With the holidays around the corner, the request for teacher treats have landed at our household …. two dozen treats with a specific request for gluten free — yay!
We set to work looking around for recipes that included the ingredients we had on hand: chocolate, coconut, raw honey, coconut oil, cashews, walnuts, and almonds.
It didn’t take long for us to land on these recipes, which had our mouths watering straight away.
Annie and I donned our aprons, and set out our baking supplies and ingredients. She has no idea she is getting a cute handmade apron for Christmas — can’t wait to see her beautiful face, she’ll be so surprised and will feel just like mama. This girl loves to bake and loves to be with her mama, and believe you me, this girl makes my heart swell.
Deciding upon these recipes, our afternoon unfolded with dad working on setting new tile by the front door, Sunny off to play at a friend’s and the dog, Campbell, underfoot to catch anything that whipped itself out of the bowl while Annie’s hand was on the whisk.
To tell you the truth, I cannot claim a favorite — they are all fantastic, and I’ll share with you a few notes about each.
The Blondies were a hit from the get go and although it made a nice little 8×8 pan, there were only 6 left (ahem) to include in the teachers cookie exchange. Everybody here claimed they only had a bite or two and then quickly pointed their finger elsewhere (everyone, including me).
The Almond Joys and I got off on the wrong foot, all because I happened to have a can of evaporated milk (and to be honest with you, I have nooo idea how long it had been sitting on the shelf). The recipe called for sweetened condensed milk. Long story short, despite Google’s attempt to have me realize it isn’t wise to substitute one for the other, I still did. The sweet was definitely there (coconut sugar pulverized into powdered sugar), but the coconut didn’t hold together as well. It worked, just not as well as I wanted it to, then half of them spilled onto the bottom of the deep freeze as I was placing the cookie sheet in to chill … so yeah, that happened.
We L-O-V-E the Junior Mints because we all love these yummy little ditties we pick up at the co-op sometimes. The only ingredients are coconut oil, honey, and dark chocolate, and this recipe is awesome.
If you’re looking for a gluten-free treat this holiday season, give these a try. Sure to be a hit with your family and what an easy and great gift to give!
