Gluten Free (Vegan) Chocolate Chip Cookies

OK, I am going to brag - everyone says my chocolate chip cookies are the best. I have to believe it is because of the ingredients I use, which is specifically the unbleached spelt flour. They are delicious with the spelt but they are not gluten free, and some people must have gluten free. So, I set out to make a gluten free version following my same guidelines so that everyone can have this tasty treat. OMG! They are delicious, light and very flavorful and they are higher in protein because of the almond flour. Eat them as a snack or even for breakfast - and did I mention, they are so delicious!!!

Ingredients:
1 cup rice flour
1 cup almond flower
1 cup coconut oil
1 cup coconut sugar
2 tsp double acting baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp flax meal
½ cup water
¾ cup chopped walnuts
¾ cup shredded (dried) coconut
¾ cup dark chocolate chips
½ tsp Celtic Sea Salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Add flax meal to ½ cup water and 2 tsp of vanilla, and let it sit while you combine the other ingredients.

Combine the rice, almond flour and baking powder together in a large bowl. Mix in the coconut sugar and coconut oil. Then mix in the flax and vanilla mixture. Mix well.

Fold in the shredded coconut, walnuts and chocolate chips.

Lastly add the salt.

Assemble cookies on parchment paper and bake at 350 for about 20 to 25 minutes. I like to bag my cookies and/or put them in a ball jar and freeze after they cool slightly. This keeps them very fresh.

Note: My famous cookies that are not gluten free are made the same way except with spelt flour instead of almond and rice (not the bleached spelt flour).

Enjoy!!

Lemon Cake - Gluten Free - Paleo (sort of)

Lemons, lemons and lemons. I love lemon anything, particularly some sort of cake or dessert. Since I am a not a real sweet lover, I found a recipe which I would call "sort of Paleo". So, I adopted it and then topped it with fresh strawberries and blueberries. Here is the recipe:

Cake Ingredients

4 eggs

1 cup gluten free flour

1/2 cup almond meal

2 sticks of organic butter (I used Cultured Butter) softened

1/2 cup sugar (+ more if you want it sweeter)

2  tsp baking powder

Zest of one lemon and juice of one large juicy lemon

Topping Ingredients

Zest of 2 lemon rinds plus the juice

1/3 cup sugar or maple syrup

Mix ingredients for topping together and hold until cake is baked. 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease loaf or square baking pan.

Mix all of the ingredients together and then bake for 35 to 40 minutes. When the cake is firm, remove from the oven. Take a tooth pick and poke little holes all over the top. Then spoon the topping over the top of the cake. Let cool and enjoy. Refrigerate to store. 

This cake become firm, and quite dense. Since I am a lemon lover and not a sugar lover, I find I can sweeten things a little more if I use a little stevia with the sugar. The sweetness will also depend on how sweet the lemons are. If they are really sour, I would add a little stevia with the sugar or use more sugar. Up to you! 

Top with fresh berries. YUM!

Gluten Free Steel Cut Oats

 

There is really nothing like a scrumptious bowl of hot cereal almost any time of day, but especially on a cool morning. Personally, I love a bowl of steel cuts oats for lunch or an afternoon snack. Now, you can have gluten free steel cut oats from Bob's Red Mill. In this recipe I added a chopped apple and a few dates. Then I topped my steaming bowl with my holiday cranberry sauce flavored with doTerra's Wild Orange Essential Oil. OMG! I can hardly wait for tomorrow to make it again. 

Steel Cut Oats a la Cranberry Sauce

Gluten Free - Dairy Free

Ingredients

1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Steel Cut Oats

3 cups of water

¼ tsp of salt

Bring water to a boil. Add oats and salt. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook for 10-20 minutes (depending on how chewy you like your cereal). Stir occasionally.

Additional fun, and yummy foods to add to the oats while they are cooking, or use as toppings. In this recipe I added a chopped red delicious apple and 3 dates. The walnuts were soaked and rinsed and then chopped and topped before serving.

1.     Chopped apple

2.     Raisins

3.     Dates

4.     Walnuts (soak first and add on top)

5.     Coconut oil or butter

6.     Cinnamon

7.     Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

4 cups of fresh cranberries

1-cup of sugar

1 ¼ cup water

zest of one orange peel

4-5 drops of doTerra Essential Oil – Wild Orange (optional)

(optional: chopped ginger or fennel)

Directions: Cranberry Sauce

Put all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. 

The Products I Love

I love telling people about the products I use, because it makes a huge difference. I use what I find to be the best, so you will often see some of my recipe reflect a brand. I am learning to bake more and experiment with gluten free cooking and backing. So, you will see a lot with Bob's Red Mill products. They have such an incredible variety, made with impeccable integrity, which means delicious taste and texture.  I am also experimenting with non-dairy milks and creamers. NutPods has just come into my life. It is fantastic! Not over flavored or too sweet; great product.