Nadine's No Bake Chocolate Cookies

Long ago before she became a vegan Nadine made these cookies. I got the recipe from her and morphed it in to a vegan one my using non dairy milks. I like to make them when I want a simple chocolate cookie. They are super easy to make and aren't super crumby cookie so they are great for on the go.

2 cups sugar
4 Tbsp cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 1/4 cup minute oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup grated coconut

Mix sugar, cocoa, and salt in a 1 1/2 qt sauce pan. Add milk and bring to a simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon.  Remove from heat and sample (see note below). Mix remaining ingredients. Drop spoonfuls on to lined cookie sheets and let set until firm and enjoy. Store in an air tight container.

Notes:
Only once has it ever happened to me but I have cooked it and then it turned in to a brick in the fridge There was no way to cut it and I had to throw it away and lost all of the ingredients. Remove a small sample of heated mixture and place on to a small piece of parchment paper. Place sample in the fridge to see if it remains soft after 10 minutes of longer. If hardened do not use the heated mixture, you will get hard cookies. If still soft continue making cookies.

Date Balls

After seeing pictures and recipes for date balls and having dates in my cupboard waiting for me I decided to meld a few together to create my own. It took two tries for me to land on this recipe as my favorite mash up. The requirements when I was looking for reference recipes: no coffee, ingredients I already have, nutritiously dense, few ingredients. After comparing recipes I came up with this a 5 ingredient and simple recipe. You can omit the coconut if you want but with the addition of coconut it reminds me of Samoas Girl Scout Cookies.

1 cup pitted dates (I use Madjool)
1 cup oats
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp flax meal
2 tbsp unsweetened coconut shreds


Place dates, oats, flax meal, and cocoa powder in a food processor and process together. It will eventually form a ball within the food processor which is perfect for shaping. Shape into balls, roll in coconut shreds and enjoy. Store in the fridge

Make ahead breakfasts

In the mornings it can be hard to get up early enough to make quality food. So here are some ideas for what to make the night before. The great thing is if you use the right container you can take it with you too.

 CHIA SEED PUDDING:
1 cup non dairy milk
2/3 cup chia seeds
Splash vanilla (optional)
Toppings

Mix together everything except the toppings and refrigerate. Wait at least 5 hours to eat. Top with desired toppings and enjoy.

OVERNIGHT OATS:
1 cup non dairy milk
1 cup oats
1 1/2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp peanut butter
Toppings
Mix everything together in to a container of your choosing. Refridgerate for at least 5 hours or overnight. Top and enjoy.



Notes:
Chia seed pudding: It is good to eat in a few hour (4-5) if desired. Also if it turns out too think of too runny change the amount of chia seeds as desired. The more chia seeds the thicker it becomes.
Overnight Oats: I made my first cup (pictured) in a peanut butter jar when only a little bit was left.

Super Simple Granola

I finally did it, rather than let my oats sit in  a container until I had to buy new ones ( I can only make and eat so many cookies) I decided to make granola. I also was determined to use what I had in my kitchen at the time, and that wasn't very much.Other recipes add things like nuts, I didn't have any at the time so I compiled different recipes to make mine.

5 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
1 Tbsp Vanilla
Dash of cinnamon (optional)

In a bowl mix the oats, honey, and vanilla; sprinkle with cinnamon and mix until incorporated. Spread evenly on two aluminum covered cookie sheets and bake at 300 for 15 minutes. Mixing once half way through. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Enjoy


Notes:
I used some extra honey I had, you can use and syrup like sweetener to bind the ingredients together.
Once you remove it from the oven you can mix it again, this should cause the granola to cool into smaller pieces.