Chewy Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies are everything their name describes. Right out of the oven they are a little crunchy, but as they cool, these cookies magically become delightfully chewy. So how about those toppings? Have you ever seen any cookie more realistically named as bird’s nest? The pastel-colored candies by Unreal add just the right touch. This unique candy tends to crack just a bit during baking. We think that the delicate cracking adds to the appeal.

Inspiration

A while back, some cookies we saw on The Food Network inspired the exploration that led to this post. Also, whenever we begin to work on building a new recipe, we dig in and explore what others have discovered. For our Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies, an oatmeal cookie recipe by Forks Over Knives did the trick!

Now and then we like to mention how we come up with new ideas. We want to inspire you to explore what interests you. While many of you have every ingredient in your pantry ready to go when you see a recipe that sounds inviting, some of you rarely try new dishes. We want to encourage you. You are not alone; we’re in this together!

We try new things when we genuinely want to experience triumph in the kitchen.

One thing that nudges us in the direction of exploring new recipes is the fact that we write and share recipes, so we need to try new methods. However, the other thing that helps us be willing to be a bit adventurous in our cooking is to read recipe posts that help us figure out a few things we can count on to work out.

Lemon Juice

The addition of lemon juice to vegan and gluten-free baked goods is one of those read about, explored, and eventually learned things for us. Before growing our understanding and experience of how flavors work together, especially in vegan and gluten-free baking, we would have never thought to add lemon juice to dessert other than lemon bars. So now look at us! When you read through our recipes, you’ll find the inclusion of lemon juice all over the place!

Two of our favorite recipes where we use lemon juice in ways that we adore is in our Oil-Free Mayo and our gluten-free, vegan, oil-free Banana Blueberry Chia Seed Muffins. We also use lemon juice in our favorite lite 5-minute alfredo-style pasta dish, and in our opinion, lemon juice is what makes our Kale Salad stand apart from the crowd.

But that’s enough about the wonders of our juicy best friend kind of ingredient, let’s get on to discussing these newest beauties that we’re playfully calling our Chewy Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies.

Chia Seeds

Like we said in the opening paragraph, Chewy Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies are everything that their name describes. The chia seeds scattered on the top looks realistic since its nearly impossible to get chia seeds to behave any way other than organic. By that, we mean that chia seeds go where they want to go and stick where they want to stick.

Almonds

The almonds remind us of how birds hunt and incorporate random pieces of this or that to build their nests. So in a bird-like manner, we let the almonds land where they might, and we used chipped pieces as well as a whole, nicely shaped slivers.

So as for the Unreal brand of colorfully coated chocolate candies, as we said before they bake and crack in nest-like perfection! We cannot look at these cuties without wishing to share one with Martha Stewart Living Magazine. To us, Chewy Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies are everything that Martha’s magazine covers inspire. These cookies embrace and celebrate nature and the abundance of “good things” it has to impart.

So how do these plant-based cookies taste?

Chewy Almond Lemon Bird’s Nest Cookies taste like a walk in the woods on a crisp Spring day. The lemony hit of fresh juice in combination with the pure maple syrup is just something you must try! Also, the nutty tahini in place of flavorless fat and oils is a spot-on winning move. The chia seeds in the batter and on top add just enough crunch to make every bite of these chewy cookies interesting. Also, the small portion of tapioca flour included here is something worth repeating. It’s the tapioca flour that lends that fun chew.

We always like to close with saying thank you for reading. Also, we want you to know that your progress in exploring and cooking healthier foods is why we do what we do.

When we set out on the path of discovering a plant-based, vegan lifestyle, we looked to others to help us find our way. That’s why we intentionally take a moment to encourage you to share our recipe posts wherever and however you can.

Right this very minute, you can bet that folks are waiting to follow your inspiring lead.

Happy Eating!