Trail Mix Cookies

When I came up with this recipe, I was wondering if another "healthy" cookie recipe was really needed on the blog. I mean, how many ways can one combine dates, oats, almond meal, and flax and not get bored, right? Very wrong, my friends! I'm just getting warmed up with these crazy healthy cookie concoctions. This recipe is different than my other healthy cookies in that they don't contain mashed bananas for additional sweetness. They rely exclusively on pureed dates, which give a really neutral, sweet flavor, much more like what you'd expect from a typical cookie. Love that. And while I still classify these as treats ( = moderation), you can feel good knowing that there is no refined sugar in this product (and no refined wheat products either). Refined sugar has no nutritional benefit and has been shown to be linked to cardiovascular disease, cancer cell growth, and weight gain to name a few and has been described to be as addictive as heroin!!

How do you know if you are addicted? One sign of addiction is to continue a behavior even knowing the negative consequences of that behavior. That's a strong statement, but I'm sure we can agree that there is some truth in it. In an era of 20 oz sodas, breakfast cereals marketed to kids with 12g of sugar per serving (that's 3 tsp of sugar to start the day!), and frozen yogurt shops on every corner, I'm proud to offer you a refined sugar free dessert option. It's perfectly OK and wonderful to indulge when you need to, but for the average occasion, stick to recipes like this one.  I hope you try these when you need a treat, but what I really hope is that I inspire you to focus on whole foods along your journey.

Wondering how much refined sugar is reasonable to eat each day? The American Heart Association recommends 6 teaspoons per day for women and 9 teaspoons per day for men. Sound like a lot to you? The average American takes in about 22 teaspoons per day!! 

Mission Smart Cookie: Accomplished

Trail Mix Cookies

makes 12

Ingredients:

11 dates, pitted

1/4 cup water

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

1/4 cup melted coconut oil

1/2 cup almond flour/meal

1/4 cup ground flax

1 cup oat flour

1 Tbsp chia seeds

1/2 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt and cinnamon

1/3 cup trail mix, or dried fruit of choice, or chocolate chips (my trail mix was from Costco- it's a combo of cashews, almonds, dried apple, cranberries, and pumpkin seeds)

Method:

Preheat oven to 350. Combine the dates, water, and vanilla in a food processor and blend until a uniform paste is made. Add date mixture to a large mixing bowl; add coconut oil and egg. Stir until well combined. Add the rest of the ingredients except the trail mix. Stir well. Finally, add the add-ins of choice. Distribute onto cookie sheet (about 12 cookies) and bake 8-10 minutes, or unit lightly browned on edges.