Protein Raw "Cookie" Bites

I'm going to admit something - I love raw cookie dough. Yes, I understand that supposedly it could be contaminated with salmonella from the raw eggs, but I just can't help it. Once when I was in grade school, my best friend and I made cookie dough for the sole purpose of eating it raw. We took it upstairs with us, had a great sleepover, and left it out overnight so we could eat it for breakfast the next morning. Needless to say, my mother freaked out when she realized we were eating raw cookie dough which contained eggs and butter that had been sitting out all night. (We were fine, and it was delicious.) 

Unfortunately, I hear that consuming large amounts of unbaked cookie dough is bad for you. Fortunately, this recipe sort of gives the taste and texture of cookie dough with much healthier ingredients! 

These snack bites are made of ground nuts and oats, and sweetened with honey and cinnamon. Throw in a few chocolate chips and it's basically a healthy uncooked cookie!  I love taking a few of these to work with me and eating them during the afternoon lull where I'd normally fill up on chips or actual cookies. It tastes like you're filling up on junk food, except you're actually getting a protein boost from all the nuts. Much better than a bag of Cheetos (although I do love me some Cheetos). 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup pecans

1/2 cup oats

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup honey

2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Mix the almonds, walnuts, pecans, oats, cinnamon, and salt in a food processor until ground to a meal. Add the honey and vanilla and pulse to combine. Add the chocolate chips and pulse again until just mixed together.

Drop a tablespoon of the dough onto a cookie sheet lined with freezer or parchment paper. Wetting your hands will help keep the dough from sticking. Freeze for an hour to harden and then store in an airtight container in the freezer.

Note - I'm using the word "raw" in the generic uncooked way, not the specific Raw Diet way. I don't know much about the Raw Diet, but I'm sure this recipe could be altered to fit the requirements and become a raw Raw cookie dough snack.



This post was originally posted on my now retired blog, Neroli Blossoms.