Double Chocolate Sour Cherry Cookies

For me, a chewy cookie is far superior to a hard cookie.  Which is why I love oatmeal cookies, at least the way I make them.  Or should I say the way I underbake them?  Anyways, making gluten free oatmeal cookies that taste like regular oatmeal cookies is incredibly easy - just substitute gluten free oat flour for all the oatmeal, and the wheat flour.  And you need to use less butter because gluten free flours tend to absorb less oil or butter than wheat flour.

I wanted to make a chewy chocolate cookie with dried sour cherries in it, because sour cherries are excellent with chocolate.  You will note the the amounts of cocoa and oat flour are in weights.  This is because it is more accurate than using a measuring cup, which is more crucial when using gluten free flours.  It's pretty easy to find oat flour in stores now, but you can also use your blender to grind rolled oats into flour - just make sure you use the same weight of oats before grinding.  And here is a pic of the delicious chocolatey treats!





Double Chocolate Sour Cherry Cookies

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup dehydrated cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 2 1/4 cups (225 gm) gluten-free oat flour
• 1/2 cup (75 gm) cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup dried sour cherries
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Method

• Weigh out the flour and cocoa, or spoon it into a measuring cup.  Never scoop oat flour out of the package with a measuring cup.  It will compact, and you will get more flour than you need.  
• Preheat oven to 375º F, and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper
• Cream together the butter and sugar.  Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix well.
• Add the oat flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda, and mix until well blended.
• Stir in the dried sour cherries and chocolate chips.
• Drop heaping tablespoons of the cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving a couple inches of space between cookies.
• Bake for 12 minutes - do not overbake.  You want them to be chewy.
• Allow to cool on wire racks, but put in an airtight container as soon as they are cool.  They may seem a bit dry when first baked - putting them in an airtight container softens them.  These are best kept in the freezer.

Variations:  

• Substitute dried cranberries for dried sour cherries.  
• Substitute 1/2 ground hazelnuts (roast before grinding), for the dried sour cherries.

Be prepared for these cookies to disappear quickly - I brought them to work, and the whole recipe was gobbled up in one day.  In fact, before coffee time, one of my coworkers came out with a cookie in each hand, and asked if there was a limit to how many he was allowed to have in one day.  :)  He was also upset that I allowed another coworker to take one for her friend because, as he put it, "She doesn't work here".