Good morning and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I hope you had a stupendous celebration last night and aren’t too hung over. We were very boring (and typical for us) last night. One bottle of champagne + two glasses.
Plus New Year’s Rockin’ Eve (after watching a bunch of Tosh.0 episodes).
NKOTBSB. It would be much better if is NKOTBNSYNC. But Justin Timberlake is way too classy for that.
Cheers!
We didn’t even get halfway through the bottle before it was bedtime. We are so boring.
Fast forward to this morning. The first meal of 2011. It is an important moment! After a month of cookies, fudge and bacon-wrapped sausages I want to set the tone for getting my healthy lifestyle back. There was only one answer to this. Green smoothie!
Making a green smoothie without a blender was a two-part process. First a rough chop/blend in the food processor and then smoothed it out with the immersion blender. I seriously need to get my blender fixed.
In this smoothie: kale, spinach, flax, banana and almond milk. And it was amazing!
Lurking in the background were two fruit and nut breakfast cookies!
These are the first cookbook recipe of 2011 (one of my new year’s goals). I got this gem from my brother-in-law and sister-in-law for Christmas. Honestly, I totally judged the book by its cover (heinous, right?), but the more I dove into it the more I realized the recipes align perfectly with my food philosophy! Thanks Steve + Kim!
These breakfast cookies seemed perfect for weekday breakfasts!
Of course, even when doing a cookbook challenge, I can’t follow a recipe for the life of me. Lots of changes. But I was definitely inspired by the cookbook. That counts right?
First up, the wet ingredients. Two eggs (only one pictured), 1/2 c. brown sugar, and 1/4 c. light-flavored oil (I used safflower).
Let’s take a moment to bask in the glory of my new mixing bowl set. A Christmas gift from my sister’s family. They are epic.
They are stainless steel, heavy, and have a grippy bottom.
AND HAVE LIDS. I’m in love.
Alright, back to baking. Mix in some dried fruit: 1/4 cup each of dried cranberries and raisins. You could really use whatever dried fruits you like. Plus 1 tsp. of vanilla.
In a separate bowl, mix together your dry: 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup white flour, 1/2 cup bran flakes, 2 heaping tablespoons ground flax, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, and pinch of salt.
These are the bran flakes I used. Really, whatever you have around.
Dry ——-> wet.
And then add in 1/4 cup of slivered almonds.
Form into 1 1/2-2 inch balls.
Place on a baking sheet and bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes, or until they are lightly browned.
The texture of these are soft and chewy, somewhere between a cookie and a muffin. Packed with great whole-grain earthiness. Just a little sweet. Perfect for breakfast!
Fruit and Nut Breakfast Cookies
(inspired by the Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook)
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. light-flavored oil (safflower)
2 eggs
1/4 c. raisins
1/4 c. dried cranberries
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. white flour
1/2 c. bran flakes
2 tbsp. ground flax (heaping)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/4 c. slivered almonds
Preheat oven to 350°. Mix brown sugar, oil and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Add in raisins, cranberries and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix flours, bran flakes, flax, baking soda, spices and salt. Add dry to wet and stir until just incorporated. Stir in almonds. Form into 1 1/2-2 inch balls and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden. Makes 12 cookies.
Check out the new recipe options above. Full nutritional info, plus the ability to print. Thanks SparkPeople!
I hope the first day of 2011 in spectacular!
