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11
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Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cookies |
There’s always that girl. You know the one. The beauty who escaped the awkwardness of pre-pubescent and teenage years and every February 14th sashayed through the locker-lined hallways, her arms full of roses and cards from her admirers.
I always hoped she get pricked.
Obviously I was not this girl, and even into college as I started to develop out of my “ugly duckling” stage, I was still very much aware that no one wanted to be my valentine. Every February 14th, the doorbell at the sorority house rang non-stop with flower deliveries, and do you think they were ever for me? Nope.
The good news, my friends, is that I have almost become that girl. I have a cute boy who showers me with gorgeous flowers and fine chocolates and non-skid cutting boards (because that’s what I asked for this year.) More importantly, he is good to me the rest of the year too. I love you, babe. (Not that he’s gonna see this. His one flaw may be that he doesn’t read my blog. Oh well!)
But I still feel bombarded with Valentine’s day fever that is simply not meant for me. Mostly in the form of chocolate and strawberries. I mean, they’re everywhere. All over the foodie blog-o-sphere. They’re tantalizing my visions and ripping at my tastebuds, even when I’m not catching up on blog feeds.
I couldn’t stand it any longer and had to get in on the action. What’s a healthy-eatin’, kitchen-experimentin’ gal to do? Make chewy, brownie-like, all-naturally-sweetened, vegan Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cookies.
That’s what.
Oh, you want to know if they’re good? Ok. Well, let’s just say I’m off the hook for needing to buy a Valentine’s Day gift for that boy. Because he’s totally smitten with these.
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cookies
Printable Recipe
80 gm chopped, pitted dates
3/4 cup (60gm) plain oats
1/4 cup (20gm) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup (120gm) almond meal
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 teaspoon powdered stevia extract
1/3 cup (60gm) dried strawberries, chopped
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
Place the dates in a small bowl and cover with piping hot water.
Process date oats in a food processor until they become a fine flour-like consistency. Transfer to a bowl, and whisk in the cocoa powder, almond meal, salt and baking soda.
Drain the dates and place in the food processor with the almond milk. Blend until smooth. Add the melted coconut oil and the stevia extract and blend again.
Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until a soft dough forms. Lastly, mix in the chopped dried strawberries.
Drop by heaping tablespoon-fulls onto the cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will still be soft but will set upon cooling.
Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 14
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 135.4
Total Fat: 8.5 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 59.5 mg
Total Carbs: 13.1 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.4 g
Protein: 3.0 g
Update, 2/13/2010: You may have noticed that I used a combination of date puree and stevia extract to achieve just the right amount of sweetness in these cookies, without using any sugar at all. If you’re looking for other ways to use stevia, be sure to check out the SOS Kitchen Challenge for the month of February, where stevia is the featured ingredient! This recipe is also being shared with Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays for 2/15/2011.
I'm Cara, lover of creative, clean food and healthy living. Pumpkin, goat cheese, and eggplant make me swoon. I have an insatiable sweet tooth and desire to lift heavy things. 
Katie @ HWS — February 11, 2011 @ 2:17 pm
YUM! This is what I want for Valentine's Day! 🙂
Melissa — February 11, 2011 @ 9:06 pm
Ha I had an ugly duckling stage too (I think every girl does, just hits us at different times!) and now have a pretty great valentine too, who even reads my blog most of the time! I love that you create all your own healthy recipes! Very inspiring! These would count as a fruit serving…right??
shannon — February 13, 2011 @ 11:18 pm
love these, and they're totally going on my to-make list, stat! sounds like your valentine was worth the wait, eh? 😉 enjoy your night!
Prevention RD — February 14, 2011 @ 11:29 am
Hmmm…I have everything to make these and they look DELICIOUS!!
elly — February 14, 2011 @ 6:02 pm
These look really good! I love strawberries and chocolate together, and anything with almond meal is a winner.
Cloudisamonkey — March 14, 2011 @ 7:19 pm
Haha, that was so not my experience. Not because I wasn't an awkward ugly duckling who never got anything for Valentine's Day, but because none of the other single girls seemed to either. I guess it was kind of just a boyfriend-girlfriend thing here.
Katie @ HWS — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
YUM! This is what I want for Valentine's Day! 🙂
Elina (Healthy and Sane) — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
Sounds fantastic. I'm loving all the v-day goodies everywhere 🙂
Roxan — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
Oh Cara, I highly doubt you ever went through an 'ugly duckling' stage! I don't believe it one bit. These cookies look amazing though. I've never bought coconut oil before because it's so expensive, but honest to goodness I think I'm going to buy some just so I can make these cookies. I've starred this recipe. Thanks Cara, you're the best!
Cara — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
No, Roxan, you're the best! Thanks for the kind words 🙂 Let me know if you end up making these, can't wait to hear what you think!
Bianca Garcia — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
Sounds awesome. I've been obsessed with dates lately and would love something like this!
grace — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
i'm so glad you found your lifelong valentine. :)also, this marks the first time i've seen strawberries in cookies–awesome!
elly — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
These look really good! I love strawberries and chocolate together, and anything with almond meal is a winner.
Lisa@The Nourishing Homemaker — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
Hi! I came over from Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.I was that awkward girl too. Never got a single flower on V-day in high school. These cookies look wonderful! Healthy too. What's not to love! I'm bookmarking these. Thanks for sharing!http://nurturedfamilylife.blogspot.com
Sophia — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
I love Valentine's Day desserts, and yours looks so, so delicious! You should really consider submitting this to Recipe4Living's Valentine's Day Recipe Contest! You could win a GreenPan Stainless Steel Todd's Perfect Gourmet Cook Set!
beanplant — March 28, 2011 @ 8:41 pm
I love how this is a healthy valentine's day treat – all the important stuff without the empty carbs and sugar!
thelittlekitchenthatcould — March 28, 2011 @ 8:42 pm
These sound terrific. Seems like this recipe could possible work with cherries too? I love cherries and chocolate!
Melissa — March 28, 2011 @ 8:50 pm
Ha I had an ugly duckling stage too (I think every girl does, just hits us at different times!) and now have a pretty great valentine too, who even reads my blog most of the time! I love that you create all your own healthy recipes! Very inspiring! These would count as a fruit serving…right??
Liz — March 28, 2011 @ 8:50 pm
I totally understand! I actually forgot that it was Valentine's Day this year (OK, it's easier when you're not in the U.S. ) and my best gift from my husband was a kitchen scale 🙂
elly — March 29, 2011 @ 2:05 am
These look really good! I love strawberries and chocolate together, and anything with almond meal is a winner.
Prevention RD — March 29, 2011 @ 2:05 am
Hmmm…I have everything to make these and they look DELICIOUS!!
thelittlekitchenthatcould — April 5, 2011 @ 1:18 am
These sound terrific. Seems like this recipe could possible work with cherries too? I love cherries and chocolate!
Sophia — April 5, 2011 @ 1:18 am
I love Valentine's Day desserts, and yours looks so, so delicious! You should really consider submitting this to Recipe4Living's Valentine's Day Recipe Contest! You could win a GreenPan Stainless Steel Todd's Perfect Gourmet Cook Set!
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