No Sugar Coconut Apple Cinnamon Cookies

Welp, I fell off of the healthy bandwagon (I blame 4th of July, World Cup and all the awesome breweries in walking distance of my new house) and needed to get back on track, so it's back to 21DSD, although it's more of a 10DSD mini detox since I'm off to the east coast to visit family at the end of this week. I'm a week in a feeling good, although I learned the hard way yesterday on my run that I need to add the "energy" allotment of a small amount of starchy carbs to my diet. Otherwise, this time around has been a lot easier than the first. I think knowing what to expect and being overly prepared have really helped.

Anyway, hubs and I were craving something sweet and I was itching to bake something. I wasn't in love with the No Sugar Pumpkin Spice Cookies I'd made the last time, so I decided to look for something else. I found a recipe for Not-Sweet Cinnamon Cookies in the 21DSD cookbook that looked promising until I saw it required the dreaded BANANA. Ugh. So instead, I substituted green apple. I was nervous about how the consistency would turn not using banana, but I was pleasantly surprised.

These cookies turned out to be quite tasty and I will definitely be making them again! Maybe with bacon..................stay tuned.

No Sugar Coconut Apple Cinnamon Cookies

1/4 cup mashed green apple (about one small apple)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons melted coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon coconut flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat oven to 350.

Wisk together apple, eggs, oil and vanilla. Sift in the coconut flour and cinnamon and stir until well mixed. Stir in coconut and salt.

Spoon onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper into 9 equal portions and flatten.

Bake about 15 minutes. Cool completely on cooling rack or foil.

Bacon Mac & Cheese

It's been a minute since my last post, but I'm hoping to be posting more frequently again now that I'm settled in our new house. Yes, the delay in posting is because we bought a house! I have a new, spacious, beautiful kitchen that really lends itself to loads and loads of baking. That said...this post isn't about a baked good. Woops.

I know I've mentioned that when it comes to cooking, I am not really a fan. I love recipes that are quick and easy and require few ingredients. I just don't have the patience for complicated. So, obviously, I love Crockpots. They are the most amazing invention ever. You just throw everything in in the morning before work and when you get home it's done. Yay! This particular recipe isn't an all-dayer, but look for some in the future.

I also love mac & cheese (and honestly, who doesn't?) and was so excited to find this easy Crockpot recipe on the interwebs. I made it as is and it was awesome, but, of course, I decided to step it up and put my own delicious twist on it. Which clearly started with adding bacon.

Bacon Mac & Cheese
1 1/2 cups whole milk
12 ounce can evaporated milk
1/4 cup of butter, melted but cooled to room temperature
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded Italian blend cheese
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
1 1/2 cups shredded regular cheddar
2 cups elbow macaroni 
6 pieces of cooked, chopped bacon
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Grease the inside of the slow cooker with butter. Combine milks, butter, eggs and salt in the slow cooker and whisk until smooth. Add the Italian blend and cheddar cheeses, macaroni and bacon and stir gently until everything is evenly spread/coated. Sprinkle the Parmesan on top. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes. Reduce to low heat and cook for an additional 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Edges will begin to burn if left in too long.