GLUTEN FREE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
Vegan, gluten free, refined sugar free and INSANELY delicious!
These cookies have been our sweet life source over the past 3 weeks! Sway has inherited my love of cookies, so of course, I have to make sure there are healthier options available for her when she asks for a treat!
I always endeavour to find healthy recipe alternatives for delicious foods that we all love - because life is way too short to be restricted to the point of not enjoying the foods you love! This lead me to work on creating the ‘cleaner’ versions of treats like caramel slices, cheesecakes, cakes and of course, cookies!
Thus I give you, Sway's favourite: Peanut Butter Cookies! They can be made completely vegan, refined sugar free and gluten free…seriously, does it get any better than that!?
Now, I have to admit that the ones pictured here have normal white chocolate drizzled over the top because we had run out of our usual favourite vegan chocolate! But generally, we opt for the all vegan option. You can fill these cookies with so many ‘mix ins’, we have used chopped nuts, chocolate chunks, chocolate chips and coconut to list a few – all of which have turned out AMAZING!
Difficulty: Easy!
Parties aside though, sometimes there is nothing better than sitting down after a long day (or a long morning for us mums!) and enjoying something totally decadent, filled with totally necessary calories and a cup of strong coffee. And, as you might be able to see, I couldn’t even wait for mine to set before I dived right in… I blame my dessert addiction...
But just look at how pretty they are! A crispy, crunchy shell on the outside, and a moist, soft interior, from the almond meal.
Tim and I love these just as much as Sway...if not a little more. We have both encounted a very unhappy little monkey at times when we finish the last cookie and she can’t get her hands on one! So a little note to the mamas out there, double your batch and freeze some to whip up in no time!
Speaking of freezing dough… This cookie dough freezes perfectly and bakes out just as fresh as if they had never been frozen – simply roll the dough into balls, flatten into disks and pop them in an airtight container or packet, separating each disk with a little bit of baking paper. They will need an extra 2-3 minutes on the baking time; but, will bake from frozen perfectly!
Difficulty: Easy
Gather The Following...
Now, Lets Begin!
In a large bowl whisk together the almond meal, flax meal, gluten free flour, baking soda and sea salt until combined - set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix together the coconut oil, peanut butter, rice malt syrup and vanilla extract until silky and smooth.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and stir together until no pockets of flour remain. Then, simply stir in the chocolate chips until they speckle the dough evenly!
Lay out a piece of plastic wrap on the counter and pour your dough onto it, shaping the dough into a log shape before wrapping your dough in the plastic and popping it into the fridge for 1 hour or more until dough is solid (or in the freezer for 15-30 mins).
Once your dough is set, preheat your oven to 165°C and line 2 baking sheets with baking paper - set aside. Remove your dough from the fridge and slice the log into 12 even pieces, placing them onto the two baking sheets with an inch or two between each cookie, allowing room for spreading.
Place the cookies into the oven and bake for 13-16 minutes or until golden. Once cooked, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool on the tray for 15 minutes before placing the cookies onto a cooling rack to set completely!
*Cookies will be extremely soft when removed from the oven, so the cooling is essential before removing them from the tray.
ENJOY!
1 cup Almond Meal
3 Tbls Flax Meal
1/3 cup Gluten Free Plain Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
pinch of Sea Salt
2 Tbls Coconut Oil, melted
3 Tbls Peanut Butter, heaped*
1/3 cup plus 1 Tbls Rice Malt Syrup
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Vegan Chocolate Chips
