In this issue: Recipe, tips on cooking oils and my Holiday teaching schedule.
I’ve been on this earth for 30 years and today was my FIRST TIME EVER baking! HA!
I found this recipe online and made it with my healthy alternative options. The recipe below is dairy free, nut free, but not egg or gluten free. I promise you will not lose any of the flavour or sweetness! I’m making these for my students and clients for the week of Christmas and my hubby already ate a bunch of them. GRRRR!!!
Tis the season so why not give the gift of healthy cookies from the heart? Give this a try and let me know how they turn out!
Protein Ginger Molasses Cookies
Makes: 25-30 cookies
- 2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon Pink Himalayan Sea Salt
- ¾ cup Organic Coconut Oil instead of unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¾ cup raw cane sugar or brown sugar
- optional scoop of protein powder
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup molasses
- Stevia for rolling
- In a bowl, add 2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon allspice, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, and ½ teaspoon pink Himalayan sea salt, optional scoop of protein powder. Mix well to combine.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer (or with a hand-mixer), beat together ¾ cup butter and ¾ cup raw cane or brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. I couldn’t find a mixer so I used a spoon to mix – right arm is even more shredded now -HA!
- Add 1 egg and ½ cup molasses and mix to combine. Then stir in the dry ingredients. Refrigerate the batter 1 hour.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375°F.
- Roll the dough into 1 ½” balls, flatten them slightly, then roll the balls in Stevia to coat the outsides. Arrange on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake in oven until set and crinkled on top, about 10 to 12 minutes (around 10 minutes for smaller cookies and 12 for larger). Remove from the oven and cool slightly.
HEALTHY TIP: Use Organic, Virgin Coconut Oil for Cooking and Baking – and EVERYTHING Else!
Hydrogenated coconut oil is not a great choice: Or any hydrogenated oil for that matter. Research shows the body has a hard time processing saturated fat when it is exposed to high heat (trans-fats and hydrogenation), and may be carcinogenic, leading to cancer.
Coconut Oils do have saturated fats: Saturated fats are solid at room temperature and are the “bad fats.” BUT – the fat from coconut oil is plant based and is natural – so it is actually GOOD FOR YOU.
It Cooks Well in High-Heat: As mentioned above, oils that are exposed to high heat become toxic and for free radicals. This includes vegetable oil, canola oil, and olive oil. Coconut oil is great for high-heat cooking as it has a higher heat tolerance.
It Can Whiten Your Teeth and Kill Harmful Bacteria in Your Mouth: I recently saw my sister-in-law – Her blog is here – rinse her mouth with coconut oil. She said her teeth became really white over the last couple of weeks. When I looked it up, I found out it was called “Oil Pulling” and this is what it is and how you do it:
Oil pulling involves swishing oil around the mouth and has been used for thousands of years as an Indian folk remedy.
In order to oil pull, you put a tablespoon of oil in your mouth, then swish it around for 15-20 minutes.
It’s delicious: Unless you don’t like coconuts. I find that there is a strong coconut flavour when I stir fry my vegetables, but when I bake with it, there is no trace of coconut flavour.
It’s great for your skin: Dreading dry winter skin? Buy a jar of coconut oil — it makes a great moisturizer from head to toe, particularly for dry lips, and rough hands and feet.
Diaper cream: It’s thought that coconut oil has antibacterial and antifungal properties—that and the fact that it’s moisturizing and gentle makes it a great choice for an all-natural diaper cream or baby salve. As a bonus, it’s safe to use with cloth diapers.
Massage oil: Like other natural options, coconut oil is great for massages. And the fact that it’s solid at room temperature makes it a less messy option than liquid oils. You’ll be moisturized and relaxed!
STILL HATE COCONUTS? Then use avocado oil, rice bran oil, or sunflower oil for high-heat cooking.
Finally, here my is my holiday teaching schedule 2014!
December 22 – 6:15am cycling, 7am Yoga* (30 minutes), 9:30am Yoga* (60 minutes) GOODLIFE WILLOWDALE/GORDON BAKER
December 23 – 6:00am Bodypump GOODLIFE STEELES/WOODBINE
December 24 Christmas Eve – 9:30am Bodypump GOODLIFE STEELES/WOODBINE
December 25 Christmas Day – 9:30am BodyPump, 10:30am Yoga* (60 minutes) GOODLIFE WILLOWDALE/GORDON BAKER
December 26 Boxing Day – 11:30am Yoga* (45 minutes) GOODLIFE STEELES/WOODBINE
December 28 – 10:30am cycling KENNEDY/ELLESMERE
December 29 – 6:15am cycling, 7am Yoga* (30 minutes), 9:30am Yoga* (60 minutes) GOODLIFE WILLOWDALE/GORDON BAKER
December 30 – 6:00am Bodypump GOODLIFE STEELES/WOODBINE
December 31 New Year’s Eve – 9:30am Bodypump GOODLIFE STEELES/WOODBINE
January 1, 2015 New Year’s Day – 10am BodyPump, 11am Yoga*(time change) (60 minutes) GOODLIFE WILLOWDALE/GORDON BAKER
*My Yoga classes will be open to all levels, but mostly beginner to intermediate. I will be instructing and demoing more as the classes tend to be quite full, so there may be less hands-on adjustments. I will modify and accommodate as I see fit
Sources:
http://jonbarron.org/diet-and-nutrition/healthiest-cooking-oil-chart-smoke-points#.VJdI-14AKA
https://www.google.ca/?gws_rd=ssl#q=coconut+oil+rinse
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/10/25/coconut-oil-benefits_n_4164278.html
http://www.acouplecooks.com
