Chocolate Cherry Cookies {Gluten Free}

I love Christmas cookies and I love sharing them when people drop by to visit! With more and more people eating a gluten free diet for health reasons, I like to make sure that I have a few treats made for my gluten free friends and family that might pop by. This year I used my tried and true Chocolate Dream cookie recipe to whip up these cherry cookies....but with one simple change.

Williams Sonoma very kindly sent me a bag of their Cup 4 Cup Flour to try in some of my Christmas baking this year. I have never tried a gluten-fee flour alternative before, so I was intrigued to try out a new-to-me flour. To use Cup 4 Cup, you simply need to replace regular flour with an equal amount of Cup 4 Cup in the recipe to make it gluten free. Cup 4 Cup is a blend of rice flours and cornstarch and is recommended as a gluten-free replacement for all purpose flour for baking in quick breads, scones, muffins, cookies and biscuits. So I put it to the test with a favourite chocolate cookie recipe.

Chocolate Cherry Cookies 

{makes 3-4 dozen}

Ingredients: 

2 1/4 cups cups Cup 4 Cup Flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips.

1 cup glazed red cherries, cut in half

Directions: 

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

1. COMBINE flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. 

2. Beat butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Beat in eggs for about 2 minutes or until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. Add cherry half to the top of each cookie.

2. BAKE for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are puffed. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. 

I found these cookies turned out great and there was no difference between using regular all-purpose flour and Cup 4 Cup flour in this recipe. The cookies were chewy on the oustide, soft on the inside and just as deliciously good! The kids thought so too!

And although we all taste-tested some from this batch of cookies, I did manage to put some away for Christmas visitors who may be dropping by in the next few days!

This same chocolate cookies recipe can also be used to make:

Peppermint Bark Cookies

How is your Christmas baking coming along?

Have you made any gluten-free treats this season?

Thank you so much to Williams Sonoma for providing me with Cup 4 Cup Flour for purposes of review. As always, I only work with brands/products that I use in my own home and all opinions are my own.

This post is linked to:
Inspire Me Please, I'm Lovin It, Inspiration Gallery, The Party Bunch, Link Party Palooza,

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

It will soon be strawberry season in many parts of Canada and I love strawberries in any form!  I created these delicious strawberry shortcake cookies as a finger food alternative to the traditional strawberry shortcake made with cake or biscuits. These are easy to make and easy to serve and have the lovely flavours of strawberry & whipped cream on a sugar cookie base.

To make this cookie, I used my grandmother`s sugar cookie recipe which I have shared on this blog before here, here and here. It`s an easy recipe which uses very basic ingredients.

 Sugar Cookies

{makes approx. 4 dozen}

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

4 tbsp. milk or cream

2 tsp. vanilla or orange flavouring

3 1/2 cups of flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon grated orange peel, optional

2 cups whipping cream + 1 tablespoon sugar

2 cups diced strawberries

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350. In large bowl, cream together butter & white sugar. Add eggs, milk and vanilla and mix well.

2. In medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until dough is formed.

4. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto cookies sheets. Press each cookie gently with your hand.

5. Bake 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are puffed up and edges are slightly golden.

6. Cool completely on wire racks.

7. Add the sugar to cream and whip until cream is stiff like frosting. Frost cookies with whipped cream. Sprinkle with diced strawberries & serve.

The cookies could be make ahead of time, and the whipped cream and strawberries could be added just before serving. The beauty of serving these cookies over traditional shortcake....no dirty dishes!

 This is such a wonderful treat to serve as a dessert for a summer BBQ or as a yummy with coffee.

If you would like to see some more of my homemade treats:

Chocolate Cake Hug In A Mug

15 Treats To Serve On The Porch With Coffee

Cherry Brownies

And these boards on Pinterest:

S`more Ideas To Love

Desserts To Love

Squares To Love

Thank you so much for visiting! 

Happy Baking!

This post is linked to these parties:
Somewhat Simple, Kitchen Fun With My 3 Sons, Design, Dining & Diapers, Becoming Martha, Tatertots and Jello, I Heart Naptime, What's Cooking With Ruthie, It's Overflowing, Under The Table & Dreaming, Uncommon Designs, StoneGable, Creative Home Expressions,Time To Sparkle, Chef-In-Training, Sugarbee Crafts, The 36th Avenue, I Gotta Create, StoneGable, Becoming Martha, Whipperberry, Under The Table & Dreaming,Not  Just A Housewife, Home Stories A To Z, Fun In The Sun, 

Poinsettia Cookies...

Welcome to Day 2 of Christmas Cookie Week!

Today I am sharing a delightful little poinsettia cookie that is created on top of an easy drop sugar cookie.

The sugar cookie recipe is one of my tried & true recipes...just dressed up for a special occasion.

This cookies takes a little patience to decorate, but the pretty sure does make up for the extra effort!

And be sure to head over to my friend Grace's blog, Sense & Simplicity, to see what she has in store for you today!

 

 

Sugar Cookies

{makes approx. 4 dozen}

 

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

4 tbsp. milk or cream

2 tsp. vanilla

3 1/2 cups of flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

 

To Decorate:

2 cups of your favourite white frosting, or purchase white frosting

candied red cherries, cut into slivers

candied green cherries, chopped small

 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350. In large bowl, cream together butter & white sugar. Add eggs, milk and vanilla and mix well.

 

2. In medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.

 

3. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until dough is formed.

 

4. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto cookies sheets. Press each cookie gently with fork.

 

5. Bake 6-10 minutes, or until cookies are puffed up and edges are slightly golden.

 

6.  Cool completely on wire racks.

 

7. Frost cookies with white frosting. Add 5 slivers of red candied cherry to each cookie to make poinsettia. Add chopped green cherry to center.

 

These pretty poinsettia cookies would be so pretty for a Christmas tea or luncheon, and would also make a lovely star attraction on any cookie platter!

 

If you would like to see the Christmas Cookie from Day 1 of Christmas Cookie Week, please go here.

 

 

This post is linked these great parties: Beauty and Bedlam, The DIY Dreamer, Lil Luna, Uncommon,
Savy Southern Style, Gingersnap Crafts, Clean & Scentsible, Sweet Boutique, Someday Crafts,
Chef in Training, Tatertots and Jello, Six Sisters Stuff, It's Overflowing, I Heart Naptime, Positively Splendid, Under the Table & Dreaming, Craft-O-Maniac, Home Stories A to Z, Cozy Little House, Dixie N Dottie, Someday Crafts, 52 Mantels, Stone Gable, 36th Avenue, Frugal Girls, Tidy Mom, Craftberry Bush, Poofy Cheeks, Today's Creative Blog, Inside Bru Crew Life, 33 Shades of Green, Skip To My Lou,  Not Just A Housewife, Project Inspire, Setting For Four, Aalderberry Hill,
Between Naps on the Porch, Somewhat Simple,

Back To School Breakfast Cookies...

Who doesn't love a cookie for breakfast?

You won't feel guilty giving your family these cookies...chock full of good stuff that will taste great with a glass of milk and fill a tummy.

I like them because they are not overly sweet, and are also a nice soft, moist cookie.

My husband and daughter like them, but my son is not crazy about them because they are not a 'chocolate chip' cookie, which is his idea of a 'cookie breakfast'. Ha!

They also freeze very well and make a great breakfast on a the run!

{And see those adorable little looseleaf/notebook looking treat bags? Greenmunch sent those to me to try out....love those people! You can find these perfect little bags for back-to-school treats here, along with a gazillion other adorable things like striped straws.}

Breakfast Cookie

{This recipe comes from the Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation}

{makes 30 cookies}

These cookies are packed with protein, fibre and heart-healthy canola oil, nuts and seeds that will keep you fuelled until lunchtime. Add a piece of fruit and a yogurt and you have a complete breakfast. These cookies can be stored in the freezer for up to two weeks. Just pull one out the night before to let it defrost.

Ingredients
1½ cups (375 ml) brown sugar

2 cups (500 ml) quick oats

3 cups (750 ml) all purpose flour

1 tbsp (15 ml) baking soda

1 tsp (5 ml) baking powder

1 tsp (5 ml) ground ginger

1/2 tsp (2 ml) ground cloves

1/3 cup (85 ml) ground flax

1/3 cup (85 ml) ground almonds {I used chia seeds}

1/3 cup (85 ml) wheat germ

1/4 cup (50 ml) canola oil

1/2 cup (125 ml) applesauce

1/4 cup (50 ml) water

3 eggs

1 1/2 tsp (7.5 ml) vanilla extract

1 cup (250 m) golden raisins {I used craisins}

Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C). Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2.In a large bowl mix together sugar, oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, cloves, flax, almonds and wheat germ.

3.Make a well in the centre and add canola oil, applesauce, water, eggs and vanilla. Mix until well blended.

4.Stir in raisins.

5.Scoop out golf ball sized cookies onto cookie sheets. Flatten with the back of a spoon. These cookies do not spread when baked.

6. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven.

7.Once the cookies have cooled, individually wrap the batch and freeze for a quick fix in the morning.

Nutritional information per serving :(1 cookie)   Calories: 159

So, if you are looking for a great breakfast on the run, or a terrific recess or mid-morning snack,

these cookies get hight marks for nutrition and the best of homemade convenience.

Have  a lovely weekend!

This post is linked to these great parties:

Under The Table & Dreaming, 

Our Family's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's a right of passage that almost every family, at one time or another, declares a certain recipe their 'favourite cookie' recipe...you know....the one that everyone likes and that Mom {or Dad} gets asked for over and over again.

The cookie that the children's friends ask for.

The cookie that disappears in nary a blink of an eye.

For our family, like many others, it is the chocolate chip.

And again, if you are going to take the time to make cookies, I have these 3 tips for you.

Real butter.

Real sugar.

Real vanilla.

Quality ingredients make a quality product.

Real butter you say? Isn't it full of of saturated fat?

Yes it is.

But if you remember Julia Child and have read any of her books or watched her now famous tv shows...you know that she ate copious amounts of butter, and yet she lived to be 92 years old.

So that's what I am going with people....real food does not kill you!
These cookies only take about 10 minutes to mix up...and little ones love to help with dumping in the ingredients and helping to crack the eggs.
Both my children can now make these on their own, but they still prefer Mom to do it!
Something about 'Mom's cookies' tasting the best.

 Our Family's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 1/2 cups butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3.5 cups flour
1 teapsoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda.
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

To make: Cream together butter,white sugar and brown sugar with mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla. Mix well.
In separate bowl, mix together flour, salt & baking soda. Add flour mixture to butter/sugar mixture. {Not all at once or you will have a big white cloud!} Mix for about 2 minutes. Add chocolate chips and mix until just spread out evenly in batter.
Scoop onto cookie sheets with small cookie scoop or teaspoon.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes.
Remove from oven when cookies are just barely brown around the edges and puffed up.
Let cool. The cookies will sink a little as they cool...this is good!
It means that the texture will be soft and chewy.
Makes 4 dozen.

My kid's adore these cookies.
Their friends adore these cookies
Recently, each child had a friend over for Saturday night dinner at our house.
And although I tried not to count {wink}, I noticed each visitor ate 5 cookies...before my kids told them that was enough!
Ha!
 {I sent each child home with a bag of cookies....cause that's just the Mom I am!}

This post is linked to these great parties: