Winter Spice Cookies
These cookies have the flavor of a gingersnap, and the texture similar to a molasses chew. Usually I make things a few times after I create them before posting the recipe but not this time. I’m just that eager to share.
I’ve been asked several times lately if whole wheat flour can be used in place of oat flour in my recipes similar to this one. My answer is yes, however I’d use whole wheat pastry flour since it’s finer than regular whole wheat, which may be too coarse. Using all whole wheat in this recipe, as opposed to half oat and half wheat, would probably result in a less dense cookie, which may or may not be your thing. Personally, I’m all about dense. As I’ve mentioned before, light and airy makes me feel like I ate just that – AIR! The reason I use oat flour in so many recipes is not because I have anything against wheat. I don’t. It’s just that wheat is everywhere, in so many forms. I just like to sub other types of flour, and stay away from wheat when easily doable so that I’m eating more variety, and not so much wheat. As well, many people eat gluten-free diets so I try to incorporate as many suitable recipes as I can into my repertoire.
One more thing. The batter for these babies is SO good. I may or may not have eaten an entire cookie’s worth of batter. 🙂
Quinoa. Not my favorite grain, but I’ve included it in my diet for several years now as I know it’s super healthy. It’s packed with protein (a complete protein containing all 9 essential amino acids), fiber (twice as much as most other grains), vitamins and minerals, and it’s gluten-free. I knew it could be eaten as a hot breakfast cereal, and on this cold, drizzly morning I decided to give it a try. Generally, I have my smoothie which has mixed frozen berries, banana, kale, spinach, flax seeds, etc., but just wasn’t feelin’ it today. I’m so glad I mixed up my routine. This hot cereal is so good! Experiment with different fruits and maybe add a sprinkling of chopped walnuts or ground flax seeds.
I created these muffins using the nervous energy I had yesterday, election day. I find elections, and politics in general, very stressful! Creating recipes and cooking is therapeutic for me. Combine that with the fact that I LOVE gingerbread, and you have these moist, delicious muffins.
UPDATE 11/11/12: I made these again but added a little holiday twist this time around. I sprinkled crushed peppermint candy on top before placing muffins in the oven. The combination of peppermint and gingerbread was a real treat!
I was inspired to create these tasty muffins as I was preparing for a 5 hour flight for which I would be leaving my house at 5 a.m. I knew it would be too early for my usual breakfast smoothie, and I was already planning on packing a PB&J sandwich for later in the day….what would I eat for breakfast?? God knows there wouldn’t be options on the plane. Sure, I could have brought Starbuck’s oatmeal or McDougall’s instant oatmeal (great for travel) on with me but I wanted something different; something substantial, not too sweet, and didn’t need to be warmed. Thus, these Cinnamon-Raisin Oatmeal Muffins were born!
For any followers out there who don’t love pumpkin, I do apologize. I realize this is my 3rd pumpkin recipe…so far. 🙂 I told you – I love pumpkin. And I’m going to utlilze it as much as I can this fall. The picture shows a loaf made with a combo of dried cranberries and chocolate chips. You can use one, both, or neither – it’s yummy either way!
So, if you like pumpkin, bust out the baking supplies and enjoy this tasty Pumpkin Loaf. It’s easy to make and really satisfying.
I’m all about the pumpkin. It’s one of the many things I adore about fall. I love the look of those orange beauties, and the flavor of anything pumpkin. I only wish the pumpkin bread, scones and pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks were healthy! Oh well, these little treats, along with my Pumpkin Pancakes (see Recipes), and Pumpkin Pie Minis (recipe coming soon) will suffice. They do contain chocolate chips, taking the healthy factor down a notch, but it’s a small amount and just enough to make you feel like you’ve been treated.
I know it’s not officially Autumn yet, and it’s still miserably hot outside, but I’m longing for fall, dangit!! These pancakes hit the spot, and made me look even more forward to my favorite holiday – Thanksgiving! I’ve seen several recipes for pumpkin pancakes out there but the difference between them and mine is the amount of spices; I tend to be heavy-handed in this recipe. The stronger the flavors of cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, etc., the better! I’m tempted to crank up the AC, put on a sweater, and eat these by the fire. Make these! They’re easy and delish! Let me know how you like ’em!
I have always LOVED tapioca pudding. Actually, any type of pudding – I don’t discriminate! Once I gave up health-harming dairy and animal foods however (best choice I ever made, btw), I figured tapioca pudding was a thing of the past since the traditional recipe calls for milk and eggs. WRONG! I tinkered with a few ingredients and ended up with what I feel is a great alternative. I try my best not to consume or prepare things with refined sugar, but I must confess – I did use some here, the few times I made this. Next time I will try date or coconut sugar, which aren’t refined in the highly processed way white sugar is. They may alter taste somewhat, and color, but it’s worth trying.
UPDATE!!! I tried date sugar and it was an epic fail. I do NOT recommend it. I also tried Sucanat, which is dried sugar cane juice. Much better result than date sugar but not nearly as good as white sugar. It gave it a tan hue, and sort of a molasses flavor, which tastes nice but the texture ends up much thicker and not as creamy as white sugar. Next I will try raw/turbinado sugar, which I’m guessing will have the same result as Sucanat. When choosing white sugar, organic is a must! Not only is it free of pesticides, it is vegan. Why do you care about vegan sugar? Well, regular, refined white sugar requires the use of animal bone char in processing. Gross? Definitely. Due to health concerns, the FDA prohibits the use of bones from the United States’ meat industry. Further, the bones are required to come from animals that die of natural causes. While this makes theoretical sense, the ridiculous reality is bone char is predominantly imported from countries like Brazil, India, Pakistan and Nigeria and there is no warranty to the American consumer that the bone char used is indeed from ‘clean’ animals. I don’t know about you, but I like my sugar without potentially contaminated bone char!
In our house, Sundays are known as “pancake Sunday!” Normally, pancakes are seen as a treat, eaten only occasionally. Since these are healthy, there’s no need for deprivation! Just go easy on the syrup, and if you must, use a tiny bit of Earth Balance instead of butter or trans-fat-filled margarine.
