As the temperature gets colder and the days grow shorter, baking becomes the perfect activity to keep your stomach full and your home warm and smelling good. The best part of winter baking is, of course, delicious winter spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, anise, and cloves. These rich, fragrant spices are perfect for a variety of cozy treats and will be sure to put you in a wintery mood. Check out these 15 spectacularly spiced recipes!

We also highly recommend downloading the Food Monster App  — with over 20,000 delicious recipes it is the largest plant-based recipe resource to help you get healthy! 

1. Cocoa Chai Hot Cross Buns

Source: Cocoa Chai Hot Cross Buns

Serve Clémence Moulaert‘s delightful Cocoa Chai Hot Cross Buns with hot cocoa, tea, or coffee. These are also delicious sliced in half with a few banana slices sandwiched in the middle.

2. Carrot Pumpkin Bread

Source: Carrot Pumpkin Bread

You’ll love Crissy Cavanaugh‘s Carrot Pumpkin Bread, a two bowl healthy quick bread! It’s the perfect autumn snack or dessert.

3. Easy Warm Apple Chai Latte

Source: Easy Warm Apple Chai Latte

This Easy Warm Apple Chai Latte by Shanika Graham-White is made with only a handful of ingredients and is the perfect warmth + coziness during the cooler season. Believe it or not, apple + chai flavors go together so well and will surely become your newest obsession! Literally whipped together in a few short minutes, this homemade latte comes fully dairy-free, vegan, + gluten-free. Enjoy this coffee-free cup of goodness every morning.

4. Soft, Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

Source: Soft, Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

These Gingerbread Cookies by Wendy Irene are soft, chewy, delectable, and even gluten-free! The proportion of the spices that give the cookie warmth and luscious flavor, along with the soft texture of the cookie makes these cookies perfect for the season!

5. Nutty Maple Chai Oat Blondies

Source: Nutty Maple Chai Oat Blondies

These Nutty Maple Chai Oat Blondies by Medha Swaminathan are full of oats and three (yes, three!) different types of nuts – almonds, pecans, and buttery macadamias. Add a little cinnamon and allspice, and you’ve got yourself a fall dessert that’s packed with chai deliciousness!

6. Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

Source: Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

These Apple Cinnamon Pancakes by Hayley Canning are the perfect pancakes for autumn. They always come out perfectly light and fluffy, you’re going to love these healthy vegan pancakes!

7. Cardamom Cookies With Cranberries

Source: Cardamom Cookies With Cranberries

These Cardamom Cookies With Cranberries by Nele Liivlaid are the perfect pairing for your afternoon cup of tea or coffee. You’ll only need 20 minutes of your time, a bowl, and a blender. The combination of oats, oat flour, coconut flour, and nut butter make the cookies so hearty and filling. Furthermore, dates and mesquite flour add divine caramel sweetness that no one can resist. These vegan cardamom cookies are also pretty healthy as cardamom is really beneficial to your immune system. The best part about these cookies though is the warm, autumnal flavor and soft texture. They’re the perfect treat.

8. Spiced Mini Carrot Cake

Source: Spiced Mini Carrot Cake

Easy to make and incredibly moist and delicious, this Spiced Mini Carrot Cake by Fabio Gallo is a must-make for any lover of carrot cakes. The batter is spiced with cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and allspice with added raisins and walnuts. It is paired with a sweet and tangy soy yogurt frosting. This cake is also the perfect small sweet treat after a romantic dinner.

9. Vegan Gingerbread Muffins

Source: Vegan Gingerbread Muffins

These Vegan Gingerbread Muffins by Gabrielle St. Claire are packed with staple spices, packs a rich molasses flavor, not eggs, a buttery soft texture, perf for the holiday season, can easily be made in bulk, have a gorgeous color and you can even add cream cheese icing for a more indulgent variation!

10. Cinnamon and Clove Mixed Nut and Seed Milk

Source: Cinnamon and Clove Mixed Nut and Seed Milk

This Cinnamon and Clove Mixed Nut and Seed Milk by Steph McKercher is so cozy! This is a recipe for a simple nut and seed milk recipe with a twist. Cinnamon and cloves add a touch of warmth to this almond, walnut, pumpkin seed, and hemp blend. Once you’ve made this, you can use it in smoothies, pour it over a bowl of crunchy granola, or enjoy it warm with a stack of cookies.

11. Jasmine Poached Pears

Source: Jasmine Poached Pears

You’ll love these Jasmine Poached Pears by Rouxbe. Poaching fruits is a great way to infuse flavor and these pears showcase this technique. This same poaching method can be used with other fruits, such as apples, pears, apricots, peaches and plums.

12. Spiced Sugar Cookies With Maple Icing

Source: Spiced Sugar Cookies With Maple Icing

These Spiced Sugar Cookies With Maple Icing by Casey Muir Taylor are delicious! Sugar cookies are a classic dessert, but here they get a seasonal twist with warm autumn spices and a decadent maple icing.

13. Vanilla French Toast With Cardamom Spices Cream Cheese

Source: Vanilla French Toast With Cardamom Spices Cream Cheese

You’ll love this Vanilla French Toast With Cardamom Spices Cream Cheese by Plant Tribe. A dessert-like treat for breakfast? Yes please! Spice up your day cardamom-spiced cream cheese over a stack of warm vanilla french toast.

14. Homemade Pumpkin Seed Milk

Source: Homemade Pumpkin Seed Milk

You must try this Homemade Pumpkin Seed Milk by Magnesium Everyday Secrets, Gretchen Lidicker. A great way to get a daily dose of magnesium is by making your own homemade nut or seed milk. Pumpkin seeds are delicious and just so happen to be very high in magnesium— providing about 150 mg of magnesium per cup. You can use any nut or seed in this recipe. Other nuts high in magnesium include almonds, cashews, and hemp seeds.

15. Apple Crisp

Source: Apple Crisp

You’ll love this Apple Crisp by Laine Rudolfa. Mind-blowingly delicious and easy to make. Serve this tasty Apple Crisp dessert warm with ice cream and all the hearts will be yours!

Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home!

Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental wellbeing, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Unfortunately, dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, prostate cancer, and has many side effects. 

For those interested in eating more plant-based, we highly recommend purchasing one of our many plant-based cookbooks or downloading the Food Monster App which has thousands of delicious recipes making it the largest vegan recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy! And, while you are at it, we encourage you to also learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.

Here are some resources to get you started:

• Weekly Vegan Meal Plans
• Plant-Based Health Resources
• Plant-Based Food & Recipes
• The Ultimate Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition
• Plant-Based Nutrition Resources
• Budget-Friendly Plant-Based Recipes
• High Protein Plant-Based Recipes
• Plant-Based Meal Prep

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
• Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade over and over again.
• Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing you with high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
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• Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
• Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!