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The Pancake Princess

The Pancake Princess

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You're here: Home > Recipes > Cookies

Vegan Jam Thumbprint Cookies

by erika

I am really excited about these cookies today but first: I hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving with lots of good food and especially pie–possibly even a special post-Thanksgiving brunch ๐Ÿ˜‰ Tell me about your Thanksgiving! I’d love to live vicariously through your eating adventures.

Onto the cookies.

Over Thanksgiving, I got lots of quality hang out time with my cousins, and I snuck in some cooking/baking time with the cleanest eater I know, who happens to be my darling nugget of a cousin, Simone. She subsists entirely on vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and beans. She lives in L.A. so I don’t get to see her very often. So one day when I arrived, it was like her tastebuds had revolted overnight. She simply just doesn’t eat any refined sugars, grains, bad fats or processed food because she doesn’t prefer them. This started when she was in middle school. I have tastebud envy. Someday.

Needless to say, she’s a great food influence. And when I saw her get excited about a baked good–COOKIES, no less, I knew something good was about to happen. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Simone, another of my cousins and I found ourselves at Whole Foods ransacking the place for dried figs when we discovered the rest of our family was already chowing down on Mexican food for dinner. At 5pm. So when we got back, we made our own vegan dinner of mac ‘n cheese (OMG delicious) followed by fig newtons straight from her favorite food blog.



A few mishaps and wrong turns occurred during the baking process, but when we took our first bites of the crunchy, seed-strewn exterior rich with coconut oil, wrapped around the luscious, tangy, jammy fig filling, our eyes went wide. We stood over the tray picking at the edges of the fig newtons for a good few minutes before slicing them up and serving them to the rest of the fam. Simone thought they were the best thing ever, pretty much, which is HIGH praise.

These thumbprint cookies drew inspiration from two things: (1) those wholesome, almost healthy, crunchy, almost short-bread-y cookies that I couldn’t stop thinking about and (2) Simone’s rave about a really good, natural jam from Trader Joe’s and my realization that I still had a giant jar of the sugary stuff left in my pantry. Clearly, the jam was destined for cookies.

These are just really great cookies, vegan or not. The bf couldn’t tell they were vegan and I don’t think anyone else would suspect it either. The chia seeds give the cookies a slightly crunchy, seedy texture and the coconut oil lends the coconut-perfumed dough a sandy texture and richness. Coconut oil was a premeditated purchase as soon as I got back, and I plan on many more baking projects with it. These are not only delicious, but they are like, the closest definition to wholesome that I’ve come with a cookie.

As Sarah B. of My New Roots would say, I’mย wild about these.

Notes

I made these cookies two ways: one with oat flour, similar to the original recipe, and one with whole wheat flour and a hint of almond meal. The oat flour yielded a more tender, sandy consistency (below, right) compared to the lumpier, grainier whole wheat cookie (below, left).

Add 4 tablespoons of coconut oil to these and bake for 18-20 minutes and you will get lovely, sandy cookies. Halve the amount of oil and bake for a slightly shorter time, and you’ll get slightly chewier cookies. I liked the first version straight out of the oven better, but once cooled, I found myself reaching for the chunky, chewy cookies. Try both!

Alterations: These are really similar to the original fig newton base, but I upped the baking powder and baking soda to make them puffier. I didn’t have maple syrup, so I used honey (okay, a misstep out of vegan-land. Use maple syrup if you’re actually vegan.) Instead of steeping the chia in tea, I used almond milk.

Tip: set out the coconut oil well in advance so that it is room temperature and scoopable by the time you need to use it. Simone’s was rock hard, and it was quite the microwaving feat to get it into liquid form, which made the dough wetter than I think it should’ve been.

Vegan Jam Thumbprint Cookies
Adapted from Vanilla-Rooibos Fig Newtons

Yield: ~16 small cookies

1 tablespoon chia seeds
3 tablespoons almond milk

1 cup rolled or instant oats, or oat flour (alternative: 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour + 2 tablespoons almond meal)
1/4 cup turbinado sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
3-4 tablespoons melted coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Jam of your choice, for filling

Preheat oven to 350. Combine chia seeds and almond milk; set aside to set for at least five minutes.

Blend the oats in a food processor to make a rough flour. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pulse to mix. Next, add the coconut oil, chia mixture, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Pulse to mix until the mixture forms a ball. Roll out one tablespoon-sized balls of dough and place on an ungreased cookie sheet or a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 14-20 minutes (less for a chewier cookie, more for a dryer, sandier cookie). Once you remove the cookies from the oven, take a spoon and gently press thumb-sized indentations into the center of each cookie while still warm. Once cool, fill each indentation with a dollop of jam.

These cookies will keep in an airtight container for about two days. They soften quickly, so if you plan to keep them for longer than 2 days (good luck with that!), store in the fridge.

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Comments

  1. Lilly Sue

    December 6, 2012 at 3:38 pm

    ha ha I am totally posting a thumbprint cookie recipe this weekend…mine aren’t vegan though! These look good ๐Ÿ™‚

    • erika

      December 6, 2012 at 3:43 pm

      Aw thanks Lilly Sue! I can’t wait to see yours!

  2. Kristi @ My San Francisco Kitchen

    November 30, 2012 at 11:55 pm

    Wow these cookies look soooo good! ๐Ÿ˜€

    • erika

      December 1, 2012 at 10:49 am

      Thanks Kristi! ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. girlinafoodfrenzy

    November 30, 2012 at 5:05 pm

    Loved the look of these on your Pinterest board and had to stop by and say wow!!! Vegan and healthy to boot and totally gorgeous looking Biccie! ๐Ÿ™‚

    • erika

      December 1, 2012 at 10:46 am

      That is so nice of you! It totally made my day to hear from you ๐Ÿ™‚

  4. Healthy Glow Nutrition

    November 30, 2012 at 12:25 pm

    I love this recipe and I love thumbprint cookies ๐Ÿ™‚ These are healthy unlike the pure butter ones out there! Great post!!!

    • erika

      November 30, 2012 at 12:29 pm

      Aw thanks!! Yeah I was super excited to find such a healthy recipe that was actually TASTY! So excited for more vegan baking!!

      • Healthy Glow Nutrition

        November 30, 2012 at 4:52 pm

        You’re welcome! I love trying new recipes and I am on this almond flour kick lately. It is amazing to bake with..maybe you’ll make some yummies with it soon ๐Ÿ™‚ I don’t have much time with my studies right now which sucks because I miss cooking and baking. xo ร‰va ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Bailey Bakes

    November 30, 2012 at 8:38 am

    I’m jealous of your cousin too. I wish I didn’t prefer sugar, fats, carbs and everything else thats bad for me. Ha!

    • erika

      December 2, 2012 at 8:28 pm

      Omgosh right?? Every time I see her eating her quinoa, steamed kale and raw tofu meals I am just shocked that she actually enjoys it. It’s just amazing!

  6. Brook

    November 29, 2012 at 8:01 pm

    Vegan cookies…and a favorite thumbprint! Wonderful photos!

    • erika

      November 30, 2012 at 8:31 am

      Thank you so much! I thought they were a great twist from the butter-filled ones that are the family recipe ๐Ÿ™‚

  7. petit4chocolatier

    November 29, 2012 at 7:36 pm

    These are so gorgeous! Look so scrumptious : )
    Adorable little healthy gems!!

  8. yummychunklet

    November 29, 2012 at 6:16 pm

    I love that you made them vegan! Definitely trying them!

    • erika

      November 30, 2012 at 8:31 am

      Aww thanks! Let me know how they turn out if you end up trying them ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Cass @foodmyfriend

    November 29, 2012 at 4:36 pm

    These look amazing. I can’t say that I have heard of turbinado, coconut or date sugar. We can’t get a lot of things that you guys have here in Australia. Sucks because I really want to try this yummy cookie!

    • erika

      November 30, 2012 at 8:35 am

      Aww really?? Well I will say that you can also use refined sugar if you want–they just might not be as cool health-wise ๐Ÿ™‚ (Although I’m sure they’d still be delicious!)

  10. mmmarzipan

    November 29, 2012 at 5:38 am

    these look great!

    • erika

      November 29, 2012 at 9:09 am

      Thank you ๐Ÿ™‚

  11. Choc Chip Uru

    November 29, 2012 at 12:04 am

    I’m so glad you had such a fantastic thanksgiving my friend ๐Ÿ˜€
    These cookies look like absolute heaven!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

    • erika

      November 29, 2012 at 9:10 am

      Thanks Uru ๐Ÿ™‚ They so were! I didn’t know you could make vegan cookies that taste like shortbread, it’s awesome! And reading your coconut oil post right after making these was perfect timing ๐Ÿ™‚

  12. Vina'sdeliciousrecipes !

    November 28, 2012 at 11:47 pm

    Oh my goodness, these look delicious!!

    • erika

      November 29, 2012 at 9:10 am

      Thanks Vina! They were definitely tasty ๐Ÿ™‚

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