Vegan Hemp Seed Chocolate Chippers

One of the most underrated foods in my opinion are hemp seeds. They have a sweet, nutty flavor that reminds me of a cross between pure vanilla and almond. They are very unassuming with their small, green appearance, and yet have such great health benefits sprinkled on top of oatmeal or yogurt for breakfast. And yet so few recipes actually use them! I love these cookies, because the sweet nuttiness of the hemp seeds pairs perfectly with the flavors already in a chocolate chip cookie. These are best enjoyed with a tall glass of hemp milk.

Vegan Hemp Seed Chocolate Chippers

Ingredients(Makes 24 cookies):

• 6 tablespoons butter substitute(such as Earth Balance), softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup cane sugar
• 2 tablespoons hemp oil(or a neutral-flavored oil)
• 1 egg-substitute
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup shelled hemp seeds
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Cream together the brown sugar, white sugar, and butter substitute. Be sure not to overcream but rather keep the butter light and fluffy. Next, add in the oil, egg-substitute, salt, and baking powder and mix.

Gently sift in the flour and mix until just incorporated. Lastly, add in the hemp seeds and chocolate chips and fold to distribute.

Next, chill the dough for at least 30 minutes by placing it in the refrigerator to set. Meanwhile, preheat an oven to 350 degrees and line 2 large room-temperature(very important) baking trays with parchment paper.

After the dough has chilled, start making dough balls by taking chunks of dough and rolling them into 1-inch balls and placing them on the cookie trays. This should yield 24 cookies; the balls of dough will look small but be assured that the cookies spread. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges just begin to brown. Let the cookies cool 5-10 minutes before removing them from the baking trays.

These cookies have become a fast favorite of mine. They’re a good blend of being soft and nicely chewy. And the sweet, mellow flavor of the hemp pairs perfectly with the tones of butter, brown sugar, and chocolate. You can adjust the recipe for any other kind of seed, but I think they’d be missing something.