Cranberry Oatmeal Chia Cookies (gluten free too!)

I've had that craving for something sweet for a while now. And nothing would cut it. Ice cream, cake, candy...it all left me wanting something more. Tonight, as I write to you inside my apartment after a beautiful fall day, I am telling you that I have found that cure. I got inspired! The fall leaves, the sunshine...it paved the way for a perfect cookie: the cranberry, oatmeal, and chia cookie. Oatmeal cookies have always reminded me of the turning of the season. My mom makes the best oatmeal cookies, and for some reason, thinking back to them always reminds me of fall. Feeling awfully nostalgic this evening, I decided to whip up a batch of my own, but instead adding in chia seeds and cranberries, my favorite seasonal fall fruit. Raw cranberries are the way to go for these cookies, because they are tart enough to give this cookie some contrast. They are available almost anywhere this season, usually found in the produce aisle. And chia seeds...don't get me started. Trendy as they might be, I have found these seeds to be the most versatile little thing since...sliced bread. So why not add them to cookies? Well, ok!

Cranberry Oatmeal Chia Cookies
makes 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

-2 c fresh cranberries

-3/4 c light brown sugar
-3/4 c all purpose gluten free flour
-1 c old fashioned rolled oats, gluten free (like Bob's Red Mill)
-4 tbsp butter, at room temperature
-1/4 tsp salt
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
-2 tbsp chia seeds
-1/4 tsp xanthan gum
-chia gel (1 tbsp chia seeds + 3 tbsp water, let stand for 5 min)

Directions
-Preheat oven to 350F.
-Cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla
-Add chia gel, and mix
-Add flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and oats, and mix until well combined
-Fold in cranberries
-Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and place 1 tbsp sized balls of dough on cookie sheet (about 1/2 inch apart)
-Bake 12-14 min or until they are "set" and the bottoms are just brown.
-Cool on wire rack


The cookie dough is addicting...and since it is eggless, you can eat to your heart's content! Just make sure to save some to bake :)


Oats are high in soluble fiber, which has been proven to lower cholesterol. Chia seeds are a great source of so many things, including omega-3 fatty acid, fiber, protein, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, niacin, and zinc...talk about a superfood!! And cranberries are high in antioxidants and vitamins C and K. Eat away, my friends, this is one cookie you don't have to make excuses for!!