Zucchini Cookies! Two recipes: Cardamom Ginger and Chocolate Chip
by Kelly Wolf
Adding green vegetables to cookies makes them healthy right?! And cookies can be for breakfast too, yes?! This post shares two recipes of majorly upgraded takes on your classic oatmeal raisin or chocolate chip cookie.
These cookies are made with whole food ingredients, without refined sugar or refined flour. Adding zucchini not only makes for extra texture but of course, gives them all the more green veggie nutrient boost!
Zucchini squash is high in antioxidants, found in their dark skin (don't peel them), plus full of other essential nutrients like vitamin C (50% DV in one zucchini), manganese, potassium, vitamin K and much else. Summertime is just around the corner when they will be cranking out of the garden. It's time to start nailing some zucchini recipes!
The first recipe here is for the Classic Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie. Sweetened with honey (raw and local is most preferable) and scattered with dark chocolate chips, these are promised to fix a cookie craving.
The second recipe is naturally sweetened by blended raisins, soaking them first to make them softer, and sprinkled with more raisins plus walnuts and extra spices for a wholesome too-good-to-be-true option. Rather than eggs, this recipe uses sunflower seed butter, an excellent source of Omega fatty acids. Touches of cardamom and ginger give an extra spark to their bite while making the kitchen smell amazing. These spices are worth it, promised!
Both are ideal for a pick-me-up snack or treat. Good luck deciding which recipe is your favorite!
DARK CHOCOLATE CHIP ZUCCHINI COOKIES (gluten free)
INGREDIENTS
2 medium zucchini, grated
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1 1/2 cup oats ground to fine flour
1/2 tsp pink or sea salt
1/4 tsp coarse sea salt (optional)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup raw honey or maple syrup
1/2 cup melted unrefined virgin coconut oil, grass fed butter, or combination
2 organic pasture raised eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/3 cup raisins (optional)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash zucchini and grate them with a cheese grater or pulsed in the food processor. Squeeze the water out with your hands (can save this and drink those nutrients!), transfer to large bowl. Add dry ingredients to shreds, including chocolate chips and raisins, mix. Combine honey, coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla together in another bowl or in the food processor. Add wet to dry throughly. Grease cookie sheet. Scoop batter into balls and slightly flatten on sheet. Bake for 25 minutes, remove and transfer to drying rack, let cool 15 minutes. Enjoy!!
CARDAMOM GINGER BREAKFAST ZUCCHINI COOKIES (No added sugar, vegan, egg-free, gluten free)
INGREDIENTS
1 cup raisins, separated (1/2 c soaked, 1/2 c dry)
2 grated medium zucchini
1 1/2 cup oats-ground to fine flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp pink or sea salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cardamom powder
1 tsp ginger powder
1/2 cup crumbled walnuts
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup sunflower seed butter (unsweetened)
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil water, place 1/2 cup raisins in a small bowl pour 1/2 cup water over to cover, let soak for at least 15 minutes. Shred zucchini with cheese grater or pulsed in food processor. Squeeze out water with hands, transfer to large mixing bowl. Add dry ingredients including other 1/2 cup dry raisins and walnuts. Drain water from the other 1/2 cup soaking raisins, transfer to food processor and blend until smooth with wet ingredients: coconut oil, sunflower seed butter, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly into dry ingredients (hands works well). Grease baking sheet. Scoop batter into balls and slightly flatten on sheet. Bake for 25-28 minutes until golden brown, let cool for 15, enjoy!
Makes 20 cookies.
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