Great Gluten-Free Molasses Spice Cookies

[jesse_the_k]

makes: 4 dozen 2in cookies

90 minutes start to finish with pause for refreshments

ETA: I improved this recipe so they're less sweet and more chewy

prep tools

• need 3 mixing bowls (small, medium, and large)


• large baking sheet plus parchment paper


• large fork (or electric beaters)


• flexible spatula

dry ingredients

1. 1 cup amaranth flour


2. 1 cup buckwheat


3. 1/4 cup almond flour (aka almond meal)


4. 1 tsp baking soda


5. 1 tsp baking powder


6. 3/4 tsp salt


7. 1 tsp ground cinnamon


8. 1 tsp ground clove


9. 1 tsp ginger powder


10. 1 tsp cardamom powder (or nutmeg if you prefer)


11. 1 cup white granulated sugar

wet ingredients

1. 1 stick (half cup) butter, room temp


2. 2 eggs, room temp


3. 1 tsp vanilla extract


4. 1/2 cup blackstrap (non-sulfur) molasses

method

In small bowl

Using fork, beat eggs (13), vanilla (14), and molasses (15) until thoroughly combined

In medium bowl

Stir together dry items 1 through 10 only with flexible spatula until thoroughly mixed.

In large bowl

Cream together sugar and butter until thoroughly mixed (using large fork)

Pour wet small bowl into large buttercream bowl and stir with fork to combine. Stir until smooth.

Pour dry medium bowl into large bowl and use spatula to ensure thorough mixing, smearing the contents against each other and the sides of the bowl. It took me around two minutes of hand-stirring to yield a thoroughly mixed very sticky dough.

baking

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lay parchment paper on baking sheet. Use teaspoon to drop out blobs of dough, around four staggered rows of 5 cookies each on a 16 x 13 inch baking sheet.

They look lumpy but magically become cookie-shaped while baking. They can burn easily, and it’s not simple to tell since they’re dark brown. Bake for 11 minutes.

Slide the parchment-paper-with-cookies on to a cooling rack. Let the baking sheet cool before adding new parchment paper and repeating until all dough is gone.

When cookies are cool to the touch on the rack, peel the parchment away from them and store (or eat!)

modified from Wenniger & Wenniger, The Best-Ever Wheat- and Gluten-Free Baking Book

Comments

[capri0mni]

These look really tasty!

(But I feel sad for people who need to stay away from both gluten and nuts... Maybe substitute more amaranth flour?)

Indeed.

[jesse_the_k]

I added the almond-meal to give them more body, and less squishiness. I think that two Tbs of starch--corn, potato, arrowroot--would do the trick as well.

Re: Indeed.

[capri0mni]

*Nod*

I just keep a running tally of all the allergies/intolerences of people in my ken, to answer the ever present riddle in my head: "If I were to invite all my friends to dinner, what would I serve?"

Re: Indeed.

[jesse_the_k]

Non trivial task!

I keep a list in the back of my cookbook. I think the only safe answer for my set would be "water." /o\

Re: Indeed.

[monanotlisa]

You could probably do something like idly? Very few people are allergic to rice. Spices also don't seem to trigger that many folks. I've seen pure-rice versions (beans are def. more of an issue for more people).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idli

Re: Indeed.

[capri0mni]

Or maybe "buffet"?

[monanotlisa]

That sounds great! Bookmarked. Thanks for sharing.

[bibliofile]

Is the buckwheat the lumps or the flour?

Sounds very tasty.