A while back, my roommate Dragonfruit spent a crazy amount of money on some high quality maple syrup for a breakfast-for-dinner party. Some other friends brought another bottle of syrup, which was used first - presumably under the pretense of not wasting the "good stuff". Needless to say, we still have a big thing of syrup in the fridge. What is a "special occasion" for syrup?
Enough time elapsed without the syrup being opened that it was obvious it just had to be used. I whipped up these cookies, inspired by Ashley over at Sweet & Natural, and they were a hit! Baking with maple syrup is great when you just need something sweet, but don't want to load your body with empty calories. Loaded with fiber, these are great - no white flour, no refined sugar, vegan - and they taste great. The pickiest of my friends thought they were so fantastic, he kept sneaking to the kitchen for more. You don't need the fanciest, schmanciest maple syrup, but make sure it's actually syrup - trust me, you'll be able to tell the difference.
Just a tip, take these out of the oven a bit before you think they are done. These were meant to be on the soft side. Like me. ;)
Eat well!
Maple Oat Peanut Butter Cookies
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or AP flour)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dry toasted oats
Preheat the oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine peanut butter, maple syrup, canola oil and vanilla extract until well blended. In a separate bowl, mix together whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, along with oats, and stir until just combined. Let sit for five minutes. Roll heaping tablespoons of dough into balls, flatten to about 1/3 of an inch and place onto cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Makes 18 cookies.
