Coffeehouse Hermits (from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Kitchen)
½ cup canola oil
½ cup strong black coffee, room temp
1/3 cup molasses
2/3 cup sugar
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground ginger
A generous pinch finely ground black pepper
½ tsp salt
1 cup raisins (not golden)
I’ve amended it here, but the book actually made a typo, and a pretty terrible one at that. The recipe in the book calls for 2 cups of black coffee, so the first time around I put 2 cups of coffee into the recipe. It looked so wrong, more like a batter than a dough. I went online, and found a forum where a bunch of vegans were discussing the recipe. Someone mentioned the typo, said the authors really meant ½ a cup instead of 2 cups. Wow. If only I had read this before I added 1 ½ cups flour extra and put the damn thing in the oven. My first batch was botched. Take two.
The recipe, when made correctly, is actually really delicious! Chewy and a bit spicy, and tasty at room temp or heated up. Here’s what to do:
- In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, coffee (I don’t have a coffee maker, so I used instant for my recipe and it still works), molasses and sugar until mixed well. Sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, black pepper and salt. Fold in the dry ingredients, then fold in the raisins until a soft dough forms.
- Chill the dough in the fridge (you can keep it in the bowl) for 30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet (or two medium-sized ones) with parchment paper.
- After the dough is chilled, divide it in half. Form it into two logs on top of the parchment paper, each one measuring about 13 inches long and 3 ½ inches wide (and about 1 ½ to 2 inches thick). Leave 3 to 4 inches of room between the logs (if you’re using one large baking sheet) because the dough will spread when baking. Sprinkle the tops of the logs with additional sugar if you like, and press gently into the dough.
- Bake 24 to 26 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the logs feel slightly firm. Cracked tops are fine, even traditionally desired in this recipe. Allow the logs to cool for about 15 minutes, then use a sharp knife to cut logs into 2-inch-wide slices, using a single downward motion (do NOT saw; the logs will crack!). Serve with or without coffee and enjoy!