Chewy and nutty, these cookies make a delicious and wholesome snack. Even my husband John, who isn’t a fan of cakes and cookies, gives them two thumbs up. Among the ingredients is date paste, which you can make in advance. You can view the recipe here.

In these cookies, there’s no flour. Instead, there’s almond meal. The date paste combined with the maple syrup and applesauce add moisture and give a subtle, natural sweetness. The oats soak up the moisture and give the cookies a chewy bite. The grated chocolate and spices delicately enhance the flavour. You can enjoy them as part of your breakfast, a mid-day snack or for dessert.

Here’s the recipe. Enjoy!

Chewy almond date cookies

Heat oven at 350°F / 180°C

Makes 35 – 38 cookies

Ingredients

In a large-size bowl, mix with electric beaters on low until all blended and smooth:

• 1/2 cup date paste (can add a little more also – see in procedure)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil (e.g canola, sunflower)
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or honey)
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

In a separate bowl, hand mix together:

• 1 1/2 cups almond meal (finely ground almonds)
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut*
• 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• A pinch of sea salt

In a third bowl, hand mix together:

• 2 cups rolled oats (no sugar added and preferably small size oats)
• 1/3 cup grated dark chocolate – 70% cocoa (I grate by hand a chocolate bar)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon**
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

*You can substitute the coconut with finely chopped walnuts or hazelnuts or macadamia or Brazil nuts.

**You can subsitute the cinnamon with finely grated orange peel.

Procedure

Pour the almond meal mixture into the date paste mixture. Blend with electric beater on low until mixed. Add the rolled oats mixture and blend again on low until mixed. Here, if you want, you can add a little more date paste (1-2 tablespoons) for extra moisture.

To make it easier to handle the dough, put the cookie mixture in the fridge to cool – for about 20-30 minutes.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. From the mixture, use a tablespoon to make round balls and space them out about 2 inches apart on the sheet. With a fork, lightly press the cookies down to form 1/2-inch thick rounds.

Bake one sheet at a time for 7-10 minutes until the bottoms are light golden brown and the centre top of the cookies is still soft.

Remove the sheet to a rack and let stand until the cookies are slightly firm, about 2 minutes. Transfer the cookies to racks to cool.

I like to make a large batch and store them in the freezer.