Having just a vegan cookie was not enough! My goal was to fully convert my whole grain breakfast cookies into a vegan delight that’s just as crave-worthy yet nutritious as its non-vegan counterpart. I started with my regular whole grain recipe and borrowed some tips from pastry wizard, Stella Parks. Incorporating her vegan substitutes, I started with coconut oil and whipped up an oat slurry for the eggs. Then, I observed her tip about adding dry malt extract. I tested with and without it, and unfortunately, this very obscure ingredient took an ok vegan cookie and elevated it to as-delicious-as-the-original. You see, the milk solids in butter and in milk get toasty in the oven and impart a je ne sais quoi note that is difficult to replicate. But the dry malt extract is one of the few ingredients I have discovered that offers that background butterscotchiness that would otherwise be missing.
ingredients
makes about 4 dozen
11.5 oz (about 3 1/4 cups) Rolled Oats, divided
9 oz (1 cup plus 2TB) Water
7 oz (1/2 Cup plus 2TB) Coconut Oil unrefined or refined, about 70F
14.5 oz (2 cups packed) Brown Sugar
4 oz (1/2 cup) Almond or Oat Milk, room temperature
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
8 oz (2 cups) Whole Wheat Flour, White Whole Wheat preferred
1.5 oz (about 1/3 cup) Dry Malt Extract
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1 1/2 Teaspoon Table Salt
1/8 Teaspoon Nutmeg
12 ounces (1 package) Chocolate Chips or Coarsely Chopped Chocolate Bars of choice, 50%-80% preferred
10 oz (2 cups) Pecans, Walnuts, Peanuts, or other nuts
deviations & tips
To add a toastier note, toast the nuts... Just be sure to cool them to room temperature before adding to the dough.
Skipping the freezing step will result in flatter cookies.
Use unrefined coconut oil for a slightly coconut flavor or refined for a neutral flavor.
For strict vegan confections, be sure to check both your chocolate and sugar.
Add 7 oz (2 cups) of oats to a food processor or blender and process until ground into a powder. Add to a medium bowl, and set aside.
Add remaining 4.5 oz (1 1/4 cups) to blender or food processor along with water. Blend to create a slurry. Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl and strain oat and water mixture. Press the solids with the back of a spoon or with a spatula in order to extract the liquid. You should have a thick oat puree. Discard the solids that remain in the sieve. Measure out 6 oz (3/4 cup) of that oat and water puree. Set aside. NOTE: Do not do this in advance because the oat puree will become too thick and unusable over time.
Blend together oat flour, whole wheat flour, dry malt extract, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg and salt and set aside.
Oats processed into flour.
Fit mixer with paddle attachment. In the mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Mix on low to combine; then increase speed to medium and mix for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape bowl and beater. Resume mixing on medium. Add milk and mix until incorporated. Dribble in oat puree and mix until smooth. Increase speed to medium-high and blend for just about 5 seconds to emulsify.
Cream coconut oil with sugar and vanilla until fluffy.
Blend on medium-high speed to emulsify.
Add flour mixture all at once and mix on low for another 15 seconds. Some dry flour should still be visible. Add chocolate and nuts all at once and mix on low speed for another 15 seconds or until the dough just comes together. Remove bowl from mixer and using a large sturdy spoon fold a couple times to ensure dough is completely incorporated. Using a tablespoon cookie scoop, drop cookie dough onto cookie sheets and freeze… Keep in mind you can remove them from the cookie sheets before baking. So, feel free to space closely and save freezer space. I can fit all 48-50 cookies on 2 quarter sheet pans or 1 half sheet pan. Freeze at least 30 minutes for a thicker cookie. For best flavor, freeze overnight. Frozen cookie dough balls can be stored in freezer bags and kept frozen if not using right away.
Preheat oven to 350F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Bake on the center 2 racks for 12 - 15 minutes or until the edges are set and golden brown. The tops will still look wet. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to cooling racks and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container or freeze.
Straight out of the oven, the cookie tops will look a little wet until the crumb sets.
Vegan Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans