I’ll be the first to admit that baking is not my forte. The reason for that is simple. I have a problem with just about every baked goods recipe out there. Too much refined sugar, flour, or fat, to be precise. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I believe in healthy treats. So I experiment a lot. The result is not always great, but it’s always healthy. And we always eat every single piece of it.
The way I see it, baking tasty sweets loaded with white sugar, white flour and butter is relatively easy. But creating treats that are delicious using wholesome ingredients takes real talent.
This recipe for carrot & coconut cookies is adapted from Heidi Swanson’s (already healthy) recipe on 101 Cookbooks. I made several changes, such as adding some spices and coconut flakes, using coconut flour to replace some of the flour and reducing the amount of maple syrup the recipe called for, to name a few. I like the mild sweetness and chewy texture of these guilt-free cookies.
Carrot & Coconut Cookies
Wet ingredients
- 1 cup grated carrots, packed
- 1/4 cup butter, melted
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1 tsp baking powder (preferably aluminium-free)
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 375 F and prepare two baking sheets.
In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients, expect the walnuts (oats, coconut and whole-wheat pastry flours, coconut flakes, baking powder, spices and salt). Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (grated carrots, melted butter and coconut oil, maple syrup, egg, vanilla and grated ginger).
Add the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in the chopped walnuts.
Using a cookie scoop, drop tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheets.
Using a fork wetted in warm water, gently press down on the dough.
Bake in preheated oven for 12 minutes or until edges are golden. Let the cookies cool for 15 minutes.
Enjoy with a glass of (soy) milk, perhaps.
Yields 2 1/2 dozen cookies.