Vegan Almond Coconut Cookies with Tahini + Chia Seeds {low carb, high fibre, gluten free}

Two recipes in two days?! This hasn’t happened in months, guys! As you know, I’ve been spending a lot more time on travel posts instead, but I’ve been in a foodie mood lately, so you guys get another recipe! This one’s a supercharged cookie recipe that’s VEGAN, HIGH FIBRE, LOW CARB, GLUTEN FREE AND GRAIN FREE! Adapted from Alexandra’s amazing Skin Cleanse Cookies, I added my own tahini twist to them and also used Natvia instead of the higher calorie coconut sugar the original recipe calls for. These cookies are beautifully chewy and have a decadent coconut-y fragrance.

The use of tahini brings a more earthy flavour to the cookies. I personally find tahini to be an incredibly versatile ingredient. I’ve only just discovered its uniqueness when used in baking — I’ve used it in my white chocolate chip matcha tahini cookies recipe, which turned out brilliant — and I quite like the flavour it brings to sweet foods. It also makes an excellent binding agent in certain recipes that use nut butters.

Almond Coconut Cookies with Tahini + Chia Seeds
a vegan, low carb, high fibre, gluten free recipe; adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon chia seeds
3 tablespoons water
1 ¼ cups almond meal
½ cup desiccated coconut
¼ cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips
a generous pinch of sea salt
2 tablespoons sweetener of choice*
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 tablespoons tahini, hulled or unhulled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

* I used Natvia, a 100% natural sweetener (95% fewer calories than sugar). You can use sugar instead if you don’t have natural sweeteners on hand.

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 190°C and line a large baking tray with non-stick baking paper.
2. In a small bowl, combine the chia seeds and water. Stir and set aside for a few minutes.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the almond meal, desiccated coconut, chocolate chips and salt. Mix well, set aside.
4. In a larger mixing bowl, stir together gelled chia, sweetener, coconut oil, tahini and vanilla until well combined. Add dry ingredients to mixture, combine thoroughly.
5. Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and place on prepared baking tray. I find wetting your hands with a bit of water can help prevent the dough from sticking to your palms. Press balls down lightly to flatten.
6. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until just golden. Remove from heat, let stand in pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies come out soft but will harden as they cool.