I don’t know about you, but when life gets crazy…give this woman a cookie.

Now I know that sugar is not the answer when you’re not feeling overworked/stressed/tired/crabby…but dang, when those cravings kick in…I could care less. I want the dang cookie. Pre-diabetic body be darned!

If you couldn’t tell from my months-long hiatus from my beloved blog…I may or may not have been craving a few cookies lately. Between a long-undiagnosed sinus infection, some massive projects at work, traveling, and finally having an offer accepted on a house…we’ve been a bit busy. Add in a healthy dose of springtime activities kicking into gear (me coaching for Girls on the Run and Tom’s multiple softball leagues) and it’s become normal for Tom and I to spend more time chatting over email or text (or my beloved shared Google docs of to-do’s that keep me sane) than in-person.

As you all know, I’m not going to succumb to my desire for a Tollhouse chocolate chip cookie every time the going gets tough. That being said, I am going to acknowledge that when paired with doing my best to get enough sleep and ensuring I’m still regularly working out…a cookie ain’t gonna kill me. That noted, it would still be nice if there was a cookie that I could eat and not feel guilty at all.

Meet this blog’s challenge: How can I make a satisfying cookie that fits my dietary needs and will also be thoroughly enjoyed by Tom (…primarily so I don’t eat them all myself)?

So…where’s the compromise?

Here’s our answer:

• Swap typical cookie ingredient chocolate for one of God’s greatest gifts to humans: peanut butter (delicious and protein-packed!)
• Ditch any form of refined sugar for unsweetened apple sauce (ensure it’s no sugar added, friends!)
• Utilize cookie stamps (or your handy-dandy fork) to make a thin, yet cakey cookie that satisfies your eyes just as much as your stomach!

| Crave-Worthy Cookies | 

Serves: 6 Tom’s or 9 Alaina’s (18-24 cookies)

Ingredients Needed:

• 1 cup natural peanut butter, chilled so it’s slightly stiff
  • As always, I love me some Market Pantry Natural Creamy PB

• 3/4 cup no sugar added applesauce, de-liquefied
  • Note: Sounds crazy, but you simply place in floursack/tea towel (or even triple-layered paper towel if you’re in a pinch) and wring out. Then, voila! De-liquefied applesauce
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp. all-natural honey
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• Cooking spray

 Directions:

First things first.: Get your oven on and sheet pan prepped…

• Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F
• Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat

Now make your delectable and delicious dough…

• Combine all ingredients (minus the cooking spray) in a bowl in any which way you want…EXCEPT FOR ONE THING: ensure you dump the baking soda on top of the applesauce
  • Why? You need the baking soda to react with the acid in the applesauce to get the slight rise of the cookies. 

Now I know you’re thinking “this is so speedy!”…and I hate to burst your bubble…

• Take your bowl of dough and stick it in the fridge to chill for thirty minutes. You want stiff cookie dough so the cookies hold their fun shapes. It’s worth it. Hang in their with me, friends. Go throw on an episode of you favorite half-hour sitcom and then come back.
  • Note: I recommend The Office or Park and Rec. Your laughing will distract you from how much you want to eat a cookie. Unless you watch Leslie Knope eat waffles..then maybe not…

Ding! Ding! It’s been thirty minutes! Let’s get these babies in the oven…

• Using a cookie scooper, drop one inch balls of dough on a silicone mat-lined baking sheet about two inches apart

• Once your sheet is full (about 12 cookies worth), grab a lightly greased cookie stamp or lightly greased fork (use cooking spray to grease) and press down on each ball to create a 1/4 to 1/2 inch high circular cookie (re-greasing as needed as you go)
• 
  • Note: I LOVE MY COOKIE STAMPS. Bless my husband for knowing if Nordic Ware makes a new product I will love it–these were my Christmas present this year and they work FABULOUSLY for these cookies. 

• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until cookies are set–they will be slightly dark around the edges but will not be completely stiff

• Cool cookies on the baking sheet for five minutes

• Once five minutes have passed, use a cookie spatula to transfer the cookies to a cooling rack

• After they’ve mostly cooled (about thirty minutes), place paper towel under the cookies and let them completely cool for about two hours
  • Why paper towels? Well, these cookies are primarily peanut butter so they’re a little oily when they’re warm. Let them cool on paper towels and you’ll keep a crisp cookie for later!
• Complete above steps for remaining dough–it should make about another 6 to 12 cookies
• After cookies have completely cooled (at least two hours), store in an airtight container with layers of paper towel between cookie layers
• Eat cookies within five days of baking (and hats off to you if they actually last that long!!)

Now just look at these pretty cookies!

These cookies are cakey, yet they have crisp edges that give them a little bit of a crunch that’s just p-e-r-f-e-c-t. It’s the same satisfaction you get from that fabulous  just-out-of-the-oven chocolate chip cookie…yet these cookies stay this way after they’ve cooled. On top of that, each cookie only has 3 grams of sugar and 5 grams of carbs…and a whopping 3.5 grams of protein!

You know what that protein means? I can actually be satisfied with TWO COOKIES. Yes, TWO!

{Note: 2 cookies. That’s the actual serving of Oreo’s…not that I ever actually just eat two. Let’s get real…they’re Oreo’s. I eat like five at LEAST. Praise the LORD I have these cookies to help with my cookie cravings}

{Second Note: Now that I’m thinking about Oreo’s, why do they put like 50 in a package? Does any human actually get 25 servings out of a pack of Oreo’s?!}

{Third Note: Does anyone actually buy the normal “stuf” Oreo’s? It’s the same price for Double Stuf which is arguably the perfect ratio of filling to cookie. Why do they even sell they normal “stuf?” So. Many. Questions.}

Crap…got off topic there thinking about Oreo’s. See friends? That’s why these “crave-worthy cookies” are so dang good–no temptation, no serving size deliberation, and most of all: no guilt.

And yes, in case you were wondering, Tom loves them too. I mean, he loves most food if it comes in large quantities (see Exhibit A), but still. He really liked these cookies and thought they paired perfectly with a glass of cold milk as an after dinner treat.

You can bet big money that these cookies will be one of the first items I make in our new house when we move in at the end of the month. Until then, I have our entire house packed up except for four plates, four bowls, four glasses, and a grill pan*

{*Note for Thomas: Sorry again babe that I packed everything up a full month before we moved. I appreciate you living out our vows and giving me a crap ton of grace even though I packed away all our pots and pans. Which leaves you basically zero easy food options (ie: no spaghetti of frozen pizza) when I travel for work all next week. Oops.} 

And while packing and moving may be a hassle, I have uncovered some gems like the below while we’ve been putting our entire lives into boxes…

…that remind me just how lucky I am to be married to my amazing cat-loving husband who has an appetite that doesn’t quit. He keeps me on my toes and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Here’s to making many more culinary compromises…all in the name of love.

xoxo,

alaina