THE BEST GF Chocolate Chunk Cookies

After years of mediocre GF cookies from many, many different recipes, these win the GRAND PRIZE. Based on a King Arthur Flours recipe-- I guess they know what they're doing! Honestly, they remind me of my mom's :)


INGREDIENTS

• 1c cool butter (not straight from the fridge, but not yet room temp)
• 1/2c maple syrup
• 2t vanilla
• 2/3t sea salt

• 2 eggs, whisked

• 2 1/2c GF flour (Trader Joe's brand)
• 2t xanthan 
• 1t baking powder
• 1t baking soda

• 2c dark chocolate chunks (Trader Joe's)
• 1 1/2c walnut halves & pieces

DIRECTIONS

• Cream butter & maple as best as possible
• Beat in vanilla and salt
• Beat in eggs
• Add dry ingredients
• Add chocolate and nuts by hand with spatula
• Use an ice cream scoop to scoop out dough balls, flatten slightly with fingers
• Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes, allow to finish baking on pan for a few minutes before removing to cooling rack

Improved Chocolate Chip Cookies

For making big whoppers!

TIP: soften all of the wet ingredients (butter, cream cheese, eggs) to room temp FIRST

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/4 c gluten free flour
• 1/2 t xanthan gum
• 1/2 t baking soda
• dash of cinnamon

• 3/4 c butter, softened
• 2 oz cream cheese, room temp
• 1-2 T molasses
• 1/2 c honey
• 1 1/2 t vanilla
• 2 egg yolks, room temp

• 1-2 c dark chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

• Stir together dry ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside
• Beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth
• Beat in molasses, honey and vanilla
• Beat in egg yolks
• Gradually mix in dry ingredients
• Slowly mix in chocolate chips
• Cover dough and refrigerate for at least an hour

• Use a large cookie or ice cream scoop to make mounds on a greased cookie sheet
• Bake in a 375 oven for 10-12 minutes
• Cool 3 minutes on cookie sheet, then transfer to cooling rack

Chocolate Beet Cake

Gluten free, low sugar chocolate cake made with puréed red beets-- the REAL Red Velvet cake!

Adapted from a recipe in the AMAZING Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook.  I use a Vitamix a couple times in this recipe, but a food processor for the beets and an electric mixer/beaters could be used for the whipped cream.

INGREDIENTS

-6 medium/large red beets
-2/3 cup warm water

-1 stick unsalted butter, softened
-1/2 cup coconut oil, softened + more for greasing pan(s)
-3 eggs
-1/3 cup honey
-1 1/2 tsp vanilla

-1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 1/4 cup gluten free baking flour mix
-1/4 cup almond flour
-2 tsp baking soda
-1/3 tsp salt
- 1 to 3 ounces grated dark chocolate

-1 pint organic heavy whipping cream
-1 cup fresh, rinsed raspberries
-1 tsp xanthan gum
-1/2 tsp vanilla powder


DIRECTIONS

Preheat over to 350.  Scrub beets and remove greens.  Cut in half, lengthwise. Wrap in a package of foil and place on baking sheet.  Roast for 35-40 minutes until tender.  Keep oven on for the cake!  Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes, while you mix together dry ingredients and wet ingredients in separate bowls (see below).  Place cooked beets in Vitamix with warm water and purée until smooth.

In a standing mixer bowl, combine all wet ingredients: butter, coconut oil, eggs, honey, vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients: GF flour, almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, grated chocolate.

Add puréed beets to wet ingredients until well combined.  Add dry ingredients and blend until well combined.  Pour batter into 2- 8 inch cake pans, greased GENEROUSLY with coconut oil.  Bake for 30 - 40 minutes until a tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached.  Allow cake to cool completely on a wire rack.  (NOTE: Invert one cake onto the cake pan if you are making a double layered-cake.  A double layered cake will require a firmer filling than the whipped cream suggested below.)

Using Vitamix, combine heavy whipping cream and vanilla powder on LOW while pouring in xanthan gum through the lid.  Increase speed and beat until cream is stiff.  Pipe whipped cream over cake (there should be plenty extra for another use!) and top with raspberries.

Cake has a deep reddish color and is ridiculously moist and tasty!  Cake freezes well.  Makes great brownies if you bake in a square pan.  This is a WINNER!

Dark Chocolate Pudding Upgrade

This is an update from an Avocado Chocolate Pudding Recipe I published long, long ago.  These days, I'm much lighter on the sugar situation (Hubs' diabetes, etc.) and so the recipe no longer calls for copious amounts of agave syrup and now features 8 generous servings of pudding sweetened only with 3 dates and one small banana, for a very deep, dark chocolate flavor.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 dates, softened
• 1/2 c unsweetened vanilla almond milk

• 1 small banana, mashed
• 4 ripe avocados
• 1 t ground vanilla beans
• dash of sea salt
• 1.5 c cocoa powder

• 1 can organic coconut milk, chilled and separated
• 1 T xanthan gum

DIRECTIONS

Pour boiling water over dates and allow to sit for 20 minutes or so.  When soft and not too hot, remove seeds.  (Note: use leftover steeping water to make sweet, hot tea!) Transfer dates to a blender with the almond milk and blend until smooth.

Add banana, avocados, vanilla, salt, and cocoa to the blender.  Blend for quite a while until it starts to be smooth.  If it is too dry for the cocoa to fully incorporate, don't panic!  Because...

Meanwhile, you should have had the can of coconut milk in your fridge since at least the day before.  It will separate to a hard coconut cream on top, and a liquid coconut water on the bottom.  Scrape the cream out and put it into a separate bowl and set aside.  Pour the coconut water into the blender.  Add the xanthan gum.  Blend until completely smooth.

Pour into 8 or so small cups or bowls.  Refrigerate a couple hours for best texture.

When you are ready to serve, whip up the reserved chilled coconut cream with electric beaters and add to the top of the pudding like whipped cream.  A sprinkling of dried, unsweetened coconut flakes is a nice finish.

And there's your delicious vegan, raw, low sugar, all natural dark chocolate pudding!