The Best Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies

So apparently, it is my day for posting recipes.  One of these days I might get around to actually writing about life, but for now, recipes will have to do!  Have been enjoying cooking and playing around with making some of our traditional favorites but without grains, beans/legumes, refined sugars and pretty much any and all processed food.  Chocolate chip cookies have always been one of my very favorite baked treats, and after trying and modifying quite a few recipes have finally stopped searching.  For now at least...

This recipe was adapted from Elana's Pantry Gluten Free / Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Primal Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan, Dairy Free & Gluten/Grain Free)

2 1/2 cups almond flour (from blanched almonds)*
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut nectar/sap
1 cup dark chocolate chips (Enjoy Life, Sunspire 65%, etc.)

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine almond flour, sea salt and baking soda in a large bowl.  Melt coconut oil and combine with vanilla, maple syrup and coconut nectar.  Stir wet ingredients into dry mixture.  Once well mixed, stir in chocolate chips.

Press Tablespoon sized balls onto parchment lined baking sheet (or lightly grease with coconut oil if parchment paper not available).  Bake for 10 - 12 minutes, then cool and serve!

* I use Bob's Red Mill almond flour even though Elana says it does not work properly and prefers a couple other brands.  It is the only one available here locally and sells at our Tacoma Food Co-op for $4.99 / lb.  I have found that it works better if not bought in bulk as it has settled into the package and measures more correctly in most recipes.  But if I lightly pack it into measuring cups then most of the time it works out just fine!  Too little "flour" (or too much coconut oil) and the cookies will spread out and be crispy.  I actually make them on purpose this way sometime, but they're not quite as pretty.  Too much "flour" and they won't spread out at all and the insides will stay gooey unless you overcook them.

Coconut Flour Apple Waffles

2 1/2 year old Ari was asking for waffles this morning for breakfast, so I searched for a recipe using coconut flour.  Some we didn't have all the ingredients for while others I remember trying and them being super dry unless topped with tons of melted butter and maple syrup.  So we created our own recipe that turned out really well and I wanted to share!  They were very moist and the perfect sweetness - Ari ate more than 2 of them without any other toppings :-)  .

Makes 3 small waffles

2 eggs
1 Tbsp almond milk*
1 tsp coconut oil (melted and cooled)
1/4 c apple puree**
1 1/2 Tbsp. coconut flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt

Whisk eggs together then add remaining wet ingredients.  Stir together dry ingredients and sift into wet mixture. Whisk well until batter is smooth.  Pour onto pre-heated and greased waffle iron and spread slightly if needed.  Cook until done, likely about 5 minutes.

* Made with a thick, home-made almond milk.  Could try subbing coconut milk or dairy milk too.

** I pureed an apple (with peel) in my food processor.  You could also probably use home made or store bought organic applesauce with good results.

Easy Homemade Paleo Mayo

I know, it's been awhile since I've posted anything.  Our computer hard drive crashed and it's taken me awhile to get back up and running.  The Paleo/Primal diet is still going great and Paul and I just started a 30 day challenge with our Brilliant Life Chiropractic community on Monday.  We will all be super strict for the next 30 days - eating only meats (including seafood, poultry and game meats), eggs, vegetables, healthy fats (coconut milk/oil, olive oil, avocado oil, etc.), nuts, seeds and fruit in moderation.  I've found that having home made mayo around really helps for making creamy salad dressings, using as a veggie or artichoke dip, or for even just dipping leftover chicken in!  My first couple of attempts honestly didn't go too well.  One was super runny and the other just didn't ever emulsify.  But after playing around with it for awhile, trying out different ingredients and ratios, I've created my "Easy Homemade Paleo Mayo" using one of my favorite kitchen tools, the food processor.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 Large Egg (Preferably local, fresh and pastured)

1 tsp Dijon Mustard

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 C Light Olive Oil

Directions:

Place egg, mustard, salt and lemon juice in food processor fitted with metal blade.  Blend about 30 seconds until well combined.  Stop to scrape down sides of bowl if needed.  Keep motor running and add oil drop by drop using the "drizzle hole" in the lid (if you're like me and always wondered why your lid had a hole in it...now you know!).  Stop blending once all oil has dripped out and is combined in the mixture.  

Voila!  Homemade mayo that is better for you and tastes so much fresher than anything you will buy in the store.  If you don't eat it all right away, the mayonnaise can be transferred to a covered container and stored in the fridge for about 5-7 days.  

Additional Tips:

Your final product is much more likely to be successful if the egg and lemon juice are at room temperature.  I recommend leaving both out for at least 3-4 hours before proceeding with the recipe.  You can substitute apple cider vinegar for the lemon juice if you are all out of lemon or just want to try something different, but I personally prefer the flavor of lemon juice.  If you use extra virgin olive oil, your mayo will have a very strong olive flavor, especially if made in a food processor.  If it's all you have, I have heard that making it with a whisk helps to keep the flavor more subtle.  My first ever batch was made with extra virgin oil as I didn't know any better and I ended up throwing it out.  I wish I could find an Organic "light tasting" olive oil, but haven't had luck with that one yet.  Mayo can also be made in a food processor without a hole in the top, a blender, or with a whisk by hand (as mentioned above) but you have to be really careful to add the oil slowly, drop by drop, especially at first to make sure an emulsion forms. 

Enjoy and let me know how it goes for you!