I have a love/hate relationship with baking. It’s not my forte but healthier baked goods have become a passion of mine. I eschew most sugars, use whole grain flours, and reduce the oil/fat without sacrificing taste or texture. I want to enjoy my desserts, but not have to worry about it adding pounds or putting me in a sugar coma. I encourage you to try this style of baking. Play around with different flours and sweeteners. I must give credit to the woman who 9 years ago sparked my interest in a healthier way of baking. More Great Good Dairy-free Desserts Naturally by Fran Costigan was the first vegan baking cookbook I ever bought. Fran introduced me to using barley flour and mixing granulated sweeteners with liquid sweeteners. She’s just brilliant and not called the “Queen of Vegan Desserts” for nothin’!

Now on to the cookies! I will be honest with you, I’ve never had a Samoa Girl Scout cookie. Thin Mints were more my style back in the day when I used to actually eat cookies laced with harmful ingredients. I made these oatmeal coconut chocolate chip cookies for a cooking class recently and a number of people said they tasted like Samoas. Google to the rescue showed me what they looked like and I got to melting some chocolate. These may not be exactly like those cookies (there’s no caramel and I’ve added oats), but will be close enough for those who want the memories without the hydrogenate oil and corn syrup.

Ingredients (Makes 12-16 cookies):

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 3/4-1 cup barley flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• Dash nutmeg
• Dash salt
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon alcohol-free vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons flax meal
• 1/4 cup coconut palm sugar (or other granulate sugar)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips (I prefer the grain-sweetened ones by Sunspire)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line one large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In large bowl whisk together the first seven dry ingredients until well combined.
3. In separate bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients, except the chocolate chips, until smooth and creamy.
4. Mix wet into dry ingredients until well combined. Fold in chocolate chips.
5. Drop tablespoon-sized spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheet.
6. Using wet fingertips or back of spoon press down each cookie evenly (continue to wet fingers to prevent sticking).
7. The cookies will not spread much, so you can put them close together.
8. Bake for 13 minutes then rotate and bake 6 more minutes.
9. Let sit on cookie sheet for a few minutes then remove and cool on a wire rack.

Optional: Melt down 1 cup chocolate chips with 1/4 cup almond milk. Dip each cookie or spread chocolate along the bottom. Place on parchment paper chocolate side up and allow chocolate to harden. Warm up chocolate sauce again with a little extra almond milk. Flip cookies and drizzle chocolate along the top.