Cashew Chocolate Chip Cookies
GLUTEN FREE · DAIRY FREE OPTION · GRAIN FREE · PALEO OPTION
These are, not to put too fine a point on it, so yum!!!! Super comforting, chewy as a cookie should be, I honestly do not taste the difference compared to a 'normal' chocolate chip cookie.
I came up with this recipe during a month of chocolate chip cookie mania. I was looking up and making various gluten-free versions of such cookies, and basically just became utterly fed up of almond flour - which is what was most frequently used in those recipes. Generally preferring the taste of cashews to almonds (both in original nut form, nut butters, but especially when it comes to the dairy-free milks they produce), I thought I would give it a go. The result? Deliciousness…(yes, it’s a word)!
The Ingredients
Cashews
Cashew nuts have a very unique buttery, sweet and salty taste, making them ideal for use in cooking and baking, rather than just eating them plain.
They are a great source of minerals, vitamins and antioxidants, including zinc, phosphorus, copper, selenium and magnesium, making them a health-supporting nutritional powerhouse.
Coconut flour
A great gluten-free and grain-free flour, rich in dietary fibre, and mild in taste. Also suitable for Paleo/AIP.
Sodium bicarbonate (gluten free)
Not to be confused with baking powder, this ingredient goes by several other names: sodium bicarbonate, bicarbonate of soda or baking soda.
Sea salt
Unsalted butter or coconut oil
Butter works really well in this recipe, if you can tolerate it. If not, or if you would prefer to make this recipe dairy-free and paleo, then you can sub with coconut oil (I would opt for a mild or odourless version). To ensure the most effective mixing, the coconut oil should be the texture of soft butter, so if it is liquid at room temperature, put it in the fridge for a while before using. Please note that coconut oil can make the mixture a little greasier than the butter option, so you may need to add just a little more coconut flour to counteract this.
Coconut sugar
A great substitute for refined sugar, also called coconut palm sugar (not to be confused with palm sugar), it is not as processed and even contains small amounts of certain nutrients.
Cashew butter
Gives the cookies a whole other dimension in terms of both flavour and texture. Are you drooling yet?
Vanilla extract
Egg
Chocolate chips
Is an explanation for the inclusion of chocolate ever necessary?!
Changes and Substitutions
Almonds instead of cashews?
You could swap the cashew flour and butter for their almond counterparts, but this will ultimately be a different cookie! Feel free to do this, particularly if you do not tolerate cashews of course, but if that is not an issue then I do recommend the cashew version over the almond.
Egg substitute
I have not tried this recipe with an egg substitute so cannot comment on how the cookies would turn out. However, if you opt to use one (eg a flax egg, apple sauce or mashed banana), let me know how it turns out!
CASHEW CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Ingredients
- 1 cup cashew flour (blitz 100g of cashews in a food processor to create a fine powder)
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 tsp sodium bicarbonate (i.e. baking soda, not baking powder)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 85g unsalted butter OR 6 Tbsp coconut oil, if you want the dairy-free and Paleo version (to ensure the most effective mixing the coconut oil should be the texture of soft butter, so pop it in the fridge for a while if it is liquid at room temperature)
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar
- 6 Tbsp cashew butter
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 1 cup chocolate chips (organic, dairy-free)
Instructions
- Mix the cashew and coconut flours in a bowl, along with the sodium bicarbonate and the salt.
- In another bowl, beat the butter/coconut oil with the sugar until well combined. If necessary, use your hands to help combine it. (Note: this can get messy with an electric mixer, so I suggest draping a tea towel over the top of the bowl as you mix.)
- Add the cashew butter and vanilla extract and beat until combined. (You might still need the towel!)
- Add the egg and mix all together.
- Stir in the flour mixture in the first bowl until well combined.
- Add most of the chocolate chips, leaving a few behind to put on the cookies' surface before baking.
- Put mixture in the fridge for about an hour, until the dough has firmed up.
- Preheat the oven to 150°C, and line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
- Roll the dough into 16 balls, place on the baking sheet, and then press them down gently with your hand. Keep in mind that they will grow in the oven, so be sure to leave space between each cookie.
- Place a few of the remaining chocolate chips on each cookie.
- Bake for 10-14 minutes, until they no longer look wet.
- Remove from the oven, and allow to cool on the baking sheet (this will continue to cook them gently as they will still be very soft at this stage).
- Once they have cooled completely, store in an airtight container.