Sugar-Free, Gluten-Free Needn’t Be Taste-Free

In addition to toilet paper, there’s a shortage of yeast —  apparently because there are a lot of people baking bread during this pandemic — what the … ?

It’s going to take something much more catastrophic than a deadly virus to terrorize me into baking a loaf of bread. The last time I baked bread was in fifth grade for my 4-H Fair Cooking Project. That’s some labor-intensive stuff right there, even if I did get a blue ribbon. Besides, I’m only 45 minutes from the Amish, and they sell freshly baked bread on the roadside. On the roadside! Cause that’s how they roll (pun intended).

If I’m cooking, it’s got to be simple, maybe five ingredients or less. I don’t eat a lot of carbs or meat or gluten or sugar. We won’t get into the weirdness of that right now. That’s a whole other blog.

The Significant Other eats it all: cows, carbs, pigs, sugar, gluten. Lots of gluten. Sometimes he tries one of my meals or snacks. Sometimes he likes it, and sometimes, not. As it should be. What I’m saying is you may not want a low-carb treat with no sugar or flour. That’s fine — this is ‘Merica. At least it was last time I checked the headlines.

I love peanut butter and can eat it with a spoon right out of the jar. Sometimes I don’t use a spoon. Here’s my fave 4-ingredient recipe for peanut butter cookies. As far as low carb, gluten-free, sugar-free and salt-free go (and can we just say white-killer-free?) this is a pretty tasty cookie. Proof: I have to hide them from the Gluten, Sugar Carnivore Eater.

PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES 

• 1 cup natural peanut butter (I use Simple Truth no-stir, organic crunchy peanut butter from Kroger)
• 1/2 cup Stevia or Swerve sugar (I have used both and kind of prefer the Swerve)
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°. Mix all ingredients until well combined. Using small spoon, scoop enough dough to roll into a 1″ ball in your hands. (Wait! Go back — wash your hands first!) 

Place balls on parchment-lined baking sheet. Press lightly on each one with a fork, creating a criss-cross. (I add a few chopped peanuts on top and lightly press them into the dough.)

Bake for 12 minutes and allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Bon appétit.