Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies & Homemade Chocolate Chips

My oh my! These are good. Even the cookie dough is addictive, just like the “real” thing.

I am not a huge fan of cookies in general, except the quintessentially American chocolate chip cookie (and maybe the sugar cookie for decorating). But my nieces have been making chocolate chip cookies and sending me pictures via Whatsapp, so I kind of felt left out. But I’m on a mission to avoid gluten at all costs… so I had to go searching for an almond flour recipe, so that I could indulge without guilt and ensure it’s a healthier version.

In Spain, there are many pastries made with almond flour or other nut flours, so adapting those recipes to remove the refined sugar is less of a challenge than to make the right chocolate chip cookie.

The ones I made today are a mixture of recipes and came out delicious. And although they do not have the traditional goey texture of a wheat cookie, the flavour is spot on. I think I like them better actually!

PALEO CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Ingredients, makes about 24 medium 2-inch cookies

(The original recipe is from Against All Grain, with some influence from The Food Lovers Kitchen.)

  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 cup raw honey
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups blanched ground almonds
  • 3 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons coconut flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 cup dark chocolate pieces (recipe below)

Process

Make chocolate pieces or chips a few hours in advance or the day before.

Preheat oven to 180C or 350F. In a bowl, with a hand mixer, beat until smooth and fluffy the olive oil, honey, eggs and vanilla. Add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and sea salt. Mix until combined. You may need a spoon to do this properly. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand, as well.

On a parchment-lined cookie or baking sheet, drop balls of the cookie dough, about 1 inch in diameter (like a tablespoon each). With your hand or a piece of parchment, press on each cookie to flatten out.

Bake between 10-12 minutes until golden brown. I used the bottom rack of my oven and placed an empty cookie sheet on the middle rack to protect the cookies below and prevent them from burning. Nut flours tend to burn very easily, so beware of this.

The cookies will be rather soft to the touch right out of the oven. Allow to cool on a cookie rack before eating, as they harden as they cool.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE CHIPS/PIECES

Ingredients, makes about 1 1/2 cups

(I had previously found a very interesting recipe for making chocolate at home with cacao butter. But since my computer crashed, I cannot find the recipe back. However, my friend Denise from Edible Harmony, has a great recipe, which I’ve used for these cookies. She also has her version of paleo CCC, without eggs.)

  • 1/4 cup cacao butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 6 tablespoons 100% cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon raw honey (optional, if you prefer bitter dark chocolate)

Process

In a saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and heat over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk, until the cacao butter is melted. Allow the mixture to cool and thicken in the fridge.

Once it has thickened, either pipe into a chip form or spread on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place in freezer until it is set. If you make the spread format, break the chocolate into small pieces for the cookie recipe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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10 Comments

  1. 12.30.12
    Teresa Lorenzo. said:

    Estas cookies tienen muy buena pinta!! Son fáciles así que me pondré manos a la obra. Gracias Debra.

    • 12.30.12
      thesaffrongirl said:

      Me alegro que te guste! Dime como te salen. Para mi son más ricas que las de harina de trigo… 😉

  2. 3.21.14
    Emma said:

    I have a question about the chocolate chips? Do they melt if you take them out of the freezer right away? I have made my own chocolate pb cups using chocolate that I have made from cocoa powder, coconut oil and honey and they begin to melt as you are eating them, even in cooler weather. I was wondering if the cacao butter would solve this problem as they make them hard to travel with and leave out at parties, etc. Thanks!

    • 3.22.14
      The Saffron Girl said:

      Hi Emma,

      These with the cacao butter still melt much quicker than the store-bought version. But they hold up great inside the cookie dough, as in the recipe. All of the homemade chocolate I’ve made so far melts faster than the commercial kinds I’ve used. I’m guessing it’s the additives and maybe the lecithin that hold it up better? If you come across a homemade recipe that doesn’t melt quickly, I’d love to hear about it!

      Debra xx

  3. 2.22.15
    Renee Steger said:

    The cookies are mouth watering good, so pleased to be able to enjoy grain free cookies.. I did use coconut oil instead of olive oil. Loved them, thank you so much for sharing and the pictures were perfect!!

    • 2.23.15
      The Saffron Girl said:

      Thank you Renee! Debra xx