Birdseed Cookies

There's a cute little coffee shop in my hometown and they make some amaze-tastic seed cookies. This recipe is based off their crazy good cookies. If you're all like, "Ugh, why would I want a bunch of seeds and millet in my cookies?" I will tell you that you know nothing, Jon Snow Dear Reader. People are straight up obsessed with these little guys. No joke.

These cookies kind of remind me of no-bakes. Chock-full of seeds, millet, oats, peanut butter, coconut, and chocolate chips, you won't want to toss these to the birds. Trust me. Every time I make them, I'm hounded on when I'm going to post the recipe on Produce On Parade. Well...here you go! 

Birdseed Cookies

Makes 50 cookies

--Notes-- This recipe makes a lot of cookies, so feel free to halve it if you're so inclined. Also, I know these measurements are obnoxious...just go with me.

• Wet:
• 1 Tbsp. ground flax seed
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. agave nectar (or maple syrup if you're super rich)
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. olive oil (or coconut oil if you have a trust fund)
• 1/2 heaping cup creamy peanut butter (no palm oil please!)
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• Dry:
• 3 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats, dry
• 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut flakes
• 1 cup hulled sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup millet, dry
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon (optional)
• 1 cup vegan chocolate chips
• End:
• 3 Tbsp. fresh water

Start by mixing together the ground flax seed and water in a small bowl. Set aside.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Add in the combined flax and water. 

In a separate large bowl, combine the dry ingredients

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients while mixing on low, until just combined. 

Add in the fresh water and mix until well combined. The dough should hold together well and not be wet. It might even be a tad crumbly, and that's okay. 

Preheat oven to 350 F. Form into half balls and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I use a tablespoon to do this but a little ice cream scoop with a release arm would be perfect, alas, I do not have one. The dough can be a bit sticky. The cookies will not spread at all when baked. 

Bake for about 10 minutes, or until they start to turn golden brown around the edges. Remove from oven and allow to rest on the pan for a minute or two before transferring to a cooling rack.

Try not to let any animals, birds or otherwise snatch them up! Store in an airtight container. 

I'm so great, I even calculated the nutritional information for you! Normally, I do not do this, but I was so curious I just couldn't help myself. Don't worry, the only not-s-good calories come from the brown sugar, agave nectar, and chocolate chips. Just, don't go eating five at once. 

I love this song. The musician, Zach Sobiech, recorded it as a way to express his battle with cancer (osteosarcoma), in which he only had one more year to live. He died at age 18 in May 2013. 

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/93431338" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]

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Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Hello? Anyone there? I feel like it's been a little while. I guess I strayed from my usual peculiar ramblings in favor mostly of lounging about the house, reading. There was also some cooking, socializing and, wait for it...Tempur-Pedic mattress buying! Now wait just a minute! No, I do not by even the slightest definition engage in any sort of "Black Friday" monstrosities. I think it's absolutely horrendous. It is! Admit it. I'm just the messenger. We all know it. Is it really worth it all just to save 20% on a second microwave that you don't need anyway? No. Also, according to NPR you probably aren't even getting that much of a steal. So stay home and enjoy some good ol' fashioned family time. Oh no, I'm not done. I can't even imagine wanting to go shopping on Black Friday. I can't! But, I do hate shopping in general. Seriously, why would anybody even want to?! If you have to wait until one day of the year when there's a sale, chances are you don't really need what you're buying. Just a thought. People die and get injured! I won't even broach the subject of consumerism. Minimalism...it's going to happen. Whew, boy did that feel good. MOST AMERICANS HAVE SO MUCH MORE THAN THEY NEED! Okay, now I'm done.

Alright, with regards to the mattress...

Story Time

One day, as a poor Radiology student, I found myself in an effort to scrounge up food money, house-sitting for an Orthopedic (a.k.a. bone) surgeon. This surgeon had a Tempur-Pedic mattress in her guest room. I slept wonderfully. Todd didn't snore. He was also less sore in the morning (arthritis). Oh, and did I mention that he didn't snore!? We both vowed then and there that one day, one glorious day...the clouds of awful mattresses and sleepless nights would part and we would get a beautiful Tempur-Pedic mattress. Yesterday was that day. 

To think, it all happened because I bought some amazing sheets from Garnet Hill (Bailey put a hole in ours about seven months ago...I swear we are not hobos). These are adult sheets. Real nice sheets. Legit sheets. Anyways, our prior bed arrangement was two twin mattresses shoved together with a very sad, sunken memory foam mattress-topper from Costco thrown on top. No, I'm not making this up. Don't judge us. Anyways, I forbid these BAMF sheets to ever grace that...setup. I decided to stash them away for when had a "real bed".

That lasted about a week. Yea...we had to get a real mattress. Unfortunately, that also meant that we had to move our former bedroom from the loft to the living room and the living room up to the loft, because the new mattress most likely will not fit up the stairs. We also do not have a bed frame...or a couch, because the couch won't fit up the stairs into the "new" living room. It's all very confusing. We kept the two twin mattresses for an awful (awfully awesome?) excuse of a couch. Maybe I'll post some pictures on Facebook today or tomorrow so you can feel better about your couch situation or the fact that your abode isn't the size of the thimble. Or the fact that you have a bed frame. Any of those will probably work.

We are currently taking donations. Live a minimalist life! Who needs a real couch? Yes, we both make fairly good money...we just choose to live like hobos. OMG...I've turned into my grandpa. Just not rich...or as homeless looking. My grandpa is a very homeless looking, former physician. He's also a bajillionaire and he his extraordinarily frugal. Grandpa Doc, for a long time, was the only doctor here in the valley. He uses a bungee cord as a belt to hold up his pink holey sweatpants that he got from Costco and gripes about how diesel fuel de-geller costs $8 a bottle. He only needs a few drops, you guys! I love you Grandpa. 

Cookie Time

Whoa, I got way off track there. These cookies. Anyhow, basically, we really didn't have any desserts for Thanksgiving and so Friday night I was seriously craving some sweets! Cookies were in demand. It'd been way too long since I'd made them anyways and I really needed to satisfy a major sweet tooth. These were awesome. 

No butter in these! Well...peanut butter! Peanut butter oatmeal cookies speckled with dark chocolate chunks and the perfect sprinkling of flaked salt on top. Sophisticated enough for your adult side but nostalgic enough to bring out the kid in you. 

Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Slightly adapted from Paint and Tofu

Makes about 20 cookies

• 1/3 cup creamy natural peanut butter
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 3/4 cup of vegan sugar (I use Zulka)
• 1/3 cup cartoned coconut milk or other nondairy milk
• 1 tsp. Kahlua or vanilla extract (I still haven't bought vanilla extract...)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup vegan dark chocolate chunks
• sprinkling of finishing salt 

Preheat oven to 425 F.

In a large bowl, mix together the peanut butter, oil, sugar, milk, and Kahlua. Stir until well combined. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Make your Home Ec teacher proud and gently scoop the flour into the measuring cup. Don't you dare scoop out the flour with the measuring cup. Don't do it! I'll be watching.

Now, add the dry ingredients slowly into the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. 

Add in the oatmeal and the chocolate chunks to the dough and stir until just combined. Be sure to not overmix it!

Coat a baking sheet with a nonstick cooking spray and drop cookies, so they are spaced about one inch apart. 

Bake at 425 F for about 8-10 minutes or until the edges are just barely golden brown. The top should not be brown and they will still be a bit pillowy. They might look like they need a few more minutes, but once removed they will set. 

Remove from the oven and immediately sprinkle with finishing salt. Allow them to rest a couple minutes on the baking sheet before placing on a cooling rack. Repeat with remaining dough. 

Serve warm with a tall, cold glass of your favorite vegan milk!

What? It's super catchy...Katy Perry – Hummingbird Heartbeat Also, I might be somewhat of a hobo...

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Healthy Peanut Butter Maple Banana Fudge

So, as you may know, I pretty much want sweets all the time. However, as they have a propensity for...errr..not so good-for-you-ness...I do try to limit myself. Key word here is "try". Usually this fails. I'm pretty sure that if I were to cut out all sweets in my diet, I would be about 97 pounds. Which, for several reasons is pretty alarming and downright disconcerting. Obviously, this will never happen. A family member once told me they'd never have to worry about me being anorexic because I love food too much. Ummm, thanks...I guess? I was also told that my parents knew they'd never have to worry about me doing any drugs because I'm much too stubborn and peer pressure never bothered me the slightest. I'm pretty sure it was just a nicer way to say that I'm super obstinate and aggressively autonomous. *squinty face* I guess they're right about both. I really do love food, and I've never done any illicit drugs.

In my roundabout sorta way, what I am trying to tell you is that I am super excited to present you with a delicious, vegan fudge bar that is so good you'll want to eat the entire pan.

These really are quite deceiving...and somewhat upsetting. I could have been making this amazing fudge all this time and it's healthy!? I feel somewhat betrayed by the universe, and the Patron Saint of Healthy Desserts. I looked it up, and there is not a patron saint for desserts, let alone healthy desserts. But, there is one for Bakers, Cooks and oddly enough...Radiologists. Alright! 

Enough nonsense.  Whole food, vegan fudge bars with a nut-date crust and a creamy chocolate filling. Deceptively addictive and completely rich and satisfying. They even have flax seeds! The only thing that I wouldn't really consider as "healthy" is the maple syrup. That's not really healthy. But we'll let it slide this time. Yep, this is definitely my new favorite, easy dessert!

Healthy Peanut Butter Maple Banana Fudge

Inspired by Chocolate Covered Katie

Serves 16

• --Crust---
• 11 large medjool dates, pitted (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup raw almonds
• 1/4 cup raw walnuts
• 1/4 cup raw hazelnuts 
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 Tbsp. whole flax seeds (or ground)
• pinch of kosher salt
• --Filling--
• 2 ripe bananas (one of them frozen, if you want)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• tiny pinch of kosher salt
• finishing salt (for topping)
• --Notes--
• Feel free to substitute any mixture of nuts you'd like. 

In a food processor, add all the crust ingredients and process for about 3 minutes, or until the crust is well blended.

Transfer to a 8 x 8 inch baking dish and press it with the back of a spoon until it is firm and even.  

Wash out the processor and add in all the filling ingredients except for the finishing salt. Process until smooth and silky, then pour over the crust. 

Smooth it out evenly with a spatula.  

Cover and place in the freezer for about 5 hours, or until firm. It does take a while to firm up. Once firm, garnish with the finishing salt and cut into 16 squares. 

Serve straight from the freezer or allow to thaw for a few minutes before serving. Keep the leftovers in the freezer. 

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