CHOCOLATE-CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE SANDWICHES WITH GANACHE (GRAIN-FREE & GLUTEN-FREE VERSIONS)

Recipe By Shirell Dalton, The Simple Chocolatier

Active Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 7-9 minutes

Yields 10 cookie sandwiches

Ingredients:

For the Grain-Free version:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

2 tablespoons coconut oil

3/4 cups coconut sugar (or use 1/2 cup for a slightly less sweet taste) – see note below

2 tablespoons of good quality cocoa (or use raw cacao)

1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk

5 tablespoons coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoons pure vanilla

1/2 cup of good quality bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips

For the Gluten-Free version:

Use the ingredients (except coconut flour) above. Substitute the coconut flour

with 3/4 cups of gluten free all purpose flour (I used Arrowhead Mills Organic Gluten Free All Purpose Flour)

Dark Chocolate Ganache:

1/2 cup of good quality bittersweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup of good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (or use coconut cream) – see note below

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon raw honey (or light corn syrup)

Note: I’m a big believer in using quality (and affordably priced) ingredients in order to make quality desserts and other foods. My product recommendations are Madhava Naturally Sweet Organic Coconut Sugar and So Delicious Culinary Coconut Milk- Original. Pure cane sugar can be used as an alternative for the coconut sugar. I recommend Zulka Morena Pure Cane Sugar (unrefined).

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine butter, oil, coconut sugar and cocoa (or raw cacao). Add the large egg plus egg yolk and vanilla then mix well. Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Pour into mixture. Also add vanilla and chocolate chips. Stir until combined. Chill the cookie mixture until firm. Measure 2 tablespoonfuls of cookie mixture for each portion and roll into balls. Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 7-9 minutes. Do not over bake. Remove from oven. Once the cookies have cooled, use a small spatula and spread softened Dark Chocolate Ganache on the bottom of one cookie then top with a second cookie (bottom side down). Repeat these steps to make the cookie sandwiches.

To make the Dark Chocolate Ganache– Pour the bittersweet and semi-sweet chocolate chips into a medium–size heatproof bowl. Place bowl aside. In a small saucepan, combine the heavy cream, butter and honey. Bring to a light boil over medium heat. Remove the cream mixture from the heat, and pour over the chocolate chips. Gently swirl the bowl to cover the chocolate completely with the cream. Slowly whisk until the chocolate chips melt. Tightly wrap and freeze any unused portion for up to 3 months.

Variations:

Grain Free Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches – For this recipe, use 1/4 cup unsalted butter or coconut oil (also can try using a combination of both), 1/2 cup coconut sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa or cacao, 1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk, 1/4 cup natural peanut butter, 5 tablespoons coconut flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 3/4 teaspoons pure vanilla, 1/2 cup bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate chips. Bake for approximately 6 minutes.

Grain Free Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut – Add 3/4 cups unsweetened flaked coconut (can also reduce to 1/2 cup coconut) to the Grain-Free version above. For this recipe I used Great Value Organic Unsweetened Coconut Flakes.

Recipes developed by Shirell Dalton – The Simple Chocolatier  Copyright ©2017 Shirell Dalton, All Rights Reserved