For this month’s Suma Blogger’s Network entry, I though I’d share one of my latest treat obsessions – Vegan Florentines ♥
I’ve been dreaming about Florentines ever since I saw them on display in the patisserie shops of Venice and Florence a few years ago. I’d never seen anything quite like them before. They looked so dainty yet totally decadent with their dark chocolate bottoms! I was pretty sure that they’d be full of dairy and off limits to me, but I was excited about the thought of creating a vegan version one day.
This week I finally got round to a little Florentine experimentation in the kitchen.
After a quick internet search, I discovered that Florentines are typically made with cane sugar, honey, butter, candied cherries, candied citrus peel and almonds. Since I’m not a fan of the first 4 ingredients, and I know a lot of my readers aren’t keen on candied peel, I ended up subbing 5 of the 6 ingredients. The almonds stayed 
The cane sugar and honey was swapped for coconut sugar and maple syrup, which gave the Florentines a wonderful golden hue and caramel-like sweetness. Instead of candied cherries and citrus peel, I used dried cranberries and orange zest. This gave the Florentines a fresh, citrussy flavour which I absolutely loved. The butter was exchanged for non dairy spread or organic aroma-free coconut butter.
I’ve done 6 trials so far this week, playing around with different ingredient ratios and combos. All have tasted delicious, but I was striving to bake a Florentine that was super thin with the traditional ‘lacey’ texture on the underside. By the 4th trial, I’d cracked it.
Once cooled, I then added the classic Florentine wavy chocolate bottom.
These Florentines are my new treat obsession. I absolutely love their texture – crisp on the outside, chewy in the centre with a melt-in-your-mouth chocolate bottom. Plus the flavour combination is so lush. The citrus zest gives them a wonderful lift while the dark chocolate makes them feel decadent.
Another great thing about this biscuit is that each one only contains 1 tsp of mixture which, in my eyes, makes it totally acceptable to go back for a second or third 
‘M’ and Lil’ L seem to love them as much as me. I’ve made 72 so far this week, and there are very few left in the biscuit tin! I also took along a sample to my Tuesday night study class and they were a big hit!
Recipe Card
Cranberry, Orange and Dark Chocolate Florentines (Dairy-free | Vegan)
Ingredients
- 30 g / ¼ cup toasted, flaked almonds
- 30 g 2 TBSP dairy-free spread / vegan butter or aroma-free coconut butter
- 30 g 3 TBSP coconut sugar or golden caster (unrefined cane) sugar
- 30 g / 2 TBSP maple syrup
- 18 g 2 TBSP fine wholemeal (whole wheat pastry) flour, chapatti flour or gluten-free flour mix
- 30 g / 3 TBSP dried cranberries finely chopped
- zest of 1 unwaxed / organic orange
- 100 g / 3½ oz dark chocolate (or substitute with dark choc chips)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan) / 350F. Line two large baking sheets with non-stick baking paper.
- Crush the almonds between your fingers to break them up.
- In a small pan, gently heat the dairy-free spread / butter. Once it has melted, whisk in the sugar and syrup. Remove from the heat and whisk in the flour. Stir in the almonds, cranberries and zest. You want to get the mixture as uniform as possible so that the Florentines spread evenly as they bake.
- Drop six rounded teaspoons of mixture onto one baking sheet. Be sure to space them out to give them plenty of room to spread. Add another six teaspoons to the second baking sheet. Using damp fingers, press down on the Florentines to flatten slightly and shape into circles.
- Place in the pre-heated oven and bake for 8 minutes, or until the edges of the Florentines have browned. Leave to cool. (They will be very soft when they come out the oven, but they firm up as they cool).
- Place the chocolate pieces in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water (make sure the water doesn’t touch the bowl). When the chocolate has melted, remove from the heat. If the chocolate is very runny, stir until it thickens slightly. Using a knife, coat the bottom of each Florentine. Before the chocolate sets, wiggle a fork across it to form a wavy pattern.
- Chill the Florentines until fully set, then transfer to an airtight container. Stored in the refrigerator, these Florentines will keep for at least a couple of weeks. They also freeze really well.
If you make these Vegan Florentines, I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I’d love to see them! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here:
Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.
With love,
I love this recipe I make these frequently exactly as the recipe states
Yum! These are so delish-but sadly mine didn’t spread at all. Any thoughts as to why this might be?
Hi Kat! I’m pleased you liked to flavour, but sorry to hear they didn’t spread for you. I’m planning on making some more batches this weekend for a birthday celebration so I’ll play around with the recipe and see what might stop them from spreading. I’ll be in touch again as soon as I have an answer xx
Just realised the reason … I used almond flour … What a dafty! They are still crispy, chewy amazing though so thanks for the great recipe!
Wow Sharon, you have totally improved on the original recipe! I admire so much your dedication to getting your recipes just right. I’d be too scared to make these, i’d eat the whole batch
You put your Suma goodies to most excellent use! We are all impressed xx and well done on your half marathon btw, you deserve another florentine after that
Thanks Amy! The Bath half training was made all the sweeter when I had these yummy treats to come home to
I’m looking forward to making another batch to share with my mum this weekend. All mums deserve florentines on Mother’s Day (that includes you! ♥)
I just can’t believe how good these look, and how much they look like regular Florentines- despite your subbing out so many ingredients. Thank you for this yummy recipe!!
It’s a pleasure Koko ♥ It seems like anything can be ‘veganised’ these days
Cruelty-free goodies are the best!
hehe that’s a lot of florentines to make in a week!
She would totally LOVE them!
They look so pretty too! Going to make these to pop into my daughter’s lunchbox I think
It was a lot of florentines… but they’ve all gone!!! I’ve even eaten the freezer stash. They’re just too tasty!
I hope your daughter loves them as much as I do 
These look absolutely gorgeous!
Thanks Lauren! They’re so tasty! I’ve already gone through my freezer stash so I’m going to have to make more to share with my mum on Mother’s Day
Wow
I used to adore Florentines, so I’ll definitely be making these! Love the ingredient subs you have made too. I’m thinking maybe some of my home made marmalade would be great instead of the peel too. Thanks for all your hard work experimenting and tasting!
That’s amazing that you make your own marmalade! My mum always makes her own and it’s so much nicer than the shop bought jars. Rather than snaffling her jars every time I visit, I really should watch her make it one time and learn the family recipe xx
These look amazing Sharon, really delish. My mum used to love Florentines, I’m tempted to make some on her birthday in March to remember her
Pity I’ve just used up all of my cranberries today; neat swap for the cherries though.
That would be such a lovely tribute to your dear mum ♥ Don’t worry about not have cranberries, you can sub with any dried fruits you have on hand. Dried apricots is another favourite of mine xx
Oh Sharon! I’m pinning these to try, they look magnificent!
Oh Vicky these are so tasty! Definitely my number one treat at the mo
I’m looking forward to trying new flavours over the next few weeks, starting with crystallised ginger. I’ve always wanted to try my hand at making crystallised ginger using coconut sugar. I’m excited to see how it turns out xx