Category Archives: Baking

Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies

This past week was a bit of a rough one.  My dear sweet grandfather passed away at the age of 95, and while we all knew it was coming, it’s still hard to imagine life without him.  So when I’m feeling a little down I go for a run, go to yoga and bake.  And these tahini chocolate chip cookies from the Meals Made Simple cookbook were just what I needed.

tahini chocolate chip cookiesI have been on quite the tahini kick lately.  I made tahini dressing for my Asian slaw, I used it as a sauce for some zoodles, and now I’m using it in cookies!  I’ll admit I was a little skeptical when I first saw the recipe in the cookbook, but Danielle Walker swears that these are the best chocolate chip cookies ever so I was game.  Plus, it’s another recipe to check off for the 2015 cookbook challenge!

When I first made the cookies I handed one to the Englishman to taste without telling him what was in it.  He couldn’t detect the tahini at all! He said they had a slightly nutty flavor (which I agree) but you wouldn’t know it was tahini unless someone told you.

If you are looking for a different cookie that’s grain free and doesn’t use the standard almond butter, try this recipe with tahini!  I modified a few of the ingredients based on what we had, but for the most part followed the recipe exactly.  The original recipe makes 24 cookies, but you can cut it in half if you don’t want that many cookies in the house 😉  I have also found that these cookies freeze really well (and taste good frozen too!).

Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies (adaptedfrom the Meals Made Simple cookbook)

tahini chocolate chip cookiesIngredients:

1 large egg white

2 tbsp melted butter or coconut oil

1/2 cup tahini

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup tapioca starch (or arrowroot powder)

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup cacao nibs

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or coat well with cooking oil.

Mix your egg white and maple syrup until mixture is smooth (use a hand or stand mixer if you have it!).

Gently fold in your tahini, tapioca starch, vanilla, salt and baking soda and continue to mix.  Add your chocolate chips and cacao nibs.

Place spoonfuls of dough onto your baking sheet.  For crispier cookies, flatten your dough a bit.

Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Cool and enjoy!

This was such an easy recipe to make and I love that it’s paleo friendly AND uses tahini.  I already can’t wait to whip up my next batch.

Banana Coconut Cookies

When I decided I wanted to do my spring reset, I downloaded the 21-Day Sugar Detox
book onto my ipad so I could have a library of quick recipes at my fingertips.  If you are also participating in a spring reset, or are looking to have a sugar-free treat at Easter, I recommend these Banana Coconut Cookies.

Coconut Banana Cookies 2These cookies have minimal ingredients, loaded with healthy fats from the eggs and are delicious!  Plus, they come together in about 5 minutes, so it doesn’t get much easier than that.  I will say if you are NOT a banana fan, I don’t recommend making these cookies as the banana taste is pretty prominent, but otherwise this is a great recipe to whip up when you want a little treat.

The recipe calls for shredded coconut, but I used Trader Joe’s unsweetened coconut flakes and they still came out just fine.  Plus, they look like little bird nests!

Pro Tip: these cookies are extra delicious when you pop them in the freezer and have them as a little frozen snack.

Banana Coconut Cookies (from the 21 Day Sugar Detox book)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup banana, mashed

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

2 eggs

2 tsp melted butter or coconut

1 tsp vanilla

2 tsp cinnamon

Pinch of Salt

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Grease a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

In a small bowl mash your banana.  Add your egg, butter and vanilla and blend well.

In a larger bowl add your coconut shreds, cinnamon and salt.  Gently fold your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients and continue to mix until well blended.

Gently scoop your cookies onto your baking sheet (this should make about 8 cookies).  Pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly browned on the bottom.

Coconut Banana CookiesCool, eat and enjoy!  (or put in the freezer for later).  2015 cookbook challenge – check!

Anyone else have a delicious sugar-free recipe they want to share?

Grain Free Banana Macadamia Nut Bread

Last week Amazon had a flash sale on some of my favorite paleo/gluten-free cookbook authors’ ebooks, so I took advantage and downloaded a bunch of ebooks to my ipad, one of them being the The Zenbelly Cookbook by Simone Miller. With Easter rapidly approaching and Simone’s book loaded with delicious recipes, I decided to create a grain free banana macadamia nut bread to see how I liked it.  Safe to say the 2015 cookbook challenge has struck gold once again.

grain free banana macadamia nut bread

There’s a strong stigma surrounding grain-free baking, especially if you are dealing with someone who prefers your standard white flour, butter and sugar.  But truth be told, grain-free baking results in some pretty tasty treats.  I’ve had people tell me that sometimes they like the grain or gluten-free version better than the original (see: gluten-free carrot cake cupcakes).

I still haven’t decided if I will bring this bread to our family’s Easter brunch, but it’s definitely a hit in our house.  The macadamia, coconut and banana remind me of those delicious pancakes I had in Maui, and the chocolate chips just make this bread that much more awesome.

If you haven’t experimented with grain-free baking before or are curious to try it, then I highly recommend this recipe!  I tend to feel better when I don’t have gluten in my diet, and this grain free banana macadamia nut bread is the perfect thing when you are looking for a quick breakfast on the go or want a sweet (but not too sweet) treat.

Grain-Free Banana Macadamia Nut Bread (adapted from the Zenbelly Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 3 bananas)

3 eggs

1/4 cup softened unsalted butter

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups almond flour

1/2 cup tapioca starch (original recipe calls for arrowroot powder)

2 tablespoons coconut flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F and grease a loaf pan.

Combine your bananas, eggs, butter, vanilla in a bowl and mix until well blended.  In a larger bowl, mix your almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca starch, baking soda and salt.

Gently pour your wet ingredients into your dry ingredients.  Add your macadamia nuts and chocolate chips.

Pour your batter into your loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes.  Cool, eat and enjoy!

Peanut Butter Goji Berry Brownies

**giveaway is officially closed.  thanks to all for entering!**

Imagine rich cocoa powder + Peanut Butter and Co.’s Dark Chocolate Dreams baked into gooey perfection and topped with dried goji berries.  It may sound like a strange combo, but believe me, it works.  The Yum Squad was tasked to participate in a #mysteryingredient challenge in honor of National Peanut Month, and so Peanut Butter Goji Berry Brownies were born.

YumSquad-Banner-MysteryIngredient-Goji-SquareWhen I found out the dried goji berries were my mystery ingredient, I was beyond excited.  I happen to LOVE goji berries and use them in smoothies, granola, healthy cookies and even just eat them out of the bag as a snack.  I knew I wanted to do something sweet with the goji berries since they are on the tart side, and decided peanut butter brownies was the way to go.

goji berry brownies PINI made these peanut butter goji berry brownies for our family’s annual Academy Awards viewing party and they were a huge hit!  Even with my grandmother, who asked what “those red things were.”  The key to this recipe is to add the goji berries when the brownies are practically done baking and on the gooey side, otherwise they will turn brown and don’t look nearly as appetizing.

peanut butter and co and goji berriesI used Dark Chocolate Dreams as my base peanut butter for these brownies, but you could also use Smooth Operator, White Chocolate Wonderful, The Bee’s Knees or even Crunch Time for some added texture.  The possibilities are endless.

Peanut Butter Goji Berry Brownies (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:

  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, chopped into pieces
  • 2 additional tablespoons of butter (to be used for the filling)
  • 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Guittard)
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup dark chocolate dreams peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup goji berries

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350F.  Line an 8 inch square baking pan with either parchment paper or grease with butter.

Take your 2 tablespoons of butter, chocolate chips and peanut butter and melt in a saucepan over low heat.  Once the mixture has melted, set aside to cool

In a large mixing bowl whisk your flour, salt, baking powder, unsweetened cocoa powder and sugar together.  Add your eggs and vanilla and continue to whisk until the batter is well blended.

In a separate saucepan, melt your 8 tablespoons of butter and pour into the dry mixture.  Gently fold in your peanut butter mixture and continue to mix until the batter is nice and thick.

goji berry brownie mixPour your batter into your baking dish and place in the oven for 40 minutes.  At the 40 minute mark, sprinkle your goji berries on top and continue to bake for another 5 minutes, or until the brownies are nice and gooey in the center.

Remove from the oven and let cool before slicing into squares.  Eat and enjoy!

peanut butter goji berry brownies closeOk now onto the fun stuff.  One lucky winner will win their own Peanut Butter and Co. Prize Pack to create their own delicious pb creation!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 *Open to U.S. residents only.  Contest ends 3/22/15 at 12:00 AM PT.

Thanks to the team at Peanut Butter and Co. for sponsoring this giveaway!