Attempt #1: Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've been working hard to find delicious replacements for my daughter, who is allergic to dairy and eggs we've just found out. My current mission is to find a good cookie minus the butter and egg that still tastes good...and without using soy products. I bought some Earth's Balance Vegan Buttery Spread...but haven't been able to bring myself to use it...so I probably just wasted $5!

So this is cookie attempt #1...which is okay but not quite what I'm looking for. I attempted to replace the fat with mashed banana...but it seems to be giving the final cookie an altered after taste that is just not characteristic of a good chocolate chip cookie. So I'm going to try a few more adjustments and I'll keep you posted. The cookies were very good...the kids loved them...just not quite on the cookie-exchange level good.

Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 bananas, mashed

1 cup peanut butter

2 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons rice milk

2 1/2 cups oatmeal

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place bananas in a large bowl and mash into a soupy consistency. Add peanut butter, vanilla, and rice milk and stir until thoroughly combined. Add oatmeal, flour, sugars, baking soda and chocolate and stir again until combined.

Using a 1 tablespoon cookies scoop, place a scoop of cookie dough in palm of hand and roll into balls. Then roll in sugar and place on a non-stick baking sheet. Smash down slightly with a cup or make Criss-crosses with a fork.

Bake for 11-13 minutes until cookie is slightly brown on edges.

Enjoy!

Healthier Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

I would file these cookies away under "Breakfast Cookie" if there is such a thing. They use only 1/2 the butter that a typical cookie recipe would call for and the other half is actually plain yogurt. With the addition of whole wheat flour and egg whites, they are even more healthy! I did a quick nutrition analysis on these babies and per cookie (I ended up with 34 cookies) they provide 98 calories, 4 grams of fat, 16 carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber and 2 grams of protein. Does that mean I can eat 4 of them and not feel any guilt? No? hmmm....I best hit the track then!

Healthier Double Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup fat free plain yogurt
1/4 cup egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup unsweetened dark chocolate baking cocoa
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups old fashioned oats
1/3 cup dark chocolate, chopped to small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix sugar, butter, yogurt, egg and vanilla. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop dough onto ungreased cookie sheet with a 1 tablespoon cookie dropper about 2 inches apart. Don't worry if they get too close, they don't spread when baking!

Bake 11 to 13 minutes or until firm. Immediately remove from cookie sheet.

I'd say these have more of a cake quality to them then cookie though...

Spiced Molasses Cookies

Another gem of a recipe that I found is Pioneer Woman's Spiced Molasses Cookies. I like to pull these out for cookie exchanges and Christmas time, or when I bake cookies to send to my brother since they are his favorite. I like to mix it up a little bit and add some colored sugar into the sugar bowl when I'm coating them before baking.

Spiced Molasses Cookies

1 cup Sugar
¾ cups Crisco (vegetable Shortening)
¼ cups Molasses
1 whole Egg
2 cups Flour
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
¼ teaspoons Salt
2-½ teaspoons Baking Soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Add flour, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, salt and baking soda to a bowl and whisk together. Set aside.

Using mixer with the paddle attachment, mix sugar, shortening, molasses and egg until well combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined.

Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop out walnut sized balls of dough and roll into balls with hands. Coat each ball with sugar and place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9 - 11 minutes, allowing to bake about 1 minute after cookies begin to crack.

You can mix together 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1-2 tablespoons milk if you'd like and drizzle over cookies for a cute variation.

Homemade Oreos

All my efforts of scouring the internet for homemade recipes of my favorite foods is really paying off. Last week I found a recipe for these Di-Si-Dos and now I dug up this recipe for Oreos posted by Butter + Cream. Man, were they good! I gave one to Walnut and he asked me when I was going to put the drawing and letters on them...I told him mommy isn't that talented. My little Peanut broke into them and licked the middle frosting first just like a pro!

Homemade Oreos

Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies

For the chocolate wafers:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg

For the filling:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat to 375°F.

Using your electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar and thoroughly mix. On low, add butter and then egg until combined and dough forms a ball around your attachment.

Using a 1 tablespoon sized cookie scoop, scoop dough onto parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cut each scoop in half and roll into balls. Flatten each ball with fingers so they are about 1/4" thick. Bake 9 minutes, rotating the cookie sheet half way through.

To make cream, put butter and shortening in mixing bowl and mix until combined. Slowly add sugar and vanilla. Put mixer on high and beat for 2 - 3 minutes until frosting becomes light and whipped.

Put frosting in a gallon size Ziplock baggie and snip about 1/2" off one corner. Put about a quarter sized ball of frosting on one cookie. Then place an equal sized cookie on top of cream and lightly press together.

Enjoy!

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

For years I was a Nestle chocolate chip girl. I thought that was the only brand out there for some reason. Maybe it was because that is the brand my mom always used. I have a tendancy to be brand loyal to the same companies my parents used when I was young. When I bought my first car and later my house for example, I went to their insurance agent without even shopping around.

Where the Nestle recipe tends to give me a flat crunchy cookie each time, the Ghirardelli recipe is the complete opposite. I am an avid underbaker of chocolate chip cookies. I like them to be chewy and melt in my mouth. The Ghirardelli recipes delivers on this quality! And the sizes of the chocolate chips are huge and they incredibly creamy milk chocolately too. I have not looked back at Nestle's since I opened my first bag of Ghirardelli. Sorry Nestle, but we had many good years together...I'll always keep a spot for you in my heart...

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cups unsifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 bag Ghirardelli Milk Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Whisk together flour with baking soda and salt, set aside.

In mixer bowl, beat butter with sugar and brown sugar on a medium speed until creamy and lightened in color (about 4 minutes). Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, mixing on a low speed until incorporated.

Gradually blend dry mixutre into creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips by hand so not to crush them. Drop cookies onto an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 9 to 11 minutes until golden brown (unless your like me and like them under baked...then bake 7-8 minutes).

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies...aka Do-Si-Dos

Oh. My. Goodness. Sorry, Girl Scouts...but you don't have anything on these cookies! I can't believe how great these were! They have all the peanut buttery nutty nummy goodness as their Girl Scout cellophane wrapped counterparts...but without the additives to extend shelf life!

The oatmeal...the peanut butter frosting in the middle...these were almost too good! I think I ate 4 of them right from the oven not to mention all the cookie dough and frosting I ate while baking and assembling them too! Then I went and ran 5 miles...and ate another 3 cookies. Oops!

I found this recipe at Savory Sweet Life, who found it at Allrecipes.com. I really hope you enjoy them as much as I did...I even laminated the recipe to make sure it will always be at my beck and call come pot lucks, holiday get togethers, cookie mailings to my brother who is a Marine...whatever occasion may occur.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

For the Cookies:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup quick cooking oats

For the Frosting:

3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
2 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Using your mixer, add butter, peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar and vanilla and mix together until creamy. Add egg and mix until incorporated.

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in another bowl. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Add oatmeal and stir.

Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, drop balls of dough on cookie sheet then cut them in half. Roll each half into a ball with your hands and place onto a non-stick cookie sheet and press down with the palm of your hand to make about 1/4" thick cookies.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cookies are very light brown.

For filling: Cream butter, confectioners' sugar, peanut butter and cream until nice and light and creamy. Fill a ziplock baggie with filling and cut about a 1/2" off one corner to make an easy cheap pastry bag for yourself. Squeeze frosting onto half the cookies and sandwich together with the other half.

Enjoy!