Monday, June 17, 2013

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Hello, hello. Let's talk about being healthy for a bit, okay? As I was scrolling through my past posts, I realized I wasn't really fulfilling my slogan of "an attempt at healthy living". It was time to live it up. As summer began, my diet became a little cray cray and I completely disregarded exercise. I'm beginning to develop a summer routine though. This post will be a bit of a lecture, so if you're rolling your eyes, please just skip down to the recipe! :) 
Flourless cookies? Damn straight, homies. I swear this isn't some sort of BS. Now, the lecturing is about to begin. I'll go through why flour and gluten were cut out of my diet; benefits of honey (yes these are sugar free); and a little bit of my recent exercise routine, HIIT. 

A few months ago, I began cutting all wheat/gluten products out of my diet because I had stumbled across an article about gluten sensitivity, which I boldly self-diagnosed as a problem in my life. Since I stopped my gluten intake, my overall energy levels have increase and my stomach no longer hurts from the wretched bloating. Now, there are mixed professional beliefs out there; some believe taking gluten out of a diet is more detrimental than keeping it in the diet, while others believe that cutting gluten out can improve overall energy levels and health. I'm no professional, but from my experiences I do believe that cutting as much gluten as possible out of your life will help with fatigue, headaches, and bloating. With that being said, you can freely enjoy these cookies, that is, unless you've got peanut allergies.


Now we're onto the benefits of honey. While there are many uses of honey, I'll be focusing on my favorite benefit.

I am one of those people who is allergic to everything outside, basically most of nature-- anything from grasses to hamsters. Lucky me, right? What I'm trying to say is that honey can potentially ease your agonizing allergies (it would be great if honey could fully get rid of allergies though!). How this works is through suppression immunotherapy, which is a method of alleviating allergies through gradually introducing allergens to your body system. Normally, when your body is exposed to allergens, an allergic reaction occurs. 

Let's say a little speck of pollen, or antigen, enters your body through your nostril. This antigen triggers your white blood cells to produce antibodies that help defend your body from the antigen, or the "invader". What then happens is an allergic reaction; the antibody destroys the antigen through promoting the production of chemicals that kill off the antigen. As this is happening, you are experiencing an allergic reaction. For many of us, the luckier ones (let's attempt to be positive, shall we?), we only have irritating reactions that include but are not limited to: watery eyes, itchy throat, runny noses. Others who have it worse can often experience life-threatening consequences. 

Okay, so now that I've given a little bit of an explanation of what an allergic reaction is, I'll very briefly go over how honey reduces allergic reactions through suppression immunotherapy. By introducing local pollens to your body through local honey, allergic reactions eventually become less severe and more tolerable. This method is most commonly known through shot treatments from allergologists, but eating small increments of honey each day can also result with the same effect.

Despite the many benefits of honey, there can be complications as well. For more information on this sweetener, click here.



If you're a true peanut butter lover, I know you'll love these. They're so incredibly soft in the middle, with a little crispy outer edge. Mmm, enjoy!

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies Recipe: makes 16, adapted from myrecipes
1 cup all natural creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1 large egg
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:
  1. Preheat the oven to 325 F (160 C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Stir together the peanut butter, honey, baking soda, and salt. Add the egg and incorporate until smooth. Drop by the Tablespoons, two inches apart on the lined baking sheets.
  3. Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until cookie edges brown. 
  4. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for about 15 minutes. Cookies best eaten within 2 days.
Notes:
- I used 1/2 cup creamy and 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter for more of a crunch ;)
- If using all natural peanut butter/homemade , make sure the peanuts were roasted/toasted
- Feel free to add in 2/3 cup chocolate chips!

With Love,
Grace 


Works Cited:
"Allergic Reaction Causes and Triggers: Foods, Medicine, and More." WebMD.com. Ed. Laura J.  
       Martin. WebMD, 14 Aug. 2012. Web. 17 June 2013. <http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide
       /allergic-reaction-causes>.
Gardner, Karen. "What Are the Benefits of Honey Made Where You Live?" Livestrong.com
       Livestrong, 27 June 2011. Web. 17 June 2013. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/479702-
      what-are-the-benefits-of-honey-made-where-you-live/>.
News Medical Staff. "Suppression Immunotherapies." News-medical.net. News Medical, n.d. Web. 
       17 June 2013. <http://www.news-medical.net/health/Suppression-Immunotherapies.aspx>.

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29 comments:

  1. I love a lot about this, especially the simple ingredients. Definitely going to give these a try!

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  2. AAAh! Your blog makes me so hungry! :P
    I am so gonna try these.
    Post more baking recipes!

    -Ru
    glitterandblush.blogspot.in

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    Replies
    1. I've recently been going Gluten Free, so baking has been a bit more difficult. I definitely want to post more baking recipes though!

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  3. These cookies look fantastic Grace! Love that they have no flour and honey as a sweetener. Yum!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks! I want to try them with other nut butters sometime :)

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  4. Hehe thank you very much for dropping by at my blog.
    Wow ! Those cookies look so good! My niece actually wants to make some this weekend so we are definitely trying this recipe. Plus I was a bit reluctant in making any because of the calories haha, so this is a good version to make! <3

    http://www.theforestelf.blogspot.com.au

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    Replies
    1. Hope you and your niece enjoyed them! Haha- low cal for sure d:

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  5. I didn't know flourless cookies were possible and these look delicious! Thanks for sharing! I've been having some health issues recently and am thinking about cutting out wheat/gluten to see if it might help. Sorry to hear about your allergies. I have friends who swear by using local honey to help their allergies.

    Rowena @ rolala loves

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    Replies
    1. I really do encourage you to cut out wheat/gluten for about a week to see how things go! I've recently been taking grape seed extract pills to help with allergies too :) Thanks for stopping by and hope you feel better!

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  6. hi Grace!!!

    I really love this post.. i love all about the fact you wrote down.. you see, i'm also on diet. diet not just to stay slim but because of my healthy issue. i've been under observation for more than a year now. since i moved to italy i've been having some trouble with food, with allergies and with my asthma. the last allergy test i did was one week ago and i learned that i have allergy with plants like olive, grains, nut tree and pollen. i still have to undergo with other test because i'm suffering with stomach pain and bloating. as of now i just eliminate milk and all dairy products.. and i can say i'm feeling much better cutting them out. i still have some problem eating pizza, pasta and bread or anything with grain... it is actually very hard for me since i never had this kind of food reaction before. but as you mentioned it is also great to do exercise, walking and cutting out some fats :)
    anyway.. i love this recipe!!! one i can add to my recipe book ;)
    take care dear and wish you a lovely week!!!

    xoxo,Meg of Sweet Gala's

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    Replies
    1. Hey Meg!

      I'm really glad that you enjoyed reading this post. After I changed my diet to more healthy foods, I actually have been feeling a lot better. I'm so sorry to hear about your allergies though! Hope you find ways to get around your allergies and feel better! I do wish I could still eat grain foods though...they were all oh-so-tasty! xx

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  7. mmm those look great!

    - Janine
    http://theeoptimist.blogspot.com

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  8. I love that your name too is Grace. And love the simplicity of these cookies :)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Grace ;) Haha it's always so weird saying your own name!

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  9. oh Grace these cookies look amazing! I'm a huge peanut butter lover so I'm sure I would love these! Totally saving this recipe for the future. I'm glad you're feeling better without any gluten!!
    xox Amy

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! I'm glad I'm feeling better too :) I'm also wanting to try these with other nut butters too! Hope you love them like I did. xx

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  10. Ohmygosh! I made peanut butter cookies too! Great minds think alike, but your flourless version is making me drool :D

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  11. I love baking with honey instead of sugar, but I had no idea of the benefits it had with allergies!

    Reanna.
    youll-move-mountains@blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. Baking with honey can be tricky, but I'm really glad that these turned out! I love all the benefits honey gives. Thanks for stopping by!

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  12. I love honey, especially raw local honey. It just tastes so darn good. These cookies look amazing--I can't believe they're made without flour!

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    Replies
    1. Awh, yeah raw honey is delicious. As I was indulging, I couldn't believe they were made without flour either! I actually could not stop eating them hehe

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  13. Love your blog!

    (if you would like to follow each other, let me know?) :)
    -Ru
    Glitter & Blush

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  14. Nothing quite like the peanut butter cookie. These look delicious!

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  15. These are so getting made! Honey can work wonders for people with allergies but it needs to be local, raw preferably. Otherwise you're building an immunity to plants not affecting you.

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