Remember Chocolate Snaps? My mom once bought me a box as a reward for getting an allergy shot. They weren’t in our usual cookie repertoire, but the pharmacy near the clinic sold them and we liked the cute kitty on the box. Unfortunately the cookies had a funny taste to them which I now know to be coconut. I remember being mad that Nabisco would hide yucky coconut in a chocolate cookie then put a cat on the box to lure kids. Coconut was for grownups!
So I avoided Chocolate Snaps for the rest of my childhood, then one day, I think I was a teenager by then, I was absolutely starving and all that was around was Chocolate Snaps, I ate some and realized I loved them. Then of course when I realized I loved them, they were discontinued. Or at least that’s what I suspect because I never saw them again.
I was craving Chocolate Snaps today and decided to play around. What I came up with was…
1. Nothing like chocolate snaps
2. Very good
3. Vegan!
4. Can be cut in half if you are hesitant
The pepper was a fun addition and it did keep with the theme of hiding “yucky” things in chocolate cookies. But you may want to leave it out if you’re not into a little heat with your chocolate.
Mine looked like this. If you try it, let me know. What’s great is it’s a stir and bake recipe.
Vegan Chocolate Pepper Cookies
1 cup all purpose flour (4.5 oz) – spoon and sweep if you don’t have a scale
⅓ cup dark coca powder (Dutch Process) (1 oz)
½ teaspoon coarse black pepper
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ scant teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons golden syrup (white corn syrup probably okay)
⅓ scant cup vegetable oil (¼ cup yields a thicker, dryer cookie, but is okay)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
3 ½ tablespoons water
¼ cup chopped up dark chocolate (vegan)
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a medium size mixing bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, black pepper, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a second bowl, mix together the sugar, syrup, oil, vanilla and water
Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir until almost mixed, then add chocolate and stir until flour mixture is fully absorbed and chocolate is distributed.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls (you should get 12) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes. Let cool for 1 minute on sheet, them move to a rack to cool completely.
Makes 12