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If you are interested in grain-free baking, you will love Nourished Kitchen’s recent eBook The Nourished Kitchen’s Guide to Grain-Free & Dairy-Free Baking, Sweets and Treats. I’ve only recently begun to do some grain-free baking, so I really appreciated the extra information on ingredients like coconut flour and blanched almond flour. I thought that almond flour was just ground almonds, but I learned that there is a difference and why it’s important to use blanched almond flour:
Take care to use blanched almond flour as it is softer and functions more effectively in baking than almond meal. Blanched almond flour is produced by removing the papery skin surrounding the meat itself. Within this papery skin reside antinutrients like phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors. By removing this skin and using blanched almond flour, not only does your baking improve, but also the availability of nutrients.
I’m crazy about cookies, so of course, the first recipe I had to try was a cookie recipe. With the author’s permission, I’m including her recipe here for Chocolate Almond Cookies. They were simple to make, crispy, and really delicious. I loved them so much I made a second batch. I actually liked them even better baked a minute or two less, because then they had a soft inside with a crunchy outside.
Grain-Free Chocolate Almond Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup blanched almond flour, plus extra for dredging the cookies
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup unrefined cane sugar
- 1 egg white
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 1/4 tsp unrefined sea salt
Method
- Preheat oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk almond flour together with cocoa powder and cane sugar, then beat in egg white, almond extract and unrefined sea salt. Form into balls about 1-inch in diameter and dredge in additional blanched almond flour as needed.
- Arrange cookie dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten the balls slightly and bake for 10 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 F.
- Cool completely before serving.
The Nourished Kitchen’s Guide to Grain-Free & Dairy-Free Baking, Sweets and Treats is regularly $27, but until February 28th, it is on sale for $18.
The guide is 77 pages and includes 90 recipes, as well as tips on grain-free and dairy-free baking.
Just wondering, Do you think a flax egg or egg replacer could be used instead of the egg white to make these vegan? Thanks!
Jenn
Hi Jennifer! I’m sorry to say that I have no experience with either flax eggs or egg replacer, so I really don’t know. Give it a try and let me know!
These look so tasty! I have GOT to try almond flour. I can’t get past the price tag. Where do you find yours?
Thank you for linking up at the Saturday Round Up! I hope you will link up again next week!
I just started using the flour myself and I got it at Wegman’s. Any health food store should have it as well.
Mmm, that looks super yummy!
Thank you so much for sharing and for linking up with Nomday Monday. Have a great week, Susan!
These look great, but I too avoid almond flour because of the price tag. I wonder if I could grind my own in the food processor. I’ll have to try doing a small amount. The cookies may be worth it! Thanks for sharing.
Hi Sherri, I tried a batch of the cookies with almond meal, which is the same as ground almonds and it was very hard to work with the dough although the cookies tasted just as good. I would soak the nuts in salt water, dehydrate and then grind if you still choose to go this route to make them digestible.
Thank you for your submission on Nourishing Treasures’ Make Your Own! Monday link-up.
Check back tomorrow when the new link-up is running to see if you were one of the top 3 featured posts!
Yum! Thanks so much for sharing this on The HomeAcre Hop! Hope to see you tomorrow for a special hop and a giveaway announcement!
http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/03/the-homeacre-hop-9.html