Vegan Apple Cider Cookies

With fall coming, it means that school starts again and it’s back to work! I try to be thoughtful about dietary restrictions, but there are many things to think about! Different folks have gluten, dairy, and chocolate limitations. I valiantly tried to find a recipe that would fit everyone (without too many changes) but I couldn’t. Gluten free flour can be strange, so I find that cookies that don’t contain flour at all are best gluten free ones. I made a http://cookiesonfriday.blogspot.com/2012/11/lemon-amaretti.html classic gluten free cookie, but also found this vegan recipe for apple cider cookies.

I have made a similar cookie, but I was curious how this vegan version would turn out. It also uses a good quantity of apple cider, which I adore! It isn’t common to use ½ cup of cider in a recipe, but it was not an issue in the end. As this recipe is vegan, there is no egg, which naturally adds liquid to a recipe. The dough was nice and soft, and I decided to refrigerate the dough for a couple of hours.

I wasn’t sure how long to bake these cookies, as the original recipe said to bake the cookies for 15+ minutes. Unless you make giant cookies, that’s usually too long to bake a cookie. I baked these for 10 minutes, then 2 minutes more, then an additional 2 minutes. In the end 14 minutes worked best, but that still seems like a long time! These thin cookies have a great cider flavor, which increases even more overnight. While these are vegan, they are a classic fall cookie to make again and again!

Vegan Apple Cider Cookies
1/2 cup room vegetable shortening/vegan butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup apple cider
2-1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1-1/2 cup powdered sugar
3+ tablespoons apple cider

In a large mixer bowl, beat the shortening, sugar, and brown sugar on medium until smooth. Add the vanilla and apple cider and mix on medium to combine. The mixture will look wet and somewhat lumpy, but it will come together. With the mixer running on low, gradually add the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats.

Shape the dough into balls and place on the prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 15 minutes, until set. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 20 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

Make the drizzle: in a small bowl whisk the powdered sugar and apple cider together until smooth. Drizzle over the cooled cookies.

Recipe from Two Raspberries