The Vegan Pizookie

It begins with an everyday foodie conversation with a friend or a comment from an acquaintance; it sparks something in me beckoning me to wander off into the world of culinary experimentation and invention. Wherever the inspiration comes from, it always seems to have the same underlying taunt, "I bet that can't be made vegan!" Well, I always did love a challenge! :) Thus, was born a take on a SoCal favorite: the Pizookie. And don't worry my NorCal folk, I had never heard of one of these either until I moved to San Bernardino County in September 2011. The recipe is really simple but has delicious results...Hope you enjoy and please let me know if you give it a try or have any suggestions! Feel free to mix it up and instead of using chocolate chips throw in some macadamia nuts or peanut butter chips...MMmmm!! :D

 

CHOCOLATE VEGAN PIZOOKIE

•2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
•1 teaspoon baking soda
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1 cup earth balance (also works with almost any other margarine), room temperature
•3/4 cup granulated sugar
•3/4 cup packed brown sugar
•2 teaspoons vanilla extract
•2 eggs worth of E-Ner-G egg replacer* (4 tbsp warm water whisked with 3 tsp E-Ner-G powder)
•1.5 to 2 cups vegan chocolate chips (found at your local Health or Whole Foods store)


*Ener-G Egg replacer is a potato starch and tapioca based binding agent that works really well in most baked goods. It comes in white powder form and is mixed as follows: one egg equivalent =  1 1/2 full teaspoons of egg-replacer with 2 Tablespoons of warm water and beat together till combined. It can usually be found at a local Health or Whole Foods store near you or can also be ordered online.

1. PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

2. COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.

3. BEAT earth balance, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl on medium until well combined. Depending on whether your margarine is cold or not, the mixture may be creamy or look somewhat separated or curdled (below left). To make sure it incorporates well, do yourself a favor and take your margarine out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before you are going to use it so it is at room temp and doesn't stay separated as mine did (below, left picture).  Now a word about the egg replacer. I like to use warm water to mix it because it seems to combine a lot better that way and it will also help to bind the sugar/margarine/vanilla mixture as well. Beat the egg replacer until well combined (only about 15 seconds) and add to the sugar/margarine mixture. At this point, I would beat the mixture on high for about 1 minute till it is creamy (below right).   

4. Gradually beat in flour mixture. The consistency of the dough should be soft and mushy, not too firm or dry. Stir in chocolate chips. Now I didn't own a cute little pizookie pan like those found at BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse so I used a regular pie pan tin for my pizookie and it worked just fine. Go ahead and spread the mixture about 1/4 inch thick (or less if you like it thinner) into the pan till it covers the whole bottom of the pan. 

5. Lastly, BAKE for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown if using a pie pan. If using something smaller, you will need to decrease the baking time (possibly by 1/2 however I have not tried with anything smaller so you will need to do some experimenting yourself). The pizzookie should be just ever so slightly undercooked in the middle so that it comes out soft in the middle, and crunchy on the edges. Serve warm with a generous scoop of Toffuti Vanilla icecream (or any other non-dairy icecream) for an amazing culinary experience! I would definitely recommend reclining on your couch and eating this pizookie painfully slow so as to enjoy every delectable bite. I did...:D