Description
Rainbow cookies make the perfect gift or dessert on Christmas, but today I'm taking the idea of Pride Month a little too literally. Traditional versions contain multiple sticks of butter, high sugar jelly, and of course artificial food dyes, so I had my work cut out for me here.
Rainbow cookies, healthy or not, are a multiple hour process, so be prepared to put in the work. They're absolutely worth the effort on occasion, and I love making these once a year or so. These cookies are free of added sugar and unhealthy fats, and of course contain no food dyes.
Beets are used to naturally color the red layer, and sunflower seed butter is used for green. Both the 3 "cookie" layers as well as the raspberry jam are naturally sweetened with dates, and the top and bottom chocolate layers are made from monk fruit sweetened chocolate. Or check out any of my other cookie recipes if you want a simpler dessert!
Rainbow cookies, healthy or not, are a multiple hour process, so be prepared to put in the work. They're absolutely worth the effort on occasion, and I love making these once a year or so. These cookies are free of added sugar and unhealthy fats, and of course contain no food dyes.
Beets are used to naturally color the red layer, and sunflower seed butter is used for green. Both the 3 "cookie" layers as well as the raspberry jam are naturally sweetened with dates, and the top and bottom chocolate layers are made from monk fruit sweetened chocolate. Or check out any of my other cookie recipes if you want a simpler dessert!
Time
Prep Time:
3 hours
Rest Time:
8 hours
Cook Time:
1 hour
Total Time:
12 hours
Cost
Total Cost:
Cost per Serving:
$0.27
Ingredients
Serving(s)
Red Layer
- 1 small Beet
- 1 large Egg
- 1/4 cup Dates
- 1 1/2 tbsp Almond butter
- 2 tsp Almond extract
- 1/2 tsp Baking powder
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/3 cup Oat flour
White Layer
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- 1 large Egg
- 1/4 cup Dates
- 1 1/2 tbsp Almond butter
- 2 tsp Almond extract
- 1/2 tsp Baking powder
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/3 cup Oat flour
Green Layer
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened applesauce
- 1 large Egg
- 1/4 cup Dates
- 1 1/2 tbsp Sunflower seed butter
- 2 tsp Almond extract
- 1/2 tsp Baking soda
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/3 cup Oat flour
Jam Filling
- 12 oz Frozen raspberries
- 1/4 cup Dates
- 2 tbsp Chia seeds
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
Chocolate Coating
- 1/4 cup Extra virgin coconut oil
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp Cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup Granulated monk fruit
Instructions
Cook Mode Off: Prevents screen dimming
- Prep
Wash your beet with a brush, wrap in aluminum foil, and air fry at 400F for about 1 hour, until you can easily pierce it with a fork. Unwrap, and let cool for 10 minutes. Cut off the ends, but leave the skin on
Preheat your oven to 350F, and line a 9" square baking pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray the paper with oil - IMPORTANT
The red and white layers contain baking powder and almond butter, while the green layer contains baking soda and sunflower seed butter. THIS IS NOT A TYPO, so please be careful. The baking soda in combination with the sunflower seed butter is what causes the green color, but the other layers still need a leavener, so baking powder is used. Baking soda and baking powder are not the same thing!
Sunflower seed butter could be used for the other 2 layers, but it will have more of a distinct sunflower flavor. I would recommend almond butter instead if you have it - White Layer
Add all ingredients to a small food processor, and blend until smooth. Pour the batter into the pan, and spread to make sure it's even. Bake at 350F for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to totally cool
- Green Layer
Prepare the green layer batter as the white layer bakes, following the exact same process. Bake just like the white layer - Red Layer
Finally, the beet should be done, and you can make the red layer. Follow the same process as the white and green layers. Let all 3 layers cool on a wire rack in the fridge until totally cooled
- Raspberry Jam
Pour your raspberries into a bowl, and microwave for 1 minute to defrost. Add your raspberries and dates to a medium stainless steel pan over medium low heat, and roughly mash with a potato masher
Cook with occasional stirring until the dates are soft enough to fully mash into the jam, and the jam has noticably thickened (about 10 minutes). Stir in chia seeds and lemon juice. Refrigerate to cool
- Assembling
Line your 9" baking pan with parchment paper, and place the green layer in the pan. Spread half of your jam onto the green layer. Place the white on top, and spread on the other half of the jam. Finally, top with the red layer
Cover with parchment paper, and place a heavy weight on top. Refrigerate overnight
- Chocolate Coating
The next day, melt half your coconut oil (2 tbsp, 28 g) in the microwave, and stir in half the cocoa powder (5 tbsp, 25 g) and half the granulated monk fruit (2 tbsp, 25 g) until smooth. Evenly spread across the red layer on top in the pan. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to harden the chocolate
Flip over, and repeat with the other half of the chocolate on the green layer. Again, refrigerate for 30 minutes
- Cutting
When the chocolate has cooled, transfer to a cutting board, and cut into 36 small square cookies, about 1" each. Store in the fridge
- Flash Freeze
Since this makes a lot of cookies, you may want to store some in the freezer. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread out the cookies so none are touching. Freeze uncovered for at least 1 hour before transferring to an airtight container
Notes
- We're going to work in color order from lightest to darkest, meaning white, then green, and finally red. Not only does this avoid color contamination, but the beet needs time to roast, giving us time to work on white and green
- I called for almond butter in the red and white layers, but any neutral natural nut butter will also work, like cashew butter or tahini.
However, sunflower seed butter is required for the green layer, as the chlorophyll in the sunflower seeds will react with the baking soda, turning the layer green. This is why only the green layer contains baking soda. The red and white layers contain baking powder instead.
Don't worry if it's barely green now; it will turn more overnight. See my Green Bread and Mint Chocolate Chip Date Cookies for reference - Because I use immitation almond extract, I used 2 tsp (10 g) of extract per layer. If you have pure almond extract, I'd recommend halving the amount to 1 tsp (5 g) per layer
- Raspberries are the traditional choice for the jam, but they can be very expensive. For me, 12 oz of frozen raspberries is $4.48, but I can get 32 oz of frozen strawberries for just $4.00. Swapping the raspberries for strawberries cuts the total cost down from $9.84 to $7.10, or down from $0.27 to $0.20 per cookie, saving $2.74
- Alternatively, you can use 1 cup (180 g) sugar free chocolate chips (1/2 cup, 90 g per layer) instead of homemade chocolate
- For a lower calorie, net carb, and sugar version, replace the 1/4 cup (40 g) of dates in each of the 3 layers, as well as the jam, with 2 tbsp (25 g) granulated monk fruit, for a total of 1/2 cup (100 g), in addition to the sweetener in the melted chocolate
| Nutrient | Original Recipe |
Monk Fruit Instead of Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 70 | 58 |
| Protein | 1.9 g | 1.8 g |
| Fat | 3.6 g | 3.6 g |
| Net Carbs | 6.3 g | 2.0 g |
| Fiber | 2.3 g | 1.9 g |
| Added Sugar | 0.0 g | 0.0 g |
| Sugar Alcohol | 1.4 g | 4.2 g |
Nutrition Facts
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Total Fat: 3.6g (5 %)
Saturated Fat: 1.7g (8 %)
Sodium: 70mg (3 %)
Total Carbohydrate: 10.0g (4 %)
Fiber: 2.3g (8 %)
Net Carbs: 6.3g
Total Sugar: 3.8g
Sugar Alcohol: 1.4g
Protein: 1.9g (4 %)
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Vitamin B12: 0.04mcg (2 %)
Vitamin D: 0.1mcg (0 %)
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Calcium: 23mg (2 %)
Iron: 0.65mg (4 %)
Magnesium: 27mg (6 %)
Potassium: 122mg (3 %)
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