Holiday Chip Chocolate Oat Cookies (gluten-free!)

Dear Santa,

If you hadn’t noticed, my apartment is totally void of furniture.

Remember when you granted my Christmas wish last year and Steve got that job? And we sold all of our furniture on Craigslist so we could run away and start over?

We had the best intentions of making our stay in this apartment as short as possible. So, we never bought furniture. We wanted to still have as little as possible to move when we transitioned into a house.

But this apartment deal has been a little too easy, and we haven’t even looked for that house yet.

As much as I love sitting on lawn chairs and eating off the coffee table (one foot off the floor), my back hurts, and laying on the floor to watch TV isn’t too comfortable either. In fact, I really miss sitting next to my fiancé on a couch when we watch movies. That was nice. Remember?

We at least had bedroom furniture, right? Well, I sat on the corner of the bed last night and the frame collapsed. The mangled frame is now propped up against the wall and the mattress set is on the floor.

It’s funny, but really it’s pretty sad.

So, I want to strike up a deal. We’ll buy the new bed and mattress set. We saw some good deals, so we’ll take care of that. But if you could throw in the couch, love seat, dining room table, bookshelves, dog beds…house and new car… (and while you’re at it) a flat stomach, stain-proof blindingly white teeth, clear skin and a faster metabolism, that’d be great! Thanks!

We always were tight. I know you know I’ve been good this year.

Here’s some cookies and a glass of almond milk to wash them down with. I know you’ll be easily swayed after noshing on these babies! They’re gluten-free, because I know you’re all “health conscious” now. Have a good one!

~Melissa

 

Holiday Chip Chocolate Oat Cookies (gluten-free!)

(makes 12 cookies)

1 cup powdered sugar

½ cup granulated Stevia (or Splenda, or sugar)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

½ cup old fashioned oats

¼ cup flaxseed meal (King Arthur Flour)

½ tsp. salt

1 Tbs. vanilla extract

2 egg whites

¼ cup Nestle Holiday chocolate chips, plus more to top each cookie

~Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

~In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Then, add the egg whites and vanilla. Carefully stir until the ingredients come together into a batter-like consistency (you may not feel like it’s going to come together, but use a spatula to kind of smoosh the dry ingredients into the egg white and it will magically transform into your cookie batter!!). Mix in the chocolate chips.

~Use a cookie scoop (mine is just over a Tablespoon) to scoop 6 cookies, well spaced, onto each cookie sheet. Then, pick out three to four more red and green chips from the bag drop onto the top of each cookie. Bake for 12 minutes.

~Let the cookies cool completely on a wire rack before carefully peeling the parchment or silicone mats away from the cookies. Serve and enjoy!

 

Recipe adapted from my Tropical Chocolate Chewy Cookies

Strike up a conversation: What cookies would you leave out for Santa? Seriously, these are the most rich, amazing cookies! I had to wrap them up and put them away immediately to stop myself from eating them all!