Cherry Chocolate Almond Cookies
Who says gluten free cookies need to be crumbly or dry? These cherry chocolate almond cookies are chewy and packed with flavor. Blending dried cherries with sugar and using mini chocolate chips ensures that the flavors are distributed throughout each bite. A white chocolate drizzle adds another layer of sweetness to complement the tartness of the cherries.
Prep the Cherries
In order to make sure the dried cherries get evenly distributed throughout the cookies, this recipe calls for blending them with sugar to break them into smaller pieces.
To do this, simply pulse the dried cherries and granulated sugar in a food processor or high powered blender until you have small pieces. See the image below for the texture you should be aiming for.
Make the Dough
In a medium bowl, whisk together almond flour and salt and set aside. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat room temperature butter on medium speed until smooth. Add powdered sugar and cranberry/sugar mixture and mix until light and fluffy.
Add the vanilla extract and almond extract and mix until fully combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until fully combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough. The dough will be soft.
Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
Shape the Dough
Once the dough is chilled enough to shape, roll it into a cylinder and wrap with plastic wrap like in the left image below. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour or in the freezer for 15-30 minutes until it is hard enough to cut without losing its shape.
Meanwhile, line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Slide the dough into 1/4 inch thick circles. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets at least 2 inches apart, These cookies will spread while baking. Do as I say, not as I do. The cookies in the image on the right below were too close together needed some separating after baking.
Alternatively, you can roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick and cut out the cookies with a cookie cutter. You will likely have to chill the dough again before re-rolling any leftover scraps.
Bake the Cookies
Bake the cookies at 325°F for 13-15 minutes until the edges are golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. They will continue to set up as they cool.
Make the Icing
To make the icing, simply melt white chocolate with a splash of milk over a double boiler or in the microwave on 50% power in 30 second increments, stirring in between.
Drizzle or pipe the melted white chocolate over the cooled cookies. The chocolate drizzle will set over time. You can put the cookies in the refrigerator to speed up this process.
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.
Cherry Chocolate Almond Cookies
Chewy, gluten free almond cookies with dried cherries, chocolate chips, and a white chocolate drizzle.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup dried cherries
- 2 and 3/4 cups almond flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup white chocolate
- splash of milk (any kind)
Instructions
- In a food processor or high powered blender, pulse the granulated sugar and dried cherries until the cherries are broken up into small pieces (see image in post above). Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the softened butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and cranberry/sugar mixture and mix until light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla extract and almond extract and mix until fully combined
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until fully combined.
- Add the chocolate chips and mix until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
- After chilling the dough, you have a couple of options for shaping the cookies. The first is to roll it into a cylinder, wrap in plastic wrap, refrigerate for another hour (or freeze for 15-30 minutes), and then slice into 1/4 inch thick cookies. The second option is to roll the dough out so it is 1/4 inch thick and use a cookie cutter to cut out circles. You may have to refrigerate the leftover dough before rolling it out again if it gets too soft.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Place the cookies at least 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. These cookies will spread a little bit.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes until the edges of the cookies are golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate with a splash of milk over a double boiler or in the microwave on 50% power in 30 second increments, stirring in between.
- Drizzle or pipe the melted white chocolate over the cooled cookies. The chocolate drizzle will set over time. You can put the cookies in the refrigerator to speed up this process.
- Store leftover cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Or freeze for up to 3 months.
