Almond Meringue Tea Cookies

One of the things that I admire most about my parent's marriage is how they always seem to find time for each other. Even though both of their schedules are insanely busy, they still manage to always get time to connect one on one - usually over a cup of tea. These cookies are so perfect for tea! They are crunchy on the outside, but delicious and chewy on the inside...they are also the recipe I use when I make my mom's favorite almond cheesecake (of which the recipe I will never ever share...it's just to sacred). 

Almond Meringue Tea Cookies

Yields 24+

1 ¾ cups slivered peeled almonds

1 cup sugar

2 egg whites

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

Grind the almonds in a food processor until they are a semi-fine meal. Put half of the sugar in the food processor with the ground almonds, and blend until completely combined.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until they are soft peaks.

Add in the other half of the sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks are formed.

Gently fold in the almond/sugar mixture and both of the extracts. Make sure you evenly combine everything and there aren’t large patches of meringue or almond.

Use a spoon to scoop small amounts of the batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Let the unbaked cookies sit out for 1 to 2 hours, and then bake at 325 for 15 to 20 minutes.

The great thing about these cookies is that they can store for a really long time...not that they do though. In fact, they never do because they are so good! Regardless, the harder outside of the cookie will make it difficult for the cookie's chewy center to also become hard. I definitely recommend brewing a pot of English Breakfast Tea while these cookies are in the oven or cooling down; their subtle sweetness perfectly compliments the richness of the tea.

Chocolate Avocado Cookies

...what?" (you may have just asked yourself), "avocado and chocolate and cookies? all together??? It's true, and they were actually quite delicious.

I've noticed this new thing where everyone tries to make everything as healthy as physically possible, so I thought I would jump on that bandwagon and give something different a try. Avocados are a really excellent substitute for things such as butter or any other paste (e.g. peanut butter, almond paste, etc.) because not only are they healthy, but they hardly have any taste. They also kept these cookies very chewy for as long as they stayed un-eaten, which was a huge bonus! 

Chocolate Avocado Cookies 

Yields 20+

2  avocados

½ cup dairy, soy free chocolate

1 tbsp coconut oil

¼ cup cocoa powder

3 tbsp flour

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup honey

3 eggs

In a medium bowl with an electric mixer, beat the avocados until smooth and whipped.

In a small bowl in the microwave, melt together the chocolate and coconut oil.

In another small bowl, sift together the cocoa powder and flour; make sure there aren’t any lumps!

Beat the chocolate mixture into the avocado. Once they are completely combined, add half of the cocoa powder and flour and beat in, then add one egg and beat it in. Add the other half and mix in, and then add another egg. 

Beat in the sugar, honey, and finally the last egg.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let chill in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Scoop onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes

Honestly, these didn't spread half as much as I was expecting them to. The batter (dough? I don't even know), was very airy and not very solid, so I left a lot of space for them to spread out, but I was pleasantly surprised when they didn't. I guess that is just another beauty of baking with avocado.

Keep the cookies on the parchment paper but take them off of the baking sheet. Let the cookies cool completely on the parchment paper.

Remove the cookies from the parchment paper with a metal spatula and put them on a cooking rack. The cookies will be a little sticky, so it would be best to not stack them on top of each other...like I did in this picture here...

Haha I really didn't realize that this was my next picture when I wrote that you shouldn't stack the cookies. But when you stack them they stick together. Just so y'all know. 

These were definitely an experiment, but they were so good! I will definitely be making them again. I think next time I'll put dairy free chocolate chunks or chips in them too. 

The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Ever

That title boasts quite a claim, huh? Fortunately for you though, I'm right. These are so amazing and delicious!! Crunchy on the outside and perfectly chewy on the inside...it doesn't get much better than this!

The Best Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Ever

Yields about 24

1 ½ cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1tbsp ground cinnamon

½ cup coconut oil

1 ½ cup sugar

1 tbsp molasses

2 eggs

2 tsps vanilla

1 ½ cup oats 

2 cups raisins

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and cinnamon until evenly mixed, and set aside.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the coconut oil, sugar, and molasses until combined and fluffy {about 3 minutes if you slightly soften your coconut oil}.

Beat in eggs and vanilla.

Beat in the flour mixture little by little until it becomes too hard to use the electric mixer. Once that happens, you can either start to use a wooden spoon or your hands {I prefer to use my hands}.

Add in the oats and combine {using your hands really comes in handy *pun intended* here}.

Finally, add your raisins!

I'll be honest, I prefer golden raisins to a fault, and the only reason I used regular raisins in these cookies is that i ate all of the golden raisins we had in the house :(.

Roll the dough into medium-sized balls and press lightly onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Even though they won't spread by a huge amount, your cookies still do get a bit larger, so I would recommend leaving 1 to 2 inches of space between your cookie dough balls {especially if you make your cookies big like I did}.

Bake on 350 for 15-20 minutes.

Bake until your cookies are golden brown and starting to get a little darker around the edges. Make sure they don't look too wet in the middle!

Like most any cookie, these are best when eaten warm :).

Enjoy the best oatmeal raisin cookies ever!!!