I created this paleo diet recipe years before I even heard about this diet. After getting fed up with unhealthy, fatty cookies that have loads of sugar and flour (very bloaty!), I decided it was time to do some experimenting on my own to come up with a not-so-healthy-but-still-kinda-healthy-and-delicious alternative to the typical sugar or chocolate chip cookie. And thus, this recipe was born! My kids and friends have all loved it and it has gained much recognition online, so something must be working! 😉
I have found that by replacing conventional flour with almond flour, it provides a nice firm/soft texture ratio and will not give you that “bloating” feeling that other cookies will. Using 100% All-Natural Maple Syrup and coconut gives the cookies their sweet taste without having to sacrifice your waistline for indulgence! So go ahead and eat up! And let me know how you like them!
-In a medium sized mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients- almond flour, baking soda, coconut, and sea salt (optional).
-In a larger mixing bowl, mix together the wet ingredients- coconut oil, lime zest (optional), maple syrup, vanilla extract, and egg.
-Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in the larger mixing bowl.
-Once everything is mixed together, put the mixture into the fridge (covered) for 10 minutes and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
-When the oven is warmed up and the mixture has finished in the fridge, take the paleo dough out and prepare a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or sprayed with non-stick spray (coconut oil works great to avoid sticking as well!).
-Roll the paleo cookie dough into 2 inch balls and place on the paper evenly spread apart.
-Put in the oven and cook for 5 minutes. This allows them to warm up and start to take shape. Once the 5 minutes is up, take them out and slightly flatten them in a criss-cross shape with the back of a fork.
-Place back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes. The best rule of thumb is to take them out a little bit before they look done, because they will still cook slightly when you take them out of the oven, this avoids over cooking and hard cookies.
-Let cool and enjoy! If you can’t wait until they cool, please keep a cold glass of water nearby in case you burn your mouth! (the cookies are worth it though!)
This subtly sweet cherry clafoutis is a perfect breakfast dish with hints of maple syrup and buttermilk laced throughout the batter and beautiful sweet black cherries adding a burst of sweetness and beautiful coloring along the top of the clafoutis. This dish will please even the littlest members of your family.
Mix the flour and buttermilk in a small bowl. Cover the bowl and set in a warm place over night.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Mix the eggs, maple syrup, milk, applesauce, vanilla and sea salt in a small bowl.
Slowly incorporate the egg mixture into the flour mixture. Do not over mix.
Pour the batter into a greased pie pan or medium cast iron skillet.
Arrange and place the cherries in the batter. Press down gently to make sure the cherries are fully incorporated into the clafoutis.
Bake the clafoutis for 20-22 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and separating from the edge of the pan and a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the clafoutis.
I am excited to make our own yogurt pops this year with these silicone popsicle molds. My kids loved the organic Stonyfield ones, but at $3/box all summer that adds up.
Throw your frozen fruit choice, homemade yogurt, chia seeds, water kefir and Concentrace all into your Vitamix or blender or food processor and give it a whirl. They are done when filly blended and no frozen fruit chunks are left.
Fill these silicone Popsicle molds and freeze as directed.
Seriously tastes like an awesomely flavorful, chewy, full-of-sugar candy. I am so excited to have discovered these treasures. My kids took them to school today and all their friends were jealous, so they look appealing too! Pineapple is a super sweet fruit and dehydrating concentrates the sugars, so it would be really easy to eat too many. They are an excellent substitute for candy, but if candy is your weakness, these will be too, fair warning.
Cut off the top and the bottom with a sharp knife and carefully trim around the sides. These slide through a madoline really well, but you could also slice the rounds with a knife. I used three mm slice, but am going to try some seven mm as well. I laid them out on dehydrator sheets and dehydrated for 12 hours on 130 degrees. You could also lay them on cooling racks and lay out in the sun on a hot, dry day. Oven temperatures do not typically get low enough for fruit.
I’m excited to share a gluten-free and grain-free adaptation of my grandma’s petit fours Easter cookie recipe. It’s moist yet not crumbly, and it’s low-carb, filling, and delicious. Best of all, it’s suitable for anyone avoiding grains or gluten, and made with just a few accessible ingredients. Enjoy!
Preheat oven to 350F.
Mix the almond flour, fat and sweetener. In a food processor, mix the almond flour, fat (I used a combination of coconut oil and ghee), and honey or maple syrup.
Mix the egg and extracts. In a separate blender, beat the egg, vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt.
Combine the mixtures. Pour the egg-extract mixture into the processor with the almond flour mixture, and whirl until well incorporated.
Shape petit fours. Shape 1 teaspoon-sized pieces of the dough into round cookies, and add to baking sheet, gently pressing down very slightly to flatten a bit. Space cookies at least an inch apart because they expand. You can make smaller cookies if you wish, or larger. These were about one and half to two inches wide.
Bake petit fours. Stick baking sheet in preheated oven and bake for 7-9 minutes. If you keep for an extra minute, they get darker. For the darker cookies, I kept for 8 minutes, and then ‘broiled’ for a minute to get the top to brown. Since I was trying it for the first time, I wanted to test the texture of both the light and dark ones, and I’m happy to report that each was tasty in its own way. Be very careful and monitor the cookies carefully so they don’t burn.
Leave to set. After baking, leave out on the counter to set for 5-10 minutes. Enjoy warm, with a glass of milk or tea. To store, keep in a sealed container on the counter for up to a week.
I’ll be honest; I very nearly did not share this recipe. Why? Because sensible folks will take one quick glance at the ingredients list and run screaming for the hills. It is beyond rich, beyond decadent. However, it’s also absolutely what the doctor ordered for those times when you’re craving something special.
As always, source the best ingredients when you’re able - local, raw, organic, et cetera. Don’t fret if you can’t find everything - just do the best you can!
Since I’m using eggs from my own chickens, I don’t feel a pressing need to cook them to kill off potential pathogens. However, if you’re using commercial eggs, you’ll want to cook your ice cream batter. Both methods are described below.
USING TRUSTED EGGS:
Whisk buttermilk, sucanat, and egg yolks together in a large bowl until the sucanat has dissolved. Add the other ingredients, whisking until everything is well combined. Add to your ice cream maker, following the manufacturer’s instructions. Easy!
USING COMMERCIAL EGGS:
In a large saucepan, combine the cream and one cup of sucanat. Bring to a point just below simmering over medium-ish heat, stirring now and then to prevent scorching.
While the mixture is coming up to heat, whisk the egg yolks with the remaining 1/4 cup of sucanat, until the sucanat begin to dissolve.
Take one ladle of the hot cream mixture and slowly add it to the egg yolks, whisking constantly so the eggs don’tcoagulate. Repeat twice for six egg yolks, three times for more, whisking all the while.
Add the egg mixture back to the cream mixture, whisking your little heart out to ensure it’s not clotting.
Over low heat, cook the mixture to the consistency of a thin pudding. Then, remove from heat, and whisk in the buttermilk, olive oil, vanilla, and salt.
Allow the mixture to cool to a non-fridge-melting temperature before popping into the fridge to chill completely. Add to your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
**A word about the egg yolks; you’ll want at least six, but you don’t need to go the full twelve. Go with your gut. I like 8 to 10 most times.
These are the yummiest cookies and the best part is that they’re so easy. I LOVE that they are inherently allergy-friendly (well, supposing your allergies are not to peanut butter or eggs…) so they are a great go-to for us. I love that I don’t have to mess with measuring and figuring out gluten free flours because they do not contain any flour…yet you’d never know! Give these a try…you won’t regret it! I won’t tell anyone if you eat seven in one day…
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients except chocolate chips in a large bowl and stir until mixed. Toss in chocolate chips and stir to combine. Drop by small spoonfuls onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper and bake for 9 minutes.
*Each time I’ve made these, I have had to add a few splashes of water to the mix in order to get it to be wet enough - I think it is because my peanut butter is on the drier side. If your mixture is crumbly, feel free to add a little water until it’s moist and they will still turn out great!
Mmmmmm. Such a delicious treat that can hardly be deemed as a “treat.” It is packed with nutrition, from the iron, complete protein, calcium, fiber, and antioxidants of the chia seeds to the good fat in the peanut butter to the antifungal properties, healthy fat, and lauric acid of the coconut oil. I used coconut sugar, which is low on the glycemic index so it doesn’t spike your blood sugar and there is only a very small amount in the recipe. The chocolate gives it a rich flavor and is what makes this a treat. Go make these…they are delicious and you don’t have to feel any guilt when eating them!
Combine everything but the chocolate chips and milk over low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth. In a separate pot, melt the chocolate chips slowly over very low heat and mix in the milk. Remove when the mixture is smooth.
Line mini muffin tins with paper liners. Fill each muffin tin about halfway to three-fourths of the way full with the peanut butter mixture (it will seem very runny). Next, scoop a bit of chocolate and top each liner with chocolate mixture. Place muffin tins in freezer until firm (this only took 15-20 minutes for me). Enjoy these “treats” straight from the freezer! Store either in the freezer or the refrigerator…they will become a puddle if you leave them out (especially in Arizona!).
*Tip: Place muffin tins with just the peanut butter mixture in the freezer for 5-10 minutes before scooping on the chocolate layer to avoid the chocolate sinking to the bottom of the mixture.
Even though we don’t NEED to be grain-free, this cookie is a favorite of everyone in our family. Forget needing to buy granola bars for on the go — these cookies are nutritious AND yummy! You can feel great eating these cookies with no guilt.
Combine ingredients in large bowl.
Drop by large spoonful onto parchment-lined cookie sheet. Press flat.
Bake 325* for 15-20 min.
Cool and enjoy! These taste great straight from the freezer!!
These grain free sesame cookies are so yummy! They are chewy and exactly what a cookie should be. No more missing wheat!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine almond flour, salt, and baking soda in a mixing bowl and stir. In another bowl, combine honey, almond butter, butter, vanilla and almond extract. Stir until mixed. Combine wet and dry mixtures and stir to mix well. Form the dough into 1-inch balls, then roll in the sesame seeds. Place on a pan lined with parchment paper and flatten with your fingers. Bake for 8-10 minutes until the cookies are lightly golden brown. They will puff up slightly and fall as they cool. Cool on the pan for a few minutes, until firm, and transfer to a baking rack.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Sesame seeds are high in phytic acid. It would be a good idea to use some that have first been soaked overnight in warm water with a little salt and then dehydrated at a low temperature to retain their enzymes.
One word: YUM. I made this recipe up on a whim the other day. I like to take my kids to the park each Friday and we always bring a snack. On this day, I decided to be a really cool mom and make them a treat for the park. It is usually hardboiled eggs and carrot sticks. They loved this and so did I. The texture is perfectly creamy and you can never go wrong with chocolate!
In a blender, combine ingredients and puree until smooth. If your dates are hard, you may want to soak them in water for about 30 minutes to soften them. Chill for 30 minutes to an hour and then serve up in glasses, sprinkle with a dash of salt (if desired), and enjoy! This can also be served immediately but I like it most when well chilled.
*Feel free to substitute with another natural sweetener, such as raw honey or maple syrup, if needed.
I made this recipe up on a whim the other day when looking for a fun, different snack I could feed my kids. All of us loved it but my soon-to-be four year old who didn’t love the texture. It has a texture similar to tapioca pudding, if you’re wondering. Chia seeds are packed with nutrition - they are high in protein, calcium, omega-3 fatty acids, and antioxidants. They are a superfood! Enjoy this pudding, it makes a great snack. Feel free to add more sweetener to your liking. This is not very sweet as written since we do not sweeten things nearly as much as we used to.
Combine coconut milk, chia seeds, apples, and a generous amount of cinnamon (I use a lot). Let sit for 20-30 minutes until the mixture thickens. Serve topped with additional cinnamon and enjoy!
*Make this sweeter, if desired, by adding some honey or other sweetener to the coconut milk mixture.