Cranberry & Carrot Oat Pillows

These healthy, vegetarian, egg, dairy and gluten-free treats are a favourite of my beloved. I have made a double batch so he could have a dozen just for himself. I got the original gluten laden recipe from the official Splenda site. I do not eat any artificial sweeteners and the gluten and eggs along with vegetables oil were all exchanged for much healthier ingredients. I used organic for this recipe, but I know budgets are tight. Try to use organic carrots, coconut oil & organic honey & flax. I used Mums Gluten-free oats, I really like this product. This cookie is chock full of healthy stuff and those good for you fats, it's a great choice for those who prefer healthier treats. If you want a vegan Cookie, just use all maple syrup. I do not use agave nectar as my research and physical reactions to it, have led me to believe that it is not a healthy product. The choice is always yours. Have fun!

CRANBERRY & CARROT OAT PILLOWS
Difficulty: Low
Cost Range: Medium
Time: Prep-30 mins (no chill time) Bake-20-25mins (golden bottoms & edges)
Yields: 4 dozen Cookies depending on size you make them
Freeze: Beautifully, last 1-3 months (everyone eats them way before that)

Preheat Oven to 350° F

Ingredients :

3 Cups Gluten-free oats
1 Cup Gluten-free flour mix 1.5 (recipe follows after this one)
1/2 Cup Brown rice flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp Xanthan gum
1/4 tsp Sea salt
1 Cup Chopped walnuts
1 Cup Dried cranberries
1 Cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1 Cup shredded carrots
1 Can drained crushed pineapple
1 Cup Maple syrup
3/4 Cup Honey
1/2 Cup Coconut oil cold pressed
1 tsp Real vanilla extract
3 Tbsp flax "egg" (recipe follows after this one)

Method :

-In a bowl combine wet ingredients with nuts, carrots, cranberries, flax "eggs", pineapple, coconut flakes and coconut oil.

-Add honey & maple syrup.

-In a separate bowl combine dry ingredients.

-In two parts, add dry mixture to wet.

-Scoop on parchment lined tray 3 down 4 across. You can leave as mini half domes or flatten them, this is your preference. I prefer them as half domes.

-Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, turning the tray half way after 10 minutes to allow for even baking.

-Cool on tray for 5 minutes & transfer to rack to cool completely.









FLAX "EGGS"

Mix 3 tsp of ground flax with 3 Tbsp of water. Stir and let sit, it will turn gummy and very egg-like in consistency.

GlUTEN-FREE FLOUR MIX #1.5 RECIPE

(Makes 3 Cups)

1 1/2 Cups White Rice Flour (fine ground but not sweet white rice flour, it's too fine for this recipe)
1/2 Cup Brown Rice Flour (fine ground, not gritty big grainy)
1/3 Cup Tapioca Starch
2/3 Cup Potato Starch (not potato flour)

Method:

-In a bowl, very carefully measure and blend all ingredients together.
So, this a base recipe for many cookies. I need to let you know that if you do not take extra care in how you measure these ingredients out it will spell disaster for your recipes. They will taste floury, have a weird silky mouth feel if the wrong flours are used or if too much of a starch is used by accident, and will crumble to crummy sadness. Nothing is worse than doing several batches of cookies with horrible results because you can't figure out that the base flour recipe is to blame before it's too late. Trust me, the extra care you take will show in the wonderful positive results you baked.

Leave a comment below,I would love to know about how this recipe worked out for you.