Genius Strawberry Lace-Cookie Crisp

Ingredients

• Strawberry Filling 4 cups strawberries, hulled, washed & dried - small ones cut in half, large ones in quarters
• 8 teaspoons fresh orange juice
• ½ teaspoon orange rind, finely grated
• 4 tablespoons pure cane sugar
• 4 teaspoons arrowroot powder* (see below)
• Almond Lace Cookies 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds, chopped medium-fine
• ¼ cup coconut palm sugar
• 2 tablespoons Lyle’s Golden Syrup** or brown rice syrup
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• two pinches sea salt
• 2 tablespoons gluten free all purpose flour (can use regular flour)
• 2 tablespoons rolled oats
• ⅛ teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

1. Overview: Cook strawberries in individual pans first. Make lace cookies, bake them, and top strawberries for a crust. Serve within 2 hours, or prepare each ahead of time and assemble prior to eating.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, toss all Strawberry Filling ingredient together. Portion the filling evenly into 4 individual 5" pie pans (can use ramekins with a 1 cup capacity.) I've used vintage Pyrex fluted glass pie pans (see photo.)
3. Place on a rimmed baking pan and bake for 12 minutes until bubbly. Remove and set aside.
4. Make Almond Lace Cookies: (these are fun and easy to prepare) Place the first 6 ingredients in a small pot (butter through sea salt.) Gently bring to a simmer, cook stirring with a wooden spoon, until melted and slightly thickened, one minute. Remove from heat, add flour, oats and almond extract - stir all together.
5. To Bake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with a silpat liner or parchment paper. Scoop 1 tablespoon of dough for each cookie, 4 T. total. I roll each tablespoon in the palm of my hands making a perfect ball. Place the 4 balls on the sheet pan, evenly spaced. They will each spread to 5" in diameter. Bake until well spread and golden in color, about 8 minutes. Do not let get golden around the edges; that indicates overcooking. (Enough dough for 3 - 4 extra cookies leftover.)
6. Remove from oven, let cool 1 minute. Remove cookies from the pan with a metal spatula - they will be warm and firm, yet pliable. Place each cookie over the strawberries. You can crumple the cookies slightly like I did in the photo. Will harden as it cools. Serve within 2 hours for a crispy topping (will loose its crispness after.)
7. Serving: Add a dollop of whipped coconut creme (or standard whipped cream) and a little strawberry on top.
8. Whipped Coconut Creme: Refrigerate a can of coconut milk (such as Thai Kitchen) for a least 24 hours. Open up can and scoop out the thickened coconut cream and place in a bowl to whip. (Chill the bowl and beater for great results). Save the coconut milk, which will look watery for another use (such as rice). Add 1 to 2 T. of sweetener - Honey or Raw Coconut Nectar or Confectioner's Sugar to the bowl and whip on high speed until thickened.

* Arrowroot powder is more transparent than cornstarch, it forms a clear gel. Both are gluten-free.
**Lyle's Golden Syrup (a cane sugar syrup) is available in healthful shops and better grocery stores.

See BLOG for many coordinating photos and how-tos.
This recipe may not be reproduced without the consent of its author, Karen Sheer.