GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES
American-style GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES
Do you know those American cookies with giant chocolate chips, the ones you see in movies or displayed in bakery windows?
My family adores them and I often make them in a chocolate version too (if you want to try it click here COOKIE GIGANTE triple CHOCOLATE)
The other day I made them and, since some of my son’s friends had come over to study, I offered them around.
That’s how I casually discovered one of them is gluten intolerant and I felt really bad I couldn’t let him taste one, especially after he confessed he loved them, even if he usually eats the packaged ones.
Well, I promised to make it up to him with a surprise next time and… if you’re here I’d say the result was more than satisfactory — so much so that I decided to publish the recipe.
Today we’ll see together how to make gluten-free chocolate chip cookies: a super simple recipe that requires no special skills or equipment: just a bowl and a spatula, and a few precautions.
With the quantities given you’ll get about twelve giant gluten-free cookies, but you can make them smaller — in that case the baking time will of course be shorter.
Finally a gluten-free recipe that has nothing to envy from the traditional one; proof of that: the first time I made them nobody noticed I had changed the recipe!
You’ll love them for their crunchy edges and soft, moist interior: like American cookies they don’t break but bend and are perfect for breakfast or a delicious snack.
AMERICAN GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Low cost
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 12 giant cookies
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Energy 339.11 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 45.31 (g) of which sugars 25.05 (g)
- Proteins 4.88 (g)
- Fat 16.45 (g) of which saturated 8.35 (g)of which unsaturated 5.44 (g)
- Fibers 3.50 (g)
- Sodium 150.78 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 75 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE THE GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES
- 2 1/2 cups gluten-free baking flour mix (gluten-free cake flour mix (approx. 300 g))
- 2/3 cup butter
- 1/2 packed cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar (white)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 egg (whole, cold from the fridge)
- Half teaspoon baking soda
- 1 egg yolk (cold from the fridge)
- 1 cup gluten-free dark chocolate chips
- 1 oz salted roasted peanuts (or roasted hazelnuts – optional)
Tools
- 2 Bowls
- 2 Spoons
- Baking sheet
HOW TO MAKE GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES
Melt the butter in the microwave or in a bain-marie and let it cool slightly. Then put both sugars in a bowl, pour the cooled but still-liquid butter over them and beat with an electric whisk or by hand. Add the whole egg, the yolk and the vanilla extract and continue beating until the mixture becomes light and creamy. In a separate bowl mix the gluten-free flour mix with the baking soda, then sift it into the butter and sugar mixture prepared earlier.
Stir with a spoon and then with your hands, since the dough will reach a fairly firm consistency, until it is perfectly combined. Finally fold in the chocolate chips and, if you like, the roasted peanuts or hazelnuts. Now you are ready to shape the GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES and bake them.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and start shaping the cookies. To make them uniform and easily portioned I use an ice cream scoop: it works perfectly as a measure (HERE’S THE TIP!). Form many balls and place them well spaced on the sheet (about 2 inches apart). Do NOT press the balls down; they will flatten on their own during baking.
If you don’t have an ice cream scoop, use two regular tablespoons to form quenelles and place them on the sheet. With the scoop and this dough I normally make 12 giant American gluten-free cookies. Chill the baking sheet with the cookies in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes before baking. The thermal shock helps achieve an optimal result and prevents the cookies from “spreading” too much while baking.
After resting, bake the gluten-free COOKIES in a preheated static (conventional) oven at 338°F for about 15–17 minutes. Baking times are indicative and depend on the oven and the size of the cookies. Check them after 12 minutes and bake until the edges are lightly golden.
It’s normal for them to be still soft right out of the oven; for this reason do not remove them from the baking sheet until they have completely cooled. Here are your GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES!
NOTES & TIPS
CHILLING: Chilling in the refrigerator is important for this recipe — don’t skip it: it firms the butter again and gives the cookies the right texture and crispness during baking. You should wait at least twenty minutes, but you can also prepare them the day before and bake them the next morning.
BAKING: Baking times are indicative and may vary by 1–2 minutes depending on cookie size and oven type. Consider them done when the edges are nicely golden but the centers are still soft. They will firm up as they cool.
GLUTEN-FREE AND LACTOSE-FREE: For a lactose-intolerant friendly version, just use lactose-free butter and lactose-free chocolate chips.
CHOCOLATE: If you prefer, you can substitute the dark chocolate chips with milk chocolate or white chocolate chips.
PEANUTS: Adding peanuts is completely optional, although they add extra crunch to the COOKIES. If you don’t like peanuts you can easily replace them with other nuts such as hazelnuts, almonds or walnuts.
STORAGE
Warning: these giant gluten-free cookies are delicious and I doubt you’ll have any left, but if you have great willpower you can store them for a few days in a cookie tin or an airtight container.
You can also freeze them raw. One tip is to shape the dough balls, place them in a container and freeze. When you’re ready to bake, remove the container and leave it at room temperature for about twenty minutes, then bake as described in the recipe.
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OTHER GLUTEN-FREE DESSERTS
GLUTEN-FREE PLUMCAKE with CHOCOLATE CHIPS
COOKIE GIGANTE triple CHOCOLATE
