Wow, that title is a mouthful.

But then again, so are these cookies.

In keeping with the theme of using gluten-free flours in recipes that make them shine, these simple cookies take teff flour and let it sing. And they are certainly easy to make, straightforward, and made with simple clean ingredients.

Tender Teff Peanut Butter cookies require just six ingredients (or eight, if you add the raisins and chocolate chips and I definitely recommend that you do), and, while I haven’t tried them this way, I suspect they would be equally delicious with almond butter. Maybe even cashew butter or sunflower seed butter, if you are feeling particularly bold and wild.

They’re tender, sweet but not too sweet, and just the right amount of crumbly. Gluten-free cookies are great like that. The whole goal of shortbread is to be free of gluten – it’s what gives shortbread that classic sandy texture. Gluten-free and shortbread are like two peas in a pod. And since lots of gluten-free baking turns out a bit crumbly/sandy anyways, why not say it was what you were aiming for in the first place?

Quite frankly, the first time I made these I ate too many of them. Plus, I put chocolate chips in them AND made those little cross hatching marks on them that make peanut butter cookies so much cuter. What’s a gal to do?

But out of that snacking experience was born the freezer test. I usually bake things, eat a few from the oven, and freeze all the rest. It’s a system that works for me. These cookies freeze really nicely. Keep that in mind if you want to make a larger batch. The recipe is so simple it can be halved, doubled, etc.

So all hail teff flour! And nut butter. And whatever else you want to add. Hey-oh!

For more glorious teff options, try teff banana chocoate chip muffins.

Tender Teff Peanut Butter Shortbread Cookies

• Author: Backyard Owl tweaks on this original recipe from Bob’s Red Mill
• Recipe notes: vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, naturally-sweetened

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups teff flour
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon himilayan pink salt or sea salt
• optional: 1/2 cup chocolate chips and/or 1/2 cup raisins

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a small saucepan and over low heat, whisk together peanut butter, coconut oil, and maple syrup, just until combined.
3. Stir in vanilla.
4. Take off heat and let cool for a minute or two
5. Stir in teff flour and salt and mix until combined.
6. Stir in raisins and/or chocolate chips, if using.
7. Scoop by the spoonful and round into balls, before placing on a baking sheet.
8. Cross hatch and flatten the cookie dough using a fork – this is where we get that classic peanut butter cookie look.
9. Bake for 13-15 minutes, depending on size, and let cool.
10. Enjoy!

© Backyard Owl