Can cookies be healthy? { Recipe for vegan, gluten-free chocolate chip cookies)

January 29, 20181 Comment

Can cookies be Healthy?

Gluten free, vegan chocolate chip protein cookies

I am a big fan of moderation. If you want the cookie, well then eat the cookie. But what if you want a cookie every single day? If that is the case then it might be helpful to have a healthier alternative.

Something that:

Can help take the edge off a craving.
Something bite-sized.
With a little healthy fat.
And a little punch of protein.

These tasty morsels fit the bill.

Double chocolate protein cookies

Keep in mind, these cookies are tiny. That is by design. The goal was something to help take the edge off those cookie cravings. Not a full-on indulgence. Got make the real thing for that.

The only knock on these tender morsels, is they do not keep. I do not advise doubling the recipe and making a big batch. Since they are made with protein powder they tend to dry out after about 24 hours.

These babies are tender and cake-like straight out of the oven.

Now I made these in the food processor, but you do not have to. A hand mixer will work just fine. And if you want to skip your arm workout this week, you can probably stir by hand even.

However, have you ever baked with a four-year-old? If so, then you know the drama of when they can’t keep the hand mixer deep enough in the bowl and you find yourself scraping the dough off the ceiling. (true story!) The food processor contains the mess for you! (So if you happen to be cooking with kids, give it a try. It helps with clean up! And they love pressing the button. )

So, can cookies they be healthy? Well… let’s just go for healthier. If the cookies never even make it into the oven and you eat the whole bowl of dough while standing in your kitchen, well then no. You would have been better off eating ONE the real thing.

But just one tidbit has only 83 calories with 4 grams of protein. If you just need a little something then these guys are for you!

Alright, enough chatter lets get to it.

Healthier Vegan, Gluten Free Mini chocolate chip cookies

¼ cup almond flour

2 Tb Brown Rice Flour

2 Tb coconut oil, melted

2 Tb honey

2 tsp natural peanut butter

1/2 cup Garden of Life Vegan Vanilla protein powder

1 tsp baking soda

¼ unsweetened cashew milk (or milk of choice)

2 Tb mini chocolate chips (I used Enjoy life Vegan chips)

Preheat oven to 350.
Line baking sheet with parchment
Add all ingredients Except the chocolate chips to the bowl of the processor.
Mix until thoroughly mixed.
Fold in mini chocolate chips (I imagine pecans or walnuts would be great too!),
Scoop out one heaping tablespoon and roll into a ball. The dough will not be normal cookie dough. You will have to form it into a ball.
Then gently press into the middle to make a cookie like shape.
Bake for 6-8 minutes until the edges are just set. They won’t look done.
Move to a cooling rack to cool.
Enjoy!

**to make the double chocolate ones add 2 Tb Cacao powder. You may need a splash of more milk.

Makes 12 bite-sized cookies.

Each cookie has 83 calories 5 grams fat, 7 grams carbs, 4 grams protein

gluten free, vegan

Low Carb, High Protein Make-ahead Zucchini Fritters.

September 8, 2017September 8, 2017Leave a comment

Need an easy grab and go breakfast when the morning rush got you like whoa? I got you covered with these make ahead low carb high protein zucchini fritters.

These zucchini fritters make for an easy on the go breakfast option.

These make-ahead zuke fritters are not only great straight out of the pan they are also pretty delicious cold from the fridge the next day. (And the day after that too!)

You can eat them as they are (may I reccomend a sprinkle of salt and dash of hot sauce?) or as a bun for a sausage patty. I personally eat them alone, one handed. Usually while rushing to get my oldest to the bus stop on time.

They can make a nice lunch too. As an accompaniment to a BAS salad or bowl of soup.

My favorite part of them is their volume. One serving is eight fritters. Yes, EIGHT! They make me feel like I am eating much more than I am, helping to keep my full for hours. If 8 fritters seems like too much for you, no problem! Just have a half serving.

Alright, let’s get to it:

Low Carb, High protein Zucchini Fritters

2 Tb coconut flour
5 eggs
3 TB egg white
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp onion
¼ tsp black pepper
½ tsp salt
3 large zucchinis, grated (should be about 4 cups)

After grating the zucchini, using a paper towel squeeze out the excess water. (The drier you can get it the better).
Using a whisk (or fork) beat the eggs, whites, coconut flour, garlic powder, onion powder and salt and pepper. (The coconut flour will want to clump, just keep whisking).
Heat a large skillet over med high heat and spritz with cooking spray.
Using a ¼ cup OR an ice cream scoop, scoop and put in hot pan. Light press them out, into a 4 in pancake. (my skillet can only hold 4 at a time, so plan to be batch cooking).
Cook for 3-4 mins per side.
When done, set on paper towel to cool. If storing, wait till fully cooled. Blot again with paper towel and store in fridge for 3-4 days.

Makes 16 4 inch fritters.

Nutrition for 8 (YES, that’s right I said EIGHT fritters): Calories: 260 Fat:14g Carbs: 12g Protein: 22g

Inspired by Zucchini Pancakes in Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo.

Slow Cooker Blueberry Crumble, Gluten free and Vegan

July 19, 20171 Comment

Vegan Gluten Free blueberry slow cooker crumble

Or is it a cobbler? Or a crisp? I don’t know. I’m not sure if it’s the that fact that all those words start with the letter c, but I cannot ever keep them straight.

So, I consulted The Kitchn. According to them:

Cobblers generally have biscuit topping dropped on the fruit. Crisps and crumbles are very similar. They both contain fruit and streusel like topping. They only difference is crisps contain oats and crumbles do not.

That settles it! This is a blueberry crumble then.

A vegan gluten free slow cooker crumble no less!

I recently made this desert for my husband’s birthday. I happened to post in on my insta stories and got tons requests for the recipe. I decided instead of messaging everyone with the recipe I would just post it here.

Note this is not, low calorie, low fat or low carb. But it is damn delicious! And what is life without some dessert every now then. We are all about moderation over here.

Fruit cobblers are perfect way to use up summer’s berries. I used blueberries in this, but I don’t see why you couldn’t sub out any other berry. You may need to double check the sweetness, however, if you do.

Now let’s be honest, in the dead of summer do you really want to turn on your oven for an hour? Not me. So, I recreated this quintessential summer dish using the slow cooker. It took 3 hours on low in mine, but if your tend to run a little cooler it may take longer.

This dish is both vegan and gluten free. And white it does contain nuts, it could easily be adapted to be nut free also.

This is not an overly sweet dessert. If you would like it sweeter, add more maple syrup to the berries. Or if you want a sweeter topping, add more sugar. I have tested it with up to twice the amount of sugar, we just prefer less sweet around here.

Gluten free Vegan Slow Cooker Blueberry Crumble

Cooking spray (I prefer coconut oil spray)

2 pints blueberries

2 Tb arrowroot powder

4 Tb maple syrup, divided

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tb lemon juice, freshly squeezed

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1 1/3 cups Oats, old fashioned or rolled (not quick oats)

½ cup Almond flour (could sub out gluten free flour if avoiding nuts, but I didn’t try it.)

1/2 cup Sugar (both cane sugar or coconut sugar will work)

¼ cup chopped pecans

1/2 tsp salt

6 Tb COLD coconut oil (if it warm where you are, throw in the freezer for 5 mins till it firms up)

Spray the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray.
Dump in 2 pints of blue berries. Try not to eat them all.
Toss the berries with the arrowroot powder, lemon zest, lemon juice and 3 Tb of the maple syrup.
In a separate bowl make the crumble topping. (the best part IMHO)
Mix oats, almond flour, sugar, pecans and salt.
Using your hands, mix in coconut oil till crumbled. Taste test and adjust sweetness if needed, but try not to eat it all. Seriously try hard.
Sprinkle the crumble on top of blueberries and drizzle the remaining 1 Tb of maple syrup on top.
Cook on low for 3 hours.
After 3 hours, turn of the slow cooker and let it sit for 15 mins.

Serve with a scoop of dairy free whipped topping or vanilla ice cream.

Nutrition for 1/8th the recipe (not including the whipped topping/ice cream):

343 calories. 18 grams fat. 46 grams carbs. 5 grams protein

recipe is adapted from Minimalist Bakers Grain-Free Berry Crisp.

Slow cooker, gluten free, vegan

Deconstructed Taco Salad Bowl with an Avocado Lime Dressing (Dairy Free, Wheat Free, Egg Free, Paleo Friendly)

May 4, 2017Leave a comment

Let’s get straight to the point; tacos are delicious. The problem with tacos is not only can they can be calorically dense but they also tend to be lacking in the vegetable department. One way to combat this: turn your tacos into a deconstructed taco salad bowl.

Taco salad bowl with a dairy free and egg free avocado lime dressing.

Even with the bowls, however, you have to watch those toppings. Sour cream, cheddar cheese, avocado and the deep fried shell all add up fast.

Here are a few ways you can lighten up your taco bowl:

Replace deep fried high fat shell with homemade chips (if paleo, replace with plantain chips.)
Replace multiple high fat toppings with an avocado-lime dressing.
Replace high sodium taco seasoning with homemade.
And add in lots of veggies.

Homemade tortilla chips have less fat and carbs then store bought chips.

To assemble your bowls, just fill with whatever veggies you have in your fridge. I like a mix of romaine and spinach. Then I throw in some tomatoes, cucumber, sugar snap peas (for that crunch!), bell peppers, green onions. Add meat of your choice. I used ground beef for this one, but flank steak or chicken breast with some tex mex seasoning goes great (Check out my tex mex seasoning on Instagram here). Drizzle some avocado lime dressing over it, maybe a little pico de gallo or salsa and grab a handful of homemade chips. And there you have it, a healthier more satisfying version of your standard taco.

Recipes

For the chips:

Corn tortillas

Spray coconut oil

Salt

Preheat oven to 350.
Cut tortillas into triangles or strips
Spritz with oil and sprinkle with salt.
Cook for 8-10 mins. Keep an eye on them, they can burn quickly.

Taco Meat:

2 pounds extra lean ground beef or turkey.

½ onion finely diced.

3 garlic cloves

1 Tb cumin

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp oregano

2 tb tomato paste

1 cup tomato sauce

In a large, deep sided skillet brown the meat. Breaking it up into small pieces. Add onion garlic and seasonings. Cook till onion is soft and translucent.
Cover and cook on med low for 1/2 hour. Taste and add salt and spices as needed. (This recipe is kid friendly so it is very mild.)

For the Avocado lime dressing:

1/3 cup nondairy plain unsweetened creamer (I used the Nutpod brand, but you can replace with a mixture of coconut milk and nut milk.)

1 avocado

1 bunch of cilantro

1/2 tsp salt

2 cloves garlic

2 scallions

1 tb olive oil

juice from 1 lime.

Throw everything into the blender and blend till nice and creamy. You may need to add a few tablespoons water to thin it out to desired consistency.

THE NEW YOU