re-post: flourless peanut butter cookies

(photo via Instagram)

I made these cookies last night and posted them on my Instagram and had a few of my gluten-free friends ask me for the recipe. I've made them before, but I thought I'd re-post, with a few changes and tips that I've added since then. You have to follow the recipe pretty darn exactly, or they just don't turn out quite right. I'm not gluten free, but I would still choose this over a recipe with flour in it. They have the perfect texture I'm looking for in a PB cookie. Chewy and soft, but still a little bit crumbly. Plus, they are crazy easy to make and even easier to shove in your mouth. 

1 cup smooth peanut butter (I've tried natural PB and it doesn't work as well, unless you use Skippy Natural Creamy PB. This recipe is all about the right textures, and you have to use the right type of PB)
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350°. In a mixer combine peanut butter and sugars until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add egg, vanilla and baking soda and mix for 1 1/2 minutes (before, it called for two, and it seemed too greasy and didn't crumble a little bit, which I like). Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop out the dough, then roll into a compact ball (This size is just right for getting the perfect cookie - however, this makes less cookies than a normal batch, approximately 16, so you may want to double your batch, depending on your needs/self control). Use a fork dipped in sugar to make a criss cross pattern on the top of the cookie. Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Rest the cookies for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack—this is important! Let cookies sit on wire rack at least 5 minutes before consuming to your heart's content. 

***I can't stress enough how you have to follow this recipe exactly to get the perfect PB cookie. 

banana oat squares

I like sleep. Sleep is good. This love for sleep sometimes makes it hard for me to have a decent breakfast before I have to get out the door. Because of this constant conundrum, I'm always looking for a grab-and-go options. I can't remember how I came across this recipe, but it fits the bill. It's filling and pretty healthy. I added ground flax seed and toasted wheat germ and swapped the type of nuts, and I am pretty happy with the result. While I use these as a breakfast booster, these could be a substitute for granola bars or cookies. They have a soft and light texture, with a hint of hearty-ness. Check out the recipe below!

Banana Oat Squares, adapted from Sweet and Savory Tooth via Notecook

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 to 1 cup mashed bananas (3 bananas)

2 tablespoons ground flax seed

2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
2 cups old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and beat well. Add salt and mashed banana and mix until incorporated . Add oats and nuts. Stir. Spread in greased 8×8 inch pan. Bake for almost an hour until firm. Cool and cut into squares.

more granola bars

 so, it maaaaay seem that i am obsessed with granola. well... that's only because it's true. it's delicious and filling and i love oats and it's usually in the healthy vein of things. also, as i've said before, i want to avoid preservatives in my snacks, etc. so here is another recipe i tried, and this one is gluten free. this recipe was found on phoo-d via food gawker.

so i made some changes based on what i had on hand and really, whatever i felt like putting in. here is the original recipe.

and for my altered version:

2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup coconut
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
      (****because i changed things a bit, i think this could use less honey and less brown sugar****)
4 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup chopped dried fruit (i used a mixed bag)


pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil (or silpat). mix together the oats, wheat germ, seeds, and nuts and coconut on the baking sheet. place the sheet in the oven and toast the dry ingredients for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally and keeping a close watch to make sure they do not burn. as soon as the ingredients are toasted, remove the pan from the oven.

while the dry ingredients are toasting, line a 11x13 inch rimmed baking sheet with waxed paper and spray it lightly with cooking oil (this is an important step!)

place a small saucepan over medium-high heat and add in the brown sugar, honey, butter, vanilla, and salt. bring the mixture to a strong boil for two minutes stirring constantly. remove from heat.

place the toasted ingredients in a large bowl, and stir in the dried fruit. pour the hot liquids into the bowl and stir  until all of the ingredients are moist and well combined.

using a wooden spoon or spatula, scrape the mixture into the prepared baking sheet, pressing down to evenly spread out the mixture. fold over the greased waxed paper or add another greased sheet on top and press down hard all over the granola. set the baking sheet aside and let the bars cool for 2-3 hours until they are hardened.

once the bars are hard, peel off the waxed paper and turn the granola out onto a cutting board. cut the granola into bars by pressing straight down with a long knife (don't saw or they will crumble). the bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature individually wrapped in plastic wrap for up to a week.

 

i really loved this recipe and i think you should try it!

**UPDATE: I made this again and instead of whole flax seeds, I used ground flax and I liked it so much better!

christmas gifts part 4: chocolate truffles

on the hunt for more christmas food gifts, i found this recipe via foodgawker. these are way easier to make than one would think, but just be prepared for the delicious mess when rolling them out. on singforyoursupper, where this original recipe is posted, she splits up the chocolate to make different kinds. i was lazy/in a hurry/didn't have some of those things but had more crushed peppermint, so i did just plain chocolate rolled in candy canes.

here is the recipe

1 cup heavy cream
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup sugar (I like mine a little sweeter)

bring the cream and sugar to a boil over low heat, pour over the chocolate and stir until smooth. cover and chill the chocolate for at least 4 hours or overnight. roll into walnut size balls then refrigerate again for at least 20 minutes. roll in crushed peppermint candy. store in refrigerator.

flourless fudge cookies

i saw a post about cookies like these on thekitchn last week and not even a few hours later my friend julia sent me the same link. we discussed it and decided they needed to be made, so i found this recipe from the king arthur flour site that someone had recommended. this is one of the most unique recipes i've made and it seems sort of unnatural considering how little ingredients it has, and with no egg yolks or flour, it's practically good for you (yes, i think you should forget about the 2+ cups of powdered sugar it has in it and concentrate on no flour, butter or egg yolks! egg whites have protien people! and cocoa has flavonoids, right?)

anywho, my friends said they are divine (very rich so i can only eat a bite here and there, but for dark chocolate lovers, this is your scene.)

2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional but good
1 cup cocoa powder, dutch-process (european-style) preferred
3 large egg whites (i had to add an extra because my batter was too thick)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

preheat the oven to 350°F. lightly grease two baking sheets. or line with parchment, and grease the parchment (or use a silpat but if you do, make sure to cool the cookies completely before trying to remove them). stir together all of the ingredients till smooth. scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and stir again till smooth. drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets in balls about the size of ping pong balls, about 1 1/2"; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here. bake the cookies for 8 minutes; they should spread, become somewhat shiny, and develop faintly crackly tops (they get more crackly when you remove them from the oven, so don't wait for them to be perfectly crackly while in the oven). remove the cookies from the oven, and allow them to cool right on the pan.

cream cheese tarts: revisited

i posted pictures of these before but forgot to share the recipe. i made adjustments to the crust and topping (gingersnap cookies) for a more fall feel, but the basic recipe is the same.

3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese
1 c. sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 T. lemon juice
2 t. vanilla
cookie wafers (nillas, oreos, this time i used a gingersnap - gluten free for a co-worker)
(could garnish with cherries or fruit if made with a nilla wafer or something like that)

beat all but wafers and chosen garnish until well-blended. line cupcake pans with foil-lined cupcake papers. place a wafer in bottom of each. fill with cream cheese mixture 2/3 full. bake in 350° oven for 20 minutes; cool. garnish with crushed leftover cookies or fruit filling. makes 30 cakes.