Chocolate Cinnamon Heart Cookies [Vegan]

(12 heart sandwiches + ~12 mini hearts)

• 2 1/2 cups whole spelt flour
• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar
• 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• pinch of coarse salt
• 2/3 cup unrefined coconut oil, room temperature
• up to 1/2 cup rice milk, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Make the fillings and garnish:

• 5-10 squares of dark chocolate
• 1/2 cup icing sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam, divided
• a few tablespoons unrefined coconut oil, room temperature
• a few drops of cold water

Whisk together the flours, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, beat together the coconut oil, rice milk and vanilla. Pour it all into the flour mixture and mix until the dough comes together (you can do this by hand or with a stand mixer). If the dough is a little too wet, sprinkle a teaspoon or two of flour into the mixture. If it is a little too dry, then drizzle a teaspoon or two of rice milk over the mixture and mix again.

Once the dough has come together, knead it once or twice and then divide it in two.  Shape each piece into a flattened rectangle and wrap them tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Just before you start working with the chilled dough, preheat the oven to 375F.

Take one portion of the chilled dough and between two sheets of parchment, roll it out to 1/4″ thickness. Using a ~2 3/4″ heart cutter, cut as many cookies as you can. Then using a ~1.5″ or smaller cutter, cut the centres out of half of the total cookies. Transfer the large cookies to one of the prepared baking sheets, leaving 1/2″ or so between the cookies. Transfer the small cookies to the other baking sheet. Refrigerate the scrap pieces of dough before re-rolling and cutting. Repeat with the remaining dough. When you have all the cookies cut and on the baking sheets, bake them in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. Switch the baking sheets halfway through the total baking time and be sure to keep an eye on the small cookies so they don’t over-bake. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes and then transfer them to baking racks to cool completely.

To dress the cookies in chocolate, melt a few pieces of dark chocolate uncovered in a microwave-safe bowl or cup at 50% power for 45 seconds. Stir. If it’s not completely smooth, heat it again at 50% power for up to 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. Take care to not overheat the chocolate (stay below 90F) or else it will no longer be tempered and when it cools, you will end up with streaks through it.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

When the chocolate is smooth, dip the cookies, one by one, halfway into the chocolate. Lift out and let the excess drip off. Place the cookie right side up on the parchment paper and continue with the remaining cookies until they are all dipped. Let the chocolate set, about 5 minutes.

To make the jam sandwiches, first, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. This is where you’ll be placing your finished sandwiches. If desired, lightly sift icing sugar over the heart cookies that will be the tops of the sandwiches. Then, spread 1-2 teaspoonfuls of seedless raspberry jam on to a whole heart cookie. Take a heart that has a heart cut from the centre of it and place it on top of the jam and gently press it down to spread the jam throughout. Place the entire cookie sandwich on to the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate 10-15 minutes to set.

Finally, to make the raspberry coconut filling, place 1/4 cup icing sugar, 2 tablespoons of coconut oil (which should be solid) and 1-2 teaspoons of seedless raspberry jam into a small bowl. Mix together until it forms a thick paste. If it’s not quite coming together, add a few drops of water and stir again. Once the frosting is at your desired colour, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. This is where you’ll be placing your finished sandwiches. If desired, lightly sift icing sugar over the heart cookies that will be the tops of the sandwiches.

Spread 1-2 teaspoons of the coconut raspberry frosting on to a whole heart cookie. Then sandwich a sugared cutout heart on top, gently pressing down on it to adhere the cookies together. Place the entire cookie sandwich on to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate 5-10 minutes to set.

All the cookies can be stored in air-tight containers at room temperature for about a week, or longer if they last that long!