First of all, I have to tell you about a food blog that I have been obsessing over for the last month: ohsheglows.com. I’m not vegan, but I am trying to eat more vegan dishes these days. The creator, Angela, does an amazing job at developing delicious and delightful vegan recipes and so far, every dish that I have made has been outstanding – even Ryan likes loves them!
Second of all, let’s tackle the elephant in the room – the ingredient list for this cookie. It’s long. But don’t let it hinder you from baking these delicious little things. Most of the ingredients can be found at the Bulk Barn (in Canada) and the odd one you might have to find at a whole foods store. If you are in the US, the ingredients are available at Whole Foods. I am here to tell you that these cookies are worth every single ingredient. Not only is it worth the time, but each ingredient adds up to make the most divine little bite that won’t make you feel guilty.
P.S. I made one small tweak to the recipe – I used raw pumpkin seeds instead of sesame seeds.
Two-bite Trail Mix Cookies (Gluten Free, Vegan, Low Sugar)
Yield: 30 two-bite cookies
Prep Time: 20
Cook Time: 15
Ingredients:
Dry Ingredients
1 cup gluten-free rolled oats, blended into oat flour
1/2 cup almond meal or almond flour
1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats
1/2 cup thinly sliced almonds
1/4 cup Sucanat (found in health food stores - or try Bulk Barn)
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
3 tablespoons mini dark Chocolate Chips (or finely chopped chocolate)
2 tablespoons raw cacao nibs (found in health food stores - or try Bulk Barn)
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
3 tablespoons chia seeds (found in health food stores and Bulk Barn)
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking sodaWET INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon ground flax + 2 tablespoons water, mixed together
1/4 cup "drippy" raw almond butter (or other all-natural nut butter)
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanillaDirections:
Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Whisk together the ground flax and water in a small mug and set aside so it can gel up.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients.
In another medium sized bowl, stir together the wet ingredients, including the flax egg until thoroughly combined.
Add the wet mixture on top of the dry mixture and stir well until combined. This will take quite a bit of stirring until all of the dry patches of flour are gone.
Portion small balls of dough (just smaller than golf balls) onto the baking sheet, spacing them a couple inches apart. I ended up baking two trays of cookies because I didn't know how much they were going to spread out.
Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes (I baked for a full 15 minutes), until light golden brown on the bottom. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack until completely cool. The cookies will break apart easily until cooled, so be careful.
Wrap up and store leftovers on the counter or in the freezer, if desired.Notes:
Here are a few notes from Angela (@ Ohsheglows.com)
1) For a completely gluten-free cookie, be sure to use certified gluten-free rolled oats and to check all other ingredient labels. 2) To make oat flour: Add 1 cup of rolled oats into a high speed blender and process on high until a flour forms. 3) To make almond meal, add a scant 1/2 cup of almonds into a high speed blender and blend on high until a fine meal forms. Break up clumps with your fingers and measure as normal. 4) The raw almond butter I used was very drippy, so be sure to use a drippy, all-natural nut butter if possible.Read more: http://ohsheglows.com/2013/08/20/irresistible-chewy-trail-mix-cookies-vegan-gluten-free/#ixzz2kULXYT7z
