April 2014

i’m proud to announce that i can retire from (cookie) recipe testing!

these are by far the best cookies i’ve made — free of gluten, dairy, eggs, and refined sugar. slightly crispy on the outside, and soft and chewy on the inside, with two of my favorite components in a dessert: a hint of saltiness, and the richness of chocolate.

i’ve made these two ways because i’ve come to realize that some people believe oats are off-limits to those of us going gluten-free, but others seem to be A-OK with them. i haven’t noticed any reactions when i have bob’s red mill gluten-free rolled oats, so that’s what i used in version #1 of my cookies (my favorite version!).

first things first…here’s the flour mix i used for each (each makes about 5 cups):

flour blend A (used in version #1):

2 cups brown rice flour

3/4 cup almond meal

1/2 cup quinoa flour

3/4 cup coconut flour

3/4 cup cornstarch

3/4 cup tapioca starch

flour blend B (used in version #2):

2 cups brown rice flour

1-1/4 cup sorghum flour

3/4 cup almond meal

3/4 cup arrowroot starch

3/4 cup tapioca starch

VERSION #1: cocoa nib sea salt oatmeal chocolate chip cookies

{dry ingredients}

1 cup flour blend A (above)

1 cup GF oats (i prefer bob’s red mill gluten free rolled oats)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cocoa nib salt — i made mine with this —

{wet ingredients}

1/4 cup palm oil shortening

1/4 cup applesauce

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup grade B maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 flax “egg” (1 tablespoon flax meal + 2 tablespoons warm H2O, whisk, then let sit for 5+ minutes)

1/2 cup chocolate bits/chips/chunks (i recommend either enjoy life dark chocolate chunks, or chopping your own raw/dark chocolate or cacao bar)

{directions}

mix all dry ingredients together, then in a stand mixer bowl, combine all wet ingredients except the “egg” and chocolate chips, mixing on medium speed until you achieve a fluffy texture (about 3-5 minutes). add “egg,” then mix on medium speed for about a minute before adding dry ingredients, gradually increasing mixing speed back to medium-high. slowly stir in chocolate chips until incorporated. drop by teaspoonfuls onto baking sheet. bake at 375 for about 8 minutes. makes approximately 2 dozen cookies.

VERSION #2: cocoa nib sea salt almond butter chocolate chip cookies

{dry ingredients}

1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour blend B (above)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cocoa nib salt (see version #1 recipe above)

{wet ingredients}

1/4 cup palm oil shortening

1/4 cup almond butter