Lazy Samoas

I have memories of eating Girl Scout cookies as a little girl and I didn't want Brody to miss out on tasting one of my favorites...Samoas! A friend shared this vegan recipe with me last year and I think they are a great substitute!

This recipe is free of: milk, eggs, peanuts, fish and shellfish 

*Could be Gluten Free if you used a GF all purpose flour

This recipe from is from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

Lazy Samoas

2 cups grated sweetened coconut

1/3 cup unrefined coconut oil

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 cup nondairy milk

1 tablespoon ground flax seeds

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

For Decorating:

1 cup chocolate chips

2 Tablespoons unrefined coconut oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper

2. Pour the grated coconut into a large heavy skillet and toast over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally and toast coconut to a light golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully to avoid burning. Promptly remove the coconut from the heat and stir occasionally as it cools. If the coconut continues to turn overly brown promptly pour from the skillet into a large dish and spread around to hasten cooling and stop cooking.

3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the coconut oil [warm a bit if it's too solid], brown sugar, nondairy milk, ground flax seeds, and the vanilla until well blended and smooth. Sift in the all-purpose flour, baking soda and salt and mix to form a batter. Fold in the coconut.

4. Scoop about 1 Tablespoon of dough 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets. Flatten each cookie with the back of a measuring cup and use your fingers to work a small hole into each center. Bake for 8 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are golden.

5. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely. Transfer the cooled cookies onto waxed paper, then place them on the onto a cutting board or other firm surface that can be easily slid onto a refrigerator shelf.

6. while cookies are cooling, melt chocolate chips in a microwave or double-boiler, then stir in the coconut oil into the melted chocolate. Allow the chocolate mixture to cool for about 5 minutes to thicken slightly. Dip cookie bottom into the chocolate and return them to the waxed paper. Now drizzle the remaining chocolate over the cookies, either by dipping a fork into the melted chocolate or by pouring the chocolate into a pastry bag fitted with a very small round tip. Chill cookies for at least 30 minutes to completely firm up the chocolate. Store the cookies in a loosely covered container in a very cool place.