Sweet Sundays: Cookie baking abounds this time of year, but gifting is becoming increasingly difficult with the rise in food allergies and peanut-free zones. Fortunately, there are some great mom experts in allergen-free cookie baking, and one of the first I turned to this year was the blogger behind The Allergic Kid. Libby has proven her skills by creating the winning cookie recipe for the big FAAN / Divvies cookie contest this year. Her Choco-lot Brownie Cookie is now available from Divvies, but you can bake up her fabulous peanut-free peanut butter cookies (aka Sunblossom Cookies) today ...

Libby ~ This is an egg-, dairy-, tree nut-, and peanut-free version of a classic peanut butter criss-cross cookie that I developed for my son with multiple food allergies. For that peanutty taste, I used Sunbutter to substitute for the peanut butter. Bananas turned out to be a fantastic substitute for the egg, and let me take down the fat a notch. The chocolate chip version doesn't look like the original since the cookies aren't flattened with the criss-cross style, but they are just to die for ...

Sunblossom Cookies

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sunflower seed butter
• 1/4 cup dairy free margarine
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 perfectly ripe banana
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice

Dry Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cup All-purpose (plain) flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt

Additional:

• Granulated sugar to roll dough

Optional:

• 1/2 cup allergen free chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Cream margarine, sunflower seed spread and sugars together until smooth, scraping sides of bowl as necessary.  Add banana, vanilla extract and lemon juice and continue beating until completely incorporated and no chunks of banana remain.

Sift or whisk dry ingredients together.  With mixer on slow, gradually add to the wet ingredients.  Drop dough by tablespoonfuls (about 2) into granulated sugar.  Gently roll into sugar covered balls and place onto cookie sheets.  Press down twice with a fork to make a crisscross pattern.  (If using chocolate chips, omit crisscross with fork.)  Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until lightly browned.  Allow cookies to remain on tray for ten minutes to firm up, then transfer to a cooling rack.  Makes approximately 2 ½ to 3 dozen cookies.

Recipe and photo by Libby Ilson of The Allergic Kid. Libby regularly shares allergen-free, family-friendly recipes on her blog, kid-tested and approved by her son.