Winter Molasses Hojicha Cookies

These hojicha cookies were super fun to create. The combination of molasses, warm spices and hojicha make them a perfect winter cookie! 

Hojicha is a traditional roasted Japanese green tea commonly enjoyed in steeped form. Our hojicha leaves are specially roasted before being ground into a fine powder. If you're new to hojicha powder and want to learn more about this unique and tasty tea before jumping into the recipe, check out this blog post.

When choosing a molasses, make sure to grab blackstrap molasses for its health benefits. Blackstrap molasses is the most concentrated form of molasses and contains important vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin B6, calcium, magnesium and iron. The robust taste of molasses pairs perfectly with hojicha powder, creating a warm and delightfully flavourful cookie. 

Ingredients:

Wet Ingredients:

• ½ cup Vegan Butter, let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes
• ½ cup Organic Brown Sugar
• ¼ cup Organic White Sugar
• 1 Flax Egg (1 tbsp. flax seeds to 3 tbsp. water)
• ½ tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract 
• ¼ tsp. Pure Almond Extract
• ⅓ cup Black Strap Molasses

Dry Ingredients:

• 2 cups Organic Flour (we used all-purpose)
• 1 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 tbsp. Soar Organics Hojicha Powder
• ½ tsp. Cinnamon
• ½ tsp. Nutmeg
• Raw Turbinado Sugar, for rolling dough in

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Cream together vegan butter, and brown and white sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
3. In a separate bowl mix together your flax egg. Add your flax egg, molasses, and vanilla and almond extracts into your wet mixture. Blend with your electric mixture until well combined. Set aside.
4. Separately mix together your dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, baking soda, baking powder, hojicha, cinnamon and nutmeg.
5. Slowly add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients, gradually mixing them in with a wooden spoon or spatula until a soft dough forms. 
6. In a small bowl or plate, pour some raw turbinado sugar for rolling. 
7. Scoop up cookie dough with a ~1 tbsp. sized spoon. Shape into balls and roll evenly in the raw turbinado sugar. 
8. Spread out evenly, leaving a few inches in-between each cookie. Lightly press down (about half-way) on each cookie before baking. 
9. Bake for 8-10 minutes and enjoy!