It was a bittersweet visit…mostly
sweet, though :)
Source |
We had the whole family there for the first time in years; there is usually at least one of us who can’t make it at the same time as everyone else, but this year, somehow we managed to do it. My eldest cousin’s wife recently gave birth to her first child, a sweet baby boy named Declan. My sister has another on the way, plus a toddler who thinks the world of Lily. We ate lots of good food, played Scrabble and Scattergories together, watched a few good flicks, and enjoyed the surprisingly warm and sunny weather.
I didn’t get to make anything for
Thanksgiving since we got there a bit later than planned and I had other things
to do, but I did bring along these yummy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Cookies
and they must’ve been a hit because they all got eaten up :)
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
Cookies with Flax
(makes 2 ½ dozen)
Ingredients:
2 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 cup butter
1 cup honey
2 ripe bananas, mashed
2 cups dark chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
¼ cup ground flax seeds
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 tbsp flax seeds
1 tsp honey + 1 tbsp water
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Combine flour, baking soda, salt, and ground flax in bowl. In a separate bowl,
combine butter and honey, then beat in banana, eggs and vanilla. Slowly stir
dry ingredients into bowl of wet. Once well-mixed, add in the chocolate chips.
On ungreased baking sheets, drop
spoonfuls of cookie dough at about one inch apart. Place sheets on center rack
in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until nicely browned on top. While
cookies are in oven, mix the 1 tsp of honey with 1 tbsp water in a small bowl.
During last 2 minutes of baking, brush the tops of the cookies lightly with a
little of the water and honey mixture, then sprinkle on flax seeds. Put sheets
back into oven and continue baking.
These cookies are nice and moist
and don’t taste “too healthy” at all. In fact, you could probably even add a
cup of rolled oats to the dough to pump up their grain content even more.
Mmm…that sounds really good, actually.
Soft and sweet and full of banana, flax, honey, and whole grain goodness, you won’t feel bad about treating yourself or you family with these cookies!
And now for our most-clicked Thanksgiving-themed features!
Appetizer/Centerpiece
Sherry from Jazzy Gourmet shared this incredible bread dough cornucopia. Just look at it! She even has a how-to video on her blog for your viewing pleasure. This is something I really want to try next year. Thanks so much, Sherry!
Main Course |
Dessert!
Good Girl Gone Green hits the bullseye on the awesome meter once again with this vegan version of green tea hot chocolate. Perfect pick-me-up for those chilly winter afternoons. Thanks, Stephanie!
Our most-clicked overall were:
Thanks to everyone who linked up, and welcome new linkers! Grab a button below if you were featured!
Now that November is ending, it is officially Christmas time! (and I'm sure many of you have already started early). I intend to post at least 1 holiday-themed post each week, along with the weekly Meatless Monday Recipe Hop and Sweet Saturday Link Party. Let's hope I can keep it together and stick to that schedule!
Thanks for stopping by, this little get together really makes the weekend even more enjoyable for me, and gives me the encouragement to keep my little blog going :)
Good to have you back. Have a great weekend.
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting, Jessica! Have an awesome weekend! :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for featuring the cornucopia that I made. I think you will love making it next year--it is so much fun! Thanks for hosting and welcome back!
ReplyDeleteSherry K-Jazzy Gourmet
Thank you for hosting. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteAnd the cookies look absolutely delicious!
DeleteI'm pretty sure I'm gonna like these cookies, especially when the recipe contains honey :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for another party Jessica
Hi Jessica sounds like you had an eventful Thanksgiving... we drove 8 hours to Virginia to see husband's father. It was lovely there but it is hard to travel. I love the healthy cookies thanks for sharing them on foodie friday always good to see you.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a wonderful Thanksgiving! Thanks for the lovely features & for hosting, & God bless!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you had a great Thanksgiving holiday! So nice that you were able to spend time with your family. Your recipe looks so yummy, too!
ReplyDeleteThanks for allowing me to co-host this weekend :)
Hi Jessica!
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting this party!
I have decided to link up our traditional table cener piece in Croatia – Advent Corolla. It has 4 candles – symbols for 4 Sundays prior to Christmas. At every Sunday dinner, family lights up candles; this Sunday we will light first candle, next Sunday two etc… These candles are put out not by blowing but with piece of bread dipped in wine, usually done by the youngest in the house.
I also link traditional Nativity scene placed under the Christmas tree. It is assembled at Christmas Eve by whole family. The figures of Three Wise Men travel slowely toward Jesus' crib untill Epiphany (Jan. 6th) when they meet Jesus.
I hope you will like it!
Ana@carpe_diem