easy

Name: Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 3 h 10 min
Ingredients: 1/4-1/2 c aquafaba, any plain; 1/8-1/4c granulated sugar, vegan; 1 tsp alcohol based flavor extract (such as lemon, vanilla, or almond); Gel or powder food coloring; 1/2 tbsp citrus juice for flavor; 2-4 tbsp chopped nuts, chocolate, or candy bits; 1/4 tsp acidity: vinegar, lemon juice, cream of tartar, etc.

Vegan Brownies from Box Mix

December 5, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan brownies from box mix is easy. I’ll show you how to do it, why your past attempts failed, and how to get perfect egg and dairy-free brownies every time.

It seems most attempts I see from folks trying to make vegan brownies from boxed mixes are total fails.

The problem is that most folks think that they can easily sub out the eggs perfectly for a vegan alternative – one to one. That’s not the case when it comes to brownies, but it’s an easy thing to fix!

Dat crackle! In my opinion, a brownie isn’t a brownie without a crackled top.

How your vegan brownies from box mix failed

Double, double toil and trouble,
Edges burn and batter bubble..

If you have tried, and failed to make vegan brownies from a box mix, my guess is that either one of two (or possibly both) things happened:

1. You baked a pretty darn realistic recreation of the La Brea Tar Pits

I have seen hundreds of posts on social media of brownies just like these.

“Please help! My boxed brownies look like molten tar boiling away in my dish. What did I do wrong??”

“What happened to my brownies?? I subbed the eggs and measured perfectly – the batter looked great but now it looks like burnt death!”

Videos of boiling asphalt in people’s ovens make me sad. Yes, they’re a little entertaining. But also sad.

2. You baked a giant, greasy, quadrilateral hockey puck.

These brownies are really good for self defense. Not so good for dessert. And honestly, they’re probably really, really terrible for actual hockey.

Hockey Puck Brownies usually start as Tar Pit Brownies, and once they’re allowed to cool they become harder than stone. You practically need a chisel to get them out of the pan!

There are other ways veganized box mix brownies fail too, of course – but these two classes of spectacular disasters account for 99.9% of the cries for help I witness.

Why your vegan boxed brownies failed

Yes, I know. You measured perfectly.

Maybe you even used a scale and got it down to the very gram. You probably did.

Whether you used applesauce, bananas, a can of soda, a commercial egg replacer, or flax or chia – I believe you. You measured right.

That’s the problem.

Most boxes of brownie mix require two eggs and around 2/3c to a full cup of oil.

Eggs absorb oil. Your vegan replacement doesn’t.

It’s as simple as that, really. You’re using too much oil.

Whether you’re using fruit or veggie puree or a starch slurry or a gloopy flax egg – if you’re not reducing the amount of oil it’s too much.

You are deep frying your brownie batter in the worst, least appetizing, least edible way possible.

What do you need to make the best vegan boxed brownies ever?

So this really depends on what kind of brownies you like.

Either you like gooey, delicious, rich, chocolatey, fudgy brownies..

or..

You’re wrong. #sorrynotsorry

(if you prefer cakey brownies, may I interest you in my chocolate whacky cake recipe that would make a perfect replacement if you baked it in a shallow pan)

I shall teach you to make the best fudgy veganized box brownies you’ve ever seen or tasted.

*These are not a health food. These are not superfoods. These are not enhanced with healthy things for the sake of healthiness. These are decadent, rich, wonderful morsels of blissful joy that are meant to be enjoyed occasionally as a treat.
**I won’t judge you if you eat the whole pan, though.

Choose your box

Honestly, I grab the cheapest one that says ‘fudge brownie’ on the box. It’s usually my store’s budget brand – Hill Country Fare. It’s delicious and it works.

Check the ingredients to make sure it doesn’t contain eggs or milk – most don’t unless they’re labeled as milk chocolate – but still check! EVERY TIME.

I’ve never, ever seen a brownie mix with gelatin or lard or any other animal product besides milk in it. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist though.

CHECK. THE. INGREDIENTS. EVERY. TIME.

Check what ingredients you need to add to it.

It should just be two eggs, oil, and either water or milk. If it requires anything fancier than that, find a simpler one.

Choose your egg replacer

I have tried so many. So so so many. The best one you can grab at any grocery store is ground flax seed.

Get it in either the baking aisle or the supplement aisle with the laxatives. Yup. It does that. Yay fiber!

Can’t do flax? Use ground chia seeds instead!

Choose and reduce your oil

Any oil with a high smoking point will work here. These include vegetable oil, soy oil, canola oil, avocado oil, and grape seed oil.

Olive oil and coconut oil can both start to burn, but might not so it’s up to you. I recommend against them in boxed brownies, though.

My personal favorite? Melted butter. Yes, you read that right. I use Country Crock Plant Butter sticks and oh man do they put these brownies over the top! SO GOOD. (no this isn’t a sponsored post, I just really honestly love them)

NOW THE REALLY SUPER IMPORTANT PART: REDUCE YOUR OIL BY HALF THE AMOUNT THE BOX CALLS FOR

My box calls for 2/3c of oil. So how much do I need? 1/3c. Thank you for coming to today’s lesson on fractions.

(For oil free brownies, replace the oil with applesauce or another fruit/veggie puree. They won’t be the most perfect fudgy, crinkly-topped, amazing brownies ever – but they’ll still be yummy)

What kind of liquid do I use?

Um.. Coffee?

Really. Coffee. It’s honestly the best choice here, because the coffee brings out the richness of the chocolate.

If you don’t want to use coffee, just use some other unsweetened liquid. Water, tea, and milk are all great choices. Just make sure that they’re room temp when you add them!

What to do with the liquid?

If you try to make your vegan boxed brownies with flax eggs, half the amount of oil, and the perfect amount of liquid – you’re in for a bad time.

The oil we’ve taken out of the equation needs to get replaced with another liquid otherwise your batter will be way too thick.

So easy math here: use the entire amount of liquid the box calls for, PLUS however much oil you left out. For my box, That meant 3/4c of liquid PLUS another 1/3c to make up for the oil I left out. So a total of 3/4c + 1/3c of liquid.

What equipment do I need?

You’re going to need:

an oven
medium or large mixing bowl
a whisk
an 8×8 or 9×9 baking pan
parchment paper or baking spray

How do you actually make the brownies?

You’re going to follow the instructions on the box, just using your replacements. 🙂

If you want to be like me though, this is how I do it:

1. Preheat your oven according to your box instructions.

2. Pour out the contents of the box into a medium or large mixing bowl. Use a whisk to stir it around a bit to make sure there’s nothing wrong with it (like weevils or foreign objects or whatever). Just trust me.

3. If your mix looks good, make each “egg” by mixing one tablespoon of ground flax with 2.5 tablespoons of warm water. Leave it to sit while you..

4. Melt your butter. I do it in the microwave on high for 20 seconds and stir.

5. Line your baking pan with parchment paper or give it a spritz with nonstick cooking spray. I prefer parchment because the spray and I have trust issues.

6. Use your whisk to combine all the ingredients just until they’re combined. DO NOT OVERMIX YOUR BATTER.

7. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake according to the box instructions. But, because you have trust issues, check it 15 minutes early with a toothpick.

8. Pull it out once it’s done and let it cool.

LET. IT. COOL.

STEP AWAY FROM THE BROWNIES.

Ok but for real, I won’t judge you if you dig in right away. With a spoon. And a big ole scoop of vegan vanilla bean ice cream on top.

9. Once the brownies are cool, slice and enjoy!!

Wait, hold on. How do I check if my brownies are done with a toothpick?!

Very simply!

Insert a toothpick into the middle of your brownies. If it comes out dyed brown, they’re not done yet. If it comes out with some crumbs on it, they’re perfect.

If it comes out dry.. You’ve overbaked your brownies. I’m so sorry. This is what you want to do if you want “cakey” brownies, though. So take solace in knowing some people prefer them this way.

Can I do this with gluten free box brownie mix?

Yes, you can! I recommend that you make superflax eggs for gluten-free, though. To do that, use aquafaba instead of water in your flax.

How do I store these brownies?

In your belly and the bellies of your loved ones.

Other than that, they will do well in a covered container at room temp for 2-3 days or well-wrapped in the freezer for about three months.

What can I do to spice these brownies up?

Soooo many things!

Sprinkle with course sea salt
Swirl in some melted peanut butter
Add chocolate chips
Stir in your favorite vegan candy
Sprinkle with colorful sprinkles
Mix in chopped nuts, peanuts, or seeds
Swirls of caramel
Swirls of cream cheese
Top with granola
Add cayenne and cinnamon for Mexican hot chocolate flavor
Add Dandies marshmallows and graham cracker crumbs for s’mores brownies
Drizzle royal icing and scatter crushed candy canes on top for holiday brownies

How do I make them if I don’t want to use a box mix?

Check out some of these awesome from-scratch recipes from my friends!

Chocolate Chip Brownies from Sara Kidd

Tahini Hazlenut Brownies also by Sara Kidd

Very Fudgy Chocolate Chip Brownies by Fran Costigan

Low Carb Gluten-Free Microwaveable Brownie by Me!

Video Tutorial:

coming soon

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Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba

December 23, 2019 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan meringue cookies are super easy to make, with ingredients you probably have right now.

Thanks to aquafaba, vegans and other egg-avoiders can now enjoy meringue whenever they want again. Here, we are making the ever-loved crispy meringue cookies enjoyed by people around the world, but with a twist that makes them easier than even egg-white meringues.

What is Meringue?

Meringue (pronounced murr-ANG, with a soft g like in “sang”) is the product of whipping egg whites (or in our case, the vegan alternative aquafaba, which is the water from cooked or canned beans and other legumes).

Black bean aquafaba pour — Any legume’ll do. Garbanzos are the most commonly used, but any bean will give you whippable aquafaba!

When you whip them at high speed they turn foamy, then fluffy, and then the fluff firms up and can be baked or torched, or folded into batters to make super light and airy bakes.

Meringue has traditionally been used for a plethora of different recipes and applications: Angel food cake is made using it, macarons and macaroons are made with meringue, meringue buttercream and royal icing are both meringue-based sweets. It is used to cover baked Alaska and meringue pie and to make marshmallows. It’s even used to top some types of cocktails!

And then there is the humble meringue cookie.

What is a Meringue Cookie?

The meringue cookie is, at its simplest, dehydrated meringue. The fluff is prepared with sugar and sometimes different flavorings, then dolloped or piped onto a lined baking tray (or dehydrator tray) and baked at a very low temperature until all the moisture evaporates out.

What you’re left with is a crispy, sweet cookie that melts in your mouth in an instant. It’s basically the crunchy version of cotton candy/fairy floss.

They can be enjoyed on their own, made into “pops”, or used to adorn other desserts.

What can I add to it?

Unfortunately, meringue is a very unstable mixture. It won’t hold on its own in raw form without stabilizers like agar agar and xanthan gum, and once it’s baked it needs to be kept absolutely dry or it will absorb any and all moisture in the air and turn into sticky marshmallows (which isn’t normally a bad thing, but when you want crispy cookies it’s not exactly a celebratory occasion).

Beyond that, oil will immediately deflate your meringue if it’s mixed in, or will prevent it from ever fluffing in the first place if introduced at the beginning.

The oil thing is important, because it severely limits us on what we can mix into the aquafaba for meringue: Flavoring oils can deflate it instantly. Even citrus peels have been known to do it because of their high oil content. Cinnamon and turmeric will kill it. Cocoa powder has enough oil that it will also destroy it. Butter and coconut oil are no-gos.

In this same token, you need to make sure that all your utensils and bowls you’re using to make the meringue are free from grease. I do this by wiping everything down with vinegar before I start.

Things you CAN add to your meringue include alcohol-based flavoring like vanilla and almond. You can also add citrus juice. I like to add drink powder like KoolAid or Tang. You can fold in nuts or chocolate chips or even candy cane bits for a minty treat during the holidays.

Just make sure that your additions are not oily/greasy and that they won’t release fats at low baking temperatures.

Feel free to add sprinkles, edible dust, or spray color before they bake (as long as they’re oil/grease-free) for some added pizzazz, as well.

Sprayed with silver before and dusted with gold after dehydrating for New Year’s treats.

You can also drizzle them, dip them, or coat them with chocolate after they’re dehydrated and it will keep the crispness safe.

Cute little Santa hat meringues made by dipping the dried meringue in white chocolate and sprinkles

Cooking vs Baking vs Dehydrating

There’s a difference between what we are doing here and baking/cooking the meringue. The meringue itself has already been cooked during the bean-making/canning process, so we don’t need to do it again. And if we did, we would melt it.

Cooking our meringue at temperatures higher than 210°F or 99°C will turn them to delicious, sweet, candy soup. The aquafaba will return to liquid form because the sugar melts and it has no structure to hold on to, anymore.

The sugar we add into the aquafaba crystalizes while whipping and gives us the framework for our meringue. The millions of minuscule bubbles formed as we incorporate air hang onto that sugar framework, and it’s what allows the meringue to stand. If you melt the sugar, the whole thing is going to go down with it.

Now, sugar itself doesn’t melt until 337°F/170°C so I’m not talking about the sugar melting from the heat. It melts because your aquafaba starts to boil. Water boils at 212°F/100°C, and our aquafaba is made primarily of water. So it boils, all its bubbles pop, it dissolves the sugar, and you get a puddle instead of crispy cookies.

So that being understood, we want to keep our temperature low and slow, here – under that boiling point of 212°F/100°C. We want to slowly evaporate the moisture out of the cookies rather than cook them.

If your oven doesn’t have a setting that low, you can turn it to the lowest it does have and keep the oven door cracked open. My favorite technique for this is just to stick a wooden or silicone spoon in the door to keep it from closing.

Apart from the oven, an actual dehydrator machine will work beautifully for these guys.

What equipment do I need?

For this recipe, you need a small saucepan and stovetop/burner. A silicone spatula will also be useful.

You’ll need a large mixing bowl, either glass or stainless steel (or the bowl of a stand mixer).

You’ll need a mixer, either a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or a handheld mixer will work. You can use a regular whisk and do this by hand – but I don’t recommend it at all. I’ve done it and it took almost two hours and I was sore for days after.

You need a baking tray. I recommend light colored aluminum, but if all you have is glass or dark colored metal, just turn your temperature down another 10°F.

You need either parchment paper or a silicone mat to line your baking sheet with.

You need a large spoon or ice cream scoop if you want to make rustic-style dollop meringues, or a piping bag and large tip/nozzle if you want to pipe them.

Different ways of piping or scooping your meringue cookies

And you need either an oven or a dehydrator.

What ingredients do I need?

The ingredients here are really simple!

Aquafaba and granulated white sugar.

Everything else is optional.

For the optionals, I’m going to include a quarter teaspoon of something acidic to help the meringue fluff a bit. Acidity strengthens the structure, so you can add vinegar, cream of tartar, or even lemon juice and it’ll help the meringue to be more successful.

Oil-free flavors and colors are also optional. Just remember to forgo cinnamon, cocoa, turmeric, and other ‘strong’ flavors as they can melt your meringue. Vanilla is highly recommended though (if you’re not allergic) because it’ll make your meringue taste like marshmallows!

If your aquafaba is unsalted, you may want to add a pinch of salt to offset the sweetness a little.

The process: how to make the easiest vegan meringue cookies ever

Preheat your oven or dehydrator to the lowest temperature it will go. If it won’t heat lower than 210°F/100°C, keep them oven door ajar.

Line your baking sheets or dehydrator trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Shake your can of beans (or homemade beans) and pour your aquafaba into a small pan (make sure to thoroughly clean the rim of the can first).

Pour half the amount of aquafaba in sugar to the pan (pour the sugar in until it forms a small mountain whose ‘peak’ is slightly above the aquafaba).

Over medium heat, stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the sugar has fully dissolved, turn off the heat and pour the aquafaba syrup into your mixing bowl

Add a 1/2 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice, or 1/8 tsp of cream of tartar, or your acid-based drink powder now if you’re using them.

With your mixer with whisk attachment or beaters, whip on medium speed until the mixture is foamy, then add your vanilla.

Turn the mixer up to high until you get stiff peaks. This means that the peaks that form when you lift the whisk don’t bend or fall over, but keep their shape.

Spoon, scoop, or pipe your meringues onto your lined baking sheets in whatever shapes you’d like

Put into your preheated oven or dehydrator and bake/dehydrate for two hours or until the cookies come clean off the baking sheet when cool and are dry all the way through.

How do I store them?

Store your crispy little cookies in an airtight container with either dry rice or silica packets to absorb any humidity. As long as they are kept like this, they will be good indefinitely.

If they happen to get sticky from humidity before you get a chance to put them away, just pop them back into the oven/dehydrator until they dry back out.

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Video Tutorial:

Coming soon!

Recipe

Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba

Thanks to aquafaba, vegans and other egg-avoiders can now enjoy meringue whenever they want, again. Here, we are making the ever-loved crispy meringue cookies enjoyed by people around the world, but with a twist that makes them easier than even egg-white meringues.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Additional Time 1 hour

Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1/4-1/2 c aquafaba, any plain
1/8-1/4c granulated sugar, vegan

Optional

1 tsp alcohol based flavor extract (such as lemon, vanilla, or almond)
Gel or powder food coloring
1/2 tbsp citrus juice for flavor
2-4 tbsp chopped nuts, chocolate, or candy bits
1/4 tsp acidity: vinegar, lemon juice, cream of tartar, etc.

Instructions

Preheat your oven or dehydrator to the lowest temperature it will go. If it won’t heat lower than 210°F/100°C, keep the oven door ajar.
Line your baking sheets or dehydrator trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Shake your can of beans (or homemade beans) and pour your aquafaba into a small pan (make sure to thoroughly clean the rim of the can first).
Pour half the amount of aquafaba in sugar to the pan (pour the sugar in until it forms a small mountain whose 'peak' is slightly above the aquafaba).
Over medium heat, stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Once the sugar has fully dissolved, turn off the heat and pour the aquafaba syrup into your mixing bowl.
Add a 1/2 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice, or 1/8 tsp of cream of tartar, or your acid-based drink powder now if you’re using them.
With your mixer and whisk attachment or beaters, whip on medium speed until the mixture is foamy, then add your vanilla.
Turn the mixer up to high until you get stiff peaks. This means that the peaks that form when you lift the whisk don’t bend or fall over, but keep their shape.
Spoon, scoop, or pipe your meringues onto your lined baking sheets in whatever shapes you’d like.
Put into your preheated oven or dehydrator and bake/dehydrate for two hours or until the cookies come clean off the baking sheet when cool and are dry all the way through.

Notes

Store your crispy little cookies in an airtight container with either dry rice or silica packets to absorb any humidity. As long as they are kept like this, they will be good indefinitely.

If they happen to get sticky from humidity before you get a chance to put them away, just pop them back into the oven/dehydrator until they dry back out.

Fruit Smoothie Cake (vegan, oil-free)

July 6, 2019 // by Meggan Leal// 10 Comments

I was on the hunt for a fruit-flavored cake recipe that was three things:

Stupidly simple –

Vegan –

Absolutely delicious –

I found a few recipes that hit two out of three, but none that checked all three off my list. So what did I do? I did what I do and I wrote one. But in order to write a cake recipe, you need to know a little cake science and do some dissecting.

So what parts are there to a traditional cake recipe? In no particular order: the flavor, the substance, the liquid, the leavening agent, the sweetener, the fat, and the binder.

I wanted my fruit flavored cakes to taste like.. well.. fruit. And what tastes more like fruit than fruit? So that definitely needed to be my first ingredient. And it just so happens that fruit purée not only makes an epic flavor base, but also an amazing egg replacer for binding AND oil substitute. And it’s juicy. Bam. Why haven’t I been doing this all along?!

The best strawberries in the world from a local farmer being smoothie-fied for cake

So the fruit does the job of four cake recipe components: flavor, liquid, binder, and fat [replacer].

Then you need your substance – the bulk of the cake. That’s your flour.

And you need leavening to give the cake rise – that’s when the batter creates millions of tiny bubbles within itself and the cake puffs up, becoming a sponge instead of a hockey puck. Traditional cakes do this in a variety of ways: usually eggs filling with steam and the addition of a bit of baking powder. This cake does it with a chemical reaction of acid + base. Think back to elementary school volcanoes made with vinegar and baking soda. That’s what we are doing here, but with citric acid instead of vinegar.

For sweetness I normally use Zulka unrefined granulated sugar, but any granulated sugar will work. It also works wonderfully with coconut sugar, and for a no-sugar-added cake granulated stevia works amazingly! Just keep in mind that fruits contain natural sugars, and most flours are high in carbs which can cause sugar spikes – so while this cake made with stevia will be more diabetic-friendly than most other cakes out there, it still isn’t something that can be eaten in excess without glycemic consequences.

So with the realization of how many jobs fruit purée can do and an understanding of what other components need to be addressed, this cake can be made with, at the bare minimum, four ingredients. FOUR! And it’s DELICIOUS made with only four ingredients!

So if you’re dealing with food allergies and need something base-line basic, I’ve got you! This can be made with just an acidic fruit purée, sugar, baking soda, and flour – omit everything else and follow the steps the same way. Do you need it to be gluten-free? Use your favorite cup for cup gluten-free flour and add a teaspoon of baking powder (results may vary based on the brand or mix of gluten-free flour you use, so please test yours).

Strawberry smoothie cupcakes and cakes, made with only four ingredients. Who would have thought?

So you may be asking – why in the world would you add more stuff to it if it’s delicious with just those four??

Good question.

With just those four ingredients, the cake is stupidly simple, vegan, and absolutely delicious. BUT – sometimes I make showstopper cakes that need to hold up well with lots of layers, can be carved, can be crumb coated and frosted with ease, and some people really like extra flavor on top of the natural fruit, as well as a pop of color – so I made a few additions to make those things happen.

Flax helps the cake to be more sturdy and less crumbly, salt balances the sweetness, and the kool-aid powder adds extra flavor, color, and citric acid to react with our baking soda for more lift. If you use it, choose the same flavor as your fruit purée or a complimentary flavor (peach-mango with mango purée, for instance). If you’re using a fruit that isn’t very acidic (blueberries, for instance) you need the extra boost of acidity – so if you don’t want to use KoolAid powder, use a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice instead).

Strawberry smoothie cake all trimmed and torted and ready for filling, surrounded by the chaos that results from cake decorating.

So far I’ve made this recipe with strawberry, mango, peach, kiwi, dragonfruit, pineapple, raspberry, and blueberry. If you want to try another flavor, or even combine them, go for it and let me know what you did!

Making fruit-flavored pastry is a peach-a-cake! ;D
Here are the fluffy innards of a peach smoothie cake.

And finally, keep in mind that this cake, because it is made of mostly fruit, will be more dense than your traditional light and fluffy birthday cake style cake. To avoid it being any more dense than necessary make sure to gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together rather than stirring (so you don’t develop the gluten and make the cake chewy and bready). You can also add extra flour, up to a cup, to lighten it up a bit. But remember that the more flour you add, the less the fruit flavor and color will come through.

This recipe is great for cakes, cupcakes, cake pops, and even pancakes! It can be doubled, tripled, halved, or quartered and still works great. Try it with my quick and easy ganache or my easiest buttercream ever.

Take a look at my video here to watch how I whip up the batter in less than ten minutes, and please subscribe to my YouTube channel to be the first to know about new tutorials I put up:

VIDEO:

Yield: 1 10” or 2 8” or 3 6” or 24 cupcakes

Vegan Fruit Smoothie Cake

The simplest fruit-flavored cake recipe ever. Made with fruit as the first ingredient, it’s super allergy-friendly, infinitely customizable, oil-free, and can be made with no added sugar and gluten-free as well.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

2.5 cups fruit purée (540g)
2 cups sugar (400g)
2 tablespoons ground flax seed
5 tablespoons hot water
———
3.5 cups flour (440g)
2 teaspoons baking SODA (bicarb)
1 packet of KoolAid or other acid-based unsweetened drink powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 325°F (160°C) and prepare your cake pans (I like to use nonstick spray and a parchment paper circle inside the bottom).
Prepare your flax eggs by mixing the ground flax and hot water in a small bowl or cup (1 tbsp of flax + 2.5 tbsp water = one flax egg - so you’re making two eggs here. Also, using hot water speeds up the process). Set aside.
Add your flour, baking soda, salt, and KoolAid powder to a medium mixing bowl. Sift or whisk if you’d like.
Add your fruit purée and sugar to a large mixing bowl.
Add your flax egg to the fruit/sugar once it’s goopy - after about ten minutes.
Pour your dry ingredients into the wet, and fold them together using a silicone spatula until the batter doesn’t have any dry bits. Don’t stir! Fold!
Pour the batter into your prepared pans.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. (Cupcakes take about 17 minutes)
Proceed as usual and enjoy your cake!

No-Chill, No-Spread, Vegan Rolled Sugar Cookies

March 18, 2018 // by Meggan Leal// 26 Comments

SKIP TO PRINTABLE RECIPE

I never planned on becoming a cookier (someone who makes cookies for a living), and I certainly never planned on becoming a vegan cookier – but life has a funny way of throwing you into the unexpected.

My daughters were both diagnosed with food allergies, and I had to learn to make things without eggs, without milk, without butter or cream, without bananas or peanuts, and without wheat (for the youngest, at least. If you need a wheat-free recipe, check mine out here).

That means an awful lot of experimenting happened, and I took a “don’t tell me what I can’t do” attitude to the kitchen. I decided to break down barriers of what people told me was impossible to make and make well, and blow their minds.

This is one of my first major successes on that front: vegan sugar cookies that not only taste amazing, but that are easier to make and less expensive than any non-vegan recipe I had ever used. And everyone loves them – so much so that they asked me to start selling them. So now I make and sell vegan cookies! And I want to share the wonderful recipe I use with you.

Free of eggs, milk, butter, cream, and precious time wasted to chill the dough, these rich, delicious cookies will wow everyone who tries them and have you being hailed as a vegan cookie master.

They’re soft but study enough to top with royal icing, buttercream, glaze, sprinkles, jimmies, sugar pearls, more cookies, or whatever else your heart desires. Or even eat them plain! Who am I to tell you what you can’t do?

So here you go:

No-Chill, No-Spread, Vegan Rolled Sugar Cookies
By Cooking on Caffeine

Vegan sugar cookies that not only taste amazing, but that are easier to make and less expensive than any non-vegan recipe I have ever used.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 9-11 minutes

Ingredients:
1 c granulated sugar (if you are vegan, make sure to use a sugar that is bone-char free like Zulka)
1/2 c vegan margarine, room temperature (I use Country Crock plant butter)
1/2 c vegetable shortening
1 1/2 tsp vanilla (use pure vanilla extract if vegan)
3 tbsp aquafaba or 1 flax egg
3 1/4 c all-purpose flour

Directions:
1. Preheat your oven to 350° F.

2. Mix sugar, margarine, and shortening just until combined.

3. While the sugar and fats mix, sift your flour into a medium-sized bowl. This step is optional, but some may find it helpful.

4. Add vanilla and aquafaba (or flax egg). Mix until combined.

5. Add flour. Mix until combined and the dough pulls away from the bowl. You should be able to press your finger into it, leaving a perfect impression, without it sticking to you.

6. Lightly flour your rolling surface.

7. Take half of the dough, form it into a disk and set it on your floured surface; cover the other half with plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out.

8. Lightly flour the top of your dough, and roll it out to about 3/8” thick. Cut out your cookies with whatever cutters you desire and transfer them to a parchment paper or silicone mat lined baking sheet.

9. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies no longer appear wet.

10. Remove the pan from the oven, and allow the cookies to rest on the pan for ten minutes before moving them to a cooling rack to come to room temperature.

11. Add your leftover scraps of dough to the half you covered with plastic and repeat steps 6, and 8-10.

After the cookies are cool, store them between layers of paper towel in a sealed storage container at room temperature. You may also freeze them this way – just be sure to allow them to thaw completely in the sealed container without opening it.

Decorate with my vegan royal icing or enjoy plain.

A variety of un-iced heart-shaped and flower shaped cookies atop a black cooling rack, itself on a dark green counter and surrounded by baking supplies and tools.

4.5 from 2 votes

No-Chill, No-Spread, Vegan Rolled Sugar Cookies

Vegan sugar cookies that not only taste amazing, but that are easier to make and less expensive than any non-vegan recipe I have ever used.

Course Treats

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 24 Cookies

Author Cooking on Caffeine

Ingredients

1 c granulated sugar vegan
1/2 c margarine vegan, room temperature
1/2 c vegetable shortening
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract not imitation
3 tbsp aquafaba or 1 flax egg
3 1/4 c all-purpose flour

Instructions

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350° F.
Mix sugar, margarine, and shortening just until combined.
While sugar and fats mix, sift your flour into a medium-sized bowl (optional, but helpful).
Add vanilla and aquafaba (or flax egg). Mix until combined.
Add flour. Mix until combined and the dough pulls away from the bowl. You should be able to press your finger into it, leaving a perfect impression, without it sticking to you.
Lightly flour your rolling surface.
Take half of the dough, form it into a disk and set it on your floured surface; cover the other half with plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out.
Lightly flour the top of your dough, and roll it out to about 3/8” thick. Cut out your cookies with whatever cutters you desire and transfer them to a parchment paper or silicone mat lined baking sheet.
Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies no longer appear wet.
Remove the pan from the oven, and allow the cookies to rest on the pan for ten minutes before moving them to a cooling rack to come to room temperature.
Add your leftover scraps of dough to the half you covered with plastic and repeat steps 6, and 8-10.

Recipe Notes

After the cookies are cool, store them between layers of paper towel in a sealed storage container at room temperature. You may also freeze them this way - just be sure to allow them to thaw completely in the sealed container without opening it. Decorate with your icing of choice or enjoy plain.

easy

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Video Tutorial:

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Recipe

Ingredients

Optional

Instructions

Notes

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No-Chill, No-Spread, Vegan Rolled Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

Ingredients

Instructions

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