chocolate pecan cookies (grain-free, paleo, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, refined-sugar free)

Stop what you're doing right now. Yes, it's one of those recipes. One of those get-in-to-your-kitchen-right-now-and-bake-these recipes. 

Story time! I've been doing a lot of baking for charity lately, so when my dad walked in the other day and saw these cookies all prettily laid out, he said that he assumed they were for a charity bake sale and nabbed one. I was out shopping at the time, and he actually called me up to tell me how delicious they were. All right, he also wanted some more beer, but still. This is coming from a McDonald's loving, Starbucks-card-holding, gluten-craving grown man. Baby steps. 

Oh yeah, there's a reason the recipe makes thirty-six cookies. The nutrition bumf? 83 calories, 7g of fat per cookie with the pretty pecan half, 56 calories, 4g fat without it. That's a bargain if you ask me!

I'm really struggling to adequately describe these. Fudgy yet crispy, dark yet light, rich yet airy. By the way, your mixture should be mixed by now, yes? Yes. Enjoy!

Chocolate Pecan Cookies

by Alessandra Peters

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Keywords: gluten-free soy-free vegan sugar-free paleo dairy-free grain-free egg-free

6046564

Ingredients (36 cookies)

• 200g almond flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch salt
• 60g cocoa powder
• 125ml pure maple syrup
• 125ml vegetable oil
• 36 pecan halves

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Arrange the pecan halves on a baking sheet, then toast for 10 minutes until golden.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Add in the maple syrup and oil, then stir until everything is very well combined.

3. Using a small ice cream scoop, melon baller, or teaspoon, drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture on to lined baking sheets. Press a pecan half on to each cookie.

4. Bake for 7-8 minutes, let cool slightly, and enjoy!

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hummus (gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, paleo, grain-free, soy-free)

I grew up in the Middle East, so hummus with khubz and tzatziki with some kebab were my equivalent of McDonald's until the ripe old age of 13, coincidentally also when I discovered my Coeliac - I've only had McD's about four times in my entire life, and I'm so glad about that!

Authentic hummus with freshly baked khubz is reminiscent of some of my happiest memories, so recreating it is no simple task.

The oil gives it a very authentic look (and taste), but if you're trying to keep your calories controlled, it's delicious without as well.

Don't worry, there's no fancy cooking business involved here - as long as you have a partially functioning food processor, you'll be fine.

This hummus was 'mmm'-inducing all around our dinner table which is quite a feat considering each of our very different palates - I hope you'll enjoy it too.

Hummus

by Alessandra Peters

Prep Time: 10 minutes

6046531

Ingredients (serves 8-10)

• - 60ml water
• - 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• - 60ml tahini, stirred well
• - 2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• - 450g canned chickpeas, rinsed
• - 1 garlic clove, minced
• - 1 tsp salt
• - 1/2 tsp pepper
• - 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• - pinch cayenne pepper

Instructions

Combine water and lemon juice & set aside. In a second bowl, combine tahini and oil. Process chickpeas, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, and cayenne for 30 seconds. With food processor running, slowly pour in water mixture and process for about 1 minute. Again, with food processor running, add in tahini mixture slowly and process for about 30 seconds. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to meld flavours. Serve and enjoy!

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