Treating myself... to some cookie dough!
Updated: May 25, 2021
Thursday, January 14th.
*edited to remove softball content
Hey y'all! Taking care of yourself is SO important, as I've been learning throughout this past crazy year, and continue to. I think it's important to recognize how much I have GROWN in this practice, and in self-acceptance and self-appreciation.
I've made a ton of progress regarding how I think about food, nourish, and listen to my body. Hopefully I'll get a chance to write about the progress I have made in intuitive eating in a later post. For now I'd just like to say that you should treat yourself, and enjoy it too. I'm talking specifically about food here.
I don't really know how it has happened, but I've come to be afraid of eating any sweets. Sure, unrefined sugar is better for you than refined, but maple syrup still counts as added sugar.
But you guys, not intentionally stealing a line from the rad Sadie Radinsky here, making and enjoying dessert are two of the greatest joys of life. You know, I can't express the great wisdom of this saying enough: everything is a balance. And eating sweets can be a part of a really positive balance, especially ones that make you feel awesome afterwards. I'm talking nutritious ingredients, healthy fats, protein, no simple carbs, and minimal added sugar, so there's none of that sugar crash, headaches, and fatigue. As well as with changing your mindset and approach, and letting go of any doubts and restrictiveness, eating sweets can be positively uplifting!
Really listening to your body and what it needs also helps with having a stronger, clear, and open mind to not be taken advantage of by wants and cravings. This is intuitive eating.
Sometimes my body really needs a treat, and this afternoon was one of those times.
SO
I resorted to the Oh She Glows Cookbook, and made myself a treat for snack, a popular favorite: cookie dough!
peanut butter cookie dough bites
Oh She Glows
Super duper easy to make, with some oat flour, almond flour, coconut oil, peanut butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, sea salt, and chocolate chips! All mixed together with an electric hand mixer. I think it took me 10 minutes! Plus about 5 minutes of shaping. I actually made the given prep time of 15 minutes! That might just be a first....
Shaping them, or rather, compacting the "dough" into balls was the most time-consuming part. I included a picture above to show you what the texture of the dough was like. Super crumbly. I was a bit worried. But it was moist enough that with pressure, plenty of squeezing, and a little rolling, I was able to shape them into little balls. It made 14 small bites to be exact, precisely the recipe number! Plus a little extra for eating, while the bites froze up for 10 minutes...
*Update: I've made these cookie dough bites a couple times now, and I've figured out why it turned out so crumbly. When Angela said "coconut oil" she really did mean coconut oil. Like, straight from the jar—unmelted. When I used room-temp coconut oil, the dough turned out really gooey and sticky and doughy—not crumbly like this.
When I finished cleaning up, the cookie dough bites were nicely firmed up and ready to eat! The crumbs (above) were delicious, but the freezing gave them that true sticky, inner-cookie-dough texture and bite.
YUM! Hellooo cookie dough, it's been a while. And you know how much I LOVE peanut butter you guys.
I ate four of them in a matter of minutes with some of my favorite unsweetened, vanilla almond milk.
The rest are in a freezer bag in the freezer for a quick snack the rest of the week. (they eat straight from the freezer!)
Thanks for the go-ahead of cookie dough for snack, Angela! (she used to eat an entire package of store-bought cookie dough as a snack—the inspiration for making this recipe). Much enjoyed.
Wishing everyone a sweet rest of the week!
The Veg Out Gal
#60 recipes down
Comment with any cookie dough love, or the best cookie dough (recipe) you've made/eaten. I'll be making this (vegan) version again, you bet!