Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Gluten-free Oatmeal Peanut-butter Cookies - Version #2

I was playing around with this recipe today, and here's my 2nd version, which really has two different ways of doing it. My measurements are not exact, because I was going by look, feel, and taste, though I based it on my first recipe. So, please do the same when you make yours! This is just a guide.  But for me it turned out better than my other recipe, so I wanted to share again.


1 cup gluten-free oats
1/4 cup or so flax seeds
1/4 cup coconut oil after melted, about 2 Tb. hard
Nearly 1/2 cup maple syrup
2 organic eggs, whisked
1/2 carrot & apple pulp (or just carrot)
1 tsp vanilla
3 heaping tablespoons organic, natural peanut butter (or nut butter of your choice)
1/2 tsp. of cinnamon
2 tsps. or so of cocoa powder
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 cup (approx. for whole recipe, or 1/2 if you add it later) soy flour - Optional (I added it in half-way through, and actually liked it better without this, but it is helpful if you want to roll them into neat round cookies.)
These would also be good with pecans or other nuts, but I didn't want to use them this time.

After mixing these up, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
I found you don't really need to grease the cookie sheets--yay!  Drop cookie dough by spoonful or by hand, about 1 1/2 inch round.
Bake for about 9 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges.
You may serve with a dollop of plain yogurt, touch of maple syrup, and a dash of cinnamon, as pictured.
Makes 25-30 1 1/2-inch cookies.

To recap, the main differences from my previous recipe are the flour, the baking powder, and the cocoa powder.  Let me know how it turns out for you, or what you changed! :)

Saturday, March 7, 2015

God's Battle Plan for the Mind - Book Review



This is a well-laid out, hard-hitting book on the topic of Biblical mediation.  The very word "meditation" brings to mind false religious groups/practices, but there is definitely a clear use of meditation in the Bible, and there are even commands to do so.  The book tells about "occasional" and "deliberate" meditation, both of which have their place.  This book lays all these things out, as well as other reasons for meditating on God's Word, distractions from doing so, and ways to aid in meditation.  For someone who struggles with doing so amidst the entertainment and busyness of life, this was an especially convicting and practical book.  There were many great quotes from Puritan authors such as Thomas Watson, Jonathan Edwards, Richard Baxter, and more--my book is pretty well marked up. I definitely recommend this!

I received this book from crossfocusedreviews.com in exchange for my honest review. Thank you!

P.S. - For a good, longer review, check this out.  I should add some of my favorite quotes (such as two from this site) to my review, too.