Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

[RyanX]

Here's a recipe I made last night. Turned out pretty well! I don't think I've ever ate a chocolate chip cookie that was this "healthy" :D

Ingredients:

1/2 C ghee
3/4 C xylitol
1 egg
1 C buckwheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla
2-4 tbsp lukewarm water

1 10oz package of soy and lactose free chocolate chips
http://www.enjoylifefoods.com/our_foods/chocolate_chips/semisweet_chocolate_chips.html

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a mixer, add the ghee and mix on high until smooth. Add the xylitol and the egg at this point.
Next add the dry ingredients. Add as much water as needed for the proper cookie dough consistency.
Mix on a medium to high setting for several minutes. Next add the package of chocolate chips.

Scrape sides of the mixing bowl as necessary until everything is mixed thoroughly.

Spoon dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet giving each spoonful a couple inches space to either side.

Bake each batch for about 20 minutes.

These cookies will come out looking really dark from the buckwheat, almost like extra chocolate was added to the dough ;)

Makes about 30 cookies.

 

[Gaby]

Sounds yummy!

 

[andi]

Nice RyanX :)

Here I found a good video on how to make ghee at home :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGBI4IKL58g

Explanations are very clear.

 

[RyanX]

Here I found a good video on how to make ghee at home :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGBI4IKL58g

Thanks for that andi! I was wondering how the stuff was made. I'd be tempted to try it if I can find a source of butter in large quantities.

 

[rylek]

Thanks for the recipe idea, will try it out and report back.

Here I found a good video on how to make ghee at home :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGBI4IKL58g

Compared to this guy I'm an amateur making trifling amounts of ghee :)

I was wondering how the stuff was made. I'd be tempted to try it if I can find a source of butter in large quantities.

There was also a post about making ghee already although the video makes it more than clear how to go about it.

Hello, I'd like to share the recipe for making your own ghee. As you may know, it's a healthy substitute for regular butter and Laura uses it. From _http://www.rwood.com/Recipes/Homemade_Ghee.htm :

Homemade Ghee

Accompanying article: Ghee (Clarified Butter)

Makes about 2 cups

It is critical to use unsalted butter to make ghee; and for the most flavorful result, use cultured butter. Organic Valley and some—but not all—European-Style butters are both cultured and unsalted. This recipe is easily doubled or tripled but requires increased cooking time.

1 pound cultured, unsalted organic butter

Place the butter in a heavy quart saucepan and melt over medium heat, do not cover the pot. When the butter starts foaming, reduce the heat and simmer uncovered and undisturbed for about 15 to 30 minutes, depending upon the heat and weight of the saucepan. As its water content vaporizes, it will foam and you’ll hear tiny, sharp crackling noises. The ghee is ready when it:

• Changes from a cloudy yellow to clear golden color
• Develops a popcorn-like aroma
• Stops foaming and making crackling noises
• Develops a thin, light tan, crust on the nearly motionless surface
• The milk solids at the bottom turn from white to tan

Keep a close watch on the ghee and remove from the heat when done. (If overcooked, it browns and starts foaming.) Let cool until it is just warm.

Pour through a fine sieve or through several layers of cheesecloth into a clean, dry glass storage jar. Discard he strained out solids. When the ghee is completely cool, cover tightly and store in a dry place away from direct sun light. It doesn't require refrigeration. Always use a clean spoon to dip into it.

Variation: Oven-made Ghee

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the butter in a 1½ to 2 quart casserole or oven-proof pot. Place the butter in the oven without a lid and allow it to clarify, undisturbed, for 1 hour. As it boils and foams the water content vaporizes and if you open the oven you'll hear tiny, sharp crackling noises. The ghee is ready as detailed above.

Remove the ghee from the oven. Skim off the crust and, if desired, use it as a flavoring agent.

May you be well nourished,

Rebecca Wood

I've made my own with salted butter because I couldn't find unsalted. I don't think it matters too much, the unsalted will taste better though. Also watch out for when it foams up. If it starts getting too high, turn down the heat more or pull the pot off the heat. I strain mine with a steel strainer and a paper towel folded once. I tried it with just one layer of paper towel and it wasn't enough, it had little brown things in it, which is the milk that you don't want.

Organic butter is best to use because toxins are stored in fat. So this may or may not be cheaper than just buying ghee, depending on prices. Have fun and good luck!

 

[stellar]

Sounds yummy. I'm wandering if carob chips may do instead. That's all I have in my pantry at the moment.

 

[zhenqing]

Great recipe! I bet the cookies are yummy. I'm thinking about making them, although I don't have ghee and chocolate chip in my kitchen. Do you think I can use butter and cocoa powder instead?

And what does "C" stand for?

1/2 C ghee
3/4 C xylitol
[...]
1 C buckwheat flour

 

[Possibility of Being]

And what does "C" stand for?

Hey zhenqing, I think the "C" means a cup (=250ml). Hopefully RyanX will shout ;) if I'm off.

My guess is that you can try and replace ghee with butter (or you can make your own ghee!). If you are going to use cocoa powder, adding a little bit more butter/ghee could be a good idea so to replace cocoa butter that is absent in cocoa powder. Looking forward to hearing from you how your version works!

 

[RyanX]

And what does "C" stand for?

Hey zhenqing, I think the "C" means a cup (=250ml). Hopefully RyanX will shout ;) if I'm off.

My guess is that you can try and replace ghee with butter (or you can make your own ghee!). If you are going to use cocoa powder, adding a little bit more butter/ghee could be a good idea so to replace cocoa butter that is absent in cocoa powder. Looking forward to hearing from you how your version works!

Yup! You got it! C = Cup Sorry I wasn't clear in my earlier instruction.

You could definitely use butter if you aren't sensitive to it. A bit more butter/ghee than what I called for in the recipe probably wouldn't hurt it either.

 

[zhenqing]

Thank you both, Possibility of Being and RyanX for clarification. I did think that "C" stands for cup, but I wasn't sure. And it's good to know how many ml it contains. My knowledge in that area is almost non-existent. I'm not so good in baking and making complicate meals . But I will try it (with my Mother's help - though she's not good at it either ;D), because it feels like ages ago since I've eaten something sweet.

I will tell you how it turns out!

 

[zhenqing]

We made them yesterday and they turn out really nice. I'm eating a cookie as I write this :)

Thank you, RyanX for sharing the recipe! I will try with chocolate, too, if I even find one without sugar or evil sweetener.

Now, that I gained confidence I'm going to try other buckweat recipes. Yay!

 

[RyanX]

We made them yesterday and they turn out really nice. I'm eating a cookie as I write this :)

Thank you, RyanX for sharing the recipe! I will try with chocolate, too, if I even find one without sugar or evil sweetener.

Now, that I gained confidence I'm going to try other buckweat recipes. Yay!

You're welcome! :) I'm glad they turned out. I was thinking about making these again. They are quite tasty! :D

 

[Nathan]

Yum! Thanks for this, I tried them tonight.

I thought I could get them crunchy and crispy, but all I could manage was a bit crispy on the edges and spongy on the inside. I suppose that's just how buckwheat works! Still tastes great anyway.

 

[Soniko]

Thanks for the recipe. I tried it today and I thought I could share my small newly gained experience :)

I'm new to the forum and I'm also new to to taking care of myself, so it's actually one of the very firsts attempts to cook things for myself, and THE first one trying to cook something almost perfectly healthy (I say almost because I had to substitute a few ingredients, I didn't have all that was needed in my kitchen)
The idea was more to see what buckwheat would taste like in a sweet recipe rather than actually "doing it right" due to the lack of some ingredients.
I substituted butter to ghee, brown sugar for xylitol (not as bad as white sugar if I am correct) and artificial vanilla flavour for natural, regular cooking chocolate for lactose/soy free chips, but keeping the same proportions.

A little side note here: it's the first time I use the "American way" of measuring ingredients with cups and spoons and I find it really easier and a lot less demotivating than "the french way" weighting each and every ingredient almost to the exact gram. I'm a little obsessive with precision sometimes and it's kind of a funnier way for me to do it like that. I think I'll go with that method in the future. -end side note--

Here's what I found thanks to this little cooking experiment:

- really quick to prepare !
- it tastes great, different from "industrial flavour enhanced, nuclear mixed ans laser cooked" supermarket cookies I'm used to (not to be taken seriously, I like to add a little scary sci-fi to my descriptions sometimes ), different, but really good, plus I got the parfum of cookies cooking, which is nice too.
- a little disappointment: the cookies where a little too "compact", but I "measured" the baking soda in the palm of my hand instead of a spoon (laziness strikes back) so I think it was my fault, and they where a little bit overcooked for my taste, so I will try to lower my oven a little next time I make some and maybe add a little more butter (or ghee if I can find some) and see if it makes them even better.
- although they where really good, I didn't feel the need to eat them all like I do with industrial cookies I eat usually (opened box = empty box in minutes nearly every time). Might not have anything to do with the cookies themselves but I though it was interesting.

only downside: some cleaning up and dishes to wash, but I think it was someting to expect :P

That's all I can think of for now (except making some more cookies )

 

[D Rusak]

Saw the Food for Life chips on sale ($4 a package :/) at the local health store and decided it was a worthy treat for the holidays. The only thing I did differently was use 1 full tsp of vanilla for the recipe. I'm just used to my mom's recipe growing up, we always used a tsp. I like the vanilla flavor. Actually I found a brand that had an alcohol-free version, with glycerin instead. It is rather gooey in texture!

The cookies were very good! I used parchment paper (left by the previous tenant in my new apt) and they came out quite crispy, which I did not mind. Definitely a cornerstone of the paleodiet cookbook, IMO! Thanks!!!