The ridiculous but true story behind these little gems: I first made them when we decided to sell our apartment in Paris years ago. I naively baked a batch on a cold wintery day filled with back to back visitors, hoping the tantalizing smell of spices would convert lookers into buyers (don’t laugh, the current owner first visited it that day!). Anyway, they happened to be absolutely delicious, so I carefully kept the recipe in my little pink book.
Over time, it when through a vegan, gluten and sugar free metamorphosis, which means they are suitable for everyone and still just as delicious: slightly crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside and bursting with spicy aromas, perfect for the holiday spirit. They take about 20 minutes to make and you know they are ready to take out of the oven when your entire place starts smelling like a bakery.
Note: Since getting a Vitamix blender, I make my own oat and quinoa flour. Just blend old fashioned oatmeal (or quinoa) at medium/high for a minute and you’ve got flour! Much cheaper and more available than the store-bought kind. These are also great flours to use when you want something with a bit more texture and wholesomeness than regular white gluten free flour.
Makes 9 big cookies or 18 small ones
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup gluten free oat flour
- 1/2 cup quinoa flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp powdered ginger
- 1 tsp powdered cinnamon
- 1 tsp powdered cardamom
- 1/2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
- 5 tbsp coconut oil (use a a brand that doesn’t taste or smell like coconut – I use Yasko)
- 4 tbsp molasses
- 2-3 tbsp water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F
- Mix all the dry ingredients together
- Add coconut oil, molasses and 2 tbsp water. Mix thoroughly with hands until the dough is sticky enough to form balls. Add an extra tbsp water if necessary.
- Form little balls – around 3cm in diameter – and flatten them in your hands until 1/2 – 1 cm thick
- Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes or until they get a dark golden color
- Take out of the oven and place on rack to let cool
