Healthy Cookies

[Paul++]

If you are laughing at the idea of “Healthy Cookies,” then you do not know the importance of this lifelong quest. Many cookies are full of sugar and fat. Some have a few redeemable qualities. My quest is to find a recipe for protein-rich, (mostly) vegan, gluten-free cookies that taste delicious and provides a balance of important nutrition. Almost like a Protein Bar. Maybe not as good as a salad, but I want to make a baked treat that I can eat (more than one of at a time!) and skip the guilt! I’ll post my best recipe so far & I welcome you to show me a better one! Here are my Healthy “XYZ Cookies”

Extremely Yummy Zen Cookies

Yield: 14-16 Cookies

Ingredients:

1.5 cups old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup EACH of these flours: quinoa, brown rice, coconut, garbanzo bean

1/2 teaspoon EACH of: baking powder, baking soda

1/2 teaspoon EACH of: cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger

1/4 cup EACH of: raisins (packed), cacao nibs, hulled hempseed, roasted pumpkin seeds

1/2 cup almond butter (crunchy or creamy — no added sugar)

1/2 cup ripe banana, mashed (~1 medium sized banana)

1/2 cup coconut sugar

2 tablespoons honey (optional … true vegans can omit this)

Juice of one large lemon (about 2-3 tablespoons)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Oven 175C (==350F). Use a large mixing bowl to combine oats, all the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and the spices. Add in raisins, cacao nibs, hempseed, and pumpkin seeds and stir to cover in flour mixture. In a separate bowl use an electric mixer to combine almond butter, mashed banana, coconut sugar, honey, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth, about 90 seconds. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients a little at a time, mixing as you go, until it becomes like …cookie dough! Roll the dough into cookie-sized balls. Press them flat and arrange them on a non-stick cookie sheet. Bake for 14-16 minutes. Ideally, the bottoms of the cookies will just be starting to brown. For moist cookies, do not to overcook.

Let me know how you like them…or tell me your favorite!

[Sheryl]

I’m up for trying these, but that’s alot of ingredients!

[Kaia Kailani]

Oh yum! This will take some prep grocery shopping, but I would give this a try! I love cookies. Usually I just go for good ol’ chocolate chip ones 🙂 My eight year old human is not into hemp seed and such… But I personally prefer healthier stuff. Recently I made oatmeal gluten free flour cookies with basically everything healthy in my baking drawer – came out great! They had cranberries, raisins, walnuts and no-sugar chocolate chips. They weren’t a big hit with my daughter, but I liked them!