Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Amazing Gluten-Free Cookies (and pretty healthy for a cookie!)

Gluten-Free AMAZING Cookies
I enjoy playing around with baking and creating new and flavorful snacks that are also healthy.  Cookies are a family favorite here at our house, and so I’m always trying to figure out ways to make cookies healthier than the average cookie.   Here’s one that was a hit in my house, even friends who were over said they really liked them.  So here’s the recipe:



Ingredients:
3 sticks butter, softened (or room temperature)
1 cup creamy peanut butter (I use the natural kind)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
4 eggs (I use large, farm fresh, free range, omega 3 eggs)
2 ½ tablespoons raw honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 ½ cups featherlight flour mix
1 cup flax seed meal (or ground flax seed)
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon gaur gum
1 teaspoon salt
2 - 5 ounce boxes of instant vanilla pudding
1 ½ cups chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter pieces (I used Reeses pieces)
2 cups crushed dried banana pieces (I used the dehydrated banana slices and put them into a closable plastic bag and had the kids smack them with a wooden spoon to break them up.)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl combine the featherlight flour, flax seed meal, baking soda, gaur gum, salt and pudding mix, stir well and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars.  With the mixer on a low speed, add in the vanilla extract and honey, mix well.  Then add in the four eggs, one at a time, and mix well but do not over mix.  Then slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture a little at a time until all is mixed thoroughly.  Using a wooden spoon, slowly fold in the banana chips, chocolate chips and peanut butter pieces.  
Drop by spoonful onto greased baking sheets about an inch apart.
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 13-15 minutes.  Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.  Cool and enjoy!

To store left over cookies, place them in an air tight container.  If you plan to store them longer than a few days, place the air tight container in the refrigerator.  


Featherlight Flour Mix that I use:
6 cup white rice flour
6 cups corn starch
6 cups tapioca starch
2/3 cup Potato Flour (NOT Potato Starch)

Store in an air tight container.