Carrot cake cookies that are low sugar and gluten free! Finally, a cookie I can sink my teeth into without feeling guilty. This cookie has been adapted from my cookie dough pastry crust, it was used for an ice cream pie. Originally I was going to use it for ice cream sandwich cookies but they were too similar and I wanted to change things up a bit. So without further ado here it is…

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year…but no so if you’re calorie counting or clean eating! I struggle every year at this time of year, it’s cold and I become unmotivated. Not this year, I have planned everything up to January.

For the Cookies

• 1 cup of Gluten Free Plain Raising Flour
• 1 cup of sweet potato (1 large sweet potato 200g) 
• 3 TBSP cocoa powder
• 4 tbsp of Sugar
• 2 tbsp of coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla essence, 1 pinch of salt
• Flavouring; Mixed spice (1/3 tsp of cinnamon, 1/3 tsp whole allspice. 1/5 tsp cloves 1/3 tsp ginger 1/3 nutmeg)

Method

Cut your sweet potatoes I’m half and place in a microwavable container, cover and cook for 4 minutes. Whilst they’re steaming you can measure out your other ingredients. I used a mug to ensure my ingredients were equal, I hate scales.

Once your sweet potatoes are cooled you can easily remove the skin and blend them into a paste. Add your sweet potato to your dry mix and blend until a dough is form. It should be sticky but once floured it should roll out smoothly. If you have a bread maker you could pop your mix in there to reduce contact with your hands, it’s sticky and mixers and breadmakers are more adapted for it!

I rolled the dough out to 1/3 of an inch thick & cut out with my new cutters snowflakes, gingerbread men and Christmas trees (and some rounds for another project). Once they were cut out I placed them on a baking tray with a bit of flour underneath them and baked on GM5 for 20 minutes. I would recommend slow baking them to remove any extra moisture form the mix and then, if they’re not crisp you can turn them up to GM7 for 10 minutes extra. I find them best eaten warm so you can eat these straight away or reheat them in the microwave with a big of vegan custard or pudding mix.

They were too cute not to give a bit of attention to so I spent 2 hours icing these bad boys ready to give out to my nieces and nephews as a pre-Christmas treat! I’m not the best I’m awful at icing things as I’ve never really Iced things before, so it was definitely an..interesting experience on a Monday Morning.

*This recipe has been altered to be more stable and biscuit-like. I have removed the water from the recipe as it shrinks and would ruin the shape of the biscuits. The oil I halved as the mixture was quite thin the last time I made it and I’ve included sugar to help make these biscuits less chewy in texture. If you want them crisper you can take away one table spoon of flour and replace them with half a tbsp of butter or oil.

Tip: All sweet potatoes are different (sounds like something your mum would say) but it’s true! Some sweet potatoes carry more water then others so be sure to add your liquid after you have formed your dough mix.

If you’re looking for a healthy cookie that the kids can really enjoy making, why not try this creative recipe. Not only is it healthy it gives children a real expanse on how they can get creative in the kitchen. A vegetable no longer needs to be something you have to bribe your children to eat. It can be a fun ingredient for cakes and cookies! Sweet potatoes are so versatile and I absolutely adore them in puddings and tarts (as you can tell).

I have created these for Christmas and will be making them throughout the year too, I have really enjoyed baking these and they’re so versatile throughout the year. Please think of these as a bookmarkable treat and creative bake with your kids, as I said, all children should be introduced to vegetables from an early age. If you like it be sure to pin & share it on social media! Thank you!

Have a great week

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