Amazingly soft and gooey crinkle cookies with a hint of ube or purple sweet potatoes is a HUGE hit in our house. All the tips you need to know to get the perfect crinkles and to prevent the powdered sugar from melting.
Amazingly Soft Ube Crinkle Cookies
Purple crinkle cookies
This amazingly soft ube or purple sweet potato crinkle cookies have become one of our family favorites every year. I like the crusty cookies on the outside but the inside is soooo soft, gooey and just melt in your mouth!! It has that hint of purple sweet potato that I love. Even if you don’t think you will like purple sweet potato or ube, you will not mind it in these cookies. For Real!
*Please note that I will mention both Ube or purple sweet potatoes in this post, but they are not the same thing. I tried the recipe with ube and two different types of purple sweet potatoes. The recipe can be made with any of the three*
Why we love these ube crinkle cookies
1. It’s so soft and I love soft cookies with a slightly crisp edge
2. The recipe uses mashed ube or purple sweet potatoes and not only using extract. So I can actually taste some ube in the cookies
3. The cookies are not overly sweet. You can adjust by adding more if you have a sweet tooth.
You can read about the different purple sweet potatoes and ube in this purple sweet potato chiffon cake.
Substitute for fresh ube yam
If you can’t find fresh ube (I couldn’t), here are options of what you can use:
1. Frozen grated ube
2. Ube jam (ube halaya)
Homemade or store-bought is fine
3. Stokes or Okinawan sweet potatoes
Frozen Grated Ube
Why the ube cookies turn green or blue after baking?
The acid-base balance is what causing the purple color to change color. Anything basic (alkaline) will turn the purple color greenish or bluish. Ingredients like egg whites and baking powder are more alkaline and causing the color to change. This doesn’t alter the taste of your cookies. It’s just the appearance.
How do you fix this? Anything acidic will prevent it from turning green or blue, however, I’m a bit hesitant about adding acid into this cookie dough. Not sure how much to add, etc. Something for me to experiment on in the future. In the meantime, please add ube extract or food coloring to make sure you get the nice vibrant purple color.
Why the ube crinkle cookies don’t crinkle ?
1. Make sure you measure ingredients correctly
Too much flour will make your cookie tougher and won’t expand and give you that crinkle look
2. The dough needs to be chilled for at least 4 hours
I have tried to chill for 2 hours but the result wasn’t good. I would recommend at least 4 hours or overnight if you have the time
3. Roll the cookie dough in sugar only after the oven is done preheating and ready for baking.
Once you coat with icing sugar, they need to go on the baking sheet and into the oven for baking
4. Avoid touching the cookie dough too much after coating with sugar
5. Oven temperature
Make sure your oven temperature is accurate
How to get that perfect crinkles on crinkle cookies and prevent icing sugar from melting?
No matter how much icing sugar I coat the cookie dough with, it seems like they just get absorbed into the dough during baking and disappear. So I ended up with cookies that barely have any crinkle effect on top. Finally, after doing a bit of research, I learned from reviewers at King Arthur’s Baking that rolling the cookie dough in granulated sugar first and then heavily coat with icing sugar helps to prevent the icing sugar from melting or being absorbed by the cookie dough. You guys, this trick works like a charm!
The cookies have that light taste of ube or purple sweet potatoes in it, which is really nice! Kids really are digging these cookies. I have to actually hide these cookies away from them LOL!
These crinkle cookies are made with Stokes purple sweet potato (with brownish purple skin).
These crinkle cookies are made with ube.
How to freeze unbaked ube crinkle cookies
Prepare as directed in the recipe up to chilling the dough for at least 4 hours and then roll them into little balls. I place the balls on a baking sheet, not touching each other, and then place in the freezer for 1 hour. They will firm up and then I transfer to a freezer bag to save space. They can be thawed in the refrigerator overnight or in the counter for at least 30 minutes, then roll in granulated sugar, and then heavily coat with powdered sugar
How to freeze baked ube crinkle cookies
Let the baked cookies cool down completely. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, not touching each other and freeze for 1 hour and then transfer to a container in a single layer in between sheets of parchment paper. Simply thaw them in the fridge or at the kitchen counter before serving
Did you make this ube crinkle cookies recipe?
I love it when you guys snap a photo and tag to show me what you’ve made 🙂 Simply tag me @WhatToCookToday #WhatToCookToday on Instagram and I’ll be sure to stop by and take a peek for real!
*The recipe was first published in 2017 and the recipe has been updated on October 29, 2020 to improve the result and I’m also sharing tips on how to get that perfect crinkles and to prevent icing sugar from melting or get absorbed by the cookie dough*
For baking/ kueh making: I highly encourage to weigh ingredients with a digital kitchen scale instead of using measuring cups as they are not very accurate especially when it comes to recipe that requires precision.
GRAMS TO CUPS CONVERSION (UNSIFTED)INGREDIENTS
Dry ingredients:
- 188 grams all-purpose flour - 1 1/2 cups (spoon and level please!)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Wet ingredients:
- 125 grams mashed purple sweet potato or mashed ube or ube jam (ube halaya) - 1/2 cup, see notes
- 113 gr butter - 1 stick (1/2 cup), unsalted, softened
- 120 grams granulated sugar - about 9 1/2 Tbsp
- 1/2 tsp ube extract - or use purple food coloring if you can't find ube extract
- 1 large egg - room temperature
To roll the cookie doughs:
- 120 grams confectioners’ sugar - 1 cup, for rolling & dusting cookies
- 50 grams granulated sugar - 1/4 cup
Recommended equipments:
INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare ube or purple sweet potatoes:
- If using fresh ube, Okinawan purple sweet potatoes, or Stokes purple sweet potatoes, peel the skin and then cut into large chunks and steam for about 15 minutes or until easily mash with fork. You can also microwave on high for 8-10 minutes or until soft.
- If using frozen grated ube, thaw and pour off any excess liquid. Steam for about 10-15 minutes or until easily mashable. Pour off any excess liquid if any
- Get about 125 grams of purple sweet potatoes or ube to make cookies, you can keep the rest for other use
Prepare cookie dough:
- Place the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk to mix. Set aside. Cream the softened butter and sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes over medium speed. Add room temperature eggs and vanilla extract. Stop halfway and scrape the side of the bowl. Add ube or purple sweet potatoes, food coloring or ube extract and beat until combine
- Turn the speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture in 3 batches and let it mix until just combined. Don't overwork the dough. The dough will be very sticky at this point
Chill the cookie dough:
- Cover the mixing bowl and chill the dough in the fridge (not freezer) for at least 4 hours. It is best if you can do overnight
Shape the cookies:
- Preheat oven at 350 F (180 C). When the oven is done preheating, soop about 1 Tbsp of the cookie dough out. Roll it into a ball and place them on lined cookie sheet. Roll each one in granulated sugar first and then generously roll them in icing sugar. This step prevents the icing sugar being absorbed by the dough and you won't get the crinkle effect. Roll them several times to make sure each ball is well-coated or the confectioners' sugar will not show much after baking
Baking:
- Pop them into the oven, 3rd rack from the top. Let them bake for 10 minutes for really soft cookies or 12 minutes if you want them crispier on the outside. They will still appear to be very soft when you pull them out from the oven. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to cooling rack. They will firm up a bit as they cool down. The inside is still so soft and super yum
Storing:
- Let the cookies cool down completely and then keep in air-tight container. They can be kept at room temperature for about a week. If you want to keep the longer, freeze them
45 comments
Hello Marv! I’m so thankful your recipe included the option of using okinawan sweet potatoes, as they are readily available here in Hawaii. Since a coworker had brought these cookies to work and they were so delicious, I just had to bake them myself. I used flax egg, and homemade vegan butter as a substitute for a vegan version and they turned out very good, except they did not spread and the cookie seemed too bready , like some of the other comments. I think the moisture content needs be just right, and my dough may have been too dry with the changes I made. So, on the second batch (I made double recipe), I turned the oven up to 350F and baked them longer. My husband and I both preferred the crispy-on-the-outside version, which also seems to bring out the ube flavor more.
Hi Madeleine, purple sweet potatoes do seem to be at a drier side and you are right that the moisture content will of course affect the outcome of the cookies. I like the substitution you make to make it vegan. I’ve never used flax egg before but I’ve tried with chia eggs as a substitute. The family did comment that it tastes more like bread than cookies ha..ha..!
Hi. Can I use the powder of the purple ube instead ? It’s hard for me find purple ube or yam here. And if yes i can use the purple ube powder, how much measurement do I use per recipe ? and how will it affect the dough and the taste also the color after it baked ? Thank you and can’t wait to try ur recipe. 😚
Hi Rina, I haven’t tried making these with powder ube before so I can’t really tell you for sure how much you need to use I’m so sorry 🙁 I will definitely get some powder ube next time and try it out though. I’m curious too! It’s probably easier than using fresh ube.
i’d like to learn more about cooking
Hi Lyka, let me know if you have anything you want to ask or clarify. I would be more than happy to help the best I can!
Hello! I tried your recipe with ube halaya, but it didn’t spread. I think I need to use another yolk as you mentioned in another comment. Previously I was using fresh ube and it worked well because I think it’s wetter than the halaya I have. Anyway, thanks for the recipe! This is the second year I’m making it for Christmas 🙂
Hi Aileen, good idea to add another yolk if you are using ube halaya. I will add that to my recipe as well as a note. Thank you for letting me know. I just made some with fresh ube too. It’s our family’s favorite 🙂
I’m not sure if I missed it, but I couldn’t find the temperature to bake these cookies at. I only saw a temperature for reheating.
Hi Jen, Sorry I missed typing that out in the recipe! it is 325 F (160 C) for 10-12 minutes
I used frozen ube, made into jam by cooking in a wok with evaporated milk condensed sweetened milk, and fresh alternative milk. Definitely worth the added time to make the jam for the cookies. I also added the ube extract so my purple color is extremely vibrant. I found store bought ube jam in Sacramento, but in Fresno, nobody had the jam but both local Asian/Filipino markets carry the Butterfly brand ube extract vials.
We have a home bakery that goes to the local farmers markets that has ube brownies that are so delicious, that is what got me interested in making ube baked goods. Your recipe gave the best flavor match to his bakery ones.
The amount of ube jam is the same as the grated ube. I only reduced the white sugar a 1/4 cup. In making the ube jam, I added 1 can evap milk and 1 can sweetened condensed milk plus 1 cup coconut or almond milk (the alternative milk selection has inproved with so many people not drinking cows milk.) and 3 lbs of frozen cooked and grated ube.
Hi Libby,
Thank you so much for sharing your ube jam recipe. I will definitely give it a try next round 😉 So glad to hear that you like the ube cookies recipe! It’s about time I make these cookies again.
Hi can I add 1 tsp baking soda to the recipe? You think it will taste good ifI add cream cheese? It would be Ube Cream Cheese Crinkles. Thank you!
Hi Eileen, the recipe has baking powder in it. I won’t recommend adding baking soda because I’m afraid it might leave that “metallic” taste in the cookies since there’s no “acid” in the cookie recipe to neutralize the baking soda. As for cream cheese, I think it will taste great with it. This ube crinkles recipe is adapted from this red velvet cream cheese cookies https://whattocooktoday.com/soft-gooey-red-velvet-crinkle-cookies.html So, I can tell you that ube cream cheese crinkles most likely will be awesome 🙂
This recipe did not turn out for me. The color was great, as I used purple sweet potatoes, but the cookies did not spread, are more cake like, and are not very sweet. My dough was not as sticky/wet as you described. I weighed all my ingredients and the recipe made 30 small cookies so it made the correct amount of dough.
Hi Becky, my apology, there should be another egg yolk added (1 large egg + 1 egg yolk). Somehow when I updated the recipe the egg yolk was left out! The dough should be sticky. If it’s not after adding another egg yolk, it could be that the sweet potato may not have much moisture and you may need to add another yolk.
I followed the recipe exactly, using purple sweet potatoes. The color is great, but the cookies did not spread at all, barely cracked, and are more cake like. I got exactly 30 cookies so they were portioned correctly. I am wondering, the ingredient list says 1 large egg, but the instructions says eggs and other comments mention eggs. Is there supposed to be another egg?
Hello! Thanks for the recipe. This will be the first time I’ll be making these cookies. I bought the frozen grated ube. Should I just thaw before using?
Hi Hanna, yes, thaw it and then steam for 10-15 minutes until you can easily mash it. Sorry, I miss the “thaw” part in the instruction. I’ve edited the recipe.
Hi! The recipe looks great and can’t wait to try it! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
About the purple sweet potato having greenish blue spots, I think it’s caused by the egg white, not baking powder.
I recreated an eatery’s steamed egg over mashed potato dish. In a small mason jar, I put in the mashed organic Stokes purple sweet potato and then put raw organic egg on top and steamed the whole thing. Some areas where the egg white touched the potato turned greenish.
Also, I notice the water when boiling the potatoes turn greenish when using tap water. The water turns purple when using alkaline water.
Hope this info helps!
Best regards,
Michelle
@knoshcrush.healthylifestyler
Hi Michelle, yes, I noticed that even with regular baking powder or aluminum-free baking powder, it doesn’t make any difference. The acidity and alkalinity sure affect the colors here. Great info!
It’s 10 times easier to use the ube flavoring and very colorful too I am making them right now with a sugar cookie recipe and it added 🙂
Absolutely! I wish I can get ube flavoring here to try out 🙂
Your instructions say to include light brown sugar, but that is not included in your ingredients list. Can you please advise?
Hi Alexis, I’ve updated the recipe few weeks ago not to use light brown sugar. I must have forgotten to take that out from the instruction. It’s only regular white sugar.
i tried the recipe twice…..with aluminum free baking powder both times, and i am not getting purple cookies…..greenish/brown both times with hints of purplish specks. the yam was really dry, though the butter yam mixture was purple until i added the egg. what am i doing wrong? is the yam not cooked enough?
Hi Joy,
I wish I can give you the answer to why the mixture changes color once the eggs are added 🙁 I’ve been reading a lot about it, but finding no answer either. Did you use grated yam and then steam them and mash?
These turned out great for me!
Although, I used packaged mashed purple sweet potato and also ended up with some green-blue speckles in the dough after refrigerating overnight. Didn’t affect the taste at all though!
Hi Amanda,
Thank you for trying the cookies out! I’m glad you like them! Now, you are the second one to tell me about this green-blue speckles in the dough. I believe it may have something to do with the baking powder. I didn’t have any on mine, but I have to experiment again. Thanks again for letting me know.
My cookies came out great except they were completely green in color. They tasted good and even had the white sugar on the outside! (And yes, I used purple ube and followed the recipe). I’m trying to figure out why they turned green. Do you add the egg yolk?
Hmm…that is very odd! I’m not sure what to tell you Carrie. Not sure why it could turn out green. My guess it probably caused by the baking powder? Sometimes I heard it can turn food to a different color. I’ve heard people using aluminum-free baking powder for that reason.
And yes I did use the whole egg (both white and the yolk)
Hi, how do you store your cookies? Refrigerate or leave out?
Hi Michelle,
Once the cookies are completely cool down after baking, you can store them in an air-tight container or zipper lock bag and store at room temperature for 3-4 days. I remember grandma likes to put a small piece of bread (no more than half of a slice) in there too. She said it helped to keep the cookies “fresher” . For longer storage, I would suggest freezing them and then you can refresh them in the oven at 425F 4-5 minutes. Hope this helps. Sorry I forgot to include this part. I will add these tips in. Thank you.
I tried making this with frozen ube that I purchased from the Filipino grocery & it didn’t turn out as expected. I guess the frozen ube became more watery & made the dough have a sticky wet consistency. Even after refrigerating it overnight, the dough wasn’t as firm as I wanted it to be.
This recipe is pretty straightforward and easy to follow, just wish the measurements were in cups not grams… hee, hee 🙂
The flavor was there but the cookies were not exactly presentable… they were definitely on the flat side. So, lesson learned DO NOT use FROZEN ube.
Hi Criselda,
Thank you so much for your input. Yes, I would imagine the frozen ube after thawing would have more water. I will update the recipe to include “not to use frozen ube”. It’s funny that I used to have my measurements in cups until past few years that I found using grams or ounce for baking gives me better result ha..ha..! But I hear you though, it can be a pain if you are not used to it 🙂 I’ll look into having both measurements. Thanks again for your input
Hi! I made this recipe 2x but the cookies tasted like a soft bread and didn’t really crack.
Hi Phoebe,
Hmm..I really wish I could tell you what could have gone wrong. I’ve always used this recipe for my crinkle cookies and they always turn out fine for me. The cookies suppose to be soft and gooey. Did you follow the recipe exactly?
can i use ube jam instead?
Hi Eza,
I can’t tell you for sure because I’ve never tried it, but I don’t see why you can’t. You may need to adjust the amount of sugar depending on how sweet the ube jam you are going to use, if it is sweetened.
Hi! I’m currently making your recipe, and in step 2, you mention vanilla extract, but I don’t see this on the ingredients list. Do you mean baking powder?
Hi Tiffany,
I forgot the vanilla extract in the ingredient list 🙂 There should be 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. I’ve added that to the instruction. I’m glad you brought this up. The baking powder is mixed with the flour and salt first. Hope this helps and please let me know if anything is unclear. Hope you like the cookies.
sorry just learnt ube is sweet potato
Hi Brinacyl, Yes Ube is a purple sweet potato, so you can definitely use regular sweet potato too 🙂
can i use purple sweet potato ? i am not sure if it is same as ube. thank you