Retired With No Regrets: Baking Gluten-Free Cookies - Conventional, Convection or Microwave

Monday, January 20, 2014

Baking Gluten-Free Cookies - Conventional, Convection or Microwave - What’s your choice?

Now that I have time to play with my food, I would rather bake food in the microwave or my countertop convection oven.

I don’t like making large batches of anything, so I often bake six and freeze the remainder. It’s a bit much to heat up the oven or even the counter-top convection oven during hot weather, so I began experimenting with the microwave, since I use it a lot in making meals.

I had some frozen cookie dough from the Orange Scented Double Dark Chocolate Cookies, so I popped a frozen one in the microwave for 60 seconds. It was the perfect treat! So I then tried mixing a small amount of a chocolate chip cookie. The first one was too light for me…. without the browning, so I added cinnamon to color it a little.

This is a time saver for those with small children….. mix up a batch and microwave one or two when needed. First test out one or two and always chill and shape the cookie dough!

Cookie dough that works best in the microwave, will puff up and spread a little in a conventional oven. Of the gluten-free purchased cookie doughs that I’ve tried, all are best baked in the oven.

I have tried three boxed mixes and was impressed with just one.

This was the best photo from the KAF gluten free cookie mix cookies

If planning to bake any cookies in the microwave, the cookie dough should be mixed with an electric mixer until completely mixed. Then chill the dough at least an hour. The dough should be cold when placed in the microwave. Always use a flat parchment paper covered surface. The plate shown was also used.

These are pictures form the microwave on the left and convection oven on the right. The lighter color is a pre-packaged dough that was not flattened.

This picture is the “before microwave" for the previous pictures.

This picture shows the same cookie , microwaved (left) and convection oven (right)

These are the non-flattened pre-packaged balls

Pre-packaged flattened a bit

Microwaved - not flattened and flattened

This one was very light, since white rice flour and no brown sugar

Simple Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies – (updated Jan 2014) Microwave

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients - Food Processor

1/3 cups sweet rice flour

1/3 cup sorghum flour

1/3 cup Tapioca Flour

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder (aluminum free)

1/8 tsp salt, optional

1/2 tsp Authentic Foods Vanilla Powder

1/3 cup granulated Stevia (used Stevia in the Raw)

a pinch of xanthan gum, optional ( if using a flax gel egg, can be omitted)

Wet ingredients and Fats

3 tbsp butter, softened

3 tbsp Canola Harvest Margarine (or 70% or more fat margarine)

1 egg

2 tbsp raw honey

1/2 tsp orange or almond extract

Add Ins

1/2 cup mini chips (Ghirardelli)

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

Procedure

Pulse Dry Ingredients in a food processor two minutes to finish grinding. Beat all of the Wet Ingredients until fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the Dry Ingredients from the food processor using a hand mixer. Scrape down beaters and bowl. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Oven

Drop dough into 24 portions onto parchment paper covered baking sheets, shape and flatten to 2 inches wide, if baking in oven

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes at 350F until golden brown. Gently, using a flat lifter, remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Microwave

Place balls of dough on parchment paper covered microwave safe flat plate. Slightly flatten the cookie mound. Microwave on high 45 to 50 seconds, depending on the size and thickness of the cookie. Watch the first ones, they will puff up and start to deflate at around 40 seconds, best to remove from oven at 50 seconds. Gently lift with a flat lifter to a wire rack to finish cooling about 5 minutes minimum.

Tips

The cookies do not brown in the microwave. If the light color is objectionable, use dark brown sugar as part of the sweetener or 1 tsp molasses for 1 tsp honey

I have also tried three packaged gluten-free cookie mixes. This one works good in the microwave, the other does not.

Cookie dough before chilling - King Arthur Flour Glutenfree Cookie Mix