So, it’s March. And… it’s still awful out.
That is, if you’re living in or around our nation’s capital. Making it the coldest/longest winter on record in 20 years in Ottawa, it is safe to say some of us are going a little NUTS.
Pun fully intended.
But, us nutshell gals are glass-half-full kind of folk, and what this painfully prolonged frigidity must mean is that spring is, literally, around the corner (so help us, God). With Jack Frost sticking his nose into spring’s air-time, we might as well just go ahead and say that in a few short weeks we’ll be sipping drinks on patios and flocking around in our bikinis …. RIGHT!?
Ok, well the glass is overflowing now, I’m certainly no weather girl and am getting slightly carried away prancing around my room singing Kenny Chesney, however! I do have a point.
As the seasons change, for better or worse, I subscribe to the belief you should make your own little changes for the better. Whether it be trying out a new workout regimen (in time for the aforementioned bikini season, no less), doing a little spring cleaning, or resolving to make healthier food choices (it is Nutrition Month, after all!), use the period of melting snow and rubber boots to redefine your goals for those precious summer months ahead.
One of the few things that can be missed from a season of hibernation is the comfort foods we could all consume underneath the invisibility cloak of a bulky sweater. Putting beavertails behind us in lieu of celery sticks can be a jarring transition, but sometimes the best form of motivation can come from a friend.
When my good pal Erica (a legitimate model of health and fitness) brought around a batch of Paleo Chocolate Chip cookies for me to sample, I was somewhat skeptical. Despite often cooking Paleo recipes for myself at home, I was unsure if the diet that calls for no artificial ingredients, hydrogenated oils, grains or dairy belonged in a cookie. I mean come on, it’s a cookie.
But boy was I ever wrong. After consuming one of the best cookies I’ve ever had (Paleo, or otherwise) I proceeded to beg said friend (affectionately known as Stretch) day in and day out to make me another batch so I could share it with the world (or, at least, you guys).
So, IN CONCLUSION, while visions of popsicles dance in your heads, and you say goodbye to hearty stews and fondues, look at this last bit of winter as a metaphorical runway. Make your way up it by making some smart choices and you’ll be ready to fly off into the 9 p.m. sunset in no time. Hallelujah.
Stretch’s Secret Pecan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
2 ½ cups almond flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
½ cup grape seed oil (just less than)
½ cup agave nectar (just less than)
1 tbsp vanilla
½ – 1 cup dark chocolate chips OR carob chips
½ -1 cup pecan pieces OR sliced almonds
Instructions
1. Heat oven to 335 F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl, combine almond flour, salt and baking soda.
3. In a medium bowl, combine grapeseed oil, agave and vanilla. Add to almond flour mixture and mix until thoroughly combined. Fold in chocolate chips and pecans.
4. Spoon dough one heaping tablespoon at a time onto baking sheet and press down to flatten. Bake for 7-10 minutes, until lightly golden. Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 20 minutes.
Who is Kenney Chesney?
I must admit that I am somewhat skeptical about Paleo (prehistoric) Chocolate Chip Cookies.
I have taken note that the author states that she is no weather girl (she is, however, an ace reporter for The Orleans Star and in the interest of full disclosure, my daughter) and that this article describes the source of this recipe, Erica, as healthy and fit.
To digress slightly, have any readers observed the morning CNN weather girl, Indra Petersons……….Holy Cow is she healthy and fit!
Maybe Indra is a Paleo devotee also.
But, getting back to the topic at hand, my intention is to go native and make a batch of these cookies and to report back to the Nuts who inhabit In a Nutshell at some later date.
Does anyone know what “awaiting moderation” means?