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Thursday, January 8, 2015

Making our January cookies: Cranberry-pecan oatmeal cookies


I know, everyone is sick of all the treats and sweets from the holidays. I have a hard time going cold turkey off of the goodies, though. So I step my way down to healthier eating. Okay, who am I fooling?! Ha!!

I'm thinking maybe I need a 12-step program, here. First step, admitting I am powerless over a plate of cookies. But I'm not willing, yet, to admit that my life has become unmanageable because of those little yummies! Maybe I'm still in denial. Oh well . . . just one won't hurt.

These are far and away the yummiest oatmeal cookies that I've ever eaten.  I make them every January, and have to really work at not eating several in one sitting. Dried cranberries, pecans, brown sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract and white chocolate -- so maybe not the most frugal cookies that I bake, but compared to bakery or coffeehouse treats, they're quite affordable. (Every time I was at the store in November and December, I would pass the Starbuck's kiosk and eye the Cranberry Bliss Bars. I'm sure those are good, but I just kept telling myself, "my treat is coming, just hold on a couple more weeks".)

On Tuesday, everything came together. Sale on white chocolate chips at the drugstore. Bag of dried cranberries in the pantry. Pecans at Dollar Tree. And the free time to just enjoy the process of baking, eating dough, and finally, the quiet time to enjoy the first baked and dipped cookie with a cup of tea.

Do you go cold turkey off of the holiday sweets and treats when the tree comes down? Or do you have a few treats set aside just for January?


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14 comments:

  1. I admire your self discipline, and I think I agree with you. Treats are so much more enjoyable when you've had to look forward to them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jess,
      I agree. Anticipation is half of the appreciation of anything!

      Delete
  2. We made one batch of Christmas cookie cutouts (maybe 4 dozen) and no other treats at all. In fact, really no sweets at all. I haven't made one single sweet after the holidays yet either.

    This is a deliberate cut to my lifestyle but it has been good. I'm not missing a thing.

    Alice

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Alice,
      Good for you! Keep up this awesome work!

      Delete
  3. I never go completely cold turkey. If I allow little treats in a controlled manner, I'm less likely to binge uncontrollably. That being said ... my weight is up and it needs to go back down ....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kris,
      that's how it seems to work for me, too. I will binge badly if I try to cut out all treats.

      My weight is up a bit as well, but I'm working on getting it back down, more with exercise than diet, for now. Good luck in your efforts. You'll do it! You've done it before, so I know you can again.

      Delete
  4. I agree with Kris and Lili.

    If I have a little treat to look forward to each day, it helps me to eat less and eat healthier. I've tried to go cold turkey a few times and I can do that for a brief time. Then I start to feel too deprived and end up eating anything sugary or junky I can get my hands on.

    I like to keep my eating in check with an 'everything in moderation' approach versus a restrictive 'diet'. That being said, I think the people who can go cold turkey have awesome willpower. :)

    After the holidays, my weight is up a bit too. I've packed on 5 pounds since the first of November. This week, I've upped my daily walking by 15 minutes a day and I'm challenging myself to walk more briskly than ever. I'm trying to fill up on more veggies and fruits...and looking forward to my little treat every day. :)

    Lili, those cookies look amazing!

    Angie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Great job on increasing your walking, Angie! That should get you back on track in short order.

      All the treats and holiday eating do add pounds, but they also came with a lot of enjoyment of time with family and friends. So, gaining a couple of pounds is just a little price to pay. :-) Have a great weekend!

      Delete
  5. I feed my sweet TEETH year round

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Linda,
      I have a question for you -- working in a bakery, does constantly seeing and working with cakes/frosting make you more or less inclined to want cake? I've always wondered if I worked in candy shop, would I be less inclined to want chocolates.

      Delete
  6. I am waiting until Saturday when Son3 goes back to school and then we are going on a sugar fast. We seem to do better with the nothing approach since we seem to have trouble with limits. Right now I feel like we have been in the middle of a food orgy. ( Cooking a lot!) I am ready for a week of nothing but soup and salad..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Anne,
      Mmmm, soup and salad sounds good on these cold days. Do you have a favorite soup recipe for this time of year?

      I actually do eat less, if the house just doesn't have any treats in it. But with a family here, that's hard to do. Good luck with your sugar fast!

      Delete
  7. Well, I sorta can't believe that I'm saying this, but I have had zero sweet cravings since the holidays - in fact the idea of sweets sorta makes me feel ill. Seriously, this is NOT like me, but I'm even having a hard time getting myself to eat fruit because I just can't bear the thought of something that sweet.

    I'm not sure if I just overloaded on sweets over the holidays or what, because this really is out of character for me. The only other thing I've done differently is that I upped my vitamin B intake recently - I'm trying to deal with brittle fingernails and read that B vitamins - especially biotin can help. So I've added a biotin supplement and have started seasoning with nutritional yeast, which is very high in B vitamins. Hmmmm....

    Anyhow, whatever the reason, I'm gonna savor the savory for the moment and enjoy the freedom from the old sweet tooth because somehow I don't think this is gonna last! :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Cat,
      There may be quite a bit of truth to your theory on B vitamins and craving less sugar. I've read of that link before.

      Yeah, just enjoy the savory foods right now. There are lots of yummy non-sweet foods out there. (I've been craving avocados lately, myself.)

      Delete

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