The Scaredy Cat Cooks: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Alright, it doesn't sound very brave, but I'll have you know there was a 50/50 chance these cookies would have been a pan full of mush.  I had no confidence in this recipe as it was going into the oven and I'm just happy they came out in cookie form.

This recipe is a mix of a regular oatmeal raisin cookie recipe and a vegan one I've used.  The vegan one uses banana instead of the egg, but I never particularly cared for the interaction of the apple and banana.  I think it minimized the oatmeal and raisins which are supposed to be the stars of the show.  This "half vegan" recipe cuts out a lot of the fats while maintaining the oatmeal taste.  I think it could have stood at least 1/4 cup light brown sugar so if you're feeling brave, try that out.  If not, these are yummy little, almost-guilt-free cookies.

Just a warning: I got a different type of oat than I normally use and the cookies turned out crunchy.  I'm not sure if it's from the oat itself or they just needed to soak a little more.  The original recipe called for the batter to soak for 4 hours or overnight so maybe I should have actually, y'know...done that.  Again, if you're feeling brave, give it a try and send pics.  I'll post your results here!

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup rolled oats
1 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup applesauce
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.  Combine oats, flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Mix applesauce, sugar, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl.  Stir dry mixture into wet mixture.  Add raisins.

Using a spoon, drop cookies onto a cookie sheet (I didn't have to grease mine, but you can line yours so there is minimal clean up).   Bake for 15 minutes or until brown. *

*Note: the version I made didn't turn out too brown.  The bottoms certainly were though.

Better pictures to come once my camera stops being a jerk!

The Scaredy Cat Cooks: Very Berry Chocolate Cake

I had a request for a chocolate cake with fruity frosting, which was perfect since I had a box of cake mix I had been dying to get rid of for a while. (Not a big mix-user.)

I decided on a strawberry filling, raspberry frosting, and topped it all off with some fresh strawberries.  The result was a sweet, fruity treat.

I used Giada de Laurentiis' recipe for Strawberry Frosting, but I changed it up.  Instead of strawberry, I used seedless raspberry preserve.  I also used 3 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, rather than the full 4, which means my frosting was a little runnier than it should have been, but I can't imagine making it even sweeter.  As a note: it's probably not a great idea to frost a cake when you're exhausted.  This is more a rainy Saturday project than a Monday night plan, but I can't tell you how yummy the result was!

The cake wasn't as moist as I would have liked it.  I'll post my own chocolate cake recipe later (promises, promises), but a good gooey chocolate cake with strawberry preserve slathered in the middle and raspberry frosting on top is, as my taste tester said, "out of this world."

To cut down on calories and fat, keep an open mind on the cake design.  I specifically got the organic strawberry preserve with the least amount of sugar I could.  Instead of whipping up raspberry buttercream (pictured above), feel free to simply top your cake with fruit preserve.  It's just as sweet and delicious, with a little less guilt.  It doesn't look too bad either!  Spread on the preserve and dress with fresh fruits.  Darn, I wish I had done that!