Chris' Banana Chunk Oat Almond Cookies (vegan, gluten free)

Made a non-chocolate version of these today, and had bananas around, so I gave this a try.  Holy crap- incredible! I'm a chocolate lover, and even I think these might be better than the original. 

Can be doubled. Dough can be refrigerated. 

METHOD

Mix up 1 TB flaxmeal and 3 TB water as your flax egg.

Preheat oven 350 F

Combine: 
1/4 C coconut oil
1/4 C nut butter
1/4 to 1/2 C sugar (white or brown). 1/4 C is slightly not sweet enough, 3/8 C is probably just about right for my taste. 

Now add flax egg and 1 tsp vanilla and combine

Now add:
0.5 tsp baking soda
0.5 tsp baking powder
scant 0.5 tsp salt
1 C oat flour (blend oats in food processor or high speed blender until fine to make oat flour)
1 C almond flour

Fold in 1 banana, diced. 

Shape into balls on cookie sheet and bake 11-13 minutes at 350 F.

Easy Pineapple Teriyaki Sauce

This is great, and doesn't use up as much soy sauce as the traditional Japanese versions of teriyaki. It works great in stir fries where you'll use it to coat veggies, tofu or chicken.  My parents were hooked on bottled teriyaki sauces, which often have corn syrup or additives-- I think this is easy enough to make in batch to keep on hand instead of store-bought sauce.

METHOD:

Combine in a saucepan, bring to a boil:
2 C water
1/2 C soy sauce
1/4 C - 1/2 C brown sugar (decide how much based on how sweet you want it)
2 TB agave or maple syrup
few cloves crushed garlic
1 tsp microplane minced ginger root

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix up 2 TB cornstarch and 1/4 C cold water. Set aside.

Open a can of crushed pineapple.

Once the sauce pan is boiling, slowly stir in the cornstarch slurry while stirring. Add 1/4 C crushed pineapple, take off heat.

You can keep this sauce in the fridge, which is handy as this makes a lot of sauce!

Vegan Nut butter Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies (gluten free)

These are really good, and they are gluten free and vegan. Just beware of any nut allergies, as these are full of nut butter.  I've adapted it from the incredible Oh She Glows.  Made these for a party and they were a hit!

METHOD

Mix up 1 TB flaxmeal and 3 TB water as your flax egg.

Preheat oven 350 F

Beat until combined:
1/4 C coconut oil
1/4 C nut butter

Add and beat 1 minute more:
3 TB brown sugar
1/4 C white sugar

Now add flax egg and 1 tsp vanilla and combine

Now add:
0.5 tsp baking soda
0.5 tsp baking powder
0.5 tsp salt
1 C oat flour (blend oats in food processor or high speed blender until fine to make oat flour)
1 C almond flour

Fold in 1/3 C chocolate chips.

Shape into balls on cookie sheet and bake 11-13 minutes at 350 F.

Chocolate Almond Pulp Cookies with lucuma or maca

I've been making these cookies quite a bit! They use up the leftover almond pulp from making almond milk (2 C water and 1 C almonds, blended and strained).  These are a great breakfast cookie as they are pretty starchy and not too sweet.  No flour so they are gluten free, and they are vegan.

The lucuma or maca are optional, but are a great way to add superfoods to your diet.  I really like the combination of lucuma and maca with chocolate.

METHOD

Mash together until combined:
1 C almond pulp (from making almond milk)
1/4 C cocoa powder
optional 1 - 2 TB lucuma or maca powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Now add and mix until combined:
1 TB melted coconut oil
1 TB maple syrup

Pour in some vegan chocolate chips.

If the mixture is too dry, add a tablespoon of almond milk or more maple syrup.

Shape into small flattened balls on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 F for 25 -30 minutes or until no longer totally gooey inside.