The most alluring desserts for me are those with a lot of complex, rich ingredients. I've always loved the Triple Chocolate Meltdown dessert at Applebee's (aka Crapplebee's). Their Blondies are pretty good, too. But today, I just wanted something a little simpler, with just a little touch of sweetness to it. I scoured the internet for vegan cookie and cake recipes, but nothing really sounded good. I was finding all these complex desserts, which yes, I normally like, but today I just wanted something much simpler. I racked my brain and it finally came to me...SUGAR COOKIES. They're about the simplest cookies to make, plus they don't have all kinds of crazy crap in them that makes them very complex. They're just simple sweetness.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Canola oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Ener G Egg Replacer for 1 egg or 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal mixed with 3 tablespoons water)*
cinnamon sugar in a bowl to coat
*I prefer using the flaxseed/water mixture because it gives you a richer, nuttier flavor that goes well with the maple syrup and cinnamon sugar coating.
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix dry ingredients in one bowl, and wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Once the wet ingredients are mixed well, add to dry ingredients and mix very well until it becomes a dough. Roll dough into 1-inch balls very gently; the dough is rather crumbly and will fall apart if you're too forceful when rolling them. Then, roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Arrange them in a mini-muffin pan (they keep their ball shape better that way). Bake for 12 minutes, or until tops are golden brown. You can eat them right out of the oven, but they're very soft and crumbly and you'll need a spoon to get them out. Once they've cooled, they're easier to get out of the pan and don't fall apart.
These cookies are so good, and they're about the easiest cookies to ever make. The cinnamon sugar coating was one of my own personal touches, and I'm glad I made them that way because not only are they delicious, but they made our apartment smell amazing. Everyone wants to come home to the smell of fresh-baked cookies (or cookie balls, whatever).
Just a little side note: Take the time every single day to enjoy something sweet. It doesn't have to be much. But it'll make your whole day a little bit sweeter, and everyone deserves that.
