Double Chocolate Flourless Brownie Cookies (Soy, Nut, Fish, Milk and Wheat-Free, Can Be Egg-Free)

I can hardly believe it is in the end of May!  It has been crazy busy around here finishing up the school year (which included lots of standardized testing that I'm just as happy to be done with as the boys), our anniversary (which was on May 20th - 14 years!), church and celebration things (from Mother's Day to bridal showers to graduations) and everything in between!  I have several recipes to share with you, but I've had no time to post until today.  I promise I will get the rest shared with you, but it might be a few weeks before I can get into a schedule again because next week is the last week of school for the boys (well, the last week of course work - they have to log hours until the 6th of June, but we're going to do fun experiments and such for that), then my birthday on June 3rd, and then a family vaca for nearly a week...I just don't know when I'll have the time before we get back.  It is looking like I'll have to do my Monthly Milestones link-up on Fibro, Fit and Fab! early, too (because I think early is better than late in that case).  At any rate, I hope you can forgive the busy and lack of posting...especially after you see the recipe I have to share with you today! :)  (And, yes, I am hoping you can be bribed with chocolate! :D )

This recipe (a slightly modified version of this one by King Arthur Flour) is soy (if you use all soy-free ingredients), nut, fish, milk and wheat-free and can be egg-free (see variations).  Did I mention it is gooey, chocolate heaven?  No?  Well, it is!  If you are a fan of fudgy, rich and gooey brownies, you will LOVE these cookies!  They were a HUGE hit with the family and the kiddos at our last NBB (our church's version of AWANA) celebration.  Those who know me know that I love taking treats to functions that are safe for all the kiddos there.  I made these especially for a friend of my son's who cannot have gluten (even though he didn't get to come).  I wanted him (and anyone else with gluten intolerance and food allergies) to have a delicious treat to enjoy without worry, and these did not disappoint.  I will try them with the egg-less variation soon, though I didn't for that night because (to my knowledge) none of the people there had an egg allergy.

Anyway, without further adieu, I'd like to present to you my

Double Chocolate Flourless Brownie Cookies!

Double Chocolate Flourless Brownie Cookies

2 1/4 Cups powdered sugar

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Cup cocoa powder

3 large egg whites

1 to 2 teaspoons gluten-free/soy-free vanilla extract

1 Cup Enjoy Life mini-chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350^oF and grease 2 baking sheets (if using parchment, grease parchment); set aside.  (Note: Make sure to grease the sheets with lard or another oil/grease that fits your allergen needs.  You will also need to make sure the sheets are greased well between batches, too.)
     
2. Stir all ingredients together until smooth and well-blended, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
     
3. Drop the dough (which should resemble brownie batter) onto the prepared baking sheets by teaspoons or Tablespoons, depending on how large you want your cookies.  (Note: Larger and more rounded cookies have a more molten/gooey center than smaller or flatter cookies.  Also, the cookies will spread out a little, but not very much.  I would still keep them about 2 inches apart, though.)
     
4. Bake the cookies for 8 minutes for smaller cookies and up to 10 minutes for larger cookies, until they are somewhat shiny and develop faintly cracked tops.
    
5. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow them to cool on the pan before transferring them to a serving plate or other paper covered counter to finish cooling/setting up.  (Note: If you try to remove them too soon, they will be a gooey mess.  I let mine sit for between 5 and 10 minutes until the pan was cool enough to handle before removing them.  You will need a thin, firm spatula to remove them.  I also transferred my cookies to paper to finish cooling/setting up before putting them on a plate.  These cookies are a little like a brownie version of meringues, if that helps you understand the texture.)

This recipe makes anywhere from 24 to 48+ cookies, depending on size.

Variations (Please keep your individual allergen needs in mind when using substitutions!):

• Egg-Free: I have not tried to make this egg-free, but you could try using any of the egg-free substitutions listed here or any egg replacer that you have used with success and that fit your allergen needs.  Remember that you are replacing egg whites, not whole eggs.  My guess is that you'd have the most success with flax "eggs" or even non-flavored gelatin (to see how to use non-flavored gelatin to replace egg and more ideas not on this blog, go here).
   
• Less Chocolate: If you think these are just too chocolaty, you can leave out the chocolate chips.  The cookies will spread out a little more when you do this, so leave about 3 inches between cookies if doing this.
   
• Other Flavor Combinations: If you can have them, you could sub other types of chips (peanut butter, white chocolate, etc.), nuts or dried fruit (cranberries, dried cherries, etc.) for the chocolate chips or even along with the chocolate chips (though I wouldn't use more than an additional 1 Cup of add-ins, so 2 Cups total of chips, nuts or dried fruit).  You could even sub another extract flavor for the vanilla such as coffee, raspberry, strawberry, orange, etc. depending on what you like.  You could even combine a few, up to 2 teaspoons worth or extract.  If you like cinnamon with your chocolate, you could add a teaspoon or so of cinnamon to the batter.
     
• Powdered Sugar Substitution: You can make your own sugar-free powdered sugar using any approved for baking sugar substitute for the powdered sugar in this recipe by following this formula as found here by Whole New Mom: 1 1/2 Cups granulated sweetener of choice and 1 Tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot (the cornstarch/arrowroot are optional, but recommended) blended together in your blender until it forms a uniform, powdered consistency (for more information on how to do this, go here).   You can even leave out the chocolate chips to reduce the sugar level even more, if needed.

So many possibilities, and really quite simple to make!  I hope you enjoy them!

~*~*~*~

What is your favorite gluten-free/allergy friendly treat?

What's your favorite cookie?

Are you ready for summer?

(This recipe was originally posted on my original site, Natural and Free.)