Chocolate & Oat Cookies

On a Sunday, I bake lunchbox snacks for the school and working week ahead. This saves us money and time as we are not buying prepackaged snacks and popping a slice of homemade cake or chunky cookies into a lunchbox is very quick and easy of a weekday morning when everyone is trying to get to where they need to be on time.

 Chocolate cookies with chocolate chips!

Recently, I came across a recipe for a scrumptious version of chocolate cookies. They are flourless and include almond meal. (My son can now take foods with nuts in them to high school whereas his primary school had a no nuts policy.) The nuts in them make them unsuitable for those with an allergy to nuts.

The original recipe, which I have tinkered with very minimally, comes from Amanda at Running with Spoons.  I simply reduced the sugar content a little more and used dark chocolate chips rather than mint chocolate chips. There are very simple cookies to make:

Chocolate & Oat Cookies

*Unsuitable for those with a nut allergy.*

1 cup organic quick oats

1/2 cup almond meal

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

4 Tablespoons brown sugar or coconut sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 large or 2 small eggs

3 Tablespoons coconut oil (melted if it is not in liquid state)

1/4 cup of tiny, dark chocolate chips

1.  Preheat oven to 170C. Line a large baking tray.

2.  Mix all the dry ingredients, except the chocolate chips, together in a large bowl. 

3.  Add the coconut oil and beaten egg to the dry ingredients. Mix well.

4.  Mix in the chocolate chips.

5.  Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls, placing onto baking tray so there is room for them 

     to spread. Flatten top of each one slightly with your fingers.

6.  Bake for approximately 10mins (but keep an eye on them as they may cook faster in 

     your oven.)

7.  Allow to cool for 10mins on tray before transferring to a wire cooling rack.

8. Store in an airtight container (I put them in the fridge) for up to a week.

A chocolatey bowl!

These cookies are very chocolatey but not overly sweet. A more wholesome take on a chocolate cookie that is simple and delicious.

Do you have a favourite recipe for chocolate cookies?

Meg

A Bee's Honeypot

My Sunday morning began with a slow stroll through the park and along the streets with Sir Steve dog. The quiet of the morning was all ours! Both of us contentedly ambled along; my elderly statesman taking his sweet Labrador time to smell every tree trunk and blade of just-the-right-type of grass (and munching on the occasional one too) while I soaked up the early rays of morning sun that cast such a gentle light.

Bees on a blossom.

I heard the industrious hum of these bees, and all their companions, well before I saw them. I too caught wafts of the sweet and slightly vinegary scent of the pale yellow blossoms they were plundering.  Such hard work on a Sunday for these little bees. 

I guess bees don't have weekends ... I'm very glad I do!

Meg

Zucchini Slice Muffins: Freeze For Later

Simple and nourishing, good 'ole Zucchini Slice is on the menu here regularly. It's usually baked in a tray but I make it into muffins because I freeze them individually. They are perfect for discovering in the freezer on busy nights when you've forgotten to defrost something for dinner. (Ahem! Yes, I do that more often now that I work outside of home a lot.)  A quick reheat and served with salad, they can be a saviour!

A quick and delicious meal for busy nights.

My Mum taught me to make Zucchini Slice and she never used a recipe. The recipe I use now for these muffins is based on the one from Stephanie Alexander in her cookbook, Kitchen Garden Cooking with Kids. (Great for teaching children to cook!) I have fiddled very minimally with the recipe, namely changing from self-raising flour to spelt flour.  Here's how I make them in my kitchen:

Healthy ingredients for muffins.

Zucchini Slice Muffins

2 medium zucchini, finely grated

1/2 cup grated tasty cheese

1/2 cup corn kernels

1/2 cup chopped ham (*optional)

5 small or 3 large eggs

1/3 cup olive oil

150g white spelt flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

black pepper

tomatoes

1.  Put sifted spelt flour & baking powder, cheese, corn and ham (if using) in a large bowl.

2. Wring moisture out of grated zucchini by wrapping in a tea towel and squeezing over the sink.

3. Chop grated zucchini finely and add to other ingredients in the bowl.  Slice tomatoes.

4. Make well in centre of these dry ingredients.

5.  Whisk eggs and olive oil in jug or separate bowl.

6.  Add to ingredients in bowl and mix until just combined.

7. Put spoonfuls of mixture into muffin pan being careful not to overfill.

8. Place a slice of tomato on the top of each muffin.

8.  Bake in a 180C oven until risen and golden.

9. Eat when warm from the oven or freeze individually (and then thank your organised self when you 

   take them out of your freezer on nights when you've forgotten to defrost something for dinner!

Some with and some without tomato.

I was so very glad to find my stash of Zucchini Slice Muffins in our freezer this past couple of weeks. With a trip to the hospital's allergy clinic, carpets being ripped up and floating floors put down (half my house is still in my lounge room) and a boy on crutches, I was beyond happy to find them there!

Do you have a recipe that you learned to cook when you were young and that you still make today?

Meg