I can assure you, this is not a Paleo cookie. It is not even a Primal cookie. It is a special occasion cookie --a wonderful treat to serve at a gluten free Super Bowl party. It also makes a great holiday cookie (think gluten free Valentine's Day dessert). Lately, everyone who has been over to our house --gluten free or not --has been gorging themselves on these Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Whatever your thoughts about the healthfulness (or lack thereof) of this treat, when you're going to have a big dessert such as this, it's great to slow down all of the sugar with some high protein almond flour, which this chocolate chip cookie contains.

All in all, these cookies are a super easy homemade treat that will wow your friends. And family. My husband liked 'em so much that he asked me to bake up a batch for a business associate of his. Now that's one mighty big metaphoric seal of approval.

If you are looking for healthy gluten free cookies, leave the white and milk chocolate chips out of this recipe. The result?  A double dark chocolate chip cookie, made from high protein almond flour and anti-oxidant rich dark chocolate. Or try my gluten free Chocolate Chip Cookies if you're not in the mood to tinker with this recipe.

I made (and nibbled on) these cookies during the holidays last month on Colorado's "Everyday" Show (straying from my regular Paleo fare). This clip was broadcast on our local channel FOX 31 (KDVR) in Denver. You can watch the video below:

I think this may be the most decadent dessert that I make. What is your most indulgent treat?

These rich and moist coconut bars are made of not one, but three different forms of scrumptiously healthy coconut, including shredded coconut, coconut oil and coconut milk in their ingredients list.

I have Shirley at Gluten Free Easily to thank for this recipe as it is based upon her famous gluten free Crustless Coconut Pie. I'm a big fan of Shirley's crustless pie recipes. They're perfect when I'm looking for a quick and easy, yet simply tasty, gluten free dessert.

I find that this this coconut bar recipe tastes a bit like a macaroon bar. If you want to jazz up your coconut bars and get really decadent, try drizzling them with dark chocolate.

Here are some of the health benefits of coconut:

• Naturally gluten free
• Full of heart healthy fats that lower LDL cholesterol
• Anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-parasitic
• Reduces inflammation and promotes healthy absorption of nutrients
• High in minerals such as iron, phosphorus and zinc

It is also thought that eating coconut products speeds up the body's metabolism, helping to prevent obesity.

Finally, Dr. Mary Newport has written an article on the remarkable results she believes she has achieved using coconut oil to remediate her husband's early onset Alzheimer's disease.

In this video Dr. Newport shares intriguing anecdotal evidence on the impact of coconut oil on neurobiological function. Her findings will be of particular interest to those of us who are working on our brain health in dealing with diseases and disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimers, Parkinsons, autism, ADD, etc.

So grab yourself a coconut bar and a cup of delicious dandelion coffee (that's what I'm drinking right now) and settle in to watch the video of Dr. Newport. And be sure to let us know your thoughts in a comment below.

During the holidays I'm always looking for yummy treats to eat that won't leave me with a high-carb hangover. This paleo dessert recipe for a moist, gluten free fruitcake fits the bill. Sweetened with one tablespoon of coconut sugar, along with dates, raisins and dried cherries, my Paleo version of this classic treat is great with a cup of tea, Dandelion Root Coffee, or makes a beautifully simple gift to give to friends and neighbors during the holidays.

According to Wikipedia, fruitcake is:

A cake made with chopped candied fruit and/or dried fruit, nuts, and spices, and (optionally) soaked in spirits. A cake that simply has fruit in it as an ingredient can also be colloquially called a fruitcake. In the United Kingdom, certain rich versions may be iced and decorated. Fruitcakes are often served in celebration of weddings and Christmas.

Along with visions of wacky people, the word "fruitcake" can also conjure thoughts of dry, icky cake. I think you'll be pleased to find that this easy Paleo recipe is rich and moist --a Christmas Cake recipe that is versatile enough to use all year round.

I think this might be my first Paleo cake recipe. I could be wrong though. What Paleo grain-free, dairy-free desserts will you be serving this holiday season?

Looking for delicious and healthy dessert ideas to tide you over during the holiday season? What about apple crisp --one of the easiest desserts to make; perfect for both beginner and advanced chefs.

I developed this gluten free Gingerbread Apple Crisp recipe for Shirley Braden's blogging event, Home for the Holidays Gluten-Free Style. Every day, from Monday, November 28 through Friday, December 23, a different blogger will share a gluten-free recipe that means both home and the holidays to them. Here's more from Shirley:

Our Home for the Holidays Gluten-Free Style blogging event offers the comfort, joy, excitement, and fun of the holidays with wonderful recipes from your favorite bloggers.

A special thanks to Shirley for including me in the event. If you are in the Fredericksburg, VA area, be sure to check out the gluten intolerance/celiac support group that she runs where they discuss topics such as celiac disease, the gluten free diet and how to survive the holidays.

This time of year can be a challenging and filled with dietary dilemmas. How do we stay connected to, and feel a part of, the festivities yet remain true to what our bodies need when our visual and olfactory senses are inundated by foods that might not be part of our regular program?

If you are on a special diet, this gluten free, grain free Paleo friendly dessert recipe will likely work for you. Further, I like this Gingerbread Apple Crisp because it's festive enough to bring to a party (or serve to guests in your own home) and also healthy enough for those needing to stay away from certain foods (sugar, gluten and dairy come to mind).

For extra holiday flare, serve this apple crisp with the Vegan Coconut Whip recipe in my latest book, Gluten-Free Cupcakes: 50 Irresistible Recipes Made with Almond and Coconut Flour.

Stay tuned. At noon today, the numerous giveaways for Home for the Holidays will begin in a brand new post here at Elana's Pantry, including details on how you can win!

Healthy yet tasty gingersnaps are a deliciously addictive traditional holiday cookie. My gluten free, grain free version contain a good dose of anti-inflammatory ginger. I'm passionate about creating desserts that please the palate and contain super foods as well --a win-win situation for myself, my family and my readers.

These cookies are one of those rare vegan, yet primal friendly treats. These nutritious cookies are the perfect primal friendly treat. I won't call them Paleo as I believe many peeps will take the opportunity to point out that this is not a perfectly Paleo cookie recipe --pretty close though.

My children and I have been baking quite a lot of gluten free, grain free cookies lately. I find this ginger cookie recipe especially easy to make and so do the boys. That's why I will be preparing these cookies live on Colorado's "Everyday" Show. The program will broadcast on our local FOX affiliate KDVR, tomorrow, Tuesday, December 6th, 2011 at 10:45am (MST).

I went on Twitter last night asking folks a few questions about the holidays. You see, I'm Jewish and was having trouble deciding which cookies are appropriate for Christmas. The verdict was that my Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies are indeed a Christmas treat. I want to thank everyone who responded to my religious-culinary inquiry.

In the next couple of weeks I'll be tweeting a lot about what I'm making for the holidays this year --feel free to join the conversation.

Update: here's the video for aforementioned above!

I love making gluten free crusts with almond flour. This gluten free flour is super easy to use, high in heart healthy protein and fats, and of course delicious.

If you wish to experiment and try to make a gluten free pie crust out of this tart crust, feel free. Just be sure to stop back by and let us know how it works.

I am anticipating that I will receive a lot of questions about substituting the egg in this crust recipe; to this I answer: not sure. Again, if you find an adaptation or substitution that works in this gluten free pie crust recipe please let us know how it goes. As for me, I'm very happy with how this turned out as it is a wonderful Paleo tart crust, that will be front and center on my Paleo Thanksgiving menu.

The above is a brand new tart crust recipe. I experimented with it numerous times until I was entirely happy with the outcome. In my tests, I made it with a pecan pie filling. Here are some other filling recipes that you can experiment with:

Chocolate Cream Pie
Mousse Cloud Pie
Chocolate Peanut Tart

What will you fill your tart crust with?

Note: for those of you looking for pecan pie filling, please see the recipe in The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook.

Nothing says "fall" like the smell of fresh pumpkin bread wafting from the oven. This lusciously moist, gluten free, dairy free pumpkin quick bread is made with high protein almond flour, and came about by popular demand.

So many of you left comments on my Paleo Bread post requesting a healthy pumpkin bread, that I was moved to make yet another Paleo quick bread for all of you.

This healthy pumpkin bread recipe can be made with roasted pumpkin or any type of roasted winter squash. To find out just how easy it is to make your own homemade roasted pumpkin (or other squash), be sure to take a look at my How to Roast Squash post.

What is your favorite pumpkin recipe? How do you prefer to prepare all of the womb like winter squash that is in abundance this time of year?

Here's a lovely seasonal treat --gluten free apple crisp that's simple and easy to make with very few, and very healthy ingredients. This recipe for Granny Smith Apple Crisp is particularly low carb because I use the low glycemic sweetener xylitol.

Since so many people have written to me to tell me they do not use agave, I thought it would be nice to research a variety of alternative sweeteners and experiment with them. Hence the use of xylitol (a low glycemic sweetener) in this recipe. My children couldn't taste the difference and my doctor highly recommends xylitol for those that can digest it --it is not as easy to digest as agave for some people.

As always, use the ingredients that suit you best, and take the time to experiment with substitutions, as I cannot answer your (or my own) substitution questions without actually testing them in real life in my real kitchen.

As you can see from the note above, this recipe was a major hit with my older son. He left me a note on the dessert that said, "Mom, please do not let ANYONE eat the crisp. I want to eat it. TKS (Thanks)."

Every fall when I begin baking fruit desserts in earnest, I have the same internal dialogue --what is the exact difference between a crumble and a crisp? And every fall, without fail, I pull out my well worn copy of the Joy of Cooking and look this up again. I thought I would share what the good book says with all of you:

"For a crisp, the flour, butter, and sugar are mixed together like pie dough before the liquid is added, and the mixture scattered over the top."

"A crunch is fruit sandwiched between two layers of sweetened, buttered crumbs; it is served cut into squares, like bar cookies , but is more fragile...Crumble is the British name for a crisp or crunch with oatmeal in the topping."

Here are some more healthy gluten free recipes using apples:
-Cinnamon Apple Cake
-Caramel Apples
-Fennel Apple Soup

This Paleo recipe for banana bread is a high protein gluten free treat that is quick and easy to make. When I posted my recipe for Paleo Bread, the feedback was so amazing that I knew I'd need to come up with more gluten free Paleo bread recipes for you all.

I've been working on this Banana Bread recipe for a couple of weeks and will be serving it to my guests when we break our fast for Yom Kippur this year.

We are having about 30 people over next week after Yom Kippur services and it will be the biggest break fast I have ever hosted. All of the families that we invited have sons in the boys' Hebrew school classes at our synagogue. And all of the older boys (my son J's age) are about to be Bar Mitzvah'd in the next year as is J.

If you are looking for a healthy gluten free menu designed to break your fast on Yom Kippur, then check out my Yom Kippur Break Fast Menu.

When you make this banana bread, be sure to use ripe bananas. Also, if you want the loaf to be as tall as mine, then use the recommended size loaf pan, if you use a larger one, your batter will spread out to fill the horizontal dimension of the pan and will be short when it comes to the vertical dimension.

If you do not have (or are allergic to) the recommended ingredients and wish to make the loaf, feel free to experiment with your own ingredient choices and let us know how it goes. I am not sure how your desired substitutions will work out; as I often say, I wish I had a crystal ball and could automatically know if an ingredient change would work (or not). However, I do test each recipe, each time I make the slightest variation (think ¼ teaspoon of baking soda --if I add or subtract that, it's a whole new batch of bread in the oven).

So, since I'm out to make the most recipes I can for my family (and you all), I'm moving on from this recipe and heading out to conquer others and make more gluten free Paleo recipes for everyone.

My fellow gym rats were delighted when I brought these Paleo friendly, high protein, gluten free snacks to the gym last week. The consensus? These gluten free power bars hit the spot.

Made with healthy, high protein almond flour and nutritious goji berries, the gang wolfed these down, then asked for more. I promised them I would post this recipe for gluten free power bars and so here it is.

First though, a bit about goji berries. Goji berries (also known as wolfberries) are a superfood, slowly gaining attention and popularity in this country.

Research shows that berries are superfoods and that eating berries such as goji berries, blueberries, cranberries, and strawberries can be beneficial for your health.  Berries contain powerful antioxidants and other compounds that can boost the immune system and lower cholesterol; further, it is thought that the nutrient properties in berries can prevent cancer, heart disease and other illnesses.

Goji berries in particular have compounds rich in vitamin A, beta-carotene and B vitamins.  These compounds are thought to have anti-aging benefits and boost immune function. Incidentally, goji berries have been used for centuries in Traditonal Chinese Medicine (TCM).

Dried goji berries tend to be a bit...dry. So I like to plump mine up before I use them by placing them in a bowl and pouring a bit of boiling water over them. This brings out their juicy goodness, makes them easier to digest and simply prevents them from being too hard.

When you plump your gojis, let them sit in the hot water for 10-15 minutes until the water is mostly absorbed, then discard any remaining water (there won't be a lot).

Here are some more Paleo friendly bars that you may also like:
-Spicy Power Bars
-Cherry Vanilla Power Bars
-Apricot Power Bars