Chocolate PB2 Granola Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten Free)

Sorry my blogging has been so intermittent.  I wish I had all the time in the world to share things here, but it just hasn’t been possible as of late.  That said, I don’t plan on just disappearing, me and my little ol’ blog.  So stick around!  You might recall not too long ago I shared some PB2 Chocolate Chip Cookies I made with PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter.  They were delicious.  In fact, Bell Plantation (the company that makes PB2) shared them on their Facebook page and they went crazy!  I knew they made a chocolate version of PB2 and had to get some and try it in cookies, but I couldn’t just stop there……

My friend, Paige, posted about David Lebovitz’ Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Granola.  It was calling my name and I had to make some.   I made it with changes using raw honey instead of maple syrup and coconut sugar in place of the brown sugar, I also used gluten free oats and Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips.  It was a great granola!  (I need to make more!)  I swear I wrote down my changes somewhere so I could share my version of the recipe, but I CANNOT FIND IT!  sigh  It’s okay, David’s recipe is pretty simple and I really only made the few changes I mentioned, so check it out if you’re looking for a quick treat or breakfast.

I decided to use the Chocolate PB2 and make more cookies.  To bump up the delicious peanut butter and chocolate combination, I added some of the granola to the cookies, as well as more peanuts and lots of chocolate chips.  Score!  These were so good!  If you’ve been putting off trying the peanut butter powders, do not hesitate any longer.  It’s good stuff!

 Chocolate PB2 Granola Chocolate Chip Cookies, by Katrina, Baking and Boys!

1/3 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup organic brown sugar

1/4 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup raw honey

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Granola (or granola of your choice)

4 tablespoons Chocolate PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter

2 tablespoons raw cacao powder (or cocoa powder)

1 cup gluten free flour blend

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips (or chocolate chips of your choice)

1/4 cup roasted peanuts

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.  In a large bowl, combine the coconut oil and sugars.  Whisk together well.  Add the egg and vanilla and combine.  In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients (granola, PB2, cacao, flour, soda, baking powder and salt) and mix them together.  Add them to the creamed mixture (You can use a mixer, but it mixes just fine with a whisk!).  Stir with a wooden spoon until all combined.  Stir in the chocolate chips and peanuts.  Drop by tablespoonsful (or using a cookie scoop) onto the parchment lined baking sheets spaced about 2 inches apart.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Let sit on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool. 

 Come on—they look delicious, huh!  I need to make some more.  I’ll try to be better at posting on my blog.  I miss it, I really do. 

Crazy Nutty Gluten Free Granola

I have been craving crunchy things.  With eating gluten free, refined sugar free and even cutting back on lots of grains, I felt like I just needed to crunch something.  I used to eat homemade granola almost everyday and was really missing it.  (Know what else I miss, sometimes just taking a big chug of fat free milk…..I’ve cut back on dairy, too, and have heard fat free has all kinds of chemicals in it, so I don’t drink it anymore, but it’d sure be nice after one of these Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Brownies that are so good you’d never know they are gluten free or refined sugar free.  They are SO good chilled in the fridge, too.  Must make more.

We’re talking about granola here though.  So I set out to make me a crunchy gluten free granola.  The only sweetener in this is raw honey.  You could use maple syrup or agave, too.  I decided to put a bunch of nuts and seeds in this.  I’m so happy with how it turned out—perfect, I must say. ;)  I wanted a clumpy granola and there is a perfect “trick” to that.  Once it comes out of the oven, don’t stir it.  When it is completely cooled, it will have stuck all together and you can break it in to any sized pieces you’d like.

This is the perfect kind of granola to just take a baggie full somewhere for a snack on hand.  But if you break up the pieces a little smaller, it’s also great on top of yogurt with some fresh berries.  One of my favorite things.

Look how clumpy that is!  Of course, you don’t have to make it gluten free, I just used gluten free oats—this is still a great granola with any kind of oats.

Crazy Nutty Gluten Free Granola (Refined Sugar Free), by Katrina, Baking and Boys!

2 cups gluten-free oats

3 tablespoons ground flax meal

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

¼ cup unsweetened shredded coconut

¼ cup raw almonds

½ cup raw pecans

¼ cup raw sunflower seeds

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup raw honey

3 tablespoons organic coconut oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, flax, sesame seeds, coconut, almonds, pecans, sunflower seeds and salt. Stir together.

In a microwave safe bowl, combine the honey and coconut oil. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir together with a whisk until well combined. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until everything looks wet. Spread the mixture evenly on the baking sheet. Bake for 20-22 minutes until fragrant and browned. Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack. Do not touch the mix during this time as it is setting up and will be clumpy. Once it is completely cooled, you can break it in to clumps and store in an airtight container. *You can use any nuts and seeds you’d like or have on hand, just make it nutty!

I think I’ll go snitch a bit of the granola right now.