Saturday, July 7, 2012

Super-Charge Me! Cookies and Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal (Oil Free, Wheat Free)


We've had a lot going on around here. My sister and her husband just had their first baby, a girl! Adjusting to a new infant has been work around the clock for them. All of our family and friends have tried and continue to make efforts to try and ease their burden and help with their transition into parenthood.

And, my older brother is getting married next week, WAHOO! I love his fiance and am so excited to have her as my sixth sister! I'll be traveling to Utah to attend his wedding and reception. Afterwards we are heading to Oregon for a conference that my husband is attending.

So I hope to continue blogging over the next few weeks and maybe show a bit about the food we eat on the road. It takes additional effort, but if we try, it is doable and delicious. This is what Dr. McDougall says about eating out (or eating on the road!)



I love what he says about oil! I am so gonna' try that.

(Oh, and BTW, Dr. McDougall has a lot of these videos on his website, I highly recommend you watch these, they are awesome! Just click on the link above and watch the short videos of interest to you.)

Besides having to eat out more because of travel, most of our car snack food will consist of cut carrots and celery (we find that on the road we just want to munch endlessly!) a lot of bananas, grapes, oranges and nectarines, chickpea "tuna" salad sandwiches, and PB&J sandwiches. But part of our car food will also be the Super-Charge Me Cookies by Dreena Burton, made oil free with a minor modification. I LOVE THESE COOKIES!

I have found that the most successful cookies that are made oil free usually have nut butter in them, and other add-ins such as oats, nuts, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and dried fruits (these give crunch and texture, instead of cakey cookies).

This recipe meets all of the above criteria, giving them a nice texture of crunch on the outside and chewy on the inside.

They are also more enjoyable if the original recipe requires only 1 or 2 tablespoons of oil. The less oil the recipe calls for, the better the recipe turns out when I replace it with fruit purees. In this recipe I use applesauce and I love it.

1 Tablespoon of applesauce is only about 17 calories (none of which are from fat) and 1 Tablespoon of oil is 130 calories, all of which are from fat. Oil is also the cause of my oily skin. Sounds ridiculous, but for me, it is true. My skin has been revolutionized by eliminating oil. But more on that, later! (Thank you, Katie, for encouraging me to try to be oil free by asking about skin improvement!!! You totally motivated me!)

I am going to double or maybe even quadruple this recipe and we will eat them on the road. My kids LOVE these cookies also, and that's saying a lot as they usually prefer the cookies made with oil.

Also, I have discovered a new hot cereal that I absolutely LOVE and highly recommend.


It is very easy to make, gluten and oil free, and it tastes so good I think I am in heaven! It will make you feel fabulous and energetic, too! I encourage you to give it a try; four bags of these cost about $11 on Amazon. I am sure places like Sunflower Market and Whole Foods Market will carry it also.


Just a teaspoon or two of brown sugar, some fresh fruit like peaches, bananas or nectarines, some non-dairy milk, and you will have yourself a warm, delicious and energizing quick breakfast.

You will especially enjoy it if you like cream of wheat cereal but want a lighter version, or if you are an oatmeal person. Although I must say that this has quite a bit more texture than oatmeal--the corn gives it a bit of crunch with the creamy taste.

I hope you make and enjoy these easy cookies as much as we do. I also would love to hear if you try the Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal, and what you think of it.

Happy eating!



Super-Charge Me! Cookies
From Dreena Burton's website: www.plantpoweredkitchen.com
Ingredients (11-12 cookies)

1 cup rolled oats or quick oats
2/3 cup spelt flour
1/4 tsp (rounded) sea salt
1/4 – 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 –1/3 cup raisins or chopped dried fruit
3–4 tbsp carob or chocolate chips (optional; or use more dried fruit, nuts, or seeds)
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup flax meal (not flax seed)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (can also sub agave nectar or honey)
3 tbsp almond butter (may use cashew, peanut, hemp seed butter)
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tbsp applesauce

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).

In a bowl, combine oats, flour, salt, cinnamon, coconut, raisins, and carob or chocolate chips, sift in baking powder, and stir until well combined.

In a separate bowl, combine flax meal, syrup, almond butter, and vanilla and stir until well combined. Stir in applesauce. Add wet mixture to dry, and stir until just well combined (do not overmix).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spoon batter onto baking sheet evenly space apart, and lightly flatten. Bake for 13 minutes (no longer, or they will dry out). Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 1 minute (no longer), then transfer to a cooling rack.

Makes 11-12 cookies

5 comments:

  1. Loved that video. I am so ashamed to say that I have not eaten very well lately. We are having a little "stay-cation" and have been eating out these last few days. I had some chicken, which didn't feel good or bad either way. But then I had some eggs the next day and could hardly get through the plate. It was gross. Plant-based whole goods don't really look or sound exciting on a restaurant menu, but they always taste great and you feel so good after eating them. I need to do better at this!

    I haven't been using any oil at home in cooking for at least a month and have totally noticed that my skin is less oily. I am a super oily person too :) I wanted to tell you that I made those Homestyle Chocolate Chip cookies that you posted awhile back, but accidentally put in 1/4 CUP of molasses instead of a 1/4 teaspoon. I didn't realize it until sometime later, so I am going to have to try the recipe again! Anyway, I'm excited to try out this new recipe. I will let you know how it goes!!

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    1. No need to beat yourself up so badly; I have learned that eating whole foods is a process, and we are all trying to be better. I have had some backsliding where I ate a bunch of store-bought brownies (two weeks ago? I justified it because they were from Whole Foods Market, ha!) that contained eggs and tons of oil. They were SO delicious but the very next day my face broke out and got all oily again and I knew I had made a big mistake. I tried not to beat myself up, but instead take it as a lesson learned (make and eat my own oil-free vegan brownies at home). What helps me the most is to realize that I have to "take the long view." I am in this healthy eating thing for a lifetime and it has got to be realistic and enjoyable. Making mistakes every once in a while is okay when I decide to get right back on track and learn from my experience.

      I am sure those cookies didn't turn out so good! You probably thought, Yuck! What was Ashlee thinking posting this nasty recipe! You will love the Super-Charge me Cookies, they are a popular commodity around here and at my extended families' homes.

      I am amazed how stinkin' careful I have to be in order to keep my skin normal. Even 1 tablespoon of oil gets me. So I've gone into this no oil thing with the realization that at home I can be "perfect" but not on travel or going out to eat. I'll give it my best shot, and I'm sure i'll have to be creative, but there are some members in my family who love oil and that's gonna' be an uphill battle when I am not in my own kitchen. I've decided to forgive myself ahead of time if you know what I mean!

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  2. WHAT! I just discovered this cereal! I have been eating it in the morning with fresh peaches! Great minds think alike! I add pumpkin seeds, golden raisins and currents and slivered almonds and it is SOOOO good! I love your blog!

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    1. Aimee, that's so crazy! I can't believe we discovered that cereal at about the same time! Isn't it so yummy? I could pretty much eat it every day...maybe all day?

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  3. I will definitely have to try this! Let me know how you like to prepare it and what add-ons are your favorites!

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