every holiday season my inner jewish/catholic conflict rears its ugly head. growing up observing both, i always set out to give hanukkah and christmas the attention and time they both deserve, but inevitably hanukkah gets the crap end of the stick. i felt even worse this year when i thought the first night of hanukkah started on the 14th (which, as it turns out, is the last of the 8 nights!), it wasn't until around noon this past sunday when frank mentioned something about it being the first night of hanukkah, that i was like whaaaaa!?!? i was super disappointed in myself. last year we made a delicious spread of my great-grandmother's potato latkes, Ottolenghi's kofta b'siniyah, and a festive pomegranate salad, and i was hoping to do the same this year. so, in a haste, i defrosted a large container of leftover mung beans, threw together my favorite garlicky mung bean hummus, and served it with a similar pomegranate salad to what we had last year, all while basking in the orange glow of our electric menorah - a janky hanukkah at its best.

therefore, in lieu of sharing a hanukkah-inspired recipe, i'm sharing this equally awesome winter cookie recipe ;) back when i wasn't gluten-free, my favorite chocolate chip cookies to make were from kim boyce's, good to the grain. they were made with whole wheat flour, providing a bit more heartiness than a regular chocolate chip cookie. her recipe also called for a mix of muscovado and cane sugar giving the cookies a subtle molasses flavor, which converted me forever. nowadays, whenever i endeavor to make cookies i try to instill the same heartiness and sweetness as kim's cookies. so, the idea behind this recipe is half double chocolate chip cookie (because more chocolate is always a good thing in my book), and half festive gingersnap. i wanted to keep the texture more chocolate chip cookie-like, and less gingersnap, but still keep those snappy, assertive spices that are known to linger after each bite! i see these as a winning go-between holiday cookie - perfect to sit beside any holiday cookie, but also totally okay to make all winter long :)

wishing you and yours peaceful days filled with latkes and cookies <3

double chocolate gingersnaps (gf + df)

i like the ginger to be quite assertive in my gingersnaps. but if you like the gingersnap flavor but don't like a subtle ginger-y burn, i would reduce the amount of ground ginger to 3/4 teaspoon-1 teaspoon. then again, if you don't like gingersnaps at all, take out the spices and there you have yourself a batch of double chocolate chip cookies :)

| makes 16 medium cookies, or 8 large cookies |

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup organic cane sugar
1 large free range egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons brown rice flour
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sorghum flour
1/4 cup raw cacao powder (or cocoa powder)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch ground cloves
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or bittersweet chocolate chips)

method

in a small pot over low heat, slowly melt the coconut oil swirling it as you go. once melted remove it from the heat and let it cool completely. then pour it into a liquid measure making sure you have 1/2 cup. in a large bowl, combine the sugars. with an electric mixer on low, add the oil and beat to combine, until the mixture looks like wet sand. add the egg and vanilla and beat on low until combined, set aside.
in another large bowl, whisk together the flours, cacao powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. using an electric mixer on low, add the dry ingredients in 3 separate applications, until everything is thoroughly incorporated. then add the chocolate and mix once on low, until chocolate is evenly distributed. cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
while mixture is chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. using a medium cookie scoop (about 1 1/2 tablespoons) or a large cookie scoop (about 3 tablespoons), drop the dough out onto the cookie sheets about 3-inches apart. bake for 10 to 12 minutes. remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on a rack.
the cookies will keep in an air tight container at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.

enjoy!