Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C and line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Make sure the oven racks are in the middle of the oven.
Mix the wet ingredients. Into a large bowl with a hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the vegan butter, applesauce, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Mix until creamy and fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients. Turn off the mixer and add the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix again until a dough is formed.
Shape the cookies. Start by making small, half ounce sized balls (about a rounded teaspoons worth of dough) of the white dough. Repeat with the gochujang dough, making the same half ounce sized balls. Press one white dough ball and one orange dough ball together and gently roll in your hands to make one ball. Break the dough ball in half, making sure each piece gets a bit of white and a bit of orange. Place one half on top of the other, making sure the colors alternate. Roll the dough ball together again. Look for a pretty swirl and mark that as the “top” of the cookie. If you don’t have a nice looking swirl, you can repeat the breaking in half and smooshing together again. Gently flatten the dough ball into a disc and set on the prepared baking sheet.
Bake the cookies. Bake the cookies for about 13 minutes. Let them rest on the trays until fully cooled and enjoy!
