Healthy Snack Cookies

Healthier than granola bars, which have lots of sugar.

Also known as Nina cookies, Half-Cup cookies, or ‘Kiasu’ cookies “Everything Also Got”

‘Goodies’

Combine in a bag or food-storage container:

• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips OR chopped dark chocolate
• 1 cup any combination of seeds and chopped nuts

Dry Ingredients

Combine in a different bag or food-storage container:

• 1/2 cup oatmeal
• 1/2 cup milk powder
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup each of as many kinds of flour as you can get hold of: for example, whole wheat, corn/maize, buckwheat, soybean, rice, wheat germ, etc.
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Wet Ingredients

Combine in a big bowl:

• 2 eggs
• 2 bananas, mashed
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup cooked, mashed pumpkin
• 1/2 cup peanut butter

After wet ingredients are thoroughly mixed, add the dry ingredients and mix. Then add the ‘Goodies.’

Batter should be thick enough to hold a cookie shape when dropped by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet. If it’s not, then add some flour. Or, if it’s too stiff, add a little water.

Bake at medium heat for about forty minutes. Cookies should be dark, but not burnt.

Can also be baked in bar form as below. Bars are less work; but cookies last longer than bars.

Substitutions

• Sesame butter may be used instead of peanut butter.
• Other kinds of squash, or sweet potato, may be substituted for pumpkin
• If chocolate chips are not available, chop up a chocolate bar.

Time-saving tips

• Instead of carefully measuring the peanut butter, just use a few big spoonfuls until it looks like about 1/2 cup.
• Instead of carefully measuring the honey, just pour some in until you think it’s 1/4 to 1/2 cup.
• Make your own mix: Because there are so many ingredients, a lot of time is taken in opening and closing packages, and measuring. So on a day when you have time, make your own mix: Set out five bags for dry ingredients. Put 1/2 cup of oats into each bag; then put 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour into each bag, etc. Lay out five more bags, and do the same for the ‘goodies.’ Store all your mix bags in a big container in the refrigerator. The next time you need Half-cup cookies, all you need to do is combine the wet ingredients, pour in a bag of dry ingredients, mix, and then add a bag of goodies!