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, because it's the last day to enter!
Some of my favorite recipes involve mashing two of my favorite recipes together into one Super Recipe. Some (fancy) people call this fusion, but I just call it fun.
Looking back through my recipe archives, some of our favorite (and most popular) Super Recipes have been: Buffalo Cauliflower Pizza with Tofu Blue Cheese Spread, Pizza-Stuffed Spaghetti Squash, Green Bean Casserole with Onion-Ring Style Topping, Falafel Tacos, and Lemongrass Tofu Banh Mi Burgers. There's a common formula involved in all of these recipes: x + y = Awesome. For example, Buffalo Cauliflower + Pizza = Awesome. Falafels + Tacos = Awesome. See where I'm going with this?
KIK Devotees may know that I'm a bit of a cookie monster fanatic. They're my sweet treat of choice. Always. This year, when it came to deciding on what to bring to the Vegan Cookie Swap Party, I couldn't decide between two different cookies. I wanted to make something my stepson would be able to enjoy with us (he hates all things chocolate and/or peanut butter which eliminates a lot of my baking repertoire) so I wanted to make one of his favorite cookies: Snickerdoodles or Gingersnaps. The decision-making was agony (P.S. I have melodramatic tendencies when it comes to making decisions).
What I settled on was a mash-up of the two. No, I didn't make a hybrid recipe taking the best elements of both cookies. I quite literally mashed the two cookies together and rolled it into one Super Cookie. So much more fun.
The next funnest part about these cookies is the name. I decided I liked Snickersnaps the best because it's really fun to say out loud. Try it. See what I mean? Also, Gingerdoodle sounded more like a type of dog, rather than a cookie. But call it what you like.
Aside from the name and how fun they are to make, the best thing about these cookies is how they taste. The snickerdoodle dough has the tangy (from the cream of tartar), sweet & cinnamony thing going on while the gingersnap dough totally packs in the oomph with the velvety, gingery, molasses-y flavor. Then they're rolled in a coconut sugar & cinnamon combo and baked to perfection. They spread out a bit and get that wonderful "crispy on the edges, chewy on the inside" thing going. You could make either cookie (both are vegan and gluten-free, wouldn't ya know) by themselves but why when you can mash the two together and create little flavor explosions in your mouth with every bite?
Before you head into the kitchen to make these right now, you should note: These are best made while listening to Christmas carols. I suggest a mixture of old and new, with a little dose of Willie Nelson mixed in (Willie Nelson's Pretty Paper and Blue Christmas are non-negotiables!)(!!!). It's also best if your house already smells like pine needles because cinnamon + molasses+ ginger+ pine needles= The smell of Holiday Heaven. Happy Holiday Baking!
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon flaxmeal mixed with 1 tablespoon warm water
- ¾ cup oat flour
- ½ cup brown rice flour
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon xanthum gum, optional
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup agave syrup
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ tablespoon flaxmeal mixed with 1 tablespoon warm water
- ¾ cup oat flour
- ½ cup brown rice flour
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon xanthum gum, optional
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup blackstrap molasses (or regular molasses)
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons coconut sugar mixed with 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
- First, mix the flaxmeal with the warm water for both the snickerdoodle and gingersnap batches of dough. Set aside.
- Take out 2 large mixing bowls. Add the oat flour, brown rice flour, almond flour, arrowroot powder, and baking soda for each dough into each bowl (one bowl is for the snickerdoodle dough and the other is for the gingersnap dough, if you hadn’t already gathered that). Add the cream of tartar, salt, cinnamon, and xanthum gum (if using) to the snickerdoodle bowl and whisk all the ingredients together until combined. Set aside.
- Add the ground ginger, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and xanthum gum to the gingersnap bowl. Whisk all the ingredients together until combined.
- In a medium bowl, combine the coconut oil, agave syrup, coconut sugar, vanilla extract, and one of the flax/water mixtures. Mix until combined. Add the mixture to the snickerdoodle bowl and stir until combined. Place the bowl in the refrigerator.
- In that same bowl, combine the coconut oil, blackstrap molasses, coconut sugar, ginger, vanilla extract and the remaining flax/water mixture. Mix until combined. Add the mixture the gingersnap bowl and stir until combined. Place the bowl in the refrigerator. Let both batches of dough chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (longer is fine too).
- Once ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the bowls from the refrigerator.
- Use a tablespoon to scoop a spoonful from the snickerdoodle dough and roll the dough into a ball. Repeat with the gingersnap dough. Press both dough balls together in your hand and roll into one larger ball. Roll the ball in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place the ball on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough until both batches dough are used. Use a fork to gently flatten each cookie, making a criss-cross pattern on the top. Place the sheet in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or spread out and firm around the edges. They will firm up as they cool. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the pan for a couple minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Let them cool completely before serving (or don’t. Maybe eat at least one while it’s kinda warm). Enjoy!
Thank you for stopping by, everyone! 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!!!
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 Vitamixwere so incredibly generous to donate a Vitamix 5200 for a giveaway! Please click here for more info and TO ENTER! Good luck!
Katie
Happy Holidays! This is the best cookie recipe ever. My favourites are also Snickerdoodles and Gingersnaps (I am also anti-baked chocolate and/or PB goods - too rich for me. I prefer the PB on a spoon with chocolate chips sprinkled on top for a treat - smaller, and less messy than carousels!), and choosing between the two is agonizing. I have been known to double fist - one bite from each hand. Your solution is so much more elegant! Now, how about Snickersnap pinwheels?
Happy Holidays to you and your family!
Katie
Millie | Add A Little
This looks insane!! My mouth is watering just looking at the photos!
Terje
I excpected this recipe to be very difficult, but the ingredients are not that tricky to find at all 🙂 Absolutely awesome, bookmarking this for future cookie-makings!