Vegan Chai Snickerdoodle Cookies

Photo by Vanessa Rees

Alright. I was touring Target with my parents and I stumbled upon a heart-shaped tupperwear container. I instantly fell in love and wanted to start baking immediately. So I bought it and ran home.

Now, I was spending the weekend with my parents, so when I got home, I actually didn't have my usual ingredients. Being a newly found vegan, I wanted to make some cookies for my new container that were vegan, small, and delicious. I started scouring the internet, expecting to have to be searching for a while because I assumed I wouldn't have a lot of the ingredients (and I didn't want to go back to the store).

And then I found it. This delicious recipe I got off "The Post Punk Kitchen" seemed simple enough and the pictures made the cookies look chewy and tasty. I did change the recipe slightly for what was in the kitchen. Instead of cardamom, I used more cinnamon and a little bit of nutmeg. It made the "chai" taste very subtle and I loved it! I also didn't have canola oil, so I used coconut oil instead. 

It's safe to say that this is a new staple in my recipe book. It's very tasty, and a must try while it's still cold out!

Vegan Chai Snickerdoodle Cookies

For regular Cinnamon Sugar topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

OR you could make the chai topping...

For the Chai topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch cloves

For the cookies:
1/2 cup coconut OR canola oil
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 tablespoons non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix the topping ingredients together on a dinner plate. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, use a fork to vigorously mix together oil, sugar, syrup, and milk. Mix for at least a minute, until it resembles applesauce. Then mix in vanilla.

Sift in remaining ingredients, stirring as you add them. Once all ingredients are added mix until you’ve got a pliable dough. Get in there with your hands to mix, it’s the easiest way to get the dough to come together.

With clean, moist hands, roll dough into walnut sized balls. Pat into the sugar topping to flatten into roughly 2 inch discs. Transfer to baking sheet, sugar side up, at least 2 inches apart (they do spread a little). This should be easy as the the bottom of the cookies should just stick to your fingers so you can just flip them over onto the baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, they should be a bit browned on the bottoms. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!