I’ve been playing in the kitchen lately, trying to come up with a delicious chocolate chunk cookie recipe, because, why not?!
My criteria was a little lengthy: Gluten-free and paleo-friendly, of course! Nut-free, coconut-free, naturally sweetened, and no use of butter or shortening as well. I had to do a little research on the chemistry of cookie making first– which was kind of fun and definitely geeky 🙂
Apparently, there is a science not just to the ingredients that go into cookie making but also the order. Once of the tidbits that I learned through my journey into cookie chemistry was that coating the flour with fat first can help to increase the moisture life of the cookie– so cool! And also that there is a huge different between baking soda and baking powder, and of course, that a little goes a long way when trying to prevent that metallic taste you get from too much!
So on went the journey in my kitchen with a few errors for sure that my kiddos and hubby bravely ate with grim smiles. On the third or fourth try (maybe more!), I have pulled together a pretty great recipe that I will no doubt continue to perfect over time.
| Servings |
|
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup cassava flour
- 1/3 cup arrowroot powder
- 1/3 cup tapioca starch
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/3 cup chocolate chunks, naturally sweetened
Ingredients
|
|
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add olive oil and maple syrup and vanilla to large bowl or bowl of electric mixer and mix until well incorporated.
- In separate bowl, mix cassava, arrowroot, tapioca, baking powder, and sea salt.
- Add dry mix to large bowl and mix well.
- Add beaten egg to mix and mix until well combined.
- Fold in chocolate chunks. Then place bowl in fridge for 20-30 minutes to chill.
- When bowl is chilled and oven is preheated, using small ice cream scooper or small spoon, drop 1 tbs sized spoonful of cookie batter onto parchment paper, about 3 inches apart.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-18 minutes until lightly golden on top. Then, let cool on baking sheet and then place cookies on cooling rack. Enjoy them warm or fully cooled!
Chocolate chunk flavor can be substituted with chopped nuts and/or raisins as well as cinnamon and other spices to achieve different flavor profiles! You can also leave them plain and frost them. In absence of naturally sweetened chocolate chips, you can chop up a naturally sweetened chocolate bar such as Hu Kitchen chocolate and use chunks in recipe.