cookies

WIAW | Vegan Lactation Cookies | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds

7 Comments

WIAW | Vegan Lactation Cookies | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Blue Diamond Almonds.

It seems that everyone we know is either pregnant for the first time or second time or are just having their babies. Today I am meeting up with an old friend who just had baby boy #2 and since I believe that if you visit with a new mama in the first 4-6 weeks postpartum that you must bring food and/or do something to help around the house. That being said I decided to bake cookies because who doesn’t love cookies and I may have wanted a few for myself. 

WIAW | Vegan Lactation Cookies | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds While these are lactation cookies you don’t have to worry if you eat them you won’t suddenly start lactating it just means they are filled with ingredients that help mamas milk supply. All it means for you men, kids and non-breastfeeding women is that you’ll be enjoying some nutrient dense cookies that are really good anytime of the day. I actually think they would be the perfect breakfast cookie.

This recipe was inspired by How Sweet Eats Lactation Cookies, which you could always veganize if you wanted (I have and they are insanely amazing). So why didn’t I just make How Sweet Eats? Well they are a little higher in fat and sugar than I was interested in this time around. Although I think she is spot on to add the chocolate chips and if I had any I would have added them as well. Either way I think these are yummy and fingers crossed so does my mama friend. 

WIAW | Vegan Lactation Cookies | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds Dark Chocolate Almond Lactation Cookies

Ingredients:

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups unbleached organic all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons brewers yeast
3 tablespoons ground flaxseed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 super ripe medium bananas
1 cup coconut sugar
14-15 sticky medjool dates (if yours are not soft soak them in warm water for 20 minutes before or sub 1/2 cup coconut sugar)
7 tablespoons Earth Balance
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/3 Blue Diamond Oven Roasted Dark Chocolate Almonds, chopped
1/3 cup coconut flakes
1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl whisk together the oats, flour, brewers yeast, flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle beat the bananas and dates together until mashed. Add in the Earth Balance, coconut sugar and vanilla and beat until creamed together.

Slowly add in the dry ingredients and beat until just combined. Then stir in the almonds and coconut flakes.

Scoop out 1-inch balls of dough and place on a cookie sheet and bake for 10-14 minutes or until golden on the bottom. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet.
WIAW | Vegan Lactation Cookies | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds

Product Review: Lucy’s Cookies

4 Comments

"Dr. Lucy’s gluten-free cookies are made without milk, eggs, peanuts or tree nuts, but you’d never know it. They taste delicious! We use only high quality ingredients in our carefully controlled bakery to ensure our products meet our tight allergen testing criteria. And with 0mg cholesterol and 0g trans fat you can feel guilt-free about making them part of your healthy, balanced diet." Click Photo for Source

The hubby and I have been snacking on these bad boys over the past month and they are yummy! I have also given some to friends and family to try and everyone has come back telling me how much they enjoyed them.  There are 4 types of cookies: Chocolate Chip, Oatmeal Cookie, Cinnamon Thin and Sugar Cookie.  The great thing about these cookies is that you can find them in stores and Starbucks in individual sized packages.  You can also get small boxes of these cookies to share with the whole family.

The Chocolate Chip cookies are so delicious and are great for vegans as well as people with nut allergies as all of Lucy’s Cookies are nut free!  I really enjoyed these cookies because there was just the right amount of chocolate in every bite. Now my husband’s favorite is the Cinnamon Thin which is inspired by the snickerdoodle.  These cookies are filled with cinnamon and have a great crisp.

The Oatmeal Cookie was a favorite of mine because they were light and airy and reminiscent of childhood oatmeal cookies.  I also love that these ones are low in calories so they don’t disrupt my (usually) balanced diet.  Lastly, the Sugar Cookies are just like they say SUGAR- I found these ones to be the sweetest and a little too much for me but once I paired them with a cup of coffee it was a great balance of sweet and bitter.

Which of these cookies are calling your name? Have you tried any of Lucy’s cookies yet?

Disclaimer: Lucy’s Cookies provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.

Vegan Thanksgiving & Cookie Baking

9 Comments

.  Since Neil is heading north to New Brunswick next week we won’t be having vegan Thanksgiving so we enjoyed it yesterday with two of my girlfriends, Monica and Laura. After we shared vegan Thanksgiving we spent the remainder of the afternoon in the kitchen baking cookies from Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. 
 

Celebration Roast, Cumin Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes and Green Bean Casserole

Already to bake!

We made the Blackstrap Gingersnaps first; I received a sample NuNuaturals NuStevia Baking Blend and we decided to try it out with these cookies instead of sugar.

 

Yeah! Gingersnaps!

Look mom greasy hands!

City Girl Snickerdoodles

Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows


All of these cookies enjoyed with a nice cup of Boulevards Organics Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate

We also made some Lazy Samoas (not photographed) which were delicious and just like the caramel delights I enjoyed as a girl scout.  The girls and I really loved this cookbook and found that all the recipes were fun and yet easy.  A few things we really loved were that all the cookies were baked at 350F and that all took 8min to 12min which was great especially when baking 4 different kinds. I really loved all the cookies I have to say it’s a toss up between the Chocolate PB and the Snickerdoodles for my favorite.