December is here and that means twinkly lights, holiday music, cozy weather, movie nights featuring holiday flicks, hot cocoa all day long, party prepping and Christmas cookies galore. And I have been wanting to DIY these cookies for a long time, but I never had the vegan chocolate kiss, until now. So hop in the kitchen, turn up the holiday music and bake these Vegan Peanut Butter "Kiss" Cookies. Plus a video of me making them!....

First off, thank you for downloading my new Matcha Guide! I am so glad you guys are enjoying it. Don't forget to tag your matcha photos with #matchachallenge if you take a taste into the world of matcha, and share on social media.

And today, I woke up, looked at the "December 1st" on my iPhone and simply HAD to bake some Christmas cookies while listening to holiday music. And yes, it was glorious. I might even have a cup of cocoa this afternoon. So in the name of the holiday season, turn up the cozy in your house, these cookies can definitely help..

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Vegan Kisses. So, where did I get my vegan kisses? I made them! You can find the candy molds online. Here on ebay.

Buttery peanut butter cookies coated in coconut sugar, accented with vanilla and flax and a rich vegan chocolate on top.

If you do not have "kisses" you can use chocolate chips, chunks of vegan chocolate bars or simply leave off the chocolate!

Bring these to a holiday party and watch them disappear!

Color + ingredients.

Rolling cookies in coconut sugar will add a brownish hue to them. You can roll in white sugar (organic will be vegan) or skip the added sugar.

The flax seeds also add a brownish tint. For a smoother texture ground your flax seeds VERY fine.

And lastly, the molasses, which adds a caramel-y accent, also darkens the cookies a bit. This ingredient is optional.

Vegan Peanut Butter "Kiss" Cookies

By Kathy Patalsky
Published 12/01/2015

These veganized cookies are a spin on one of my fave cookies of all time, peanut butter and chocolate Kiss cookies. Buttery peanut butter cookies are topped with a velvety chocolate kiss.

Ingredients

Cookies:
dry:
1 cup + 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
wet:
½ cup (1 stick) Earth Balance (vegan butter)
½ cup creamy peanut butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 flax egg (¼ cup warm water + 2 teaspoon ground flax seeds)
¾ - 1 cup coconut sugar (you are welcome to reduce sugar by ¼ cup if you'd like)
½ teaspoon molasses (optional)
additional coconut or organic white (vegan) sugar for rolling cookies in (optional)
DIY Chocolate Kisses:
1 "kiss" candy mold - bHere on ebay
½ cup vegan chocolate chips or chunks or chopped chocolate bars (semi sweet and dark chocolate is usually vegan, but read the label)
1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil, organic

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking sheet or line with a nonstick liner or parchment paper.
In a mixing bowl, add all the wet ingredients, then using a hand or stand mixer, beat until smooth and creamy.
Fold in the dry ingredients until a soft dough forms.
Roll dough into balls and place on baking sheet. Optional: roll balls in sugar then place on baking sheet. Continue until all the dough has been used up.
Using your thumb or the back of a spoon, press a small dent in the center of each cookie, this will be where the kiss goes.
Bake at 350 for 9-12 minutes, or until golden brown.
Transfer cookies to a baking rack to cool for 2-3 minutes. Then you can add one chocolate kiss to the center of each cookie. If you are worried the cookies are too warm still and may melt the chocolate, wait a while longer for them to cool.
Store cookies in the fridge.
Making the Kisses: You want to make the chocolate kisses about 30-60 minutes before starting your cookies. You want the chocolate to be completely frozen and cooled when you use them. You will need one "kiss" candy mold and ½ cup melted chocolate mixture. Melt ½ cup vegan chocolate chips or chunks + 1 tablespoon coconut oil over a double broiler on your stove. Then using a tiny spoon, add the chocolate to the candy mold. Place the mold in your freezer to harden the kisses. The kisses should be fully chilled in 15-20 minutes. Press the hardened kisses out of the mold and use them to top the cookies.

Yield: 17 cookies
Prep Time: 00 hrs. 15 mins.
Cook time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.
Total time: 25 mins.
Tags: cookies,peanut butter,chocolate,christmas,dessert,vegan,kisses,baking,holiday

nutrition per cookie (17 cookie batch) -- not including the kiss

Christmas Cookie Call! Let me know in the comments what your favorite holiday cookie is and I might choose one or a few of those recipes to make. I am happy to veganize a classicly "non vegan" cookie recipe too, like I did with today's cookie.