OMG did my very-messy kitchen smell great one cold and rainy Saturday afternoon. I had received a generous sample of Living Tree Community Almond Butter that was itching for more than an apple slice for a taste test.
I searched the internet, looking for a fairy-free cookie recipe, presuming the almond oil would suffice, and was rewarded when I found this one that even husband Eddie approved. My changes are in italics below…in the hard copy, my changes are in very sticky italics:
From http://www.npr.org/2012/02/14/146875315/almond-butter-cookies
Almond Butter Cookies
Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies (I totally missed this!)
Ingredients:
1 cup almond butter (Living Tree Community doesn’t grind the almond down to smithereens. Very smooth but not from blanched almonds so their butter has a slight, but appealing, grittiness.)
1/2 cup light or dark brown sugar (I used dark)
1/2 cup granulated sugar (I’m going to cut this by half next time, the cookies were too sweet for my palate.)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons maple syrup (Gotta love that Aunt Jemima’s is always in the cabinet!)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a baking sheet with butter and set aside. (On hindsight, I think I should have used a non-stick cooking spray. Not only to avoid this bit of butter, but because my cookies got stuck.)
In a large bowl, stir almond butter and sugars together until well combined. (A fork worked well for this part.)
Add egg, baking soda, maple syrup, vanilla and salt and mix well. Stir in the almonds and chocolate chips.
Using a teaspoon, scoop out small, walnut-sized amounts of dough (the mixture bent my 30 year old teaspoon) and roll them in your hands to form a ball. (Impossible, one sticky mess. Plus, silly me, I couldn’t see how a little ball could turn into such A GIGANTIC COOKIE!) Place an inch apart. (OOPS AGAIN!) Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes.