Best Ever Chai Cookies with Vanilla Bean Glaze
Desserts | Published Nov 7, 2021 | Updated Nov 7, 2021 | By Tawnie
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Chai Cookies. What can I say? I love you.
Perfectly sweet, buttery, freezer friendly, and full of warm classic chai spices. As if that’s not enough, we also topped them off generously with vanilla bean glaze. It’s like a snickerdoodle cookie but even better.
Each bite tastes like the holidays and you’ll be able to find me snacking on one with a warm cup of coffee all Fall/Winter long.

The homemade chai spice blend is super easy to make and I bet you have all of the spices in your pantry already. No actual chai tea will be added into the recipe but I bet these would be delicious dunked in a chai tea latte. Like a chai flavor explosion, YUM!
Table of contents
We’re pretty obsessed with cookies over here. This recipe is similar to these popular funfetti cookies, I’ve simply made a few tweaks to make them chai flavored. It all started with Kroll’s Kookies last year, and since then I’ve been making cookies like a crazy lady. Let’s just say my friends and family aren’t mad about the cookie deliveries!
Reasons to make Chai Cookies
- First off, do we really need a reason?!
- They are perfectly soft and cake-y.
- Full of delicious, warm chai spices.
- They bake beautifully and smell SO GOOD.
- You can whip up a batch quickly, no chill time required.
- They are an epic cookie to enjoy all Fall/Winter long!

Grab your ingredients and let’s do this!
Ingredient Notes
- Chai Spice Blend: I’m using a combination of: cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, allspice and ginger. Black pepper is used in some chai blends but I am not adding any into these cookies.
- All-Purpose Flour: Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and be sure it’s leveled. Do not scoop the flour out of the container/bag with your measuring cup because you could end up with 50% more than you need.
- Spoon and level by using a spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup and use the back of a knife to level off the top of it.
- Cake Flour: Cake flour is finer, softer and lighter than All-Purpose Flour and I find using a mix of both cake flour and All-Purpose results in the perfect cookies.
- You can find Cake flour in most grocery stores, usually on the top shelf.
- Corn Starch: Seems weird to add cornstarch to cookies, right? But cornstarch is key to giving cookies that delectably soft center that’s just to die for. It also helps to keep the cookies thick and GIANT!
- Butter: Cold, unsalted butter is used in this recipe. Not melted or frozen or room temperature. Cold butter straight from the fridge. It might feel weird to not let the butter soften, but this cookie is best with cold butter.
- Salt: Don’t forget the salt! Salt is so great in baking because it intensifies the body’s ability to taste the sweetness of the sugar. Yum! We want that.


Step by Step Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugars together
- Then add in the eggs, egg yolks and vanilla extract and blend until mixed.
- Gradually add in the flour mixture until ingredients are incorporated.
- Measure out 6-7 large cookies. Or make smaller if preferred.
- Roll the cookie dough balls in the remaining chai spice/sugar mixture.
- Place on baking sheet & bake cookies for ~10-11 minutes.
- Once cooled, pour vanilla bean glaze over cookies.

Expert Tips
- No chilling required! Don’t you just love a no chill cookie recipe? These cookies will not flatten out like pancakes, they stay nice and sturdy even without the chill time. Woo!
- Use a mix of both All-Purpose flour and cake flour: I’ve tested without cake flour and the cookie is more dense. It’s still delicious, but I just love the cake-y center when using a combination of both flours.
- Let the cookies rest: If your cookies are turning out too gooey, let them rest longer. I recommend at least 15 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. They are even better if you let them sit and enjoy the next day. Your cookies aren’t ruined, just let them rest!
- Add an extra egg yolk: It’s just science. Adding in 1 whole egg (egg + white), plus an extra egg yolk (with no white) results in a chewy, delicious, amazing cookie.
- You can make the cookies smaller. Adjust baking time as needed.
- You can make homemade cake flour if you can’t find it in stores. Homemade cake flour: 14 Tbsp. All-purpose flour and 2 Tbsp. corn starch. Mix these together and sift them twice to get them fully mixed and aerated. This will make ~1 cup flour, so you’ll need a bit more than that for this recipe. Double it, and use again for another use!
- Don’t flatten the cookies prior to baking, keep them in a ball.

FAQ
Store baked cookies at room temperature for up to 1 week, or freeze in a freezer safe baggie for up to 3 months.
Either parchment paper or Silicon baking mats work well.
Yes! A hand mixer will work fine. It might be hard to mix in the beginning with the cold butter, but it will all come together.
Yes! Replace both flours with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free flour. Works perfectly!

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Best Ever Chai Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 2 tsp. cornstarch
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 Tbsp. chai spice blend, divided (recipe below)
- 16 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cold, cubed (1 cup butter)
- 1 cup sugar + 1 Tbsp. for rolling
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed (light or dark)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
Chai Spice Blend
- 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ground ginger
- 1 tsp. cardamom
- 1/2 tsp. allspice
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp. cloves
Vanilla Bean Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 3 Tbsp. milk (plus more as needed)
- 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- Whisk together the ingredients for the chai spice blend in a small bowl.
- In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: all purpose flour, cake flour, corn starch, 1 heaping tablespoon chai spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Place the cubed butter and sugars into the bowl of a stand mixture and secure the paddle attachment. Turn the mixer on and cream until smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the eggs, egg yolks and vanilla extract and blend until mixed. Use a rubber spatula to knock off mixture if any is sticking to the sides of the bowl and mix again.
- Gradually add in the dry ingredients, about 1/4 cup at a time. Mix until incorporated.
- Roll cookie dough into ~6-7 large balls, or smaller if preferred.
- Add 1 Tbsp. sugar to the remaining chai spice and roll the cookie dough balls in the chai spice mixture.
- Place on baking sheet & bake cookies for ~10-11 minutes. Cool cookies completely before glazing.
- For the glaze: Place sifted confectioners’ sugar in a medium sized bowl and add milk and vanilla bean paste. Mix until all of the sugar is incorporated. Add additional milk as needed; glaze should be on the thick side. Spoon glaze over cookies or dunk cookies in glaze. Allow glaze to dry, then enjoy.
Video
Notes
- Let the cookies rest: If your cookies are turning out too gooey, let them rest longer. I recommend at least 15 minutes on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. They are even better if you let them sit and enjoy the next day. Your cookies aren’t ruined, just let them rest!
- You can make the cookies smaller. Adjust baking time as needed.
- Storage: Stored properly in an air-tight container at room temperature they will last for up to 5 days. I don’t recommend storing in the refrigerator because they will go stale much faster and lose their quality quickly.
Nutrition
Hi, I’m Tawnie!
Welcome to my tiny “korner” on the Internet! I am a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist who loves cookies as much as kale. (OK, maybe I like cookies a little bit more but shh, don’t tell anyone). I am so glad you’re here! Follow along for hassle free, realistic and approachable recipes.
More about Tawnie
Is there a possibility to have the metric option added to this (and maybe some of the older recipes)
Hi Kelly, yes absolutely, that is a forever project of mine. This post has been updated. Thank you!
They are easy to make and very delicious!
Thanks for the great recipe!
Aw I am so glad, thank you for making! Now I want to make a batch – hehe. xo, Tawnie
This definitely made more than eight lol we got a dozen massive cookies out of it! But super yummy! Perfect for fall.
true!! 8 giant cookies LOL but def can make them smaller. Yay so glad you enjoyed! xo, Tawnie
Omg!!!!!!!!! No words these are to die for!!!! Can U please please post more recipes I’m obsessed w your recipes
Oh my goodness thank you so much 🙂 I am always open to cookie ideas you’d like to see!
These are the real deal, so delicious and easy to make! Great by themselves or with a cup of coffee or tea.
Nicole! Thank you so much! I also love them with my morning coffee! xo, Tawnie
Follow up question- do you recommend a specific vanilla bean paste?
Nielsen-Massey is my favorite! I have it linked in my post. 🙂
These cookies were so unbelievably delicious! The mix of chai spices totally elevated this recipe – love the addition of cardamom too! 🙂
What a brilliant recipe! Everyone in the family loved it! We are definitely making it again!
I love the cardamom in the cookie – it was really tasty!
These cookies look massage and tempting! Perfect for a little baking project for my kids. I love your tips about how to store them!
I’m so glad I tried these! They’re so soft and perfectly spiced — everyone loved them!