Plant-Based Tea Party Cookies for Spring!

These delicate and sweetly floral cookies are based off my vegan, gluten-free, paleo and autoimmune-safe recipe paleo cookies I've previously made (check those out if you haven't yet)!

The use of white-fleshed sweet potatoes yields a slightly crumby, vanilla-y sweet cookie, and the added blooms yields the perfect spring cookie: think Easter, birthdays, Baby Showers and engagement parties. Perfection!

Like what you see? Get the new gluten-free healthier dessert cookbook for similar healthier recipes that everyone including picky kids will LOVE!

It's suitable for almost any diet. Omit the organic sugar to be completely paleo (I don't think paleo allows for even unrefined sugar). The optional "glaze" of almond milk and agave helps the edible flower blossoms stick to the cookie, and a sprinkling of optional sugar lends a pretty tea party look. If you want the recipe to be completely sugar-free you could use sugar-free maple syrup though I don't recommend eating sugar-free foods that are made with artificial sweeteners.

Plant-Based Tea Party Cookies

yields 30-35 medium cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup organic coconut flour

1/2 cup arrowroot or tapioca flour

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 cup mashed Japanese sweet potato (white flesh)

6 tbsp coconut oil, melted

3 tbsp pure maple syrup

1-1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Culinary Grade Edible Flowers make a great topper or see if your local natural grocers has edible flowers such as fresh pansies.

Alternately, use realistic looking rice paper toppings such as these delicate pansies (I used these for my twins' Enchanted Forest birthday and they are adorable):

You can also use plant-based sprinkles as a festive topper (this is my twins' favorite thing; sometimes I even top applesauce with sprinkles for a treat!)

Directions:

1. Rinse and dry edible flowers (from a gourmet grocery store or online shop; be sure there are no pesticides on them!)

2. Line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat (reusable and easy and least likely to get too brown on bottom of the cookies) or parchment paper and preheat oven to 350F

3. In a small bowl, whisk dry ingredients and set aside.

4. Cook and mash sweet potato, and add melted oil, maple and vanilla.

5. In a mixer, beat the wet to the dry for 40-50 seconds. Roll dough into a ball.

6. Between wax paper, roll out dough, and cut into desired shapes with the cookie cutter. Roll scraps together and keep cutting out shapes.

7. Spread out on cookie sheets and bake for 6-8 minutes depending on thickness until edges are golden. Let cool on cookie sheet then if desired, brush using a clean basting brush with 1 TBSP almond milk and 1 TBSP agave mixed together, press on a flower, brush again with mixture and sprinkle sugar on top. Bake for 5 min at 325F.

Serve warm or cool and with tea for the perfect party treat!