Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Everyone has their own version of a perfect chocolate chip cookie. I like mine crisp on the outside, chewy in the middle, and with a balanced ratio of chocolate to actual cookie dough.

Cookies are a universally loved treat but, in the past couple years, they’ve gone strangely viral. The type I’ve being seeing the most of are those thick, Levain-style cookies. Whilst these cookies are inspired by those, with the addition of walnuts, they’re not quite as thick.

I posted a white chocolate and macadamia cookie recipe a few years ago, and these cookies use essentially the same base. I have made some small alternations to ensure they’re soft and chewy in the centre. There are some important baking notes in regards to the flour blend, resting time and baking temperature:

• This recipe comes together easily by hand since it uses melted butter. Whilst browning the butter can provide a deeper flavour, I personally don’t think this is necessary.
• The ratio of brown sugar to caster sugar is pivotal in providing that crisp edge and chewy interior.
• These cookies use a combination of brown rice flour, potato starch and tapioca starch. I find that brown rice flour is highly variable depending on the brand. This particular recipe is based on a super-fine brown rice flour, so I hopefully it works for you.
• I like to use a combination of dark chocolate (45-50% cocoa solids) and milk chocolate. Rather than using chips, I prefer chopping a block of chocolate into small chunks. I also recommend roasting the walnuts at 180°C for 6-8 minutes, giving them a mix halfway through.

• Once the dough is mixed, it will seem very loose. The most important part of is refrigerating the dough overnight, or for at least four hours. This is because it allows the flavour to develop but also affects the appearance and texture of the cookies. If the dough is not cool enough and feels soft and greasy, you will end up with a flat and crinkly cookie. After the dough is rolled into balls and placed onto a tray, I recommend putting the tray in the refrigerator whilst you portion the remaining dough.
• Before these cookies are baked, I like to add some extra chocolate and walnuts on top of the balls of dough. This is to ensure you can actually see chocolate chunks and the chopped nuts.
• I find that gluten-free cookies tend to brown quite quickly on the bottom. Other recipes typically involve the usual oven temperature of 180°C or even 200°C. However, I find these temperatures to be far too high and recommend baking these at 160°C (conventional oven). It might be different for your oven and could take some experimentation to find the ideal temperature.

The dough can be rolled into balls and frozen for up to 2 months. The same baking instructions apply, but I like to place the balls on a tray and leave them at room temperature for about 30 minutes as the oven preheats. This is because if the dough is too frozen, the bottom will brown before the cookie has a chance to spread. For this reason, I also like to bake them another tray to form a double-layer.

I hope you enjoy the recipe, and let me know if you have questions!

Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies

Makes 24-26 medium sized cookies.

Ingredients

• 125g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 110g brown sugar
• 40g caster sugar
• 1 egg + 2 egg yolks
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g brown rice flour
• 50g potato starch
• 20g tapioca starch
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
• 180g dark chocolate (45-50% cocoa solids), roughly chopped
• 180g milk chocolate, roughly chopped
• 100g roasted macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

Method

1. In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, brown sugar and caster sugar. Whisk until well-combined; it won’t be homongenous at this stage.
2. Add the egg, egg yolks, and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously until the mixutre is slightly lightened and pale in colour, about 1-2 minutes.
3. In a seperate bowl, combine the brown rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and xanthan gum. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and egg mixutre, folding until almost no streaks of flour remain.
4. Add the chopped chocolate and walnuts, folding until evenly incorporated. Reserve about a quarter of the chocolate and walnuts for topping the cookies later.
5. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 4 hours, but preferably overnight.
6. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Line 2-3 baking trays with baking paper.
7. Roll about 2 tablespoons of dough into balls and place them onto the prepared trays, leaving around 5cm in between each. Top each ball with the remaining chocolate and walnuts.
8. Bake the cookies for about 12-15 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown on the outside but still soft and slightly underbaked in the centre.
9. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the tray. Repeat with remaining dough.