Vegan Christmas Tim Tams (Australian Chocolate Cookies)
With this recipe, a little dream comes true that I dreamed of for a very long time. A few years ago, I was in Australia and fell in love with these little cookies called “Tim Tams“. And it wasn't just me, but about every person I met there. Everyone was raving about the different varieties: Tim Tams with dark or light chocolate, caramel, white chocolate, mint, cherries, coconut, and many, many more. Have I tried all the varieties? Of course, I did! My favorite flavor was called “Chewy Caramel,“ and I guess you already know what filled my suitcase on my flight home ...
Unfortunately, these cookies are hard to get in Germany – and besides that, they aren’t vegan anyway. So, therefore, it was time to veganize them! And why not recreate them in a Christmas edition as it’s currently winter? If you ask me, that was a missing flavor anyway.
A Tim Tam consists of two biscuits with a filling of chocolate cream in between and covered by a chocolate layer. Remember our vegan icebox bars recipe? When preparing them, I already got some practice in tempering chocolate, which came in handy now. In general, I would say that we’re not too bad at veganizing sweets as we also have vegan Twix, vegan “Schokobons“ or [vegan chocolate hazelnut-filled wafers on offer.
But before you can finally start your own creations, I’ve to tell you one more fun fact. My Australian host family explained to me how to eat Tim Tams properly: You actually use them as straws. How that’s done? You take a bite of two sides that are in diagonally opposite directions, then dip the cookie in a cup of warm tea or coffee and slurp it up through the cookie. This may sound easy to some, but it can go quite wrong. If you drink too much liquid, the cookie will crumble right in your fingers. If you drink too little,the cookie will still be crispy. But if you find the perfect way, you have a wonderfully soft cookie that melts in your mouth. Again, it's a matter of taste, but it's always been part of it for me.
So give it a try and tell us in the comments if you made it. We are very excited to hear about it!
Vegan Christmas Tim Tams (Australien Chocolate Cookies)
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 200 g (1.66 cups) wheat flour
- 150 g (1.33 sticks) cold vegan butter
- 60 g (0.25 cup) sugar
- 10 g (1 tbsp) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 10 g (1 tbsp) gingerbread spice
- 1 pinch of salt
For the filling:
- 50 g (1.75 oz) dried cherries
- 100 g (3.5 oz) marzipan
- 40 g (0.33 stick) vegan butter
- 25 g (1 oz) vegan dark chocolate (40% cocoa content)
- 10 g (1 tbsp) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 10 g (1 tbsp) sugar
- 1-2 tbsp plant-based milk (optional)
For the glazing:
- 250 g (9 oz) vegan dark chocolate (40 % cocoa content)
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
For the dough, add wheat flour, vegan butter, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, gingerbread spice, and a pinch of salt to a bowl and knead until combined. Form the dough into a ball and refrigerate for approx. 30 minutes.
In the meantime, chop dried cherries for the filling. Melt marzipan, vegan butter, and vegan chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Next, stir in unsweetened cocoa powder, sugar, and chopped cherries.
Tip: If the filling becomes too firm, add some plant-based milk.
Preheat the oven to 170°C/340°F (upper and lower heat). Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out into two equal-sized rectangles (24cm x 16cm / 9x6 inches) directly on baking paper. It works best if you roll it between two sheets of baking paper. Transfer the baking paper to an oven rack and bake for approx. 16 minutes. Then let them cool down.
Spread the filling on one of the cooled cake layers. Cut the second cake layer into equal-sized rectangles (6cm x 4cm / 2.5x1.5 inches) and arrange them next to each other on top of the filling. Next, cut out the cookies between each rectangle and transfer them to a cooling rack.
Chop the chocolate for the glazing. Melt two-thirds of it with coconut oil in a waterproof bowl over a pot of simmering water until the mixture has warmed to 50°C/120°F. Add the remaining chopped chocolate until it's also melted, and allow the chocolate to cool down to 32°C/90°F.
One by one, place the Tim Tams on a fork and completely dip them into the molten chocolate and transfer them to a rack to drain and cool. Then let the chocolate-covered cookies cool in the refrigerator until the glazing is completely set.
