Almond Meal Cookies (GF, DF)

Friday snack duty this week and I am strangely uninspired. Usually I go all out for Friday snack-- I bookmark recipes to try out weeks in advance, and often go over the top with what I bring in-- gluten-free, dairy-free things for the two co-workers of mine who follow that diet, and other delicious treats for everybody else. But this week, I'm tired, I'm feeling overworked and underappreciated and squeezed on all fronts and I just can't bring myself to care. I made this recipe from the Minimalist Baker mostly because the ingredient list was short and my bag of almond meal in the freezer was taking up prime real estate. But now that I've baked them, I realize that of course I care, because while according to the DH they taste fine, they look pitiful. And I'm contemplating leaving them at home and making something else entirely. Le sigh.


Almond Meal Cookies with Chocolate Chips and Coconut
http://minimalistbaker.com/almond-meal-cookies-with-chocolate-chips-and-coconut/

ALMOND MEAL COOKIES WITH CHOCOLATE CHIPS AND COCONUT

 

Prep time

45 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

55 mins

 

Gluten free cookies from the Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook, featuring bits of dark chocolate, shredded coconut, and hearty almond meal.

Author: Sprouted Kitchen, modified by Minimalist Baker

Recipe type: Dessert

Cuisine: Gluten Free

Serves: ~20 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups (137 g) almond meal
• 1/4 cup (30 g) chopped dark chocolate (Sara used cacao nibs)
• 1/2 cup (40 g) shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (or sea salt)
• 1/3 cup (73 g) brown sugar 
• 1 egg
• 3 Tbsp (45 g) coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together almond meal, dark chocolate chips, coconut, baking powder, salt and sugar.
2. In a separate bowl, beat egg until uniform in color and doubled in volume.
3. Whisk in the coconut oil and vanilla, then add to dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
4. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or even overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C).
6. Shape dough into 1-inch balls, place on baking sheet with 1-1/2 inch space in between each. Press down slightly to flatten a bit.
7. Bake until edges begin to brown, 7-10 minutes.
8. Remove from oven and let cool before serving.

MY NOTES:

1. I used actual unsweetened shredded coconut -- like from a coconut using a scraper-- that had been frozen. No coconut flakes. I also used canola oil, chocolate chips (not chopped chocolate), and added in a little bit of almond extract, and some cinnamon and cardamom. 

2. These guys barely puffed or spread in the oven. I don't know if it's because of any of the substitutions I made (as I wrote about in #1)... but mine look kind of grainy and whitish, and nothing like the beautiful pictures on the minimalist baker's blog. 

3. I have no idea how she got 20 cookies out of this recipe-- I got 13, and I had really been stretching the dough, maybe maybe could have reached 15. 

4. I chilled the dough all day long, and it was pretty easy to work with thankfully.