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THESE COOKIES ARE FUCKING GREAT! They are free of all major allergens (and all of my known allergens tooooo...). They remind me and my partner (who has no allergies) of tollhouse cookies, crisp edges, chewy tender center and studded with chunks of roughly chopped chocolate. They hold together (none of that crumbly bullshit) and have a true COOKIE texture and taste. They are NOT dry, crumbly or sad. I promise. These started to develop when I tried to make flour in my blender out of sesame seeds (since all grains and nuts are no bueno for me). I made bars first (like a blondie) and I kept tweaking the recipe and finally added chocolate to get these sweet, sweet cookies.

INGREDIENTS
Sesame seeds (use hulled, white sesame seeds for best results) ~ 1.25 cupsSugar (I used turbinado) ~ 6 tbspWater: 3-4TbspDark chocolate: 1-3oz of chocolate (depending on how chocolatey you like your cookies)I used a 2oz bar of 66% dark chocolate


INSTRUCTIONS1) Preheat oven to 375 (I've cooked these as low as 350-it takes longer but tastes the same)
2) put sesame seeds and sugar in blender or food processor (I used a vitamix) and blend thoroughly until mixture is floury and starting to clump together/beginning to form a paste around the blender blades (see below for finished mixture)3) chop chocolate into small chunks
4) shake/scrape out contents of blender into mixing bowl, add chopped chocolate, STIR til chocolate is evenly distributed then add 6tbsp of water and stir until dough forms. Dough will be sticky, do not attempt to handle it.
5) line a baking pan with parchment paper. Use two spoons to form balls of the dough and drop them onto the cookie sheet with adequate space between them. Press dough balls flat until they are 1/2 in thickness (use your hands for this step-do run them under water to prevent sticking-this dough is hella sticky).Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are brown. Cookies will puff up in the oven a little bit. let them cool fully before moving them. Chewy, tender, crisp edges, chocolatey, sweet-but not too sweet with a mild sesame flavorADD INS (delicious, if you can have them):
vanilla, citrus zest, cinnamon, candied ginger, cardamom, cranberries, raisins, cacoa nibs

I have severe environmental allergies (dust, mold, pollen, all trees and grass etc...) and 60 + food allergies (some vegetables, all fruit, all grains, all nuts, dairy, meat). Over the years my allergic responses have progressively worsened and the number of things I react to has increased. My diet is VERY limited to avoid constant reactions like facial/throat/nose swelling, full-body swelling and rashes, hives, fatigue...the list goes on. It's been frustrating to deal day-to-day and has been very embarrassing to navigate socially (wanna go out for coffee?-no thanks I don't want to die). Eating out is impossible as cross contamination is too much of a risk. Before all this, I didn't ever think about how much social interaction is based around the community that food brings. Unfortunately, immunotherapy and medication to build resistance to major environmental allergens is cost prohibitive right now and my doctor's aren't sure what is causing my immune system to be so bizarre. It sucks having to choose between feeling sick all the time OR not being able to eat hardly any foods. Over the past few years I've started avoiding social gatherings (social anxiety AND severe food allergies is debilitating and super stressful in social situations) and it's taken a toll on my self esteem. After going full hermit, I'm now realizing that this is just where I'm at and it's not going to get better. I need to focus on NOT letting this put limitations on the way I want to live my life.

So, yeah, I'm going to try and get out more now.