Tis’ the season of delicious treats, yummy candies, and chewy cookies…and thank goodness for that! I have a huge sweet tooth I admit, but I also try to satisfy my sweet tooth and also continue to nourish my body at the same time. These Pistachio Crusted Chewy Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies do both (wow that title is a mouth full)! They’re sweet, chewy, satisfying, but also full of healthy fats, minerals, fiber, and plant protein. They’re also perfect to give as a gift this holiday season because they’ll be diet friendly for everyone- they’re gluten free, grain free, and vegan.
It’s a newer recipe I’ve developed so they’ll be making their holiday debut this season- I’m sure my family and friends of taste testers won’t mind either. The first thing I love about these cookies are the colors, they remind me of Christmas with the red and green hues in a fun swirly design- they’re just adorable and a special treat to display on your holiday table, share with friends, or wrap up in a gift bag for a cookie swap.
These aren’t just your everyday chocolate chip cookie, these little beauties have a healthy twist. The pistachios, chia seeds, flax seeds, almond flour are all great sources of fiber, plant protein and healthy fats especially from the omega-3 rich chia and flax seeds. The dark chocolate contains antioxidants and depending on how high of quality you use, the more antioxidants will be present. Check back to my blog post called Spotlight on Chocolate where I talk all about my favorite chocolates and how to buy.
When I attempted my first ever Grain Free Banana Bread recipe last year, it was an incredible success and the textures were better than traditional gluten containing counterparts in my opinion. My hopes with this recipe is that you’ll enjoy just as much and share! You all know me, if it has to do with baking, I want to try to keep it as simple as possible and there’s nothing more simple than adding in a bunch of yummy ingredients into a bowl, stirring, chilling, and baking!
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup pistachios, shelled and chopped very finely
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds green, chopped very finely
- 3 tablespoons garbanzo bean flour (any bean flour will do)
- 3 tablespoons coconut flour
- 6 tablespoons of filtered water
- 4 tablespoons organic coconut oil, melted
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon flax seeds, ground
- 1 1/2 tablespoons black strap molasses
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 4 ounces dark chocolate chunks (I chopped my favorite dark chocolate bar)
- 2 tablespoons of dried cranberries
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2-1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, to taste
- Soak the chia seeds and flax seeds in the 6 tablespoons of water for about 20 minutes creating a gel (this acts as an egg).
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Shell and finely chop your pistachios and set them in a bowl for later.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix all dry ingredients together (except pistachio nuts) with a whisk to make sure there are no lumps from the almond flour (almond flour, baking soda, salt).
- In a small mixing bowl, combine wet ingredients (chia/flax gel, vanilla, coconut oil, maple syrup, and molasses).
- In the large mixing bowl, make a shallow center to pour the wet ingredients into.
- Fold and mix all dry and wet ingredients together until a thick and moist dough forms.
- You may need to add a tablespoon of water in a time to combine if it’s too dry.
- Stir in the chopped chocolate chunks or chocolate chips and dried cranberries of choice.
- Taking a tablespoon, scoop the cookie dough into a ball and roll in the palm of your hands making a round cookie dough ball.
- Roll this ball into your finely chopped pistachios, placing one side down and pressing the pistachios into the dough, turn it over and have the pistachio crumbs be the “top” of your cookie.
- Next set each cookie dough ball on a lined baking sheet with parchment paper or using a silicon baking pad, then pushing the ball to flatten.
- Put in the freezer for about 5 minutes or until cold.
- Make sure you leave at least 1 1/2-2 inches in between the cookies.
- The color of the dough will be relatively pale.
- Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes keeping a close eye after 10 minutes. They will start to turn golden brown.
- Place on a cooling rack to come to room temperature.
- Enjoy!
GIFT DIY |
- What you’ll need: a colorful ribbon or string, clear cellophane wrap or clear cookie gift bag, a gift tag, or a mason jar, and these cookies!
- Stack as many cookies as you’d like to give away, I think 4 is a good number and height visually.
- Put the stack of cookies in the very center of the cellophane wrapper or gift bag, keeping the cookies stacked.
- If using a mason jar, simply fill until it’s full!
- Tie with the ribbon and place your gift tag (with the name of someone special who will be receiving these) around the top to secure the bag or cellophane from unwrapping.
- If using a mason jar you can simply tie around after you’ve topped the jar (as pictured).
- Share!
I hope you all LOVE this recipe and share it with your loved ones this holiday season, they’re one of my favorites already! Also, be sure to “SAVE” this recipe in your Recipe Box for safekeeping for this year and next year!
I love seeing your re-creations of my recipes, please remember to always tag me #nutritionstripped through Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter so I can see! Also PIN this one for later safekeeping or “SAVE” the recipe in your Recipe Box above for next year too!
Lots of love,
xo McKel
