Sprint 2 the Table

Appetites and Adventures

ChocolateLove: Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies

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These are a few of my favorite things…

 

Really.  How can one possibly go wrong with chocolate, peanut butter, and salt?

 

 

Side note: the best thing about vegan cookies is the fearless eating of batter… not that egg in batter ever stopped me before.

 

The site of the flaky fleur de sel and crunchy pretzel bits poking out of fudgy dough may tempt you to eat an entire scoop raw. *Please tell me I’m not the only one that does that*

 

 

February is the month of foil-wrapped chocolates, Hallmark cards, and over-priced flowers.  I beg you, this Valentine’s Day skip the artificial red colored stuff and go straight for the dark chocolate treats.

No one will miss the boxes of processed chocolates and Forrest Gump metaphors for life..  I promise.  

 

 

At the very least they won’t be able to protest with their mouths full. 😉

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookies

  • 2 T softened butter (or Earth Balance)
  • 2 T unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 C light brown sugar
  • 1/4 C xylitol
  • 1/4 C peanut butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg (or flax egg)
  • 1 T unsweetened almond milk (or other liquid)
  • 4 T cocoa
  • 1/2 C all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 C whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 C crushed pretzels
  • Fleur de sel (or other high-quality flaky salt)

 

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

With a hand mixer, cream together butter, applesauce, sugars, and peanut butter.  Add in milk, vanilla, and egg.

Sift together remaining ingredients (except pretzels) and incorporate into butter mixture.  Fold in pretzels.

Scoop dough in ~2T balls onto parchment-lined baking sheet.  Lightly flatten with palm and sprinkle with fleur de sel.

Bake for 8-10 mins.

Makes 15 cookies.

Note: My peanut butter was really thick, so I needed that 1 T of milk.  Depending on what you use, you may not – use your judgment here.

***

I’ll be lucky if I even get cole in my stocking.  Wait.  Wrong holiday.

Would you rather have chocolate or cookies?  Something else?

***

February is #chocolatelove month! I am excited to be co-hosting this month’s lovebloghop for the first time.  Please check out my co-hosts’ posts too:
A Little Bit of Everything ~ Roxana ~ @RoxanaGreenGirl
ASTIG Vegan ~ Richgail ~  @astigvegan
Badger Girl Learns to Cook ~ Kimberly ~ @BdgrGrl
Baker Street ~ Anuradha ~ @bakerstreet29
Baking and Cooking, A Tale of Two Loves ~ Becky Higgins
Baking Extravaganza ~ Samantha
BigFatBaker ~ Erin ~ @BigFatBaker 
Bon a croquer ~ Valerie ~ @Valouth
CafeTerraBlog ~ Terra ~ @CafeTerraBlog
Cake Duchess ~ Lora ~ @cakeduchess
Cakeballs, Cookies and More ~ Sue
Cooking with Books ~ Marnely ~ @nella22
Creative Cooking Corner ~ Karriann ~ @KarriannGraf
Easily Good Eats ~ Three Cookies
Elephant Eats ~ Amy
Georgiecakes ~ Georgie ~ @georgiecakes
Hobby And More ~ Richa ~ @betit19
Java Cupcake ~ Betsy ~ @JavaCupcake
Kitchen Belleicious ~ Jessica ~ @kbelleicious
Mike’s Baking ~ Mike ~ @mikesbaking
Mis Pensamientos ~ Junia ~ @juniakk
No One Likes Crumbley Cookies ~ TR ~ @TRCrumbley
Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose
Rico sin Azucar ~ Helena ~ @ricosinazucar
Savoring Every Bite ~ Linda ~ @Spicegirlfla
Simply Reem ~ Reem ~ @simplyreem
Smart Food and Fit ~ Lisa ~ @LisaNutrition
Soni’s Food for Thought ~ Soni ~ @sonisfood
Sprint 2 the Table ~ Laura ~ @Sprint2theTable
Teaspoon of Spice ~ Deanna ~ @tspbasil 
That Skinny Chick Can Bake ~ Liz ~ @Thatskinnychick
The Dusty Baker ~ Jacqueline ~ @dustybakergal
The More Than Occasional Baker ~ Ros ~ @bakingaddict
The Spicy RD ~ EA ~ @thespicyrd
The Wimpy Vegetarian ~ Susan ~ @wimpyvegetarian 
Vegan Yack Attack! ~ Jackie ~ @veganyackattack
Vegetarian Mamma  ~ Cindy ~ @VegetarianMamma
You Made That? ~  Suzanne ~ @YouMadeThatblog

 

Join us in the #chocolatelove fun by linking up any chocolate recipe from the month of February 2012. Don’t forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #chocolatelove event!  The Twitter hashtag is #chocolatelove.

 

Nacho Wednesday

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I am a big fan of trying new things.*

*Unless those new things are Dad’s Nads.

I’ve been really good lately about working through recipes/ideas I’ve noted to try.  This week I have made 3 new dishes already this week!

Side note: I’m really excited/flattered that so many people tried my Citrus Chickpea Cilantro Salad!  Check out this rendition by Sarah @ Quotidienne Moi. 

 

Back on track: with all the fun new recipes, this What I Ate Wednesday is more like “what I’ve eaten so far this week.”

 

Breakfast:

Great morning workouts leave me ravenous and in need to protein.  Kasey @ PowerCakes created this “Power Pumpkin Roll” that I knew I had to try.  This monster is ~450 calories and packs 45g of protein!

I am powerful.

I followed her recipe exactly, though next time I may add another 2 T of pumpkin and leave out an egg white.  I’m curious to know if it would work with flax eggs… that’s a lot of egg though!

Even if you don’t make the roll, make the Chia Vanilla Frosting.  I don’t often think yogurt tastes like dessert, but this one really does!

Lunch:

It must have been the week of orange, because my lunch was even more vibrant than the pumpkin roll!  This miso-laced carrot soup was as delicious as it looks!  Recipe to come Friday!

Served with a giant arugula and celery salad, which I dressed with hot sauce from the Mexican grocery store (the only place to go shop you are serious about heat), nutritional yeast, cumin, and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Dinner:

Last night I had a couple of my favorite over for dinner.  My favorite Sports Glutton, Jed, recently shared a link to his Sweet Potato Nachos that I’ve been drooling over ever since.

One of my dinner guests is gluten-free, and we all make an effort to eat clean.  This dish is a much healthier alternative to your typical nachos, particularly with some modifications!

I used dried black beans… though I was a bit panicked when I realized I forgot to soak them.  Some Googling lead me to a cool method by The Paupered Chef that involved a quick boil followed by 75 mins in the oven.  I have never heard of cooking them in the oven, but it worked perfectly!  Click here for the details.

Post-oven, I let the beans rest until it was time to re-heat for company.  Jed simmered his beans in beer… I am fresh out, so I added the following (post oven-bake) to flavor my beans over medium heat:

  • 1/4 C veggie broth
  • 1/2 yellow onion
  • 2 Chipotle peppers in adobo
  • Dashes of paprika, garlic, parsley, red pepper, cayenne pepper, and oregano

While that cooked I prepared the sweet potatoes… the easy way with Alexia’s Sweet Potato Waffle Fries.  Nom.

When the fries were done I topped them with tomatoes, serrano peppers, and queso.  Back into the oven on broil then went while I sliced an avocado and minced cilantro.

Remove, decorate, and devour.

 

Oh yes, there was also wine.  A Roquevale 2005 Portuguese Red (Alentejo) blend of Aragonez, Alfrocheiro, and Cabernet Sauvignon.  This was a big, fruity, dark wine that I could drink all night long.  Arguably a little heavy for a spicy Mexican-ish meal, but I love a big wine.

Also exciting: I got to use my chalkboard wine art glasses!

I was the lucky winner of a giveaway at Ancient Fire Wine and received 4 bottles of wine from Tapena.  The Garnacha we tried was delicious!  It was approachable without compromising body.  We picked it as an earlier wine (thinking it would be lacking), but it was great!  I’d drink it anytime!

Dessert:

For dessert we nibbled on the vegan, gluten-free dessert I teased you with last week… I’m finally posting the recipe tomorrow!

We also have another dessert nibble courtesy of Callie – she sent over some Rawxies to sample and OMG are they ever good.

My favorite was the Cinnamon Walnut Raisin.  I love how the cinnamon came through – so often the taste gets lost in the sweetness of desserts.

Raw, gluten-free, and vegan… and totally worthy of a dessert platter to share with friends.  I may have enjoyed one as an afternoon snack as well… 🙂

***

Those Sweet Potato Nachos would be a GREAT addition to a Super Bowl spread!

Are you watching the Super Bowl?  Any fun dishes planned?

What’s the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

Underground Eating

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Atlanta is the place to be if you like to eat in secret locations.

It seems like there is an event every weekend!  

This Sunday was the first brunch edition of the Atlanta Underground Market.  The previous markets have been in the evening and didn’t have themes.  Brunch was fun because it forced the vendors to try something new… and who doesn’t love brunch?  I met Lee, Felix, and Heather there for a gut-busting good time. 🙂

Dr. Sweets Cake Emporium was serving up mini, gluten-free pancakes.  They were ok, but the sauce is what got me excited.  Apple-Jalapeno Jelly and Raspberry-Lime Jelly.  I could have eaten the raspberry by the spoonful.

Next up was a Bloody “Maria” Cupcake from S’More Cupcakes.  Whoa.  The mini cupcake included tomato juice, clam juice, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, fresh horseradish, and Silver Patron tequila, and was topped with cream cheese, celery, and a cherry tomato.  A risky dish, this turned out to be everything I hoped it and more.

Ciao Bocca offered a Zucchini Frittata with tomatoes, arugula, and fresh mozzarella was a tasty bite.  I was impressed that the quality of the mozzarella!

One of my favorite items was a Margarita Cookie from Cookie Underground.  We also tried the Mimosa and Strawberry Margarita cookies.  All fantastic.  I took a couple of Chocolate Sweet Potato cookie thins to go. 🙂  Vegetable in cookies, FTW.

The runaway hit was Arepa Mia.  We waited in line for a solid 45 minutes to get the most incredible arepa I’ve ever had.  Today’s was eggplant, black beans, collards, and butternut squash.  It was supposed to have a fried egg (for brunch), but they ran out.  I was a little sad… however this didn’t stop me from scarfing my arepa down in record-time.

This next item I have to introduce by assuring you that I did NOT try them.  “Dad’s Nads” were cleverly named testicles by The Original Yay Yay.  As much as I talk about balls on this blog, these were no-go-nads for me!

All of that food makes me glad I had a good week of workouts!

__________________________________________________________________________________

My modified to cardio-a-day / Mile-a-Day Challenge has been a success!  Two more days and I will have completed it with only a couple of missed days.  Sometimes you just need to rest though. 🙂

I’m officially addicted to shorter workouts – between Body Rock and Pinterest workouts, there is no excuse not to move for at least 15 mins every day.  This week I did this Pinterest find 2x through:

Workout Recap (1/23 – 1/29)

***

Busy weekends are lots of fun… but they sure go by FAST.

Would you have tried Dad’s Nads?

What was the best part about your weekend?

Pop Quiz

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My inner high schooler is showing.

 

I used to LOVE taking quizzes.  The ones people would pass around in school or MySpace or email… I took them all.  To the point where it probably annoyed people.  

When I was tagged for this quiz on Claire’s blog, I got unnaturally excited.  Thanks Claire!

 

The rules:

  1. You must post these rules
  2. Each person must post 11 things about themselves on their blog
  3. Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer

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11 Things About Me

1. I sit on a Swiss ball at work.  The desk chair hurts my hips!


2. My co-workers think I’m weird – for the Swiss ball and for the random foods I bring for lunch.  Sorry, no Big Macs for me.

3. I haven’t had more than a few bites of meat in 2012.  I’m not a vegetarian because I love to try new things and don’t want to feel restricted… but I do have a plant-based diet.

4. 2 years ago I ate about 3-4 burgers and 1 steak a week.  Since the end of 2010 I haven’t had more than half of a burger or a bite of steak (with the exception of my 2 weeks in Italy… when in Rome Florence!).

 

5. I have the a terrible memory when it come to names or events, but I can rattle off recipes and statistics like nobody’s business.

6. In high school I went through a phase where I only work men’s XL shirts and Birkenstocks.  Those pictures have been burned.

7. I’ve been going to the same hair stylist since I was 15… despite the fact that I now have to drive an hour to see her.  Karen and Lava Hair Studio are the best!

 

8. If I could have any job, I would develop recipes/new concepts for restaurants.

9. Yes, I really do 100 push-ups nearly every day.  No, I don’t do them at once – sets of 3!

10. Red wine is my weakness kryptonite.   Specifically, Italian reds.  I would even choose it over cookies.

Which leads me to #11…

11. Just like Claire, if I had no other ties or commitments and unlimited funds I would move to Italy and never look back.  I might do it anyway.

 

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Claire’s 11 questions were in list form: “Tell me about your 11 favorite foods (restaurant, grocery store, or homemade).”

 

This is actually really hard for me – it’s like choosing a favorite child!  In no particular order, here’s what comes to mind…

  1. These Chocolate Sea Salt Cookies
  2. Sweet potatoes protein shakes like this one
  3. The hummus from Top Flr.  It’s the best I’ve ever had.
  4. My mom’s Carrot Cake (made from my grandmother’s recipe)
  5. Flourless chocolate cake with sea salt and olive oil from La Tavola (with a glass of Amarone)
  6. This Zucchini Bread Oatmeal
  7. Sriracha (a.k.a. Rooster Sauce)
  8. Guacamole – extra jalapenos
  9. Indian food – I don’t care what it is, just pass it this way with extra spice on the side
  10. Gnocchi with shaved black truffles from one of Italy’s first Slow Food restaurants – Osteria dell’ Arco in Alba
  11. Pizza – specifically authentic Italian pizza from places like Antico Pizza

 

Now I get to tag!  It doesn’t say how many people, so I’ll choose 5 because I like prime numbers.

 

For my 11 questions, I would love to know:

  • What are your 5 favorite foods?
  • What are the 3 best things you cook/bake/concoct in the kitchen?
  • What 3 things you would do first if you were President of the United States?

***

This weekend I’m going to the Atlanta Underground Market again.  The theme is Bruch… which I think should always be the theme. 🙂

What are you getting into this weekend?

What are some of your favorite foods?  Do we share any of the same?

 

Raw-ish Vegan Jerky + WIAW

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All day yesterday I thought it was Monday.

Funny how now that it’s Wednesday, I’m feeling like Friday is not so far away.

This week has really been awesome – tons of cooking, which means I have LOTS to share with you.  More to come!

For now, lets cheers to chalkboard wine glasses, kick-ass workouts, being half way to Friday, and my friend Jenn’s What I Ate Wednesday.

 

Breakfast:

After last week’s hotel oatmeal ick, this more than made up for it:

Overnight oats in an almond butter jar.  Pure bliss.

  • Oatmeal
  • Unsweetened vanilla almond milk
  • Chia seeds
  • Pumpkin puree
  • Almond butter jar remnants
  • Cinnamon
  • Vanilla
  • 4-5 drops of vanilla liquid Stevia
  • A little TBA chocolate something crumbled in. 🙂

Lunch:

Another bit of amazingness.  Citrus Chickpea Cilantro Salad  with carrots atop an eggplant patty.

Recipe for this deliciousness coming tomorrow! 

Dinner:

You may be familiar with a little problem I have.  When I go out I sometimes get so excited about the meal that I forget to take pics.  This is all that remained of my post-workout dinner last night:

That WAS a side salad, 2 veggie tacos, a chips and salsa trio, and a Patron Silver margarita.  Whoops.

More proof that Taqueria del Sol remains my favorite intown taco joint.

Snacks:

Continuing with last week’s blogger recipes, I tried Gena @ Choosing Raw’s Portabello Jerky.  It was a fantastically salty, satisfyingly chewy afternoon snack.  Seriously – Gena is a genius.

My raw-sih version of Gena’s raw jerky is at the bottom of this post!

Lucky me was asked to taste-test a new cookie recipe for Cookie Underground.  I mentioned trying these veggie-based cookies at the Atlanta Underground Market here.

My test-kit included an original recipe and 4 alternatives for their Parsnip Vanilla flavor.  In my mind there was a clear winner.  Check them out on Facebook to read more!

Apparently I need to rename this blog dessert underground because my pre-workout snack was on of these vegan Granola Cookies:

At just 3g of sugar and over 1g of protein, can you blame me?  P.S. They freeze perfectly.

Last, there was a vegan, gluten-free post-workout dessert.

I promise to share next week – I want to make one more batch to test with more soda.  Let’s just say they are silky in texture, impossibly chocolate-y, and inspired by a Cookie Underground concept. 😉

Raw-ish Portabello Jerky

  • 1 large Portabello mushroom
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp ancho chili powder
  • 3 drops liquid Stevia
  • 3-4 twist of freshly ground pepper

Mix all ingredients.  Slice ‘shroom into 1/2 inch thick sticks and marinate overnight in refrigerator overnight.

Place on foil-lined baking sheet and cook in 170 degree oven* for ~3 hours.

*Note: Gena had a dehydrator – check out her instructions for raw jerky details.  For those of us without… just set your oven at it’s lowest temp (mine is 170 degrees).  It’s raw-ish. 🙂

***

I’m really into vegan/low-sugar cooking and baking lately!  It’s fun to try different style and I love feeling so clean.

Have you tried vegan jerky?  Have you tried “real” jerky?

Do you feel a little the-end-is-near relief on Wednesday?

Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner: A Tribute

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Today is a tribute.

Friday seems like the perfect time to celebrate some fantastic bloggers who have inspired some of the best meals I’ve had.  This list is not at all exhaustive, but it’s what I’ve had lately for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Breakfast:

These fluffy, lemon-flavored chia muffins were based on this Lemon Chia Cake created by Lisa @ Healthful Sense.  I’ve made several of Lisa’s recipes and have never been disappointed.  She’s also the only person more obsessed with sweet potatoes and peanut flour than I am.

They are gluten-free and vegan – great for breakfast or an afternoon snack.  Next time I make them I’ll add some poppy seeds too, as that’s what the chia bites reminded me of.  Who doesn’t need a little opium first thing in the morning?

My modifications:

  • Used brown rice flour rather than millet
  • Replaced Stevia with NuNaturals Fiber Baking Blend
  • Reduced vanilla extract to 1/2 tsp
  • Added 1/2 tsp lemon extract
  • Used a full 1 tsp of cinnamon
  • Made 6 muffins rather than cake (baking time = 15 mins)

 

You should try these.  Like now.

 

 

Lunch:

When I can work from home, lunch is my favorite meal of the day.  I can cook something fresh AND use the daylight for picture-taking.  Even though I was too lazy to whip out the good camera for this pic.

 

 

Sweet potatoes.  Smashed and coated with goodness.  I took the idea from Pinterest – this recipe for Hot Crash Sweet Potatoes pinned from Donalyn @ DLYNZ.

 

My modifications:

  • Rather than her spice mix, I used this one created for use in my Babaganoush Soup… fitting because the blend was from another blogger, Cara @ Cara’s Cravings
  • Brushed sweet potato slices with a mix of olive oil and rice wine vinegar.  
  • Skipped the boiling step (increased baking time to 20 mins on each side using convection bake)

 

These “crashed” sweet potatoes tuned out beautifully, and my Middle-Eastern spice blend went perfectly with the Coconut Curry Marinated Tempeh by Turtle Mountain I had in the fridge.  Nom.

 

 

Dinner:

After an orange lunch, I needed a green dinner.

Janet @ The Taste Space created a Spinach Dal Palak that couldn’t be any greener if it tried.  If you don’t already follow Taste Space, check it out.  There isn’t a day where I don’t drool over a post.

 

 

My modifications:

  • Short on spinach, I reduced the recipe to make a single serving
  • Increased cumin
  • Used ground ginger (I’m out of fresh – use it if you have it on hand!)
  • Added more red pepper flakes (because I’m not happy ’til my nose is running)

 

Served with sriracha and an Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Tortilla.  Pinned and will be making again soon!

 

Dessert:

I have a bajillion blogger desserts marked to try… but tonight was my own.

 

 

These Chewy Granola Cookies (not limited to dessert – momma texted me to say she had 2 for breakfast with Greek yogurt) with a glass of “Chocolate Milk.”

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“Chocolate Milk”

 

Mix in cocktail glass and serve with ice.

***

Yes, I realize such a simple drink shouldn’t count as a recipe… but it was good, so I’m going to milk it.  (Tee hee… milk it… get it?)

What blogger recipe have you made lately and loved?

What do you use to bookmark recipes?  Pinterest?  Reader?  Delicious?

 

What I Ate in Maryland

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Travel can be an adventure in eating.

 

It can also be an adventure in finding workspaces with outlets, tables, cell phone signals… yesterday I worked all afternoon in a flatbread pizza place.

Barnes & Noble was closed for MLK (WTF?!  That’s like Starbucks closing – it just doesn’t happen!).  This meant that Starbucks was even more crowded than usual.  Flatbread it was.  I left the store having been cured of craving pizza for a while and smelling like an Italian mamma.

At least I had a wonderful dinner recommendation from Kimberly @ Grubarazzi to look forward to – Woodberry Kitchen.  They even celebrate Meatless Monday!

Side note: check out her blog – she makes some rockstar dishes!  

Goldeneye

 

Woodberry Kitchen in Baltimore is incredible.  It was a little dark for pics (I was ill-prepared in the camera department), but everything was delicious.  Don’t skip the Goldeneye drink.  It was stellar.  Say hi to Conner the bartender for me.

If you ever go, DO NOT skimp the CMP for dessert.  Malted ice cream, chocolate sauce, marshmallow fluff, and wet peanuts.  All house-made.  It was one of those “moment of silence” desserts.

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This is What I Ate Wednesday, not what I drank Monday.

 

 

Breakfast:

An adventure in hotel icky oatmeal.

 

I grabbed some of the hotel’s runny, mucus-like oatmeal and made it edible with a few mix-ins:

  • Double vanilla ice cream-flavored protein powder from home (really good, btw)
  • Peanut butter
  • Apple
  • Coffee

It was not Sweet Potato Pie Oatmeal, but by the time I got done with it these oats were not too shabby!

 

Lunch:

We ate at a burger place.  I had a salad and a sweet potato.  It was underwhelming… this is what was left when I remembered to take a pic:

 

Dinner:

I don’t care what Hollywood says, the Grubarazzi won’t lead you astray.  Thanks to another of her recommendations we dined like A-listers in a Vietnamese restaurant located in a strip mall.

 

The Saigon Noodle House doesn’t look like much from the outside, but their summer rolls and pho were ah-mazing.

Tofu Summer Role with peanut sauce and sriracha

Tofu Pho with Thai basil, jalapenos, and bean sprouts to garnish

Shrimp Curry (I picked around the shrimp)

Chicken and Rice Clay Pot… in an aluminum pot

 

Verdict:  Do NOT miss the summer rolls and the pho.  I could to skipped the other two dishes, but – to be fair – I picked around all the seafood/meat and didn’t get the full effect.

 

Snacks:

B&N-Starbucks-style.  Raspberry Oolong tea and the best KIND bar I’ve had to date – Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew.

 

There was also some late-night chocolate that had to be eaten. 😉

***

I made the FoodBuzz Top 9 today with these Chewy (Vegan) Granola Cookies!!!  Thanks to everyone for the BUZZ and welcome to any new visitors!  Check out the Top 9 by clicking here.

Have you ever had pho?

What’s the best “bar” you’ve tried lately?  Have you had a KIND bar?

 

Chewy Granola Cookies

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Some might call these Oatmeal Cookies.

Yup – I’m finally posting the recipe for these lovelies I mentioned last week.

These Granola Cookies aren’t as sweet as yer mamma’s cookie, and the goji berries makes me think of granola rather than oatmeal.

You can call them whatever you want.  At under under 100 calories, I call them awesome.

These chewy cookies have a hint of molasses-y sweetness from the brown sugar.  Walnuts add a great crunch, and I loved the punch of cinnamon.  The whole wheat flour and oatmeal make them more filling than a “typical” cookie.

If you use the flax egg and Earth balance, these make a terrific vegan treat.  Plus, you can eat the batter without fear of Salmonella (as if that’s ever stopped me before…).

These cookies are great crumbled atop Greek yogurt for breakfast, as an afternoon snack, or dipped in milk for dessert. They also freeze really well!

[Tweet “Chewy Granola Cookies – a healthier #vegan take on oatmeal cookies!”]

Chewy Granola Cookies - healthy enough to eat for breakfast!

Chewy Granola Cookies

  • 1/4 C (1/2 stick) butter or Earth Balance, softened
  • 1/4 C unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/3 C light brown sugar, packed
  • 1/3 C xylitol (or other sugar-substitute)
  • 1 flax egg (1 T ground flax + 3 T water), or 1 regular egg
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 C all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 C whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 C rolled oats
  • 1/4 C goji berries (or raisins)
  • 1/2 C walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, cream together butter, applesauce, sugars, egg and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk flours, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together. Stir this into the butter/sugar mixture. Stir in the oats, goji berries and walnuts.

Scoop cookies onto parchment-lined baking sheet leaving ~2 inches between. Bake them for 10-12 mins, until golden. Let sit on baking sheet for ~5 mins before transferring to a rack to cool.

Makes 24 cookies.

Approximate nutrition: 74 calories, 2.6g fat, 12.2g carbohydrates, 1g fiber, 3.1g sugar, 1.3g protein.

***

It’s another week of travel – very conducive to rockin’ out some Body Rock.

Do you like super-sweet desserts or something more savory?

What is your favorite kind of cookie?

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