Makes 3 dozen.

Ingredients:
12 ounces almond paste
½ cup white sugar
1 cup confectioners sugar
4 egg whites
1 ½ cups pine nuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325F. Line two cookie sheets with foil; lightly grease foil. Mix almond paste and granulated sugar in food processor until smooth. Add confectioners sugar and 2 egg whites; process until smooth.

Whisk remaining 2 egg whites in small bowl. Place pine nuts on shallow plate. With lightly gluten-free floured hands roll dough into 1 inch balls. Coat balls in egg whites, shaking off excess, then roll in pine nuts, pressing lightly to stick. Arrange balls on cookie sheets, and flatten slightly to form a 1 ½ inch round. Bake 15 to 18 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Let stand on cookie sheet 1 minute. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

1 ¾ cups quinoa flakes (or quick cooking rolled oats if you include oats in your diet)
1 ¾ cups gluten-free flour mix
½ to ¾ cup cold butter
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¾ to 1 cup brown sugar

Mix all of the above together till butter is all worked in and pat half of the mixture into a nine inch cake pan.

Meanwhile: Add 2 cups chopped dates, no pits, ½ cup white sugar, 1 cup water and 1 tablespoon lemon juice to a medium saucepan and cook slowly stirring to prevent burning till mixture is thickened. Cool the mixture.

Now pour the date filling over the mixture in the pan. Then add the remaining topping mixture and pat slightly. Bake at 350F for about 45 minutes or till golden on top. Cut in squares when cool.

This recipe comes to us from Ruth Parente.

Melt and set aside to cool (but not re-harden): 8 oz. Semi- sweet baking chocolate

In a mixing bowl, combine:
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup peanut butter
¼ cup butter (softened)

Blend in:
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon gluten free vanilla

Stir in the melted chocolate.

In a separate bowl, mix:
½ cup all purpose gluten-free baking mix
¼ teaspoon baking powder

Add dry ingredients to chocolate dough. Mix well.

Stir in:
1 ½ cup chocolate chips
2 cups unsalted dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

Use a scant ¼ cup of dough for each cookie, and drop it on a lightly greased cookie sheet (or one lined with parchment paper).

Bake in a preheated 350F oven for 13-14 minutes. Use a toothpick if you arent sure they are done.

Cool cookies on the pan for two minutes before trying to remove them. Finish cooling on a wire rack.

This recipe comes to us from Paula King.

2 cups white rice flour
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter (or gluten-free margarine), softened
¾ cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 cup real peanut butter (process unsalted peanuts in
food processor)
1 large egg
12 oz. gluten-free semi sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons gluten-free cocoa

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Sift Rice flour into a mixing bowl and add baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy, then add peanut butter, vanilla and cocoa. Add eggs and beat well, gradually adding flour mix. Add choc chips last.

Drop by rounded tablespoons at least 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 24 minutes, or until pale golden.

Makes around 60 cookies.

1 ½ cups confectioner sugar
1 cup creamer peanut butter
1 egg (slightly beaten)
1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla (you can also make your own vanilla flavoring with a vanilla bean)

Mix all ingredients in bowl. Roll dough into 1" balls and place on greased cookie sheet. Press each ball with fork to flatten in a crisscross fashion. Bake in oven 10 minutes at 325F.

Ingredients:
¼ cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
½ cup chopped pecans, or other nuts
¾ cup (Betty Hagmans all-purpose flour mix)*
½ teaspoon Xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking powder
dash salt
1 cup medium sweet coconut

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9" x 9 baking pan with Pam. Melt butter in saucepan. Remove from heat. Stir in sugar. Stir in beaten egg. Measure in flour, xanthan gum baking powder, salt. Stir to mix. Add 1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla, if desired. Add in the coconut and nuts and stir to blend. Mixture will be quite thick. Spread with spatula into pan and bake at 350F for 30 to 35 minutes till top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool on rack. Cut in bars when cool. Enjoy!

*Betty Hagmans all-purpose flour mix:
2 cup white rice flour
2/3 cup potato starch flour
1/3 cup tapioca flour

Blend with whisk and store, ready for baking when a recipe calls for all-purpose flour.

This recipe comes to us from Mary Thorpe.

2 cups cornstarch
1 cup sugar
1 egg
½ tsp salt
1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter (that equals 12 tablespoons)

Preheat oven to 375° F. Sift cornstarch, sugar and salt together, mix the egg and blend in the butter. Knead well. Let stand ten to fifteen minutes. I use a cookie press to drop them on a greased cookie sheet. It makes cookies in different shapes. But usually you shape them into balls in the palm of your hand and drop them on the greased cookie sheet. Then use the tines on a fork to make grooves on the cookies. They look really pretty that way. Some people like to shape the cookies into really tiny balls, others prefer them bigger. Bake for about seven minutes, depending on how big you make them. Let cool and serve with a wonderful cup of Brazilian coffee in the afternoon.

When I made them, I used salted butter and left out the extra salt. I experimented with different forms by rolling them out on a sheet (lightly floured with corn starch) and cutting them with a cookie cutter. They make great rolled cookies because you can re-roll the scraps without the dough getting tough. They came out fine - not too fragile once cooled.

You can also roll them into balls and flattened with a fork, which makes a plump little cookie, or you can roll them into balls and flatten them with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar (thats the classic way I used to make sugar cookies).

I have also rolled them out to ¼ inch thickness in the bottom of a spring form pan (one with a smooth surface, not bumpy like many are). The rolling pin went right across the top making an even thickness. When cooked (this took about 15 minutes) I cut into squares (the ones on the edges turn into triangles) and let cool. This was the easiest and best way that I tried so far.

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with lip on all sides.

1 package gluten-free cake mix [more about flavors below]
5 eggs
¾ cup oil [or melted and cooled butter]
2 tablespoons gluten-free extracts
2 cup toasted nuts [optional]
1 cup dried fruits [optional]

Combine all ingredients. Pour into jelly roll pan and cake for 20 to 30 min until tests done. Remove from oven, but keep oven on slice cookies into thirds [the long way] and across in ½ inch slices. Remove half and spread out on another jelly roll pan [un-greased] and put back in oven for 3 to 10 min, until golden. Cool and store in air-right container.

Flavorings (choose one):

• 2 tablespoons anise extract with yellow cake batter
• ½ teas ground cloves, 1 tablespoons instant espresso powder, 2 tablespoons almond extract with chocolate cake mix
• 2 teas ground ginger, ½ cup finely chopped candied ginger with yellow cake mix

In a bowl beat margarine and peanut butter with an electric mixer until well blended. Add flours, sugars, egg, baking soda and powder. Beat until thoroughly combined. Add in chocolate chips and mix with a fork. Shape into 1 inch balls, and flatten by crisscrossing with a fork. Bake at 375 for 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned.

Johns Favorite Cookies:

¼ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup shortening, butter or margarine (gluten-free of course)
1 teaspoon of flavoring (our Co-op has a gluten-free vanilla but sometimes we use rum instead)
1 egg
¾ cup white or brown rice flour
¼ cup soy flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
6 oz. package of chocolate chips (gluten-free, of course!)

Cream the shortening in a large mixing bowl until very soft. Add the sugars, salt and vanilla and mix well. Add the egg and mix well. Preheat oven to 350F. Mix in the dry ingredients. Stir in the chocolate chips. Drop by SMALL teaspoons on lightly greased cookie sheets and bake 8 - 10 minutes (watch carefully). Cool on pan briefly and carefully remove to a cooling rack. The cookies are very delicate at this stage, but once theyre cool, they taste like traditional chewy cookies. Resist the urge to make large cookies. John & I tried, only to have a big mess on our hands (and in our kitchen).

In another bowl, mix:
1 cup instant baby brown rice cereal (Beechnut or Earths Best, not Gerber)
¼ cup quinoa flour - (best bet, but OK with amaranth, garbanzo, or potato starch flour)
¼ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
½ teaspoon salt

Combine, then add:
EITHER ¾ teaspoon cinnamon and ¼ cup white raisins OR ¼ cup chocolate chips (Tops Decadent has no dairy) and ¼ cup chopped macadamia nuts.

The dough may be a bit sticky. Oil your hands slightly if necessary. Use a balled-up paper towel to spread canola oil on a cookie sheet. Do not discard. Roll dough into small balls (1), and place on the cookie sheet. Use the oiled paper towel to flatten the dough, or use oiled fingertips. Flatter means crispier - experiment with size & shape! They will not spread, so small and flat usually comes out the best.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. They will be perfect when bottoms are lightly browned. These look and taste almost exactly like the regular kind, and are worth the effort.

Pre heat oven to 375

1 ½ cup white rice flour
½ cup sweet rice
¼ cup potato starch
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
½ c sugar
½ C Brown sugar
1 Cup margarine
12 oz chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine flours and other dry ingredients. Cream shortening and sugar. Beat in eggs. Add vanilla. Add to flour mixture. Stir in chips. Drop by round teaspoon on an un-greased sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes.

(I came up w/this recipe, experimenting with the ingredient list from the gluten-free Pantry mix. Theirs are good, and a lot easier to make, but I wanted to be able to do it from scratch to save money. I make mine nondairy by using the excellent chocolate chips made by Barat (health food store). If I cant find those I use Ghirardelli brand.