I love Karlie Kloss and everything she promotes: education and girls in STEM, the close bond of family and friends, and most importantly, cookies. Between walking the runways at Fashion Week around the world and apple-picking with her family in Missouri, Karlie bakes vegan and gluten-free treats and prides herself in her adventurous baking endeavors.
In true Karlie fashion, I decided to make vegan, gluten-free cookies. I tried the lemon blackberry “Kookies” to see if these healthy desserts would live up to the hype, or leave me wanting more.
Lemon Blackberry Cookies
Ingredients
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Put 1 3/4 cups of your oats in a food processor and grind to make fine oat flour (I used a Nutribullet, which took about 15 seconds, but in a regular blender it will take about a minute or longer).
Combine oat flour, oats, salt, baking soda, and flaxeed in a large bowl.
Mix the dry ingredients thoroughly.
Add in applesauce, honey, coconut oil, banana, lemon juice, and lemon zest and mix thoroughly.
Mix in the blackberries into the batter (be careful not to break them apart), and let the batter sit for at least 10 minutes.
On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, scoop out batter with an ice cream scooper. Press each cookie down to flatten in the center.
Bake for 10 minutes. If your cookies are bigger, bake for a few more minutes, until golden brown on the edges and around the top.
Let cool for at least 10 minutes, and then enjoy!
The Verdict
These cookies are healthy for sure, but they’re also full of natural goodness. The berry flavor pairs well with the powerful and aromatic lemon to make this cookie a really delectable one. If you like lemons, you’ll love the effects of the lemon juice and zest. If you don’t like lemons, you might want to add a bit less zest, but the lemon is a balanced flavor and not overpowering.
Possible Changes
The blackberries are a bit big, so your cookie will need to be on the bigger side in order to hold them together. If you want a smaller cookie or a different berry, blueberries work really well. You can also swap in raspberries or other similar berries.
If you don’t have honey or prefer not to use it, you can use agave instead. It is a low glycemic ingredient that will provide the necessary sweetness and stickiness.
If you don’t want to make oat flour, you can purchase it pre-made. However, it takes about a minute or less (depending on what kind of food processor you use), and it’s kind of fun, so I’d recommend making it yourself.