Update: I changed the name from Bars to Cookies. Why did I put bars I have no idea.
Hi!!
I have been really, really trying hard to eat well. I tend to go through phases where I lose control of my eating and tend to over-do on everything. Do you ever go through phases like that? You have to know I am a big cookie person, I love to create them, I love to eat the batter and I love to bake them, so I needed to come up with a cookie that I can have that is guilt-free and the batter had to taste good too!
So keeping in mind of making them, I grabbed everything healthy that I had on hand to put these little cookies together. These are not your traditional cookies, these a true, pick me-up and go breakfast cookie. I loaded these bad boys with banana, maple syrup, flax seed, wheat germ, gluten-free oats, almonds, cinnamon and mixed dried berries that I got from my Nature Box. But I know dried cherries would be perfect in these cookies, it’s just I couldn’t find my stash of them, so I used mixed dried berries.
Since my trip to Monterey last week, I have been on a granola nut kick, and I had that in mind while making these cookies, plus I wanted something healthy for my Husband to take for his mid-morning snack, since he doesn’t eat breakfast. These cookies hit the spot and is everything I was looking for. I based this recipe on a few other healthy cookies that I have made like my Cinnamon and Raisin Granola Cookies, Breakfast Cookies and my Healthy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie.
These cookies are thick, hearty and taste just like banana oatmeal. I was hoping for more of an almond taste, but the banana taste really stands out, which I don’t have any problem with that. These cookies are also a softer cookie, but not mushy. I found with any cookie I have made with real fruit, especially banana, it’s best to keep them refrigerated. Otherwise they tend to go bad or at least get really soft and kind of icky! I tested these cookies a few days later, and they were just as good as the day I made them. Yah!
If you’re at all inclined, you could also add chocolate chips to them, but for me, I’m trying really hard to be good and I wanted to go as healthy as I could, after all bathing suit season is coming and I am TERRIFIED to see what I’ll look like in a bathing suit. Eck!! So I have been eating better (4 days now, lol) and hitting the gym for my Zumba classes, and I have recently tried the Elliptical Trainer which isn’t to bad. It’s a nice change-up from the treadmill. I wish they made a magic pill for skinny, but hard exercise and good eats is truly the only way to go! Like the bright orange color in my carrot juice? Crazy Orange! I love it!
- ½ cup applesauce, unsweetened
- 1 (123 grams)banana, mashed
- ¼ cup almond nut butter
- 2 tbsp. maple syrup
- 2 pkts. stevia
- ¼ tsp. almond extract
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
- ½ cups oats
- ½ cup oat flour (oats processed into flour)
- ¼ cup wheat germ
- ¼ cup flax seed, ground
- ¼ cup almond meal flour
- ¼ cup slivered almonds or diced almonds
- ¼ cup dried mixed berries or dried cherries (whatever dried fruit you like)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set a side
- In a large bowl stir together applesauce, banana, nut butter, maple syrup, stevia, almond extract and cinnamon.
- Stir in oats, oat flour, wheat germ, flax seed and almond meal until combined.
- Stir in almonds and dried fruit.
- With a large cookie scoop, scoop batter on to cookie sheet. You can place them close together since the cookies don't spread or rise.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly golden.
- Allow cookies to sit on cookie sheet for a few minutes until they are set enough to move to cooling racks.
If you’re an oatmeal and banana fan, I think you will really like these cookies. Plus one thing I failed to mention, is that these cookies are also vegan. When I gave a cookie to my Husband to test, he laughed because he never had a cookie that tasted like oatmeal, but in a different form. These are such a versatile cookie, you could also sub the almonds for another kind of nut or use peanut butter in place of almond nut butter. The possibilities are endless. I am sure I will be making different variations of this cookie, so I can change-up my breakfast snack.
Have a lovely day!
Toodles,
Jennifer
