• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Nourishing Gourmet

Nourishing. Satisfying. Gourmet.

  • THM Coaching
  • About
    • Privacy
    • Contact
  • Recipes
  • Cookbooks
    • Everyday Nourishing Food
    • Salad Cookbook
    • Soup Cookbook

Spanish Walnut Cookies with Chocolate Orange Ganache

May 14, 2009 by KimiHarris 27 Comments

Thanks for stopping by! If you're interested in healthy eating check out my free gifts! and subscribe to get regular email updates. *Some links may be affiliate.*
Thanks for stopping by! If you're interested in healthy eating check out my free gifts! and subscribe to get regular email updates. *Some links may be affiliate.*

ng_walnutcookies31

Little chewy walnut cookies, barely sweet, are topped with a rich chocolate orange ganache. The two elements, the walnut cookies, and the smooth ganache make a wonderful combination. They also just happen to be dairy, gluten, and grain free.

I promise that my site is not going to become a dessert blog (though some of you might appreciate that!). I’ve just been on a baking spree the last week or so! Several of you asked what cookie I was using in my picture for the chocolate ganache photo, this is it!
ng_walnutcookies2


This recipe was adapted from a Spanish cookbook, where these tasty little morsels were based off of a traditional recipe. Like coconut macaroons, this recipe doesn’t contain any type of flour, but instead relies on eggs to hold it together. Unlike macaroons, it actually contains the yolks as well as the whites.

These cookies aren’t super sweet by themselves, which you don’t want them to be with a rich sweet ganache topping them. But if you wanted to make the cookies to eat by themselves you might want to make them a bit sweeter. In the original recipe, 3/4 cup of sugar was used. I am sure that you could use rapadura or maple sugar with good success.I think it would also be nice to up the orange peel if you weren’t using the ganache.

ng_walnutcookies1

By the way, without the chocolate topping, these cookies are GAPS friendly.

Enjoy!

Spanish Walnut Cookies with Orange Chocolate Ganache

Makes between 40-50 small cookies

    3 cups of walnuts
    4 eggs, separated
    1 teaspoon orange zest
    1 teaspoon lemon zest
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/3 cup of honey
    1/8 teaspoon white stevia powder

    1 recipe of chocolate ganache frosting, orange variation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1-In a food processor, grind the walnuts to a medium fine consistency. Do not turn into walnut butter!

2-In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, salt, zest, honey, and stevia powder, until well combined. Stir in the walnuts.

3-In a very clean metal, or other non-plastic bowl, beat the egg whites until firm and making peaks.

4-Gently pour half of the egg whites into the bowl and gently fold into the batter. Pour in the rest of the egg whites, and fold it in a second time.

5-On greased cookie sheets, drop teaspoon fulls of the batter a few inches apart (the cookies will spread a little).

6-Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned, and the cookie is cooked all the way through.

7-Remove to cooling racks (if you have any trouble with them falling part, you can let them cool a bit on the sheet and then remove). When cool frost with the ganache and serve!

If you liked this recipe, you might also like:

ng_lemoncurdbar1 Lemon Curd Bars
TangyΒ  Lemon Curdng_lemoncurd2

The following two tabs change content below.
  • Bio
  • Latest Posts

KimiHarris

I love beautiful and simple food that is nourishing to the body and the soul. I wrote Fresh: Nourishing Salads for All Seasons and Ladled: Nourishing Soups for All Seasons as another outlet of sharing this love of mine. I also love sharing practical tips on how to make a real food diet work on a real life budget. Find me online elsewhere by clicking on the icons below!

Latest posts by KimiHarris (see all)

  • 2 Ingredient Peppermint Bark - December 21, 2022
  • Herbal Hibiscus Lemonade (Keto, THM) - March 16, 2022
  • Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup - December 8, 2021

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Dairy Free, Desserts, Gluten Free, Vegetarian Tagged With: Chocolate, Dairy Free, GAPS Friendly, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Honey, Nuts, Vegetarian, Walnuts

Previous Post: « More on Fermentation Methods and Equipment
Next Post: Nourishing Frugal Cooking Class: A Peasant’s Feast »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rebeca

    May 14, 2009 at 8:01 am

    Yummm… those look great. When we finish our pan of lemon curd bars, which were delicious, I might have to try this one. Thanks!

    Reply
  2. KimiHarris

    May 14, 2009 at 8:46 am

    Rebeca,

    Glad you liked the lemon curd bars. I am very sad that all of mine are gone……;-)

    Reply
  3. D

    May 14, 2009 at 8:52 am

    Hi: What are your thoughs on Tropical Tradition Coconut Oil? They have a sale that ends today.

    Reply
  4. KimiHarris

    May 14, 2009 at 9:26 am

    Hi D,

    Everyone has their own preference for coconut oil as they do vary in taste. Some are more sweet, some more coconuty, some more oily. I truthfully haven’t tried Tropical Traditions coconut oil, so I can’t say for sure. I know one family who raves about it, while I know others who prefer other brands. So it’s all in the eye of the beholder, I guess! Hope that helps a little. πŸ™‚

    Reply
  5. Jessie

    May 14, 2009 at 9:59 am

    I am SOO looking forward to making these cookies!

    One question, though – do you think it’s worth soaking & drying the walnuts first? I’m wondering if the baking temperature makes it a moot point to do this step.

    thanks!

    Reply
  6. KimiHarris

    May 14, 2009 at 10:06 am

    Hi Jessie,

    That’s a really good question. I had read that roasting nuts does neutralize the enzyme inhibitors (like the soaking does). However, I haven’t read for sure whether baking it does or not. I am hoping so as I sometimes use raw nuts. πŸ™‚

    Reply
  7. Jenny @ NourishedKitchen

    May 14, 2009 at 1:14 pm

    What would you recommend to replace the white stevia in the recipe? I don’t like to use it because of its traditional use as a contraceptive. Would sucanat or honey work?

    Reply
  8. Christine @ becomingp31

    May 14, 2009 at 3:16 pm

    Hi – I have nominated you for a Lemonade Award! I have always thought it was important to serve my family healthy, homemade meals and I love reading your blog and enjoy learning more about incorporating new healthy choices into my cooking and baking! Come on over to my blog to pick up your fun Lemonade Award!

    Reply
  9. briana

    May 14, 2009 at 3:50 pm

    These look yummy. I have already made a few of your recipes since I found your site about a month ago. Thanks for taking the time to share them.

    Reply
  10. Steph Garvey

    May 14, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    Wow!

    Reply
  11. DessertObsessed

    May 14, 2009 at 4:36 pm

    Yay, dessert blogging! these look great! Do you think they’ll turn out ok if i omit the stevia powder?

    Reply
  12. Helen Levashoff

    May 14, 2009 at 5:38 pm

    Do you think the these cookies will taste just as good using butter instead of the coconut oil?? I am following the guidlines for eating right for your blood type and I can’t eat coconut or Stevia.

    Reply
  13. Leesie

    May 14, 2009 at 5:42 pm

    Is there an easy way to print the recipes from your blog? Suggestion, maybe you could add a ** Print Recipe icon ** to click on and print the recipe, for instance, as Heidi does over at 101Cookbooks? Just a thought. I have no idea on how to do it otherwise I’d share, lol.

    ;0) Loved the lemon curd bars! Made them today.

    Be well.

    Reply
  14. Sweta

    May 14, 2009 at 6:41 pm

    I love the different flavours in this recipe πŸ™‚

    Reply
  15. michelle

    May 14, 2009 at 7:05 pm

    What is GAPS friendly??????

    Reply
  16. Christa

    May 14, 2009 at 7:14 pm

    I made your chocolate ganache for a birthday cake today and we all loved it! Now I can’t wait to try it with these cookies. Thank you!

    Reply
    • KimiHarris

      May 14, 2009 at 8:38 pm

      Jenny,

      I think that you could either up the amount of honey, or instead just use rapadura/ sucanat (the Spanish recipe I was inspired by used 3/4 cup of sugar, which I am sure would be nice and sweet). If you try it, let me know how it turns out. πŸ™‚

      Christine,

      Thank you! That’s so sweet of you!

      Briana,

      Welcome to my site!

      Steph,

      Man, that chocolate ganache is a killer, let me tell you! We all want these cookies again, since we ate them all up rather quickly!

      Dessert Obsessed,

      Check my answer to Jenny. I hope that helps!

      Helen,

      Butter would definitely be good in this recipe!

      Leesie,

      I need to figure out how to add that to my blog. I have no idea how!! So I will have to find some help. Thanks for the suggestion. πŸ™‚ (By the way, a pretty easy way is to simply copy and paste the recipe into microsoft word and print from there)

      Steva,
      Thanks! Me too. πŸ™‚

      Michelle,

      It’s a healing diet that I’ve mentioned before on this blog. Check out the archives for more info! πŸ™‚

      Christa,

      Great! Glad you liked it. πŸ™‚

      Reply
  17. Carrie @ Organic and Thrifty

    May 14, 2009 at 10:21 pm

    Thanks for this, Kimi! I love grain-free, sugar-free recipes! I have lots of crispy walnuts that would probably love to morph into a cookie tomorrow!

    Reply
  18. Vin | NaturalBias.com

    May 15, 2009 at 4:57 am

    Hi Kimi, these sound great! I rarely eat dessert food, but am always looking out for nutritious gluten and dairy free options. I’m not much of a cook, but I’ll have to give this recipe a try. Have you tried using sea salt in place of regular salt?

    Reply
  19. Kimberly

    May 15, 2009 at 5:27 am

    I’m not sure if you’ve talked about this already somewhere–but I was wondering what your thoughts are about agave. I saw a couple of things lately that said it is no better than HFCS. It can get so confusing trying to figure out which sweeteners are really the best. I know too much of ANY sweetener can be bad, but just trying to figure out what might be best–low GI, and most natural. I saw somewhere in your past entries about coconut sugar. I am going to look for some today. Are you still using/liking it?
    Have you ever used Erythritol? I bought some a while back because I saw it used in a low-carb blog. I have used it some, but not enough to really have an opinion about it:) Thanks for an awesome and informative blog!

    Reply
  20. LaDonna

    May 15, 2009 at 3:23 pm

    These sound like a delicious combo. I am wondering if pecans could be substituted for the walnuts, I have an abundance of them right now.
    I enjoy everything that you share. Always something to learn.
    Thank you!

    Reply
  21. Peggy

    May 17, 2009 at 1:32 pm

    I noticed someone else mentioned the use of other types of nuts… We are planning on trying this recipe w/ almonds, hazelnuts, and pecans. In our house walnuts are considered yucky (such a technical term) plus my husband is mildly allergic to them. If you would like I could let you know our results using each type of nut and the maple sugar. It will be a week or two as I am baking up donated cookie dough for a LARGE bake sale fundraiser on Friday.

    Thanks, Peggy

    Reply
  22. Bete Pfister

    May 18, 2009 at 8:00 am

    Peggy,

    I would love to hear how the cookies come out with almonds! I am allergic to walnuts, so that would be a good alternative. Hope yours come out yummy!

    Thanks,
    Bete

    Reply
  23. Johanna

    August 28, 2009 at 4:12 pm

    Just tried these – yummy! Husband cannot have any gluten, so this is a great cookie recipe for him. For some reason, I thought they’d be crispy, though. I wonder how to make them crispy. I think I’d like them better if they were. Hmmm….any ideas?

    Thanks for all the great recipes! Your recipe index is my primary cookbook now that we discovered all of us have food allergies!

    Reply
  24. julie

    January 12, 2010 at 1:42 pm

    I just made these minus the frosting. They were fantastic. They remind me of madelaines in texture,very cake like with a very mildly sweet citrus flavor. I burnt the edges of the cookies from my first pan, so I lowered the temperature to 300 and the time to 10 minutes and had no problem after that. I used a thicker cookie pan with the last 2 batches and they took longer to cook so maybe I wouldn’t have had a problem if I had used those from the beginning. Let me tell you, even with the burnt edges I ate all 12 cookies from the first batch. The others turned out perfect and were so good that after five I had to stop myself from eating another dozen. I can totally imagine these layered
    with coconut whipped cream or vanilla frosting too. Seriously the best gluten free cookie recipe I have made so far and so easy and one I don’t feel guilty feeding the kids. My two year old already ate 4 and really likes them. I have a feeling we will be fighting over these. Thank you so much for posting this.

    Reply
  25. Angelita Lotinsky

    August 4, 2010 at 9:11 am

    1 recipe of chocolate ganache frosting, orange variation – HOW DO YOU MAKE THE GANACHE BECOME AN ORANGE VARIATION?

    THANKS!

    Reply
    • KimiHarris

      August 4, 2010 at 10:36 am

      The variation is at the bottom of the ganache recipe. πŸ™‚

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

ConvertKit Form

Get Every Recipe

And the insider's view from our kitchen

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit

Follow Me

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS

Search

Please Read:

The information you find here at The Nourishing Gourmet is meant to help you become a better cook! This site is primarily for sharing family friendly recipes. It's not meant to give medical advice or to make any health claims on the prevention or curing of diseases.This site is only for informational and educational purposes. Please discuss with your own, qualified health care provider before adding in supplements or making any changes in your diet. Also, any links to sponsors or affiliates (including Amazon) may give me a percentage of the sale or a pay per click. Thank you for supporting this site.

Categories

  • $10 Main (42)
  • $5 Dishes (43)
  • 52 ways to save money on a healthy diet (53)
  • AIP (23)
  • Baked Goods (83)
  • Beverages (72)
  • Breakfast and Brunch (61)
  • Condiments (8)
  • Dairy Free (492)
  • Desserts (184)
  • Dietary Needs (6)
  • Egg Free (11)
  • Egg Free (86)
  • For the Kids (66)
  • For the Love of Food and Books (18)
  • Gluten Free (484)
  • Grain Free (95)
  • Health (75)
  • Kitchen Tools (4)
  • Main Dishes (126)
  • Nourishing Frugal Recipes (167)
  • Nourishing Frugal Tips (70)
  • Nourishing Practices (56)
  • Nutrient Dense Foods (70)
  • Q and A (15)
  • Salads (39)
  • Sides (101)
  • Snacks (124)
  • Soups (50)
  • The Healthy $1 Menu (21)
  • The Low Energy Guide to Healthy Cooking (18)
  • THM (2)
  • Trim Healthy Mama (2)
  • Uncategorized (846)
  • Vegan (241)
  • Vegetarian (361)

Recent Posts

  • 2 Ingredient Peppermint Bark
  • Herbal Hibiscus Lemonade (Keto, THM)
  • Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup
  • One-Pot Gluten-Free Mac and Cheese
  • Healthy Pumpkin Spice Granola
  • Crispy Pumpkin Spice Granola (oil-free)
  • Why I Use THM Principles Now
  • Vietnamese Beef Noodle Salad
  • Coconut Flour Pancakes
  • Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken

Recent Comments

  • Dorene St G on Cracker Toffee (Easy Peasy Christmas Candy)
  • Nadia Kriston on Finding a Toaster Oven Without Nonstick
  • KimiHarris on How to make heavenly coconut milk whipped cream (with an isi dispenser)
  • KimiHarris on Autumn Beef Stew (Tomato Free)
  • KimiHarris on How to make heavenly coconut milk whipped cream (with an isi dispenser)

Fresh: Nourishing Salads for All Seasons

Get Every Recipe

And the insider's view from our kitchen

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time. Powered by ConvertKit

Footer

Privacy

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro & The Genesis Framework