Maple Pecan Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies are everything. By far the best gluten free & vegan cookies I have ever had. I found this recipe on Sarah Bakes Gluten Free's blog and I was intrigued. My family loves roasted pecans, so I knew these cookies would get a lot of love in my house. That being said, I was super apprehensive about how these cookies would turn out. The ingredient list just looked strange to me. But, it worked so well! These cookies have everything a good cookie has - crispy edges with a chewy center, great flavor and a little crunch!

If you are gluten free and or vegan, you need to give these cookies a try! The ingredient list is so darn simple - you won't have to go looking for any obscure ingredients. They're completely allergen friendly and their refined sugar free! You can find the original recipe HERE, but I will detail how I made the cookies below.

Ginger Cookies (Gluten Free, Vegan & Refined Sugar Free)

Though my Dad loves all desserts, he is especially fond of spicy-sweet desserts. He used to love speculaas cookies - which are a sort of spicy biscuit. But, they are loaded gluten, dairy and refined sugar (as most cookies are)! Since our big food elimination last year, we have been on the lookout for a good spice cookie aand I am so happy to be sharing a fabulous one today!

When my Mom opened Cara Reed's cookbook on Christmas morning, we were all excited about different recipes - my Mom wanted biscotti and Thin Mints, I wanted chocolate chip cookies and my Dad wanted spice cookies. He even made an intriguing case for trying these cookies before gifting the book to my Mom. Just write down the recipe, she doesn't need to know where it came from he said. I talked him into holding off until after Christmas, but he finally got his spice cookies and they were so worth the wait! These cookies are so perfectly crispy and full of flavor! I don't drink coffee, but my Dad says these pair great with a coffee!

The recipe is on page 44 of Cara Reed's Decadent Gluten Free and Vegan Cookbook. I stuck to the original recipe and it worked out great!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan, Gluten Free & Refined Sugar Free)

Yesterday, I shared a great recipe for apple muffins and today I'm sitting down to share another fun recipe! All day on Monday, I was really craving oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I made it through my school day, then headed off to my evening yoga class but as soon as I got in the door from yoga I got to work on my oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. I couldn't get in the kitchen fast enough!

This is another recipe from Feasting on Fruit (a.k.a. my favorite blog as of late). The original recipe offers 2 options to make the cookies. I opted to use the applesauce version. If you are interested in making these cookies with nut butter instead of applesauce, I recommend referencing the original recipe. 

Not only are these cookies so darn good by they are easy as can be to make! This recipe does not call for any hard to find ingredients - it's straight forward and comes together so quickly! Let's get to it!

Sable Cookies (Vegan & GF)

This is the first dessert recipe I've shared in over a month! What? I used to share desserts weekly. I also used to eat dessert everyday. Now, I hardly ever have dessert! I still have some kind of treat everyday but most often, that treat is a banana.  I made these cookies after a long baking break (over a month)! I was seriously worried I wouldn't be able to bake anymore! I thought I had lost my touch but as soon as I got into the swing of things, I was good! I was home!

While these cookies are totally gluten free, refined sugar free and vegan they totally consoled my worried heart! They are not the dessert that I am used to but they're something! Desserts and baking are my thing. I used to bake all the time. I am seeing the immense value in reducing my sugar intake but I really missed the process of baking! These cookies are such a fun treat if you are looking for allergen free treats!

Now, I do have to talk about the actual product - I would be lying if I said these taste like a shortbread cookie or a chocolate chip cookie. They don't. My advice - don't bite into one of these thinking you're getting some uber sweet and butter-y dessert because you will be sorely disappointed! Once I got over my initial shock, I realized these cookies are actually pretty good! Ok! Let's get into the recipe! I modified this recipe from America's Test Kitchen gluten free cookbook.

Brown Butter Pecan Cookies (+gluten free option!)

I have a killer cookie recipe to share with you today. But first, I have to mention how excited I am for the impending Olympics! They are just a little over a week away and I can't wait! I am most excited to see Tessa Virtue and Scott Moyer (Canadian Ice Dancers) skate! I am so hoping they can end their careers with another gold medal! While yes, the figure skating is my favorite part of the Olympics, I'll watch most anything! The winter Olympics are my favorite!

Ok, back to the cookies because we need to talk more about the cookies! They are such a great combination of browned butter (more on that later) and toasted pecans. I was looking for a great alternative to chocolate chip cookies and I found it in these cookies! I found this recipe on a blog called Baker by Nature. You can find the original recipe HERE.

I stuck pretty close to the original recipe, aside from a slight change - I made them gluten free! I subbed in America's Test Kitchen (ATK) gluten free flour blend and a little xanthum gum. I promise, no one could tell they were gluten free!

Chocolate Chip Cookies [updated]

About a year ago, I shared a chocolate chip cookie recipe that at the time was my favorite. I had spent months (maybe years!) trying out different chocolate chip cookie recipes and that one was my favorite. So I used it over and over again and eventually it just stopped being great - the cookies would burn badly around the edges or spread out to be really thin. The recipe was just so inconsistent for me! It might still work for you & I had several great successes with those cookies but I decided to switch!

I decided to try the recipe that comes with the bag of Toll House chocolate chips. Mainly because in the movie ELF, Buddy says "Then, we'll eat a whole roll of Toll House cookie dough!" Well, I totally get why Buddy wants to eat a whole roll of Toll House cookie dough because these cookies were perfection! I will be sticking with this recipe from here on out!

Figure Skate Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

I'm talking about Royal Icing again today! I made figure skates and I was so happy with the end result! Before I get into how I made these, I should mention my current thoughts towards royal icing... It's a lot of work! I spent about 3 hours on the skates and a similar amount of time on the pineapples that I shared last week! I'm guessing this time will go down when I become more familiar with the whole royal icing process (at least, I hope it does!).

So, it was so much fun to experiment with and the end result is really beautiful. I just cannot imagine myself doing this on a regular basis. I will definitely use royal icing when I am decorating cookies for themed parties or theme specific events. But otherwise I will likely just be sticking cookies that are easier to put together and just as delicious!

I used the same royal icing recipe that I used last time (for the Pineapples) and it worked just as well!! The recipe is from Follow the Ruels and I love how simple it is!

Pineapple Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

I have been wanting to try decorating cookies with royal icing for a while, but I was so intimidated by the whole process! After doing a fair bit of research, I finally built up the courage to use royal icing! I will share more as I discover more, but I definitely recommend reading as much as you can find before using royal icing!! I used the recipe that Lindsey from Follow the Ruels shares HERE.

Spritz Cookies

A couple of weeks ago, I picked up a cookie press from a local kitchen supply store only to come home and find one hidden away in my cupboard - Boo! I was initially super disappointed about this, but it ended up being a big win! The Bean worked by my side and was thrilled to have her own cookie press! It is so quick to whip these up and the end result is beautiful!! The cookie press I use is from Wilton, and I use the recipe right off the box!

Start by creaming 1 1/2 cups of softened butter and 1 cup of granulated sugar together in a medium sized mixing bowl.

Orange & Dark Chocolate Cookies

I made these last week to give to some of my favorite teachers at the end of the semester and I got rave reviews! I usually prefer to use recipes that I know and trust when I'm feeding others, but these looked so delicious, I just couldn't resist! I got the recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction - you can find it HERE.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat 3/4 cup of softened butter with a handheld electric mixer until it is smooth.

Then, beat in 2/3 cup of brown sugar until the mixture is fluffy.

Baking with the Bean: Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies

Last night, the Bean and I did a little baking together! My only request was new content for my blog and she wanted peanut butter, so we made peanut butter cookies! And they were so perfect! We got the recipe from A Dash of Sanity, you can find it HERE.

Start by combining 1/2 cup of softened butter and 1 cup of peanut butter in a medium mixing bowl.

Mix in 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup of brown sugar.

Add in 1 egg and 2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Finally, mix in 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour. The original recipe recommends combining the dry ingredients in a separate bowl then adding them to the wet ingredients. I didn't want to make extra dishes so, I just stirred in the baking soda and salt. Then I added the flour gradually - 1/2 cup at a time :)

Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, roll them each in sugar then place them about an inch and a half apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Press the cookies down with a fork - I press down one way then turn the fork to make perpendicular lines to the original ones. Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Let them set for a minute before transferring them to a wire cooling rack.

CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
yield: 38 cookies
ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

directions
1. Combine the softened butter and peanut butter in a medium mixing bowl. Mix in the sugars until well combined. Ad in the egg and vanilla extract - stir until combined.
2. Mix in the baking soda and the salt. Then, gradually add in the flour (1/2 cup at a time), mix until the dough is well combined.
3. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, roll each ball in sugar then place them about an inch and a half apart along a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
5 Let the cookies sit for a minute before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Heart Shaped Treats

Both of the recipes I'm talking about today are ones that I've already shared but I wanted to show you how I turned them into Valentine treats! I took my go to sugar cookie recipe (you can find it HERE) and turned them into hearts. I also took my favorite cinnamon bun recipe (you can find it HERE) and turned them into hearts! So many hearts coming out of my kitchen this week!

Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've seen recipes for pretzel bookies before on Pinterest, but I've always been skeptical. Why would I add pretzels to a perfectly good chocolate chip cookie? Well, I have since discovered why... because they are perfection! They are the best blend of sweet and salty - they're delicious! The recipe is from Chocolate, Chocolate and More Chocolate, you can find it HERE.

Before we get started, I should mention that I did a horrible job of taking pictures as I was making these. I posted a couple of Instagram stories as I was baking these and I think my mind can only focus on one form of media at once. So pictures will be low in this post, but I will do my best to explain everything!

Start by combining 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of salt in a medium mixing bowl.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Happy February! I made these cupcakes this past weekend and they were scrumptious! They were a little long a complicated to put together but the end result was so worth it! I started by making my favorite chocolate cupcakes and when the cupcakes were cooled, I cored them and filled them with eggless cookie dough. Then, I iced the cupcakes with my favorite buttercream frosting recipe and stuck a mini chocolate chip cookie in the top.

A couple of things before I start...
1. My mom helped me make these - so there was a lot going on in the kitchen at once and I wasn't able to take pictures of every little step like I usually do. I have some general pictures, but I will do my best to explain how everything came together.
2. The 4 different components of this recipe - the chocolate cake, the eggless cookie dough, the buttercream frosting and the mini chocolate chip cookies come from recipes that I got in four different places. So, before I talk bout each part, I will link to where you can find the original recipe (if applicable 😃).

Start by making 1 recipe of my favorite chocolate cupcakes - you can find the recipe HERE. One recipe makes 24 cupcakes. When the cupcakes are bakes leave them out to cool completely while you make everything else...

Gingerbread Men

I shared a recipe for mini gingerbread about a month ago. This is the exact same recipe but instead of quartering it, I made it in its full form! The recipe is from Sally Fields' cookie book & it made about 100 four inch gingerbread men.

Start by creaming together 1 cup of softened butter and 3/4 cup of brown sugar in a medium sized mixing bowl.

Biscotti

In a few posts lately, I talked about my family giving tins of cookies to our friends and family at Christmas time. We usually included Hershey Kiss Snowball Cookies, Peanut Blossom Cookies, Shortbread Cookies and these biscotti cookies! This Biscotti recipe comes from the All Around the World Cookbook by Susan Lukins, but here is how I make them...

I used an electric mixer to make these, because I was doubling the recipe and making several batches, but you could easily do it by hand or with a food processor. Start with 1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour.

Hershey Kiss Snowball Cookies

These cookies remind me of Christmases when I was little. I used to help my mom unwrap all of the Hershey kisses and roll them into the middle of each cookie! These might just be my all time favorite Christmas cookie and I highly recommend trying them!

Shortbread Cookies

This shortbread recipe is very dear to me, because it is my Poppa's recipe. It is one of my favorite recipes to make around Christmas time and it is easy as can be! Let's get started!

Peanut Blossom Cookies

This recipe is one of my all-time favorites! One of my favorite things that my family does at Christmas time is bake (really, we bake all year!) but at Christmas time we bake cookies to give away to our friends, neighbors, and family! We fill little tins with a mix of cookies and deliver them to our favorite people! Well, these peanut blossom cookies are one of my family's favorite to include in our cookie tins!

Almond Snowball Cookies

On Friday night, I finished all of my homework (yeah, I did homework on a Friday night - I'm a party!) and then my mama told me she was craving a dessert with almond in it. Well I took this craving and my own personal craving for snow and went to Pinterest! And as always, Pinterest delivered! These almond snowball cookies are pure bliss - you can find the original recipe HERE, but here is how I made them...