Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas!

Makes 9

Adapted recipe from Black Girl Baking. Inspired by sweet potato pie. Use a sturdier rice cereal like puffed rice or the rice crisps from One Degree Organics to hold up to the hefty sweet potato puree.  

• 3 tbsp unsalted dairy-free butter, plus more for buttering the pan 

• 1/3 cup pecans, roughly chopped

• 1/4 cup canned sweet potato puree

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 tsp himalayan pink salt

• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1, 10 ounce bag vegan marshmallows (such as Dandees) 

• 3 cups brown rice crisps (such as One Degree Organics) or puffed brown rice

1. Have a buttered 7X7 inch square baking dish nearby. 

2. In a medium or large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, add the butter and pecans, and cook until they both begin to toast, about 5 minutes.

3. Just as the butter begins to brown, add in the pureed sweet potato, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir to combine. The puree will darken. 

4. Add in the marshmallows, and continue to cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the marshmallows are melted–it’s ok if small bits of marshmallow still remain. Melting vegan marshmallows may take a few minutes. Fold in the cereal to coat completely, then, working quickly before the mixture stiffens, transfer to the baking dish, packing it in with the back of a spoon, a spatula or piece of parchment to flatten. Allow to cool completely to harden, at least 30 minutes (or chill) before slicing into 9 equal squares. Serve. 

Makes about 2 dozen large clusters

Inspired by Goo Goo Clusters, a popular Tennessee confection, but instead of a nougat center, the base is a soft, ginger molasses cookie, packed with freshly grated ginger. The cookies are made from one of the gourmet olive oil cake mix boxes from founder Estelle Sohne. They are chilled and topped with a spread of dulce de leche and sprinkled with roasted salted peanuts before being sealed in a coat of dark chocolate. Keep these decadent cookie clusters chilled or in a cool dry place.

• 2 large eggs

• ¼ cup light brown sugar

• ¼ cup unsulphured molasses

• ⅔ cup mild olive oil 

• ¼ cup (30 grams) finely grated ginger root 

• 1 package Flour and Olive Ginger Cake Mix

• 1 cup quick cooking oats 

• 2 cups salted, roasted peanuts, roughly chopped  

• 2/3 cup dulce de leche (homemade or store bought) 

• 3 cups 60 % bittersweet dark chocolate chips 

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. 

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, molasses, olive oil, and grated ginger. Add the dry cake mix and rolled oats and stir to combine. 

3. Using a 1.5 inch ice cream scoop (#50) drop 6 small mounds of the batter on the cookie sheet, leaving a few inches around each mound.  You will need to bake these in 2 batches because they spread. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until the cookie is domed on top and golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and allow 10 minutes to cool then use a metal spatula to remove the cookies from the pan and transfer to a cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough. 

4. Once the cookies are cooled, dollop a generous teaspoon of the dulce de leche on top of each cookie and spread out with the back of a spoon. Top with a heaping tablespoon of the chopped nuts, pressing into the caramel to stick. Freeze the cookies for at least 30 minutes for easy handling while coating.

5. Have a couple of silpats nearby. Create a bain marie by filling a small saucepan halfway with water. Place the pan over medium heat, and then place a medium mixing bowl over top–the bottom of the bowl should be a few inches away from the water. Into the bowl add 2 cups of the chocolate chips, and cook gently, stirring until fully melted. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the remaining 1 cup chocolate chips until melted. Transfer the bowl back to the bain marie over a very low heat to maintain the temperature. Remove the cookies from the freezer and dip them, nut-side down, into the chocolate, then flip to coat the bottom. Lift with a fork to allow the excess chocolate to drip away. Transfer to the silpat to harden, and repeat with the remaining cookies.