Paleo cookies, No Cook cookies, Hippie cookies, whatever you want to call them they're a sweet snack made with 100% real ingredients. And they're surprisingly good for something so good for you. ;)
Today, it is my pleasure, to introduce you to the gooey, sweet goodness of "ies".
What is an ie, you ask? It is a cookie with the cook removed, therefore making it simply an "ie". They're Paleo cookies that you don't bake. They're fast, easy and delicious. I say that as someone who isn't Paleo in any way shape or form. In fact I've been known to eat a mashed potato sandwich on occasion.
In this household these cookies are known as The Hippie Cookies.
Why Hippie Cookies? Because they're made with dates and nuts and all natural hippie type stuff you're likely to come across while traipsing through the forest in your Birkenstocks. Why are you in the forest? I don't know. You're the hippie. You're probably chasing butterflies or trying to find that "special" plant you planted in the spring.
There's no flour or sugar. They get their sweetness from the dates and dried berries and get texture from the seeds and nuts. See? Total hippie cookies.
The Hippie Cookie is also a good name because while you're making them you inevitably get the uncontrollable urge to splash on some patchouli oil and browse Kijiji for a righteous Volkswagen van.
I was introduced to these cookies in a stupid meal plan I was forced to partake in several years ago because the guy who ran my ex-boyfriend's gym thought it would be a good idea for everyone to eat whole foods and no carbs at all, for 2 months. Asshole. These cookies were the only thing that got me through it. If it weren't for these and the bags of potato chips and McCain frozen pizzas I ate once my ex went to bed I don't know what I would have done.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the most delightful part of these cookies is the fact that you don't cook them. Yes. I said delightful.
PALEO HIPPIE COOKIES
In a food processor pulse the almonds, walnuts and cinnamon until they resemble coarse flour.
Like so ...
Add the remaining ingredients and pulse.
It helps to pulse the dates a few at a time.
Once the dates are in ¼ - ½ chunks and the dough forms into a ball, stop mixing
Roll the dough into a long tube. I'm really sorry, but it will look like poo.
Slice the dough whatever size you want.
Form into cookie shape and refrigerate.
Depending on the dates and how long you process the dough for, the ies may become oily. This is normal.
No matter how I tried, I could not make these ies look delicious in a photograph.
They still look like poo. They look better in real life. But not much. They taste much better than they look.
The original recipe called for Medjool dates but those are usually pretty expensive. Approximately the same price per pound as plutonium. So I've substituted with honey or cooking dates and they work perfectly.
Ingredients
- 2 cups dates
- 1 cup almonds
- ½ cup walnuts
- 5-6 Tablespoons dried berries blueberries, goji berries, cranberries, raisins etc.
- 1-2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon Sunflower Seeds
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- In a food processor pulse the almonds, walnuts and cinnamon until they resemble coarse flour.
- Add the remaining ingredients and pulse.
- Once the dates are in ¼ – ½ chunks and the dough forms into a ball, stop mixing
- Roll the dough into a long tube. I’m really sorry, but it will look like poo.
- Refrigerate for an hour to firm it up before slicing.
- Slice the dough crosswise to whatever size cookie you want. I generally cut them to between ¼ and ½ an inch thick.
- Refrigerate.
These are crazy delicious!
Think they would work with dried figs instead of dates?
As a Doer of Stuff, I really love and appreciate your empowering blog!!!
Thanks ~ Jen
Huh! I don't know if it work work with figs. You know there's only one way to find out. ;) ~ karen!
If you are Photoshop-less... let me recommend GIMP. Just Google for it... :)
I had to jump down here to comment, only mid-way through reading everyone else's comments. I am a hippy, and these not only sound great, but I think my hippy uncle used to make them for us! He'd make his own bread, grinding the grains and everything, make his own yogurt, grew a huge garden, etc....
I have internet now, but once I move to my own property I won't. I have to fill up on great bloggy stuff now! I'll live only about 13 miles from the Canadian border, which should make the ludite living worthwhile, LOL. No, not really. Well, yes, sort of, as I look forward to my homesteading days ahead, but NO INTERNET!?!
I will miss you.
Hilarious!
They look good, too.
Thanks Kate. They *are* good! I should make some, LOL. Haven't made em in ages.~ karen!
I found your website today from a link on Pinterest, I have bookmarked your site and "I'll be back"! I love your sense of humour. and of course your great posts. You know when you meet someone and after a couple of minutes you think, we could be friends - that's how I fell about you, my new best friend. That isn't creepy right? Right?
Adele - Go away. Creep. LOL! ~ karen
OK Karen so I'm officially an addict of your site.
Halloween is on it's way and for the first time since I was 10 I'm going to Halloween party. This is not my idea of fun but I'm going and I'm going to have fun, damn it!
Any ideas on cheep, run around the house and find something to call a costume, other than a sheet.
Thanks for the laughs
D
Delvalle - Thanks! Well ... when I went to Halloween parties I always went as people. Marilyn Monroe, Morticia Adams ... but an easy thing to do is write book on your forehead and go as Facebook. Not a great idea, I know. I have a confession. I *hate* coming up with Halloween costume ideas as much as you do, LOL. Sorry! ~ karen
I enjoyed reading your recipe! Very funny! I'll have to try them.
Thanks Anna! They're really good. Well ... they're really good considering they're an incredibly "healthy* cookie. :) ~ karen!
Hahaha, you make me laugh. I am sure this was most likely covered in the comments above, but sounds like your 'no carb' diet is more of a no processed foods kinda thing? Those delicious looking Hippie cookies seem to have an good punch of sweetness in them, if I am not mistaken. (Lol,and yesss, I am another one of those Gym Assholes ;) )
Simone
Hello Asshole! We've gone back to regular eating which is similar to this "diet", but I'm allowed potato chips. :) ~ karen
I recently found these via a friend via Pinterest. Talk about memories from my childhood, yeah I was a child of the 60's/70's, these are my Grandma's date nut roll. The only difference.... well there is no difference except hers just used raisins instead of mixed dried berries. I make ies rolled in cocoa powder or my eldest son's favorite is a little chocolate protein powder mixed in plus rolled in the stuff. But I have to admit my family looks at me askance when I make these.... wearing my birks, a puka shell necklace, etc. I figure they'll get used to it in time (or not since they are teens, ha ha!)
:) Heh. Yeah. They're not for *everyone* these cookies, LOL. They're so good though! ~ karen
I think I'll try these for my Christmas cookie exchange!!! No one said they have to be cooked cookies!
Thanks for sharing
These look good. You could also add a bit of dessicated coconut to these to make them not so sticky! Good for snacks for kids! Great for people with gluten intolerance!!
I am so terribly sad that I don't have a food processor. I want some Pookies or Nookies or Hippie Cookies!
Nancy - I just told my photography instructor about these and he's going out to buy a food processor! Of course I also told him how great they were for pesto so that sealed the deal. :) Hope you eventually get your pookie, nookie, hippie cookie. ~ karen
I finally got to make these! My food processor is a wuss and didn't quite turn the nuts into a coarse flour. And the overall mixture at the end seemed a little dry and chunky, so I skimmed a couple of oily tablespoons of Nutella off the top of the jar. Deeeeeliciousness! (Ever since I discovered Nutella, I try to incorporate it into as many things as possible. It makes me happy!) Of course I'm sure peanut butter would also work well as a binder. Thanks again for sharing!
Barry - That's funny! Good thinking with the Nutella. I haven't had that since I was a kid! ~ karen
I used some dates that were a lot drier than the ones pictured, so the mixture wasn't sticky enough to hold together to form poo-dough; I don't eat dates often, so didn't realize this until the end. If anyone else has this problem, try adding a TINY amount of apple juice; we're talking a couple of teaspoons, added gradually while mixing until the mixture binds into a dough ball and your food processor tries to jump around the counter-top. This is a fantastic recipe, Karen. Thanks for sharing!
LOL - "your food processor tries to jump around the counter-top." That is a perfect description of what happens! You must have got it right! ~ karen