Caramelized Orange Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Say that 10 times fast haha.

But seriously, these have got to be my favorite Christmas cookie of 2020. I'm on a massive orange and chocolate combo kick these days!

Are you looking for a recipe to make/bring to Christmas Eve tomorrow? Make these melty delicious guys.

RECIPE

Makes approx. 15-20 cookies

Ingredients

Cookie

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, solid but soft and scoopable

• 1 cup regular brown sugar, packed

• 1/4 cup cane sugar

• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder (can sub with extract)

• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 1/2 cup coconut milk or any “thicker” plant milk

• melted chocolate mixture: 1/4 coconut oil + half bar of chocolate, melted and mixed

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 1/3 cup cacao powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

• 1 teaspoon zest

• 1 bar chocolate, chopped into chunks

Caramelized Orange Topping

• zest of approx. 2 oranges

• 1 tablespoon maple syrup

• pinch of sea salt

• flakey sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F or 200 C.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the coconut oil, sugar, and vanilla. When well-combined, add in the applesauce, milk, and melted chocolate mixture.

3. When mixed well, slowly add in the flour, mixing in a little at a time. Once all of the flour is in, add in the cacao powder, baking soda, salt, and orange zest.

4. Fold in the chunks of chocolate (but save some to top with for that extra gooey presentation!).

5. Now let's make the caramelized orange topping. Add the zest to a small saucepan with the maple syrup and pinch of sea salt. Allow it to bubble up slightly but nothing more (since it will continue to bake in the oven on the cookies).

6. Add a few chocolate chunks on top of each cookie, followed by a pinch of the caramelized orange topping.

7. Scoop about 2 tablespoons worth of dough for each cookie, and place them evenly spaced out on a baking tray. Bake for 10 minutes or until slightly crisp on the edges but still soft and melty in the middle.

8. Right after taking the cookies out to cool, add a sprinkle of flakey sea salt to each cookie. Allow the cookies to sit for 5 minutes on the warm tray before transferring them to a cooling rack. Enjoy!
   

Happy Holidays!