For Health's Sake: Cookies

Pumpkin Cookies
½ cube butter
4 cubes of pureed Apples or Sweet Potato
1 ½ c sugar
1 egg
1 c pumpkin
½ c nuts
1 c chocolate chips
2 ½ c flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp nutmeg

Cream together butter, sugar, and egg. Mix in pumpkin and puree. Mix in all dry ingredients. Add vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Oatmeal Cookies
1 cube butter
4 cubes pureed Apples
1 ½ c sugar
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 ½ c flour
2 c oats

Beat butter for 30 seconds. Add puree, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and cloves. Beat until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Add flour. Then add oats. If desired add 1 cup of raisins or substitute 1 cup of chocolate chips for the cinnamon and cloves. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes.

Malted Milk Ball Cookies
½ cup butter, softened
3 cubes of pureed Apples or Sweet Potato
1 ¼ cups brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
3 eggs
¼ cup cooking oil
1 ½ tsp. vanilla
3 ½ cups flour
1 ½ cups whole bran cereal
3 cups malted milk balls, crushed (or chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a mixing bowl beat butter and puree with mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugars, baking soda, and salt. Beat until well combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs, oil, and vanilla. Beat in as much flour as you can with mixer. Stir in any remaining flour and the cereal. Reserve ½ cup crushed malted milk ball candies to sprinkle on top. Stir remaining candies into dough.
Shape dough into 1 ½ inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden. Place cookie sheet on wire rack. Immediately sprinkle tops of warm cookies with reserved crushed candies. Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer to wire rack. Cool completely.

Apple Cookies
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
8 cubes of pureed apple
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup chopped raisins
3/4 cup chopped nuts
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves

Cream butter and sugar together. Add apple puree and blend into mixture. Sift flour. Add baking soda, salt and spices to flour. Sift again. Add sifted dry ingredients to shortening and stir until smooth. Add raisins and nuts. Drop onto a greased baking sheet spacing approximately 2 inches apart. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 12 minutes.

Chocolate Pudding Cookies
2 1/4 C Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 C Butter (softened)
4 cubes of pureed Apples
1/4 C Sugar
3/4 C Brown Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla1
(4 oz) chocolate instant pudding (or vanilla for a white cookie)
2 eggs
1 (12 oz) package of chocolate chips
pinch of salt

Mix flour and salt with baking soda and set aside. Combine butter, sugars, vanilla and pudding mix in a large bowl. Beat until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Add chocolate chips. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Pricing

The organic puree comes in ice cube form. There are 12 cubes per bag which is about 12-14 ounces per bag. Just thaw the cubes and add them to your recipes.

Apple: $3.75
Butternut Squash: $3.75
Carrot: $3.75
Sweet Potato: $3.75
Yellow Squash: $3.75
Spinach: $5.50

Zucchini: $3.75

If there is a particular fruit or vegetable that you would like to order, please email me and I will get it for you.

Almost all of the produce I use is organic. Because the prices of organic produce change frequently, the prices of the purees are subject to change.

Make the Most of Your Food

Oatmeal: Cook one cup of oats with two cups of water. Bring to boil, then simmer for a few minutes. To help cool off the oatmeal to give to a hungry child, add three or four cubes of apple puree. This will cool the oatmeal and add a nice sweet taste without adding sugar.

Yogurt: Buy plain yogurt. Add as many thawed cubes of apple or berry puree as you like to sweeten your yogurt. This will give you that creamy and sweet taste without the high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients you want to avoid.

Oil: Try to always cook with extra virgin olive oil, coconut or macadamia nut oils instead of vegetable oil or canola oil. For baking use coconut oil to give your cake or cookies that rich, moist texture. You can feel good about getting more Omega 3's in your diet.

Flour: Try using whole wheat flour for some if not all of the flour a recipe calls for. Whole wheat pastry flour is a great substitute. It is much lighter than regular whole wheat flour. The whole grains add fiber and nutrients that are stripped away in all-purpose flour. Also, try using spelt or oat flour to replace some of the flour.

Salt: Get rid of unneccesary salt. Try making cookies or quick-baked breads without using salt. There is not much of a difference in the taste. If you need to add the salt, ditch the iodized salt and go for the sea salt. This adds more minerals to your diet.

Butter: Try combining regular butter (room temperature) with some extra virgin olive oil in a plastic container. Keep it in the fridge - it will spread easier and add more of the essential omega 3 fats to your diet.

PB&J sandwiches: If your children love PB&J's, try using almond butter instead of peanut butter. You will enjoy a fun new nut taste and a much healthier fat. Also, try using apple butter in place of jams and jellies. It is pure apple as opposed to the high calorie sugars, high fructose corn syrups, and articial sweetners.

Bananas: Want a yummy treat without the dairy or excessive calories? Try peeling a banana, wrapping it in plastic wrap and sticking it in the freezer for a few hours.

Cookies: Try replacing half of the flour the recipe calls for with some oat flour. Just take whole oats and blend in your blender until finely ground. It gives your cookie a nice hearty flavor and some extra nutrients.

Vegetables: When cooking vegetables, steam them as opposed to boiling them. You will retain flavor, color and nutrients by steaming them. Both extended heat and liquid can destroy or leach out valuable nutrients.

Soups: Breadcrumbs are a quick, nutritious thickener for soup. Try whole-wheat or rye crumbs for hearty meal soups or stews. They can also be used to thicken sauces, or in sauced dishes or casseroles.

Mayonaise: Try using plain yogurt in place of mayo in recipes. It is a much healthier option and has a similar texture for your recipe.

Cookies

Recipes

Pricing

Make the Most of Your Food