these grain free, SCD cookies are for those of who cannot have chocolate! They’re made with pecan flour, cocoa butter and dates to create a mock-chocolate flavour in a super soft cookie, completed with a decadent coconut butter icing.
Perhaps one of the hardest aspects of the SCD diet is the fact that, if you are following it strictly, you will not be having any type of chocolate for, well, as long as you’re following it strictly– which for some of us, could mean ~forever~ (!!!). It’s hard to fathom. I mean, it seemed unfathomable when I started the diet. But I am truly surprised at the fact that I really, for the most part, chocolate has not become something I ‘crave’ on this diet. I don’t realllyyyyyy miss it.
But, on the occasion that I do get a chocolate-like-hankering, I have a few recipes I can turn to. They all involve pure cocoa butter, which is SCD legal! Cocoa butter, for the uninitiated, is the (edible) fat extracted from the cocoa bean. So it has this light cocoa flavour to it, and it’s also used to make things like chocolate, as well as some body ointments — so yes, you can eat it, but you also slather it all over yourself.
I have another recipe for cocoa butter cookies, which are a really good, albeit bit plain, of a cookie that you can easily do shapes with if you have cookie cutters. I often make them during the holiday season for this reason.
This recipe, however, is meant to provide you with a more complete ‘chocolate-like’ experience (for lack of a better description). The idea for these, was of course, inspired by the infamous Marilyn’s chocolate cake recipe, as that recipe also uses pecan flour. I had some pecan flour sitting in my freezer, but I didn’t really want to make a full-out cake, which I knew would be extremely rich and dense. I’ve been in cookie mode recently, where I just want something a bit lighter, but with that chewy and soft cookie texture, not something heavy and thick like a brownie or a cake (which is basically what Marilyn’s chocolate cake is!).
Now I won’t go crazy and say that these taste exactly like chocolate, because (sorry not sorry) that’s just not the case, but they do have that rich cocoa butter-y flavour that gives you a chocolate-esque experience (lmao). The pecan flour just means these cookies are not only a bit darker, again creating your chocolate-esque experience, but the flour is also a bit butter-y. You could try these out with almond flour, as fas as consistency goes, it should work similarly– meaning, you will still end up with a soft and chewy cookie, it just might not be as “chocolatey.”
The cookies are fantastic, even if you opt out of the icing, these cookies are addictive. I was eating them cold out of the freezer, with or without icing, like it was my job (hey, it sorta is though, amirite or amirite??!). These cookies are just sooo freaking good. The coconut butter icing just makes these cookies an even richer, sweeter experience, and it’s something kids will love too. Who doesn’t love icing cookies, and then eating said cookies, actually?
I recommend storing these cookies in the freezer, even after they’re iced. They stay together firmly, with the icing hardening in the freezer, and you can take one out and leave it on the counter for 5-10 minutes to allow them to soften a bit before you eat them, but personally, I love these ones frozen cold!
This is the perfect recipe to add to your holiday line-up, but really, it’s a delicious treat any time of the year. If you try making this recipe, please let me know in the comment section or on IG @grainfreee.
scd “chocolate” cookies with vanilla icing: ingredients
cookies
- 1 cup of pecan flour
- 4 tbsp of coconut flour
- 5 tbsp of cocoa butter, melted
- 1/4 cup of honey
- 6 medjool dates, softened and cut up
- 1/4 tsp of baking soda
- 1 egg
vanilla icing
- 1/2 cup of coconut butter
- 1/4 cup of honey
- 1 tsp of pure vanilla extract
scd “chocolate” cookies with vanilla icing: how to
cookies
- in a saucepan over medium heat, warm your honey and medjool dates. bring to boil and allow to simmer for 5-6 minutes, mashing the dates in the pot as the honey simmers, so that they’re broken down as much as possible. mash them up as they simmer, and continue to mash when they’re done simmering as much as possible.
- proceed to mix your cookie ingredients. in a large bowl, mix your dry and add in your wet ingredients, starting with melted cocoa butter and mashed date mixture, and ending with the egg.
- mix well.
- on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, taking a tablespoon, spoon the cookie batter on the tray evenly spaced out. it will be sticky, so keep a little bowl of water nearby to wet your fingers as needed.
- using the palm of your hand or the bottom of a spatula (I find palm of hand works best), press down on top of each cookie ball to flatten each cookie– you may need to add a drip of water to help flatten each cookie cleanly.
- bake in a preheated oven at 350, for 10 minutes. makes approx 20 cookies.
- these cookies are best stored in the fridge or freezer! allow to cool completely before icing.
vanilla icing
- to prepare your icing, simply mix all the ingredients on high in a food processor until everything is well mixed and smooth.
- the icing will harden if stored in fridge and freezer, but it will begin to soften up quickly once you start icing so don’t fret. ice your cookies using a butter knife, and once they’ve cooled down and store them in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer. these cookies freeze fantastically and taste delicious cold out of the freezer, the icing hardens as well.
scd “chocolate” cookies with vanilla icing
Ingredients
the cookies
- 1 cup pecan flour
- 4 tbsp coconut flour
- 5 tbsp cocoa butter, melted
- 1/4 cup honey
- 6 medjool dates softened and cut up
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 egg
the vanilla icing
- 1/2 cup coconut butter
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
the cookies
- in a saucepan over medium heat, warm your honey and medjool dates. bring to boil and allow to simmer for 5-6 minutes, mashing the dates in the pot as the honey simmers, so that they're broken down as much as possible. mash them up as they simmer, and continue to mash when they're done simmering as much as possible.
- proceed to mix your cookie ingredients. in a large bowl, mix your dry and add in your wet ingredients, starting with melted cocoa butter and mashed date mixture, and ending with the egg.
- mix well.
- on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, taking a tablespoon, spoon the cookie batter on the tray evenly spaced out. it will be sticky, so keep a little bowl of water nearby to wet your fingers as needed.
- using the palm of your hand or the bottom of a spatula (I find palm of hand works best), press down on top of each cookie ball to flatten each cookie– you may need to add a drip of water to help flatten each cookie cleanly.
- bake in a preheated oven at 350, for 10 minutes. makes approx 20 cookies.
- these cookies are best stored in the fridge or freezer! allow to cool completely before icing.
the vanilla icing
- to prepare your icing, simply mix all the ingredients on high in a food processor until everything is well mixed and smooth.
- the icing will harden if stored in fridge and freezer, but it will begin to soften up quickly once you start icing so don't fret. ice your cookies using a butter knife, and once they've cooled down and store them in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer. these cookies freeze fantastically and taste delicious cold out of the freezer, the icing hardens as well.