By Chef: Gena Hemshaw
Posted: May 25, 2012
Difficulty/Easy
Gena Hemshaw says, “If you like dark chocolate, and you like dried cherries—and how on earth can you not?—you’ll love the taste of these treats.” This recipe was inspired by the amazingly authentic cookie creations of Sarma at One Lucky Duck. The secret to the perfect consistency of these raw cookies lies in the use of almond and oat flour for the base which you can easily grind yourself in a coffee grinder, blender, or food processor. Play around with extra ingredients too by adding raisins, goji or mulberries, or swapping out the almond flour for hazelnut or walnut. You can’t go wrong!
Yield: 8 large cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup almond meal (you can use store bought, like the Bob’s Red Mill brand, or you can grind almonds finely in a food processor)
- 1/3 cup oat flour (I ground raw oat groats in my coffee grinder, but you can use store bought, too)
- 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
- 12 large, pitted medjool dates
- 1/3 cup dried cherries
- 1/4 cup chopped raw dark chocolate, or vegan dark chocolate chips
Instructions
1. In a food processor, process almond meal, oat flour, and cacao to combine.
2. Add dates, and process until the mixture is thick and sticks together easily when you clasp a little in your hand (look for similar texture to when you make homemade raw energy balls or Larabars). If the mixture is too dry, add an extra date, a drizzle of agave, or a tablespoon of almond butter!
3. Add cherries and chocolate. Pulse to break down the cherries and chocolate into small pieces and mix them evenly throughout.
4. Place «dough» onto a sheet of saran wrap that has been laid onto a flat surface. Cover with another saran sheet, and use a rolling pin to flatten the mixture to just over 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate for a few hours, or overnight.
5. Cut dough into desired shapes with a cookie cutter, and enjoy!
