Vegan Triple Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

As simple as this recipe is, I can’t believe it’s so delicious!  I had to eat two just to be sure I wasn’t mistaken.  Maybe I should eat another just to be completely sure of its deliciousness.  I do what I can to ensure honest evaluations.  I’m here for you!

This recipe happened because the girls and I needed a little chocolate to push through our day.  Homeschooling can be hard, folks!

This was a perfect way to integrate life skills into our day.  The recipe is so simple, even a five-year old can do it and she did!  I have found that my little picky eater is more likely to eat the foods she helps make.  Get the kids in the kitchen and make these healthy chocolate cookies.

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Gluten-free and Vegan Coconut Sugar Cookies

 

 

 

Because my issues with gluten and Baby Honeybee’s severe egg allergy and mild milk allergy, I have made it a priority to figure out this whole gluten-free and vegan baking thing. In the past, when I bake cookies for the family, my focus has been on egg-free, not necessarily dairy or gluten-free and I often get left out.  No fair.

That all changed when I came across this recipe for gluten, dairy and egg-free coconut sugar cookie recipe from yammiesglutenfreedom.

The recipe, as written, accommodated all our needs without any substitutions. She is awesome.  I might cry a little.

Seriously, she is an amazing young woman.  Check out this About Me page on one of her blogs.  Impressive.

I could ramble on, or I could move along to the recipe.  That’s really why you are all here, anyway.  Well, there may be a few of you who love to read the ramblings of a lunatic. You know who you are.

 

Coconut Sugar Cookies

What you need:

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. coconut oil

1/3 c. coconut milk, full-fat

2 tsp. vanilla (make sure yours is gluten-free)

3/4 c. white rice flour

1/3 c. coconut flour

2 Tbsp. potato starch

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

coconut frosting (recipe follows)

What you do:

Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside.

Cream together the coconut oil and sugar with an electric mixer. If your coconut oil is too hard, soften it in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds, then add the sugar and mix.

Add the coconut milk and vanilla and mix well.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a third at a time, mixing thoroughly.  The mixture will be moist and fluffy.

Cover the bowl with a clean towel and let sit at room temperature while the oven preheat to 350 degrees F.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Use a small scoop or your hands to roll 1.5″ balls of cookie dough.  Do not flatten the dough and you will get a nice, soft cookie.

Bake for 11-12 minutes, rotating the trays halfway in the cooking time.

Let cool for about 3 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Frost with the following recipe when completely cooled.

 

Coconut Frosting

1/4 c. coconut oil

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups powdered sugar (the original recipe calls for 3 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, but I needed much less)

6 Tbsp. full-fat coconut milk

 

Sift the powdered sugar through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps.

In a separate bowl, mix together the coconut oil and vanilla.  Alternate adding the powdered sugar and the coconut milk, mixing well.

Spread the frosting on each cooled cookie.  The coconut oil give the frosting the consistency of buttercream, so you can use a pastry bag to make them as fancy as you like.

Now go on.  Make these and share the cookie love.

The Simple Hive on Pinterest

 

This post is linked-up with The Art of Home-Making Mondays.  Hop on over to the party at Strangers and Pilgrims on Earth for other great blogs.

Easy Nut-Free French Macarons

 

Over the summer, I took a break from the blog to spend time with my kids and to catch up on many neglected projects around the hive. It was a good change of pace and I have many things to share. What I’m trying to say is…I’m baaaack!

I’m not sure if you should be happy or afraid. Your pick.

Because I have a sweet tooth and I want to go to Paris someday, I made some French macarons. The trouble with macarons is that they are made with almond flour and I’m allergic to almonds.

Let’s all take a moment to throw a tiny pity party for me.

That was fun.

So, being allergic to almonds, I had to find a substitute. Naturally, I turned to sunflower seeds. They are my go-to nut replacement. I use them to make peanut-free peanut sauce, or “unpeanut” sauce as we now refer to it, homemade sunflower seed butter and all sorts of delicious treats. More on those later.

Today, we focus on the lovely French macaron.

Just a side note: A macaroon is a coconut concoction and macaron refers to this heavenly French delight.

Moving along.

These were surprisingly simple to make. And that is dangerous, my friends.

 

You will need:

1 c. powdered sugar

3/4 c. sunflower seed flour (or almond flour)*

2 large egg whites at room temperature

1/4 c. white granulated sugar

1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

food coloring (optional)

*To make your own sunflower seed flour, place roasted sunflower seeds into a food processor and process for about a minute.  The mixture will look coarse and crumbly.  Resist the temptation to go longer, as the blade will heat the oil causing the mixture to become sticky.  Sift the mixture through a fine sieve.

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Line two baking sheets with parchment and set aside.
2. Pulse powdered sugar and sunflower seed (or almond) flour in a food processor until combined.  Sift with a fine mesh sieve into a separate bowl.
3. Whisk egg whites with a mixer on medium speed until they are foamy.
4. Add cream of tartar and mix on medium speed until soft peaks begin to form.
5. Add the granulated sugar and mix on low until incorporated and then switch to high speed and beat until stiff peaks form.
6. Add flour mixture to the egg whites, half at a time, and fold gently until mixture is smooth and glossy.  If using food coloring, add it at this step to ensure it is evenly distributed.
7. Transfer mixture to a pastry bag  or a quart-size zip top freezer bag.  If using a pastry bag, use a plain 1/2″ round tip.  If using a zip top bag, snip the corner to make a small hole. Err on the side of a smaller hole rather than larger.
8. Pipe onto parchment-lined baking sheets, 1″ apart.  Tap the baking sheet on the counter top to get rid of air pockets and let stand for about 10 minutes.
9. Place in oven and reduce to 375 degrees F.  Bake for 10 minutes, rotating halfway through the cooking time, until they are firm and crispy.
10. Let cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes and transfer to wire rack. If they stick to the parchment, lift the parchment at one end and drizzle a few drops of water underneath the paper.  This causes steam from the hot baking sheet to release the macaron.
11. Using 2 macarons that are the same size, sandwich with one teaspoon of your filling of choice.

Filling Options:

• buttercream
• chocolate ganache
• chocolate hazelnut spread
• seedless raspberry jam
• dulce de leche

Today, I went for a classic vanilla buttercream.

For a chocolate version:  Substitute 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder in place of 1/4 cup of the sunflower (or almond) flour.

If you have a favorite macaron flavor, leave a comment and send me back to the kitchen!