Gluten-Free Soft-Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies.

These Soft-Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies are so soft they taste like they just came out of the oven, and they’re so good no one will know they’re Gluten-Free!

Today’s National Donut Day, but I much prefer chocolate chip cookies over donuts, so I’m popping in with an awesome cookie recipe for you today. I think these are the best gluten-free chocolate chip cookies I’ve had yet! Now, let me go ahead and say this is one of those cases where gluten-free does NOT equal healthier. There’s plenty of real sugar, butter, etc. If you’re looking for a “healthified” gluten-free chocolate chip cookie, you might want to try these.

If you’ve been reading the blog for a while, you know chocolate chip cookies are my favorite dessert.
And you also know I am super picky about my chocolate chip cookies.
I want them SOFT. Not crispy, not crunchy, and definitely not super crumbly.
I found the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe, but then last year I found out I had a wheat allergy, and I’ve been looking for a replacement ever since.
Ladies and gents, this is it!

They hold up together really well, but aren’t hard at all. The edges are just sliiiight crispy, but the rest of the cookie is perfectly soft. Sticking the cookie dough balls in the freezer before baking was key in this recipe. Also, as with any cookie, you want to take them out of the oven when they still seem slightly underbaked because they continue baking while cooling on the pan.

These cookies will stay fresh for up to 2 days in an airtight container.  I mean, obviously, they were best fresh out of the oven, so you’ll definitely want to have one then. I don’t even need to tell you that though because honestly…does anyone actually bake cookies and not taste one fresh from the oven? I didn’t think so.

Gluten-Free Soft-Batch Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ingredients:

• 1 7/8 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur’s All-Purpose GF mix)
• 1 teaspoon xantham gum (check your flour mix–if it’s already listed as an ingredient omit it)
• 6 1/3 teaspoons corn starch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
• 5 tablespoons vegetable shortening, melted and cooled
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk both at room temperature, beaten
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, mixed with 1 teaspoon cornstarch

1). Preheat the oven to 325F. Line a baking pan or cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside.

2). In a large bowl whisk together the GF flour, xantham gum, corn starch, salt, baking soda, and sugar. Once that’s all blended, add the light brown sugar. Make sure there are no clumps.

3). Create a well in the middle of the dry ingredients by pushing them up towards the sides of the bowl. Add the following ingredients, stopping to mix well after each one: butter, shortening, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk. The dough should be thick and soft. Add the cornstarch-coated chocolate chips and mix well. (Bonus: there’s no risk of overworking the dough with gluten-free flour!)

4). Roll about 2 1/2 Tablespoons of dough into balls and place on the lined cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. DO NOT flatten the balls–leave them rounded. Place the baking sheets in the fridge for 1 hour or in the freezer for 10 minutes.

5). Remove from fridge/freezer and bake for 12 minutes. Again, the center of the cookie will appear underbaked. Let them cool for at least 10 minutes on the cookie sheet–they will continue baking as they cool. Remove from the cookie sheet and let them finish cooling on wire racks. Store in an airtight container for up to 2-3 days. Enjoy!

Servings: about 20. Approximate Nutritional information per Serving: Calories: 216 Carbs: 30g Fat: 10g Protein: 2g Fiber: 1g Sugar: 18g Points+: 6 Recipe from here.

Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies. (GF, DF)

Soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies that are gluten-free and are sweetened naturally instead of with refined sugar! All the ooey-gooey goodness of traditional chocolate chip cookies, but a little bit healthier.

Valentine’s day is Saturday! Got any plans to make a sweet treat for your loved ones?

My all-time favorite dessert is chocolate chip cookies. So, you can imagine my frustration when I found out about my wheat allergy over the summer and realized I would no longer be able to enjoy my beloved chocolate chip cookie recipe. I had to find a replacement. Stat.

This recipe is an excellent alternative to my aforementioned traditional wheat-filled chocolate chip cookie recipe. The first time I made it, I was seriously skeptical. I mean, look at the ingredients! Can almond flour really work here? Can honey bind it all without even using an egg?

The answer: yes.

These cookies are super chewy, which is exactly the way I love them.
And they’re soft.
Really soft. In fact, don’t even think about attempting to eat one as soon as you take the pan out of the oven because they will appear underbaked. This worried me at first, but sure enough, after they cooled for a while they firmed up and could be held just fine. (By the way, underbaking is one of the tricks for making my original chocolate chip cookies amazing, and it works here too!)

Obviously if you’re making cookies you realize there’s going to be some serious sugar-intake happening, but I do appreciate that these cookies use honey instead of refined sugar. Honey is still a form of sugar, but if you buy good quality, raw, local honey, you are at least also getting some nutrients from the sweetener. The flavor of the honey does come through a little bit, but I love honey so that did not bother me at all. If you don’t like honey (is that possible?), then these might not be the cookies for you!

A note on the almond flour–I used Trader Joe’s almond meal/flour. I am not sure how well any other brand would work. Almond flour can vary greatly depending on what brand you purchase, so just be aware!

Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 3/4 cups almond flour
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips (use enjoy life for dairy free)
• 1/4 cup softened butter (coconut oil for dairy free)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda

1). Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with silpat liner or parchment paper.

2). In a large bowl, mix all ingredients except chocolate chips together until well-incorporated. Add in the chocolate chips.

3). Scoop about 1 tablespoon of cookie dough and place on the prepared baking sheet. Keep 2-3 inches of space between cookies. Gently press down on the cookie dough to flatten each cookie slightly.

4). Bake for 6-10 minutes, depending on your oven. The cookie should be slightly golden on the bottom and will appear underbaked, but they will finish baking as they cool.

5). Important: cool for 10-15 minutes on the cookie sheet before enjoying! You absolutely must let them cool or else they will be too soft to handle. Enjoy!

Yield: about 19 cookies. Approximate Nutritional Information per cookie: Calories: 135 Carbs: 11g Fat: 10g Fiber: 1g Protein: 2g Sugar: 9g Points+: 4. Recipe originally from here.

Buckeyes. (GF)

The classic peanut butter and chocolate dessert–perfection!

Peanut butter + chocolate.

It’s one of my husband’s favorite combinations, and over the years we’ve been married it has become one of mine, too!

I know buckeyes are a Christmas tradition for many families, but although that isn’t the case with mine, I’m quickly getting on board. If you’ve never had a buckeye before, it’s pretty much like eating peanut butter frosting dipped in chocolate.

Yup. They’re amazing.

And, they’re gluten-free! Hooray!

I made these recently for a friend who just had a baby and I forgot how much fun it is to make these. It does take a while to dip the buckeyes in the chocolate, but just have fun and enjoy the process.

Now all you need to do is turn on some Christmas music and sing your way through making the recipe!

Buckeyes (GF)

• 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup butter, room-temperature (can soften in the microwave if needed)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening

1). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Make sure you have enough room in the freezer for the cookie sheet.

2). In a large bowl, use a hand-held mixer (or wooden spoon) to mix the peanut butter, butter, vanilla extract, and salt together. Add the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, and mix until fully incorporated.

3). Roll the peanut butter mixture into 1 inch balls (I cheated and used a cookie scoop!). Set them on the parchment-lined cookie sheet and add a toothpick in the top of each one. Freeze for about 30 minutes or until hard.

4). Fill a medium sized pot with about 1 inch of water. Place it on the stove over medium heat until simmering, then set it to low to keep it barely simmering. Combine the chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave, heat-proof bowl. Microwave for 1 minute, and stir. Continue microwaving in 30 second intervals for 1 more minute, stirring each time. Place this bowl on top of the simmering pot of water and stir until the chocolate and shortening are completely melted.

5). Use the toothpick as a handle to carefully dip the buckeyes in the chocolate, leaving the top center exposed. Place on the parchment-lined cookie sheet and either refrigerate for 2 hours or freeze for 30 minutes. Remove the toothpicks and gently smooth the peanut butter over the hole from the toothpick. Store in the refrigerator for up to a month!

Recipe adapted from Brown Eyed Baker.

 

No-Bake Chocolate Almond Butter Cups. (GF, DF)

A rich gluten-free, dairy-free dessert without refined sugars! Keep a stash in your freezer to satisfy your next sweet tooth!

Um, guys?

This recipe is a game-changer. I’m struggling to find the words to accurately convey to you how incredibly awesome these little chocolate almond butter cups are! The flavor. The texture. The chocolate!

They. Are. Delicious!!

And the best part? This is a guilt-free dessert that doesn’t taste like one. Don’t you hate biting into a “healthy” dessert only to be left wishing for the real deal? Not here. My husband and I were absolutely SHOCKED at how good these were, and not in a that’s-good-considering-it’s-a-paleo-treat kind of way. These are just plain ol’ GOOD. I made these after having eliminated refined sugars for two months and I was on a mission to make something that tasted great but was not full of sugar. The only source of sweetness in these chocolate cups comes from a minimal amount of maple syrup, so they are refined-sugar free. But again, you’d never guess it!

To make these amazing little cups of yummyness, combine almond flour, a touch of maple syrup, coconut oil, cinnamon, vanilla, and almond butter. One taste of this mixture and you know things are headed in a great direction. That all gets pressed down into muffin tins.

I used a regular muffin pan, but if you want to make them more bite-sized you can use a mini-muffin pan if you have one.

Then, the chocolate sauce.

Confession time.

I had no idea making chocolate could be this easy! Just mix melted coconut oil, maple syrup for sweetness, and pure cocoa powder. The result? Silky, rich chocolate sauce! Pour this on top of the almond butter mixture, top with flaked sea salt and/or sliced almonds, and freeze for about 30 minutes.

Seeeee? Easy! These are my new favorite dessert.

You do need to keep these cold so the chocolate doesn’t start to melt, but I love having them in the freezer and pulling one out on occasion for a satisfying dessert made of real ingredients and minimal sugar.

P.S. I know these aren’t traditional Christmas cookies, but I think they’d be a great addition! They would cater to every family member’s special dietary needs (gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, etc.) and still taste amazing. Plus, you can make them ahead of time!

Here’s a quick video I made explaining how to make them!

No-Bake Chocolate Almond Butter Cups (GF, DF, Paleo, Vegan)

For the almond butter base:

• 1 3/4 cups almond flour
• 2 Tbsp almond butter
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup, warmed if refrigerated
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of fine grain sea salt, to taste

For the chocolate sauce:

• 3 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 3 Tbsp pure maple syrup, warmed if refrigerated
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
• pinch of sea salt, to taste

Optional toppings: flaked sea salt, sliced almonds, coconut, etc.

1). Line a muffin pan with liners and make sure there is enough room in the freezer for the muffin pan.

2). In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the base. The dough should be a little bit sticky similar to the texture of cookie dough.

3). Equally distribute the dough into the bottom of the muffin pans (I got 9 thick cups). Press down until it is smooth and flat.

4). In a small bowl, combine the chocolate sauce ingredients, whisking together until smooth. Equally spoon the chocolate over the base of the cups. Top with flaked sea salt and/or sliced almonds, coconut, etc.

5). Place the muffin pan in the freezer for about 30 minutes before enjoying. Store remaining cups in the freezer until ready to eat. These are delicious straight from the freezer!

Servings: 9 (large) cups. Approximate Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories: 266 Carbs: 11g Fat: 21g Protein: 6g Fiber: 3g Sugar: 8g Points+: 7 Recipe adapted from here.

Adapted recipe courtesy of Audrey’s Apron. 

Karen’s Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies — The Best!

Ok, this may be a really bold statement, but…I’m about to share with you the recipe for the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had. Chocolate chip cookies are my favorite dessert. If given the option between a really great chocolate chip cookie and just about any other dessert, the cookie will win. Not all chocolate chip cookies are the same, however. My #1 requirement to win my seal of approval: they must be extremely soft. Crunchy cookies? No thank you. I really prefer for the whole entire cookie, even the edges, to be soft. And then there’s the chocolate chip ratio. I like a 50/50 split between chocolate chips and batter. Too many chocolate chips and you may as well be eating a chocolate bar, too few and you might think you’re eating a blondie. Another requirement to add to the list? No chocolate chunks, just chips please. (That goes back to my “too much chocolate” issue.) I’m saying all of this to impress upon you the fact that I am very picky with my chocolate chip cookies, and this recipe is the real deal.

So, the recipe. Karen, a dear friend of mine at work, had borrowed a tupperware container from me. Several weeks later, I found it sitting on my desk, filled with a few chocolate chip cookies. A hand-written note said “thank you!” and explained she was taught never to return tupperware empty. I made a mental note of this because it was so thoughtful. She loved to bake, so I knew they were homemade. I tried one, and immediately flew over to my laptop to email her. I HAD TO GET THIS RECIPE. They were shockingly good! Insanely soft, but still chewy! Chocolate-y, but not too much! Hands down, they were the best homemade chocolate chip cookies I ever had. I emailed her right then, frantically trying to convey to her just how much I loved these cookies, hoping she would be willing to share the recipe with me. Sure enough, a few minutes later I had a response back with the recipe to these amazing cookies. I saved the recipe to make at a later date, and now, a year later, I finally got around to it.

Karen passed away unexpectedly earlier this spring. She was a very special lady and I will always remember her, especially every time I make these cookies (which will be often now that my hunt for “the” chocolate chip cookie recipe is over!). If you love chocolate chip cookies, you need to try this recipe. At first glance, it is a bit unconventional, but I believe that’s what makes the flavor so unique. Let’s look at what’s different about it. (Nerd alert: baking science ahead!) 1) It calls for only brown sugar. Most cookie recipes call for both white sugar and brown sugar. Brown sugar has molasses in it, which adds moisture to the dough. In cookies it also adds chewy-ness. You can thank the brown sugar for helping every bite of the cookies be chewy. 2) It calls for butter-flavored shortening, not butter. Weird, right? I was so skeptical about this. I always use butter in my baked goods, and to be honest, shortening kindof grosses me out a little bit, but I decided to follow the recipe and use it anyway. Turns out, using shortening instead of butter to make cookies is great because it is already at “room temperature”, so unlike butter, you do not have to plan ahead and leave it out for hours in order to be able to cream it with sugar.  Likewise, because butter has a lower melting temperature, it makes cookies prone to spreading, resulting in really thin cookies. To avoid this, many recipes call for chilling the dough anywhere from 30 minutes to 24 hours before baking. Honestly? That’s too much planning for me. Using shortening solves both of those issues and helps make a perfectly soft batter. In her email, Karen gave me 2 awesome cookie-baking tricks: use an air-bake pan, and slightly under-bake the cookies. I took her advice and purchased two air-bake cookie sheets. For years, I always found my cookies to be slightly overcooked on the bottom and I thought I was doing something wrong. I couldn’t believe the difference using the air-bake pans! Problem solved. As for the 8 minute baking time, I was a little apprehensive to remove the cookies from the oven when they looked underdone, but they continued baking while I allowed them to rest on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes. By the time I moved them to the wire rack they were perfect. Under-baking the cookies helped ensure they stayed soft for days to come, so that is a key piece to making these cookies perfect!
Karen’s Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies — The Best!!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 stick Butter Flavor Shortening Baking Stick
• 1 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk (I used skim)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1 3/4 cups All Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1). Pre-heat the oven to 375F. In a large bowl, cream together the shortening, brown sugar, milk, and vanilla with a hand-held mixer on medium speed until well-blended. Add the egg and blend again.

2). Add the flour, salt, and baking soda, using a spatula to fold the ingredients into the batter. Add the chocolate chips and mix.

3). Using a cookie-scoop, drop rounded tablespoons of the dough on air-bake pans, about 2-3 inches apart. Bake for 8-9 minutes. Cookies will appear under-done. Remove from oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before moving them to a wire cooling rack. Store in an air-tight container.

Yield: about 3 dozen cookies. Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories: 130 Fat: 8g Carbs: 16g Protein: 1 g Sugar: 10g Fiber: 1g Points+: 4
Recipe adapted from: http://www.crisco.com/Recipes/Details.aspx?recipeID=2102

Soft and Thick Snickerdoodles.

The holiday baking posts continue with these yummy snickerdoodles!

Snickerdoodles seem to fly under the radar. They’re simple, which is why they don’t get a lot of attention, but I think their simplicity is what makes them so wonderful. They are soft, chewy, and sweet, with just a hint of warm cinnamon flavor. I hope to inspire you to make some with this post; they’re worth it!

The title aptly describes the texture of these cookies: soft and thick. They aren’t cakey or dry, but instead perfectly chewy. They get rolled in a little bit of cinnamon sugar before baking which makes them look beautiful but also adds a nice sugary crunch in each bite.

A note about the recipe… you MUST make sure your butter is very, very soft. I have made these twice now. The first time the batter was extremely crumbly to the point where I had to add a little bit of water to help it come together. The second time I made sure my butter was at room temperature for a few hours before baking, and I noticed the flour incorporated much easier. I recommend not adding all the flour at once. The first time I used the full 3 cups, and the second time I only used 2 3/4 cups because I was afraid they would be too dry. Just keep an eye on it and make sure you will still be able to roll them into balls.

Happy baking! : )

Soft and Thick Snickerdoodles

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 and 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups all-purpose flour (I only used 2 3/4 cups)
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Topping ingredeints:

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 375F. (Check your oven temperature…mine runs very hot so I baked them at 350F for about 14 minutes!)
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Add the brown sugar and beat together on medium speed for several minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat to combine.
3. With the mixer on a very slow speed, slowly add the cream of tarter, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and flour (about a cup at a time). You will likely have to mix the last part by hand because the batter will be so thick.
4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon together.
5. Take no more than 2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture, then place on the cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining batter.
6. Bake cookies for 11-12 minutes. They should still be very soft and almost appear underbaked, but they will continue baking on the cookie sheet. Allow them to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Recipe adapted from: http://pastrychefbaking.blogspot.com/2013/09/soft-thick-snickerdoodles.html