My daughter and I are three weeks into gluten-free diet and I am trying to tackle the favorites. Made tollhouse cookies last night with brown rice flour, tapioca and potato starch. Followed a recipe and they actually looked like regular cookies except for that wonderful chewy texture that, you know, comes from gluten. I thought they tasted gritty but the gang said they were good. I love my family. Recipe called for one egg, so maybe two would help. Also maybe replacing some of rice flour with ground almonds. That worked when I made brownies. Is the gritty texture just to be expected because of rice flour?

Thanks,
Maureen

The short answer is . . . yes.

Here are a couple of rice flour options . . . replace part of your brown rice flour with white rice flour from an asian market. Their flour is ground finer and is cheaper.

Or . . . replace your brown rice flour with Authentic Foods SuperFine Ground brown rice flour. It's expensive, but that's what I use now and I won't go back. Check authentic foods website for retail locations that carry it. Then you won't have to pay outrageous shipping.

Hopefully, someone can give you some alternative flours . . . I like sorghum and millet flour but I've never used them for cookies, just bread.

Hi Janet,

Thanks for the tips. I bought a bag of Bob's Red Mill brown rice flour and will check at Whole Foods tomorrow for the Authentic Foods super fine. I did buy some sweet rice flour at the Asian market nearby and it was gritty, too. But I may try the super fine sorghum flour and see how that goes. My cupboard is starting to look like a mish-mash of bags and plastic containers. Once I find a good basic recipe I'm sure it will get easier and less costly and time-consuming.

Thanks again.

Maureen

I've made about 6 different batches of chocolate chip cookies over the last 2 weeks (and gained 4# ) trying to perfect the tollhouse cookie. This is what I came up with--as close to perfection as I can get: I use Pamelas baking mix as a substitiute for the flour (straight across) and it also replaces any salt, xanthan gum, baking soda and powder (if it calls for it) and then decrease the butter by 2/3 (!!) So if it calls for 1 cup, use 1/3cup. (I used ~6tbs). Refrigerate the dough for about an hour and then bake at 350, on parchment paper, for 10-12 minutes, remove when a little brown around edges and still gooey in center, let sit on pan for ~5minutes before transferring to cooling rack. They are perfectly crisp on the edges and soft and delicious on the inside. I have put myself on a cookie fast for the next 2 weeks--NO MORE COOKIES

Well, I had things turn out gritty until I started using millet flour, sorghum flour, buckwheat flour, etc. These are not gritty at all IMO, and I don't buy superfine or anything special. I'm sure they'll work in cookies.

As for making them healthier, and lower in calories, try Stevia in place of sugar, and coconut oil in place of butter or margarine.

My progression of making chocolate chip cookies is as follows:

1) Used Pamela's mix and recipe. I refrigerate awhile and only bake about 12 cookies, freeze the rest in a log for future baking. (good)
2) Used the Tollhouse recipe, except used about 2/3 Pamela's, 1/3 sorghum flour, and a tablespoon or two of almond flour, and 1/2 butter, 1/2 Crisco. (better)
3) Used the Tollhouse recipe, used only Domata flour, baked as pan cookies (as opposed to individual) on parchment paper (THE BEST!) My non-Celiac daughter chose to bring these (over Krispy Kreme's) to school for her birthday treats.

Domata is an all-purpose blend that includes Xanthan and is designed to sub cup for cup for regular flour in recipes. Our local grocer is carrying it by request in their gluten-free section. It costs $15 for a 5-lb bag. You can get it mail order for about the same price by the time you include shipping and handling.

This really doesn't answer your question directly, but it's relevant,

I have found that my cookies turn out best when I make a "pizza cookie." The soft homebaked cookie taste and texture is very close to regular tollhouse. I usually use my 12" pizza pan. You can cut them into squares or circles (with a drinking cup or cookie cutter) or it can be used as a cookie birthday cake. Enjoy!

Happy Baking! -Julie

I second the suggestion for buying the Authentic Foods Superfine Rice Flour. Until I started using that I also found that everything I baked had a gritty texture. IMO, that is by far the best flour product out there and well worth the extra money.

jkmunchkin - this is WAY off topic, but your cute little puppy is really turning into a handsome boy(?)/beautiful girl(?) !!!

I have actually found that, regardless of the flour(s) I'm using, if I prepare according to directions and then let it sit for at least 20 minutes, I never get that gritty texture. I think, since gluten-free flours are so dense, that they take a bit more time to absorb fluid, and it's best to allow them to do that before they go in the oven. I don't get that gritty texture even when I make something that calls for all rice flour. this is just what works for me. But for cookie dough, it's a good idea to refridgerate an hour or so before baking anyway, they won't spread as much. That may prevent the gritty texture.

LOL!! Thanks.

Yeah he is an absolute cutey; and tons of fun. He LOVES people and playing with almost all other dogs (there is 1 neighborhood dog and his owner that are mean and all the other dogs dislike him). But other than that he is super friendly. He even loves my inlaws cats. Unfortunately they don't feel the same and he gets kinda upset when they won't play with him.

Aaawwww....

Choc Chip Cookies were one of the things I felt I had to perfect to be happy. After much trial and error this is what I do.

1 stick real butter, creamed
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs- cream all then add
1/4 - 1/3 sour cream
1/4 ts. guar gum or xantham gum
1 ts baking soda
1/2 - 1 t salt
1 t vanilla
1/4 to 1/3 cup teff flour
2 - 2 1/4 cups gluten-free flour (I use a mix of rice (w & b, sorguhm, tapioca, potato starch and a little potato flour (this one is optional )
1 bag chips

Blend well and bake at 350

These are the ingredients, Mix it up just like you do reg choc chip cookies.

I too have extra flours running around to use up now. Bu I have honestly found that a mix of mostly w and b rice, sorghum and the starches and a little potato flour can be used instead of reg flour in most all my baked dessert goods. I also always put a little teff in choc items. Xantham Gum/or Guar I also add in amounts as needed depending on whether it is cookies, cake etc

Cream the butter really well, add the sugars and cream, add the eggs and beat well, then add the sour cream, mix well but not too much at this point and then add all the dry indgredients and after well mixed beat in the chips. I just do all this in my stand mixer.

I found that the sour creme helps add fat and flavor, I always use a little teff in anything chocolate. (NOTE; if your teff has not been ground, I run it thru a little baby coffee grinder to smooth it up. )

Then I bake in muffin top pan, you can also do on cookie sheet, however I do spray the pan with pam. Dough can be refridgerated for 2 days for fresh cookies each day- or for the dough-lol yes I eat it raw- or you can freeze and bake later. GOOD LUCK..

I've never had cookies spread out at all. I'm guessing it's because I don't use sugar, which does melt. The Stevia I use is pure extract powder, so it only takes a tsp or less to replace a whole cup of sugar.

Do you have a standard compensation technique for the loss of the dry? I tend to bake with honey so I typically add half the 'sugar' (honey) called for and remove about a 1/4 to a 1/2 cup of flour depending on the recipe size. Apple crisp is also lovely sweetend with real maple syrup............. mmmmmmmmmmmm......... I must say I've perfected apple crisp, I just may have to make some this weekend.

Not really. Of course, I generally just make up the recipe as I go along. I seldom follow any recipe, but mostly because besides gluten-free, I don't do dairy, eggs, sugar, and a few other things which have no relevance to cookies. I also never measure (probably works against me most times), so I just throw it together and work towards the right consistency. Often this means adding too much water, compensating with extra flour or something, making it too dry, and back to adding water again LOL. No, actually that doesn't happen much anymore Coconut soaks up water slowly, so if that's going in, it can help to have it soak for 20 minutes before mixing things together.

So far cookies seem to get about 3/4 tsp to 1 tsp Stevia per what looks like about a cup of flour.

here is the gluten-free tollhouse recipe directly from the nestle company...someone had contacted them on here a while back, and nestle had provided this recipe to them.

1 cup plus 2 TBSP potato starch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
10 TBSP butter, softened
6 TBSP sugar
6 TBSP firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
6 oz pkg (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1/2 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a small bowl, combine potato starch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine butter, sugar, dark brown sugar, and vanilla; beat until creamy. Beat in egg. Gradually add potato starch mixture. Stir in choc chips & nuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake @ 375 F for 8-10 mins.
Makes 50 cookies.

I still havent made these yet, but i figured that if it came from nestle it must be tasty

angie