Chocolate Chip Quinoa Cookies

Have you ever seen quinoa flakes?  I got a package of them, fascinated not by the fact that you can eat quinoa for breakfast as a hot cereal, but by the fact that you can use it instead of oatmeal to make cookies.  There's a recipe right on the back of the bag!

I was looking for an excuse to make more cookies, and for a way to make them seem sort of healthy.  Chocolate chip quinoa cookies--done and done.

I'm bringing these to this week's link party at Shaken Together Life.  Check out all the other great things people are making!

Do you like to try back-of-the-bag recipes?  I usually find they're pretty good.  This particular one didn't call for chocolate, but I knew I needed chocolate chunks in my cookies.  I substituted almond butter for the peanut butter the recipe called for because I had some and I like it so much.

The cookies turned out great.  The almond butter gives them the great texture that peanut butter cookies always have, the quinoa adds a little crunch but is less obtrusive than oatmeal, and the honey and brown sugar combine to make a flavorful but not-too-sweet cookie.  To make these vegan, you could use margarine (the original recipe calls for it) and agave (you might need less than 1/4 cup).  To make them gluten free, use rice flour (also called for in the original recipe).

This dough is dangerously delicious (almost better than the baked cookies).  Try it without fear since it's egg-free.

Feel virtuous about all the nuts and grains in your chocolate chip cookies!

Ingredients (adapted from the back of the Ancient Harvest bag; makes two dozen):

1 stick butter, softened
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup almond butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
3/4 cup quinoa flakes
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup chopped semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips (or use more or less to taste)

Preheat the oven to 350.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream the butter with the honey, brown sugar, almond butter, and vanilla.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, quinoa flakes, baking soda, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the large bowl and mix until combined.  Fold in chocolate chips.

Drop heaping teaspoons of dough onto the parchment paper and bake for 10-15 minutes, until just golden on top but not burned on the bottom.  Let cool on the cookie sheet for a minute or so, then transfer carefully to a rack.  The cookies will seem very unstable, but firm up as they cool.