Mom’s Oatmeal Carrot Cookies

I’m generally not much of a baker because it involves too much measuring — I prefer to work based on feel.  That being said, there are definitely a few things I make time to bake.  My mom’s oatmeal carrot cookies are one of the best baked treats out there — they are delicious and are actually pretty good for you!

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup whole rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup grated carrots (fine to leave skin on)

Combine the flour, oats, baking powder, salt, sunflower seeds, and coconut.  In a separate bowl whisk together the syrup, oil, and vanilla and add mixed wet ingredients to mixed dry ingredients.  Add the grated carrots to the combined batter and mix well.

Spoon your batter onto a greased cookie sheet in 1 – 2 inch rounds and bake at 375 for 10 – 15 minutes until the cookies begin to brown on the top and edges.  Use a spatula to move them to a cooling rack when they come out of the oven and let them cool slightly before eating.  The cooling helps firm up their shape and allows a nice crunch to form on the edges.  They are equally delicious still warm straight from the rack or cooled over the days to come.  They keep well in an air-tight container for about five days or frozen for months.

Note that these cookies are vegan, dairy free, sugar free, and can easily be made with gluten free flour and oats.  They are great for accommodating food allergies or picky eaters.  Even though they may seem like extreme health food because they are cookies made with carrots, I promise they are incredibly tasty and will be appreciated by friends and family of all ages!  I made them recently with my brother who doesn’t eat refined sugar and they were perfect.  We enjoyed them on a cold winter afternoon with hot mugs of tea.

Keep the nutritional highlights of these ingredients in mind while making the cookies and definitely while eating them —

Whole rolled oats are full of dietary fiber, iron, and have been proven to help lower cholesterol levels.  Baking oats into healthy cookies, granola, snack bars etc. can be nice alternatives to include oats in the diet in addition to traditional oatmeal for breakfast.

Sunflower seeds are packed with nutrition!  They provide folic acid, vitamin E, calcium, manganese, iron, zinc, magnesium, and selenium.  They have also been shown to help lower cholesterol levels and provide the body with healthy fats.

Carrots are filled with antioxidants due to their bright orange color, which help protect against cancer, heart disease, and age-related degeneration.  In particular, carrots have very high levels of vitamin A, which benefits eyesight.

Maple syrup is made from the sap from sugar maple trees.  Although it is made of sucrose at a molecular level, it also includes many beneficial minerals and antioxidants that table sugar doesn’t offer.  Most notably, maple syrup contains potassium, calcium, zinc, and manganese.

Olive oil is one of the most beneficial fats available in the modern diet.  It is primarily made up of monounsaturated fatty acids, which can help lower cholesterol levels and prevent heart disease. Some research also shows that monounsaturated fatty acids can help support healthy insulin levels and control blood sugar.

See, these cookies really are healthy!  Enjoy.