Yes, these cookies are vegan. No, I’m not joking. Promise (really!). I guess I should confess, I’ve been on a vegan kick lately. Vegan savory dishes, vegan desserts, and for a hot second vegan purses (which turned out to be a scam -_- ) All else aside, these cookies are REALLY, REALLY good. I brought them to share with my friends at school and they were hooked onto the chocolate-y, nutty, orange-y flavor. In fact, none of them even noticed they were vegan until I casually mentioned that they didn’t have any eggs or butter.
I originally got the inspiration from my best friend, who happens to love the orange and pistachio combination. She actually doesn’t like chocolate (I know, I was shocked too, but now I just make baked goods without chocolate in it for her, haha), but I LOVE chocolate, so I knew I had to incorporate dark chocolate as well. This is just my personal opinion when it comes to chocolate, but I think that buying chocolate bars and chopping it up yourself just gives the best results. You get large melty pools of chocolate, but also tiny pieces that get all mixed into the dough and are like hidden gems when you bite into the cookie. So, it is really up to you whether or not you want to use chocolate chips, or buy a bar and chop it into pieces. Just make sure that if you’re making these cookies for people who are strictly vegan to check your chocolate and make sure there is not dairy in it (believe it or not, some dark chocolate still have a lot of dairy in it!).
Don’t leave out the orange zest in this recipe. I know that sometimes the combination of orange and chocolate can feel strange, but the zest doesn’t change the texture of the cookie at all and really helps brighten up the flavor of the cookie! The best thing about this recipe is probably the fact that you SHOULD bake these cookies right away. Yep, that’s right, no chilling ladies and gentlemen. Normally chilling intensifies the flavor and I’m all for it, but in this case, it actually makes the pistachios soggy and not very nutty at all. However, if you want to chill your cookies, or forget them in the fridge because you had to do laundry (this girl here), they will still taste really delicious 🙂
New York is finally starting to show signs of spring. Today was the first sunny day in awhile and I’m BEYOND ecstatic. It’s still too cold for dresses and sandals, but at least I didn’t have to wear a second jacket going outside. The flower beds outside of my apartment are starting to sprout tulips and the pop of color really just makes it feel that much more spring-y. My apartment itself doesn’t get much sunlight, so I’m headed out to soak in some vitamin D. Hopefully spring is just around the corner for everyone. And in the mean time, if you’re craving something citrus-y, make these cookies!!!!!! They’re so good!!! PROMISE!
VEGAN ORANGE DARK CHOCOLATE PISTACHIO COOKIES | Makes 1.5 dozen cookies
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/3 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 3/4 cups of chopped vegan dark chocolate
- 3/4 cups of shelled chopped pistachios
- 1/3 granulated white sugar
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup + 1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup + 1 1/2 tsp water
- 2 tsp molasses
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Sea salt or kosher salt for sprinkling
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 (F) and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground cinnamon.
- In a large bowl, combine white sugar and orange zest. Work together with hands until sugar takes on the fragrance on the orange zest. Then add in dark brown sugar, vegetable oil, water, molasses and vanilla extract into the bowl and mix well.
- Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Mix in pistachios and dark chocolate pieces until well incorporated.
- Portion out golf-ball sized dough balls and place at least 2 inches apart from each other.
- Sprinkle tops of cookies with sea salt or kosher salt
- Bake 10-12 minutes, or until edges are just beginning to brown, and the center is just set.
- Let cool before storing in an air-tight container.
- Cookies will stay fresh for up to a week in an air-tight container.
Enjoy!
dumplings&donuts 