Self Saucing Salted Caramel Cookie

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serves: 8 

Ingredients: 

SALTED CARAMEL SAUCE

500 ml (2 cups) canned coconut milk
150 g (1 cup) LAKANTO maple flavoured syrup with monk fruit sweetener 
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or powder
2 tablespoons coconut oil

1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt flakes

COOKIE DOUGH
½ - 1 cup LAKANTO Bakers Vanilla Syrup
200 g (2 cups) blanched almond flour
120 g (1 cup) arrowroot or tapioca flour

1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder

1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
125 g butter, melted

1 egg

200 g dark chocolate buttons

Method: 

To get started, make the salted caramel sauce. Place the coconut milk, maple flavoured syrup, vanilla, coconut oil and salt in a large saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring frequently so the sauce doesn’t stick to the base of the pan and burn, for 30–40 minutes, or until thick and silky. Set aside to cool and thicken.

For the cookie, in a large bowl, combine the almond flour, arrowroot or tapioca flour, baking powder and salt and mix with a spoon until just combined. Add the melted butter, egg, vanilla paste and vanilla bakers syrup, start with half a cup of the vanilla bakers syrup and if too dry, add a little extra, being mindful it doesn’t become too wet or sticky. If your dough is not holding together, simply add a touch more almond flour and tapioca flour until it’s able to be rolled into a ball easily. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to mix until well incorporated.

Press half the dough into the base of a 24 cm oven-safe frying pan (I use the same pan I used to melt the butter). Make sure the dough comes up the side to cover. Fill this cavity with some of the salted caramel sauce, making sure you leave enough room for topping your cookie. 

Lighty spray two sheets of baking paper with oil. Roll the remaining dough between two sheets of baking paper into a fairly even, flat disc that is 24 cm in diameter. Carefully remove the baking paper and place the disc of dough on top of the caramel layer, using your fingers to seal around the edge, then press the small chocolate chunks into the top. Transfer to the fridge to firm up for 30 minutes.

Now is a good time to preheat the oven to 180°C.

Remove the cookie from the fridge and bake for 15–20 minutes, or until cooked through and golden brown on top. Serve in the pan with a drizzle of the remaining salted caramel sauce. 

When you’ve used all you need for this recipe, pour the remaining salted caramel sauce into an airtight glass container and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.