Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cookies

Sorry for being off the grid for a couple days but time got away from me and then yesterday I got my wisdom teeth out and the anesthesia really knocked me off my feet. I have a few posts to catch up on that I was planning on putting up a couple days ago but other stuff came up. I'm feeling back to normal today so I figured it was a good time to catch up on blogging during my lazy morning!

Good thing I have the best buddy to keep me company! :)

I haven't been a very good patient because I'm not one to be able to sit around in bed. Also, this no solid foods rule is getting in the way of my macros which has been frustrating but I've just had to get creative and find ways to balance them! Smoothies have been my best friend and a good way to get my nutrients for the day. 

I also lucked out because I only had my top two wisdom teeth. It was interesting to learn that bottom wisdom teeth are the most common teeth to be missing, and since they're vestigial eventually people will no longer even develop wisdom teeth. My oral surgeon told me I was very evolved so my descendants will have me to thank when they won't need to deal with getting their teeth removed! 

So this afternoon I got bored and didn't want to be on bed rest. I haven't been able to run or lift but I still took Layla for 2 long walks today, 3 miles in the morning and 3 in the afternoon. I'll probably even take her for a third walk after dinner to pick up a movie for tonight. That's the closest I can get to taking it easy. Since I have an 8-month old puppy and no one else to walk her, I have to do it myself! Otherwise, she'll drive the cats and me crazy with all her hyper energy. 

I'm able to handle softer foods and cookie dough and cookies count as soft, right?! My friend at work brought in chocolate chip zucchini bars for my birthday last week and it got me brainstorming. So today I decided to make a healthy version with cookies! 

These cookies are full of vitamins from the zucchini and healthy fats from the coconut oil! I substituted in whole wheat flour, coconut oil, egg whites, stevia, honey, coconut sugar and applesauce. I've been doing a lot of research about making substitutions in recipes and I'm happy to say that it paid off in this recipe! 

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup baking stevia

1/3 cup blonde coconut sugar

1 tbsp honey

1/4 coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 large egg white

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups grated zucchini 

1 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

2. In a large bowl mix together the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, stevia, and coconut sugar.

3. In a second bowl mix the honey, egg white, vanilla, and applesauce.

4. Melt the coconut oil in the microwave and mix it in with the wet ingredients. 

5. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry. If the dough is a little dry then you can add an extra tablespoon of applesauce to moisten it up a bit.

6. Before adding the zucchini I drained out a bunch of the water by squeezing it through a paper towel. If you don't drain the zucchini then you probably won't have to add extra applesauce. Add in the grated zucchini and mixed until combined. Then add in the chocolate chips.

7. Scoop tablespoon and a half sized cookies onto a baking sheet that's either greased or lined with a silpat sheet. I halved the recipe when I first made it since I was low on taste-testers this weekend but still got 14 cookies!

8. Bake for 11-13 minutes until the edges and bottoms are golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for about 10 minutes.

If you're worried about the cookies tasting like coconut or zucchini, don't worry! I wasn't sure how the cookies would pan out but the taste and texture reminds me of zucchini bread.

Each cookie has only 108 calories, 4g fat, 14g carbs, and 2g of protein. Not bad for being full of gooey chocolate! Needless to say I ate 3 fresh from the oven for my afternoon snack! 

Now my next challenge for the day is finding a macro-friendly dinner that'll be easy on my teeth. 

Good thing she likes Office marathons as much as I do! 

Hope you're all enjoying your Saturday :)