Super Natural Birthday Cookies
Quick Note: this giveaway is open until Oct 5th now since I messed up the date. Enter to win Cooking with Crispbread gift pack!
When it comes to online presence, I’m certainly not hard to find, but I rarely offer many personal tidbits. A little mystery is good, right? But since today is my birthday, I thought I would share just a little more about myself … and a recipe, of course ..
- I’ve never had a cup of coffee in my entire life. Does that make me just weird or an outright freak of nature?
- If given the choice between carob and chocolate, I’d always choose carob. I’m just not given that option very often.
- My dream is to run a boutique hotel in the Caribbean with my husband one day … serving up yummy breakfast that is made and grown onsite of course. I’ve probably mentioned this before, but rationalized that it might be more likely to happen if I keep sharing it.
- I’m 37 as of today, but tend to accidentally age myself often … like rounding up to the next year or even putting my birthdate as two years earlier in my StumbleUpon profile. Oops! It looks like my 40th is scheduled for 2012 in social networking years.
- When it comes to birthday treats, I love frosting, but could live without cake. Oh the dilemma. However, I adore cookies. So I decided to make myself a batch of extra-special cookies for the occasion …
Recipe: Super Natural Mesquite Chocolate Chips Cookies
Summary: Yes, I gave in. I received some Mesquite Flour at a recent conference, and well, how could I not try this legendary recipe for Mesquite Chocolate Chip Cookies? It is adapted from David Lebowitz, who adapted it from Heidi Swanson, author of Super Natural Cooking and famed blogger at 101 Cookbooks. I made quite a few modifications so that it would be dairy-free and egg-free (a vegan version!), and just a touch sweeter. Everyone loved these!
Mesquite flour has the taste and texture of what I would describe as a malted cocoa powder. It’s mellower, yet deep and rich. I definitely recommend giving it a trial for something new and flavorful. David Lebowitz states that buckwheat flour might be an optional subtitute if you don’t have any mesquite flour on hand. I think you could also sub cocoa powder, carob powder, or a combination of the two, but the resultant flavor would definitely be different from the original.
Ingredients
- 4 Teaspoons Flaxseeds
- 6 Tablespoons Milk Alternative (I used unsweetened hemp milk, but any type will do)
- 1-1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
- 1/2 Cup Mesquite Flour
- 1 Cup Quick Oats (not instant, can sub rolled oats if desired, but I prefer the quick oats in these)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
- 1/3 Cup Grapeseed Oil
- 2 Tablespoons Honey, Agave Nectar, or Maple Syrup
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2/3 Cup Dairy-Free Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Whiz the flaxseeds into a powder in your spice/cofee grinder (about 2 Tablespoons of ground flaxseed).
- Whisk together the ground flax and milk alternative in a mixing bowl, and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the two flours, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Returning to the flax mixture (which should have thickened a bit), blend in the sugar, oil, liquid sweetener, and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients and stir until well incorporated.
- Stir in the chocolate chips. The dough will be quite thick, so you may need to press some of the chocolate chips into the dough.
- Roll the dough into balls roughly the size of ping pong balls, and flatten them to about 1/2-inch thick on the baking sheet. They will spread a bit while baking, but not much.
- Press any chocolate chips stragglers into the cookies.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. You want to underbaked these if anything. They will just be beginning to set.
- Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Preparation time: 20 minute(s)
Cooking time: 10 minute(s)
Diet tags: Vegan, Dairy free, Egg free, Nut free, Peanut free, and optionally Soy free
Number of servings (yield): 24 cookies
Copyright © Alisa Fleming.
Sigh. The last cookie. That’s what I get for making the batch the day before my birthday. At least I have this one …
I think this recipe definitely does justice to Heidi’s original recipe and David’s adaption, even without the eggs and butter! But you be the judge.
30 thoughts on “Super Natural Birthday Cookies”
Scrumptious looking cookies! Got to make those babies gluten free for sure. 😉 Oh, and too funny on prematurely aging yourself!
Shirley
HAPPY BDAY!!! And please, I’ll take a cookie like that! I love mesquite! it’s pricey though.
Have a wonderful time! I hope you get some frosting without the cake. 😉
Happy birthday!!!! How did I not know this!?!?
It makes you a freak. But I still love you. 🙂 If only because I too love the frosting more than the cake. I used to always get cookie cakes for my birthday. Which I might have to do again for the next one…
cookie “cakes” rule.
These look soooo good. Happy Bday!!!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! I always get my age, and even my birthdate, wrong. I’ve always felt both younger and older than my actual age, so I blame that 😛
I’d like to come work for you in the Carribbean, please. Pretty please?
Yay birthday cookies!
Well, you’re so darn young anyways, it wouldn’t hurt you to miss your age by a few years 🙂
Of course! As long s you help make daily chocolate and carob treats!
Those look great!
and
Happy Birthday!
Happy birthday!! I have a weird thing about aging myself too – I tend to just start calling myself the next age after new years’ day. Maybe it makes the math easier? 😉 We should share a cake someday- I’m not much of a frosting lover!
Haha, maybe that’s what I’m doing too! I had never thought about jumping ahead with the new year, but I think that was where my head was going.
Yes, vanilla frosting please!
Happy Birthday Alisa!!!!! You’re cookies look delish, even if they are…oh, nevermind. I’ll play gluten nice for your birthday, LOL!
You have NEVER had a cup of coffee? Not even a sip? That is fascinating…just never had a desire or what? And you would choose carob over chocolate?
I wouldn’t call you a freak, an odd duck maybe. 😉
xoxo,
Heidi
I may have tried a sip at one point in my life, but honestly, I don’t recall it. I’ve had some foods with coffee in them of course (had to sample ALL of the dairy-free ice cream flavors), but it isn’t my thing.
Nope, no desire. I think it may be one of those “natural” things where our bodies tell us what to avoid and for once, I listened. Haha. I’m really sensitive to caffeine – like really, really sensitive, so coffee would probably give me neverending jitters.
Yep, love carob! Quack.
Happy Birthday. I hope everyone sends you boxes and boxes of these cookies because they look wonderful! Cheers!
First of all, I am not a coffee drinker either. I have had a cup or two in my life, but I honestly do not understand everyone’s obsession with it. So I will be a freak with you, and drink a cup of tea instead.
Second of all, if you opened that boutique hotel, I would definitely make a trip there–assuming the hotel restaurant(s) is dairy-free. 🙂
And third of all, I always ask for chocolate chip cookies for my birthday. (And you could put some frosting on these cookies!☺)
Happy birthday, Alisa!! Hope you’ve enjoyed your day!
Dairy-free? Of course! Having dairy wouldn’t even be an option at any food joint I would be involved in. Thanks my fellow freak … err Bethany 🙂
happy birthday alisa!!!! I have never had coffee either. i tried one sip and it was pretty clear it wasn’t my thing.
oh cookies…once I am allowed sugar again in a couple weeks this looks like a recipe i will now be all over since I am going to stick to the unprocessed challenge
Ah, a kindred coffee-free spirit 🙂
Yes, you would LOVE these Amanda. Just one thought, right? Keep that sugar low. Oops, I may have eaten two. And they’re big.
They look like just my kind of cookie! And who needs coffee? 😉 I love carob, too, but I’d still take chocolate any day. I am going to make these cookies with yet one more adaptation so I can eat them! 😀
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Sending big hugs your way. xo
Have a very happy birthday! I honestly never would have pinned you for even mid-30’s, truly! You hide your age with grace. 🙂
And hooray, I’m happy to see more people baking with mesquite. It really is a fun ingredient.
Oh my, flattery will get you everywhere my dear. Everywhere!
37 is my lucky number!!!
Happy birthday!!!!!! You look amazing and are amazing! I wish nothing but wonderful things for you this year, Alisa!!! Enjoy and celebrate all month long! You deserve it!!!!
These sound delicious and perfect for a birthday celebration! I hope you had an incredible birthday!
These look yummy and will make them for my birthday this month as well! Also, I too have never had coffee!! Yeah us! Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday my sweet friend!!!! Sign me up as your first customer at the hotel and yes, the coffee thing (not to mention the carob thing) does indeed make you a freak of nature! But a fabulous freak 🙂
LOL!! I age myself all of the time. After 35 I sort of lost count and forget on a regular basis what my true age is! 😉 And I love frosting, not the cake. I also am a cookie freak! THis recipe looks divine and relatively simple to convert to be gf!!
Happy Birthday, my sweet friend! I hope it was absolutely as fabulous as you!
xoxox
k
Okay now I’m on the lookout for mesquite flour. YUM, these look delish. Glad you had a good birthday with the girls 🙂 Hope it was one of your happiest! xo
Happy Belated Birthday!
And no, it totally doesn’t make you weird to have never tasted coffee. I’ve had it, but I don’t like it. So as far as I’m concerned, you aren’t missing much 😉
Is mesquite flour the same as mesquite powder? I’ve never seen anything but powder before…and it’s pretty darn expensive.
Hi Marianne, it is, and it is pricey. But I liken it to a good quality cocoa powder. I’d probably never use more than a 1/4 cup in a recipe … usually much less as it is very strong and earthy. So a bag lasts for a while.
sorry i’m a little late, but i wanted to say happy birthday!!! i finally got some mesquite flour, so perhaps i’ll have to do a side by side by side taste test to compare heidi’s, dave’s and yours 🙂
Thanks Shannon! How cool would that be. I’d love to know how mine stand up against ones with eggs and butter! I use eggs on occasion and sometimes recipes are better without eggs! Sometimes not though, of course 🙂
Also, I’ve been using mesquite flour to make a hot mylk at night. Will post once I get a combo that I like, but it makes a really nice malted drink. I use less than I would of cocoa though as it actually is a bit richer.
Comments are closed.