My boyfriend's favorite Christmas treat is homemade cinnamon rolls. Lately, I've been seeing some pictures pop up on Instagram for a cinnamon roll COOKIE 🤯 Woah. Unfortunately, all of these recipes consist of hydrogenated oils, highly processed flours that stick to the gut and loads of sugar that will keep your body craving MORE. MORE. MORE.
But it looks so dang good.
So I decided to hit the kitchen and test out a healthy-ish alternative to this anxiety inducing, oh-so decadent holiday cookie. When making a dessert "healthy-ish", there are a few factors I'm looking to achieve:
1. Decrease the sugar content
2. Swap refined, inflammatory oils for whole, unrefined oils
2. Remove inflammatory, nutrient poor flours and exchange for nutrient dense flours
And that's what I did with this Cinnamon Roll Cookie! Whip this recipe up for friends and fam at holiday parties for a gluten-free, low-sugar, unrefined oil option that tastes GOOD too!
*If you're following the 21 Day Intermittent Fasting Program principles, then this is a great, lower-sugar holiday dessert option to enjoy while still working toward your wellness goals!
Cinnamon Roll Cookie
Makes 15 cookies, 1 cookie per serving
Cookie ingredients:
1 1/2 cups almond flour or oat flour (you can make your own oat flour by grinding organic oats in a coffee grinder until a powder forms!)
1 egg
1/2 cup unrefined coconut oil
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Filling ingredients:
6 dates, pitted and soaked in warm water
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
Icing ingredients:
6 Tbsp. coconut cream
1 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1. Combine all of the cookie ingredients and stir to combine.
2. Roll the cookie on parchment paper dusted with almond/oat flour into a square at about 1/2 inch thick. Use almond/oat flour on the rolling pin to prevent sticking.
3. Bled the filling ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
4. Using a baking spatula, carefully spread the entire filling mixture on the rolled out cookie. Use the parchment paper to lift the edge of the rolled out cookie and roll until it forms a log. Store in the fridge wrapped in the parchment paper for at least 2 hours. This helps make it easier to slice the cookies before cooking them.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6. Remove the cookie log from the fridge and carefully slice 1 inch thick cookies. Add cookies to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.
7. While the cookies bake, in a small bowl whisk together the icing ingredients until smooth.
8. Once the cookies are done baking, remove from the oven and allow to cool at least 30 minutes before adding the icing drizzle.
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Your Nutritionist,
Autumn
Autumn Elle Nutrition