Dec 10, 2011

Mint Chocolate Thins

I was eyeing the Chocolate Mint Melties from Dreena Burton’s Eat, Drink & Be Vegan, and simply couldn’t resist making them.

I played around with the proportions of the original recipe a bit, and changed the flour from spelt to whole wheat pastry flour. The resulting cookie is thin and crispy, while still chewy on the inside. With an intense minty aroma, they’re the perfect holiday cookies.

I think these are best the same day they are made, as they tend to lose their crispness over time. So I bake up cookies with part of the batter, then refrigerate the rest for the next day. That also keeps me from eating so many in one sitting!

These will remind you of Girl Scout Thin Mints…minus the icky trans fats. Admittedly, they are super sweet. But they’re also whole grain and vegan. So go ahead, indulge!

Mint Chocolate Thins
Adapted from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan

1/2 cup organic canola oil or high-oleic safflower oil
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon organic sugar, divided
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 T. almond milk (can substitute dairy milk)
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Rounded ¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3.5 ounces 70% or 72% dark chocolate, chopped into small chunks

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together the oil, ½ cup sugar, maple syrup, agave, milk and extracts.  In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix well. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir just until combined. Gently mix in the dark chocolate.

Drop by rounded teaspoonful onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with a little of the additional sugar. Bake 11 minutes (don’t worry if they don’t look done – they flatten and harden after coming out of the oven). Cool for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a rack.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

This post is linked to The Secret Recipe Club’s Cookie Party.

Comments

  • These look lovely! I have been experimenting with vegan cookies quite a bit and I am yet to make some good chocolate cookies :)

  • Those look fantastic! They’re going on my “to make” list for sure.

  • Those look amazing! I just made mint chocolate cookies but the next time I’m in the mood, I’m making these. Thanks for sharing. I LOVE that it’s all whole grain and uses oil! :)

  • whatwouldcathyeat

    Erin, do let me know if you make the cookies. I’m in love with them.

  • I love chocolate and mint. Thin Mints were always my favorite as a kid and I love that you recreated them with stellar ingredients. mmm, thanks for sharing! :)

  • These cookies look amazing!

    LOVE the bright colors of the background against the chocolatey cookies

  • Robin

    how can these be made gluten free?

  • whatwouldcathyeat

    Sorry Robin, I’m not experienced in gluten-free baking, but check Gluten Free Girl’s blog – she has an all-purpose gluten-free flour formula there. Or you can buy a gluten-free all-purpose flour. I think you will have to include some xanthan gum and guar gum, too.

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  • Molly

    These are amazing! These will be a new standard Christmas cookie for me, taking the place of the chocolate crinkles I make with tons of butter. Thank you for the recipe and for your fantastic website!

  • Bill Fountain

    I came across your “intersted-in-healthy-food” website when I was looking for Chocolate and Mint together. (It was surprising to me, when I found out that dark chocolate is a strong anti-cancer food)
    When I turned 40 (more than 25 years ago), many of my older friends were spending a lot of time and money on doctors, hospitals & medicines. I figured something must be missing in what we all knew, so I made it my personal goal to find out the truth, if possible.
    I will not try to cover much here, but one food category stands out as harmful, that most people think is good: FOOD GRAINS. When I researched them, I found that grains are simply not digestible. There are only two things that can make them digestible – making the flour into sourdough, OR sprouting the grain before grinding it into flour. Grains are “designed” to STORE nutrition, not to be digestible. That means eating grains or the flour products of grains, without being sprouted or making them into sourdough, add to our fat.
    Grains are used in a majority of foods today, but notably things like cereals, soups, pasta and “a jillion” kinds of bread! Wheat, oats, spelt, barley, rye, etc. are not really healthy until they sprout. AFTER sprouting they are tens of thousands of times over, highly nutritional and digestible. I dare anyone to research that!
    Before modern agriculture came along, grains were left on the stalk in the field until they sprouted, then they were harvested. The nutritional difference after sprouting is mind boggling. I only found one place (so far) that makes flour out of sprouted grains (and I personally have NO interest in their company but to buy health). They are http://www.organicsproutedflour.net/ – near Montgomery, Alabama.
    Now I make my own bread, cakes, cookies, pizza dough, pastas, tortillas, etc. with good nutrition! (Retired people have the time for such things! 😉

  • Thank you so much! I hope to see more updates from you.

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