Sweet Sundays: Like most food bloggers and cookbook authors, my affection for the kitchen started at a very young age. When strawberry season kicked up I would clean and de-stem hundreds of berries for the pints of jam my mom would prepare and freeze. When the holidays rolled around, I would help pour the pumpkin bread batter from my mom's classic recipe into gift tins and use up extra pie crust dough by making the mini cinnamon rolls that she taught me to prepare.

These events were always something I looked forward to, but even when there was no special season or holiday on tap, my mom would randomly suggest we bake chocolate chip cookies together. And thus, my cookie addiction was born.

Unfortunately for many with food allergies and intolerances, cookies can seem like an unattainable pleasure. But thanks to the Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook by Cybele Pascal (a dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free cookbook delight!), a "no child [or mom] left behind" policy has just been carried over to Chocolate Chunk Cookies. And just to make sure both mom and child have no doubts about churning out some successful cookies, Cybele has shared with us the full recipe (below) and a recipe demo video demonstrating the preparation.

Happy Mother's Day and Happy Baking! ...

Double Choco Chunk Cookies
makes 24 2-inch cookies

Recipe from the Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook by Cybele Pascal

"These chewy, brownielike cookies contain a double dose of chocolate and are full of Enjoy Life Boom Choco Boom chunks. They’re perfect for every chocoholic (and I should know!)."

• 1-1/4 cups Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix [recipe follows]
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup rice milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup Enjoy Life Rice Milk Boom Choco Boom bars, chopped into chunks (about 4 [1.4-ounce] bars), or 1 cup dairy-free, soy-free chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Combine the flour mix, cocoa powder, xanthan gum, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Mix thoroughly, being sure to work out any lumps of cocoa powder.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the canola oil and rice milk, mixing on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add the vanilla and sugar. Mix for 20 seconds.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Fold in the chocolate chunks.

5. Scoop out the dough by heaping tablespoonfuls and place on the baking sheets, 12 per sheet. Wet your hands with a little water and roll the dough into balls, moistening your hands again as necessary. 

6. Bake in the center of the oven for 12 minutes, until just set. Do not overcook, as chocolate burns easily. You want the inside to remain chewy, not dry.

7. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to a cooling rack.

See the live demo of this recipe on YouTube - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkAkCFOW260&feature=player_embedded 

Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix
makes 6 cups

Recipe from the Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook by Cybele Pascal

"The key to the very best gluten-free baked goods is Authentic Foods superfine brown rice flour; it is the Cadillac, or cashmere, of brown rice flours and is worth its weight in gold. It is not grainy like other rice flours, and bakes the most fantastic cookies, cakes, pie crusts, and so on. If you can’t find it at your local natural foods market or Whole Foods, order it online. Both Ener-G and Bob’s Red Mill brown rice flours will also work in these recipes, but they won’t turn out quite as well. I do not recommend Arrowhead Mills brown rice flour, which I find too gritty. The brands of potato starch and tapioca flour or starch are not important; I find them all interchangeable."

• 4 cups superfine brown rice flour
• 1-1/3 cups potato starch (not potato flour)
• 2/3 cup tapioca flour (also called tapioca starch)

1. To measure flour, use a large spoon to scoop flour into the measuring cup, then level it off with the back of a knife or straightedge. Do not use the measuring cup itself to scoop your flour when measuring! It will compact the flour and you will wind up with too much for the recipe.

2. Combine all ingredients in a gallon-size zipper-top bag. Shake until well blended. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Article by Alisa Fleming, Author of Go Dairy Free.

Recipe reprinted with permission from The Allergen-Free Baker’s Handbook: How to Bake Without Gluten, Wheat, Dairy, Eggs, Soy, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, and Sesame. Copyright © 2009 by Cybele Pascal, Celestial Arts, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, Berkeley, CA. Photo credit: Chugrad McAndrews.