Carrot Raisin (or Cranberry) Cookies
April 18, 2011 § Leave a Comment
If there were a spanking machine for bad bloggers, I would be first in line. Not only because I like to be spanked, but because I’m an awful blogger. (Ba-bum-bum!)
I’m mystified by my lack of posts. No, that’s a lie. I’m not mystified. I know what’s going on… I love to write and share information, but I suffer from writer’s block and a bit of an identity crisis when it comes to this blog. Here’s the problem:
I enjoy sharing recipes, even though the majority of the recipes I share were created by other bloggers (why read the recipes here if you can find them on another site?). I find it fun to share pictures of things that I think are pretty, but honestly, what value do those posts add to a reader’s life? I love sharing stories about Peter and the adventures of motherhood, but I’m cautious (perhaps overly cautious) of over-sharing.
Therein lies the existential question: who is purewellnessamy and what is her purpose? Ha ha – I’m sure you’re saying to yourself “Dude, all I wanted was a cookie recipe.” It’s coming up, I promise.
So, there’s that and there’s also the matter of time. Since becoming a stay-at-home mom I have developed abysmal time-management skills. I’ve become a modern-day Scarlett O’Hara who believes that “tomorrow is another day.” When friends and family ask about my blogging (or lack of blogging), I set down my mint julep, fan myself, and reply in a Southern drawl: “Why, I just can’t find the time.”
And that, my friends, is such a bullshit excuse that my eyes have turned from Bonnie Blue to deep cesspool brown.
If I wanted to find the time to blog, I would find the time to blog. Plain and simple.
So, that’s that. Ultimately, I have to decide whether I want to find the time to uncover the true identity of this little northeast corner of the blogosphere. Or not.
I think I’m going to give myself a little more time, do a little more soul-searching, and see which decision my gut spits out.
It could be that I simply got into a rut during the long, cold, gray winter and it’ll just take some spring sunshine, birds, and buds to get me inspired again!
In the meantime, as promised, here’s a cookie recipe that I’ve come to love and crave. These are cookies that can really be called a “healthy snack,” since they are vegan and contain fruits, a vegetable, and nuts! Like the banana sunflower seed cookie recipe I posted a while ago, these cookies could be considered a quick breakfast or a snack.
Oh, and I find that these cookies are not best fresh out of the oven. I think their taste and texture improve by the next day or even two days later.
Carrot Raisin/Cranberry Cookies
Makes approx. 30 cookies
Adapted from Big Girls, Small Kitchen
Ingredients
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup spelt flour (or you can use 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour.)
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ripe banana, mashed
1/4 cup light brown sugar
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
¾ cup finely grated carrots
1/3 cup raisins or cranberries
1/3 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (either pan toast, or bake in convection oven for a few minutes until they’re browned)
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Combine the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
Mix together the mashed banana with the sugar, syrup, and carrots until the sugar is dissolved.
Stir in the dry ingredients until just combined. Add the raisins and nuts and mix until they’re distributed throughout.
Drop tablespoons of the dough on to a cookie sheet. Flatten each ball slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cookies have darkened a bit – but don’t overcook. Remove to a plate to cool.
Banana Sunflower Seed Cookies
November 17, 2010 § 4 Comments
Before I get to the cookies: Did you watch Glee last night? Gwyneth killed it! I was worried that she’d be self-conscious and awkward, but she totally wasn’t. I loved the first number she performed (Cee-lo Green’s song “F You”). You could see how excited the Glee kids were to be working with her. So much fun. The Broadway number that she sang with Rachel was also great. She’s not the most elegant dancer in the world, but her voice is really good and you could tell that her heart was in this show 110%. I don’t think I stopped smiling the whole hour.
It’s the first episode in quite a while that I thought was worth watching. I was let down by the “Rocky Horror” episode, and some other recent episodes have been either meh or huh? You know what I mean?
I actually loved Mr. Schuester’s “Make ‘Em Laugh” number. It’s likely the first time that one of his performances hasn’t made me cringe and want to take a hot shower to scrub the creepiness off of me with a Brillo pad. (The funk song he sings to Sue Sylvester in the funk episode kind of makes me want to curl up into a ball and die. Same goes for the “Rocky Horror” song he sings with Emma. And the Britney song he sings during the pep rally. Totally. Creeps. Me. Out.)
Oh, and Sue had some of her best lines ever.
Anyway… yay, Gwyneth! Thanks for making such an awesome guest appearance!
So, the other day (week?) at the grocery store a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Roasted & Salted Sunflower Seeds called out to me.
I’m pretty sure at the time I had an idea about what I was going to do with them, but as the days went by I’d forgotten what that idea was. Maybe trail mix? I don’t know. If I don’t write down an idea right away in my little notebook, it’s like it never existed.
I took the bag out of the cabinet yesterday morning and saw a recipe for Banana Sunflower Seed Cookies on the back.
It was a super easy recipe and I miraculously had all the ingredients in the house. (I haven’t been to the grocery store in a while. We are scraping the bottom of the barrel here. Tomorrow I may post what I cobbled together for lunch yesterday. It turned out to be delicious despite the random ingredients.)
Banana Sunflower Seed Cookies
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (I used extra virgin olive oil and will try using 1/2 c applesauce next time- pwa)
2 medium Bananas, very ripe
1/2 cup Sugar (I may use only 1/4 cup next time – pwa)
1 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat Flour
1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Roasted & Salted Sunflower Seeds
1 tsp. Baking Soda
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Peel and mash bananas.
In large bowl, beat oil, bananas, and sugar.
Mix flour with sunflower seeds and soda.
Add dry ingredients to banana mixture and stir until thoroughly mixed.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoonful about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake about 15 minutes, until edges are golden brown.
Makes about 3 dozen cookies. (Um, not really. I made 21 cookies – pwa)
I like these cookies. For some reason they remind me of those pignoli nut cookies that always make an appearance on an Italian cookie tray. They’re not too sweet, they’re on the dry side of the cookie spectrum (borderline-biscuity), and the sunflower seeds add a nice crunch.
I think they’re acceptable for an on-the-run breakfast! You could make them even better and more nutritious by slapping on some peanut or almond butter.
Unfortunately, they’re not Peter approved. He took one bite this morning, handed the cookie back to me, and said “Not good.” Eh, what does he know, anyway?
(I added raisins to a few of the cookies and I thought they were a good addition. I’m sure dark chocolate chips would be good, too. That’s kind of a no-brainer. What wouldn’t be improved by adding dark chocolate chips?)
Happy Hump Day!
