I have had a reprieve from working on the house for a couple of weeks.   I have more flooring to put down, but I can’t do that until Tony is done with the tile work.  Good news, we will have a working toilet on both floors by the end of this weekend.  That doesn’t sound exciting, but not having to walk halfway around the house to use the bathroom is nice, since that takes a bit of time.  We also confirmed the downstairs shower works.  Tony did a test.  We’re getting there.

One thing that kind of sucks is that my My Fitness Pal recipe calculator is down.  It’s a pain because I won’t be able to add new recipes and have them accurately reflected in our food diaries.  Yes, both Tony and I log every day.  I hope by the next post, it is working again.  For the time being, I will be using another calculator. 

This week’s recipe is a riff on German Chocolate Cake.  Essentially this is a cake made into cookies.  I love German Chocolate Cake, but it has a TON of sugar.  The chocolate cake isn’t too bad, but the sweetened coconut topping sends it over the edge.  I’m starting with a recipe from  Handle the Heat for German Chocolate Cookies.  My goal will be to lower the sugar as much as I can.

Here are the original stats:

Here’s what I changed:

• I replaced the butter in the cookie batter with unsweetened applesauce to lower the fat and calories.
• I replaced the sugars with their sweetener equivalents to reduce the sugar.
• I replaced the all purpose flour to make this recipe low carb and gluten free.
• I replaced the evaporated milk with unsweetened coconut milk to make this dairy free.
• I replaced some of the chocolate with a sugar free kind to lower the carbs.
• I replaced the sweetened coconut with unsweetened coconut to reduce the carbs.

Here are the final stats:

Here is the final recipe:

Lower Carb German Chocolate Cookies

Makes 24 Cookies

• 1 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar substitute
• 1/4 cup granulated sweetener
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup sugar free semisweet chocolate chips

For the topping:

• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup granulated sweetener
• 1 large egg yolk
• 4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 heaping cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 2 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar substitute, and granulated sweetener on medium-high speed until well combined and smooth. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and beat until combined. On low speed gradually add the flour mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips with a rubber spatula.
4. Using a medium spring-loaded cookie scoop, drop the dough by 1 1/2 tablespoon rounds onto the prepared baking sheets
5. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies are set. Let cool on baking sheets for 10 minutes before removing the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

For the topping

1. In a small saucepan set over medium heat combine the milk, sweetener, egg yolk, and butter. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture has thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, coconut, and pecans. Let cool until thick enough to spread on top of the cooled cookies.
2. Drizzle the melted chocolate all over the cookies. Let everything set for at least 15 minutes before serving. Cookies are best served the day they’re made.