(Vegan) Mexican Hot Chocolate Snickerdoodles

I had been holding on to the recipe for these cookies for some time. I was largely unaware of the possibilities of vegan baking until a dear friend, Dawn, took me to a local vegan bakery. I tried a number of goodies there and was gobsmacked by how moist and delicious everything was. I would never have guessed that none of it contained dairy or eggs. Dawn is herself a vegan and a big fan of yummy things, so I decided that I wanted to honor our friendship by making something for her. Plus, she’s a great guinea pig and has always been supportive of my baking experiments.

After vetting many recipes, I decided that Post Punk Kitchen’s Mexican Hot Chocolate Snickerdoodles sounded promising, and printed out the recipe, intending to make them as a Christmas offering to Dawn. That would be Christmas 2011. I ended feeling overwhelmed with the holiday baking and never got around to them. Then sometime this fall, our group of girlfriends had a conversation about food (we have many conversations about food) and the subject of chili-infused chocolate came up; Dawn was most enthusiastic. So that sealed the deal; I had to make those cookies this Christmas. And so I did.

I cannot rave about these cookies enough. They were simple to make and did not require any unusual ingredients. No egg substitute or flax meal were necessary. I was worried that the cookies would be greasy with the amount of canola oil used; they weren't.  I was worried that they would lose their crispness when stored; they didn’t. My non-vegan family loved them. Dawn loved them. Dawn’s husband loved them; he even emailed me a plea for help one day because he couldn’t stop eating them and was afraid she would return home from work to discover that they were all eaten.

The cookies are pleasingly chocolaty and have a depth of flavor that I really enjoyed.  I loved how the chocolate and cinnamon played off each other, and the slow burn of the cayenne. The texture is firm but there’s a nice chewiness in there too. Who knew a vegan cookie could be so satisfying?