Carrot Raisin Spice Chewies With Lemon Glaze

So at the beginning of this week I went through my recipe books and chose some things that I wouldn't normally choose in an effort to expand my horizons. So far, everything has worked out really well! I wrote out a list, bought all the ingredients I'd need for the week, and every day I've been making something new and exciting. This is the first recipe I tried, from Isa & Terry's Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar (which of course, is an AWESOME recipe book). The old Jaclyn would have picked something chocolatey and decadent, but I'm a changing girl, so I went with the opposite. Turns out, they're awesome!!!! Matt and I both have loved munchin' on these little chewies all week. And the Lemon Glaze definitely isn't a must, but I highly recommend it. Compliments these guys perfectly. I bet you'll love them too.


Ingredients
(Makes 2 Dozen Cookies)


1/3 cup nondairy milk
1 tbsp. ground flax seeds (I ground up a bunch a while ago in a coffee bean grinder and I've kept it stored in my freezer - good for recipes like this and to toss in to smoothies and salads and such)
1/3 cup canola or peanut oil
1/3 cup dark brown sugar (I only had light which worked, but I think they would have been prettier if I used dark)
1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. finely shredded orange zest (FYI I love zest)
1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup finely shredded carrots, lightly packed (I recommend using a food processor for this task)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I forgot to add these to my grocery store so my cookies went nutless...Haha!)
1 cup raisins
Lemon Glaze (See recipe below)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Generously grease two baking sheets or line with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, beat together the nondairy milk, flax seeds, oil, brown sugar, sugar, orange zest, and vanilla. Sift in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Stir to moisten ingredients and fold in carrots, coconut, walnuts, and raisins. Dough will be sticky and moist.

3. Drop generous tablespoons of dough onto cookie sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each plop. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes until the edges are brown and the tops are firm. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes then transfer to wire racks to complete cooling.

Lemon Glaze

(You could probably halve this recipe and be ok)

1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest (Yes! More zest!)

Wisk together all of the ingredients. If it's too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add a bit of soy milk or water. You should be able to drizzle it on the cookies from a fork.

Enjoy!!