Coconut Easter Cookies

Here are some yummy cookies just in time for Easter! If you prefer, you can replace the jelly beans with dried fruit, or leave them off altogether.



Coconut Macaroon Easter Cookies
Ingredients
6 eggs
2 1/2 cups almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
~3 cups sweetened coconut (I used the whole bag)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda

jellybeans, optional

Method
Beat eggs until light thickened. Whisk in coconut flour, add remaining ingredients except jelly beans. Beat well.

Place small scoops of batter onto parchment-lined pans. Press the centers down to make small depression. Bake at 325° for 15-20 minutes, depending on size, or until done. Remove to a cooling rack and top with jelly beans (you can anchor them with frosting if you prefer).

Makes about 2 dozen small cookies with less than one gram of starch each.

Macaroons (review and recipe)

I discovered this unassuming little book last fall, and I was so intrigued that I pre-ordered it immediately. It doesn't claim to be either gluten free or starch free... and with the exception of a small amount of powdered sugar, it's both! I recently made some and they were light and rich and minty and chocolatey- amazing!



Mint Chocolate French Macaroons

1 batch french macaroons (there is a similar recipe here but I highly recommend the book, because the instructions are clear and there is a great tutorial, with two different macaroon recipes), made with unblanched almond meal (ie ground almonds) and tinted with teal gel food coloring.

Whipped Mint Chocolate Ganache Filling
7 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon honey or agave
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon mint extract
1 cup dark chocolate mint chips (or whirl some Andes candies in a food processor until they coarsely chopped)

Stir together the first four ingredients and add to a saucepan. Gently melt the chocolate over low heat. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter. Pour into a bowl and cool to room temperature about 30 minutes.

Place the ganache in the bowl of a stand mixer, and whip about 5 minutes or until fluffy. Stir in the chips.

Place filling into a pastry bag and pipe onto macaroons bottoms, place another macaroon on top. Refrigerate cookies at least an hour to let flavors meld, serve at room temperature.

I originally made these with a mint chocolate buttercream because I was impatient- definitely take the time to make the ganache. It's totally worth it!!!

Giant Cranberry Cookies

These giant morsels of awesome are somewhere between a giant cookie and a scone- perfect for breakfast, snacks, dessert, or just because. They are not too sweet and wonderfully coconutty, with just a hint of cranberry. Best of all, these are really easy!



Giant Cranberry Cookies
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
4 eggs
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract, optional
3/4 cup craisins

2 cups almond flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 scant teaspoon salt
1/4 cup craisins
1/2 cup flaked coconut

Method
Preheat oven to 325°

Combine the first seven ingredients in the bowl of a food processor- blend until pureed.

In a second bowl, mix together the last five ingredients. Add the craisin paste, mix well.

On parchment lined pan, place 1/4 cup scoops of batter 2-3 inches apart. Bake for 20 minutes, cool for 2-3 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. You could also make these a more traditional cookie size. To do that, place about 1 1/2 tablespoons of batter a couple inches apart, and bake at 350° for about 10 minutes or until done. Either way, Enjoy!

Cookies that just might make you cry...

They are that good. They did make the kids cry a little when I said "no more" after a half dozen or so. These are soft, tender, melt in your mouth little morsels of awesome.

You just might want to bake these in batches because I doubt you'll be able to just stop at one (dozen). Light, fluffy, a little sweet and with amazing orange flavor these little cookies just might make you feel sorry for those poor wheat and starch eating people that have to make do with store-bought "cookies".

There is around 1 gram of starch in each cookie, depending on their size.

Orangey Awesomeness Cookies

Makes about 7 dozen

Cookies
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
5 eggs
1 cup oat flour
1/4 cup ground flax seeds (golden is best)
1 cup almond flour
2 cups coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon guar gum
1/2 teaspoon xantham gum
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup plain yogurt
6 oz orange juice concentrate
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
Frosting
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon butter, softened
2 cups icing sugar**
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
1 tablespoon reserved orange juice concentrate
2 tablespoons milk, as needed



In a large mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add yogurt, vanilla and eggs. Beat until well blended. Reserve 1 tablespoon orange juice concentrate for frosting.

Add almond flour, mix well. Add coconut flour, mix well. In a separate bowl, combine remaining dry ingredients. Alternately add the orange juice concentrate and the combined dry ingredients to the creamed mixture; mix well.

Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 325°F for 10-15 minutes or until edges just begin to brown. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Frosting:

In a small mixing bowl, combine all ingredients until smooth, add only as much milk as needed to make a spreadable frosting. Spread a small amount over each cooled cookie. Will keep several days in an airtight container, though they may stick together a bit if stacked.

** Icing sugar is basically confectioner's (powder) sugar without the added cornstarch. Feel free to substitute powdered sugar, though this will change the starch content very slightly.

Chocolate Puddle Cookies

3 cups walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts
4 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla


1. Preheat oven to 325°. Toast walnuts, cool and coarsely chop. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Sift together the confectioner's sugar, cocoa powder, and sea salt. Stir in the walnuts, then add the egg whites and vanilla. Stir until well combined.

3. Spoon the batter onto the prepared sheets in mounds of about 2 tablespoons each, allowing for PLENTY of room between cookies. These cookies are like reverse Shrinky Dinks - they really expand. Don't try to get more than 6 cookies on each sheet, and try to avoid placing the batter too close to the edge of the pan.

4. Bake until they puff up. The tops should get glossy, and then crack a bit - about 12 -15 minutes.

5. Slide the cookies still on parchment onto a cooling rack, and let them cool completely. They will keep in an airtight container for a couple days.

Peanutty Kisses

This recipe was inspired by one of our family's favorite Christmas cookies: Peanut Blossom Cookies. I hope you love them as much as we do!



Peanutty Kisses

2 eggs
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar (plus more for rolling the cookies)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
Hershey kisses (about 2 dozen, maybe more depending on the size of your cookies)

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Combine the first five ingredients, mix well. I just dumped it all in to my stand mixer and mixed it until the Hershey kisses were unwrapped, but you could certainly do it by hand.

Unwrap Hershey Kisses.

Roll dough into about 1" balls. Roll in granulated sugar.

Place cookies on parchment-lined baking sheet, do not flatten. Bake for 8 minutes. Quickly place a Hershey kiss on the top of each cookie, bake another 2-3 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes before placing cookies on a cooling rack.

Enjoy!

Breakfast cookies

Mmmm, when you have cookies for breakfast how can you go wrong? These are relatively healthy, about as healthy as any of the muffins or pancakes you'll find here (and much healthier than any "store-bought" muffins). They are also a great snack or addition to a lunch meal- slightly sweet and very satisfying.

For these cookies, a stand mixer is nice, but not a necessity. However, a food processor or a blender is a must. There are about 2 grams of starch per delicious cookie.



Yummy Breakfast Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey or molasses or agave syrup
1 cup raisins
5 eggs, divided
3 cups almond flour
1/2 cup flax seed meal
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon guar gum
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, optional
1 cup dried coconut (non-sweetened works best)
1/2 cup craisins (dried sweetened cranberries, any dried fruit works well)
1/2 cup chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 275°, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cream butter and sugar in a stand mixer until fluffy. Add honey, 3 of the eggs and the flax seed, beat well.

Meanwhile, combine the raisins and the remaining 2 eggs in the work bowl of a food processor or a blender, and puree until a paste is formed (it does not need to be completely smooth, but the smoother the better). You can add a small amount of water or milk to the paste during this step if needed, but don't add more than about 1/8 of a cup.

Add raisin paste to the butter/egg mixture, beat well. Add next 8 ingredients, mix for 2-5 minutes until well combined.

Add final 3 ingredients, mix well.


Drop 1/4 cup batter onto parchment lined pans, flattening slightly, and spacing cookies at least 3" apart. Bake at 275° for 25 minutes (250° for 30 minutes if using agave) and remove to a cooling rack. Cool for at least 5 minutes before serving. These cookies will only keep about 24 hours in a tightly sealed container, and are best eaten the same day.

My kids haven't found this to be a problem. :)

S'mores Cookies

These have been a favorite cookie for many years, long before we had to eliminate starch and gluten. They taste just like s'mores, and they are really easy to make.

Keep these in a tightly covered container and they will last several days, depending on the humidity.

Triple Chocolate kisses
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 ounce semisweet chocolate, grated***
24 milk chocolate kisses
baking cocoa or cinnamon


1. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar, beat until soft peaks form, about 6 minutes. Gradually beat in sugar, beating until stiff peaks form, about 6 minutes. Beat in extract. Fold in grated chocolate.

*** You can easily omit the hershey kisses if you like, simply increase the amount of grated semisweet chocolate to 3-4 ounces.

2. Insert a medium open star tip into a pastry bag. Fill with meringue.

3. On well greased or parchment lined baking sheets, pipe 24 1 inch rounds. Press a chocolate kiss into the center of each one. Pipe meringue around each kiss in a continuous spiral, beginning at the base, until each kiss is completely covered. Dust with cocoa or cinnamon.

4. Bake at 325° for 15-18 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Immediately remove to wire racks to cool.