The Joy of Cookies

Is there anything better in this world then a really nice warm cookie? I mean honestly - how can you possibly be having a bad moment when the smell of freshly baked cookies is wafting out of your kitchen? It's just not possible.

Making your own cookie recipe is tough. I've tried and where the cooking you can get creative baking is more of a scientific masterpiece. This morning I decided that I needed Oatmeal Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies...and I need to make them "healthful" because the FH has high cholesterol. So rather then infringing on copyrights here is what we'll do. Here is the link to the original recipe.

Now here's how I change it:

• Rather then 1 3/4 cup of regular flour I use 3/4 cup regular flour and 3/4 cup of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour....I know it's not exactly the same measurement but Whole Wheat sops up more of the wet stuff so you need a little less of it.
• Rather then 2 WHOLE sticks of butter I use one stick of butter (because it's always better with some butter) and 4 Tbs of Lighter Bake that was recommended back here.
• All those rolled oats don't really cook up so good so I use 2 cups of Rolled oats and 1 cup of Quick oats. It works.
• I add in Extra Dark Chocolate Chips and Chopped Walnuts.
• I've tried messing with the sugar and to be honest it's just not worth it. The brown sugar Splenda is just not up to snuff in my opinion and they are cookies after all. I figure all that extra Fiber I added balances things out just fine.

Do you have any healthy tricks for your cookies? What's your very favorite cookie?

Naughty like Lindsay Lohan Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Earlier in the week, I posted a healthy banana muffin recipe. Good for WW, good for fiber and omegas, and they actually taste good. But, here and now, I am posting the incredibly naughty Otis Spunkmeyer-esque banana chocolate chip muffins for those of us that are pregnant, or otherwise eating from the Fuckit Bucket (a term coined by Linda at All & Sundry that I love and use frequently).

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They are the moistest, tastiest mofo muffins I've ever made. Wanna know the weirdest part? It's made with mayo. At first, I was weirded out by the whole thing, but it works! And I make it with whole wheat flour and low-fat mayo so they're not TOO bad. And you could always substitute the sugar for Splenda for Baking. And you could eliminate the chocolate chips (but, why in the name of all that is good in the world would you do that?) and add maybe some walnuts?

Anyway, it's super easy and a great way to get rid of those bananas sitting in your fruit bowl that are turning all sorts of funkadelic colors. And everyone will love them. Promise. Go make them and then tell me how much you love me. Seriously.

THE WORLD'S BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP BANANA MUFFINS

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour (or whole w
1 c. sugar (or use equivalent Splenda product)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1/2 c. mayo
4 very ripe bananas
1/2 c. chocolate chips (the original recipe called for a whole cup but on my first try, it was too much, so I lowered it)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
2. In another bowl (I use my KitchenAid, which I swear I don't know how people live without), beat egg. Add in bananas and vanilla. Then mayo.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix well. Add in chocolate chips last. The batter will appear slightly runny - this is okay!
4. Bake at 375 for 25-35 minutes, depending on the size of your muffins. Just watch them until the edges turn a golden brown and they pass the toothpick test. Cool and store on a plate loosely covered to avoid stickiness. If you put them in a bag or tupperware, they get gooey.
5. Email me to tell me how awesome I am.