Recipes with Julie Van Rosendaal: Gluten-free cookies

What is gluten — and why is it so delicious?

Gluten is a family of proteins found in grains like wheat, barley, rye and triticale. It gives baked goods structure, creating a network that traps the air bubbles created by leavening agents like yeast and baking powder. Because the protein chains are very elastic, the dough is allowed to stretch as it rises.

The presence of gluten is most noticeable in yeast breads, particularly things like pizza dough, which relies on gluten for its chewy texture. 

LISTEN | Julie Van Rosendaal takes the mystery out of gluten free baking: 

We talked about baking without gluten on the Calgary Eyeopener — and though there are plenty of great gluten-free flour blends you can use cup for cup in place of the wheat flour in a recipe, you don't always need to reinvent the wheel. There are plenty of baked goods out there that are already gluten-free and don't require substitutions.

But if you do use gluten-free flour, let your dough or batter stand for 20-30 minutes, even if it doesn't need to rise. It will allow the flours to absorb some of the moisture in the dough or batter, which will alleviate some of the gritty texture often associated with gluten-free flours.

Here are some chewy chocolate-walnut cookies and classic peanut butter cookies that are not only gluten-free (and grain-free), they don't contain any dairy, in case that's also a consideration. 

The Best Peanut Butter Cookies

These are my go-to peanut butter cookies — gluten-free or not. Because they contain only peanut butter, sugar and egg, they have an intensely peanut buttery flavour and a soft, chewy texture. You can use all-natural peanut butter here, but the cookies will be drier and more crumbly. I prefer to use creamy or crunchy Kraft peanut butter or something similar.

Feel free to stir in some chopped chocolate and/or chopped peanuts, too.

• 1½ cups peanut butter, preferably not all-natural (see above)
• 1 cup sugar (white or brown—I like using half of each)
• 1 large egg

Preheat the oven to 350 F. 

In a medium bowl, stir together the peanut butter, sugar and egg. It will be very soft at first, but will stiffen up as you stir. Once it's thoroughly combined, it should be stiff enough to roll into balls. 

Roll the dough into balls about the size of a walnut and place a couple inches apart on a parchment-lined sheet. 

Press down on each once or twice with a fork to flatten, and bake for 12-14 minutes, until pale golden around the edges, and just set. Let them cool on the sheet or transfer to a wire rack to cool. 

Makes: About 1½ dozen cookies.

Tofino Chocolate Walnut Cookies

I fell in love with a version of these chewy, intensely chocolatey cookies decades ago at SoBo in Tofino. They have the texture of a fudgy brownie with a crackly exterior, with no butter or flour. SoBo's famous baker, Jen, used hazelnuts, but I default to big pieces of good quality walnuts, or a combination of walnuts and pecans if I'm feeling rich.

There are many versions out there, all apparently derived from a cookie created by French pastry chef François Payard in 1997. 

• 3 cups walnut or pecan halves or pieces, or hazelnuts
• 4 cups icing sugar
• 2/3 cup cocoa
• ½ tsp fine salt
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 tbsp vanilla
• ½-1 cup chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. 

In a skillet over medium-high heat, or in the oven as it preheats, toast the walnuts or pecans until pale golden and fragrant, and roughly chop them. If you're using hazelnuts, toast them and then rub off their skins in a tea towel before chopping. 

In a large bowl, stir together the icing sugar, cocoa and salt. Stir in the egg whites, vanilla and nuts. It may seem like there's not enough moisture, but keep at it! It will come together into a gloopy batter. Stir in the chopped chocolate, too, if you're using it.

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Line a baking sheet with parchment and drop large scoops/spoonfuls (about ¼ cup each), spacing them well — no more than six to eight cookies per sheet.

Bake for 18-20 minutes, until they're cracked and dry-looking on top, and set. Let them cool on the sheet or slide the cookies, still on the parchment, onto a wire rack to cool.

Makes: About 1½ dozen substantial cookies.