Is it possible for a vegan, grain-free and refined sugar-free snickerdoodle cookie to be better than a traditional snickerdoodle cookie? Yes! And the folks at Sweet Laurel Bakery in the Pacific Palisades here in Los Angeles would make you a believer. They made me one. It is my favorite thing to get at the bakery, and so easy to make at home too. I’ve adapted the Sweet Laurel recipe by cutting the proportions in half, and by using unprocessed raw sugar to make it a little more accessible to bake at home. Made with almond flour, maple syrup, coconut oil, vanilla extract, and of course, cinnamon, these snickerdoodles are just the right amount of sweet. The best part is that, since you don’t need to use any cold ingredients, there is no waiting for anything to come to room temperature, which makes the recipe come together even faster!

Makes 9-12 cookies

Adapted from: Sweet Laurel Bakery http://blog.sweetlaurel.com/

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups almond flour
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1.5 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt or sea salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tbsp raw sugar (also called turbinado sugar) plus 1 tbsp cinnamon, mixed together

Recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together the almond flour, baking soda, salt, and 1/4 tsp cinnamon. In a separate bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla extract. Add to the dry ingredients, and stir with a spatula until well incorporated.

3. Form the dough into balls measuring about 2 tbsp each, and place onto the parchment-lined baking sheet, with at least 2 inches of space between them. Using your hand, flatten the balls to form the shape of cookies. Top each cookie with the raw sugar and cinnamon mixture.

4. Bake for about 10 minutes in the oven until the edges are golden brown.

5. Remove the cookies from the baking sheet carefully using a pancake spatula and place onto a cooling rack to cool. Note – the cookies will seem crumbly when you take them out of the oven but as they cool, they will seal themselves. Trust the process!