Good news, vegans! The Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe I posted earlier works with vegan ingredients – and I know this because I tested. But just in case the testing didn’t go well, I made a small batch that yielded only 6 good size cookies. I feel comfortable saying you can double it, but you can make that decision for yourself. The version below worked perfectly and these are as good as the butter/egg version. Let me know what you think because I’m looking forward to a second opinion.
Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons flour — measure by spooning and sweeping
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt (generous 1/8)
2 tablespoons shortening
1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons applesauce
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped, toasted walnuts
1/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips or 1/3 cup chopped up good quality chocolate (vegan type, obviously)
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Grind oats in processor. Add flour, baking soda and salt and pulse to mix.
Beat together shortening, both sugars, applesauce and vanilla. Gradually add flour mixture, then stir in walnuts and your vegan chocolate chips.
Using about 2 tablespoons of dough, form dough into balls and gently shape balls into rounds (cookies don’t spread much). Pace on ungreased baking sheet. Flatten slightly. Bake until edges are golden brown, about 12-15 minutes (the longer, the crunchier the edges). Cool on sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to racks; cool completely.
Using about 2 tablespoons of dough, form dough into balls and place on ungreased baking sheet. Flatten slightly. Bake until edges are golden brown, about 12-15 minutes (the longer, the crunchier the edges). Cool on sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to racks; cool completely.
Makes about 6 cookies
Paula B. says
August 14, 2011 at 8:09 pmThese look great, not a practicing vegan but have loved all the vegan baked goods recipes that I’ve tried so I’ll definitely be making these. I also like what the addition of applesauce does to a recipe. Thanks!
Anna says
May 24, 2010 at 7:36 amJMG, sorry your cookie spreads. You are right about it probably being the flour. A little bit more plus maybe a heavier hand with the oats might help? Also, did you use a high cocoa fat chocolate? Sometimes cookies made with chopped chocolate spread more than cookies made with chocolate chips. It’s something I’ve noticed over the years. I made these with chocolate chips so that probably factored into why they were thicker.
JMG says
May 24, 2010 at 1:28 amI baked these tonight and followed the directions to a T. I’m thinking maybe I didn’t use enough flour because they spread big time. They tasted good I was just expecting them to be like those in the picture. Maybe I’ll try it again but rather than sifting the flour I’ll pack it in lightly. Thanks for sharing.
eva says
July 31, 2008 at 12:58 pmYay! Thanks for “veganizing” another recipe Anna. I enjoy baking with butter (it’s irreplaceable!), but also try finding healthier options (whole grains, lower sugar, better fats) to add to my recipe box. This one looks yummy.
Anna says
July 31, 2008 at 12:21 pmJudy, I didn’t realize that that cat was by a famous artist. I’d better take better care of that pitcher ;).
Valerie, thanks again for double-testing these and reporting back.
Since I’ve already made today’s recipe (the cheesecake), I might make another small batch of these and add 1/4 cup of peanut butter. These would be great breakfast cookies.
Hmmmmm. Maybe with the addition of peanut butter, we could use swap vegetable for the shortening and make them even more wholesome.
judi0044 says
July 31, 2008 at 12:03 pmLove the Laurel Burch “Black Cat Portrait” pitcher – one of my very favorite artists, sadly now passed on.
Valerie says
July 31, 2008 at 10:04 amhi anna. just pulled these out of the oven and they are really good. nice and thick but not cakey. they look like yours. I really don’t miss the butter. the oats give a nice flavor. I made a double batch and got 12 cookies. I just noticed that I accidentally left out the extra 2 tbsp of flour but it didn’t negatively impact the cookies. I like the crunch on the outside while they are still warm. I suspect they will go all soft later, but I am enjoying hte crunch for now.
bakingblonde says
July 31, 2008 at 5:56 amYUM! I am not vegan but those sound so good that I would make them just to try!
I have not baked with applesauce in a long long time! I love how moist applesauce makes baked goods, my only complaint is that it usually produces cookies that are very cakey in texture.
Kay says
July 30, 2008 at 9:47 pmThanks so much! I’m so glad you acknowledge us vegans!
Melissa says
July 30, 2008 at 9:42 pmI’m definitely going to try this recipe this weekend! great conversion to make it vegan!!!
atxvegn says
July 30, 2008 at 9:20 pmThank you! I will definitely let you know what we think.
Katrina says
July 30, 2008 at 8:50 pmP.S. I love that pitcher with the cat on it!
Katrina says
July 30, 2008 at 8:48 pmWow, you can’t even really tell the difference in the two just looking at them. They look great. Applesauce substitutes for the egg, huh? Cool!
VeggieGirl says
July 30, 2008 at 8:35 pmVEGAN COOKIES!!! :0D