Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Primal. Paleo. Specific Carbohydrate. GAPS. Call it what you want. I began the grain-free diet in 2001. I have adhered to it religiously ever since. When I began, I followed the Specific Carbohydrate Diet; since then, although I've used various sweeteners and oils, I have not veered from grain-free. This is not a fad for me. It's not even something that really has a name. When I started my grain free diet, people thought the gluten free diet was freakish.
Now there's lots of us. We're gluten free. Some of us are even grain free. We're definitely not freaks. Now we're merely a bit ahead of the curve. It wasn't always like that.
The almond flour cookie recipe that I share with you today for a Paleo chocolate chip cookie reminds me of the way I used to bake a decade ago. When I used honey quite often in my recipes. Call them what you want. Argue with what they're called. It's all semantics anyway. And I promise you. I won't argue back. I have a teenager and a tween. So why would I look for more arguments here? Just enjoy the cookies.
Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 2 cups blanched almond flour
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup vegan palm oil shortening
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks
- Place almond flour, salt and baking soda in a food processor
- Pulse in shortening, honey and vanilla until dough forms
- Remove blade from processor and stir in chips by hand
- Scoop dough one level tablespoon at a time onto a parchment lined baking sheet
- Press balls of dough down gently
- Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes
- Cool for 15 minutes (do not handle prior or cookies will break)
- Serve
Makes 30 cookies
If you want to make changes to them, do. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your substitutions and alterations turn out. I can't do the testing for you --remember, I've got a tween and a teenager, and they keep me real busy. And they like to eat cookies that I bake from scratch. These cookies. Gluten free cookies. Easy chocolate chip cookies. It just seems that all is right in the world when young men sit at the table eating cookies. So go ahead, like I said, enjoy the cookies!
What changes and substitutions will you make to these cookies to custom tailor them to your special diet needs? How do you think they'll turn out?
Vegan Raspberry Streusel Bars
This recipe for vegan raspberry streusel bars is based on one by Brittany at Real Sustenance. Ever since she posted her delicious looking recipe last year during the holidays I've been wanting to make it.
I adjusted her recipe by removing the sweetener from the crust and by increasing the amount of high protein items in the streusel so the topping would be a bit less sweet as well. I hope you like these gluten free dessert bars as much as we did.
Raspberry Streusel Bars
Crust:
- 2 cups blanched almond flour
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon water
- Pulse ingredients together in a food processor
until dough forms a ball
- Press dough into an 8x8 inch Pyrex baking dish
- Bake at 350° for 12 minutes
Filling:
- 1 cup raspberry fruit spread
Streusel Topping:
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup blanched almond flour
- 2 tablespoons xylitol
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 1 cup walnuts, chopped
- ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- Pulse oil, almond flour, xylitol and salt together in a food processor
- Briefly pulse in walnuts and coconut, so they are left coarse, not pulverized
- Set streusel aside
- Spread raspberry fruit spread over warm crust
- Sprinkle streusel topping over raspberry fruit spread
- Bake at 350° for 15 minutes
- Cool for 10 minutes, then refrigerate for 2 hours to set up
- Serve
Makes 16 bars
Recently I was fortunate enough to meet a wonderful couple, Pepi Gramshammer and his lovely wife Sheika. Pepi is one of the founders of Vail --"Pepi's Face" is a run on the mountain; Sheika, his awesome wife, is the genius behind many of their business ventures. They are the quintessential close knit hardworking European couple.
In any event, Sheika asked me what I had done earlier that day, and I told her that I had spent the afternoon making streusal. She had no clue what I was talking about which I thought was funny since she is from Austria and German is her native language. Finally, I got my point across through various descriptions and she said, "Oh! STREUSEL!" Rolling her "r's" in that wonderful way that only she can.
Whatever your accent, I hope you enjoy these vegan streusal bars!
Paleo Coconut Macaroons
With only four ingredients, this simple gluten free dessert recipe will wow your Passover or Easter guests. These primal macaroons are made of coconut, egg whites, honey and salt, making them an optimal Paleo cookie recipe. They'll be devoured within minutes!
Rather than shredded coconut, I used flaked coconut as I wanted to try something different, and I thought it would look pretty and brown nicely.
Paleo Coconut Macaroons
- 2 large egg whites
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 2 ½ cups unsweetened coconut flakes
- In a medium bowl, whisk together egg whites and honey with a fork
- Briefly whisk in salt, then stir in coconut flakes
- Place bowl in fridge to chill for ½ hour
- Fill a 2 tablespoon scoop
with batter, so it’s heaping full
- Using your hand, firmly pack batter into scoop so it is level
- Release batter onto a parchment
lined baking sheet
- Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes, until macaroons are golden brown
- Cool for 1 hour and serve
Yield 8
I don't usually have a lot of tips for the recipes I write, however, I do have a couple for this Paleo Coconut Macaroon recipe.
As noted above, I did not use shredded coconut in this recipe; I used flaked coconut which is quite different. Coconut flakes are much larger than the tiny pieces in shredded coconut. I do not know if shredded coconut will work. If you try it, please let us know how it goes.
Next, the 2 tablespoon size scoop is important for the recipe to work –a smaller scoop won't work as it will not hold the coconut flakes. I'm not sure if an even larger scoop will work as I haven't tried using one. Feel free to experiment with any size scoop you wish.
Finally, the idea to let the batter sit in the fridge comes from the macaroon recipe at paleodiet.cz. I like this method as it helps the batter set up and creates a macaroon that holds together better after it is baked.
Does your family have a favorite macaroon recipe? If so, feel free to share it in the comments below.
Paleo Passover Recipes
Although I've been grain free since 2001, this will be our first strictly Paleo Passover seder. I'm sharing my seder menu since the requests for Paleo Passover recipes are coming in a mile a minute.
Many of these gluten free Passover recipes are traditional Jewish fare and can be used for other Jewish holidays as well --think Squash Pie, which I serve as kugel.
I hope this menu will make the combination of being Jewish and Paleo a whole lot easier for y'all. If you're not Jewish, feel free to enjoy the Paleo diet recipes below, some of which are all time favorites of mine, such as the Paleo Matzo Ball Soup.
...continue reading Paleo Passover Recipes
Natural Treatments for Multiple Sclerosis
I received a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis in 2006. Since then, I am often asked, what is your secret? How do you stay healthy?
The below are 5 of my favorite natural remedies. I believe these strategies may be applicable to anyone with an auto-immune disorder. If this protocol is adhered to religiously, some find improvement in as little as 3 months. For others it may take significantly longer.
...continue reading Natural Treatments for Multiple Sclerosis
