Chocolate cookies not to feel guilty about

Another weakness of mine is cookies.

They don’t have to be double or triple chocolate. Just plain ol’chocolate chip cookies. I do like oatmeal cookies too, oh and caramel ones! Mmm. Have you tried those Rolo cookies for like £1 in Sainsburys? Scrummy! Though of course, if like me, you’re not fond of sharing your food, five cookies doesn’t seem to last long for one person. And that really isn’t healthy.

But sometimes I just can’t help myself, and I end up feeling guilty for eating them. I don’t want to feel guilty. I want to feel as good as I feel when they gooey chocolate middle of the cookie meets my mouth. But alas, not everything in life can be both good and guilt-free.

That’s what I thought until I came across this recipe for Paleo chocolate chip cookies. Flourless. Sugarless and guilt-less (as long as you don’t eat them all in one sitting!). These bad boys are so unbelievably easy to make and also easy to adapt if you don’t like certain ingredients, or want to add extra. When I made these I added some cranberries in the mix which came out scrumptious. I also added some flaxseed (substituted 1/2 cup ground almonds) to bulk out the cookies.

Ingredients:

3 cups ground almonds*

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1/2 cup raw honey (I had to melt this because someone had left it in the fridge!)

2 large eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract (I used almond extract instead because I didn’t have any vanilla)

1 and 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips/pieces

1/4 cup cranberries/nuts (or any other ingredients you want to add)

*I wanted to use some flaxseed in the cookies, so I used 2 and 1/2 cups of ground almonds and 1/2 cup of flaxseed

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F (190 celsius)

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix. Leave to the side.

4. In a medium mixing bowl, beat the eggs, honey, vanilla extract (or almond) with a handmixer or whisk.

5. Gradually mix the wet and dry ingredients together in a bowl and beat with a fork or mixer until well combined.

6. Add the melted coconut oil and continue to mix. Stir in the chocolate (and any other ingredients)

7. Drop tablespoon-size balls of cookie dough onto the parchment paper (I made eight big cookies, feel free to make more smaller ones)

8. Bake for 8-10 minutes (keep an eye on them to brown but not to burn)

See, easy peasy. Just like the other random recipes I’ve tried out recently: Chocolate and sweet potato brownies, Chocolate and beetroot cake, and flourless Focaccia bread.

Have a go and let me what you think.

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