Recipe for Salty Oatmeal Chocolate Chip- Plant-based Cookies, Gluten-free

Tomorrow we have been invited out for lunch. I have been I have already eaten enough with R. to know that she rarely eats dessert. 

What can I take that she will enjoy? 

She told me that growing up in the '50s in Northern Europe her diet was mostly potatoes, rye bread and salty oatmeal,and that salty oatmeal is a particular comfort food. 

She also told me she eschews most sweets, but does like bitter-sweet chocolate. 

So, I went in search of a gluten-free chocolate chip salty oatmeal cookie recipe. 

The internet is great that way. Here is an adaptation of another recipe (that is an adaptation of yet another)*. It is super! I've just adjusted it to use what I have available (and because I don't ever use canola oil). Hope you enjoy it too!

• 1 C. Coconut Flour

• 2/3 C. Steelcut Oats, ground in food processor

• 1 C. Palm Sugar (or other sweetener of choice)

• 1 tsp. Cinnamon

• 1 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt

• 1 tsp. Baking Soda

• 1 T. Chia Seed, ground in coffee bean grinder (or blender)

• 3/4 C. unsweetened Applesauce

• 1/2 C. Virgin Coconut Oil (melted)

• 1 tsp. GF vanilla extract

• 2 C. certified GF Rolled Oats

• 1/2 C rehydrated Cranberries, chopped

• 1/2 C. GF Chocolate Chips

• Kosher Salt to garnish (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Process Steelcut Oats in food processor (or coffee bean grinder or grind by hand?) until it is like a rough flour. You're looking for texture here, but without the unchewable bits.
3. Combine all dry ingredients except for 1 cup of Rolled Oats and Chocolate Chips and whirl together in food processor just until combined.
4. Add in all wet ingredients except for rehydrated Cranberries.
5. Briefly process wet mixture into dry mixture. (Or stir together)
6. Pour into a bowl and stir in drained Cranberries. (I added warm water to mine to rehydrate them, but you could add lemon and ginger, or juice-- experiment and let me know what worked for you).
7. Once mixed, allow to sit for 5 minutes. Then add remaining Oats and fold in Chocolate Chips. (Try not to sample too much of the product ;-)
8. Form dough into roughly tablespoon size balls, space them two inches apart on a lined baking pan, and flatten to approximately 1/2". I baked mine on a silicon mat, but the recipe I adapted this from suggests that parchment paper also works well.
9. Sprinkle with Celtic Sea Salt (or kosher salt) and lightly tap salt crystals into the dough.
10. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. After removing cookies from oven, wait for 5-10 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool for an additional 15-20 minutes.
10. Makes about 2 dozen cookies.
*recipe is a doubled adaptation of one by Jonathan Itchon at https://thecanaryfiles.blogspot.com/2011/12/ratio-rally-vegan-salted-oatmeal-cherry.html