Recipe: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 tbsp ground flax
3 tbsp water
6 tbsp of vegan butter*
1 cup coconut sugar*
1 cup of pureed or canned pumpkin
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour*
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin spice
¼ tsp sea salt
1 cup dark chocolate chips
Flake salt

*You can substitute (1 to 1) with unsalted butter, granulated white sugar, and/or all-purpose (wheat) flour, depending on your personal preferences.

Steps:

1. Mix ground flax seed and water in a small bowl and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until creamy. Add in the pumpkin, flax mixture and vanilla extract until just combined.

3. In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a cookie dough scoop, scoop dough into balls and place on baking sheet 2 inches apart. Bake for 20 minutes, then carefully take out of oven and drop pan on counter a couple of times to spread out cookies. Top with flake salt and bake for another 4-7 minutes until just browned on bottoms. Let cool for 10 minutes.

Bridgette Blakey is a dietetic intern at Bastyr University in Seattle, WA. Her clinical interests include sports nutrition, clinical pediatric nutrition, and preventive health through nutrition in depressive disorders. She is a mom to three young kids and enjoys weight training, surfing, and creating plant-forward recipes.