Vegan Chocolate Avocado Cookies

 

So, despite the claims of the original blog post where I saw this recipe, I’m not sure I can say that this recipe is healthy. I mean, yes, it’s got avocado purée replacing some of the butter, BUT there’s also an equivalent amount of coconut oil replacing that butter, and sadly, it turns out that coconut oil is not a healthy fat. However, the cookies were really good, and no one would have guessed the special ingredient (I didn’t say anything). 

The original recipe yielded 2 dozen cookies, but I made mine bigger and had 13 in all – I baked them for the same amount of time called for and they were perfectly chewy. 

I had leftover mashed avocado and ended up freezing it – I’m pretty sure it could be thawed and used for this recipe again. 

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 

1 tsp. baking powder 

½ tsp. sea salt 

2/3 cup Dutch processed cocoa 

½ cup brown sugar 

¼ cup granulated sugar 

¼ cup coconut oil 

¼ cup mashed avocado 

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

1/3 cup almond milk (or nut-free plant milk) 

½ cup vegan chocolate chips 

Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Line a large baking sheet with a silpat baking mat or parchment paper and set aside. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa. Set aside. 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the brown sugar, granulated sugar, coconut oil, and avocado together until creamy and smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add in the vanilla extract. 

With the mixer on low, add half of the flour mixture. Add the milk and then add the remaining dry ingredients. Mix until the flour disappears. Stir in the chocolate chips. 

Form cookie dough into tablespoon balls (I had about 2 heaping tablespoons per cookie) and place on prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Slightly flatten the cookies with the palm of your hand or a spatula. Bake cookies for 10 minutes, or until set around the edges, but still soft in the center. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for two minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.

[Update, April 1st 2022: I just made these again with the frozen avocado purée and I used my 3-oz cookie scoop. Worked like a charm!]