Trail Mix Cookies (gluten free option)

Apparently this recipe originally came from Miraval Resort and Spa in Arizona. I liked lots about the recipe but I did not want to use all purpose flour so I made a gluten free version. I decided to use almond flour and coconut flour for a couple of reasons. The recipe has nuts in it and the almond flour would pair nicely, but it can be a little heavy, so I lightened it up a bit by using coconut flour.  Using two different flours also adds to the layers of flavor, which I am a big proponent of. 

Another note about layers of flavor.  I used three different sweeteners in this recipe.  The flavor profile is so much more interesting this way.  

If you want to make these the original way simply use 1 cup of all purpose flour in place of the almond and coconut flours. 

Ingredients: 
4 Tbsp butter, room temp 
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup coconut palm sugar
1/4 cup agave nectar, or honey
2 egg whites 
3/4 cup almond flour 
1/4 coconut flour 
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups rolled oats 
1/2 cup combo of pumpkin and sesame seeds
1/2 dried cherries
1/4 cup cacao nibs  

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. 

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment cream the butter, brown sugar, and coconut palm sugar until smooth.  Add the agave and egg whites and blend another minute. 

In a separate bowl combine the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, salt and rolled oats. 

Add the dry ingredients to the mixer and mix until just combined. Remove from stand, then stir in the seeds, fruit and cacao nibs until well mixed. 

Use a 1 tablespoon scoop and place on cookie sheet with 1 inch in between cookies.  These cookies can tend to crumble easily so make sure they are formed together well before baking and that they are flat.  Bake for approximately 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the sheet for another 10 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack or wax paper. Allow to cool completely.  If you try to eat them before they are completely cool and have firmed up they will fall apart. I found this out the hard way :) because sometimes I just can't wait! 

These are perfect to have around for the week, or to pack into a lunch, and to take on a road trip.  And I don't feel guilty when I eat one!

Madeleines with Lavendar Honey

Madeleine's.  Those cute little French cookies that are soft and fragrant and perfect with tea.  I've always loved them but haven't spent much time perfecting the making of them. Until I decided to play around with Lavender. I bought food grade lavender one day and decided I was going to make these cookies and a lavender ice cream.  I have yet to try the ice cream but it's on my to do list for this summer. 

Now lavender can be tricky.  It's rather strong to me so I would go easy on it in this recipe.  If you absolutely love it however, feel free to let yourself go nuts.  I buy lavender essential oil and use it in my bath, and on a heat wrap for my neck. It's also great for rubbing on the temples if you have a headache. But cooking with it seems a bit more risky.  

Now I don't know about you but I don't keep lavender honey in my pantry so I had to make my own.  I buy a good local honey from my local farmers market so I just added a small tsp of lavender to a tablespoon of honey.  I let it sit in a bowl for a couple of days to, hopefully, extract more of the flavor. Depending on your lavender, you can crush it up very fine, which I would suggest so you don't get those bits in the finished product. 

You will need a Madeleine pan for this recipe. You can find them at kitchen supply stores. I've had one for years because I always thought I would make these on a regular basis. Ha! Who was I kidding?

Ingredients: 

9 Tbsp butter
4 large egg whites
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar 
6 Tbsp all purpose flour 
1/4 cup almond flour 
1 Tbsp lavender honey

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Butter and flour the pan. Tap out any excess flour. 

Your almond flour needs to be fine.  I usually buy almond meal because it is readily available to me but then I put it in my vitamix, or food processor, and grind it so that it is more of a flour. This will create a lighter cookie.  

Melt the butter in a small skillet until it starts to turn brown, about 5 minutes. Set aside. 

Using an electric mixer beat the egg whites briefly then add the sugar, white flour, and almond flour and mix until smooth and well blended. Place the honey in the microwave and heat for 5 to 10 seconds then pour into the batter. Add the brown butter and beat to blend. 

Spoon 1 tablespoon of the batter into each Madeleine mold. 

Bake until tops are dry and tester comes out clean, about 13 minutes.  Allow to cool 5 minutes in the pan, then tap out, and allow to cool completely.  I have a pan that is larger than most so I filled mine with more batter and increased the baking time to 16 minutes. 

Once they are completely cool you can dust them with powdered sugar.

To make additional cookies you will need to completely wash and dry the pan then butter and flour again. It's no fun when the cookies stick!     

Snack bars - gluten free

Now that I am dealing with gluten sensitivity I can't eat bread, or baked goods, or multigrain pancakes, one of my weekend pleasures, boo hoo!  And it's been months without any kind of starchy carb.  It's been easier than I first imagined, and I finally got used to the idea and adjusted my diet accordingly.  But now that I have mastered this I find I just want something familiar. You know, a baked good of some kind, similar to a cookie or a piece of cake.  Is that too much to ask?  That being said, I am on the hunt for recipes that allow me to eat something that looks and feels like a wheat product. 

I have to say that now days there are so many more recipes that are gluten free it's actually easy to find things to make. I've tried many different prepared products from the store and most of them leave much to be desired. I've discovered that when it comes to gluten free it really is best to make my own.

This recipe is one of first I tried and I thought it came out pretty well. It is nice to have a healthy snack around that I can have mid afternoon or that my husband can take with him to work.  
One of the nice things about this recipe is that it's quite simple to change up. You can add cranberry's instead of raisins.  You can use different nuts and seeds, some dried fruits, flax seed.  I've tried this with some soy flour and it works well so experiment with different combinations of flours.  You can use honey instead of agave. As you can see, this is a good base recipe that you can have fun with.  

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups almond flour
1/4 tsp Celtic sea salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla 
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup almond slivers
1/4 cup raisins

In a small bowl combine the almond flour, salt and baking soda.
In a large bowl combine the grapeseed oil, agave and vanilla.
Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients.
Mix in coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds and raisins.
Grease a 8 x 8 inch Pyrex baking dish with grapeseed oil.
Press dough into the baking dish, patting down evenly.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. 
Allow to cool completely.
Cut into 12 bars.

Pumpkin Cookies

I meant to post this prior to Thanksgiving. Yeah this whole working full time thing has really cut into my blogging time. Sorry for the delay. Pumpkin is a fall vegetable and these cookies are wonderful for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

I have been making these for probably 30 years. They are a little different in that they are very light, as in airy, but they are also lite, as in taste. They are not real sweet which is what I like about them. They puff up to produce an airy cookie but the problem is that you can eat about 10 of these before you realize what you've done. Really, I am not kidding. You'll see. And with some coffe or tea you are a goner.

The recipe includes:

• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 egg
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup raisins
  

Icing: powdered sugar and milk.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prepare cookie sheets with parchment paper. You don't want these cookies to brown and the parchment paper will help with this.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon and set aside.

In a mixer beat the shortening with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add the pumpkin then the egg, mix well. Mix in the dry ingredients until just blended, add the raisins.

Drop by tablespoons on lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Cooking time depends on how many cookies you put on the cookie sheet at one time. The more cookies the more time. I tend to make about 12 at one time on a large sheet pan so it takes a full 15 minutes. I then remove them from the oven and allow them to cool on the sheet pan for 2 minutes before I remove them to a sheet of wax paper on the counter. These must cool completely if you are going to ice them otherwise the icing will just melt all over.

To make the icing put the powdered sugar into a small bowl. Pour in some milk very slowly and stir with a spoon to a smooth consistency. It takes very little milk for a lot of sugar.


Once you have an icing that is thick, creamy and will drip slightly, but is not too runny, you can drizzle them over the cookies. I make little zig zag patterns that look pretty. Allow them to set up.


These cookies are best if eaten soon. I usually make a double batch then pack them in clear glasen bags and tie them with ribbon to give out to friends.

A note about the shortening. I buy the Spectrum brand shortening that contains no trans fats. You know, it just seems a little bit healthier.


I hope you will make them for your family. Happy Holidays!

Cheerleader cookies

There are times when cooking, or baking, is simply about having fun... it's not always about making dinner. It's about doing something creative... spending the afternoon totally immersed in the task at hand... and making something for someone who will really appreciate your efforts.

I was asked to make cookies for a group of young girls who are cheerleaders. One of the girls on the team wanted to give her teammates a special gift after the homecoming game. I made sugar cookies, iced them, then used icing to pipe team cheers on them.... spirit, score, fight, go team, win.... and I made sure to use the team colors. Sugar cookies are nothing special and everyone has made them, but decorating them in this way made everyone think they were something other than ordinary.

I packed each cookie in a clear bag and each with ribbon, again in team colors.

The girls were so delighted and got such a kick out of them. I can still hear the squeals!

I spent many hours working on these cookies and had a moment when I questioned what I was doing... but in the end hearing about how excited the girls were made it all worth while.