, especially in egg-free baking.
Evaporated Milk: Adds richness and moisture. It makes the cookies tender without needing eggs. To make dairy-free, use canned coconut milk.
Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the cookies and helps create those crisp edges.
Brown Sugar: Adds moisture and a slight caramel flavor, keeping the centers fudgy.
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: Just a little is needed to bring that classic red velvet hint of chocolate.
Pure Vanilla Extract: Boosts the overall flavor and balances the chocolate notes.
Red Gel Food Coloring: Gives the cookies their festive red velvet look. Gel is best for vibrant color without thinning the dough.
All-Purpose Flour: Forms the structure of the cookies.
Baking Powder: Helps the cookies rise and creates those pretty cracks on top.
Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances flavor.
Powdered Sugar (for coating): Creates the snowy, crinkly look we all love.

Food Allergy Swaps

This recipe is naturally egg, nut, peanut, soy, sesame, fish, and shellfish-free, making it suitable for most dietary needs, but always check labels for hidden allergens.

Dairy-Free: To make this recipe dairy-free, you can easily swap out the dairy ingredients for non-dairy alternatives.
- Evaporated Milk: Use evaporated coconut milk or evaporated oat milk, or make your own dairy-free evaporated milk with your favorite plant-based milk. Evaporated milk is just milk that has been reduced to eliminate the water content, so it’s super easy to make at home with any milk of your choice. Check out my How to Make Evaporated Milk post. If evaporated milk is not an option, you can use any dairy-free milk, but keep in mind that the texture might change slightly.
Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free, all-purpose flour blend. Look for a gluten-free flour blend specifically formulated for baking, as it will have the right combination of flours and starches to mimic the texture of wheat flour. My favorite is Better Batter Original Blend. I also like Doves Farm Freee Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour, but this blend does not contain xanthan gum, so you need to add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum per cup (140 g) of gluten-free flour blend.

Process Overview: Step-by-Step Photos

Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).

Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Combine Wet Ingredients

In a medium bowl, whisk together the oil, evaporated milk, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and red gel food coloring until smooth and well combined.

Mix Wet and Dry

Pour the wet ingredients into your dry mixture and stir until everything comes together into a soft dough. Don’t overthink it—just mix until you don’t see any dry spots. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pop it into the fridge for at least 2 hours. This step is what gives the cookies those pretty crinkles and keeps them from spreading too much.

Scoop, Roll, and Coat

When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop out about 1-inch balls of dough (roughly 1 1/2 tablespoons). Roll each one well in powdered sugar—really coat them. Then place them on your baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches of space between them.

TIP:

Roll the cookies in a thick layer of powdered sugar twice for the best crinkle effect.

Bake

Bake for 8–10 minutes, just until the cookies puff up and those gorgeous crackles appear on top. They’ll look soft—don’t worry, that’s exactly what you want. Let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for a few minutes so they can set up, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely. Now try not to eat them all at once!

Recipe Tips For Success

➤ Troubleshooting Tips:

Dough too sticky: Red velvet cookie dough is naturally soft. Pro Tip: Chill the dough for at least 2 hours. Cold dough is much easier to scoop and roll.
Powdered sugar melting after baking: Sometimes the coating absorbs into the cookies. Pro Tip: Roll the dough in granulated sugar first, then powdered sugar. This helps the coating stay bright and crackly.
Cookies spreading too much: Warm dough or an overheated baking sheet can cause spreading. Pro Tip: Always use a cooled baking sheet and keep unused dough refrigerated between batches.
Color not vibrant enough: Red velvet should look bold. Pro Tip: Use gel food coloring, not liquid—it keeps the dough firm and the color bright.

➤ Extra Tips:

Measure the ingredients correctly. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
Don’t over-mix your cookie dough, or you will end up with dense cookies.
Don’t skip the chilling step! It helps the cookies hold their shape and develop that signature crinkly top.
For evenly sized cookies (better for baking) use a small spring-loaded ice cream scoop to spoon out the dough.
Roll the cookies in a thick layer of powdered sugar twice for the best crinkle effect.
Know your oven! Every oven is different, so baking times must always be taken with a grain of salt. Oven thermostats can be wildly off, affecting baking time, so keep an eye on yours.
Bake the cookies until the edges appear set and the centers still look soft. The cookies might still look a little raw in the center, but once they cool, they will be perfect. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for just 3 – 5 minutes. If you leave the cookies on the baking sheets for too long, they will continue cooking, and they will be hard.
Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring—they’re delicate while hot.

A cooling rack holds several Eggless Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies dusted with powdered sugar. More cookies, a glass of milk, and a white cloth are nearby on a light surface.

Variations & Additions

Roll the dough in sparkling sugar before rolling it in powdered sugar for a crunchy twist.
Add peppermint extract for a fun, candy-cane holiday flavor.

Storage and Freezing Instructions

Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Freeze: You can freeze the baked cookies for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.

Make Ahead: Prepare the dough up to 2 days in advance and refrigerate until ready to bake. Pro Tip: For extra sparkle, dust the cooled cookies with a little more powdered sugar right before serving. It makes them look like they’re dusted with Christmas snow!