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VEGAN QUINOA PECAN PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES



    After many days in the kitchen experimenting to create the perfect atta chocolate chip cookies, the entire family kept munching onto my experiments, which were no doubt delicious and healthier because of the atta, but it certainly wasn’t the healthiest!


    So I challenged myself to make cookies that were as delicious as they were healthy: VeganQuinoa Pecan and Peanut Butter Cookies! They were gluten free, were refined sugar free, and had lots of flax seeds and pecan nuts, and honestly they were sooo indulgent and addictive! They were golden and crisp on the outside, and slightly chewy in the inside, so lovely. And within 2 days, they were all gone!


    Fall in love with these imperceptibly healthy cookies just as we did. What are you waiting for, just grab the bowl and whip up these super easy and healthy cookies. It's baking time!



    YIELDS: 12-13

    PREP TIME: 15 minutes

    BAKE TIME: 15 minutes




    INGREDIENTS


    • 1/2 cup/4oz/115g smooth peanut butter

    • 1/3 cup dark brown sugar

    • 1/3 cup maple syrup

    • 1 cup quinoa flour

    • 1/2 tsp salt

    • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder

    • 1 tsp baking soda

    • 1/4 tsp xanthum gum powder

    • 2 tsp vanilla essence

    • 1/8 cup flax seeds and a tbsp extra

    • 3 tbsp coconut milk

    • 3/4 cup pecan nuts, toasted and roughly chopped


    METHOD


    1. Preheat the oven at 170°C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

    2. In a bowl, cream peanut butter, sugar, maple syrup and vanilla with the spatula. Add coconut milk and combine well to make the batter.

    3. Add quinoa flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, xanthium gum powder and flax seeds. Mix it well with the spatula until well combined. It will feel bit dry but it’s perfect. Mix 1/2 cup chopped pecan nuts to the cookie dough, leaving the rest to dredge on top.

    4. Scoop the cookie dough on to the prepared cookie sheet, placing them 2 inch apart. Press them down slightly with the back of fork, sprinkle few flax seeds and dredge pecan nuts on top. Press it down slightly more with fork keeping 1 cm thickness of the cookies.

    5. Bake them in preheated oven for 14-16 minutes until golden brown. Make sure you turn the cookie sheet around after 7-8 minutes during baking.

    6. Leave the cookies on the baking tray to cool completely.

    7. Store and keep in airtight jar for a week.


    COOK'S NOTES:


    1. I have used xanthum gum to bake these cookies which helps in stabilzing the cookies and gives them a similar texture as the traditional (gluten-filled ) version. The gum provides the tackiness that gluten lends to doughs and batters and prevent them from crumbling. A small amount is more than enough to bring that elasticity which a gluten provides in traditional gluten filled flours.

    2. If you do not have the xanthum gum, a tbsp of soaked chia seeds will also do the trick.


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    CRANBERRY PISTACHIO SHORTBREAD COOKIES



      These super easy to make shortbread cookies are a burst of flavour and colour. A perfect contrast of green and red colour from cranberries and pistachios gives you the festive vibe and are also very inviting to munch with a cuppa.


      These light and buttery shortbreads give the right balance of sweetness and crunch from the fruit and nut used in the cookies. I try to keep a batch ready at the back of my freezer handy to make them for a lunch box snack at times.


      You can also add some dark chocolate chips to add to the crunch and sweetness.


      Make it during festive times and it can be a perfect little gift treat for Christmas, wrapped up in a bag and tagged with fancy ribbon.

      YIELDS: 25-30 cookies

      PREP TIME: 20 minutes

      BAKING TIME: 12-15 minutes

      PASSIVE TIME: 1 hour



      INGREDIENTS

      • 3 cups all purpose flour

      • 1 cup caster sugar

      • 1 1/4cup unsalted butter, cut into cubes

      • 1/2 tsp salt

      • 1/2 tsp almond extract

      • 1 tsp vanilla extract

      • 2 tsp baking powder

      • 1 egg, room temperature

      • 1/2 cup dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

      • 1/2 cup unsalted shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped



      METHOD

      1. In a stand mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy and pale in colour. Add the extracts and egg, and blend for 2 minutes until the egg is well combined.

      2. In a large bowl, sift flour, salt and baking powder. Add cranberries and pistachios to dry mix.

      3. Drop 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter mix and blend for 2 minutes until combined.

      4. Add the remaining dry flour mix in two batches to the butter mixture and blend until it is well combined.

      5. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Knead lightly to make it smooth. Divide the dough in 2 batches. Shape one batch of the dough into a thick log, about 2 inch thick in diameter. Place the log on large sheet of cling film and wrap it tightly. Twist and knot the sides of the plastic wrap to secure from the ends. Freeze it for 1 hour.

      6. Repeat step 5 for the other batch.

      7. Preheat oven to 160°C fan-forced. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

      8. Remove the cookie dough out from the freezer, unwrap the cling film and cut the log into 1/4 inch thick discs. Place them on cookie sheet 1.5 inch apart and bake for 12-15 minutes until slightly golden brown around the edges.

      9. Transfer on to the cooling rack and cool completely before storing in an airtight jar.



      COOK'S NOTES:

      • These logs can be prepared days ahead and stored in freezer.

      • The wrapped dough logs will stay in freezer for up to 2-3 months. Discard the plastic and cut and bake as per the recipe.

      • If preserving the cookie dough in freezer for later use, make sure these logs are wrapped tightly in the plastic wraps to avoid freeze burning.

      • Baked cookies store well up to a week in an airtight jar.

      • Don't over bake the cookies else your shortbreads will be slightly hard.



      GLUTEN-FREE SPICED SWEET POTATO AND CANDIED GINGER COOKIES



        Who doesn’t like to indulge in cookies? These are Gluten-free Spiced Sweet potato cookies, it’s a winter weather healthy sweet treat, that benefits your body and brain as a whole, and are just perfect as a grab and go breakfast. It's also an adequate nutritional lunch box snack.


        Classical versions of cookies would mostly be made with refined flour and I tried replacing it with oats flour and gluten-free flour. Removing the gluten from cookie makes it slightly guilt free, though I used butter in the recipe

        YIELDS: 20-24 pieces

        PREP TIME: 20 minutes

        BAKING TIME: 18 minutes

        TOTAL TIME: 38 minutes



        INGREDIENTS

        • 1 medium sweet potato kumara, peeled and chopped (it should be 1 cup quantity of cooked and mashed potatoes)

        • 185g butter, room temperature

        • 200g or 1 cup soft light brown sugar

        • 1 egg

        • Zest of 1 orange

        • 180g gluten-free flour

        • 100g oats flour

        • 1/4 tsp salt

        • 1 tsp baking powder

        • 1 tsp cinnamon powder

        • 1/2 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated

        • 1/4 cup candied ginger, chopped

        • 50g macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

        • 50g dark chocolate buttons (I used Hershey’s semi-sweet)



        METHOD

        1. Preheat the oven at 180°C. Grease and line the baking sheet/tray with baking paper. Set aside.

        2. Steam the chopped potatoes in a double boiler, for 10-12 minutes, until soft and cooked. Remove from boiler and spread on a plate and let them cool completely. Once cooled, place them on paper towel and let the excess moisture absorb on it. Mash them to a smooth purée.

        3. Beat butter and sugar together until pale and creamy, add egg and zest and beat for a minute. Stir in the mashed potatoes until well combined.

        4. Sift together the flours, baking powder, cinnamon powder, nutmeg and salt. Tip in the chopped macadamia nuts and ginger, then gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet and combine well.

        5. Drop tablespoon full of the mixture on to the prepared baking tray keeping a distance of at least 2 inch in each cookie dollop. Press lightly and bake them for 15-18 minutes or until golden. Cool completely on wire rack.

        6. Put chocolate in a heatproof bowl, melt chocolate in a double boiler over a pan of barely simmering water. Pour it in a piping bag and drizzle over cooled cookies. Set aside for 30 minutes to set.


        COOK'S NOTES:

        • You can always use store bought pumpkin purée. It’s generally quiet soft as the water content is more, soak that extra moisture on the absorbent paper or kitchen paper roll and use it as written in recipe.

        • Preserve the cookies in airtight box for up to 2 weeks.


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