Season of Change

 

This weekend I had a magical long run.  There were fallen leaves were underfoot and the humming birds did abound.  Even the always difficult first mile was absurdly mild, the uphill left me undaunted, I found myself gliding down the trail, embracing the elusive runner’s high!  

My magical run!  You can almost feel the runner's high, right?

 

Other than the constant that is my weekend long run, life is constantly shifting and like a good animal, I’m trying to adapt.  Since our sugar detox, there have been items in our pantry that needed to go bye-bye.  In fact, we have been eating less gluten for over a year now, and I’ve held onto my canisters of all purpose flour, wheat flour, viral gluten and more just in case I had to bake bread, though I’ve rarely even tasted bread over the last 18 months. In accordance with the yogic yama, apaigraha, non-hoarding or non-collecting, I am constantly trying to let go of that which no longer serves me (trusting that if I let it go and it is something I truly need it will come back to me). Why is this so hard to do with food?  Today I repurposed those containers and filled them with rice flour, coconut flour, coconut sugar and almond meal.  

Upside down view of those canisters, I'm fancy like that!

 

Likewise I took all of the brown sugar and granulated sugar I had I my well stocked baker’s pantry and make a batch of sugar body scrubs, some to use as an exfoliant and some to give away.  In addition, as a result of our healthier diet and my ongoing commitment to fitness, lots of the clothes I’ve held onto for the last 10 years don’t fit quite right.  I went through closets, cupboards, and dressers to weed out three bags worth of clothing for donation.  

Donations

 

Eliminating items that no longer fit my lifestyle or me and finding ways to gift these things that I once loved but no longer need to those who might enjoy them was quite satisfying. 

Yet, needing comfort food in the face of change, I made cookies!  Gluten-free lower sugar cookies, to be sure, but none the less delicious.  I make about 2-4 cups of almond butter weekly with my food processor, to bake with, to enjoy on an apple or banana, or simply to suck off a spoon with some raw milk in the evening if I’m hungry before bed.  I know butter sounds indulgent but my almond butter is made simply of almonds, a small amount of healthy coconut oil and a sprinkle of sea salt; very nutritious.  So by association I’m going to call these healthy cookies or at least healthier cookies!  

 

Ginger molasses cookies

1 cup almond butter

2 eggs

3 tbsp molasses

1 tsp maple syrup

2 tsp grated fresh ginger

(Blend these ingredients in a bowl with a hand mixer)

¼ cup coconut sugar

¼ cup coconut flour

1 tsp baking soda

¾ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp allspice

½ tsp salt

1 sprinkle freshly ground pepper

(Combine these ingredients, whisking together, then stir into the wet mixture until Incorporated).

At 350 on baking sheets lined with parchment paper drop 1 tsp of dough, spaced 2 inches apart (it will spread considerably).   Bake for 5 minutes, rotate the cookie sheet, then bake for 5 more minutes.  Allow to cool slightly before removing with a spatula.