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Slightly less than 40 years ago, when I was just a newlywed and my husband was in the army, we were living in Montery, CA because my husband was learning Russian at the Presidio there. One day we were in the grocery store and he saw one of his classmates, Dennis and he introduced me to him. Dennis' wife was in a different aisle at the moment, but then she came around and saw us and asked me if I knew where the "Fluffa Nutta" was. Her name was Kelly, and she and her husband are from Massachusetts. They had very strong accents that I had no experience with and I couldn't understand a word she said! Eventually I learned that she was looking for a product called Marshmallow Fluff that is very common on the East coast but pretty much unheard of in the West. In the West, we have marshmallow cream, which is less fluffy and more runny than Fluff. They use Fluff for many things in the East, one of those things is the "Fluffernutter," (pronounced "fluffa nutta") a sandwich made with peanut butter and Marshmallow Fluff. If you are able to shop in a military commissary, you may be able to find it. Dennis and Kelly, who have remained dear friends of ours over the past 40 years since that day, have been so kind to send me Fluff from to time.
Now, fast forward to a couple of weeks ago when I was shopping at an Asian Supermarket which actually carries foods from many countries. I found some big cookies from Germany, which I purchased for nostalgic reasons. They looked like those marshmallow cookies covered with chocolate that you can buy anywhere, only much taller. Then, when I bit into one, I realized it wasn't a firm marshmallow inside the cookie, but some really light marshmallow fluff! Well, that reminded me of Kelly and the way she introduced me to "Fluffernutter " sandwiches and I thought, I could make cookies like these except add peanut butter and call them Fluffernutter Bites! And that, dear readers, is how these bites were born! Thanks Kelly!

    Unfortunately, I didn't have any Fluff when I made these.  I had to use marshmallow cream.  But, I know that if you use Fluff, they will be even better. Click on the pictures to see what I did. Once again I used my Hot Cocoa Bomb molds. You can find the molds here. 

Ingredients and Supplies:

• Brownie Pop mold. (WE call it a Hot Cocoa Bomb mold.)
• 12 oz. bag chocolate chips.  (I used semi-sweet, but milk chocolate or dark chocolate will work. 1 bag will make 16 bites.)
• Something to melt your chocolate in.  (I use a double boiler. Am I the only one who uses a double boiler anymore?)
• 1 container Marshmallow Cream or Marshmallow Fluff.
• 1 box Vanilla Wafers
• Peanut Butter (I used crunchy for added crunch, but creamy would also work.)

Fluffernutter Bites Tips:

• Make sure that they freeze hard and only take out one tray at a time so they don't start melting before you dip them in the chocolate. 
• I didn't put chocolate in the bomb molds like I do Hot Cocoa Bombs because I didn't want the chocolate to be too thick .  But, dipping them is kind of messy, so it might be worth a try. Refer to how I make Cocoa Bombs to see what I mean. 
• Keep the bombs in the fridge to keep the marshmallow cream from leaking. I don't think the Fluff will leak as bad, I will have to test that eventually. 

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     I have posted in past articles about making and using sprouted wheat flour.  While this process seemed overwhelming to me at first, I am a total convert to sprouting wheat and making flour and I am always on the look-out for ways to incorporate it into my baking. (Also here, here, and here!) You can click on the previous links if you want to know more about the process and see some great recipes. 

      One thing that everyone who grinds their own flour knows is that you should grind enough to use right away and just grind it as you need it in order to keep the nutritional value in the final product.  So, recently, I found myself with some excess sprouted wheat flour that I needed to use up.  I had yet to make cookies with sprouted wheat flour, so I decided that the day had come to see how the flour worked in some of my husbands favorite oatmeal cookies.  I was out of raisins, but I did have Craisins, so that is how these cookies were born. 

     The test was a success and these cookies were crispy with just the right amount of chewiness. 
     It never ceases to amaze me how much lighter the sprouted wheat flour is compared to regular whole wheat flour and how the warm, nutty flavor does not overwhelm like it can in regular whole wheat baked goods.  As a matter of fact, I couldn't really tell that these were made from whole wheat rather than regular all purpose flour, although if they were side by side, I believe that these would have the richer flavor.  

And yum!  I love Craisins in an oatmeal cookie!  

Sprouted Wheat Oatmeal Craisin Cookies

     Have any of you tried the sprouting wheat for flour method?  How have your results been and tell me what you have used this flour for.  I would love to hear and try new things. 

Do you eat ham for Easter Dinner?  Snake River Farms is a great source. 

Guys, ever since my husband admitted he had a problem, we have been living the gluten free life. I have ventured into gluten free land before, but now it is a whole new world. Everything I bake must be gluten free or he can't eat it. Generally he says I just shouldn't bake things because he doesn't need to be eating it anyway. Sometimes though, you just need a treat. I cannot eat all the cookies all by myself!

Okay... I totally could actually... but why should he miss out??

Well, I was on a quest to make a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie that wasn't quite so cakey, but more like a regular chocolate chip cookie. Now, it ALSO had to be gluten free!

I am here to tell you guys... I did it! I found the best gluten free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!

These gluten free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are soo good!

Don't judge that it is almost March. Pumpkin can, and should, be consumed year round.

Friendly reminder, pumpkin is good for you.

So anyway, my favorite gluten free flour mix definitely came in handy this time around. Bob's Red Mill makes great gluten free flour blends! This one comes with the xanthan gum already mixed in. It is a 1 to 1 ratio. I like that a lot. It takes very little effort to switch out basic cookie recipes for this great gluten free substitute.

Here is another great thing about this recipe: it is egg free! You are just a short step away from making it vegan. So... if you want to, go ahead and do it! You could switch out the butter for your favorite vegan butter, and use these vegan chocolate chips instead.

I'm lookin' out for you my vegan and gluten free friends!

So, go make these gluten free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and try not to eat all of them at once! (Although, you totally could. I would not judge you.)