I've made these a bunch of times:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-gYZfuIiYY ...they're by far the best vegan cookies I've ever had.
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (see note)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 cup unrefined sugar
1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
1⁄3 cup pure maple syrup
1⁄4 teaspoon blackstrap molasses
1 – 1 1⁄2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1⁄4 cup canola oil (a little generous)
1⁄3 cup non-dairy chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). In a bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the sugar and salt, and stir until well combined. In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup with the molasses and vanilla, then stir in the oil until well combined. Add the wet mixture to the dry, along with the chocolate chips, and stir through until just well combined (do not over-mix). Place large spoonfuls of the batter on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and flatten a little. Bake for 11 minutes, until just golden (if you bake for much longer, they will dry out). Let cool on the sheet for no more than 1 minute (again, to prevent drying), then transfer to a cooling rack.
Note: Unbleached all-purpose flour or spelt flour produces a more classic cookie taste and texture, but you can use whole-wheat pastry flour and still get a delicious cookie. For a wheat-free version, use spelt flour, but add an extra 2-4 tablespoons of the spelt flour to the dry mix (the amount needed varies with brand of spelt flour and whether you are using a refined spelt flour versus a less processed spelt flour).
Note: If, as you are mixing together your batter it appears quite floury and thick, simply mix together a couple of teaspoons more canola and maple syrup and incorporate it into the batter. Sometimes humidity, type of flour used, and other factors can affect the density of the batter and so a touch more liquid may be needed.
Makes 9-12 large to average sized cookies.
Soooo good! I usually use dark chocolate chips, but the one thing I would recommend is not to use carob-chips, they change the whole flavour of the cookie. I used to have the "vegan cupcakes take over the world" book, but I lost it last year in my move.
The authors of that book have a new book of vegan cookies though, so I am planning to get that one soon.
If you don't want cookies, I've made these vegan brownies (
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Vegan-Brownies/Detail.aspx) with considerable success. They're a tiny bit plain on their own, but a bit of frosting or even just adding in some walnuts makes them a lot better. There are plenty of other vegan desserts on allrecipes if you browse around a bit.