Tag: baking

Cooking

Guilt-Free, Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies

Lora Knows...

These soft chewy peanut butter cookies are a favorite in our home. Trust me, you will be hooked from the first bite. It’s a wholesome treat for all ages.

Makes 1 dozen

Ingredients
1¼ cups brown rice flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
½ cup organic creamy peanut butter
½ cup maple syrup
¼ cup olive oil
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a medium-size baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a medium-size bowl, stir the flour, baking soda, and salt together.
  3. In a separate bowl stir together the peanut butter, maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla extract. Make sure your peanut butter is soft and almost runny to start. If it’s not, warm it up for a couple of seconds in the microwave.
  4. Pour the flour mixture over the peanut butter mixture and stir until barely combined. It will still look a bit dusty. Let the dough sit for 5 minutes, and then give it one more quick stir.
  5. Drop the dough by heaping tablespoons onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Gently press down on each one gently with the back of a fork to get a crisscross effect. If your fork sticks to the dough, just run it under hot water before each crisscross.
  6. Bake for 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the baking sheet.

Recipe from The Yoga Plate: Bring Your Practice into the Kitchen with 108 Simple & Nourishing Vegan Recipes by Tamal and Victoria Dodge. © 2019

Cooking, Entertainment, Holidays

Decorate Holiday Cookies

Lora Knows...

Nothing says the holidays are coming like spending a a day listening to music and baking treats. Here are some great tips for decorating sugar cookie with flood icing.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons Wilton® Color Flow Mix (or a brand you like)
  • ¼ cup + 1 teaspoon water
  • 4 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

Materials

  • Piping bags
  • Decorating couplers
  • Wilton® icing tips size 2, 3, or 4 (or a brand you like)
  • Rubber bands
  • Gel food coloring, colors of your choosing
  • Tip covers
  • Squeeze bottles with covers

To Prep

  1. Prepare your piping bags with the couplers. Cut off a small tip of the bag, and remove the ring from the base of the coupler. Put the coupler base inside of the bag, and attach the desired tip size (2, 3, or 4) to the outside of the bag. Secure with the ring to lock the bag in place, and repeat with the remaining couplers and bags.

To Make Icing

  1. Make the icing by beating all ingredients in stand mixer on low speed for about 5 minutes.
  2. If using white, place some of the plain icing into one of the piping bags, and secure with a rubber band to maintain the consistency.
  3. Take another small amount of white icing, dilute it slightly with small amounts of water until it flows easily, and place into squeeze bottles. (Tip: Make sure to keep icing covered with a damp cloth or paper towel to avoid crusting throughout the decorating process.)
  4. For colored icing, separate the remaining white icing into different bowls, and add gel food coloring. Add water in 1/2 teaspoon increments until thin enough to spread easily.
  5. Add the thinner, colored icing into squeeze bottles.

To Decorate

  1. Make sure the cookies are cooled before you begin decorating, and then start outlining your cookies with chosen color from the piping bag.
  2. Next, take the thinned icing from the squeeze bottles and squeeze into the inside of the cookie. Using a toothpick, spread around to make icing even. Allow the first layer to dry a minimum of 4 hours, preferably overnight.
  3. Once dry, add any additional designs on top of the first layer, using the same technique, or drawing on with the piping bag. Allow all new layers to harden overnight. (Tip: Always keep the piping bags covered when not in use.)