Paleo Swedish Cream Wafer Cookie

Are you ready for this? It's another Christmas cookie recipe! Or I suppose you could make this yummy cookie anytime of the year, whenever it suits your fancy. The cookie part of this recipe is a pretty basic cracker/cookie wafer. You could even spread it with something savory and serve it as an appetizer at a dinner party. The possibilities are endless! Enjoy!

Swedish Cream Wafer Cookies
Cookie
1 C Almond Flour/Meal
1 C tapioca Flour
1/2 C Cream off the top of a can of coconut milk
1/2 C Coconut oil
Filling
1 C dark Chocolate chips
1/2 C coconut oil
1 T maple syrup

Mix Flours, Coconut Cream and 1/2 C Coconut oil together in a bowl. Turn dough out onto parchment and form into a log that's about 1-2 inch diameter. Cover in the parchment and put in freezer for about 1/2 hour.

Preheat oven to 375F.

When dough is hardened, slice 1/2 inch cookies from the log placing them about 2-3 inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Bake for about 10 minutes then turn cookies over and bake for another 10 minutes. Let Cookies cool then make frosting.

Mix 1/2 C Coconut oil, maple syrup and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high in 30 second increments stirring frequently until everything is melted and smooth. Place bowl in freezer for about 1/2 hour until chocolate starts to firm up. Using a hand mixer, mix frosting until it's fluffed up and doubled in volume. Spread or pipe frosting onto cookies and place another cookie on top to make a sandwich.

 

Paleo Magic Cookie Bars (AKA 7 layer bars)

The Paleo Christmas cookie kitchen is in full swing around my house this week! I'm on a mission to make paleo versions of some of our Facebook Fans' favorite Christmas cookies. One of the challenges extended to me was to make a paleo 7 layer bar (AKA Magic Cookie Bar). This one turned out to be one of the easier ones to replicate as the cookie doesn't have much of a "cookie" quality to it. The bottom layer is the closest thing to a cookie and is mostly a crust for the whole bar; each of the other layers are just ingredients of choice with a milky binder pored over the whole thing. I believe my version turned out wonderfully like the original!

Paleo Magic Cookie/7 Layer Bars
2 C almond or coconut milk (full fat)
1/4 C maple syrup
1 t vanilla
1 C almond meal or flour
1/2 C coconut oil
1 C dark chocolate chips
1 cup shredded coconut -divided
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans, but walnuts or other nuts would work as well)

Preheat the oven to 375°F

Simmer milk with maple syrup and vanilla over medium heat until the volume is reduced by half.

Mix almond meal with coconut oil to form crust. Pat the crust mixture down evenly in a 9 x 9 pan. Make parchment paper "handles" to pull out the bars when they are finished. I didn't do this and wish I had!

Layer 3/4 of the chocolate chips, 1/2 of the coconut and all the nuts.

Slowly pour milk mixture over the top.

Layer extra coconut over the top and sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.

Bake 30 minutes, cool on stovetop then refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Cut into small bites. Makes 24 to 36 bites. And they are so rich a bite is really all you need! :)

Paleo/Primal Gingerbread Cookies

 

It's Christmas cookie time! Who doesn't love Gingerbread Men? I mean, come on, Gingy was your favorite Shrek character, right? Of Course!
Well, Gingerbread Men have been sadly lacking from my diet for the last couple of years. So I set about making a gingerbread recipe that fits the Paleo Lifestyle and still tastes like what you want a gingerbread man to taste like. As an added bonus, this recipe is nut-free and fairly allergen friendly; so you will feel ok putting one of these little gems in your child's lunch box or even bringing some for the whole class.
(Alternatively, if you're looking for a moister cookie and can tolerate nuts, substitute the Coconut flour and Coconut oil with 3 1/2 C Almond flour plus 1/4 C coconut oil.)

Coconut Flour Gingerbread Men
1 1/4 C+ Coconut Flour
1 C Coconut Oil
3 Eggs
1/2 C molasses
1/4 C maple syrup
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a bowl combine 1 1/4 C coconut flour with 1 C melted coconut oil. Let this sit for a few minutes.

Meanwhile, in another bowl mix all remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add coconut flour/oil mixture to other ingredient mixture and mix to combine. Dough should be getting somewhat stiff at this point.

Put parchment paper (about as big as a cookie sheet) on a flat surface, sprinkle with coconut flour then turn out dough onto parchment. Sprinkle top of dough with coconut flour then place another piece of parchment on top of dough. Using a rolling pin or your hand flatten dough between parchment. Roll out until dough is about 1/4 inch thick. Place dough into freezer or fridge on a cookie sheet until it has hardened up a bit.

Once dough is more solid, remove top parchment and press cookie cutters into dough. Using a scraper, remove dough from around cut out shapes. Re-roll extra dough to keep making more cookies.

Leave cut-outs on parchment on cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes until cookies are mostly firm. Let cool then decorate as desired. Cookies are a little fragile when they are warm. So let them cool down before handling.

My kids added jelly beans to theirs, I added frosting decorations. Give the Food Lover's Primal Palate Cinnamon Frosting a try for your decorator frosting!

Paleo Cookie Round-Up

We've been talking cookies around my house lately. I'm on a mission to Paleo-ize some favorite christmas cookie recipes this year. Hopefully only those in the know will be able to tell the difference. Until I've perfected the new treats and posted them, you can make some of our old favorites. Enjoy!


Sugar Cookies/Cutout Cookies - These are made with coconut flour and are pretty allergy friendly. The are great to make with the kids and a pile of cookie cutters. If your dough is too soft, put it in the fridge for a bit before rolling and cutting.



Thumbprint Cookies - You can jazz up these cookies in numerous ways. Put your favorite jam in the thumb print in the middle, add some dark chocolate chips or even almond buttter...or all three!




Macaroons - Here are a couple different macaroon recipes. One is a raw macaroon and can be rolled in a topping like cocoa powder or toasted coconut. The second is a nut based macaroon that can be drizzled in dark chocolate. Both are yum!



Chocolate Chip Cookies - We cavegirls have a special love of chocolate chip cookies. We've tinkered with our recipe many times trying to find the perfect recipe...or the perfect recipe so far. Cavegirl Kate made a very tasty chocolate chip cookie that crisps up nicely. Cavegirl Stephanie reviewed Elana's Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe. And Cavegirl Angie added a bit more chocolate to cavegirl Kate's original recipe making Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies.



Coconut Flour Cinnamon Cookies - These cookies are nut free as well as being dairy and grain free. They are a bit like a chocolate chip cookie but with cinnamon instead of chocolate.



Snickerdoodle Cookie - This recipe is by the Urban Poser and is an authentic snickerdoodle without the grains!



Everyday Cookie - This is the healthiest cookie we've made so far. it uses fruit and veggie puree for moisture and contains enough nutrients to eat everyday...or more than one time each day!

Apple, Celery Root and Bacon Salad

I had no real idea what celery root was until it came in my veggie delivery box last week. I wasn't even sure which item in the box was celery root until I'd eliminated everything else and was left with something that looked a little strange. This is celery root also known as celeriac:


I'm not a fan of the flavor of raw celery, so I wasn't sure if I'd like celery root as it does have a mild celery flavor. But in this dish, the celery flavor isn't overpowering and it didn't detract from the other flavors at all. Once you add in the apple, bacon and dressing you have a very flavorful, tangy, sweet and sour salad that can be a side dish or a meal. Give this strange looking vegetable a try!

Apple, Celery Root and Bacon Salad
1 celery root, scrubbed, peeled and chopped
2 medium apples cored and chopped
1/3 C white or apple cider vinegar
1 t honey
2 t Dijon mustard
1 T chopped fresh parsley
4 strips of bacon cooked and crumbled

Mix all ingredients and let stand for at least 30 minutes before serving to let the flavors mingle.

Dark Chocolate Maccaroons

Last year around Halloween time I created a pumpkin pie recipe that I posted to my blog. A little while later around Thanksgiving someone posted a link to my recipe in a comment on Mark's Daily Apple saying that he liked the crust so much that he would eat it alone like a macaroon. That comment got me thinking! So this year when I made my pie crust for pumpkin pie, I made extra. I put the extra in a pie tin and stuck it in the freezer. When it was hardened up I drizzled some dark chocolate over the top then put that back into the freezer to harden. What was the result, you ask? Dark chocolate macaroon cookies! These cookies are so easy to make, it might be dangerous. But with little more than nuts, coconut oil, shredded coconut and dark chocolate, I suppose they aren't really that bad for me.

Dark Chocolate Macaroon Cookies
1 1/2 C Almond meal
1 C unsweetened shredded coconut
1 C Coconut oil, melted
1/2 C 70% or darker dark chocolate chips

Mix meal, coconut and oil together then press into thin layer in a pie pan or 8x8 brownie pan. sprinkle chocolate chips or shaved chocolate on top of cookie mixture. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. When chocolate chips are melted smooth chocolate over the top of the cookie with a spatula in an even layer. Cool, then place in freezer to harden. Cut into squares or break into pieces to serve.

Paleo/Primal Apple Cider Muffins

'Tis the season for apple cider! One of my favorite drinks during the holidays is Warm Mulled Apple Cider. For Thanksgiving Dinner the last few years I've pulled out the crock pot and filled it with apple cider and mulling spices and let it sit on Low most of the day. Young and old alike love a mug of this golden yumminess.

This morning when I got up, I was in the mood to make muffins, and once I looked into the fridge and saw the jug of apple cider, I knew just what kind to make. Apple Cider Muffins! I was also sadly lacking in my usual muffin starter of almond flour, so I used coconut flour instead. They turned out very apple-y and cinnamon-y and were a big hit with both small and large family members!

Apple Cider Muffins
1 C apple cider (I prefer organic unfiltered unpasteurized and local!)
3 apples
1/2 C coconut oil - melted
4 eggs - separated
1/4 C maple syrup
1 C coconut flour
1 T cinnamon
1/2 t ground cloves
1 t baking soda

Preheat oven to 350F. Core, peel and dice apples saving peel to use. Separate eggs. In a blender add apple peels, apple cider, egg yolks and maple syrup. Blend until mostly smooth. In a small bowl, beat eggs to soft peaks and set aside. In a larger bowl, combine coconut flour and coconut oil; let sit for a few minutes allowing flour to absorb oil. Add blended mixture to coconut flour mixture then add cinnamon, cloves, baking soda and diced apples. Lastly fold egg whites into mixture. Scoop 1/4 cup of mixture into lined muffin tins. Bake for about 25 minutes or until muffin is slightly firm when you press on the top.