Out of the Rut
Anyone sticking to a strict Paleo diet regimen will eventually experience that craving for something sweet, something chocolate, something very un-Paleo.
This has been a major breaking point for me on my Paleo diet journey. Some days my usual fast Paleo snack of a handful of almonds simply doesn’t cut it. I long for that savory, semi-sweet flavor and euphoric satisfaction of biting into a tasty chocolate cookie. For me, nothing else in the Paleo diet cures a cookie craving like a… cookie.
Most of the Paleo staples I have been making have come from recipes that I’ve found online from various blogs and forums. There are some really good recipes out there for meals, but I keep seeing similar cookie and baked goods recipes over and over. Anyway, last week I took a chance and hesitantly bought my first Paleo cook book. The Paleo Recipe Book by Sebastian Noel.
Obviously, I only wanted the professional cookie recipes, but I bought the complete book figuring there might be some other meal recipes I could use. I’ve seen it around for a while and I’m slightly kicking myself for not buying it before, because I have certainly not been disappointed.
Double Chocolate Cookies
I bought the book (it’s an instant .pdf download, not a physical book, which fits perfectly into my minimalist lifestyle, but that’s another story) and I immediately tabbed down to the Paleo Breakfast & Paleo Desserts section; Double Chocolate Cookies. I knew what my first recipe was going to be. So Saturday I made the Double Chocolate Cookies recipe. It’s a typical Paleo recipe (flourless, grain-free, cane sugar-free) made with almond butter (If you have read my last post, you know that I think almond butter is the cookie keystone!), cocoa, and dark chocolate chips.
All I can say is, wow! They are really good. Actually, they are the best Paleo cookies that I have made so far. They are really rich. Really, really rich. Between the cocoa and the almond butter, the chocolate flavor is intense (think chocolate fudge without the heavy sugar overtone). I love chocolate, but one cookie is more than enough to keep me happy between meals. Be prepared to have a beverage on-hand (like the almond milk recipe).
I will add the caveat that I have only made this recipe once so far, but the results were very good. I baked them in two batches, the first for 13 minutes, and the second for 12. The recipe calls for 14 minutes or until barely cooked. My first batch was a little dried out and the cookies got very powdery. The second batch was a lot better. Next time I will shoot for 11 minutes and see what happens. Keep in mind that I have an electric convection oven, so that may be a factor.
The Paleo Recipe Book
The Double Chocolate Cookies recipe from The Paleo Recipe Book will now replace my old go-to, whole-grain chocolate chip cookie recipe. It’s giving me the savory, slightly sweet chocolaty bite that I was looking for to break up my usual Paleo routine. Of course the added bonus is that I’ve found a host of other great snacks, desserts, and meals in the book which I’ll be giving a try. If this first recipe (and the awesome photos in the book!) is any indication, I can’t see being disappointed.
