Finally Cookies

Do you know how good a butter cookie can be?  The kind made with real butter and confectioners sugar that just melt in your mouth?  What does a person like me do when butter and confectioners sugar are both on the no list?  You keep altering recipes until you make one that works.

That's what we have here...  Finally.  Vegan butter cookies that melt in your mouth.

1/2 cup softened Earth Balance stick margarine
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup GF baking mix
Pinch of salt
1-2 tablespoons vanilla soymilk
More sugar for pressing

Beat the margarine and sugar until light.  Add the baking mix and salt.   The dough may be dry.  Add the soymilk a little at a time to bring the dough together.  It should be moist but not loose.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for an hour at least or longer.  I baked off just enough dough to satisfy our craving and saved more dough for another day.

Preheat oven to 350.  Place about 1/2 cup sugar on a small plate.  Using Sugar in the Raw here or other large granules looks pretty.  Colored sugars....  So pretty!

Grab about 1/2" of dough at a time. Roll in a tight ball. Flatten slightly with your palms.  Gently press both sides of the cookie into the sugar. Place onto cookie sheet lined with parchment (or no parchment gold touch pan).

Using a fork, poke holes in the tops of the cookies. This keeps them crispy by allowing steam to escape.  Bake for 8 minutes, rotating the pan after 3-1/2 minutes.

Allow to cool on pan for 2 minutes before removing.

Salmon On The Fly

Bub and I stopped at Trader Joe's for some of Jen's favorite gluten free pasta and decided to build a cart of dinner fixings for him and his old man.

We decided that is was a good time for him to try and reintroduce zucchini into his diet too.  Summer is an excellent time for non-anaphylactic foods to be challenged.   Easy to stay home with stomach reactions and nice to stay home with skin reactions.

Salmon fillets
Bragg Liquid Aminos
Black pepper
Olive oil
Ginger
Zucchini, washed and sliced however you desire (rounds, strips, cubes)

Preheat oven to 425 and lay out some large sheets of aluminum foil (one for each fillet and an extra for more zucchini).  Place your fillets (mine were frozen, skin on) in the center of the foil.  Drizzle some olive oil and Bragg's over the top.  Sprinkle with black pepper and a little ginger.

Toss the zucchini you've washed and sliced in olive oil and salt.  Place them on top of the salmon.

Make nice tight foil packages out of  them, sealing the top first then the sides.

Bake, from frozen, for about 35 minutes.  Probably less time if thawed.

Open your little packages of deliciousness and enjoy with a little rice.

Super Banana Pancakes

Super moist.  Sweet without syrup.  Great with peanut butter between them.  Score another one for Meatless Monday.

2 cups GF baking mix
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
Dash of salt
2 really ripe bananas
1-1/2 cups warmed vanilla Soymilk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl.  In a smaller bowl,  smash the bananas with a fork.  Add the warmed Soymilk and the oil.  Mix well.

Add to the dry ingredients and whisk just until all dry ingredients are moist.

Pour onto a griddle preheated to 375.  I put chocolate chips on some while the first side cooked.

Going Fast... Made Faster Flourless Cookies

These are really easy and fast to make and didn't last long at my house!

There are a lot of flourless cookies out there but this is my first time making any.   Since my go to flour is white rice mixed with some starches, it isn't all that good for you.  To be honest, I've been avoiding eating baked goods unless for a special occasion.  Jennie turned me on to looking into flourless cookies!  Smartie!

Here is a treat that is a cross between a cookie and a candy that isn't overly sweet and that uses no flour or margarine or oil.

I decided to try some freshly ground peanut butter for this recipe for a little texture.  I've been wanting to give this a challenge for a bit now and thought this was a good way to do it.

1 cup nut butter of your choice
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Dash of salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons vanilla Soymilk

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix all ingredients together in food processor.  Form into 3/4" balls and place on cookie sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes.  Allow to cool on pan.

This is a fudgy, moist cookie with great "Reese's" flavor.

The dough is seriously good before it's baked too and would be great simply dipped in chocolate like truffles too.