Guilt-free Honey Wheat Oatmeal Cookies (no sugar!)

These little cookies are not only made from wholesome natural ingredients but are pretty darn tasty and with only 1/2 cup of honey to sweeten the whole batch, you don't have to feel guilty about serving them up to your kiddos or eating one (or three) yourself!

No Bake Energy Bars (No sugar!)

This is the new favorite snack around our house. These yummy bars are loaded with nutrients and don't include any refined sugar, yet they are as tasty as any cookie or granola bar. They are super easy to make and you can add your favorite healthy ingredients such as chia seeds, wheat germ, etc...

No Bake Cookies

These are my husband's favorite cookies. I knew that if I couldn't find a way to make these using real ingredients, I would fail to have him on board with the whole "real food" thing. He's already concerned that he'll be eating tofu with a side of cardboard when he comes home...

Anyway, these cookies were easier than I thought they'd be- in fact they actually set up every time using honey. With sugar I always failed miserably- either I undercooked and they didn't set up or I overcooked and they were dry and crumbly. I've had success every single time with this one!

No Bake Cookies

1/3 cup butter or coconut oil (I prefer coconut oil)
1/2 cup milk
1 cup honey
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 cup peanut butter (the real kind- the only ingredient should be peanuts!)
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cup oats

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, milk, honey and cocoa. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil 1-2 minutes. If you choose to use coconut oil, which I think gives it a better flavor, heat it for less time, just until it starts to boil up the pan, but don't let it boil over.

Turn off heat and stir in peanut butter. It will take longer for real peanut butter to melt since it's stored in the fridge, so I like to keep the pan on the warm burner, but with the heat off. Stir the peanut butter until mostly melted, then remove pan from heat, and stir in vanilla and oats until well mixed.

Drop by spoonfuls onto parchment lined cookie sheet and refrigerate or freeze until set (about 10 minutes).

No Bake Oatmeal Cookie Bites

These little cookie bites are a great way to get your sugar fix while still sticking to healthy ingredients. It's also a great recipe for kids to help with.

2 cups oats

1 cup unsweetened coconut

1 cup natural peanut butter

1/2 cup flax seed

3/4 to 1 cup honey (if they don't stick well add more honey or maple syrup)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup raisins (or chocolate chips if you really want to go sweet)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Mix all ingredients together using stand mixer (it's really tough to mix natural peanut butter by hand!) and roll into bite-sized balls. Store in airtight container (if they last that long).

Soft Sugar Cookies

This is my favorite sugar cookie recipe. I've tried quite a few and have heard people swear by the sour cream kind, but I always come back to this one because it never fails and the texture is perfect, soft but not too crumbly. They taste similar to the store bought kind except sooo much better. I think they are best with cream cheese frosting. We make these cookies every Halloween and the boys have so much fun helping me decorate them.

Soft Sugar Cookies

2 cubes butter (or margarine), softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Cream butter, sugar, vanilla and egg. Mix in remaining ingredients. Refrigerate 45 minutes (I don't always do this, but makes rolling out much easier). Roll dough on floured surface and cut with cookie cutters.

Bake in 375 degree oven for 7-8 minutes.

*This recipe makes a couple dozen cookies but you'll be surprised how fast they disappear!

Cream Cheese Frosting

8oz cream cheese, softened
5 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
lemon juice (I like a whole lemon)
milk to thin (1 to 2 Tablespoons)

Prepare cream cheese frosting by whipping softened cream cheese with butter and vanilla until smooth. Mix in powdered sugar until smooth. Add lemon juice to taste. Stir in milk to thin frosting to desired consistency.

Double Chocolate Cookies

Can you say YUM!?! These cookies are so moist, fudgy and cakelike. I got the recipe from Annie's Eats, if you haven't checked out this site you have got to (makes mine look like child's play). She has some fabulous recipes out there and I can't wait to try them all. I of course slightly modified the recipe so if you want the original plate size cookies check out her site.

Double Chocolate Cookies

2 cubes of butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder (I used regular)
2 1/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate)

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Cream butter and sugar. Mix in eggs and vanilla.
3. Stir in flour, salt and baking powder. This batter is really thick and sticky, I recommend using a stand mixer (I used cookie paddles).
4. Stir in chocolate chips.
5. Using a cookie scoop (trust me it will make your life sooo much easier!) scoop tablespoon size balls onto cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 15 minutes. Let cool slightly before transferring to cooling rack.

*makes 3 1/2 dozen medium sized cookies

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies *updated coconut oil instead of shortening

This is my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. I used to loathe making cookies because they always turned into flat greasy pancakes with chocolate chips clustered in the middle. A good friend taught me the secret is to use half butter (or margarine) and half shortening (*I've since discovered substituting coconut oil makes even softer yummier dough- and does not leave a coconut taste!). This recipe makes perfect cookies every time. Make sure you're on a well established exercise plan before trying these though- you cannot eat just one!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cube butter, softenend

1/2 cup shortening 1/3 cup coconut oil, softened

1 1/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Cream butter, shortening  coconut oil and sugar. Stir in egg and vanilla.

3. Add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix well.

4. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.

5. Drop by spoonfulls onto ungreased baking sheet and bake 10-12 minutes. Be sure not to overcook. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Peanut Butter Monster Cookies (flourless)

I wanted to make cookies for my friend who cannot eat gluten and came across this recipe. I didn't expect too much from them, lacking flour and all, but was really surprised at how yummy they are!

They are soft and moist and quite similar to my Oatmeal Cookies, just with peanut butter instead of flour.

Peanut Butter Monster Cookies

1 1/4 cup organic brown sugar
1/4 cup organic sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup organic chocolate chips
1/4 cup craisins
1/4 cup raisins

In a large mixing bowl cream butter, sugars, egg and vanilla. Stir in salt, cinnamon, baking soda and peanut butter. Add rolled oats and mix until combined. You will need a stand mixer for these- they are thick cookies to try and mix by hand. Stir in the chips, craisins and raisins.

Drop by spoonfulls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes (if you are using stoneware it takes a bit longer to bake). Let cookies sit for 5 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Peanut Butter M&M cookies

I've never been a huge peanut butter cookie fan. In fact I used to totally dislike them until I received some as a gift with little hershey's kisses in the center. The gooey chocolate mixed with peanut butter was amazing. I found this recipe mixed with m&m's and it is heavenly. This makes a huge batch of cookies and trust me, you will need every last cookie!

Peanut Butter M&M Cookies

2 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup butter

½ cup vegetable shortening

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs (beaten)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup M&M’s (or if you're like me, the whole bag!)

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream butter, shortening, peanut butter and sugars. Stir in flour, baking soda, and baking  powder.

3. Add eggs and vanilla extract and mix.

4. Roll into small balls, place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet and with a fork dipped in flour flatten cookies. Then flatten in the opposite direction so they cross.

5. Bake for 8-10 minutes.

Oatmeal Cookies (whole wheat!)

I've never really been a big fan of oatmeal cookies. But I was trying to think of "healthier" snacks I could feed the boys and figured it was time to try them again. I used 100% whole wheat flour and you can sneak in all sorts of things like flax seed or wheat germ- you can't even taste it.

These little cookies are so addicting- you can't eat just one. The cinnamon mixed with raisins and a hint of chocolate are just so fabulous, we ate three batches in two days! If you choose not to use whole wheat flour the consistency might be off- just make sure they're not too sticky or too crumbly, they should be just moist enough to stick together without falling apart.

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup flax seed (optional)
1/4 cup wheat germ (optional)
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350. Cream butter with sugar, cinnamon, soda and salt. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and mix just until crumbly. If it's too sticky just add a bit more oats to the mixture. Drop onto cookie sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes. Let cookies cool before transferring to wire racks otherwise they will fall apart. Another yummy variation is to use dark chocolate and cranberries instead of raisins and chocolate chips.

Fortune Cookies

I know, they're not really Chinese. I was sooo dissapointed when we didn't get any fortune cookies with our pig sandwiches in China. But it's still so fun I had to try them. I've tried the griddle method before and they did not turn out well at all. My friend sent me a recipe from her friend so I figured I'd try it again- this time in the oven. The recipe had way more flour than I wanted and I read reviews that said butter made the paper greasy, so I found a Paula Deen recipe and merged the two with fabulous results!

I first tried to make them on tin foil (I didn't have parchment paper) that did not work. Just use a regular cookie sheet and spray with pam before putting down the dough. I use a rubber scraper and spread the dough in a circle motion making it really thin. You want it to be as thin as crepe dough or thinner and really small- you'll be tempted to make them big but don't, they fold easier and cook better if they're small. If you use regular paper it will stick to the cookie but I didn't have any rice paper on hand, so they were a little hard to get out- BUT the cookie tasted yummy- much better than store bought ones and were crunchy.

Ingredients:
3 egg whites
1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (I didn't use)
1/2 cup flour
2 Tablespoons water

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper. Have fortunes ready to go on small strips of paper folded in half (rice paper works best).
2. Whip the egg whites and sugar until frothy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and/or almond extract and water. Mix in flour. Batter should resemble thin pancake batter.
3. Spoon batter into 3" circles on greased baking sheet, spreading very thin, don't do more than 4 at a time
4. Bake for 5-7 minutes until edges begin to brown slightly. Using a metal spatula quickly remove cookie (one at a time, working quickly- the cookie will harden in seconds) place fortune in center, fold in half (or thirds if you have a large cookie), then fold ends together. Place in muffin tin to cool and help hold shape.