Rye, Hemp & Chocolate Cookies

Method

For the hemp butter

1. Lightly toast 250g of whole hemp seeds in a cast iron pan until they begin to pop and smell nutty.
2. Let the seeds cool before adding them to your food processor and grind until you have a fine powder.
3. Add a pinch of salt and 50g of extra virgin olive oil or hemp oil and continue to blend until you have a thick and slightly crunchy paste
4. Alternatively, for a smoother butter, you can use shelled hemp seeds, which don’t require such a powerful blender. Just follow the steps above missing out the toasting. Store the hemp seed butter in a sterilised glass jar in the fridge and use as you would peanut butter.

For the cookies

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160C and line a large baking tray with parchment.
2. Pop the flours, salt and baking powder into a large bowl and mix well.
3. In another bowl add the hemp butter, sugar and eggs. Mix well and pour into the flour bowl.
4. Use your hand to bring the mixture together, gently kneading until you have a soft dough, adding a little olive oil if it seems dry. Knead in the chocolate pieces.
5. Take golf ball size pieces of dough and lightly roll them into balls and pop them onto your tray, leaving some space in-between as the cookies expand as they bake. Use the palm of your hand to lightly flatten each ball. Add the sprinkle of hemp seeds and fennel seeds and a pinch of sea salt to the top of each cookie.
6. Bake in the oven for around 15-20 minutes, until the outside is golden and crisp but the middle is still soft. Leave to cool before enjoying dipped into a strong black coffee. Store in an airtight container.