Belief | Cracker Cookies

"...Not that I believe in it."

What is it these days with people and belief? I've noticed this attitude particularly amongst my peers; religion or spirituality is an uber-private facet of one's life. If you mention it, goddess forbid you offend someone by simply saying, "Bless you," when they sneeze. Sure, there are plenty of alternatives, but I didn't invoke my higher power by name! 

You can't believe in anything. 





Mention you're Catholic (or other deistic religion) or you go to church or meditate, and ka-pow, you are an antiquated fool and you have been caught with your metaphysical pants down. Alternatively, the reaction is you're untouchable and weirdly disciplined because you take time to talk to God/Goddess/higher self. Talk to an older person (generally over 50) and they'll listen about religion and worldviews. Why? Because they're closer to the grave and desire some answers to the big questions: where did we come from, where are we going, and why do bad things happen to good people?

Yeah, why do bad things happen to good people? Karma? Why would a supposedly benevolent deity let bad things happen?

You can't believe in anything.

Nota bene I am playing both sides of the field here. I don't have the answers and I am content to worship the mysteries of the universe. Believing in ultimate good helps me keep calm and carry on. That's my worldview and you are free to agree or disagree.

Off my soapbox. Breakfast cookies againAnd again.



Believe these are good. Because good = healthy, and healthy = good. But, good =/= tasty, and tasty =/= healthy. Yet, not tasty = bad.




Who let moral judgment in here anyway, conflating healthy and (morally) good?

I picked up this recipe for Cocoa Peanut Cookies at a Whole Foods a while back. I believe the impetus behind the recipe was something like, "Let's make random stuff with Engine 2 products! Yeah! (fist pump)." The sheer randomness of these cookies makes me think it was a Foodie Call type production: aaaand the theme this week is Engine 2 products! At least it didn't have oil-free hommos. Now then, I'm not down on Engine 2 as a concept or line of products (their brown rice tortillas are actually quite good), but I do think this recipe is a bit wacky, and that's coming from the grrl who eats green juice on hir cereal.

Of course I had to make it.

Crackers in cookies has some precedent, but not like these little blobs of salty-sweet moosh.

Cracker Cookies

(No, there are no racist/classist epithets in that title; don't even think that for a second. It is supremely ridiculous I have to even put this little footnote in here, but someone will undoubtedly scream classism because this recipe could in fact be made, albeit with slight modification and inclusion of animal products, with the ingredients found in grocery stores frequented by poor rural whites in the Southern United States.)


  • 4 1/2 ounces VGF crackers (I used half-bags of Mary's Gone Crackers original and Crunchmaster multigrain GF hexes)
  • 3/4 cup pitted dates
  • 1 cup nondairy milk (I used original hempmilk)
  • 2/3 cup nut butter (I used half almond and half peanut butter, both no-sugar, no-salt since the crackers are way salty)
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat the oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat.

In a blender or food processor, blitz the crackers to make crumbs. Transfer crumbs to a large bowl. Blitz remaining ingredients until smooth in blender (some date skins floating around is fine). Mix it all together until mixture coheres. Transfer 2-inch cookie balls to baking sheet and squish down the tops slightly.

Bake for 15 minutes or until you can pick one up and it won't fall apart. These are soft and squidgy. They taste like everything in them all mixed together (a bit like my lunches, sometimes). Hey wait, I know why these are familiar: microlunch cookies!

Parting shots:
Felt like an avocado smoothie after the gym on Tuesday: avocado, green apple, mixed greens, ginger


 Friday was the first Friday I've spent by myself in months (try December...wow...too much socialization for this introvert!). I cooked up a storm and scared the bejeebes out of myself by listening to Depeche Mode's "Damaged People" and listening to the lyrics too hard: "When your lips touch mine/ And I lose control/ I forget I'm old/ And dying."

Mexican black beans and polenta for polenta fries. If you make nothing else this weekend, you must make polenta fries! It contains vegan catnip, aka: nutritional yeast, the best stuff evarrr.


More from Tuesday's supper: roasted carrots and beets, kidney beans, and pumpkin furikake. Did I ever mention I eat strange combinations?





Picture from last Saturday's party we checked out, left to right: TC, Q, and TC's friend. We were "those motorcycle people" because we were (duh) wearing our gear.



Sushi in Philly


The lack of protein GF pizza in Arlington: Pete's New England Pizza.



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