Vegan Snickerdoodles with Pumpkin
To be honest, I bake cakes more often than cookies. And even in cafés, I always reach for a piece of cake rather than a cookie. I can't really say why because, unlike cakes, cookies are much quicker to bake, they are much easier to portion and store, and you don't need any baking tins or other equipment for them. Well, go figure.
But despite all my differences with cookies, a few have won me over and found a special place in my heart. These cookies are definitely one of them. Snickerdoodles are soft, flat cookies that are rolled in cinnamon and sugar. They are an American classic that comes in many different varieties. I particularly like them in combination with pumpkin, which makes them even softer and much more interesting in taste. And, of course, a few fall feelings come right up. Win, win, win!
Well, and if you're still wondering: Snicker-what?
The origin of this unusual name is not yet clear. But there are different approaches. In this article, for example, there is a suggestion that the name "has no real meaning" and that it "is merely a product of the New Englanders' tendency to give cookies whimsical names." There is also a legend that the word snickerdoodles was derived from the German word „Schneckennudeln,“ but that seems to be just a legend. (source) Incidentally, they also have nothing to do with the chocolate bar "Snickers." Well, the bottom line is: we don't know.
Pumpkin Pie Spice
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 0.5 tsp ground allspice (pimento)
- 0.5 tsp nutmeg
Instructions
- Mix all spices in a small bowl.
Vegan Snickerdoodles with Pumpkin
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 180 g (6.33 oz) Hokkaido pumpkin
- 200 g (7 oz / 1.75 sticks of butter) vegan butter
- 100 g (0.5 cups) brown sugar
- 100 g (0.5 cups) white sugar
- 1 vanilla pod
- 400 g (0.88 lb) wheat flour (type 405) or spelt flour (type 603)
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 150 g (5.25 oz) vegan chocolate chips
For the cinnamon-sugar coating:
- 50 g (0.25 cups) white sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Instructions
Cut the pumpkin into small pieces, place them in a pot of water, and boil for about 15 minutes until the pieces are soft. Drain the water, puree the pumpkin pieces, and let them cool.
In a small pot, melt the vegan butter and stir in the brown and white sugars. Split the vanilla pod lengthwise, scrape out the seeds with the back of a knife, and add them. Also, add the cooled pumpkin puree.
Mix the flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice in a large bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl, knead well, and fold in the chocolate chips. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180 °C / 356 °F (convection). Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl to coat the cookies.
Form 1 tablespoon of dough into a ball, roll it in the sugar and cinnamon, and flatten it slightly on the baking paper. Continue with the remaining dough until it is used up. Bake the snickerdoodles for 10 minutes at 180 °C / 356 °F (convection). After baking, the cookies will still be very soft, so it's best to let them cool on the baking sheet.
