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Jess's Vegan Empire Cookies

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Vegan Cookie Swap Party

Hi everyone! Welcome to the 3rd Annual Keepin’ It Kind Vegan Cookie Swap Party! It’s just like real life cookie swap parties, except some of your favorite bloggers are going to be stopping by Keepin’ It Kind throughout the next month, sharing their favorite holiday cookie recipes. Fun, right? In case you missed it, you can check out the 2012 party and the 2013 party. If you’re curious, you can also check out all the entries to this year’s party! Also, be sure to scroll to the end to enter the VITAMIX GIVEAWAY!

Today, I'm super excited to announce that we have a professional baker in da house! That's right, the owner of Oh My Bakeshop and the marvelous blogger behind Cupcakes and Kale, Jess is here to share a dazzling vegan cookie recipe! I've been a longtime fan of Jess and her blog, and I'm especially excited for her upcoming cookbook, Greens 24/7. Her creativity and her ability to turn simple ingredients into masterpieces always amazes me. And now, I wish I could have about 7 of these adorable little empire cookies!

Hello Keepin' It Kind readers!

I'm so very happy to be here today participating in Kristy's cookie swap for the first year.  I've really enjoyed taking in my cookie swap as a spectator sport up until now, but I'm beyond excited to swap a recipe with you all today!

If there is one thing I've learned in my years of baking, it's that nobody passes up a cookie sandwich.  Why?  Well for one, they're always just so darn cute.  But after that I'd say the it's the fact that by choosing the cookie sandwich you're really getting not one, but TWO, cookies plus some sort of a delicious filling inside.  It's a guaranteed winner, the cookie sandwich.

But this one is going to take it a step further, cause there's a nice smack-a-roo of frosting up in here too.  You know who's gonna pass over this cookie on the cookie tray?  NOBODY.

This little gem is inspired by the traditional English Empire cookie.  I've taken a few liberties including adding a little lemon zest to the cookies, changing the almond glaze to a creamy buttercream frosting and omitting that sickly sweet cherry bit on top.  But once you've tasted these, I promise you won't hold it against me.

Print
Jess’s Vegan Empire Cookies

Yield: 18 sandwich cookies

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup coconut oil, softened but not melted
  • 1/2 cup unrefined cane sugar
  • 1/4 cup + 1 tsp almond milk
  • 1/2 tsp lemon zest
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup raspberry jam
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup vegan butter

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325f.
  2. Using a mixer or by hand, cream together the coconut oil and cane sugar. Mix in 3 tablespoons of the almond milk and the lemon zest. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until a firm dough comes together, adding the remaining almond milk if needed. If mixing by hand, you will actually want to get your hands in there to bring the dough together. The goal is to have a firm dough that's not too soft and sticky and that can be rolled out easily. If it is still too dry, add more almond milk a teaspoon at a time until you have a dough that can be rolled.
  3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out to 1/8" thickness. Cut out into 1 1/2" - 2" circles with a cookie cutter and place onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges have just barely begun to turn golden. Remove from the oven and cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire wrack to cool fully.
  4. Once cool, assemble the empire cookies. Beat together the vegan butter, remaining 1 teaspoon almond milk and powdered sugar until a smooth frosting has formed. Spread a little jam onto the bottom of a cookie and top with another, creating a sandwich. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Spread some frosting onto each cookie sandwich with a pallet knife or the back of a spoon. Once all cookies have been iced, lick the spoon.
  5. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They can also be frozen for up to a month.
 

Thank you so much Kristy, for having me on Keepin' It Kind today!

Jess lives in Northern Ontario and is the vegan mama behind Cupcakes and Kale, where she blogs about food, life & co-parenting her sweet little chickpea with her husband. When she’s not cooking up something new or chasing her little one around, she’s busy running her special order bakery, Oh My Bakeshop.  You can connect with Jess on instagram, facebook and twitter.

 

 

Thank you for stopping by, Jess! If you want to see what everyone else has brought to the party, check out the rest of the 2014 Vegan Cookie Swap Party! And you can enter…

THE VEGAN COOKIE SWAP PARTY VITAMIX GIVEAWAY!!!

Cookie Swap Party Vitamix Giveaway

I wanted to do something extra special for all of you readers who’ve been joining us for the Vegan Cookie Swap Party fun and for supporting Keepin’ It Kind all year. The amazing folks at Vitamix were so incredibly generous to donate a Vitamix 5200 for a giveaway! Please click here for more info and TO ENTER! Good luck!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Caitlin

    these cookies look SO DELICIOUS. i love jess and am so excited for her cookbook!

    Reply

    • Jess

      Mmmwwah! Love you too girl.

      Reply

  2. Laura

    These cookies looked so cute, I had to make them today. Mine are not thick like yours, they stayed at the 1/8" depth. Did I miss something? Anyway, the flavor is fabulous, love the touch of lemon. You say they can freeze - do you mean with the jam and frosting, or freeze the cookies until ready to serve, and then put the jam and frosting on them? Thanks for sharing, these will look so cute on my holiday table!

    Reply

    • Jess

      So glad you liked them! They aren't meant to rise all that much, but should rise a bit - possible your baking powder was no longer active? You can also roll them a bit thicker next time if you desire. As for freezing, I would freeze just the jam sandwiches and then frost them upon thawing.

      Reply

  3. Jodye @ Whole Pure Recipes

    These cookies are so beautiful! I just love the raspberry and lemon combination, especially amidst all of the generally heavy foods during the holidays. A perfect addition to the dessert table!

    Reply

    • Jess

      Thank you Jodye!

      Reply

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