Eggless Chocolate chip Walnut cookies - Happy Birthday Amma

I am guilty of not being the first person to wish Amma today. I wish I had. I know she does not expect anything from anyone, and she probably does not even care for such days.
And she is not going to be too thrilled for announcing this day on my blog :)
I know, and yet it makes me smile.
This cookie I baked today is just for her. She only has one criteria when it comes to eating what I make... it has to be completely vegetarian. No eggs, no fancy ingredients, just keeping it plain and simple. Just finished baking these, and let out a sigh of relief when she said she liked it.
Thank you for letting me make these for you today. You deserve much more than just cookies.
Happy Birthday Amma.

Chocolate chip cookies are one of the most comforting cookies that you could ever find. Making it eggless was a little challenging for I was afraid how it was going to affect the texture of the cookies. I have used flax as a substitute for egg in my breads and they have turned out nicely. So took that hint and ran with it this time. I avoided using any hearty flour like whole wheat or oat flour since I was already experimenting sans eggs.
I could not have hoped for a better tasting cookie. Loved the texture (which is crisp) and the no-fuss recipe... goes down in my book as a success.



Eggless Chocolate chip Walnut cookies

Ingredients:

All purpose flour - 1 3/4 cup
Unsalted Butter - 1 stick
Brown Sugar - 1/2 cup (I added a little less, probably close to 1/3 cup)
White Sugar - 1/2 cup (Again I added a little closer to 1/3 cup)
Pure vanilla extract - 1 tbsp
Baking soda -1/2 tsp
Flax meal - 2 tsp (mixed with enough warm water to form a paste)
Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup
Walnuts - 1/2 cup

Method:

Cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy using a hand mixer.
Add the flax meal paste, vanilla and baking soda and beat well.
Add the flour in three parts, mixing well after each addition.
After all the ingredients are well combined, add the chocolate chips and walnuts and mix with a wooden spoon.

The dough will be pretty thick, roll it into balls and flatten them out evenly. They spread slightly, so leave 2" between them before baking.

Bake at 350F for about 12-15 min or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy with a tall glass of milk.

Yields: 20-24 medium size cookies

Almond and Yogurt Flatbread cookies

Last few weeks have been pretty eventful. I hardly have had time to think about cooking or blogging, I wouldn't complain or trade these days for anything else. It is all good!
So, today we have a flatbread cookie made with some yogurt, whole wheat and my favorite thing to include in cookies - Almonds. My love for the taste and texture of cookies with almonds has exponentially grown ever since I made Eggless Almond and Oats Cookie. It was/is a huge huge hit, and I now continue to make it for my friends and family. I haven't gotten a negative feedback till date. One cookie that I will never stop making!

This flatbread cookie is nothing like I have ever made so far. I saw a recipe in a book which I remembered and tried to make something similar. It does not have a very strong sweet or savory taste to it, which makes it ideal for pairing with a sweet fruit preserve or maybe head along the path of some salty garlicky butter.
Considering the addict I am for anything sweet, I spread some raspberry preserves and devoured them without a second thought. Even if you are not someone who bakes cookies at home, with a few simple ingredients this is one recipe where you can't really go wrong.
One wouldn't think Almonds and yogurt are something you put into a cookie dough together. It may sound odd but it would convert you the very minute you take a bite!



Almond and Yogurt Flatbread cookies

Ingredients:

Almond Meal - 1/3 cup
Plain Yogurt - 1/3 cup (I used low fat)
Whole wheat flour - 1/2 cup
Whole wheat pastry flour - 1/2 cup
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
Unsalted butter - 2 tbsp

Method:

Mix room temperature butter and yogurt well.

Sift flour, salt and baking soda and add to the yogurt mixture. Add almond meal and knead for about 10-15 min.
Let it rest for 5 minutes. Then, roll it out into a thin sheet using a rolling pin, say about 1/4" thickness.
Cut into squares and lay it on a greased cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 400F for about 7-8 min or until lightly golden.

It will firm up a little on cooling. Serve with your choice of butter or jam.
Never tried peanut butter on it... hmmm.

Roasted Carob Cookies with Walnut Meal and Oat Flour

Recipe Source: Some part of my head that still has some iota of creativity!
This is my own recipe. And I go "whoo hoo."



Do you believe in celebrating Mother's Day? Or do you think it is just another commercial gimmick for boosting sales of cards, flowers, chocolates and the likes?
Acknowledging a mother on one day of the year seems a little absurd, but then why not? I am glad someone thought about it! It is a sad thing that we need to set just one day apart for a selfless soul, but if that gets the deed done... I am all for it.
After all, that is one soul that never stops loving you, no matter what.
Nothing or nobody replaces a mother. Ever.

This is my second cookie on my blog. I am not the organized kind that could sit down write a recipe, and then follow it to the T. I baked these cookies with what I had and what I liked, and it turned out just perfect. Since it is my own recipe, it is kind of very near and dear to my heart.

Carob powder is used as a chocolate substitute, and is derived from the pods of the Carob tree. It is naturally fat free, and is also extremely bitter. So watch out. Adjust the quantity of the powder if you are particular about the sweetness. Coco powder should work fine too.
The one I used here is the roasted kind, and would be available at the speciality section at your grocery store.

Walnut meal is nothing but ground walnuts. I keep my whole walnuts stored away in the freezer. For this I used a blender to process them. While grinding, it turns from powder to a wet mass very quickly. Mine did, and I used it slightly wet. This should not pose a problem.

Oat flour that I used was pre-ground from the store and was very fine. I have noticed that if you need to reach that same texture with regular/quick cooking oats, then you need to grind it for a longer time and also sift it.



Roasted Carob Cookies with Walnut Meal and Oat flour

Ingredients:

Oat flour - 1 cup
Milk powder/Mava/Khoya powder - 1/2 cup
Roasted Carob powder - 3 tsp
Baking soda -1/4 tsp
Pure vanilla - 1 tbsp
Butter - 4 tbsp
Sugar - 4 tbsp
Walnut meal - 1/2 cup

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Using a hand mixer whip up butter, sugar and walnut meal.

Add vanilla.

In a separate bowl mix oat flour, baking soda, milk powder, and roasted carob powder.

To the wet ingredients slowly add the dry ingredients and mix well either using the hand mixer or a rubber spatula.

You should be able to form a ball with the dough.

Pinch off smaller rounds and roll them into small lime-sized balls and place them on a greased cookie sheet. Place them 2 inches apart. They will spread out.



Bake them for about 20-25 min or more. They will spread and crack on top. When they are crispy around the edges, remove and let cool on a cooling rack.
Temperature of your oven may vary, so please keep an eye on them after the 20 min mark.



Yields: 16-18 cookies depending on size.



Sending it off to
Jai and Bee's Click May 2009 - Cookies
Srivalli's Mithai Mela

Low fat Almond and Oats Cookie - Eggless

It is amazing that the amount of different varieties of cookies I make, and yet this is my first post on my blog under "Cookies"!
Yay! This day marks the creation of my new label!

And how did I land up on this one? The last place I would look to find a cookie recipe...when my hand reaches the trash can to toss something, nope, it is not yet inside it :) That would be gross!

Just when I was throwing away a plastic bag which previously contatined oat flour. My eyes grew wide and my hands trembled with excitement!
Well, not exactly... I just had to stare hard enough to read the recipe by itself, it was that small !
Yep, found this treasure right there. Lesson learnt.
So the next time look out for those recipes on those packages. You are bound to find something that interests you.

The recipe was in original not a very healthy one, had butter and sugar enough to make me sick. But with a little adjustments, I was able to turn them into the best cookies I have ever tasted! And healthy too.
Trust me on this one okay? I don't give my approval nod that easily, and I promise delight to those of you who care to try it.
It is not that difficult, so what are you waiting for?

Low fat Almond and Oats Cookie - Eggless

Ingredients:

Sifted oat flour - 1 1/4 cup (May substitute by grinding quick cooking oats, and sifting it if you dont have ready made oat flour on hand)
Almond meal - 1 cup (May substitute by grinding whole almonds into a powder)
Butter - 3-4 tbsp
Sugar - 4-5 tbsp (depending on your sweetness level)
Pure Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp

Method:

Preheat oven at 300 F.

Grease cookie sheet and set aside.

Using a hand mixer blend butter and sugar together until creamy (about 4 min)

Add the oat flour, vanilla extract and almond meal and mix with a rubber spatula until well combined.

Form into small balls and place on the cookie sheet. They spread out, so leave enough place between the cookie dough balls.



Bake for about 30 min. Or till slightly cracked and brown on top.

Remove from tray and let them cool. They will firm up on cooling.

You may roll them in more sugar if you want, but I doubt if you can ever keep away from them for that long! They are one of the best cookies ever!

Yields: 20 medium cookies. They are crunchy, not soft.



Here is a lovely set of events I am sending these cookies to:

Vandana's Baking for Beginners
JZ's Santa's Holiday Challenge
Sharmi's Cookie Baking Event
Trupti's Winter Treat Event
Purva's Festive Food - Christmas
Happy Cook's Home Made Christmas Gifts Event
Sangeeth's Eat Healthy - Pregnancy
Susan's Christmas Cookies