Power Cookies

By May 6, 2013Fitness, Fuel

Monday seems to be my favorite day to blog…

Today, though, I have lots to catch up on (school work, cleaning up, thesis, work, etc) after a long and FUN weekend at the Wildflower (WF) triathlon festival.  I fully intend to post about WF asap.  Until then, I would like to share a post I drafted a few weeks ago with a new favorite recipe:

Early mornings, when time and mental capacity are sparse, can be bettered by easy, pre-prepared, satisfying baked goods.  The recipe below, adapted from the USAT newsletter, yields some energy-dense breakfast “power cookies” that can be frozen for simple breakfasts or consumed before workouts as an energy bar.  One giant leap towards abolishing 5am refrigerator scavenging!

*I have added some suggested substitutions for some of the ingredients below.  However, my favorite, most dessert-cookie-like, batch was the product of the bold, non-italicized, ingredients.  Other versions may provide more-ideal nutrient blends (more healthy fats/less added sugar/no gluten), but go with what you have on hand and adjust to your personal preference!

Power Cookies (makes about 10 cookies)
Preheat oven to 350F
In a large bowl, mix two eggs (or 2 T. ground flax plus 6 T. water) with 1/2 c. (or less) brown sugar, 1/2 c. vegetable oil (or 1/2 c. pureed avocado*, or 1/2 c. applesauce, or 1/4 c. oil plus 1/4 c. tahini), 2/3 c. chopped dates (or other dried fruit), and cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg (fresh grated preferred) to taste.  *if using avocado, substitute agave, honey, or liquid sweetener for brown sugar.
In a separate, medium bowl, mix 1 c. whole wheat flour (or rice and/or oat flour), 1/2 c. oat bran (or additional 1/2 c. flour, or whole oats, or wheat germ, or psyllium seed husk), 1/2 t. baking soda, 1/2 t. salt, 1/3 c. chopped walnuts (or other nuts/seeds), and 1/3 c. chocolate chips.
Combine all ingredients.  Drop heaping spoonfuls (about 2 T) onto greased/line cookie sheet, lightly flatten the tops with spatula/hand, and bake for 10-13 minutes, until golden.
Enjoy with greek yogurt, nut butter, banana, coffee, milk…

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.