These Gluten Free Treasure Chests are one of those treats that get stuck into your mind because they are linked to a cool memory. And, unlike usual, this is not one of my recipes, but a courtesy of my mom, the wizard behind the Italian blog www.pentolefornelli.it
I just got back to Italy after a few months in the US. I was jet legged and resting on the couch in her kitchen, enjoying the breeze coming in from the window after a refreshing summer storm.

A delicious smell wakes me. On the table, there’s her dark oak rolling pin and the rustic wooden board my dad built for her when they got married. Always the same for the last 40 years. So many pies and handmade pastas were rolled over it… you can’t even imagine.

As I get off the couch, I see her leaning towards the oven, taking out a tray of delicious treats she baked just for me. “Niente glutine, zucchero né latticini” she says, reassuring me she didn’t use any sugar, gluten, nor dairy in my custom made pastries.
I am stoked. “Bellissimi!” I scream excited for how beautiful they are. She tells me that inside she hid a dollop of the apricot jam she just made last week using the fruit from our tree. No sugar in that either.

While they cool down, we think about a name. Since they shield such a precious filling inside, the name “treasure chests” seems like a perfect match.
A drizzle of 100% dark chocolate later, it’s finally time to try them. Epic!
The whole family loves them, but they leave them all to me.
Mom made another batch with regular flour for the rest of the crew.
Who’s says having gluten issues doesn’t have its perks?!;)
Gluten Free Treasure Chests

Preparation
time:
00:10
Cooking
time:
00:25
No. of
servings:
25
- 300 gr Gluten Free Flour Mix (I used Schar)
- 60 gr melted Coconut Oil
- 3 free range Egg Yolks
- 60 gr Lemon Juice
- 60 gr Dates
- 1 pinch of Stevia
- Grated Zest of 1/2 Lemon
- 100 gr Apricot Jam
- 30 gr 100% Dark Chocolate
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Combine flour, yolk, coconut oil, lemon juice and lemon zest in a bowl and mix well.
- As all the ingredients start binding, add in the stevia and smashed dates and knead well.
- When you have a compact ball of dough, roll it down with a rolling pin until 1/4 inch thick.
- Creates lots of circles using a round cookie cutter and put 1/2 tsp of apricot jam in the middle of half of the circles of dough you cut.
- Place the second half of circles on top of the ones covered with jam and press them down on the borders using a fork,
- Dab a thin layer of apricot jam on top of your gluten free treasure chests and bake them for 25/30 minutes depending on your oven.
- Once they cooled down completely, melt some dark chocolate and drizzle it on top of your gluten free treasure chests.
- Let the chocolate solidify in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes and serve.

I hope you loved this recipe (and the little story behind it) and I can’t wait to see your recreation of these Gluten Free Treasure Chests.
And if you have a cool story connected to a recipe too, don’t forget to share it leaving a comment below.
Lots of love and I will catch you next time!!
Ambra
9 Comments
These are so beautiful, and I love the story behind the recipe. What an amazing cook your mum is too!
Monique, thanks so much for the sweet comment! I love how food is always connected to memories!
What a fun treat! I’m sure my kids would love these. 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing them with us at Allergy Free Thursdays, they were the most popular link, so we’ll all be featuring them at this week’s party! Hope to see you there! 🙂
OMG!! I am so excited Raia! What a wonderful news! I am always happy to share and connect with likeminded foodies and I am happy you guys liked it so much!!
What great little Treasure Chests, we will just love these! Thanks for sharing your awesome post with us at Full Plate Thursday. Hope you are having a great week and come back soon!
Miz Helen
Helen, I will for sure! I am excited you guys liked it!!
Beautiful photos and captivating story! I can’t wait to make these for my family!
That’s wonderful Celeste! I am so glad you liked them and you want to give them a try!!
PS: What a beautiful name you have!!
Ciao, Ambra
These are absolutely delicious!! I made them a week ago and they are all gone! I did share a few. I also bought a kitchen scale so I can correctly measure in grams. I am in the US and usually use cups and tablespoon/teaspoons 🙂 They turned out really good despite my measuring/guessing. I will be making more!!
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