Paleo Vanilla Bean Mexican Wedding Cookies
/Two desserts in one week! You can forgive me, right? It is Friday after all, and I'm sure we could all go for a cookie.
I adore this recipe. The cookies aren't very sweet, but they melt away in your mouth. Is it weird that eating these cookies reminds me of butter pecan ice cream? I guess you'll have to try them to find out! Even though these aren't a frozen treat, there's something in their flavor that screams butter pecan (Maybe it's the pecans. Or the coconut oil. ...Or just a guess, both!).
You're probably going to want to double this recipe. I often opt for small-batches of desserts but trust me--you're going to be sad when these are gone. A single batch of eight cookies doesn't survive much longer than a day around here. Maybe less than that, but you'll give me the benefit of the doubt, right? Besides, these little bombs of delicious are juuuuust healthy enough that eating them with every single meal doesn't actually feel that guilty. Contrary to what one might guess about cookies, these are not packed with sugar. Like many of my dessert recipes, they're only subtly sweet. With only 1 tablespoon of honey, the true joy is in the melt-away factor.
Since going Paleo, traditionally sweet cookies actually make me cringe a little bit. One bite over whelms my mouth with glucose and makes my teeth hurt. I find that I am just as happy--maybe more happy- with cookies like these!
Speaking of too sweet, Mexican Wedding Cookies are known for their coating of white powdered sugar. It's pretty, making each cookie look like a little snowball. Personally I didn't want to dip my cookies in sugar, but if you are determined to make a classic Mexican Wedding Cookie without using white sugar, you can dip them in powdered coconut sugar instead. To make powdered coconut sugar, place 1 cup regular coconut palm sugar in a high powdered blender. Make sure the blender is very dry before getting started--a small amount of water will cause clumping. Turn the blender to medium-high and scrape the sides occasionally (if your blender came with a tamper or a twister-lid, use that at this time). After several minutes you should have powdered coconut sugar!
Alternatively, just sprinkle each cookie with a touch of extra vanilla bean. I thought it turned out quite pretty!
Paleo Mexican Wedding Cookies
Serves: 8 | Total Time:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot flour
- 1/16 teaspoon salt
- 1/16 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/6 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil or butter
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 scant cup toasted pecan pieces
- Optional: additional ground vanilla bean for sprinkling
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread the pecans out on a baking sheet, and toast for 5-10 minutes, until golden and fragrant. Set aside to cool.
- In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the coconut oil, honey and vanilla until smooth (use an electric mixer or a fork).
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the almond flour, arrowroot flour, salt, and baking soda until fully incorporated.
- Use a fork or an electric mixer to add the dry mixture to the coconut oil mixture, working until a course crumb forms. Incorporate the pecans. Dough should be sticky enough to press into balls.
- Using your hands, form the dough into evenly sized balls, about 1 to 1 1/2 inch in diameter. I made about 8. Place 1 inch apart on a baking sheet, lined with parchment paper or a baking mat. Bake for 14-18 minutes, until golden brown on the edges. Remove from oven and allow to cool 10 minutes.
- Optional: Sprinkle with additional ground vanilla bean.
