Blueberry Lemon Cookies (Grain and Gluten Free, GAPS)

        I just thought I'd share with you a delicious recipe that I concocted a few weeks ago. It is, as the title informs you, for cookies, but the best part is, they have no grain at all! And they still taste great!

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups blanched almond flour (I made my own; see below)
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• zest from 2 large-ish lemons
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
• 5 tablespoons melted coconut oil or butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup dried blueberries (see below)

Mix all ingredients together. The dough should be firm and sticky. Form into cookies (makes about twelve small or nine large), and bake at 350 degrees for fifteen minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Cool for about five minutes so they don't fall apart when you try to eat them, and then devour savor each bite. 

        I made rather large cookies this time:

         About the almond flour. I refuse to buy blanched almond flour from the store; it is SO expensive! The way I make it, it doesn't turn out quite as fine and takes quite a bit of effort, but still works. Here's how:

• Soak three cups of almonds in water overnight - I dissolve two teaspoons of salt in the water to pull the phytic acid from the almonds as well.
• In the morning, rinse the almonds well until the water coming out runs clear.
• Peel the skins off of each almond. This will take a while, so maybe put on a TV show or something.
• Grind up the skinless (blanched) almonds in a food processor. Try to get the pieces as small as possible. The blade in ours is rather dull, so it is hard for me to get it really fine.
• Spread the wet almond flour on a dehydrator mat and dehydrate on 150 degrees for eight hours or until completely dry and crispy
• Use in baking!

        About the blueberries. Again, I am not going to buy the fancy dried blueberries that are soft and tender and full of sugar. So, I make my own (surprise)!

• Get a dehydrator mat and put some aluminum foil over the top. Then put down a paper towel.
• Pour about 1 1/2 cups of frozen blueberries onto the paper towel and make sure they are spread out. 
• Dehydrate at whatever temperature you want until they are almost dry but not crispy. They should still be chewy and a bit moist. I think I did mine at 135 degrees for about seven hours. 
• Bake cookies or use in trail mix!

        I hope you enjoy this recipe! We eat mostly grain-free and this is one of our favorite treats.

Blessings,

Reyna