Coconut Creams...

Remember these biscuits from your childhood? Crispy biscuit base with spongy coconut marshmallow on top? Those Coconut Cream biscuits were always one of my favourites.... Logical step? To make them healthier and share the recipe!

If you remember, the marshmallow came in either pink or white... I always chose the pink one! Instead of using a chemical food dye to create a pink shade, I used raspberries to create a natural colour.

I know a lot of you will look at the ingredients for these biscuits and almost be scared away by the inclusion of gelatin. If you have never worked with it, there's a few things to keep in mind or it won't set or will set in a hard lump instead.... It's honestly really straight forward so just do as you're told and it'll work perfectly!

For the biscuit base I reused the recipe from my Chocolate Heart Cookies... Once you have made & chilled the dough, cut out round biscuits and bake as directed. Set aside to cool while you make the topping.

For the raspberry marshmallow topping: 

• 3 egg whites
• 2 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 sachet Gelatin powder
• 50g frozen raspberries
• 3 tbsp water

To coat:

• 100g unsweetened dessicated coconut

Place raspberries & water into the microwave for 20 seconds at a time. Stir and mash in between each 20 second burst until the raspberries are softened, broken up and the mixture is steaming.

Pour the gelatin powder over the top of the hot raspberry mixture and set aside to dissolve. It's really important to pour the gelatin onto the liquid and not the other way around or you'll end up with a hard lump. Also make sure the liquid is steaming hot (not boiling) before adding the gelatin or it won't dissolve fully.

Next add the egg whites, honey & vanilla to a heatproof bowl over gently simmering water.

Whisk the mixture constantly until it forms stiff glossy peaks. (If you don't whisk constantly, you'll end up with scrambled egg whites). This should take about 5 minutes.

At this stage, your gelatin should have dissolved, cooled and will be ready to use. It's important that both the gelatin mix & the egg white mixture are approx the same temperature, otherwise the gelatin will set too quickly and form strings... The egg white mixture will be warm, just make sure the gelatin has cooled sufficiently.. 

Add the gelatin mixture to the egg white gradually, whisking constantly. I recommend pouring the gelatin in a slow, steady stream. Once fully combined, you can stop whisking.

Using a piping bag or a dessert spoon add a generous amount of marshmallow topping to your prepared cookies.

Once you have used all the mixture, coat the topping evenly with dessicated coconut.

Set aside to firm up, this should take less than an hour.

I've gotta say, I was pretty delighted with how these biscuits turned out. They looked & most importantly tasted like (better than) the originals, and when I see people who usually go for sugary snacks reaching out for a 2nd and 3rd biscuit with their coffee, I know I've done something right!

I really hope you try these & that you enjoy them. There's only a few things to remember when it comes to gelatin so follow my instructions and they'll be perfect! 

Walnut Chunk Cookies...

Everyone loves cookies! These cookies are everything you could ask for... they're chewy in the centre, crunchy on the outside & have chunks of rich dark chocolate & walnuts. You would never guess there was no bad stuff in them.... 

I love sharing recipes like this, I hope it goes some way towards showing you that you really don't need to buy processed foods if you're having a snack.. Trust me, once you get into the kitchen you'll wonder why you never took more of an interest in cooking...

I always try to use commonly used ingredients to spare the expense of buying something new for just 1 tsp in a recipe... however I do recommend buying the walnut oil for these cookies as it adds an amazing rich nutty flavour to the cookies. Walnut oil is great for salad dressings AND I'll be using it in a carrot cake recipe which will be posted soon! 

For the cookies:

• 50g unsalted butter, melted
• 4 tbsp walnut oil 
• 3 tbsp Irish honey
• 1 tsp orange zest
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200g ground almonds
• 3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 50g chopped walnuts
• 50g chopped chocolate (I used 81% cocoa solids) 

Mix the melted butter, oil, orange zest and honey together until combined. 

Whisk in egg and vanilla. 

Finally mix the dry ingredients in gently. Don't over-mix as this will give you a dry cookie. 

Allow to chill for 30 minutes in the fridge. 

To bake:

Preheat oven to 160d (fan oven).

Roll tbsp size balls of dough with your hands, and flatten gently. 

Place on a non stick baking tray. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes until pale golden. Keep an eye on the cookies to make sure they don't over-bake as they'll burn & become very hard quite quickly. 

Cool for a couple of minutes on the baking tray to allow the cookies to firm up a bit. Remove and allow to cool fully on a wire rack. 

Brookies!!

Thanks to Aimee for the name! Part cookie, and part brownie these grain & refined sugar free Brookies are the ultimate in healthy greed!!

The base is a delicious chewy chocolate chip cookie, and the topping a rich fudgy brownie... You can't decide if you want a cookie or a brownie? Thank GLBTK for these awesome Brookies!

The best part? They're made using recipes I've already shared! With a little imagination you can adapt all my recipes to change flavours and keep things varied... or you can wait for me to do it for you!

To make the Brookies:

So for the cookie base, I used this Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe... they're pretty awesome when made as cookies too!

Start by preheating the oven to 160d (fan). Line 7" square tin with baking parchment.

Make the cookie dough as per the recipe (I used Cacao Nibs).

Set aside to chill while you prepare the brownie batter. I just used the brownie part of this recipe (ie. without the cheesecake topping).

To assemble:

Press the chilled cookie dough into an even layer in the base of the prepared tin.

Top with the brownie batter and spread evenly.

Bake for 15-20 minutes (this really depends on your oven). You'll know the Brookies are baked when they are firm with a slight wobble in the centre. They will continue to cook a little from the heat of the tin once removed. Don't leave them as underbaked as you would with brownies or the gooey chocolate will seep into the biscuit base making it soft.

Set aside to cool before cutting into bitesize squares.

These are about as indulgent as it gets! Serious awesomeness right here!

Jammie Dodgers...

Lately I'm getting lots of requests to recreate all sorts of savoury meals, cakes and cookies without grains and refined sugars.. I'm always happy to oblige, so if you have any special requests let me know on the Facebook page...

Today's recipe is for my health-ified Jammie Dodgers....They're pretty awesome, jam packed with flavour and full of ingredients which won't undo all your hard work.

These cookies use the same base cookie dough recipe as these Chocolate Heart Cookies.

For the jam filling:

• 150g frozen raspberries
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp Irish honey (if you would prefer a sweeter filling)

Place the frozen berries, vanilla and lemon juice in a saucepan. 

Bring to a rolling boil for 2-3 minutes, lower the heat and allow to simmer and thicken for up to 10 minutes. You will know the 'jam' is ready when it is thick and syrup-like. 

Stir in honey (if desired), set aside to cool. 

For the cookies:

Prepare the cookie dough as per instruction in the above link.

Preheat oven to 160d (fan oven).

Once the dough is chilled, roll out on baking parchment. 

Using a cookie cutter (I used small flower shaped cutters for this), cut out 24 cookies. 

Take a smaller cookie cutter, remove the centre of 12 of the cookies to create the top for the biscuits. 

Place shapes on baking tray & bake for approx 10 minutes (until firm & pale golden). 

Allow to cool on a wire rack. 

To assemble the cookies:

Sandwich the cookies together with some of the cooled filling. 

Everyone will love these cookies & they're a great way to get children into the kitchen to help.... they'll love learning about baking :) 

Chocolate Heart Cookies...

It's almost Valentines Day... that can only mean one thing... overpriced chocolates, flowers and overcrowded restaurants...

How about staying in? Stay in together & cook a nice meal TOGETHER... Spending time with someone is the best gift you can give them. I know a few of my close friends are probably laughing at that statement... I like nice things, you might be forgiven for thinking I'm materialistic... I'm really not... I appreciate the small gestures far more, and over the past while it's been the moments I've just been spending time with people and chatting that I value the most... 

If I haven't convinced you that cooking is therapeutic yet, try it... pick a main course & dessert from the blog (everything is simple, but delicious), get supplies, cook dinner & spend the evening together... Chat, eat, have a laugh... build a fort and hide from the storm (she really doesn't want to pay a fortune to get her hair done only to look like a wind-swept ball of fuzz after stepping outside the door)... 

You'll be needing a biscuit with your coffee.... what could be better than these really simple chocolate coated cookies... Guys, these are simple to make... and women are saps... we'll think you're brilliant for baking us cookies! 

• 200g almond flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 2 tbsp raw Irish honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp water

Add all the ingredients to a bowl.

Mix until well combined. Depending on the type of almond flour you're using, the mixture may look a little dry, if so add another tsp of water. You're looking for a firm dough. 

Place in the fridge to chill for 20 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 160d (fan).

Once chilled, roll out the dough to approx 1/2 inch thickness between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper. 

Using any shape cookie cutters you like, cut the dough into shapes & place on a non stick baking tray. 

Bake for 9-12 minutes until slightly golden. Keep an eye on them as they go from underdone to charcoal pretty quickly... 

Allow to cool on a wire rack. 

You can eat these cookies as they are, or coat in melted chocolate... remember the higher the cocoa content of the chocolate, the lower the sugar content! Or you could out this Paleo friendly chocolate yourself..

Simple, tasty biscuits that anyone can make.. children will love cutting these cookies into different shapes... give it a go! 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I must admit, I've experimented lots with grain free cookies, but they've always fallen short of expectations.. I blame coconut flour. As much as I love the coconut flavour it gives food, I absolutely hate the way it tends to dry out recipes and leaves food a little grey..

These cookies are really nice, they're crunchy & a little chewy at the same time... You do need a little bit of time on your hands though since you'll need to chill the dough for a few hours to allow them to firm up. It's worth the wait!

• 60g coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp organic vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp raw organic honey
• 1 egg
• 175g ground almonds
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 50g chopped Paleo friendly chocolate or any chocolate with a high cocoa solid content... 

Start by beating the melted coconut oil, vanilla, honey & egg together until well combined.

Next, add the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

That's it!... Best & easiest recipe ever!!! Leave the cookie dough in the fridge for 2-3 hours. This allows the coconut oil to harden, giving you a firm dough. If you skip this step, you will have greasy cookies.... don't say I didn't warn you....

Once the cookies are chilled, take generous teaspoon size mounds of dough and roll into balls.

Place on a non stick baking tray, and flatten gently with your finger tips. The cookies only spread a tiny bit, so don't worry about leaving much room between them.

Bake for 10-12 minutes at 160d (fan oven), until the cookies are firm & golden brown.

Allow to cool on the baking tray, or just eat them warm...You can freeze the dough too, but I know you're not going to do that!