Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Nut-Free Brownie Cookies

With my peanut and nut allergy, I know how difficult it can be to find food that is safe to eat, so I try to be extra aware of it whenever I have company over who have a lactose or gluten intolerance. When I was away at university, we had all three in the house I lived in. Planning a meal together was always a fun challenge!

Often times it’s difficult to find a recipe that is not only gluten free and dairy free, but also nut free. It seems that there are so many recipes out there (especially with the popularity of paleo diets) that use ground nuts as a substitute in baking. Thankfully a friend recently gave me this recipe that uses coconut flour instead of one of these ground nut flours or traditional all-purpose flour.

Back in the fall I bought a bag of coconut flour from the health food store and aside from a few failed attempts at coconut pancakes, I hadn’t used it for anything. This ended up being the perfect recipe for it! The coconut flour lends some sweetness to the dough, but keeps it gluten free. Coconut flour is more absorbent than regular flour, so this isn’t a recipe that can be converted easily, but if you’re not worried about gluten, try this regular brownie cookie recipe.

I will say that like most “healthy” baking recipes, these aren’t going to taste like decadent rich fudge brownies. The taste is similar to a double chocolate banana bread, with a more “fudgy” texture and lots of chocolate chips hidden in there for extra sweetness. I do find that when I’ve been eating healthier in general, things like this still feel like a treat. It was also a great recipe to use up some of that honey we still have leftover from the wedding favours!

 

Makes 35 cookies · Printable Version

What you’ll need:

• 2/3 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp gluten free baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 eggs
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2/3 cup gluten free dairy free chocolate chips (semi-sweet or dark)

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients with a fork.

In a medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredients with a fork. Add wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir well until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

Roll tablespoons of cookie dough and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 12-15 minutes. Allow to cool on a drying rack.

These were the perfect snack to share with my gluten and lactose intolerant friends, and a yummy addition to my lunch bag too! If you’re looking for a healthier “guilt-free” treat to curb that brownie craving, give these a try!