~ raw, vegan, gluten-free ~

Raw, vegan, gluten-free, 3-D cookies. How much fun is that!  Who says that cookies have to be flat?  I had so much joy when making these.  My husband walked into the kitchen, and I just couldn’t help sharing my childlike excitement with him.  He smiled deeply at me and said that he just loves my inner-child and never to lose it.  I guess I won’t be giving up my kitchen culinary career anytime soon. hehe

Let’s talk chocolate mud puddles!

If I were a bear, I would be scooping out each and every mud puddle and just sit in it.  I did so as a child so why wouldn’t a bear?! :) Shoot, if I could find a really nice mud puddle today, I would be sitting in it for sure.  It wouldn’t even have to be made of chocolate either, though I do like chocolate. Anyway, the chocolate mud puddle is optional; the Bears sit perfectly on their own.

For this dough to turn out you need to use very fine almond flour, not meal (not whole ground almonds). This not only gives the dough a finer finish, but it also helps to make it moldable.  You can make raw almond flour yourself… it does take a few steps, but it is worth it in the end.  I recommend using pure white almond pulp that has been dehydrated and ground into a flour.

If this isn’t feasible for you, you can purchase processed almond flour. Keep in mind that it isn’t raw.  You could also try cashew flour, just make sure that has a very fine texture.  It is possible to try oat or buckwheat flour, but I haven’t tested either just yet.  I fear that they would be too drying on the pallet, but it’s always worth testing.

I will warn you, this dough is sort of sticky when using this bear cookie cutter. I tried all sorts of things… I first dipped it in hot water before pressing it into the dough, I tried spraying it with oil, I tried dipping it in ground raw coconut crystals… in the end, what I found worked the best was to dip the cutter in almond flour first and then to wash the cutter every so often while pressing out the bears. Oh, and it doesn’t help to curse at it either… tried that (DARN YOU, you DARN cookie cutter)… nope, that didn’t seem to have any effect at all.

For the sweetener, I chose maple syrup.  I don’t recommend coconut nectar or honey as they would be too thick and sticky for this particular dough.  I created this dough recipe a while back while attempting to find a replacement for fondant (the baker’s dream product in the cooked world).  Mind you I said product… there isn’t anything food-wise about fondant. Ack. But it makes for beautiful food displays and decorating.  If you are looking for a fun way to use these cookies, check out my Cuddly Brown Bear Cupcakes with Orange Blossom Frosting.  Enjoy and please keep in touch if you give this recipe a try.  It means a lot to hear from those who visit my site.  Blessings!

Ingredients:

Yields 20 cookies

• 2 cups fine almond flour, raw or purchased
• 6 Tbsp maple syrup
• One tsp vanilla or maple extract
• 1 tsp ground Ceylon cinnamon
• 20 whole almonds
• Hardening chocolate (optional) raw or purchased

Preparation:

1. In the food processor, fitted with the “S” blade, combine the almond flour, sweetener, vanilla, and cinnamon.
   • Process until the batter is smooth and starts to gather in a ball form as the blades spin.
2. Gather the dough and shape it into a ball.
3. Lay a piece of parchment paper on the countertop and place the dough ball in the center.
   • Lay another sheet of parchment paper on top.
   • Roll out to about 1/4 inch thick.
   • Thicker dough creates chubby bears which have more character than thin doughed ones.
4. Dip the cookie cutter into almond flour, then press into the dough.
   • I noticed that if I washed the cookie cutter a few times throughout the process that it helped with the sticking issue.
   • This dough is sticky and takes a little patience in getting it out of the cookie cutter. I used the end of a pen to push the paws out.
   • It will look a little rough at first, but just flip the cookie over and use the other side which should be plump and flawless.
5. Place an almond on the chest area and gather the arms around it, lightly pressing them together as though the bear is holding the almond.
6. Lift the bear into your hand and fold the bear into a sitting position.  Don’t be afraid to have some of them leaning to the side, more forward, etc. It gives them character.
7. After preparing the hardening chocolate, place a teaspoonful’s worth on the parchment paper and set the bear in the center of it, pressing down lightly so some of the chocolate squishes up around the bear, giving the appearance of sitting in a mud puddle.  Set aside or in the fridge for the chocolate to harden.

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10 thoughts on “Cuddly Brown Bears in Mud Puddles Cookies”

1. Linda St Angelo says:

   September 15, 2015 at 8:32 am

   Amie Sue,
   You have the best sense of humor. I love these bears. Mud puddles? I am with you. I was the biggest tom boy growing up with 4 brothers. LOL
   These are the cutest….. now have to try them out taste wise. Probably fabulous as are all your recipes. You have so much fun with your food…..kinda like being a toddler again. ha ha

   Reply
   • amie-sue says:

     September 15, 2015 at 8:42 am

     lol Linda… I grew up as an only child but I was a pure tom boy myself. :) I do hope you give them a try and keep me posted. Now go on… have fun playing with your food! hehe Blessings, amie sue

     Reply
2. Grace says:

   September 16, 2015 at 5:54 pm

   So So So cute! I will definitely be making these , as I have been looking for a healthier treat than my Christmas Mice with the Oreo cookies…. thank you :)

   Reply
   • amie-sue says:

     September 16, 2015 at 5:58 pm

     I hope you do Grace… would love to hear what you think. :) Have a blessed evening! amie sue

     Reply
3. Vegangothfairy says:

   November 27, 2015 at 11:58 am

   Hi Ami-Sue,

   These look amazing! I would like to try them, though I do wonder how long they might keep. For how long would you suggest they are fine? I would have to send some to my sister, therefore I’m asking.

   :)

   Reply
   • amie-sue says:

     November 27, 2015 at 7:11 pm

     They should keep for a week or so. I am not 100% sure since they never last that long due to everyone eating them. Treat them like any fresh baked cookie. Have a wonderful weekend. amie sue

     Reply
4. Delisa says:

   December 5, 2015 at 10:12 pm

   Mine tasted great. But… they looked like little aliens… sitting on brown flying saucers. Yikes. We’ll just eat these with our eyes closed!

   Reply
   • amie-sue says:

     December 6, 2015 at 9:28 am

     Well aliens are cute too. :)

     Reply
5. Grace says:

   December 13, 2015 at 7:00 pm

   So do these lovely teddys need to be dehydrated? I feel like they should, lol

   Reply
   • amie-sue says:

     December 13, 2015 at 7:17 pm

     Nope, non required :)

     Reply

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