The Ultimate Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie (I swear)

In my humble opinion, the perfect chocolate chip cookie is equal parts crispy and chewy and sweet and salty and chocolatey and nutty.  For me, it's also whole grain and sugar-free and made with nothing refined or processed.  Not an easy feat.

But after what seems like endless batches of yummy, but never perfect chocolate chip cookies, I think I may have perfected it.  And I didn't  share it for a while (sorry) cause I wasn't 100% sure until I'd duplicated it a number of times.

So with no further adieu:

Ingredients: (makes 36 cookies)

• 2 c whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/4 c flax meal
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 coconut oil
• 1/2 apple sauce
• 2 tbsp vanilla
• 1 c brown rice syrup
• 1/2 c coconut nectar/sugar
• 1 c grain sweetened chocolate chip cookies
• 1/2 c walnuts chopped

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, flax, baking soda, xanthan, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the oil, apple sauce, vanilla, rice syrup, and coconut sugar.
4. While mixing, slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until totally combined.
5. Add the chocolate chips and walnuts and mix until incorporated.
6. Place cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 9 minutes, then rotate, and bake another 9 minutes.
7. Allow to cool enough to touch then transfer to a cooling rack to cool the rest of the way.