Cookies and Blooms

It could not have been a more gorgeous day to see the cherry blossoms. It was sunny, yesterday’s crazy wind had blown out of town, and the temperature was just right! I decided to make the 10+ mile roundtrip jaunt by foot (walking and running) to see the cherry blossoms rather than fighting the crowds on the metro, and I got a good workout during my day of playing tourist in my own back yard. It was quite a day. 

I fueled my excursion with this chocolate breakfast cookie:

I was hoping it would taste like a “no bake” cookie. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, we used to make cookies with chocolate, peanut butter, oats, tons of butter and tons of sugar that didn’t require baking. Have you had them? Did you call them something else? Anyway, this was good, but not as much like my old “no bake” cookie as I’d hoped. I used some chopped roasted peanuts, reduced fat Jif, Jay Robb’s vanilla whey protein powder, unsweetened vanilla almond breeze, and a spoonful of cocoa powder. I’m having fun experimenting with the b’fast cookies, but I have to say that yesterday’s is my favorite so far. 

For lunch, I had some more of the soup I made yesterday along with one of my favorite little sandwiches:

I had some Alexia breads in the freezer, and decided it was time to get them out and bake them up. I had one piece of ciabatta left, which is what you see above. I topped it with some Trader Joe’s Bruschetta topping, smoked mozzarella and avocado. I hit upon this combination last summer, and it has become one of my favorites! This little sandwich packs a ton of yum! The soup was even better the second day. I love when that happens!

Before I struck out on my trek, I decided to use some more things from the freezer and make a batch of cookies. I was looking for a recipe involving banana, because goodness knows I have plenty of frozen bananas. I also used some of my coconut stockpile and some of the walnuts I keep in the freezer. I’m making progress! I got invited to a cookout later in the afternoon, and was happy to have a batch of cookies just waiting for an outing. I found a recipe on Cooking Light and changed it just a bit. The recipe made me laugh when I saw it. One of the ingredients is light mayonnaise. I think that any good southern cook who has taken foods to a church potluck probably has a chocolate cake recipe in the arsenal that involves mayo. I’d never seen it in a cookie recipe, and, of course, I had to try it! The original recipe is here. This is my version:

Coconut Banana and Apricot Cookies

Ingredients:

2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1 medium sized banana, mashed (I used an 80 gram banana from the freezer)

1/2 cup reduced fat mayo (I used Hellman’s light mayo)

1 tsp. rum (I couldn’t tell it was in there so I’d just skip it and use coconut or vanilla extract the next time)

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup old fashioned oats

8 Tbsp. (90 grams) of flaked sweetened coconut

1/2 cup chopped dried apricot

1 ounce of chopped walnuts

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

a dash of ginger

a grate or seven of nutmeg

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place the first 4 ingredients in a large bowl and beat with a mixer at medium speed until blended. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and the remaining ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Stir the flour mixture into the banana mixture. Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack.

This made about two dozen cookies.

I have eaten SEVERAL of these today. I really like them a lot. My friends helped to make a dent in them, but I like them so much that the leftovers are either going to work tomorrow or into the freezer ASAP! In case you are wondering, I did use the sparkpeople recipe calculator to figure out the calories, and I’m counting them. I just figure that woman can’t live on cookies alone, and I’d be tempted to try it with these!  

Ok, so back to the cherry blossoms. Here are a few more photos from my afternoon:

See all the people on the steps of the Jefferson? It was really crowded, but I’m happy that so many people got to enjoy the day.

These were ready for their close-up! Here’s one more of the Washington Monument:

I was in the shade for the photos of the Jefferson and the Washington, and you can definitely tell a difference in the colors. It was a beautiful and busy day, and it ended nicely with dinner at my friends’ house. I had grilled chicken breast with Stubb’s BBQ sauce, corn on the cob (also grilled), potatoes and salad. Yum and yum. It was so good! My friends are always great at hosting, and I always love seeing them and their awesome dog. 

After all of my walking and running, it is definitely time for me to hit the hay. I do long jaunts like that when the weather is nice, but I can tell that I haven’t done it in awhile. I was tired by the time I got home. I’m going to go and mix up a breakfast cookie, and then I’m calling it a night. 

Here’s wishing you all an excellent week!! Ciao for now!

It Was About Time…

TGIF!!! I hope this finds everyone doing well and getting a good start to the weekend! Quitting time could not come soon enough today, especially after I saw a spot of sunshine at lunch. I was in the middle of a serious downpour on my way into the office this morning, so I was so surprised that it was gorgeous at lunchtime. When you have a windowless office, the weather is often a surprise.

Aside from the rain, my day started off pretty well. Now that Jay Robb and I have become friends, I decided that it was time for me to give Fitnessista’s breakfast cookie a try. Last night, before heading off to bed, I mixed up this baby:

My breakfast cookie is made of 1/3 cup of oats, 1 ounce of unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 15 grams of Jay Robb’s vanilla whey protein powder, 7 grams of chopped vanilla almonds, 1 Tbsp. of The Bee’s Knees peanut butter from PB&Co, and some leftover dried strawberries from my berry bar making adventure. I put it in the fridge to set up over night, and it was waiting for me when I got up this morning. 

I loved the chewiness. It really felt like a substantial breakfast, and yet tasted like a dessert. That’s just about perfect in my book! I topped it with a fresh berry that I sliced all fancy in honor of Friday with a little bit of dark chocolate dreams PB. I need my chocolate and strawberry fix in the morning! I will be having this again, and the breakfast cookie seems like a perfect hot weather breakfast option. Thanks, Fitnessista!!

I decided to toss the lunch I’d packed in the freezer at work and enjoy lunch with a friend from work instead. That sort of spontaneous eating would not likely have happened a few weeks ago, but the change in my eating approach has given me such a new outlook and so much more freedom! By the way, I’m not going to report on my weight today, but I will say that things are still going well. I’m so much happier too!!

My friend suggested that we get lunch at Busboys and Poets, and I wasn’t hard to convince. I’ve looked through their window a number of times, but I’ve never gone inside. Have I been missing out! They have so many amazing options on the menu, including a number of great things for vegetarians and vegans. My lunch really hit the spot, and the company did too!

I got the falafel wrap with a side of fruit. It was SO good! There was a delightfully nutty hummus in the wrap with the falafel and veggies, and I’m always happy with berries and fresh pineapple. There was also a fresh tasting drizzle in the little teacup that added a nice extra layer of flavor to the wrap. Lunch was really good, not heavy at all, and my plate had just the right amount of food. Perfect!

As usual, I couldn’t resist checking out the desserts. My friend and I split a slice of vegan cheesecake at the end of the meal, and– oh my! It was so good. It kind of reminded me of frozen cake frosting (love it!!), and the raspberries were an awesome complement. It was really good, and I always love the opportunity to share a dessert! I have to highly recommend Busboys and Poets. I will definitely be going back again soon.

When I got hungry later in the day, I had the snack I’d packed this morning. I scraped the last of my dalmatian orange and fig spread from the jar this morning. It is on the shopping list. I really love it with my Greek yogurt and vanilla almonds. Have I mentioned that I love it?? It really is so good. I’m going to recycle yesterday’s photo so get ready:

When I got home, I decided to eat a couple of things from the freezer in honor of “Project Clean Out the Freezer.” I had frozen a tiny bit of 96/4 ground beef awhile ago, and I decided to finish off a bag of TJ’s frozen naan by using the beef on one of my little pizzas.

See, I do label things sometimes! Here’s my empty naan bag. I’d be worried that the bag is empty except… there’s more in the scary freezer!

I tried out some of the Country Bob’s All Purpose Sauce that I won from the giveaway hosted by Lucky Tastebuds, and, mixed with the beef, it provided a barbecue pizza type experience. It was yummy! That sauce is great! There is also some roasted vegetable tapenade and smoked mozzarella on the top. As usual, I enjoyed the crunchy naan with my favorite TJ’s soup: Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato. 

In continuing with the freezer theme, I had some more of my Edy’s slow churned light cookies and cream on top of a Triple Chocolate Chunk Vitatop. Essentially, I had cake and ice cream. Woo hoo! I don’t think you can go wrong with that combination.

I really enjoyed reading the comments y’all left about the state of your freezers. I am glad to know that I have some kindred freezer spirits, and I’m also glad to know that it is possible to have a more organized freezer space. I think I’m shooting for something in the middle, but we will see. I’ve taken a few things out to thaw and I’m planning to turn them into something tomorrow. Stay tuned for that one! I did have a freezer avalanche event this morning, but things are already looking better. 

I hope your weekend is the best! The weather is supposed to be nice here, so I’m hoping to walk?/run?/bike? down to the tidal basin to see this year’s cherry blossom crop. If I do, you can be sure that there will be some new photos!

What are you up to this weekend?

I wanted to mention this giveaway before I go:

The Girl in the Little Black Dress is hosting a Quaker giveaway!! That robe looks too cozy!

Ciao, y’all!

Zucchini and Cookies

Happy Thursday! The weekend’s almost here. I just hope the weather improves. It’s been gloomy and cloudy with drizzle all day today. It’s not warm either. The cherry blossom festival is about to get under way, and I just hope the little blossoms manage to stay warm.

I had another day of tasty “pointless” eats, and I made a zucchini dish for dinner tonight that I’m going to tell you about. It was good, and a great way to use up the zucchini that came in my last Merry Produce Wednesday box. This morning, I started off with a bowl of oat bran. I’d just been missing it too much to have regular oats for another day! I added 1/3 a pack of Jay Robb’s strawberry whey protein powder, 1/2 Tbsp. of maple syrup, half of a banana that I smushed up, and some cinnamon and nutmeg. I tossed some strawberries on top with 1/2 Tbsp. of Dark Chocolate Dreams. It was gooood! 

Before kickboxing, I had a bowl of Greek yogurt. I’ve been waiting to finish up some Fage before trying out the nonfat Greek yogurt I bought on Saturday at the farmer’s market. The Blue Ridge Dairy folks have kept me well fed this week with the smoked mozzarella. This yogurt? Oh my gosh. It was so good. In fact, I think it was the best Greek yogurt I’ve had! The add-ins were pretty awesome too. I added 1/2 Tbsp. of orange and fig spread along with some chopped vanilla almonds. It was the best thing I ate all day!

After kickboxing, I was starving! I woke up hungry this morning and that continued into the afternoon. I had my last Cabbage “Nest” Primavera along with a few Brussels sprouts. I’m made sure to get a good singe on my cabbage since the burnt bits were so tasty when it happened accidentally yesterday.

After that, I enjoyed a slice of my cottage cheese bread with some Mighty Maple PB and half of a Cookiehead Belgian Chocolate Chunk cookie. Yes, this is another thing I hadn’t tried because it wasn’t very points friendly. You can tell that it is made with whole wheat because it has a nice soft texture and a nutty flavor. I really liked it, and I will definitely be trying the other flavors available at my store!

Eventually, I decided it was time for a snack so I had a little strawberry Yokids with some Zoe’s granola mixed in. YUM!

When snack time rolled around again, I decided to have a variation on the apple and PB theme. I had a pear and some cashew butter sprinkled with a ton of cinnamon. WOW! I’m living on the edge. It was a really nice combo. Red pears are so pretty!

By dinnertime, I was seriously hungry again! My body has adjusted to the new eating framework, and there are some noticeable changes. I seem to be hungrier, but yet more satisfied. I will talk more about that in tomorrow’s post. Just know that when dinner time rolled around, I was ready! I had a Gardenburger Chik’n Grill patty on some Nature’s Own Double Fiber bread with a little light mayo and some pickles. On the side, I had some grape tomatoes and some Spiced Zucchini with Bulgur. 

My recipe for the zucchini dish was loosely based on this one from an old Gourmet magazine. I ran across the page I had torn out the other day while I was cleaning out a folder of random magazine pages. I have a habit of tearing out pages that interest me and then losing them due to the lack of any sort of organizational system whatsoever. I was glad to find this one. My version is actually quite a bit different, but I wanted to mention the original because it would be good too. Here’s mine:

Spiced Zucchini with Bulgur

Ingredients:

3 cups of boiling water

3/4 cup of bulgur

1 tsp. salt, divided

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 cup onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed or sliced

1 1/2 pounds of zucchini, cubed

3/4 tsp. ground coriander

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. chili powder

 1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary

Juice of half of a lemon

Directions:
Place bulgur and 1/2 tsp. salt in a medium sized microwave safe bowl. Pour the boiling water over the bulgur, cover and let it sit for three minutes. Then, place in the microwave, uncovered, for 6 minutes. Remove from the microwave and give it a stir. Return to the microwave for two minutes at a time, stirring it at each two minute interval. It took about ten minutes for mine to absorb most of the water, but the time could vary. Just continue microwaving until the water is absorbed and the bulgur is tender.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the onion and 1/4 tsp. of salt, sauteeing for one minute. Add the garlic and saute for one minute. Add the zucchini and the remaining 1/4 tsp. of salt. Saute the zucchini, stirring gently, for about 6 minutes or until the zucchini is tender.

Add the remaining ingredients except for the lemon juice. Continue to cook the mixture for two more minutes. Remove from heat. Stir the zucchini mixture into the bulgur, being gentle so as to avoid mashing the zucchini. Add the lemon juice and give it another gentle stir. 

This makes 8 side servings, but two servings could make a nice lunch.

It was creamy and kind of reminded me of risotto! I used rosemary because I have some growing in a pot, and it is need of some serious trimming. You’ll be seeing a lot of rosemary until I get my plant under control. I used a whole tablespoon of olive oil because I’m trying to make sure and get enough healthy fat into my diet each day. You could certainly use less or just use cooking spray. I will say that this dish had a much richer texture than I expected, and I have to attribute it to the olive oil. It felt decadent! Yum! Fat!!

After dinner, I had the other half of my cookie and a cup of fat free Nestle’s cocoa. After that, I decided to try the chocolate orange Jocalat Bar from Larabar. I didn’t take a picture. I also didn’t eat much of the bar. I’m now faced with a dilemma. I did not like the way this bar tasted AT ALL! I love chocolate and orange together, and I expected to love this. Instead, I thought it had a weird and unpleasant taste. I’m not sure what the deal is, but, as I try not to waste calories on things I don’t like, I now have most of a bar to dispose of. I don’t think that giving a half eaten ancient larabar to trick or treaters in October is appropriate, but that’s the only idea I’ve come up with so far. What do you think I should do with it? I’m also curious if anyone else has tried this bar. Maybe mine is defective? Well, at any rate, I’m going to be looking for another little treat this evening, and I’ll be putting this little number in a ziploc baggie where it will await its fate.

Today was day seven of my “pointless” eating week. Tomorrow I’ll let you know how it went and what I’m planning as I move forward. It has been a good week, and I’ve done more food journal posts than usual to sort of let you see what was on the menu. It’s a lot of work! I don’t think I’d like doing it everyday, but it is fun to look back and see what I’ve eaten.

I have some major cleaning to do this evening, and I need to get to it. If you are reading this, please leave a comment and let me know what on earth I should do with this bar?!? I’m hoping you have an idea that is better than mine!

Have a great Friday and an amazing weekend!

Creamy Cauliflower and Cannellini Soup

I had such an awesome day today full of great weather, amazing friends and… fabulous soup! A couple of very good friends came over for a laid back lunch. I haven’t seen either of them in a while, and we had some serious catching up to do! It was great spending some time with them, and it reminds me that I should have people over more often. It’s so much fun to cook for someone other than just myself!

Today’s Menu

Garden Salad topped with Smoked Paprika Hummus, Lemon Juice and Greek Yogurt Dressing with Toasted Chickpeas and Pumpkin Seeds

Toasted Bran Bread with Assorted Jams

Creamy Cauliflower and Cannellini Soup

Fresh Pineapple

Bittersweet Chocolate Oat Bran Cookies

This was a very simple lunch, but it was perfect for catching up with old friends. The soup recipe I came up with turned out so well, and I can’t wait to eat the leftovers in my lunches this week! After making bread last weekend, I froze half of it and was happy that it toasted up so nicely under the broiler today. The smoked paprika hummus is a new flavor to me, and the dressing had a bit of a Thousand Island taste to it. I think I might add a bit of sweet pickle relish the next time. That was the only flavor missing from the Thousand Island experience, and it might just be a good “special sauce” for a Boca burger. 

This soup recipe came about because I had some cauliflower and wanted to make a soup. The end result tastes more like the beans than the cauliflower, but I’m not complaining! It was rich and creamy and satisfying while costing a mere 2 points for a huge bowl. Plus, it is vegetarian friendly, which was perfect since one friend is a long time vegetarian. I’m already thinking about making more, and I know it is going to be a staple recipe next winter! Here’s my recipe:

Creamy Cauliflower and Cannellini Soup

Ingredients:

nonstick cooking spray

1 medium sized head of cauliflower, broken into florets

1 cup chopped onion

1 medium sized carrot, thinly sliced

2 cloves of garlic, sliced

1 Tbsp. fresh dill, chopped

4 cups of broth (chicken or veggie)

2 cups of water

juice of half a lemon (about 2 Tbsp)

1 19 ounce can of Cannellini Beans with the liquid (I used the Progresso brand in calculating points)

1 cup of 1% lowfat cottage cheese

Salt to taste

Fresh dill for garnish 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Place the cauliflower on the baking sheet and spray the cauliflower with cooking spray. Roast in the 475 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.

Spray a large pot with cooking spray and heat on medium high. When the pot is hot, add the onions, garlic and carrot. Saute for 7 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the chopped dill and saute for an additional minute. Add the broth, cauliflower, water, lemon juice and beans (with the bean liquid) to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the soup for 20 minutes. 

Puree the soup in small batches in a blender or food processor incorporating half of the cottage cheese in the first batch and the other half in the second. Continue processing the soup until it has all been pureed. Return the processed soup to the pot, stir well and heat through (about a minute). Add salt to taste. I added 3/4 tsp., but the broth I used was reduced sodium. The bean juice adds some salt too, so I’d just give it a little taste and adjust it to your liking. Garnish each bowl with a sprig of fresh dill if desired.

This makes 6 unofficial 2 point servings or 8 unofficial 1 point servings.

I was so pleased with this soup. The carrot gives it a little sweetness and color. Roasting the cauliflower beforehand adds some nice caramel bits as well. The beans and cottage cheese work together to make the soup creamy and give it a punch of protein, and the lemon and dill give it a few bright notes. I honestly have to say that this may be my favorite of the soup recipes I’ve concocted this winter. I’m so happy to know that I’ll be having some more tomorrow! 

After lunch, I headed downtown to a very cool bowling alley, Lucky Strike, to celebrate a friend’s birthday. I got to catch up with a few more friends while I was there, and it was just nice to be out and about on a very springlike day. If my friend is reading this, Happy Birthday to you!! I got there a bit late, so I didn’t actually bowl, but I had a great time watching everyone else and just hanging out. After the bowling, I headed home for my Sunday night cardio session followed by strength training with my trainer.

It was a full but fun day. Now, I’m going to try to get on track with the changes to the clock, so I’m headed to bed with a cup of tea and Pasta Queen’s book. I finished Dietgirl’s book, and I loved it so much. I think when I weighed over 300 pounds, I sometimes felt like I was the only girl in the world suffering through the experience. It’s so nice to read the words of someone who has walked in the same sensible and comfortable shoes as me, and who has endured so many of the same things. It’s also nice because her story has a happy ending. I’m a sucker for a happy ending!! As a bonus, Shauna has a stellar sense of humor, and I think we’d be fast friends. I highly recommend it!

Tonight’s workout was pretty great. I just find that I have so much more energy when the weather is favorable. I’m like a bear when it is cold. I’d rather just stay in my cave and hibernate! So, my question to you is this: What is your favorite thing about spring?

I wish you all sweet dreams in the wake of the time change! G’night… hopefully…!

 

 

My Saturday Cookie Experiment

 

Happy weekend! I’m so excited that the weather is warm. I have the door to my balcony open as I’m typing, and it is so nice to air things out a bit. I started my day off with a bonus class with my trainer that involved 30 minutes of cardio and core intervals. I was pretty pooped after the class, but it was too nice not to get outside so I followed it up with a 30 minute run. I crushed over 700 calories today, got some fresh air and had a good time doing it!!

To celebrate my great workout and replenish a few of those tiny little calories, I decided to make a batch of cookies. I’ve been sort of obsessed with oat bran lately, and, of course, I wanted to see if I could incorporate it into a cookie. There was a recipe for an oat bran raisin cookie on the side of my oat bran box, but I wanted chocolate chips! I also wanted about one fourth of the number of cookies that the recipe would make, as usual, so I pared the recipe down and made a few other changes based on my goal of making a dozen one point cookies. It may seem weird to start with a points goal and work backwards when creating a recipe, but it works pretty well for me most of the time. 

The cookies that I made are good. I will say that they are pretty small, and have a definite oat bran nuttiness to them. Having said that, I enjoyed the two that I ate. I got that nice baked goods experience but with a little more fiber and a little less fat. Plus, did I mention… there was chocolate! I liked these enough to go ahead and post the recipe ( I wouldn’t want to steer you wrong…), but stay tuned! I’m going to be trying some variations on this theme. I’ll keep you updated. For now, this is my recipe:

Bittersweet Chocolate Oat Bran Cookies

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. butter

3 1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed

1 Tbsp. egg beaters

2 Tbsp. skim milk

1/8 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

60 grams of oat bran (this is about 1/3 cup plus 2 1/2 Tbsp.)

1 tsp. baking powder

1 pinch of salt

25 grams of Ghirardelli 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate chips (about 27 chips)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Cream the butter and brown sugar in the mixer at medium speed. Add the egg beaters, milk and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. 

Combine the dry ingredients (flour, oat bran, baking powder and salt) in a small bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix well. The dough will be stiff and somewhat dry. 

Incorporate the chocolate chips. Divide the dough into 12 portions and place on a baking sheet. 

Bake for five minutes. Remove from the oven, and press the tops of each cookie down with the back of a fork. This will flatten the cookies while spreading the chocolate around on top. Return the cookies to the oven and bake for an additional five minutes. Cool the finished cookies on a wire rack.

This makes 12 unofficial 1 point cookies.

The dough was definitely more stiff and dry than most cookie batters I’ve made, but it was sticky enough.

The balls of dough looked like this on the way into the oven:

 The finished product:

As I mentioned, this was a bit of an experiment. I wasn’t planning to flatten the cookies out halfway through, but they weren’t spreading out much so I decided to go for it. I didn’t realize that the added bonus would be the way the chocolate spread around on the top. This seems perfect to me since there aren’t a ton of chocolate chips in these cookies. This made a little bit of chocolate go a longer way, and I think the cookies look prettier with their chocolatey tops. 

I’m having a couple of friends over for lunch tomorrow, and I’m happy that they are the kind of friends who won’t turn up their noses at my healthy cookies! After that, I have a bowling birthday party to attend followed by another workout with my trainer. Tomorrow has potential to be a very busy day. Today has been pretty lazy, aside from my workout, so that seems like a pretty good balance. I like to have some time to myself on the weekends, but, of course, I like to have some time with my friends too!

I’m planning to make a yummy vegetarian friendly soup for my friends, and I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow. I’m concocting the recipe in my head right this second. Have a great Saturday night, and a great Sunday too.

Oh, and the lovely Abbie is having an amazing giveaway to celebrate her new site at Foods That Fit. Definitely check it out!! This is an awesome giveaway, and I always love to read what Abbie has to say.

Molasses Crinkles

I had a nice surprise yesterday in the mail! When a resident receives a package, a little tags is hung in that resident’s mailbox door as a signal to go and see the concierge to pick up the delivery. I’m usually expecting something in particular when one of those appears in my mailbox. Yesterday, I noticed the shiny little tag and started trying to remember: Had I ordered a new stockpile of  Vitamuffins? Did I place an order with Sephora for lip products that taste like s’mores? Was Amazon supposed to be sending me… anything? The answer was no. A bit excited, I went to the desk to see what was waiting for me, and I found a birthday/Valentine’s day package sent by my aunt.

Inside the box, I found some fun things for the kitchen as well as some adorable little sachet boxes. At the bottom of the box, there was a cookbook: Light Desserts by Beatrice Ojakangas. A new cookbook! Well well well… something to play with over a long weekend! I also think it might be the most fragrant cookbook I’ve ever owned thanks to its journey alongside the sachets.

My aunt bought this cookbook some time ago and decided it needed a new home. I’m usually happy to take in stray cookbooks, and I find that even some of the weirder ones on my shelf have provided inspiration. Before introducing this cookbook to the rest of the “pack” (I think cookbooks travel in packs…), I decided to look through it. As I was flipping through the book, I started getting in the mood to bake. More specifically, it put me in the mood to bake molasses cookies.

My papaw had quite a sweet tooth (but never a weight problem…), and my memaw was in the habit of making something sweet for him to enjoy at the end of a meal. Lemon ice box pie, fresh coconut cake, pecan pie, molasses or peanut butter cookies… there was almost always something awesome for dessert. If, for some reason, there weren’t any homemade treats available, my papaw kept an emergency jar of vanilla wafers on the cabinet. That jar now sits on my cabinet and usually has low point cookies or biscotti in it. Hmm… is having a sweet tooth hereditary? Anyway, molasses cookies made a frequent appearance, and I always loved them. I loved the melt-in-your-mouth texture… and I loved sneaking them out of the cookie jar when no one was looking.

Molasses, (or “sawghum” as my papaw called it) is one of those foods that I seem to forget about unless I’m on the hunt for a cookie or making gingerbread. I used to love mixing up a big puddle of butter and molasses and using it as a dip for rolls or biscuits. That type of eating isn’t an everyday occurrence anymore, but I could definitely put molasses in my oatmeal without derailing any weight loss efforts. For that matter, I should use it as a sweetener more often given that, unlike sugar, it has actual nutrients (including calcium!!) in it. I’m making a note to try that tomorrow! When I came across a molasses cookie recipe in this “new to me” cookbook, I decided to make some. Of course, I couldn’t help but tweak the recipe. Here’s my version:

Molasses Crinkles

Recipe adapted from Light Desserts by Beatrice Ojakangas copyright 1989

Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 egg white

2 Tbsp. molasses

3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. all purpose flour

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 Tbsp. sugar

Directions:

Cream butter and brown sugar, beating well at medium speed of an electric mixer. Add egg white, beating until smooth. Stir in molasses.

Combine flours and next five ingredients in a medium sized bowl; add to butter mixture and beat well. Cover dough and chill at least 8 hours.

Divide the dough into 13 portions (I weighed the dough in grams, divided by 13, and then used my scale to get them all the same size.) Roll each portion into a ball and dip the tops of the balls in the 1/2 Tbsp. of sugar. Place balls of dough 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray or lined with a Silpat. Bake at 375 degrees for 11-13 minutes. The tops will crack or “crinkle.” Cool on wire rack and store in an airtight container.

Makes 13 unofficial 2 point cookies (why 13? Read more below… Trust me…)

Since the cookbook is from 1989, back before margarine and its trans-fats were characterized as unhealthy, it called for margarine. For my money, baking with butter is almost always better anyway as far as results go, plus, you aren’t eating any weird chemicals or things that can’t be pronounced using less than four syllables. I immediately started out by changing the margarine to butter. I haven’t bought margarine in years. I wasn’t going to start now!

When measuring the molasses, I sprayed my measuring spoons with a little cooking spray first. The molasses should then slide right out of the spoon with no problem!

I thought that the spicy dry ingredients were so pretty! I changed the original recipe to include some whole wheat flour because I like the nutty and chewy texture it lends to cookies. It also helps the nutrition profile a little bit. As a bonus, it adds another color to this mound of dry ingredients:

As you can see, this makes a very small amount of dough. Small is what I’m all about! This was perfect!!! I put it in a smaller bowl before I stuck it in the fridge to chill.

In addition to changing the margarine to butter and working in some whole wheat flour, I changed the number of servings. That is, in my opinion, the most exciting change I made to this recipe!! If you flip through a big all purpose cookbook, like the old school Betty Crocker cookbook, you will probably find that most recipes make between 4 and 12 servings. Some might make slightly more, and others might make slightly less. Generally, each recipe makes a pretty reasonable number of servings– UNTIL you get to the cookie section. I know that, in part, it can be hard to break recipes for baked goods down into smaller quantities. Still, I don’t need 8 dozen cookies unless I have a party to attend or some hungry colleagues at work. What I really wanted was to be able to make a dozen cookies. Period.

I got pretty close. I cut the recipe in the cookbook in half to begin with. Then, I plugged my ingredients into the magic gadget on the WW site. I’ve been enjoying some 2 point Kashi cookies this week, and I know that I don’t mind spending 2 points on a cookie– especially if I savor it with a big cup of tea. That makes it last longer. I decided to see how many 2 point cookies I could make, and the answer was 13. This is known as a “baker’s dozen,” and that’s just fine with me! As I mentioned above, I weighed my batch of dough, divided by 13 and then used the scale to measure out the proper amount for each ball of dough which got rolled up and coated with sugar.

Weighing my dough on the scale may seem like a bit much, but I don’t know of an easier way to get all of my cookies to be the same size (and, consequently, to get an accurate points count per cookie). Plus, I watch too much “Unwrapped” on the food channel, and I often see them use a scale for things like this. Who says that television is a waste of time?!

My final opinion on these cookies is that they are good, but not as large as I would have liked. They are pretty close in size to the Kashi cookies, but slightly smaller. That’s my only complaint. I’m so excited to have figured out how to make such a tiny batch! The next time I’m in the mood to bake, but not in the mood to pawn cookies off on people, I’ll be making these. I like the texture and the flavor, although I might actually add an extra pinch of each of the spices next time, and I really enjoyed the one I tried with a cup of Sweet Thai Delight tea from Yogi Tea. That is one of my absolute favorite teas ever!! It has a bit of exotic spice and a hint of coconut that went well with this cookie. When I grow up, I think I’d like to specialize in cookie and tea pairings (similar to wine and food pairings.)  That seems like it would be a pretty sweet gig!