Last week , we had truly little in our fridge and pantry. “What can I POSSIBLY make to eat?!” was always my first thought every time I entered the kitchen. The options were extremely limited, but the upside was I became creative out of necessity. I was even a little impressed with some of the things I seemingly made appear out of thin air. haha.
This was our last day before shopping, and truly the only substantial things I could find were oats (homemade muesli, actually) in the freezer, leftover cooked quinoa, and an egg from our chickens. After some Googling and additional deep-fridge excavating, I ended up making what only people on truly deprived diets would call “cookies” (“patties” doesn’t seem quite as appetizing). Knowing it had basically NOTHING bad for you made them a little more satisfying than they should be. I actually polished them all off by the end of the day. Without further ado, here’s what I made, adapted from this recipe:
Insanely Healthy Oatmeal Quinoa Cookies-Ish
{Potentially Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sugar Free}
Makes approximately 9 “cookies”
Ingredients:
2 cups uncooked oats (I used muesli, which is just oats with a little dried fruit and nuts mixed in)
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 egg
1 tsp – 1 tbsp maple syrup (to preference)
1.5 tsp – 1 tbsp cinnamon (I like a healthy dose of cinnamon!)
Sprinkling of sea salt
Optional: chocolate chips, dried fruit, coconut, vanilla extract, whatever you want!
Preheat the oven to 350°. Mix together all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl until well-incorporated. (The mixture won’t be like a batter, but should still hold together when formed on a cookie sheet. )
With oats, quinoa, and egg as a base, you can add whatever you desire for flavor. We were out of honey, so I added some maple syrup along with cinnamon for some sweetness and flavor. The little bit of fruit and nuts with the oats added a nice texture contrast, as well.
Line a cookie sheet with a piece of parchment paper, then use a heaping tablespoon to scoop the mixture onto the lined cookie sheet. Pat down and form 3 inch round patties with the spoon (you may find a second spoon helpful). I used all the mixture to make 3 rows of 3 patties, which fit quite nicely on one cookie sheet. (Okay, I admit. I used my scrumptious Trader Joe’s Cinnamon & Sugar Grinder over the top off all my formed “cookies” for some extra flavor and sugar crunch! It was a decision I don’t regret.)
Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. After the 20 minutes is up and they look just lightly browned, IMMEDIATELY remove the cookies carefully using a metal spatula. (I didn’t remove mine right away and when I came back 5 minutes later, they had stuck firmly to the paper. If this happens to you, stop your removal attempts ((unless you like eating paper)) and put the sheet back in the warm oven for 5 minutes. Try again once they’ve warmed back up.) The cookies will be delicate when hot but will cool nicely into firm and chewy, satisfying “cookies” you’ll have no mental issue devouring.
For “health food”, these aren’t bad. And, hey, why not spread a little peanut butter or Nutella between two for an awesome breakfast sandwich? I don’t eat actual oatmeal, but I’ll eat oats in any cookie form!
Let me know if you find an amazing combo I must try. I might make these again next time groceries run low!
sparkleigh 