Snickerdoodles (or Chocolate Chip Cookies), Paleo

 Before going paleo, I had the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe. Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, and absolutely delicious. I scoffed at cookbooks with their multiple variations on a simple recipe, and considered myself fortunate to have hit gold early on in my cooking career. One diet change and 5 or 6 different cookie recipes later, I've realized that there is no simple answer to the cookie dilemma. This recipe has so far been the most rewarding, and provides a flat, moist, almondy cookie. The snickerdoodle version is particularly pleasing to the palate :) It's also remarkably forgiving. The original recipe calls for anything between 1/3 to 1/2 a cup of honey, and 2-3 teaspoons of vanilla. Inaccurate measuring should lead to interesting, but still tasty results :)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups almond flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar (leave out if making choc. chip cookies!!!!)
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon (leave out if making choc. chip cookies!!!!)
1/2 cup shortening (butter-flavored if possible)
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup honey

3/4 cup dark chocolate chips (only for chocolate chip cookies!!!!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine the flour, salt, and soda and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix the shortening, vanilla, and honey together.

Slowly add in the dry ingredients. Then stir in the chocolate.

Scoop into small balls onto a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. You can press these down a bit, but the cookies will usually flatten on their own.

For Snickerdoodles, omit the chocolate and include the cream of tartar and cinnamon. Bake at 350 F. for 8 minutes.

Notes: There are a lot of variations on this recipe out in the multiverse. This is the one we've found that works best for us flavorwise and in consistency.

Vanilla Donuts (or Cupcakes), Paleo

I have been gifted with an early X-mas present, a Donut maker that works surpisingly well with Paleo recipes. So far I've tried making chocolate and vanilla donuts from the cupcake recipes in Elana's Gluten Free Cupcakes cookbook, and they both turned out really well. Next I'm planning to attempt a punpkin/gingerbread flavored batter to see if I can eliminate the need for a glaze. The donuts only take about three minutes for each batch, so it's fabulous instant gratification :) For glazes I used maple cream (soooooooo yummy!) and Fruit-sweetened dark chocolate sauce.

 

 

 

 

 

 

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda (try to use fresh)
4 large eggs
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
1/2 cup agave nectar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 9 muffin cups with paper liners (watch out for soy coloring!)

In a large bowl, combine the coconut flour, salt, and baking soda. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, grapeseed oil, agave nectar, and vanila extract. Blend the wet ingredients into the coconut flour mixture with a handheld mixer until thoroughly combined

For Cupcakes:

Scoop 1/4 cup of battter into each prepared muffin cup.

Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 1 hour, then frost and serve.

For Donuts (If using the Babycakes donut maker):

Fill each donut reservoir with about 2 tbs. of batter.

Cook for 3 minutes.

Remove and allow to cool completely before glazing. I used maple cream and paleo chocolate fudge.

Servings: 9
Notes
MIX THOROUGHLY!!!! Otherwise they stay dense and compact.

Very tasty with chocolate frosting :)

From "Gluten Free Cupcakes" by Elana Amsterdam.