Banana Bread Cookies

Creativity in the kitchen so often arises out of necessity, am I right??  In the case of these cookies, I NEEDED something sweet.  However, my husband and I have sworn off refined sugars and flours for the month of January, so my sweet tooth was not easily appeased. 

I had some bananas sitting on the counter that I was guarding with my life so they would ripen enough to use in my sugar-free-sweet-treat-making endeavors.  Finally they began to turn brown, and I set to work. 

Now I know that raisins in cookies are not enjoyed by all. Usually you love'em or hate'em.  I am in-between. I love them if they are soft and don't break up the uniform texture of the cookie too much. I hate them if they are hard.  I think the Love'em camp would be larger if more cookie chefs took the time to plump their raisins in water before adding them to recipes.  Sun-Maid has figured this out and has done it for you with their Baking Raisins, available at grocery stores or on Amazon. 

You can also measure out your raisins, cover them with boiling water, and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Then drain off the water (but don't squeeze the raisins), and they are ready to add to your baking! 

But if you absolutely hate raisins in any form or fashion, leave them out. These cookies can stand on their own, with our without the addition of raisins!

Banana Bread Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups whole-wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup coconut oil, softened

1/2 cup honey

2 eggs

3 very ripe bananas, mashed well

3 cups rolled oats (oatmeal)

1 cup baking raisins (raisins soaked in hot water 10 minutes, then drained), optional

1 cup chopped pecans, optional

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment, silpat, or coat with cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and coconut oil until smooth. Add honey and beat well. Beat in eggs. 

4. Add 1/2 flour mixture to wet mix. Mix in bananas, then add remaining flour mix. Stir in oatmeal, raisins and pecans. 

5. Place rounded teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 10 minutes, until edges just begin to brown and tops no longer look wet.  Cool, then store in airtight container. 

Participating in these link-ups. 

Sea Salted Crio Brü Granola Bars

Yep! I've added leftover Crio grounds to another recipe! A couple of posts ago I put them in some delicious no-bake cookies.  Now, you won't BELIEVE how yummy they are in these soft, scrumptious granola bars. 

Crio Brü is a drink made from brewed cacao beans. Each time you make this tasty drink (which brews like coffee in a coffee maker or french press), save the grounds. I save my used grounds in a covered bowl in the fridge. They are so great for baking with that I rarely throw them out! These granola bars are full of yummy chocolate flavor before you drizzle them with melted chocolate chips, and Crio is the sole source of that flavor.  

(By the way, I am NOT being compensated for this post. I sincerely love Crio Brü and enjoy baking with it!)

For this recipe, you'll need to save 1 cup of your previously brewed grounds (which adds up fast because the grounds expand when brewed), pulse them in the food processor or blender for a few seconds, and they are ready to go!

1 cup previously brewed Crio grounds

Pulse in food processor or blender for 15-30 seconds, scraping sides once.

These bars also have delicious flaked coconut, chia seeds, and oatmeal! So they have a TON of redeeming health value!! My entire family went nuts!  I made two batches: one I iced and one I didn't; ALL were devoured. 

Sea Salted Crio Brü Granola Bars

Makes 12-14 bars

Ingredients

1 cup previously brewed Crio Brü grounds

1/2 cup coconut oil, room temp

1/2 cup honey

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla

2.5 cups quick oats

1/4 cup chia seed

1.5 cups unsweetened flaked coconut

1/2 cup chocolate chips for drizzle (optional)

1 tablespoon coarse sea salt 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9"x13" baking dish with cooking spray. 

2. Place previously brewed Crio Brü grounds in food processor or blender and pulse 15-30 seconds, scraping sides once. Set aside

3. In a large mixing bowl, beat coconut oil, honey and brown sugar until smooth. Add egg and beat well. 

4. Stir in Crio grounds and vanilla. 

5. Stir in oats, chia seed, and flaked coconut. Spread in prepared pan.

6. Bake 30-35 minutes, until sides and bottom begin to brown. Remove from oven and cool. Cut into bars.

7. To make drizzle (optional): Melt chocolate chips by placing in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until chocolate is smooth. Spoon into a plastic sandwich bag. Snip off a bottom corner and drizzle over cooled bars. 

8. Sprinkle with sea salt (with or without drizzle). Wrap individually in plastic wrap to store. Store in refrigerator or freezer.

Participating in these link-ups. 

Natural Energy Bites

Summer is coming, and if your family is like mine, we will be on the GO! Vacations, camps, swimming lessons, hiking and camping are all on the agenda.  

So I developed these yummy and nutritious Natural Energy Bites. I've seen similar products in the health food section at the grocery store--Aussie Bites, Simple Bites, Somersaults--and all are yummy. But we can devour lots of money's worth of those in a short amount of time. 

You can make these bites and store them in the fridge or freezer all summer long. My family loves them. My neighbors love them. I took some to my physical therapist today--they loved them!  Have I convinced you yet? 

If not, here are more reasons to love these nutritious morsels: 

* Refined Sugar-Free

*Made with Coconut Oil (a healthy fat)

* Gluten Free

*Wholesome, Natural, Easy-to-find Ingredients

*5 Grams of Sugar and 85 calories per FOUR snacks

Here's how to make 'em: 

The healthy winning line-up. Many, if not all, of these ingredients are probably staples in your pantry. 

The tools used to make the cute little uniform bites: 

Wax Paper or Parchment Paper and an Apple Corer.

Beat coconut oil and honey. Add the egg and mix well.

Put nuts and dried fruit in food processor and pulse until...

...it looks about like this. It's okay for a few larger chunks to remain.

Stir the processed fruit and nuts into the oil and honey mix.

Measure 1 cup of old-fashioned oats into the food processor or blender. 

Pulse until mostly milled into "oat flour."  Add baking soda and pulse a few seconds more. (No need to wash your food processor between the fruit/nuts and the flour--it all ends up together in the end!)

Mix oat flour mixture, remaining 2.5 cups of rolled oats, vanilla, seeds, and coconut (if desired) into the wet mixture until well incorporated.  Dump entire bowl onto wax/parchment paper.

Place a second piece of wax/parchment paper over the dough and roll to 1/2 inch thick.

Here it is all rolled out.

Use the apple corer to place the "bites" onto a prepared cookie sheet. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 7 minutes. Check at 6 in case your oven or pan cooks faster than mine. 7 was perfect for me. They should rise just a bit and be light brown around the edges. Cool completely.

No "empty calories" here! Full of goodness!

Natural Energy Bites
Makes 168 bites

Ingredients:
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1 egg
1/2 cup nuts (if using roasted and salted, omit salt)
1/2 cup dried fruit (dates, raisins, dried cranberries, apricots, etc)
1 cup oatmeal ground into flour (grind in blender of food processor)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup chia, flax, or other seeds of your choice
1/2 cup coconut flakes (optional)
2.5 cups old fashioned oatmeal

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Beat coconut oil and honey. Add egg and mix well.
3. In a food processor, process nuts and fruit together until chopped very small. Stir this into the oil and honey mixture.
4. Stir oatmeal flour and baking soda together. Add to wet mixture. Stir in vanilla.
5. Stir seeds, flakes, and remaining oatmeal. Dough will be thick.
6. Dump dough onto wax/parchment paper. Place another piece of parchment on top. Use a rolling pin to flatten to a uniform 1/2 inch thickness.
7. Using a apple corer, cut out the "bites" and place 1/2 inch apart on cookie sheet.  Bake for 7 minutes. Cool completely.
8. Store in a zipper seal bag in the pantry, fridge or freezer--depending on how quickly you expect to eat them. Recipe doubles well. :)

Participating in these link-ups.