Category: Cookies

Back in the day, when we could eat in restaurants, we often wished for just a small sweet after the meal. Not a huge piece of cake, not a wedge of pie, just a single chocolate or a small cookie to go with our coffee. Of course, we don’t drink coffee after dinner any more either… But that little bit of sweetness, without breaking the calorie bank, is still what I’m after. That’s what Italian cookies were made for.

I baked many a cookie in my time on the farm, and since, as well. American cookies tend to be big, buttery, chocolaty and very sweet. Which was precisely what I wanted as a kid. But as I got older, something else was in order. And I discovered that something in the Old North End of Boston, a community where Italian immigrants had settled in the early 20^th century. I was amazed at the lines of colorful laundry strung across the street from second story apartments, with women hanging out the windows to chat with neighbors.  The shops, cafes and bakeries, many operated by generations of Italian families, beckoned us to get a biscotti and cappuccino to rest our feet and spirits as we hiked around, exploring the history of the Revolutionary War. 

The bakeries were my favorite of course, with their tempting, colorful displays of cookies. Italian cookies were a new experience, from crunchy biscotti, dunked into one’s coffee to soft nut paste cookies, studded with pine nuts. Layered almond flour cookies. Meringue amoretti. Almond macaroons. These cookies were firmer, denser and chewier than my usual cookie, as well as less sweet. With less sugar, the intense flavors of citrus, almond and anise shine. To this day I never pass up a chance to duck into an Italian bakery. 

I took up baking such cookies about the same time as baking Italian style breads. I still bake cookies often to accompany our lunchtime cappuccino, and this recipe is a favorite. It’s made with oil rather than butter; substituting applesauce for part of the oil not only cuts the fat, it makes them ultra chewy. The citrus flavor sparkles, with soft notes of almond in the background. Crisp outer shell with a chewy middle. A faint whiff of chocolate from the cocoa nibs. You’ll have to excuse me, I need to make a cappuccino, grab a cookie and go relax on the patio…

Print Recipe

Citrus Almond Cookies

Crisp, yet chewy, citrus cookie with notes of almond and cocoa.

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time15 minutes mins

Total Time45 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: almond, citrus

Servings: 40 cookies

Ingredients

• 2 tblsp finely diced orange and lemon peel zested in strips from the fruit, then diced
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 1 3/4 cups almond flour, divided
• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla Fiori de Sicilia, if available
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1/3 cup cocoa nibs

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

  Combine the diced citrus peel with 2/3 cup of the sugar and set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups of the almond flour, flour, salt, baking soda and cocoa nibs.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, applesauce, egg and extracts. Blend well, then mix in the reserved sugar mixture.
• Stir the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients in the large bowl and mix well. Combine the remaining sugar and almond flour in a small bowl. Scoop the cookies by rounded teaspoonful, and roll in the almond flour and sugar mix. Roll between your hands into balls, then place on the prepared sheet and flatten slightly with your fingers or the bottom of a glass.
• Bake 12-15 minutes, until lightly browned and firm. Remove to a cooling rack.

Anyone who’s anybody these days has a wheat story…

I have always considered myself a baker. As a child I loved sweets, which were so charmingly and convincingly advertised, even then, on my favorite kids’ shows. I am certainly a testament to the effects of such ads on children, as I desperately wanted to race out and buy bread that would make me strong twelve ways along with a myriad of other food like things that promised life fulfillment. Just one box of toaster pastries! Please! Given my mother’s strong health food bent and my farm upbringing, there was little hope for any of these desires…

However, I found that one way to get the sweet stuff in my mother’s health food haven was to bake myself. Mom still kept on eye on it, and there were limits to how much I might eat at one time, but still… and of course not all baked items are sweet. But I have always found the science of scooping, pouring, mixing, and portioning ingredients relaxing, almost soothing. While we eat a variety at breakfast, there are always choices of baked goods in the freezer.

All well and good, until some point in the recent past, denial gradually crept into my postprandial thoughts. Denial of what? Of the worsening digestive symptoms I was suffering. The denial ended upon the first visit to my new gastroenterologist in Tucson. Yes, I had suffered for years with reflux. No, a number of my symptoms were not indicated by reflux. And when I told him that I had been diagnosed with IBS thirty some years ago, but hadn’t paid much attention? Because, y’know, it was one of those woo-woo diagnoses that no one understood much about? He didn’t know, and gave me one of those withering looks they must teach in medical school because, as he told me, we have a much better idea of what to do about it now…

Therein followed a celiac test, (negative) followed by eight weeks of dietary elimination trials. Please don’t let it be gluten, I prayed. I rather suspect that God has an ironic sense of humor, because it wasn’t gluten; lactose and a number of oligosaccharides were the problems, and yes, today’s wheat is an oligosaccharide. I almost thought I heard heavenly giggling when the verdict was pronounced. Sooo, I have been on a voyage of discovery for almost two years now, in terms of what I can eat and how much of it I can eat. And yes, baking has been fraught with peril.

Thankfully, a few things were clear immediately. I had no problem with wheat products that had undergone a long, slow fermentation process, like artisan sourdough bread. Why? Because the process of fermentation breaks down the oligosaccharides before they hit my gut. I’ve been a dedicated sourdough baker for years, and in fact, this might have masked the problem to some extent. But what about scones? Muffins? What about COOKIES?

Following innumerable kitchen science experiments, I discovered I could tolerate sprouted wheat along with the ancient wheats like emmer, Kamut, einkorn and spelt. Ancient wheats are inherently less genetically complex, which changes both the nature and concentration of components that are hard to digest. They are possibly better for more than just folk with digestive issues. The good news is that these flours are whole grain. The bad news is that they produce a baked product that is, well, shall we say… rustic? I also quite reluctantly began playing with (OMG) gluten free baking. Thanks to Alana Taylor Tobin’s insightful book, The Alternative Baker, I discovered that these items can actually taste good and contain more nutrition than their white flour counterparts when whole GF flours are allowed to express themselves rather than be forced to imitate wheat flour products.

Several weeks ago a light bulb went off. I could bake the best of both worlds by combining ancient wheats with gluten free flours. In essence, they might be thought of as “reduced gluten” baked goods. They offer the characteristics of baked goods made with all-purpose flour, yet are whole grain and easier to digest. Please note that they are not appropriate for those with wheat allergy or Celiac’s because they do contain gluten, but the recipes I am developing may be easier on the digestive system for some people displaying wheat sensitivity. I should probably patent this concept before the food processors get their grubby hands on it…

And with that, I give you my recipe for Flex Flour Almond Butter Ginger Cookies. Why flex flour? Because you can use various flours or combinations thereof to suit your particular needs. That could be plain old all-purpose, a gluten free flour blend, or some mixture of whole grain ancient and gluten free flours such as what I’ve used.

No one should have to live without a cookie every now and then.

Print Recipe

Flex Flour Almond Ginger Cookies

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time12 minutes mins

Total Time27 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Servings: 4 dozen

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons butter
• 2/3- cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons flax meal
• 1- teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup almond butter
• a total of 1 ¾-cup flour I used 1 cup einkorn/emmer, ¼ cup almond, ¼ cup millet, ¼ cup oat
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon chopped candied ginger
• Additional 2 tablespoons almond flour mixed with 1-tablespoon sugar

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, or lightly grease and flour.
• Cream the butter and sugar together until light. Beat in the flax meal, vanilla and almond butter. Mix the dry ingredients thoroughly, then mix lightly into the butter mixture until well blended. Fold in the chopped ginger. Scoop into 1-inch balls and roll into balls between your palms. Roll each cookie in the almond flour/sugar mixture and place on the baking sheet. Use a fork to flatten each cookie, making a crisscross design.
• Bake each pan of cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until set and golden brown. Remove to a rack to cool.