I declare these cookies officially guilt-free, even though there is still plenty of fat  and sugar in them. But, they are dairy free, gluten free (if you care), and so packed with good stuff  like tons of fiber and protein. Most importantly, they are an awesome source of folate! Two cookies will get you 20% of your daily requirement. Have those cookies with a glass of (whole) milk, and you’ve got 30% of your calcium covered for the day too. As a bonus, they have 5% of your daily iron!

All this from rich, chewy, peanut-buttery cookies. You’ll never want to eat a Luna bar again.

Guilt-Free Peanut Butter Cookies

• 1-1/4 c. sugar
• 2 T. molasses
• 1 c. creamy natural peanut butter
• 1 t. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1 c. peanut flour (I got mine at Trader Joe’s. It’s fairly new.)
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 oz. raw cocoa nibs (optional, but you should totally get these. So amazingly healthy for you!)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two cookie sheets.
2. Mix sugar, molasses, and peanut butter. Add vanilla and eggs and mix.
3. Add peanut flour, baking soda, and cocoa nibs and mix. Mixture will be very stiff.
4. Make 1 tablespoon balls, or use an 18/8 ice cream scoop and put on cookie sheet. They won’t spread much, so they can be close together. Squish with the standard fork hashes for the traditional peanut butter cookie look.
5. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the edges just start to brown. Cool on cookie racks. They will be soft on the inside, but firm up as they cool. Makes 32. Eat at least two for dessert with a big glass of milk!

Notes: You can use brown sugar if you don’t have molasses. I was just out, and found the white sugar/molasses to be better, cheaper, and healthier. You can add chopped peanuts too if you have them on hand. I just never do.

• 1 1/8 c. brown lentils
• 1 packet veggie broth concentrate
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 1 T olive oil
• 5 slices whole wheat bread
• 3 eggs
• 1 T parsley
• 1 t dried basil
• 1/2 t dried thyme
• 1 t Turkish seasoning
• 1 t salt
• 1/2 t pepper
• 2 T ketchup
• 1/2 c grated jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Boil lentils in a about 3 cups water with broth packet until tender. Drain and reserve 1 c. cooking liquid.
2. Saute garlic, onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil.
3. Mix vegetables, lentils, reserved liquid, and everything else except the cheese in a bowl.
4. Spread in a loaf pan and cover with cheese.
5. Bake for 45 minutes.

It’s still in the oven, so we’ll see how it goes!

I’m cooking for about 12-14 this year, which is a few more than I’m used to, but we’ve lost a some big eaters, and there are some picky freshman girls who I’m determined to convert. The budget is around $40-60 a meal, but I try to shoot for closer to $30, which I can do if there are good staples in the kitchen like olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and butter. I try for $3/person for a healthy, mostly organic dinner, includes seconds and hopefully dessert.

A few ways I save money while cooking mostly organic food:

• Vegetarian! Much cheaper than meat dishes.
• Unprocessed: I always chop all of the veggies, and grate my own cheese. It’s really not that hard.
• Trader Joe’s. Lots of cheap organic options, as long as you avoid the processed food, which are expensive.
• Dry beans instead of canned. It takes a few days of prep, but it is cheaper and avoids a source of BPA.
• Farmer’s market. We’re so spoiled in California to have such delicious produce year-round.

My menu last week was vegetarian chili, white rice, fruit salad (grapes, cantaloupe, strawberries, and plums), and cornbread. It’s great because the chili is loaded with vegetables and beans, including mushrooms I sneak in, and almost no fat. So, even when they pile on the cheese and low-fat plain yogurt (leftover from the cornbread), it’s still not bad. I could have made brown rice, but I figured all the beans are providing plenty of fiber.

This week I’m going to make tuna noodle casserole, trying out whole wheat pasta for the first time. Along with that there will be a green salad with pomegranates and pecans, and another fruit salad, this time with figs, grapes, and strawberries. Total grocery bill from TJ’s including some staples like flour and the nuts I’ll use for months: $44. So we’re still around $3.00.

The kids are really into trying new foods and love exotic and spicy foods. However, they are teenagers, and while they are much more adventurous than I ever was at their age, they aren’t exactly going to be diving into a bowl of steamed broccoli. Some pick out veggies and (such a waste!) pine nuts. While I don’t exactly try to hide vegetables, except for mushrooms, which they don’t realize contribute so much to vegetarian dishes, I don’t make it too easy to eat around them either.

Salads are almost always on the menu. Fruit salad is something I’m going to try to do more of this year. Green salads are standard issue and most of the kids will eat some. Some really like the standard mixed green salad with balsamic dressing. Instead of veggie toppings, I tend to use nuts, feta, dried cranberries (hugely popular), and the like. I usually make my own dressings, but I do get the spicy peanut dressing from TJ’s to toss with romaine. Greek salad is always a hit, and I’ve tried coleslaw and carrot salad with less success. But I am always putting new vegetable dishes out there because you never know what they’ll like.

Protein: I use lots of beans, lentils, quinoa, and split peas for protein. I was worried at first that the kids wouldn’t like them and I’d have to hide them, but it’s never been an issue. I try to do fish every few weeks: frozen mahi mahi from TJs or canned tuna. I’ve occasionally done other white fish, but cooking fish for a group can be a challenge and expensive. In the winter a special dinner is fresh crab, which you can still do in the $60 range for 14 people. I never do pork or beef, and I sometimes do chicken: either a whole organic TJ chicken that I make a broth with and then shred the meat for the dish, or two packages of boneless skinless chicken thighs, which I also shred for the dish. I never serve chicken whole because it goes farther mixed with other stuff.

Fat: I don’t worry about it. I use whole milk, butter, and olive oil without reservation. It’s all about the whole food, and most of the time I don’t use a lot of dairy, so when I do, I use the real stuff. Whole milk tastes so much better. And olive oil is healthy, right?

Here are some dishes I’ll be making again this year:

• Split pea burgers
• My sister-in-law’s lentil shepherd’s pie
• Quinoa pilaf
• Potato onion soup
• Spinach quiche
• Fresh pesto on tortellini and cauliflower
• Tortilla soup
• Bi bim bap
• Turkey meatloaf (that’s really half vegetables)

Mix:

• 1/2 c. butter, melted
• 6 T. brown sugar
• 6 T. white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 t. vanilla

Mix together and add to wet:

• 1 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 c. old-fashioned oats
• 1/4 c. flaxmeal
• 1 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 c. chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. chopped pecans

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes on greased cookie sheet.

Ingredients

• 1 mashed banana (thawed frozen one works fine)
• 2 T olive oil (original said 2 tsp. oops!)
• 1 egg
• 3 T brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2/3 c ground flax (or 1/2 c flax seed, ground)
• 6 T whole wheat flour (heavier flour, use 1/4 c.)
• 1/2 oats
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda  (should try 1 tsp baking powder next time)
• 1/3 c chocolate chips

1. Mix dry ingredients.
2. Mix wet ingedients.
3. Add dry to wet, mix.
4. Fill 6 greased muffin tins.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c. brown sugar
• 3/4 c. flax meal
• 5 ripe bananas
• 1/4 c. whole milk
• 1/4 c. sour cream
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 c. pecans

Directions:

1. Mix flax, sugar, and wet ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Mix the dry ingredients and pecans in a small bowl.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix gently.
4. Bake in a loaf pan at 350 degrees for one hour.

Ingredients

• 2/3 cup dried berries (soaked in ¼ cup boiling water)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup flaxseed meal
• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp fresh nutmeg
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tablespoon vinegar mixed with1 cup whole milk
• 4 tbsp agave nectar
• 1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Pour boiling water over berries in a small dish, cover and set aside. Spray cups with non-stick spray. Whisk together all dry ingredients in a medium bowl. In as separate bowl, whisk together all wet ingredient. Stir wet ingredients into the dry ingredients all at once, along with berries and liquid. Fill muffin tins about 2/3 full. Bake at 400F for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Place pan on cooling rack for a couple of minutes, then remove from pan.

Mix in a food processor:

• 2 c. flour
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 4 t. baking powder
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 3.4 oz. box of instant lemon pudding
• 6 oz. butter, cut into 12 pieces

Transfer to a stand mixer and add:

• 3/4 c. cream sherry
• 3/4 c. oil
• 4 large eggs
• 1 t. vanilla

Beat for 5 minutes. Pour into a greased and floured bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes and then unmold and pour on the following glaze while still warm:

• 1 c. powdered sugar
• 3 T. milk
• 3 T. cream sherry

Now the hard part: wait. The cake really is best the next day. You can eat it while it is still warm, but it will taste a bit boozy. The cake keeps very well for up to a week.

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease a 9″x13″ pan or casserole dish with olive oil. Soak the currants in brandy and a tablespoon of hot water.
2. Cut the bell peppers into third or quarters along the lobes to make little boats. Remove ribs and seeds, and finely dice two sections. Put the rest of the peppers into the dish and bake for 20 minutes or until cooked but not mushy.
3. In a small pot, cook the quinoa with the stock until cooked, about 30 minutes.
4. Saute the diced peppers and onions in olive oil until soft. Add garlic, pine nuts, lemon zest, and cumin and stir for 30 seconds. Add the spinach and currants (with liquid) and cook until the spinach is wilted. Take off the heat and stir in mint, parsley, quinoa, and a third of the feta. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Stuff the cooked peppers with the quinoa filling, and top with the remaining feta. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the feta browns. (You can also finish the peppers under the broiler to finish browning the cheese.)

This is what three alarms looks like

I threw on my clothes and ran outside (sorry cats), and saw flames shooting out of the building just two buildings over. Embers billowed over my roof as more and more fire trucks showed up. After seeing my neighbor from the same building run out with his cats and his computers, Javier and I ran back inside and forced the cats from under the bed and into the carriers. By the time I got out, the flames were a little smaller and my nerves started to ease.

We watched as the firemen broke into our nieghbor’s house (left building in picture). They are on vacation and I am hoping that we can help somehow when they get home.

Javier and I, along with his parents who are staying with us, are back inside now drinking tea and watching the local news coverage of the events (I declined to be interviewed on camera, especially since my story isn’t that interesting). But I think Javier’s dad was one of the few to get pictures while the flames were in full force. So here you go…

They weren't on our roof, but they kept an eye on it.