Carrot Cake Cookies

Whether it is a happy or sad occasion, someone is visiting me or I am going to see them, or I just need some baking therapy, I will find myself wanting to get in the kitchen. When I made these cookies over the weekend, I made them for the combination of all the reasons above. Baking is so therapeutic for me, particularly when I can get creative with ingredients and make something delicious and nourishing. 

I was inspired by a recent cookbook purchase of the Lola Berry The Happy Life cookbook. Lola's book is a really sweet representation of how she keeps a positive mind and a healthy body. She touches on mindful versus emotional eating, how to keep your thoughts grounded, ways to connect to your soul, strengthening intimacy and even how to create your own cookbook. 

Amongst Lola's life advice, she has healthy recipes to browse. I found her carrot cake cookies and decided to try it for myself. What I like about these cookies is that they are so filling and nourishing, you can easily have them for breakfast and they make such a healthy snack. 

Ingredients:

1 cup of almond meal (I used hazelnut meal and flaxseed mix as I had that on hand)

1/4 cup of coconut flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of ginger

a pinch of nutmeg

1 cup of coconut sugar (I used date sugar as I also had that on hand) *coconut sugar can be expensive, if you rather just substitute for brown sugar but use 3/4 of a cup 

1/2 cup of almond butter

1/4 cup of coconut oil

2 eggs, heated

2 carrots (1 large or 2 small), grates

1/4 cup of sultanas 

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 degresss and line a baking tray with greased-proof paper.

Place all dry ingredients into a bowl and combine.

Add all the wet ingredients and mix well to form a dough.

I then placed the mixture into the fridge for 30 minutes.

Using a tablespoon, form mixture into balls and flatter on the prepared tray. 

Bake for 10 minutes until cookies are golden and set.

Makes 12

Paleo Bread - for sandwiches and snacks

This is a lovely substantial bread to replace traditional wheat flour breads if you are following a paleo or gluten-free diet. This bread is nice enough to have on its own or toasted. Unlike some other alternative breads, this loaf is super easy to slice in either small or sandwich size pieces.

Paleo Bread

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of almond butter
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup of coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of almond milk
• 2 tablespoons of date sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup of ground flaxseed meal
• 3 tablespoons of coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• pinch of salt

Method:

1. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix until everything comes together.
2. Pour mixture into a well greased bread/loaf tin or silicone baking tray.
3. Bake for 35 minutes in a moderate oven until risen and browned. Leave in the tray for 10 minutes to cool before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.
4. Slice and store in either fridge or freezer.