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For chocolate lovers only…

Ahh chocolate….

The other day, I made a couple of changes to the chocolate chip cookies we typically make and according to my husband “these are best cookies you guys have ever made”.  And, my son said “mom, we HAVE to make these for Santa!!”. They were that good!

Here are the changes we made…

So my friend Whitney made some chocolate chip cookies last week and they were incredible!  She said her trick (accidently) was to melt half of the chocolate chips in the hot butter.  Brilliant!

The other change (for my daughter who just doesn’t love honey) was to use less honey, more coconut palm sugar and stevia.

Oh, and I also added some extra cocoa powder because, well, why not?

Here’s what you need:

  • 2 1/2 cups almond flour (I used Honeyville’s)
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 15 drops stevia
  • 5 tablespoons grass fed butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil (OR 5 extra tablespoons of butter)
  • 1 cup Whole Foods 70 cacao chocolate chips
  • 2 egg whites
  • 3 tbsp cocoa powder
What you need to do:
1.  Preheat oven to 350
2.  Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl and set aside.
3.  Melt butter, add half the chocolate chips, and add the rest of the wet ingredients and stir.
4.  Add wet to dry and mix until smooth, and then add the other half of the chocolate chips.
5.  Now scoop (we used a tablespoon) the dough onto parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
6.  Cook 12-15 minutes until done in the middle. Let cool for a few minutes and hen devour with some ice cold milk!

On a less fun but note, I have been reading some scary stuff about something called Carrageenen.  It’s used as a thickener, stabilizer, and emulsifier in many processed products, include many organics ones.  It’s in many dairy processed items so be sure to check your labels!

Someone with an autoimmune disease in the intestinal tract, I find this information especially disturbing. One article said it was used to “induce colitis in lab animals”. What? How is this stuff approved by the FDA?!  Colitis is the main reason I changed my diet years ago!  The only processed thing left in my life is almond milk, and coconut ice cream once in a blue moon. Turns out, products like So Delicious Coconut Milk and Ice Cream, and Blue Diamond Almond Breeze have carrageenen in it.

Very disappointing!

Organic Minis Fudge BarsShelf Stable Almond Breeze Original Unsweetened

Why is carrageenan dangerous? Here is what a number of doctors and health researchers have to say.

Dr. Andrew Weil —  “Carrageenan can cause ulcerations and cancers of the gastrointestinal tract.”

Per Dr. Ray Peat —  “It has been found to cause colitis (inflammation of the large intestine/colon) and anaphylaxis in humans.

Dr. Mercola — “A number of studies have found that the widely used food additive carrageenan causes cancer in food animals and its use in human foods should be reconsidered…enough evidence exists about the cancer-causing effects of carrageenan to limit the use of this food additive.

For more information, there is a great post about it here:

http://foodbabe.com/2012/05/22/watch-out-for-this-carcinogen-in-your-organic-food/

But, I don’t think I’m ready to give up my almond milk just yet, if I don’t have to. It’s my one processed treat that I truly love. Good thing for me, Silk’s and Whole Food’s Almond Milks do not have carrageenen in it.  Yay! These cookies just wouldn’t be the same without it!!

 

For chocolate lovers only...
Recipe Type: Dessert
Author: Stiritup.me
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 15 mins
Total time: 30 mins
Serves: 8
Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
  • 2 1/2 cups almond flour (I used Honeyville’s)
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 15 drops stevia
  • 5 tablespoons grass fed butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil (OR 5 extra tablespoons of butter)
  • 1 cup Whole Foods 70 cacao chocolate chips
  • 2 egg whites
  • 3 tbsp cocoa powder
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350
  2. Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl and set aside.
  3. Melt butter, add half the chocolate chips, and add the rest of the wet ingredients and stir.
  4. Add wet to dry and mix until smooth, and then add the other half of the chocolate chips.
  5. Now scoop (we used a tablespoon) the dough onto parchment paper on a cookie sheet.
  6. Cook 12-15 minutes until done in the middle. Let cool for a few minutes and hen devour with some ice cold milk!

  • Shannon - Does cacao taste the same as cocoa in most recipes? Cacao has a lot more health benefits, right?ReplyCancel

    • landriav - It definitely has more health benefits but I wasn’t sure if it would mix in well since you need hot water to mix and dilute it. Maybe try to stir it in with the melted butter. I bet it would work then! And actually, it might be fine just mixing it the regular way, but I know when I use to try to mix cacao with cold water, it was like mixing oil and water. Let me know how it turns out! Thanks for your comment. Good point!!ReplyCancel

  • Chris Colwell - I think I have a LOVE/hate relationship with this blog!!! like many I’m sure we want to be informed but sometimes it makes us very sad. I have good news on the Almond Milk from Trader Joes…it’s safe! ran home last night to check my label. whew…FYI for everyone.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Ha! I know, I was so bummed to read about it Chris, but at the same time, so so glad I learned about it. Okay, so I was at TJ’s today and looked at their almond milk, since you and another person said it didn’t have carrageenan in it but ALL of the TJ’s ones I saw, had it. I even took a pic to verify that I wasn’t totally crazy. I can email you the pic and maybe you can tell me if it’s the same? Would you take a pic of yours so I can see?ReplyCancel

  • Rob King - Lan,

    What is your definition of “once in a blue moon”? Is that only once per day by chance? =). Like Chris i too was disappointed in that news. I usually eat So Delicious brand ice cream. On a whim i bought Coconut Bliss last night and did not see Carrageenan listed FWIW.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Ha!! Nice to hear about the Coconut Bliss Rob!! Thanks for the info!ReplyCancel

  • Sarah - Yum! These looks great! Your blog is adorable. I just had to come by and check it out since we have the same blog name! 😀ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Thanks Sarah! What exactly is your url? Would love to check out your blog as well!ReplyCancel

  • tutti - I’m sure you already know this, but almond milk is SO EASY to make. I have a recipe listed under “notes” on my fb page.ReplyCancel

  • Michael Parsons - Landria, your name came up yesterday when we were visiting with our friend Alice Williams. I heard you had a blog and I’ve been reading it all day! It is really cool and informative. I’m headed to whole foods now to buy the ingredients for your “southern” meal. We may be calling on you for a consult. Lots of changes needed here.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Hey Michael! Thank you so much! I would love to help y’all. Just let me know. Hope you liked your meal!!!ReplyCancel

  • Rob King - Made these cookies last night. Next time i think 1. Ill make only 1/2 the size (no self control) and 2. Ill just eat the batter. For me at last the batter turned out better than the cookies and it was amazing!ReplyCancel

  • Heather - Tried these tonight, and just had to blog about them – they were THAT good!

    I made a few changes, mostly due to dietary restrictions, but they still turned out great!ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Very cool! Thanks Heather for the kind shout out!! I really appreciate it!! : )ReplyCancel

  • Sarah - Thanks for the warning about carrageenen! I had no idea. It’s always something new isn’t it?
    The cookies look Amazing! 😀ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Always!! Sure, thanks for your comment Sarah!ReplyCancel

  • Rachel R. - Carrageenen is seaweed. I don’t know about the health issues – your post is the first I’ve heard of it – but it’s not some bizarre chemical construct.ReplyCancel

    • landriav - Yes, but it has some bizarre effects on some people and can make some (esp those with ulcerative colitis like myself) sick. There are many articles out there with scientific results. Thanks for your thoughts and post Rachel!ReplyCancel

  • Shon posted an update - Some really wonderful articles on this website , thankyou for contribution. Shon posted an update http://www.hanshangyuan.com/bbs/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=46988ReplyCancel

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