When I was a little human (like, small enough to fit in the cabinets below the sink small) I LOVED to be near my mother when she was baking. The house smelled so amazing, and magic always took shape on the counters above.
As I got older, I got more involved, especially at holiday times when our kitchen literally turned into a cookie bakehouse. My mother would make a whole smattering of holiday cookies to adorn her famous cookie trays for Santa, for us to enjoy as we opened gifts, and for her to pack up into boxes for friends, family and neighbors as the special days that close the year marched through.
Some things don’t change. And while I’ve crafted my own holiday traditions for myself, and my family over the years, my love of holiday baking perseveres. And this year, one of the many cookies that will adorn my own cookie trays and boxes will be these Pistachio-Cardamom Snowballs.
I’ve been sharing quite a few gluten-free recipes of late, because we learned recently that little Leo is intolerant of wheat (at this time.) Because we’re so omnivorous, and frankly just lovers of good gluten from heirloom sources, it’s been a bit disorienting. But it’s also been a lovely challenge for me and a nutritionally beneficial one for everyone I feed on a regular basis.
Eating gluten is GOOD FOR US. Particularly if we can digest the grains and the gluten itself well. Gluten provides all of our bodies with undeniable sources of minerals and nutrients, with prebiotics that fuel a healthy microbiome and more. If we are capable of eating gluten, there is very little reason to fein to going gluten free, particularly if it means we have to start eating from packages. But, if we’re making gluten free goods ourselves there are LOTS of reasons to include these in our diets right along side the good gluten stuff.
There are a myriad of grains and seeds that can be used to create delicious, tender, baked goods without gluten. Millet, sorghum, rice, quinoa and almond come to mind. These foods not only make great gluten-free cookies, pies, cakes and more, but they deliver different flavors, nutrients, minerals and boosts of protein and easily digestible carbohydrates that wheat alone does not. By eating these foods, we can get surely closer to eating our target of 30-plant foods each week!
Years ago, our only options for eating gluten-free foods were packages stuffed with non-food ingredients, gums and fillers. But recipes and our wisdom of these alternative grains and ingredients has become so vast that gluten-free baking from scratch at home is almost easier, more successful and more delicious than traditional wheat baking. These little cookies are a case in point.
Are a riff on the snowball cookies my mother use to make. She used toasted pecans, butter and flour – one of the simplest most perfect recipes of all time. So simple it’s easy to riff on…and oh I have. Many times. But I’m pretty sure this version is my favorite. These cookies incorporate a rich pistachio flavor from the whole nuts you grind into a flour as the base. Spices are the next important addition – just enough cardamom to make itself known and a bit of cinnamon to balance. These two super ingredients keep the cookies interesting and easy to digest. (Yes, the addition of cinnamon and cardamom is for flavor but it’s also for digestion!) And it all comes together in a tender, not too sweet little cookie bite, tossed gently in powdered sugar to make it adorned and perfect for the holidays. If you’re looking for a cookie that will make everyone gathered around your holiday cookie platter glow with glee, these are it.
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