Vegan Sunbutter Cookies

When my son was just a year old, he was diagnosed with severe food allergies. He is allergic to eggs, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, and shellfish. His reactions are severe and we carry an Epi-pen wherever we go. Some kids grow out of their food allergies as they get older, but we are not counting on that as we have seen no signs of that happening. The last time he was tested I asked if he might be growing out of any of them but his allergist told me "he is as allergic as we can measure so, no".

I feel for my son when he can't have the foods that others are having, but I enjoy the challenge of trying to make a "safe" version of whatever it is he wants to try. Over the past eleven years my skills as a cook have really improved as I have experimented, researched and pushed myself to try new things and figure out a way to make delicious foods that are safe for him...and happily vegan for me.

My husband loves peanut butter cookies so I have been working on a vegan nut-free cookie for awhile to replace this childhood favorite. Earlier versions were too crumbly, too oily or just didn't have the right flavor. Finally, this recipe hit everything it needed to: soft and chewy with a nutty flavor. They are an excellent cookie in their own right and a great substitution for a peanut butter cookie.

I adapted this recipe from Betty Crocker's Peanut Butter Cookie recipe.

Vegan Sunbutter Cookies

Ingredients.

1 tbsp ground flax seeds
3 tbsp water

1/4 cup vegan margarine
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup natural sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup Sunbutter
1 & 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix the ground flaxseeds with 3 tbsp of water, stir to combine, and set aside to let thicken.

Beat the margarine, coconut oil, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla until it is light and fluffy. Add the flax seed and water mixture and Sunbutter and stir to combine. Sift the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder and fold it into the Sunbutter mixture.  Mix just until all the ingredients are incorporated.

Lightly grease a cookie sheet and place twelve rounded scoops of the dough onto it. Press each cookie lightly with a fork to create the criss-cross pattern across the cookies. Bake for 9-10 minutes and let cool.

Makes 12 cookies
Nutritional information from caloriecount.about.com

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 52 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories  244 Calories from Fat  126

% Daily Value*

Total Fat  14.0g 21%

Saturated Fat  5.3g 26%

Trans Fat  0.0g

Cholesterol  0mg 0%

Sodium  263mg 11%

Potassium  50mg 1%

Total Carbohydrates  26.5g 9%

Dietary Fiber  1.8g 7%

Sugars  14.9g

Protein  3.8g

Vitamin A 3% • Vitamin C 0% Calcium 2% • Iron 7%

Nutrition Grade D-

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet