one of my best friends, j, introduced me to vegan goddess isa chandra moskowitz back in college. isa’s mexican hot chocolate snickerdoodles were our favorite cookies to bake – so fast, so easy, and with ingredients that we usually already had on hand – and one of our friends’ favorite cookies to eat. as college kids, we were always looking for minimal effort, maximum payoff recipes, and isa came through again and again. my friend is such a fan of her, I think he owns every single cookbook by her! (and because of him, I’ve added a few to my collection – isa does it is a particular favorite of mine.
these days, the recipes I choose tend to be longer weekend projects, require at least 12 hours of chilled rest time, call for specialized ingredients, or take many, many steps. it was a welcome change to reach back into the vault, make some vegan chocolate snickerdoodles (with a few modifications j and I have made over the years), and reminisce a bit back on the days when j and I mixed these up in communal dorm kitchens with whatever bowls and utensils we could find, baked them up yellowed, likely inaccurate ovens, and still somehow emerged with something delicious every time.
makes 24 cookies
200g (1 cup) granulated sugar
85g (1/4 cup) pure maple syrup
3 tbsp almond milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
225g (1 2/3 cups) all-purpose flour
50g (1/2 cup) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne
sugar topping
67g (1/3 cup) granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
isa chandra moskowitz. mexican hot chocolate snickerdoodles. isa chandra. 16 september 2009. accessed 10 march 2019.
2 mix sugar topping ingredients together in a shallow bowl. set aside.
3 in medium mixing bowl, vigorously whisk together oil, sugar, syrup, milk, and vanilla extract.
4 sift in remaining ingredients. once all ingredients are added, use a rubber spatula to fold ingredients together until dough is pliable and no streaks remain.
5 roll dough into walnut-sized balls (~30g). roll around in the sugar topping. transfer to baking sheet, at least 2 inches apart, then flatten into disks with ~2-in diameter. (I like to use the bottom of a cup to flatten, but the palms of the hands will work too.) if the dough is weepy (e.g. leaving little oil puddles), refrigerate for at least 10 minutes and up to half an hour before baking.
6 bake for 10-12 minutes, until cookies are crackly on top. remove from oven and let rest on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool.
fort juniper 