My Daddy (being one of the main consumers of my baked goodies. ;) ) has just got his blood test results from a month ago. And unfrotunately, his cholesterol was a little too high for our liking...which means, yes, it brings a hard lump to my throat to say it...sniff, sniff...there are to be no more cakes. No more buns or cupcakes. for Daddy, that is. All together: awwwwww.
BUT. All is not lost!!!
I CAN still make Daddy nie things for his lunchbox etc. They just have to be...well, healthy. And kind to the heart <3
So yes, this is my new mission (amongst other things, of course. ;) ) I am going to put all my heart into making heart-healthy things for Daddy dearest.
And so I started off with these delightful little biccies yesterday. ;) I've called them sunflower oat cookies though please don't be disappointed that they don't, appearance wise, look anything like those gorgeous golden blooms of high summer. ut they are golden in colour, though!! Haha. No, the reason why I christened them thus is that I made them with Tesco Healthy Living Sunflower Spread instead of butter.
And they have raisins in them of course, and oats. Two things which I feel safe enough in classifying as healthy. But the best thing abbout these is that even though they are that wee bit better for you, they are, trust me, still undeniably scrumptious. I had one with my hot choc yesterday and I couldn't resist going back for seconds. The recipe yields roughly about 25 cookies, you see, so I wasn't too worried about there not being enough left for Daddy's coffee breaks during the week.:)
Ingredients:)
- 140 g sunflower spread (I use Tesco, but I am sure that other shops do their own version, too, and then of course there is Flora spread too, an excellent equivelent. Just make sure it says "suitable for baking" on the tub as some of these healthy-living spreads have a high percentage of water, which will yield disappointing results.)
- 50 g demerara sugar (the bigger granules of this brown sugar give a lovely crunch to the cookies. :)
- 100 g light brown soft sugar.
- 75 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp water
- 100 g self-raising flour
- 75 g raisins/sultanas
- 250 g rolled oats
Method :)
- Preheat the oven to 180c/160c fan. Line two big baking trays with baking paper.
- Soften the sunflower spread in a bowl with an electric mixer or a wooden spoon until very soft. Tip in the sugars and beat until light and fluffy.
- In a jug, beat the egg lightly with a fork. Add the water and the vanilla to the egg and mix well.
- Gradually, bit by little bit, add the beaten egg into the creamed mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl every now and again, until it is all nicely incorporated.
- Sift in the flour and the salt. Add the oats and the sultanas/raisins, and then mix all of it together with a large metal spoon until you have a sticky, oaty cookie dough. :)
- Now you need to transfer balls of the cookie dough to the prepared trays. Scoop up a dessertspoonful of cookie dough and then roll it into a ball in the palm of your hand. Place them on the trays, spacing them well apart to allow for spreading.
- Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes. They should be pale golden and still slightly soft in the centre...don't let them get too brown. ;) burnt oats don't taste too good. :( And the gorgeous chewiness of the little biccies augments their charm ever further. :)
- Leave them on the trays for about 5 minutes once you've removed them from the oven, and then carefully transfer them to a wire rack with a metal spatula.
- Leave them to cool completely or eat warm..just be careful if you go for the latter option as they will be a little fragile at first. ;) Now who said healthy biscuits taste like cardboard which has been baked? (to quote my brother. ;) ) Just give these a try and see for yourself. ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment