Recipe: Easy Pecan Pie Cookies (Gluten Free!)

Easy Gluten Free Pecan Pie Cookies Recipe. Made like a thumbprint cookie to hold the gooey caramel pecan pie filling inside, this easy cookie recipe is perfect for Christmas Cookie Swaps or a quick Thanksgiving Dessert and are sure to impress! Forget messing around with pie crusts and pastry, these cookies are so much simpler and so quick to make!

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Thursday is Thanksgiving, and since marrying an American, it has become one of my family's favourite traditions! 

We have a Southern style Thanksgiving with all of Jesse's favourites because he's the reason we're celebrating. There's usually ham, turkey, green bean casserole (SO good!), baked mac and cheese (this baked vegan mac and cheese is actually our fave!), pumpkin pie, pecan pie and a whole lot of deliciousness.

But truth be known, whilst I love pecan and pumpkin pie... I often miss out because I get lazy and buy a storebought pie crust instead. Pie crusts are NOT my friends, people. I'm lazy, I hate waiting for dough to chill or rolling it out and getting sticky fingers or cracks and sheesh. I'm getting frustrated just thinking about dough..... 

So this year, I decided to come up with an easier solution.... and dare I say, a more delicious solution too. 

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These Pecan Pie Cookies are INSANELY delicious - and so easy to make. 

The cookie is soft and buttery, with crunchy edges and soft insides - and the pecan pie filling takes it over the top.

Biting into these cookies is like a party in your mouth. You've got buttery cookie, crunchy pecans and sweet caramel-y goodness.

But be warned - they are SO good that you can't stop at just one.... but that's okay, because this recipe makes 32.

Click to pin this recipe on Pinterest!

There's a secret to making these cookies as perfect as can be - and that's to think of them like a thumbprint cookie.

When you're putting the dough on your trays, you want to create a well in the centre. This is where you're going to add your pecan pie filling - and that well is going to create some magic.

You see, as the cookies bake, they will start to flatten out and rise up - but the well is going to keep all of your pecan pie filling in the centre, creating a rich gooey centre that you'll wish never ends.

But enough chatter, trust me when I tell you that you NEED to make these cookies ASAP!

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

Recipe: No Bake Pecan Pie Energy Bites

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Sometimes I think that people who don't marry people from another culture or country are missing out. Why? Because you learn a whole lot of things you probably wouldn't have otherwise had learned. 

If I hadn't married Jesse, I wouldn't;

• Be Miss "Southern In Law"
• Have ever come up with The Best Healthy Pumpkin Pie Recipe
• Have ever eaten my Healthy Green Bean Casserole Recipe
• Know what "fixing to..." meant 
• Sound like a weird combination of Australian and American (accents rub off, friends... both Jesse and I have this weird confused accent because we've each taken on eachothers 😛) 
• Know that people eat squirrels... or turtles.... or a wide variety of other creatures I did not know people ate
• Have ever travelled to Louisiana
• Have ever celebrated Thanksgiving.

And I probably wouldn't have ever come up with this delicious Pecan Pie Raw Bite Recipe. I also wouldn't be as happy - that I'm sure of. 

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Luckily, I did marry Jesse and I get to reap the benefits of both cultures as Jesse and I celebrate all things Australian and all things American. 

This time next week we'll be celebrating Thanksgiving here in Australia with lots of delicious dishes, however, as Thanksgiving flavours were on my mind, I decided I needed a healthy Thanksgiving inspired treat beforehand - and thus these Pecan Pie Energy Bites were born!

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With all the flavours of pecan pie in an easy to make bite, we can not stop eating these delicious little things. They're gluten free, vegan and paleo and made without any refined sugar so they're the perfect healthy snack or dessert.

So let me share the recipe with you! >>

Recipe: Healthy Green Bean Casserole

This year will be the fifth Christmas Jesse and I spend together. Even though we've been together for eight years, being in a long distance relationship means we've only spent the last four years actually together in the same place.

Five years ago when Jesse was here for his first Australian Christmas, I made the decision that we'd incorporate some traditional Southern favourites into our Aussie Christmas feast - and we've been doing it ever since!

Whilst each year our Southern inclusions change, there are two dishes that have become a family favourite; my Healthy Pumpkin Pie Recipe and this delicious Healthy Green Bean Casserole Recipe!

Both dishes are ones we make throughout the year, however, they've become fixtures at both our Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and both recipes are ones I am always sharing with friends and family who fall in love with them too!

So let me share the recipe with you! >> 

A Belated Thanksgiving Dinner!

Last night we had a (belated) Thanksgiving Dinner at home. There was so much delicious food and there is so much Jesse and I have to be thankful for. 

We're thankful for; 

Our family and friends, who would give the shirts off their backs for us and who bring us so much joy. 

Our church, which allows us to share the Good News with so many people on a weekly basis and that encourages us to grow and share our faith. 

Our God, who is inexplicably awesome.

This blog, which has given us so many incredible opportunities and so many amazing friends around the world. 

You, who read the blog and take the time to connect with us and share your stories and try our recipes. 

The beautiful country we live in together after so much time being apart.

Great food and the joy it brings!

We have so much more that we're thankful for, but I don't want to blab on all day and bore you to tears.

But now for what you really want to know, right? The food details! 

On our Thanksgiving table was; 

• Freshly sliced smoked ham off the bone A Christmas tradition for us which Jesse has fallen in love with and couldn't pass up at Thanksgiving (so that he can have it two times in a year, ha :P) 
• Roasted chicken We didn't do turkey this year as we're limited on oven space and my Mama makes a mean roast chicken!
• Lightened Up Baked Mac and CheeseTopped with Ritz crackers kind of how Jesse's sister does it, minus the pre-soak in butter before sprinkling them on top
• Lightened Up Green Bean Casserole
  Which Katrina tells me I need to share the recipe for as she thought it was awesome - and here I was thinking it would be a total fail as I'd never made or tried it before
• Oven Baked Cornbread Dressing
  Cornbread stuffing/dressing made with celery, onions and seasoning and then baked in the oven
• My Mum's Pumpkin, Feta and Pinenut Salad
  Which is always a huge hit
• Steamed Carrots, Green Beans and Asparagus
  Which Kristy dominated because she has no self control when it comes to vegetables :P 
• Sauteed Mushrooms with Garlic and Fresh Herbs
  la-la-la-loveeeeeeee!
• Freshly Baked Dinner Rolls
• Our Healthy Pumpkin Pie
  Plus mini gluten free pies made with our Healthy Gluten Free Pastry Recipe!
• Our Healthier Snowball Cookies
  Which have become a family fave!
• Our Healthier Soft Ginger Cookies
  Katrina's fave and one of my favourite Christmas cookies!

We also switched on our Christmas Lights last night for the season and we've added even more lights so I cannot wait to share an updated pic with you!

But tell me, if you celebrate Thanksgiving, how did you celebrate this year?

If you don't celebrate thanksgiving, what is your favourite dish to bring along (or eat!) at a dinner party?

I'm always a dessert girl and love to bring along a sweet treat!

Recipe: Healthier Mini Pecan Pies

Hooray! It's November 1st! Do you know what that means? I can now post holiday recipes without looking like a loony ;)

When  I was younger, we were never allowed to do anything Christmas-sy until after November 20th (Katrina's birthday) was over  - but as I got older I stretched that a little bit and began my Christmas baking on November 1st (because I needed to "practice", you see!). 

Christmas is my absolute favourite time and Christmas food is my absolute favourite thing to eat. All year long I wait for Christmas to come around so that I can fill my house with the smell of gingerbread, freshly baked shortbread, Christmas pudding and all those delicious Christmas-sy smells.

I'm not one of those people that complains when they see Christmas items in store in February - in fact, I'm the one who hurriedly pulled her Mum into Myer in September when they just started setting up the Christmas display because "CHRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISTTTTTTTTTTMASSSSSS IS COMINGGGGGGGGGGGG!" 

Some people say that when they get older, Christmas loses its fun - but that's definitely not the case. In fact, I probably love Christmas more now than I ever did as a child. For me it's not about presents (like it was when I was little), it's about Jesus, friends, family and special traditions that bring people together. 

It's about making a gingerbread house with Jesse and Katrina and watching them devour it like Godzilla on Christmas Night (see here for proof), it's about setting up Christmas lights on the front of our house and hearing the neighbourhood kids gasp and gawk at how pretty they are from our bedroom window, it's about smelling my Mum's Christmas pudding everytime I walk past where it's hanging - drying out and maturing in preparation for Christmas day, it's about singing Christmas carols and decorating the Christmas tree and most importantly, remembering what Christmas is really all about.

But now that I have my husband here to celebrate with me (as I have done for the past three years!), it's also about creating new traditions - and incorporating his Christmas traditions into ours. 

This year, as Jesse and I were brainstorming recipes to create for the blog this Christmas, he jotted down "Pecan Pie". I'd never connected pecan pie with Christmas - but then I realised that so many of our US friends and family have a pecan pie every year - so I knew I had to create the perfect healthier pecan pie recipe to add to our holiday table...

And I did just that! To the point where Jesse told me they were perfect - and that's exactly what you want to hear!

So let me share this Healthier Pecan Pie Recipe with you!

Healthy Pumpkin Pie Recipe

I have a confession guys... I'm incredibly sneaky - and I guess a bit of a risk taker too. You see, I'm quite confident with my healthy baking and ability to create healthy recipes that taste incredible - many of you have experienced it to as you've tried your own versions of Southern In-Law recipes. 

This ability to create healthier versions of traditional recipes means that sometimes I lie.... I know lying is a sin - but trust me, I only lie for a short little while.

You see, you tell someone that's not a healthy eater that they're about to eat something healthy or healthier - they'll either not eat it or judge it as a healthy food. 

You tell someone that they're about to eat a pumpkin pie you made following a traditional recipe and then you get responses like these two: 

Jesse: I knew I married you for a reason - this is better than Nita's, better than any pumpkin pie I've ever had - homemade or store bought. Holy oh my goodness yum this is incredible. Oh wow, I can die happy now. 
Uncle Noel: If you make this for my birthday, I'll give you $100 bucks! BEST FRICKEN PIE EVER!!!! 

Then I told them it was healthy - and what responses did I get then? NO way?! You've done it again! No one can ever complain about healthy eating again. Heck Kristy I'm following a Southern In-Law diet. 

Sure, I didn't make the crust - but that's because I wanted it to be perfect for thanksgiving. You see, I might make awesome cakes, muffins, slices, bars and everything else - but I'm not a pastry queen. I'm working on a healthy pie crust recipe, but even with a storebought pie crust, you're still getting a healthier lower calorie and lower guilt pie. 

I will keep on working on that pie crust though so don't worry - hopefully soon I'll have a gluten free healthy pie crust recipe to share with you all! I'm also going to test this pie out as a crustless pie recipe so bear with me!

Now I must apologise for my poor photos in this post but we only had one measly little slice left to photograph and last night the lighting wasn't good enough to get a clear shot! But most importantly, we wanted to share this recipe with you!