Makes 20 | Prep 30 mins | Cook 10 mins
130g unbleached spelt or unbleached plain flour
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp vanilla bourbon powder
160g desiccated coconut
75g coconut or soya milk
135g demerara sugar
65g coconut or sunflower oil
1 tbsp ground flaxseeds (optional)
50g finely chopped vegan dark
chocolate
Coconut Cookies
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and vanilla bourbon powder in a bowl, then stir in the
desiccated coconut.
3. Put the milk, sugar, oil and flaxseeds, if using, in a separate bowl and whisk vigorously until well combined. Pour into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix with a spatula until you get dough that is firm but a little sticky – it shouldn’t be dry or crumbly.
4. Wet your hands and pull off a tablespoon of the dough. You can either roll it into a ball and flatten it
between your palms to get a flat, round cookie, or, what I do is roll the tablespoon of dough into a sausage
and then flatten it into a flat oval. That makes them easier to dip into tea or hot cocoa. Also, ovals are convenient if you like writing chocolate messages on cookies, and I do that often!
5. Continue with the rest of the dough, arranging each cookie 2cm apart on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 8–10 minutes, no longer! Take them out as soon as the bottoms turn slightly golden. Don’t worry if they seem pale and a little soft – they will harden as they cool down. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
6. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Do not let the base of the bowl touch the water. Drizzle the melted chocolate over the cooled cookies and allow to set. Store in an
airtight container for up to 2 weeks.