The BEST Vegan Carob Chip Cookies

I have a friend who is allergic to chocolate (poor guy), and so I googled "best vegan chocolate chip cookies," intending on making him a carob version.  Low and behold... this recipe popped up with that exact title, with the word "BEST" capitalized for emphasis.  Who could resist that?  

I am usually dubious of such a bold proclamation made on the internet, but always eager to actually make THE BEST anything, especially if it's as easy as following a simple recipe found in 3 seconds online!

Well, I must say- these did not disappoint.  They had a nice balance of crunchy and chewy, and that blissfully addictive sensation that only THE BEST Carob (or Chocolate) Chip Cookies could invoke.  The second time I made them, I made the mistake of halving the coconut oil, but they turned out even better.  So, I altered the recipe here- let me know if you get a different result...  And good luck keeping these in the house!

Makes @ 15-18 good sized cookies (I usually double this recipe)

Ingredients:
1/4 C. coconut oil (must be measured in liquid form)
1 C. loosely packed brown sugar
1 T. vanilla extract
1/4 C. soy milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 C. all purpose flour (I used all purpose spelt flour)
1 C. carob chips

Spinz:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Whisk together the coconut oil and brown sugar. Mix in vanilla extract.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: salt, baking powder & soda, and flour.  Add in about 1 cup of the dry ingredients to incorporate into the sugar oil mixture.  Add in the soy milk.  Add the rest of the dry ingredients. Mix in the chocolate chips.
The dough will be very stiff.  Roll into golf ball sized balls with your hands, pressing the dough together.  Important:  Only flatten these slightly (the dough will spread out quite a bit in the oven).  Space each cookie @ 2" apart.  Bake for @ 10 minutes.  

Joshy's First Birthday Party!

I can't believe it's been almost a year since my little Joshy was born!  I also can't believe how much time has gone by since I last posted.  Needless to say, my culinary "adventures" have been more like culinary "what the hell can I make in 5 minutes?"

Well... I was determined to make something special for the event- so I carved a melon bunny.  It was something I had done a couple times before, so I knew it wouldn't take a whole afternoon to figure out. Plus, it was appropriate for Easter too... win-win!

I also made Joshy a little cake (although it looks huge in this picture).  Nothing special- just vanilla agave cake with vanilla soymilk custard on top.  He's such a picky eater right now, I knew he wouldn't do much with it.  Turned out, I was right.  In fact, he was so traumatized by the ten of us singing to him, that he barely noticed the cake with the big #1 candle on it.  After he calmed down, it didn't take long for him to explore this alien object in front of him... but he was cranky from missing his nap, and only got as far as putting a tiny fist full of custard in his mouth before wanting OUT!

But alas, a one year old child will inevitably recover, and go back to doing the things that really make him happy- like chewing on his socks and sitting on a keyboard.

Also, my best friend Cee (and Joshy's Fairy Godmother) made these cute little vegan deviled eggs (recipe from VegNews).  Note to all- the recipe calls for far too much black salt in the filling!  She had to alter it a few times to get it right.  They turned out yummy, but I wasn't fond of the agar egg whites- just wasn't the right texture for those who know what a deviled egg tastes like.

Well, all in all- it was a good event, and we had a blast!  It'll definitely be something we look back upon and have a giggle.  And before you know it, my baby won't be a baby anymore (sniff).  I'm glad I could share this with all of you!