Yum Yum Nut Sweets

Preparation Preheat the oven to 300°F. Grease a 7- or 8-inch square baking pan with the oil. Set aside. Place the nuts in a food processor and chop until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Put the contents into a small mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar and egg whites. With a spatula, scrape the contents of the bowl into the oiled pan and press into an even layer. Bake for 1 hour for soft cookies or 1 1/2 hours for crisp cookies. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool. Cut into 1 3/4- or 2-inch squares. Variation: Chocolate Yum Yums: Even though these are simply a chocolate version of the Yum Yums, everyone seems to think that they are brownies. Yum. Melt 2 1/2 ounces of 70% dark—not milk—chocolate in a double boiler. Add to the mixing bowl after the sugar and egg whites. Proceed as directed. Excerpted from The Intolerant Gourmet: Glorious Food without Gluten & Lactose by Barbara Kafka (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2011. Photographs by Johnny Miller.

Preparation Preheat the oven to 300°F. Grease a 7- or 8-inch square baking pan with the oil. Set aside. Place the nuts in a food processor and chop until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Put the contents into a small mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar and egg whites. With a spatula, scrape the contents of the bowl into the oiled pan and press into an even layer. Bake for 1 hour for soft cookies or 1 1/2 hours for crisp cookies. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool. Cut into 1 3/4- or 2-inch squares. Variation: Chocolate Yum Yums: Even though these are simply a chocolate version of the Yum Yums, everyone seems to think that they are brownies. Yum. Melt 2 1/2 ounces of 70% dark—not milk—chocolate in a double boiler. Add to the mixing bowl after the sugar and egg whites. Proceed as directed. Excerpted from The Intolerant Gourmet: Glorious Food without Gluten & Lactose by Barbara Kafka (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2011. Photographs by Johnny Miller.