Babycakes' Chips Ahoy!

These little cuties are scrumptious in fact I made a batch of Erin McKenna's gluten-free & dairy-free Chips Ahoy! and a batch of Martha Stewart's gluten laden chocolate chip cookies and the two gluten-tolerant (yes those of us blessed with a  gluten-tolerant belly) chose these cookies over Martha's...how about that?!  

Erin McKenna's Chips Ahoy! cookie is both gluten-free and vegan.  Absolutely perfect for my gluten-free belly! What I love about this cookie is that there is so much more depth and dimension than your classic chocolate chip cookie; typical of gluten-free baking as there are a myriad of grains rather than just one superstar (wheat) stealing the show.  

I chopped up a bit of Theo Chocolate 70% (my go-to chocolate bar for baking) which is vegan and gluten-free!  If you are yearning for classic baked goods, recipes that you have loved since you were a child and have now discovered that you are gluten and dairy-intolerant, I urge you to pickup a copy of McKenna's adorable cookbook, Babycakes Covers the Classics.  This cookie is a favorite in our house.  I think this cookie is much more flavorful the next day and I know gooey-warm-from-the-oven cookies are always preferable but I find these are much tastier once cooled to room temperature.  Mine are much smaller than McKenna's?  She states to drop by the "teaspoonful" which is what I did however mine come out as little drop cookies each time.  They aren't as thin and crispy as the old classic Chips Ahoy! cookies (granted they aren't pumped full of preservatives!)  However, the photo in her cookbook shows a much thinner and larger cookie. I've made this recipe twice and mine never look like hers?  Maybe next time I just need to drop by the tablespoonful...either way they are delicious!

Chips Ahoy!

adapted from Babycakes Covers the Classics by Erin McKenna

Makes 36 cookies

1 1/2 cups oat flour (make sure you pickup a gluten-free oat flour)

1 cup Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Baking Flour

1 cup vegan sugar

1/4 cup ground flax meal

1/4 cup arrowroot

1 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons melted refined coconut oil or canola oil

6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1 cup vegan gluten-free chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.  Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, flax meal, arrowroot, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt. Add the coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla nd stir with a rubber spatula until a thick dough forms.  Stir in the chocolate chips until evenly distributed.  

Drop the dough by the teaspoonful onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart.  Bake for 7 minutes, rotate the baking sheets, and bake for 7 minutes more, or until the cookies are golden brown and firm.  Let stand on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before eating.