Yesterday, a high school friend I adore told me she had embarked on Veganuary and that she will miss a homemade butter biscuit. Now while this is not a moorish shortbread recipe it is deffo something you’ll want to try if you’re vegan.

Not only is it easy, it’s sugar-free too. This recipe is for you Michelle Sansom. x

Veganuary is a UK based non-profit organisation that encourages people to pledge the month of January to being a complete vegan.

I’ve been obsessed with the Nova chocolate brand for a while now. It’s diabetic friendly, it’s Vegan chocolate chips sell by the kilo on Take-A-Lot and you can order slabs, sugar-free cocoa and chocolate balsamic drizzle online. https://novachocolate.co.za/shop/ Nova is also available in Pick n Pay, Dischem and Checkers, so this is not an ingredient that’s unobtainable.

Did you know: Chocolate is technically vegan because cocoa comes from plants. But during the process of making chocolate, milk and other additives are thrown into the mix.

Ingredients

1 cup Spelt flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/3 cup Nova chocolate chips

1/4 cup of Xylitol

1/4 cup coconut sugar/Xylitol if you want a completely sugar-free cookie

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

2 tbsp dairy free milk (I used Oat milk)

2 tbsp sunflower oil/coconut oil

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients.

3. Stir in all the wet ingredients with a wooden spoon.

4. Do NOT add more milk, even if you feel tempted.

5. The mixture will come together and even though some of the chips are falling out of the dough, use your hand to create a ball.

6. Cover it with cling wrap and freeze for 40 minutes.

7. The dough should be very cold.

8. Break about 1 tbsp of dough off at a time, and roll into a ball, placing it on a flat baking sheet. Don’t flatten it. Space the balls three fingers apart from each other because they will flatten and expand.

9. This recipe will make between 8-10 cookies.

10. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

11. Leave it in the tray to cool for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.