Necessity is the mother of invention.
I have loved ones who must cut their sugar, oil and sodium, and they are CRAVING something a bit decadent, and I can see how important some sort of indulgence is to them right now. Until recently, I had no idea how much sodium things like baking soda and baking powder contributed to baked goods --- but take my word for it -- it's a lot. So I used only a bit to make these. I did also try this recipe while completely ommitting the baking powder, and while they did turn out more or less ok doing this, I definately liked them better WITH the baking powder being used -- they weren't quite as dense. So if you can handle a bit of sodium, I definately recommend that you do use the baking powder. In creating the recipe below, I set about trying to come up with something that would fill the need for a treat -- with minimal amounts salt, sugar and oil and here it is. These cookies were a snap to make. Because I still have a huge box of pears I picked last month -- slowly ripening in my garage, I used pureed pears to replace most of the oil -- but you could probably use apples -- or even applesauce to do this too.
I have loved ones who must cut their sugar, oil and sodium, and they are CRAVING something a bit decadent, and I can see how important some sort of indulgence is to them right now. Until recently, I had no idea how much sodium things like baking soda and baking powder contributed to baked goods --- but take my word for it -- it's a lot. So I used only a bit to make these. I did also try this recipe while completely ommitting the baking powder, and while they did turn out more or less ok doing this, I definately liked them better WITH the baking powder being used -- they weren't quite as dense. So if you can handle a bit of sodium, I definately recommend that you do use the baking powder. In creating the recipe below, I set about trying to come up with something that would fill the need for a treat -- with minimal amounts salt, sugar and oil and here it is. These cookies were a snap to make. Because I still have a huge box of pears I picked last month -- slowly ripening in my garage, I used pureed pears to replace most of the oil -- but you could probably use apples -- or even applesauce to do this too.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup of pureed pears (or applesauce)
1/4 tsp liquid stevia extract
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBS olive oil (could use canola, or coconut or saflower too)
2 cup sorghum flour
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp Rumford baking powder (optional -- but recommended)
1/4 cup ground golden flax seeds
1/2 cup coconut sugar (or other granulated sweetener)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 - 1 cup GF/Dairy Free mini chocolate chips
You will also need parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) Wash and slice the pears and place in blender and puree until like applesauce keep adding pears until you have exactly 1 1/4 cups.
3) Add the stevia, vanilla and olive oil and blend well.
4) Into a large bowl place all the remaining ingredients except for the chips. Stir well with a wire wisk. Then add the contents of the blender, using a spatula to get every drop. Stir just until nothing dry is visible, then stir in the chocolate chips.
5) Using about 1 TBS of the dough for each, form little cookies on parchment lined cookie sheets. Dip your fingers in water and then press down the cookies to flatten them out as much as you can -- don't let them touch, but they can be fairly close -- they won't spread much.
Bake them about 12-15 minutes, just until the bottoms begin to brown, then remove from oven and allow to cool on wire racks before serving. They won't be as crispy as cookies made with a lot more oil and sugar --- but they are satisfying and tasty.
1 1/4 cup of pureed pears (or applesauce)
1/4 tsp liquid stevia extract
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBS olive oil (could use canola, or coconut or saflower too)
2 cup sorghum flour
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp Rumford baking powder (optional -- but recommended)
1/4 cup ground golden flax seeds
1/2 cup coconut sugar (or other granulated sweetener)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 - 1 cup GF/Dairy Free mini chocolate chips
You will also need parchment paper-lined cookie sheets.
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) Wash and slice the pears and place in blender and puree until like applesauce keep adding pears until you have exactly 1 1/4 cups.
3) Add the stevia, vanilla and olive oil and blend well.
4) Into a large bowl place all the remaining ingredients except for the chips. Stir well with a wire wisk. Then add the contents of the blender, using a spatula to get every drop. Stir just until nothing dry is visible, then stir in the chocolate chips.
5) Using about 1 TBS of the dough for each, form little cookies on parchment lined cookie sheets. Dip your fingers in water and then press down the cookies to flatten them out as much as you can -- don't let them touch, but they can be fairly close -- they won't spread much.
Bake them about 12-15 minutes, just until the bottoms begin to brown, then remove from oven and allow to cool on wire racks before serving. They won't be as crispy as cookies made with a lot more oil and sugar --- but they are satisfying and tasty.
