At this point, I’m sure many of you are as stressed out as I have been about this pandemic we are currently facing. Stress causes people to eat things they really shouldn’t and I am no exception. In an effort to cut down on my sugar intake, but still be able to have something sweet, I decided to try this recipe. It does have some sugar (organic) but there’s not too much. A lot of the sweetness comes from the oranges and the cranberries (which I substituted for the stone fruit). I was also intrigued by the fact that quinoa is a key ingredient. I am still amazed that I was in my 50s before I ever knew what quinoa was. Once I tried it, I loved pretty much everything I made with it. There are so many benefits from eating quinoa. It is one of the most complete plant-based proteins. It’s also gluten free and full of fiber. CLICK HERE to read about why you should be eating quinoa. It comes in a variety of types (more than 100, I hear), but the more common ones carried in supermarkets are — red, white, and a mixture, which is what I used in this recipe. The other change I made to this recipe was that I used cashew butter instead of almond butter. Pretty much any nut butter will do, though.
I was very impressed with the end product, but I will say that after a day they became soft and were no longer crunchy like they were fresh out of the oven. The flavor was still just as good. I encourage you to try these healthier alternatives to cookies. CLICK HERE for the recipe.
Cookies are made with wheat flour….so they are not okay for someone who has to be gluten free. What would you suggest to replace the sugar? The combination of fruit, which is high sugar, and the refined sugar make this recipe pretty scary for a diabetic. Suggestions?
Unfortunately, these cookies aren’t for everyone. I am primarily focused on plant based food, not food for people who don’t eat gluten or sugar. The flour could be substituted with non-wheat flour although I haven’t tried that so I don’t know how they would turn out. As for sugar, I have done a lot of reading about causes of diabetes and the more I read the more I have come to understand that it is the fat and protein that is the problem not the sugar. Proteinaholic by Garth Davis has a whole chapter on diabetes that I recommend you read. It is eye opening with much data and research to back up what he says.