Vegan Maple Sandies

Before I discovered coconut sugar, there was a time I bought loads and loads of maple sugar for all of my desserts.  It is a wonderful substitute for regular sugar because it has a similar texture.  But of course it has that maple aroma, which I never minded since I love it!  But then I discovered coconut sugar and since it was more wallet friendly than the maple, it became my primary granulated baking sugar.  Now and then I still buy the maple, if I have something special in mind for it, or want to add more maple flavor without extra moisture.  If you want just a smaller amount, it can usually be found in the bulk section at your local health food store (that is where I find it).  This past weekend I had something in mind to use it in.  I have been wanting to make buttery rich little maple cookies for a while now and I was finally going to get around to it!

The recipe I came up with to make these buttery and rich like I had imagined was based off of a shortbread cookie I used to make often.  These behave differently though, because I use coconut oil as the fat source.  The dough tastes wonderful I should note, like maple sugar cookies.  They made my kitchen smell wonderful while baking as well!  Whenever I am in a bad mood I like to bake.  That aroma alone makes me feel better.  Not that I was in a bad mood when I made these, actually I was in a good mood and feeling very motivated to get a lot done.

They baked up nicely and I decided to drizzle them with sort of a quick maple caramel glaze.  Just to make them even more tasty and a bit prettier.  OMG were they ever delicious!  Melt in your mouth buttery little morsels , scented with beautiful maple, and the caramel glaze was the perfect topper!  I called them sandies because of the texture. The aroma of maple reminds me of lazy weekends, and pancake breakfasts when I was little, or going to the bakery with my Mom and getting maple glazed long john doughnuts.  All good stuff.  If you are a maple lover too, give these a try!

Vegan Maple Sandies 
Makes about 28 cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill gluten free all purpose baking flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup plus 3 Tbsp coconut oil, warmed to liquid
• 2/3 cup plus 1/4 cup maple sugar or coconut sugar
• 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp maple flavor (optional)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Maple Glaze:

• 1 Tbsp raw pecan butter
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil, softened
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• pinch sea salt

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda.
3. In a large bowl, mix together coconut oil, maple sugar, vanilla, maple, and salts until blended completely.
4. Mix in dry ingredients until well combined.
5. Roll the dough into little one and a half inch balls, and place on a parchment lined sheet pan.  Press them down slightly.
6. Place in the oven, and bake in the oven for 13-15 minutes or until set and starting to brown just at the edges.
7. Allow to cool completely.
8. Meanwhile, mix together glaze ingredients until smooth in a small bowl, then place in the refrigerator until it thickens up slightly, about 15 minutes.
9. Drizzle the glaze over the cookies, then place them in the freezer for about 10 minutes to set.  Enjoy!