These cookies are so easy a toddler made them

By Melissa Clark The New York Times Leave a preschooler alone in the kitchen with open baking ingredients for even a minute and nine times out of you ll end up with a sugar-crusted child But that wasn t the incident for Lee Farrington s -year-old daughter Ashton who playfully added handfuls of almond flour chocolate chips and brown sugar to a bowl of half-finished cookie dough and in the process helped formulate one of the best vegan gluten-free cookies I ve ever tasted When I saw what Ash did I thought oh no announced Farrington who had gotten distracted in the middle of a baking project She baked the dough anyway to see what would happen and was shocked when it worked It was a beautiful mistake she noted Ashton s cookies which Farrington had to adjust only slightly are now bestsellers at LB Kitchen in Portland Maine co-owned by Farrington and her wife Bryna Gootkind I sampled one on a visit to Maine earlier this summer and I couldn t get the snappy texture and butterscotch flavor out of my head I wrote to ask for the recipe the minute I got back home Related Articles Gretchen s table Bucatini with burst cherry tomatoes and fried caper crumbs offers ample flavor Quick Fix Sweet and Tangy Pork Kabobs with Corn on the Cob Recipe This sauce is good on everything Recipe Put a tomato in your martini Recipes tasty meat dishes to grill at your Labor Day weekend cookout They re absolute bangers candy-like and crunchy at the edges from caramelized brown sugar chewy and dense at the center from a mix of almond and oat flours and speckled all over with mini chocolate chips Making them really is simple enough for a preschooler with batter that can be whisked up in a single bowl without an electric mixer But do plan ahead To hold its shape without spreading too much while baking the sticky wet mixture necessities to be frozen A couple of hours in the freezer is enough but the batter can remain there for months ready for near-instant gratification whenever there s a cookie emergency The recipe is easy to play with too I ve substituted rolled oats for a few of the almond flour and raisins for the chocolate chips for a delightfully chewy oatmeal raisin version Stirring in ground sweet spices chopped nuts or crushed potato chips could also be fun additions All of these versions would be lunchbox friendly and sturdy enough to pack for any Labor Day picnics or potlucks on the horizon Then save the recipe for the holiday season to bake and mail to far-flung friends and family They may be child s play to make but these cookies are crowd-pleasing treats you ll turn to all year long Recipe Vegan Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies These vegan gluten-free stunners which you can mix in one bowl without an electric mixer have a candy-like crunch at the edges from caramelized brown sugar a chewy dense center from a mix of almond and oat flours and a bittersweet speckling of mini chocolate chips strewed throughout Adapted from Lee Farrington LB Kitchen in Portland Maine they bake up sturdy enough for picnics lunchboxes and mailing to far-flung cookie-loving family and friends but note that the sticky batter does need to be frozen before baking so plan ahead Melissa Clark Recipe from Lee Farrington Adapted by Melissa Clark Yield cookies Total time hours minutes Ingredients cups plus tablespoons grams packed light brown sugar cups grams almond flour cups grams oat flour teaspoons baking soda teaspoon fine sea salt cup milliliters almond or other nondairy milk cup grams vegan butter preferably soy free melted tablespoon vanilla extract -ounce -gram bag vegan mini chocolate chips Preparation In a large mixing bowl whisk together the brown sugar almond flour oat flour baking soda and salt Add the almond milk and vegan butter and use your hands or a spatula to combine kneading until it comes together into a sticky wet batter-like dough You can also make this in an electric mixer if that s more convenient Mix in the chocolate chips Line two baking sheets with parchment Use a -ounce cookie scoop or a cup measuring cup to form cookies placing them close together on the pans Freeze for at least hours If freezing for longer transfer the frozen cookie balls to a container or resealable plastic bag before storing in the freezer for up to months Heat oven to degrees Arrange the frozen cookies inches apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets Bake for minutes Rotate trays and bake until the cookies are golden at the edges and firm in the center to minutes longer Remove from the oven bang tray once on the counter to let cookies crackle a bit and transfer the pans to racks to cool Recipe Vegan Gluten-Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Inspired by the vegan gluten-free chocolate chip cookies that Lee Farrington makes at LB Kitchen in Portland Maine these one-bowl delights are chewy at their centers crisp at the edges and full of raisins and sweet spice The batter is very sticky and requirements to be frozen before baking so they don t spread too much but a couple of hours will do it Feel free to substitute hazelnut flour for the almond flour for a deep toasty flavor By Melissa Clark Yield cookies Total time hours minutes Ingredients cups plus tablespoon grams packed light brown sugar cups grams oat flour cups grams almond flour cup grams old-fashioned rolled oats teaspoons baking soda teaspoon ground cinnamon or cardamom optional teaspoon fine sea salt cup milliliters almond or other nondairy milk cup grams vegan butter preferably soy free melted tablespoon vanilla extract cup grams raisins Preparation In a large mixing bowl whisk together the brown sugar oat flour almond flour rolled oats baking soda cinnamon or cardamom if using and salt Add the almond milk and vegan butter and use your hands or a spatula to combine kneading it to help it come together into a sticky wet batter-like dough You can also make this in an electric mixer if that s more convenient Mix in the raisins Line two baking sheets with parchment Use a -ounce cookie scoop or a cup measuring cup to form cookies placing them close together on the pans Freeze for at least hours if freezing for longer transfer frozen cookie balls to a container or resealable plastic bag before storing in the freezer for up to months Heat oven to degrees Arrange the frozen cookies inches apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets Bake for minutes Rotate trays and bake until the cookies are golden at the edges and firm in the center to minutes longer Remove from the oven bang tray once on the counter to let cookies crackle a bit and transfer the pans to racks to cool This article originally appeared in The New York Times Subscribe to our weekly newsletter In The Know to get entertainment news sent straight to your inbox