These are Worth the Calories...

My mom is famous in certain circles for her chocolate chip cookies, which helped elevate my social status as an adolescent, and my weight as a teenager. 😊

I’ve tried over the years to make her recipe, and while my cookies have sometimes gotten really close, they were never exactly right.  Then I pretty much gave up once I stopped eating animal products, because, well – butter and eggs.

But now I think I’ve cracked the code!  I’ve been experimenting with making my very own vegan chocolate chip cookies (there’s a secret ingredient you would never suspect!), and these are out of this world – my husband inhales them, which is excellent because otherwise I would.

Here’s the recipe – if you try it, be sure to let me know how you like it!

Perfect (Vegan!) Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Oven 350 degrees

Ingredients

1 cup vegan butter, room temp (I use one stick Myoko’s Creamery + one stick Earth Balance)

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup light brown sugar (packed)

¼ cup pumpkin puree

1 ¾ cup all-purpose or gluten-free flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp sea salt

1 cup dark chocolate chips – or more, don’t be shy!

½ cup dried tart cherries, chopped

Cream butter and sugars in large bowl until light and fluffy, add pumpkin puree and mix well.

In another bowl, mix flours, baking powder, and salt.  Add to sugar mixture and mix until just combined.  Fold in cherries and chocolate chips.

Drop by generous tablespoons onto prepared baking sheet (I prefer a Silpat, but a greased baking sheet will do).  Bake for 14 minutes.

Keep unused dough in refrigerator while waiting for first batch to bake – otherwise it will be too soft to handle.

Cool completely if you can keep sticky fingers away….

Repeat.