gluten-free chunky peanut butter chocolate chip cookies = squeeeeeeeeeee!

hiya! :)

dan and i have been crazy busy lately (it seems like since november it's been a whirlwind), but i wanted to stop in and say hellooooooooo, tell everyone i miss them tons & tons, and we also wanted to share a super easy and utterly awesome cookie recipe. huzzah!

this gluten-free chunky peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe is actually from my friend Kate - her coworker passed it along to her a few weeks ago and she said since it was already gluten-free she wanted to share it with me; the original recipe called for 1 egg (sadface.), so we subbed in a cruelty free flax "egg" (happyface!). Kate and i both had monday off last week, so we took the opportunity to hang out for the day and caught up, ate the most yummy lunch & enjoyed coffee, and baked these super scrummy cookies. it was one glorious day off, fo 'sho. thank you, Kate!

i've seen similar recipes like this one floating around, but we thought we'd share this version, too. i'd say from start to finish it'll take you just 20 minutes to make 'em and bake 'em (and you can wash up the bowl 'n fork while the cookies bake!). w00t!

ingredients:
1 cup natural chunky peanut butter (we used organic, unsalted, & sugar-free)
1 cup of chocolate chips (we used the vegan enjoy life allergy & gluten-free ones)
1 cup of brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 tbsp warm water
1 heaping tbsp of ground flax seeds

what you'll need:
- cookie sheet
- fork
- small mixing bowl
- large mixing bowl

what'cha gotta do:
preheat your oven to 350 degrees. combine the warm water + ground flax seeds in the small mixing bowl and beat 'em together with the fork until the mixture = eggy. set aside. combine the peanut butter + brown sugar in the large mixing bowl with your fork. once combined add in the flax "egg", baking soda, and vanilla extract. combine it all together then add in the chocolate chips and mix it up some more. form mucho small balls with your hands and flatten them out a smidge. place them on a cookie sheet and bake 'em for just 6-7 minutes on the center rack. remove from oven & let 'em be for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cookie sheet (or just start gobbling them up. because warm cookies = puffy hearts!). enjoy!

p.s. - we bought a bird feeder last week to entertain our 3 kitties & ms. cat (the oldest of the 3) has taken it upon herself to steal our dog julie's bed (the bed is on our couch near the window so julie can look out and enjoy the view of the neighborhood) for the best bird watching view. ah ha ha! i snapped this shot of her just before she rolled over for belly rubs (she loves them the most!). i thought she was just too cute and had to share. kitteh pictures always make me smile. i hope everyone's week is super stellar so far! we'll be back in a few days - i have more to post about..... hugs & happyfaces all around!

gluten-free coconut chocolate chip cookies

over the holidays my mom veganized a recipe that a friend had given her for coconut chocolate chip cookies. dan absolutely loooooved them and requested that a batch be made for his birthday. his birthday was on groundhog day, but this week's been so busy we hadn't had the time to properly celebrate. we took yesterday off from work so we could relax together, eat yummy foods, have a ton of fun together and celebrate his birthday some more. while dan slept in i found myself awake kinda early and made him a batch of the coconut chocolate chip cookies he loves so much; i also decided to make a small gluten-free batch for myself - i mean, i can't not have cookies to enjoy, too. ah ha ha! i must admit that gluten-free baking still intimidates, and i've not yet had total gluten-free cookie success. however, yesterday was different (yay!) and the results were gloriously delicious! dan agreed that these gluten-free cookies were every bit as delectable as his cookies were. finally, a gluten-free cookie success. happydanceface! this recipe makes for about 15 small cookies, so feel free to double it if you want bigger cookies or a whole bunch more. they freeze well and are also fantastical with a scoop (or two) of vanilla coconut ice cream on top. i'm just say'n..... ;) mmmmmmmm!

ingredients:
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1 tbsp buckwheat flour
1 tbsp chickpea flour
1 tbsp tapioca starch
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup vegan margarine, softened (i used earth balance)
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp ground flax seed
1 tbsp warm water
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 oz unsweetened shredded coconut
3 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (i used the enjoy life gluten-free chocolate chips)

what you'll need:
- cookie sheet
- 2 small mixing bowls
- large mixing bowl
- fork

what'cha gotta:
preheat your oven to 350. in a small mixing bowl combine the ground flax seeds and water to make a flax "egg". combine the flours, tapioca starch, baking powder and sea salt in the other small mixing bowl. place the softened margarine & sugar in the large bowl and cream them together with a fork. add in the flax "egg" and vanilla and combine well. add the flour mixture into the wet mixture and combine. once you've got a nice dough go'n stir in the chocolate chips and coconut (at this point the dough gets pretty thick with all the awesomeness you just added in. it's okay!). grab about a forkful/spoonful of dough and roll into a ball. flatten the ball o' dough into a thick coin & place on an ungreased cookie sheet. repeat until you've got all the cookies made up and bake for 8 minutes. allow the cookies to cool for 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet then transfer 'em to a cooling rack. enjoy!

p.s. - if you want to make these with glutenous flour simple sub in 1/4 cup + 3 tbsp whole wheat flour instead of using the gluten-free flours and tapioca starch - and bake the cookies for 10 minutes instead of 8. :)