Campfire Cookies

When I first started baking vegan treats everything failed. Seriously. Everything. There were tears. There were moments when I questioned if it would be easier to buy new cookie sheets instead of scrubbing off weirdly textured baked on “treats”. There were more tears and phone calls to my mom. There were hours [and hours] researching on the internet. Batches [and batches] of cookies and brownies that gradually improved.

Trying to bake gluten-free treats without eggs or dairy. Desserts that didn’t stray too far from our healthy eating regime. Things I wouldn’t mind sharing with friends who didn’t have dietary restrictions.

So when I saw these cookies on Pinterest I desperately wanted to recreate them to make them vegan-friendly.

To the tune of the three little pigs I made three batches of the chocolate cookie before I landed on a winner. The first time I made them they were soft and flat. They tasted good but they couldn’t handle the marshmallow. It was too much for it. The second time I made them, I succeeded in making the chocolate pillows I had in my head but unfortunately they were dry and cakey. So the third time: just right. Chewy gooey chocolate cookies reminiscent of brownie dough. I’d call them a brookie if I didn’t hate when people did that…

Campfire Cookies
Makes about 30 cookies
adapted from Joy the Baker

2 1/2 cups flour [I used 1/2 spelt and 1/2 gluten-free all purpose, but you could use all Bob’s Red Mill all purpose gluten-free]
1/2 cup dutch processed cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons flax seed meal
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon soy milk
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat your oven to 350F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugars. In a small bowl mix together warmed coconut oil, applesauce, and flax meal. Let that sit for a few minutes and then add the wet to the dry. Add the soy milk a little at a time until you’re able to incorporate all of the flour. We’re looking for a stiff dough. Add in the chocolate chips and vanilla.

[If there’s one thing I’ve learned in vegan baking, it’s that the state of the dough doesn’t determine the final product. I’d say in “normal” baking a stiff dough would produce a dry cookie, but here we need it to keep the cookie stable.]

Using a cookie scoop, drop 30 cookies onto your parchment-lined sheets. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 8-10 minutes until they no longer look “wet” but before they’re completely baked [I went a little under-baked but I’m a chewy cookie person]. While the second batch is in the oven, cut 15 marshmallows in half and prep your chocolate. I’ve tried taking chocolate squares broken into four pieces and using a couple chocolate chips and both ways worked fine.

Top each cookie with some chocolate and then put the marshmallow on cut side down [I used my kitchen shears to cut mine in half]. When the second batch is finished with the oven turn your broiler on high and place the cookies on the top rack for a minute or so. You really have to watch them the whole time they’re in there because they go from almost to overdone very quickly.

[This picture is from the cakey cookie batch. They were baked a little too long. Baking=science.]

Prep your other cookie sheet and bake those as well. When the marshmallows are cool enough to touch smoosh them down a little on the cookie so they’re spread over the whole cookie. When both batches are finished, leave them on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes or so. They’ll firm up a little more while they cool.