I Can Make it Vegan: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

I used to be able to find inexpensive store brand chocolate chips that just so happened to be vegan, but they changed their recipe and now my only options make chocolate chip cookies a little too expensive with a house full of cookie monsters. So I was really excited when I found this cookie recipe that was easily converted to vegan, and the best part, it makes about 40 cookies per batch!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup shortening ( original Crisco is vegan)

3/4 cup peanut butter

1 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

3 TB soy milk

1 TB vanilla

1 egg substitute (I use 1ts flax meal dissolved in 3TB hot water)

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa

3/4 ts salt

3/4 ts baking soda

Preheat oven to 375º degrees F.

Combine shortening, peanut butter, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in large bowl. Beat with electric mixer at medium speed until well blended. 

Add egg replacer and beat just until blended.

Combine flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda. Add to creamed mixture at low speed. Mix just until blended.

Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheet (I line it with parchment paper). Flatten slightly in crisscross pattern with tines of fork.

Bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until set and just beginning to brown. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet. Remove cookies to racks to cool completely.

These are way better than plain ol' peanut butter cookies and stay nice and chewy. I use chunky peanut butter which gives the cookies a nice contrast, my kids say the cookies have peanut seeds in them :)

I Can Make it Vegan: Mini Cinnamon Rolls

Before my blog, I took quick snaps of my food creations and ran them through Instagram as a fast way to blur out my messy countertop and dress up my photos for facebook ready status. I have no immediate plans to remake these recipes so the dark and moody pics I already had laying around will just have to work, besides, do you really need a magazine quality photo to tell you that cinnamon rolls will be delicious?


Mini cinnamon rolls

I have a Pinterest board called "I can make it Vegan" where I get inspired by recipes and alter them to make them vegan. I wanted to make these cinnamon rolls as a valentines treat for my husband when I didn't really have the time or money to search out vegan chocolates, and had attempted and failed at vegan truffels the year before. The original poster of this recipe, Kristin, calles it a "non-recipe recipe" because there really aren't any measurements, it's sort of a scant here and a pinch there. If you click on the picture it will take you to her blog where she has some great step by step pictures


1 can vegan crescent roll dough (Pillsbury is vegan)
cinnamon
Brown sugar
2 TB vegan butter, melted

Preheat oven according to crescent roll dough package directions. Layout half the dough (4 triangles) and pinch all the seams together. Flip over and pinch the seams on the back side together too.

Using a rolling pin, smooth the seams and roll the dough into a square about 1/4″ thick. Brush with half the butter, and sprinkle with as much cinnamon and brown sugar as you want. Roll into a log and cut into 8 pieces.

Place mini cinnamon rolls into a non-stick sprayed mini muffin tin. Repeat steps 1 and 2 with the other half of the crescent roll dough. Bake according to package directions.

I found those tiny cupcake wrappers on clearance in the Valentine aisle at walmart, but I bet you could find them in either the baking section or (if your store has one) the wedding and party planning section, you know, the area with party favores and wrapping paper.

The original recipe also included directions for a simple frosting, but I kept mine plain. You can click on the picture if you're interested in that recipe.