cookies

(Easy Gluten-Free) Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies

By in Cookies & Bars, GF Sweets, Gluten Free 6 Comments Tags: , , , ,

gf oatmeal cookies

Oh man, am I yearning for spring. I mean, technically it is spring, but apparently Alberta hasn’t gotten the memo. Last weekend we woke up to snow, I made myself a mug of tea, grabbed some of these cookies out of the freezer, planted myself in the corner of the couch with a soft blanket, and watched the snow fall. It all sounds so cozy, if we hadn’t had six months of this already. I am supremely jealous of all the spring photos I’m seeing everywhere. I’m happy for you, I really am. But I am so sad for me. Poor, poor me. ;) At least I have these cookies to comfort me. With the prediction of snow again this weekend I have a feeling I’m going to need them!

I’m always on the lookout for good gluten-free recipes that satisfy even the pickiest wheat-eaters palate. I think it’s important to make everyone feel included at social gatherings, but making separate food for everyone isn’t really the optimal thing to do. So why not just make delicious gluten-free recipes that everyone can enjoy together? That is what my Easy Gluten-Free series is all about.

These cookies are just what an oatmeal cookie hopes to be – nice and chewy with hint of spice. One bite tastes like a chocolate chip cookie, the next like cinnamon and raisins. It’s a happy surprise with every bite. They’re a tad bit crumbly compared to a traditional flour-based chocolate chip cookie, especially after you freeze them, but I think they fall nicely into the oatmeal cookie category. Just don’t go smashing them around, ok?  ;)

gf oatmeal cookies

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies

  • 4 1/2 cups rolled oats*, divided
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1.5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder*
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup chocolate chips
  • 3/4 cup raisins

*check the labels to ensure they’re gluten free.

In a blender or food processor, process 1.5 cups rolled oats until finely ground. Pour into a medium-sized bowl along with cornstarch, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Gradually beat in oat mixture until evenly mixed. Stir in chocolate chips and raisins, along with remaining 3 cups rolled oats.

Drop cookies 2 inches apart onto parchment lined baking sheets (about 2 tablespoons each), forming into a rough ball shape. Bake at 350ºF for 15-18 minutes, or until they begin to turn golden brown on the edges. Let cool 2 minutes before removing to wire racks or paper towel to cool completely.

Makes approximately: 3 dozen

Adapted from Everyday Food.

Maple-Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

By in Cookies & Bars, Sweets 6 Comments Tags: , , , , ,

maple walnut cookies

Happy Canada Day weekend! I hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful day off, and hopefully some fabulous weather to go with it! Every time Canada Day comes around I can’t help but make something with maple. Give me any excuse to cook or bake with maple and I’ll jump at the chance.

These cookies are put together a bit differently than your average cookie. They don’t have any eggs, for one, and the dough starts out with melted butter and boiling water. It may sound strange, but the results are a thick, chewy cookie with a lightly crisp outer crust. They’re not overly sweet, with some crunch from the walnuts and a light maple flavour. I found them quite addicting. I usually don’t care for jumbo cookies, but in this case I was very happy to have a giant cookie all to myself.

These would be so delicious warm from the oven with a scoop of Maple Brown Butter Semifreddo. Next time I might make them half the size just so I can sandwich some semifreddo in between.

P.S. Please make these for your next camping trip. They’re the perfect cookie for the job.

Maple-Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

  • 1.5 cups rolled oats
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut
  • 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 5 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 tablespoons boiling water
  • 1 teaspoon pure maple extract
  • 1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

Mix together oats, coconut, flour, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

Place butter and maple syrup in a small saucepan set over medium heat. Cook and stir until melted. Remove from heat. Stir together baking soda and boiling water and add it to the melted butter along with the maple extract. Stir the butter mixture into the oats. Fold in walnuts.

Divide dough into 12 equal pieces (about 3 tablespoons each), place them about 3 inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheets, 6 to a sheet. Flatten each ball slightly with the palm of your hand.

Bake at 300ºF for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and set. Transfer to wire racks or paper towel, to cool. Store in an airtight container, at room temperature, for up to 1 week.

Makes: 12 jumbo cookies

Adapted from Martha Stewart.

Dino Party: Fossil Cookies

By in Cookies & Bars, Kids, Sweets 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , ,

Dino Party: Fossil Cookies

This post is part of a series for a Dino themed birthday party.  To view the rest of the series head on over to the Dino Birthday Party post.

To kick-start the party once all the kids had arrived we gave them each a kite to play with and let them loose on the yard. This was one of the best ideas ever (thanks to my mom, for her brilliance), it kept the kids busy for a very long time and it doubled as a fun favour for them to bring home with them.

I still wanted to make something dinosaur-themed, for them to take home, so on their way out the door they each got a small stretchy dinosaur and a little parcel containing these fossil cookies (a.k.a. whipped shortbread with dinosaur footprints).

They were so easy to make and since I already had a dinosaur, that just happened to be laying around waiting to be gifted to the birthday boy, I had everything on hand to whip them up. And, I loved the way they turned out.

I think cookies are always a hit when given as favours and when they”re this easy (and cute to boot) it makes for a delicious, fun and stress-free way to work the theme into the favours. Plus for any savings savvy mom”s, it is definitely one of the cheaper options! ;)

Fossil Cookies

The dinosaur foot I used to make the impressions was approximately one inch across.

  • 1 cup butter, room temperature (no substitutes)

  • 1/2 cup icing (confectioners) sugar

  • 1.5 cups all-purpose flour

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add flour and beat on medium speed for 10 minutes. Using a tablespoon, scoop out dough and drop onto parchment paper line baking sheets. Chill in the fridge until firm (about 30 minutes).

Roll each scoop into a ball, flatten into a disk with the palm of your hand. Dip the foot of a clean dinosaur toy into some flour before pressing it into the flattened dough. We”re not going for perfection here, these are fossils after all, so embrace any cracks and imperfections that form. Make sure you make a good impression because the cookies will puff up a bit as they bake.

Bake at 350 for approximately 10 minutes, or until the bottoms are a light golden brown. Let cool for a couple minutes on the baking sheet before moving to wire wracks to cool completely.

Makes approximately: 28 cookies

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

By in Cookies & Bars, Sweets 7 Comments Tags: , , , ,

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

I”ve been eating these Ginger Crinkle Cookies since I was a little girl, except we grew up calling them Ginger Snaps. The name felt a little bit misleading because these cookies are soft and not snappy at all, so I thought I”d switch it up. Hope you don”t mind, Mom! ;)

I looked so forward to these cookies every time my mom made them. I still remember coming home from school and the house being filled with the smell of sugar and spices. I don”t think there”s a more comforting smell (well, besides the cuddly smell of a newborn baby. Can”t beat that!).

Warm spices may be more reminiscent of fall but even in the spring and summer we need that bit of comfort to make us feel warm and fuzzy inside. These are lightly spiced so they are a great cookie to serve any time of year. We made them a bit more spring-like by sandwiching them with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream (recipe to come!). It was such a perfect combination that I”m definitely going to be doing it again soon. It”s a great way to bridge the gap between the cooler weather and the warmth to come – because here in western Canada it is still cold!  I think I need to go make some more cookies to comfort myself.

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

  • 1.5 cups butter, softened

  • 2 cups sugar (+ more for coating)

  • 2 eggs

  • 1/2 cup molasses

  • 4 cups flour

  • 4 teaspoons baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 4 teaspoons ground ginger

  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

  • 2 teaspoons ground cloves

Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and molasses. Combine dry ingredients and blend into butter mixture. Shape into 1 inch balls. Roll in sugar to coat. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Bake at 350ºF for 8-10 minutes (no obvious browning should appear). Allow to cool several minutes before removing to wire wracks or paper towel to cool completely.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

By in Chocolate, Cookies & Bars, Sweets 11 Comments Tags: , , ,

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you guys sick and tired of chocolate yet? I hope not, because you don”t want to miss out on these cookies. I normally try not to share too many sweet recipes in a row but I”ve got company over this week and while I was making a batch of one of my favourite cookies for them I realized that I had never shared them with you. Shame on me! I”ve been making these cookies for a long time now and I can”t believe it”s taken me this long to post about them. Please forgive me.

You”d think that you can”t go wrong with a double chocolate chip cookie recipe but you really can. I”ve made many cookies that just didn”t make the cut. They were too cakey, too sweet, too dull or just off. This, to me, is the perfect double chocolate chip cookie. Ooey gooey, with a crackly top and a soft interior, and they are packed full of chocolate flavour. These are the epitome of double chocolate cookies, in my mind, and they are best enjoyed with a tall glass of milk.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour

  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter

  • 1.5 cups sugar

  • 2 large eggs

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate)

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, melt together chocolate and butter. Beat in sugar, eggs and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until evenly distributed. Fold in chocolate chips.

Scoop heaping spoonfuls of cookie dough onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake at 325ºF for 10 minutes or until cookies are crackly and no longer shiny. Cool 1 minute before removing to wire wracks or paper towels to cool.

Makes approximately: 30 cookies

Adapted from Martha Stewart.

Eggnog Sugar Cookies

By in Christmas, Sweets 11 Comments Tags: , , , , ,

Eggnog Sugar Cookies

You can”t start Sugar Cookie Week without a delicious recipe for sugar cookies. I know sugar cookies get a bad wrap for not being very flavourful and true enough they aren”t ever going to beat out a chocolate chip cookie for pure deliciousness, but they do beat it out for variety of what you can create with them.

That being said, you can still have a tasty sugar cookie that”s far from a chore to eat. Especially when you pump it full of sugar and spice and a shot of rum flavouring. Eggnog Sugar Cookies are where it”s at.

I have to be honest, although this recipe smelled deliciously of eggnog before going in the oven it seemed that most of the rum flavouring baked out. I was still left with a lovely spiced cookie, that I enjoyed eating, but it didn”t taste of eggnog. I”ve tried to remedy that below by doubling the amount of flavouring. And, since the first batch had such a lovely eggnog-y smell I”m hoping that, that”s the kick in the butt it needs to stay that way. *Update: I made a quick batch again last night and it worked! They now officially do taste like eggnog. :)

Regardless, it is a tasty Christmas-flavoured sugar cookie that I”m looking forward to making again.

New to making sugar cookies? Read my Tips to Perfect Sugar Cookies to ensure success the first time.

Eggnog Sugar Cookies

  • 3 cups flour

  • 2 teaspoons baking powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

  • 1 cup cold salted butter, cubed

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 1 egg

  • 2 teaspoons rum flavouring

Combine flour, baking powder, nutmeg and cinnamon.

In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg and rum flavouring. Mix until incorporated.

Add flour mixture in three additions, scraping down sides of bowl as you go. Beat until combined (will be crumbly).

Divide dough in half to roll out. Knead each piece on countertop until smooth. Roll out on floured parchment paper. Cut into shapes. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Freeze for 5 minutes (or refrigerate for 15 minutes) to firm up.

Bake @ 350 for 10-12 minutes. Let sit for 2 minutes before removing to wire rack or paper towel to cool.

Makes approximately 4 dozen cookies

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