Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

My Christmas tree fell over yesterday.

I heard a little rustling, like an ornament was working its way off. But it wasn't an ornament. It was the whole. darn. tree. Then I heard all the water pouring out of the stand and onto the carpet. I hoped it wouldn't start dripping on our downstairs neighbor, until I decided it wasn't enough water for me to care worry about. Since the top of the tree passed about an inch from my right shoulder, I then picked my way out of the wreckage, avoiding the shards of glass (obviously, I was in socks), to take stock.

Having carpet helped keep the breakage down (and soak up the water), but the darn thing wouldn't stand up by itself again. I still have no idea why it decided to fall over after standing there for over a week, but it took some finagling of the screws in the stand to get it back up. I kept meaning to take a picture this week, but it didn't really happen. oh well. Once I get it redecorated I'll try again.

Luckily, to ease my pain, I had some cookies in the oven. Warm cookies are the best to shove in my mouth to daintily enjoy. These can be chewy or crispy depending on how long you bake them, but I always aim for the shortest time possible. Like some people and their steak.

Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Joy of Cooking

1/2 C vegan butter
1/2 C firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 tsp Ener-g egg replacer (equivalent of 1 egg)
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp soy milk
1 C flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 C quick oats, uncooked
3/4 C chocolate chips
zest from an orange, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cream the butter and sugars. Add in the egg replacer, water, vanilla, and soy milk and beat until smooth. Do the same with the flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Finally, beat in the oats and zest, if using. If you add chocolate chips or dried fruit at this point, I would stir them in with a spoon rather than a hand mixer. Drop cookies 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet (or use parchment paper or silicon baking mat). Bake 8-12 minutes, depending on your preferred crispiness level.

Notes:
Chocolate and orange zest are totally optional, and you can also mix in dried fruit, nuts, or coconut. I used Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips because they are dairy free. If you don't like your cookies to spread out, put the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes or so before scooping and baking.