Recipe Time: Awesome Granola & Chocolate Chip Cookies

Awesome Granola-Chip Cookies

Original recipe is Awesome Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies by Dr. Bill Sears, The Healthiest Kid in the Neighborhood, 2006, page 304.

My version based on his *recommendations

½ cup honey

½ cup grapeseed oil

½ tsp. baking soda

1 tbsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

¼ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. sea salt

1 egg

1 ½ cups of granola (preservative free & no added sugar)

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup of carob chips (*he recommended ½ cup here J)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine all ingredients except the granola, flour, and carob chips. Stir in granola, flour and carob chips. Drop the batter by teaspoonfuls on a cookie sheet and bake until light brown.

Notes: Use parchment paper. Cookies are thin and chewy so they’ll stick especially with the use of honey! J

I turned my oven down by 5 degrees and baked for 10 minutes. The batter is already brown so you’ll have to watch for a smooth brown appearance.  You may need to test one batch so bake only a couple until you get the feel for what they’ll look like when they’re done.

Buon Appetito!

Benefits of key ingredients used in this recipe:

Honey – natural energy booster; supports our immune system

Grapeseed oil – lowers bad cholesterol, rich in Vitamin E, and can help women feel better during menstrual cycle

Granola – good source of fiber

Honeysuckles

A couple weeks ago, my son and I walked around a local lake and as we were finishing up our first lap, we could smell the fruity, sweet scent of honeysuckles. 


Honeysuckles bring me back to my childhood. I grew up on the East Coast and honeysuckles were everywhere! With the change of Winter to Spring and with the smell of fresh cut grass came the sweetness of honeysuckles. The honeysuckle season seemed to last only a month or so. They were gone well before Summer. Living in Southern California provides many benefits and in this particular case, honeysuckles lasting well into June (and possibly longer)!


I'm usually pressed to finish my laps but this particular evening, I decided to teach my son the beauty of eating the nectar from a honeysuckle. We stepped aside and popped a squat on the grass next to a shrub of honeysuckles. Looking around there weren't that many to choose from. The landscapers had came through the day before and cut most of them down. I don't know perhaps they're a nuisance of some kind? I hope that's not the case because they smell beautifully and the nectar is sweet to eat! I recently learned that there are over 100 species of honeysuckle! I had NO clue! I'm only familiar with the white flour type. I know there is a scientific word for it but I have some pictures below that will show you exactly what I am referring to.


After popping a squat, I picked out a few white flowered honeysuckles and showed my son how to pull off the bottom and pull out the "stamen [to] reveal a small drop of honeysuckle nectar" (M. Holt) then I gave him a few turns. He got it in no time. He's a fast learner for being 2. Here are some pictures of our adventure. 

For more information on honeysuckles check out eHow's site.

Enjoy the simple pleasures of life and Be Well.