Chocolate Caramel Shortbread Cookies
24 [b]shortbread cookies[/b] (about 1/2 this recipe)
2 cups coconut
1/2 cup [b]sweetened condensed soy milk[/b]
(about half of my modified version of this recipe)
3 tablespoons vegan margarine
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup brown rice syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
1. Begin by making the shortbread cookies. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mix up about half of the Shortbread cookies recipe. Roll the cookies to 1/4 " thick and cut out 24 circles. (About a 2 1/2" circle. I use a small drinking glass, upside down, to cut out the cookies). Cut out the center of the cookie using a water bottle cap. The cookie ring should look thinner, with a wider hole than expected (it will fill out a bit with caramel goo later.) Cook the cookies for 10 minutes, or until crisp.
2. After the cookies are done, toast the 2 cups coconut on a cookie sheet in the hot oven. It takes only about 4 minutes, so watch carefully.Now you can make the sweetened condensed soy milk recipe, except omit the margarine and add more soy milk powder (about 1/3 cup more). You want the condensed soy milk to be about the consistency of glue. Chill in the fridge.
3. Once the shortbread cookies have cooled, you can start to make the gooey caramel. In a sauce pan, combine margarine, sugar, and both forms of syrup. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly. Bring the mixture to a boil (you can turn up the heat if need be). Boil the mixture, while stirring, for three minutes.
4. Pour in the sweetened condensed soy milk, still stirring. Cook the whole mixture until it reaches 225 degrees F on a candy thermometer (always stirring). Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla and coconut. Dip the shortbread cookies into the gooey caramel coconut mixture. Lay the dipped cookies on wax paper. This is really messy. I do it by dipping the cookie in with a spoon, and then using the end of another spoon to push it around and clear the goo out of the center. If the goo hardens too quickly, you can heat it back up slowly on the stove.
5. Chill the cookies in the freezer for about 15 minutes. Melt the chocolate in a large bowl, and dip the bottom of the cookies into it. Just coat the bottom, and place the cookies back onto wax paper. Once all the bottoms of the cookies have been covered, transfer the chocolate to a plastic sandwich bag and snip off a corner. Pipe stripes across the cookies, so they look like Somoas. Cool and store the cookies in the freezer. Enjoy!!
Notes: This recipe is INSANELY easier if you make it into bars. Simply pat the shortbread dough into a baking dish, and bake it until crisp. Pour the caramel goo over top and chill. Drizzle the chocolate over everything. Cool and then cut into bars.
SO HOW'D IT GO?
To starrygirl1120. Thin Mints are vegan :)
You should have seen my face when I saw this. VEGAN SOMOAS! VEGAN SOMOAS! VEGAN SAMOAS! VEGAN SOMOAS!!!! AHHHHHH!
Gonna try them as soon as I can. Thanks :)
Okay, so my shortbread turned out REALLY spongy. the only sub I made was applesauce for the oil. Plus, the caramel didn't thick AT ALL. Someone please help!! :'(
mine turned out awful as well when i made them and i followed the directions... i'm not a seasoned baker though like some VW peeps :)
Okay, so my shortbread turned out REALLY spongy. the only sub I made was applesauce for the oil. Plus, the caramel didn't thick AT ALL. Someone please help!! :'(
I made the cookie too thick, and it ended up as a biscuit :/ I think I mixed it wrong, because I couldn't even roll it.. it kept stretching back into itself.
the caramel came out awesome, even though i mod'd the recipe (as I always do.. why, I don't know..).
Essentially, I used molasses instead of brown rice syrup and brown sugar instead of white. I did other little things (like adding things at the wrong time/ not having a candy thermometer/ et cetera).
it's pretty ok, but I'm a bit disappointed that I screwed the cookie part up.
I'm sure the recipe would have been good otherwise. I just need to stop being so lazy!!
These look scrumptious! I am loving the "Preparation time: too long." Very honest! :)
No, I'm sorry, but these do NOT taste like Samoas. I am not so far removed from the dairy world that I can't remember what the real ones tasted like, and this is not it.
I think they MIGHT taste similar if the following changes are made:
1. Do NOT make the sweetened condensed soy milk to add to the caramel. This ruins the caramel taste. You do not need the sweetened condensed soy milk at all! Maybe add a little more margarine to the caramel, but that's it.
2. Do NOT mix the toasted coconut into the caramel. It should be sprinkled on top of the caramel, like the real Samoas; otherwise you can't taste it.
Overall, this is a good place to start. They do taste yummy, but just not like the girl scouts' Samoas (I'm not even sure that was the goal of this recipe, but everyone keeps comparing it to them). The shortbread cookie recipe is a good one. The dough is very easy (albeit greasy) to work with, and the shortbread cookies are very versatile. (I ended up leaving some of the cookies plain, and everyone here loved them!)
A few more thoughts: Don't bother making these as cookies. It takes way too long! I didn't notice the suggestion to make them as bars until AFTER I wasted my time rolling and cutting and dipping, etc. If you do make these as cookies, make sure to freeze the cookies before dipping them in the warm caramel so they won't break. Also, be sure to grease the wax paper before placing the dipped cookies on it. Mine stuck terribly, and I think we ate some wax paper . . . :-)~ Be careful not to make them too thick; mine looked thin, but they bulk up when baked. You'll need a lot more chocolate chips than the recipe calls for, and storing the finished cookies in the fridge works just fine.
Thanks for the recipe. I will definitely try to make these again, BUT with my alterations mentioned above.
P.S. The 225 degrees is syrup stage, long before it gets to fudge and soft ball stage (someone asked).
This recipe is awesome! For me, the end result was a bit chewier than I remember somoas...it takes a long time to chew them, but they were definitely delicious. I 'm in the process of trying to ration them because my stomach hurts from eating too many!!! Some advice that I have for those thinking about making them: Make sure that the cookies are frozen when you do the chocolate dipping. It makes it so much easier because the chocolate hardens seconds after you put the cookie back on the wax paper. I also had to use a lot more chocolate chips than the recipe called for. This might be because the cookies were so cold, but regardless I didn't end up with too much chocolate on each cookie. I had to use about 1 1/2 bags of chocolate chips for a double recipe. I think that equals about 3 cups (So about 1 1/2 cups for a single recipe.) But I recommend doubling it. That way you can keep a stash in the freezer just like regular girl scout cookies!! Also, the recipe says to store them in the freezer. Be aware that it takes them a LONG time to defrost. After having my first one I thought I had messed up on the caramel. Give them at least 1.5 hours after coming out of the freezer. Thanks for the great recipe.
Man, I screwed these up!! I was successful in making the cookies, however, I think I overcooked the caramel stuff cos it was rock-hard. So I didn't bother to mess with the chocolate. I will make these again for sure tho, cos regardless of the caramel's texture, it's flavor is awesome!!! I should've known not to use a candy thermometer; I don't trust those things. I don't even use one when I make candy. So my question for Ashley is: Would 225 degrees be about soft-ball stage? Another thought: The shortbread dough would probably make an awesome pie crust!!! I rolled mine out probably about 1/8th of an inch or thinner, and they were perfect.
And by "cookie thermometer," I mean "candy thermometer."
Pages