Dec 04

Today, December 4 is National Cookie Day.
To celebrate, I cooked some vegan Candy Cane Joe Joe’s.
Oh, you don’t know what Joe Joe’s are? They have their own Facebook Page
The Candy Cane Joe Joe is a rich cocoa cookie filled with a peppermint filling and crushed candy canes.
Fans of Trader Joes know that the Joe Joe is a stand-in for the Oreo, the Candy Cane Joe Joe is a seasonal offering available only during the holiday season.
Below you will find the recipe which I adapted and made vegan.
I made these for a work party where many non-vegan girls will be exchanging treats and gifts.
These girls won’t even know that these cookies are vegan!
They are so buttery. and chocolatey, and pepperminty, and sooo good. 

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Today is National Cookie Day: Homemade Candy Cane Joe Joe’s

Author: peace. love. quinoa

Ingredients

What you need for the cookies:

• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1½ teaspoons salt
• 15 tablespoons (7½ ounces) Earth Balance or vegan margarine – at room temperature
  

What you need for the filling:

• ½ cup Earth Balance or vegan margarine
• 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1½ teaspoons peppermint extract
• 2 tablespoons non-dairy milk (soy, almond, hemp, hazelnut, or coconut)
• 1 teaspoon red food coloring
• 10 small candy canes chopped finely

Instructions

What you do to make the cookies:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees & line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl combine the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix on a low speed with an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer.
3. Add the softened Earth Balance butter to the mixture, a few tablespoons at a time. The mixture will have a sandy texture at first and then will begin to form pebble-size pieces. As soon as the dough starts to come together, stop the mixer. Make sure all the butter is well incorporated. If there are large butter pockets, mix for a few seconds more.
4. Form the dough in to a large ball and cut in half.
5. One at a time, roll the dough out on to a floured surface until ⅛-1/4 inch thick.
6. Cut into rounds using a cookie cutter. My rounds are approximately 2½ inches in diameter. After your rounds are cut, use a pastry brush to brush off excess flour. If you don’t remove the excess flour, your cookies will look white instead of brown.
7. Place the round ½ – 1 inches apart on the lined baking sheet. collect the scraps and repeat the procedure.
8. Bake for 10-13 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on the sheets for 2 to 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
   

What you do to make the filling:

1. With an electric hand mixer, cream the softened Earth Balance butter until it is smooth and begins to fluff.
2. With the mixer on low speed, add confectioners’ sugar and fluff for another few minutes.
3. Add the vanilla, milk, food coloring, and peppermint extract.
4. Once all of the ingredients are well combined, beat on high for 3-4 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
5. After finely chopping the candy canes using a food processor, add them to the frosting. Fold in to the mixture with a spatula.
6. The consistency of the frosting will change after adding the candy canes.. Add more powdered sugar if necessary for desired consistency.
   

Assemble the cookies:

1. After the cookies have cooled, put two tablespoons of filling in between two cookies.
2. Store the cookies in an airtight container overnight.

3.2.2265

{recipe adapted from Gastronomy}

**this recipe is part of LoveFeast’s 2012 Holiday Cookie Exchange

Tagged with → Candy Cane • cookies • handmade • holiday • Joe Joe’s • Oreo • Peppermint • recipe • sweet • Trader Joes 

Love

Crista

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