Eat Well, Be Well, Live Well

I received a version of the following recipe from my neighbor last year. Her recipe called for barley flour as the main ingredient, but I wanted to make a gluten-free version since I’m still on my gluten-free kick. (In fact, I’m currently reading “Wheat Belly” by Dr. William Davis, but more on that later.)

I was also trying to find a way to use the leftover ground almonds from my homemade almond milk recipe, and this is a perfect use.*

Ingredients

4 cups oats, pulverized

3 cups raw whole almonds finely chopped in a food processor (I use 2-second pulses on my mini-Krups until the desired consistency is reached)

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cardamon (optional)

1 cup canola or coconut oil

1 cup real Vermont maple syrup or agave

Your favorite jam (apricot, raspberry and strawberry all work well)

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Combine all the ingredients except for the jam together in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Form into tablespoonful balls and space them evenly on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Using your thumb or index finger, make an indent in each cookie. Fill each indent with a small spoonful of jam. Bake until the cookies are a light, golden brown, 18-20 minutes. Do not overbake (i.e., better to be slightly under- than overcooked). Let cool before eating.

This recipe yields 40-45 cookies, but can easily be halved. You can also substitute 1/2-cup of the oats or almonds with ground coconut flakes.

*I’m ashamed to admit I had been throwing away the leftover almond meal for a while simply because I was too lazy to take the extra step of baking out the moisture in the oven. If you make almond milk, you can simply spread out the leftover ground almonds in a baking dish and bake at 175°F for 30-40 minutes. Bake on convect if you have the option.