Easy Gluten-Free Oatmeal Currant Cookies with Walnuts
By Cheryl Forberg
Gluten is a naturally occurring protein found in some cereal grains. For gluten diets, this focus on gluten primarily relates to wheat, rye, and barley. Based on the name, you may think of gluten as a sort of gelatinous protein; indeed, it is the component responsible for the elasticity in dough.
Many people are sensitive to gluten and suffer digestive problems when they consume it. The sensitivities range from low-level allergies to celiac disease. Because of all of the digestive symptoms associated with gluten sensitivity, gaining or maintaining a normal body weight can be difficult.
The question is, should everyone adopt a gluten-free diet? Many people feel that a gluten-free diet is healthy for all, not just those who have to strike gluten from their diets out of necessity. You’ve heard me say to “cut out the white stuff,” but why not go the whole nine yards and cut out all wheat, rye, and barley products?
If you suffer from celiac disease, you have little choice. You need to eat a completely gluten-free diet. For others, you have a choice. Before making it, consider these things about gluten-free diets:
✓ They can be very restrictive. You’ll have to skip more than the obvious culprits, such as bread, pasta and pastries. Be sure to check product labels because the products on your supermarket shelves may or may not contain gluten. Here are just a few things you may have to go without:
✓ They can be expensive. Gluten-free alternatives to foods you love can be hard to find. And when you do find them, they could cost more than the foods and drinks you are used to.
✓ They may affect you socially. Dining out with others can be difficult for anyone with specialty diet needs, and this is very true of a strict gluten free diet.
✓ They’re not a magic pill for whatever ails you. A gluten-free diet isn’t everything from a weight-loss solution to a cure-all for myriad sicknesses and discomfort. And despite gluten-free menus being en vogue, there is little evidence to suggest that anyone except those with gluten sensitivity or celiac disease should adopt a gluten-free diet. Better to lose the “white stuff,” such as white flour, sugar, white potatoes, and highly processed foods, than to go completely gluten-free just because you read about it in a magazine.
Nevertheless, we could probably all do with less wheat. Gluten-containing wheat, whole or not, can be more difficult to digest than other grains and can wreak havoc with your blood sugar levels. In addition, a whole host of other dietary and other problems can be linked to wheat.
Adapting your favorite recipes to make them gluten-free can be tricky. Sometimes just replacing the white/wheat flour with gluten-free flour will do the trick. This is an adaption of my grandmother’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookie recipe. Enjoy!
Gluten-Free Oatmeal Currant Cookies with Toasted Red Walnuts
Yield: about 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients
½ pound (8 ounces) unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups gluten-free flour (I used King Arthur brand)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups gluten-free old-fashioned oatmeal*
Two 3 ½ ounce packages (approximately 1 cup) Melissa’s dried currants
1 cup chopped Melissa’s red walnuts, lightly toasted
*Oats are naturally gluten-free. However, some oatmeal brands are manufactured in facilities where they may become tainted with gluten from other ingredients by cross-contamination. Be sure the label states gluten-free.
Preparation
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.
Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt to mixing bowl. Beat on low speed, just until combined.
Add the oats, currants, and walnuts; mix just until combined. Refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
With a 2 tablespoon/1 ounce scoop, form cookies and place mounds onto sheet pan. Flatten slightly with fingers together until cookie resembles a thick disk.
Bake for approximately 14 minutes, rotating pan halfway through until lightly browned. Transfer the cookies to a cooking rack.
Many people are sensitive to gluten and suffer digestive problems when they consume it. The sensitivities range from low-level allergies to celiac disease. Because of all of the digestive symptoms associated with gluten sensitivity, gaining or maintaining a normal body weight can be difficult.
The question is, should everyone adopt a gluten-free diet? Many people feel that a gluten-free diet is healthy for all, not just those who have to strike gluten from their diets out of necessity. You’ve heard me say to “cut out the white stuff,” but why not go the whole nine yards and cut out all wheat, rye, and barley products?
If you suffer from celiac disease, you have little choice. You need to eat a completely gluten-free diet. For others, you have a choice. Before making it, consider these things about gluten-free diets:
✓ They can be very restrictive. You’ll have to skip more than the obvious culprits, such as bread, pasta and pastries. Be sure to check product labels because the products on your supermarket shelves may or may not contain gluten. Here are just a few things you may have to go without:
- Beer
- Pickles
- Bouillon cubes
- Malt vinegar
- Twizzlers
- Hot dogs
- Soy sauce
- Pudding
- Instant hot chocolate
- French fries (depending on what else was fried in the oil, which is
- often something breaded)
- Packaged instant soups
- Blue cheese
✓ They can be expensive. Gluten-free alternatives to foods you love can be hard to find. And when you do find them, they could cost more than the foods and drinks you are used to.
✓ They may affect you socially. Dining out with others can be difficult for anyone with specialty diet needs, and this is very true of a strict gluten free diet.
✓ They’re not a magic pill for whatever ails you. A gluten-free diet isn’t everything from a weight-loss solution to a cure-all for myriad sicknesses and discomfort. And despite gluten-free menus being en vogue, there is little evidence to suggest that anyone except those with gluten sensitivity or celiac disease should adopt a gluten-free diet. Better to lose the “white stuff,” such as white flour, sugar, white potatoes, and highly processed foods, than to go completely gluten-free just because you read about it in a magazine.
Nevertheless, we could probably all do with less wheat. Gluten-containing wheat, whole or not, can be more difficult to digest than other grains and can wreak havoc with your blood sugar levels. In addition, a whole host of other dietary and other problems can be linked to wheat.
Adapting your favorite recipes to make them gluten-free can be tricky. Sometimes just replacing the white/wheat flour with gluten-free flour will do the trick. This is an adaption of my grandmother’s Oatmeal Raisin Cookie recipe. Enjoy!
Gluten-Free Oatmeal Currant Cookies with Toasted Red Walnuts
Yield: about 3 dozen cookies
½ pound (8 ounces) unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1½ cups gluten-free flour (I used King Arthur brand)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups gluten-free old-fashioned oatmeal*
Two 3 ½ ounce packages (approximately 1 cup) Melissa’s dried currants
1 cup chopped Melissa’s red walnuts, lightly toasted
*Oats are naturally gluten-free. However, some oatmeal brands are manufactured in facilities where they may become tainted with gluten from other ingredients by cross-contamination. Be sure the label states gluten-free.
Preparation
