This basic but delicious sauce has topped many vegan waffles, and has long been a staple of our annual parties. With a richer, more bittersweet chocolate flavor than most store-bought chocolate syrups, it complements many fresh fruit toppings, as well as vegan ice cream. Makes about 3/4 cup.
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup vegan margarine
- 1/4 cup soymilk or other nondairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients except the vanilla extract in a small saucepan. Stir constantly and briskly over medium heat until half a minute after it begins to boil. Continue to scrape the bottom to incorporate any dry cocoa and keep it from burning. Immediately remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Don’t eat it all before you have a chance to spoon some onto a waffle!
would like to ask if there are any substitute for canola oil? like other organic oil? or is there a need to use oil? any other ingredients to substitute the oil?
Thank you
Elle
Elle,
If you’re referring to the fact that vegan margarines often contain canola oil, you can substitute an oil with a relatively neutral flavor such as safflower, sunflower, corn, soybean, or a vegetable oil blend, and also add a dash of salt. You’ll still end up with a chocolate-flavored syrup if you replace the oil with soymilk, but it will have more of a chocolate soymilk consistency, will soak into the waffle much more rapidly, and will make the waffle a bit soggier. (Dipping the waffle may be preferable to pouring the chocolate over the waffle in this case.) The texture and body will be somewhat different without the fat. Finally, the syrup will not thicken as much as it cools, as is the case when using a vegan margarine.
In the case that your question is not specific to this recipe, and you’re asking about the use of oil in waffles, please see my comment on use of oil under Naked Vegan Waffles.
Dave
You could use coconut oil (a refined one if you don’t want the coconut flavour) instead of margarine. That will help give the thicken-as-it-cools effect and is a lot healthier than hydrogenated oils found in most margarines
Melanie,
Thanks so much for the additional suggestion. I know that many people, including me, enjoy the chocolate-coconut flavor combination, so I may need to try this myself.
I haven’t researched what percentage of fully vegan margarines actually contain hydrogenated oils, or for that matter, whether any brands of coconut oil currently on the market may be partially hydrogenated. Because there are certainly non-hydrogenated options available for both, hydrogenated oils should usually be avoidable in either case with a bit of label reading–and in some cases, requests to one’s grocer.