Chocolate Coconut Flour Cookies and Lentil Arugula Pesto

Today I played around with coconut flour and lentils- winning combo right haha!  Actually- I thought S might like lentils so I made a big batch of them, knowing I'd have plenty of uses for them.  The arugula pesto is bright and springy and a beautiful green color.  If you're looking a for a different take on dip and want something fresh for crudite- try it out!

Lentil and Arugula Pesto
1 1/2 cups cooked lentils
3 scallions, chopped
1/3 cup tahini
juice of one lemon
1/2 cup arugula
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Throw everything in the food processor until well combined.  I am aware that without olive oil it's not really a pesto- so drizzle a bit in if you like while the processor is going- it will emulsify as the processor does its magic.  Great with sliced cucumbers or grape tomatoes!

I had also wanted to try making a cookie with coconut flour.  A) Coconut flour is way cheaper than almond flour and B) all that fiber, and much less fat.  While I love coconut in pretty much every single way- coconut flour can have such a spongy, mealy texture that bothers me.  I find that adding cocoa powder always minimizes that for me, for whatever reason.  So these are chocolate cookies.  Feel free to make whatever substitutions you want with the mix-ins.  As usual, I was trying to get rid of a few things, so that's what I used!

Chocolate Coconut Flour Cookies
3/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanillla
4 eggs
1/2 cup liquified coconut oil
1/3 cup sweetener, like Stevia in the Raw, mixed with almond milk to make 1/2 cup liquid total
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup chopped pecans (or choc. chips, or walnuts, or peanuts...)

Sift flour, cocoa powder, and salt together.  In separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, vanilla, and almond milk mixture.  Combine wet with dry and incorporate, then adding in nuts and shredded coconut.  Using 1 tbsp measure, drop dough onto parchment lined cookie sheet.  Cookies won't spread out so form them into cookie shapes by pressing down with fork.  Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.

These cookies are easy and yummy.  Walnuts would have been the obvious choice but I had just the right amount of pecans leftover, so that's what I used!  Peanuts also would have been great.  You could totally omit the coconut and be fine.  Chocolate chips would have made it spectacular!  This is a good base recipe to have and adapt as the mood strikes. 

I had plenty of lentils left so made a super quick "stir-fry" if you will with sauteed onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and grape tomatoes, a little cumin, and lentils.  So filling, so easy, and so delicious!  Lentils are such a fantastic food- and so incredibly affordable.  Can you get much better than that?

T minus 6 days until my amazing, sparkling, fabulous new range arrives!  I am thrilled beyond words about it.  It is your standard 30 inch range but five burners, and the middle burner is like a long oval shape for a griddle/grill pan.  Plus warming drawer which I doubt I will ever use, and a convection oven which I am dying to try.  I am so stinkin excited!  And a new dishwasher to boot!  My top row of dishes might actually get clean, rather than come out of the dishwasher cloudy with bits of food stuck to it.  Yeah!!!!!!  Really stoked.  I am hoping it improves the whole aesthetic of the kitchen and maybe the falling apart piece of garbage cabinets won't bother me quite as much.  I actually think it will!  Can you tell how excited I am?????  I don't even remember the last time I was this excited about a thing or object.  Pretty goofy!

My little pumpkinhead is soooooo close to walking, although watch in another month I'll still be saying the same thing.  For whatever reason she has decided she mostly prefers bear crawling around the house rather than regular crawling.  It is pretty hilarious seeing her big diaper tush scooting around.  She is the absolute loudest baby I have ever heard.  The girl babbles LOUDLY all day long.  In her crib, on the floor, when I'm holding her, in the bath, on a walk, whatever.  At Trader Joe's, at the pool, in the car, you name it.  The girl can TALK!  She comes by it honestly though!  She will be one year old next Friday.  OMG.  I am starting to research preschools and the thought of dropping her off somewhere by herself is terrifying- I could cry thinking about it.  Good thing I still have another year of her all to myself!  Ok.  I am doing that thing where I nauseate even myself.  So on that note- some random thoughts.

Why have True Blood and Entourage become completely unwatchable?  They are so god-awful.  I am embarrassed and irritated the entire time I watch both shows.  Why do I watch?  Why did I spend a ridiculous amount of time cleaning today when the plumber is coming Weds to run the gas line and both he and my insane psycho of a dog will completely destroy the house?  And why do I have eighteen million bug bites and why aren't the really old ones going away?  I am covered in them!  UGH!

Night Night, XoXoGFG