I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas!! Have you finished all your holiday shopping yet? I still have a few people I need to buy for, and I’m starting to get a little stressed about the time crunch. Since I started working on Well and Full full-time, I’ve been super busy instagramming, responding to emails, thinking up new recipes, and developing them, and I’ve been getting seriously behind on other life stuff. I don’t know how other bloggers do it! Tieghan of Half Baked Harvest comes to mind – she posts a new recipe every day (!!) and they’re all GORGEOUS. But I don’t know how she does it! Over here I can barely walk and chew gum at the same time. (I kid, of course.)
So here’s a recipe in the spirit of “Holiday Busyness”… raw vegan marzipan cookies. They take about 10 minutes to throw together in the food processor, and they can be served immediately if you like (or can be dehydrated for a bit of a firmer cookie). And, in true Well and Full spirit, they’re HEALTHY! But thanks to the pure almond extract, they taste exactly like traditional marzipan. So if you’re hosting a party, and your dog accidentally eats half of the cake you made (this may or may not have happened to me), MAKE THESE COOKIES. I hope you love them as much as I do! :)
Raw Vegan Marzipan Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Almonds
- 2 Cups Rolled Oats
- 2 Cups Pitted Dates
- 2 Tbs Raw Coconut Oil solid
- 1 Tbs Coconut Nectar sub maple syrup
- 1/2 Tsp Natural Almond Extract
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine almonds and oats. Process on high until a meal is formed (this may take a minute or two).
- Once the desired consistency is reached, add in the dates, coconut oil, coconut nectar, and almond extract. Blend on high until a doughy mixture forms - the dates should be finely chopped up.
- When done, form the dough into little balls. You can serve them as is, or flatten them into little cookies.
- If desired, dehydrate the cookies in your oven at its lowest temperature for 1-2 hours. Note, if your oven goes higher than 115 degrees, prop the door open with some rolled-up tin foil so some of the heat can escape.
- Enjoy!
Song of the Day:
Let’s Dance – David Bowie
(because why not)
26 Comments
Meredith Youngson
December 20, 2016 at 8:59 amI woke up with a similar feeling today of ‘behind…not doing enough…blah blah’ damn those voices! I blame it on Christmas crunch + new years looming. We can feel the love and hard work thats going into your space Sarah. Keep up the amazingness :) I can almost taste the Christmas in these cookies!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:40 amAww thanks Meredith!! <3 Sending hugs!
Abby @ Heart of a Baker
December 20, 2016 at 9:34 amOh girl I feel you, how do people do it?! I love a good, quick cookie recipe, so these are so perfect! xo
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:41 amThanks girl!! <3 Hugs!!
Karlie
December 20, 2016 at 11:19 amFrom an outsiders perspective you are killing it! With the gorgeous recipes, photos, and ‘grams + being present with you readers. My favorite quote is “you are exactly where you are supposed to be” Happy Holidays! xo
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:41 amAwww thank you Karlie!! I love that quote – you are exactly where you’re supposed to be. Thanks for the reminder :)
Christine@ Yum and in Love
December 20, 2016 at 1:11 pmGreat post, thanks for sharing- I totally feel the same way. Don’t compare yourself- your recipes are awesome and your photography is gorgeous! These look really good- my mom has tons of food allergies but I think she could actually eat these! Score!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:43 amNice!! I hope your mom likes them, Christine! :)
Miss Polkadot
December 20, 2016 at 4:28 pm… and when your dog is as cute as that you can’t even be mad at him. Maybe these cookies wouldn’t have come about without that little interference ;)? They sound amazing.
Regarding what you said about blogging: don’t be this hard on yourself. Quality over quantity. Some people blog more often, some people less. Neither is better or worse. Forcing yourself to post more frequently would at worst lead to loosing the fun in and passion you feel for it.
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:44 amThank you so much for the reminder…. I was actually thinking about that this morning. I wanted to post more, but I don’t want to burn out or lose the fun in doing this. But you’re absolutely right – quality over quantity. Not to say that bloggers who post a lot have bad quality stuff, not at all! But I just need to find the balance that’s right for me :)
Meg
December 20, 2016 at 5:45 pmLOL at your pup eating your cake! How can you be mad at that face though!? These look delicious, Sarah! Hope all is well with you.
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:45 amI can never be mad at my pup, she’s way too cute (and she knows it!!) ;) Thanks Meg, sending hugs <3
Sarah @ Making Thyme for Health
December 20, 2016 at 6:04 pmI don’t know how Tieghan does it either. She’s a machine!! I personally have to pace myself because I’m afraid I’ll burn out and stop loving it. It’s easy to pressure yourself based on what everyone else is doing but you have to do what works for you.
These cookies look so good and I love that they’re raw. Nice work!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 7:47 amShe IS a machine!! I was looking over her posts and feeling some major envy, but like I said in another comment, I have to find the balance that’s right for ME. Thanks for the reminder, Sarah <3
Lynn | The Road to Honey
December 21, 2016 at 9:49 amHa! Ha! I love how you included a photo of that naughty puppy. Fortunately for me, our dog is way too lazy to attempt to get food off the countertop.
Btw. . .glad I’m not the only one who finds staying afloat on the blog a near impossible feat. Social media alone can be a full time job. I used to feel down that I couldn’t keep up with everyone else…but then I learned that more often than not bloggers have people helping them (whether it be a parent, spouse, VA, personal assistant etc.). It’s just me and my little ol’ blog. But one day I’m hoping to find the magic combination. Until then, I’ll just take it one day at a time and dream about having a plate full of these gorgeous cookies while I’m doing it.
Happy holidays chica!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 9:29 pmThanks so much for your thoughtful note, Lynn :) You’re so right, social media does feel like a full time job. Trying to strike a balance between business and “being present” is so difficult. But here’s to both of us figuring it out one day ;)
Rachel @ Bakerita
December 21, 2016 at 11:11 amThe holidays have been total craziness, right?! Love these gorgeous cookies though, can’t believe that they’re raw!!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 9:21 pmThanks Rachel!! :D
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
December 21, 2016 at 12:28 pmI am so terribly last minute with all things holiday so these look perfect! For gifting or just snack fuel for myself. Plus I love the almond flavor <3 Good luck with your last minute prep!
Sarah
December 21, 2016 at 9:21 pmThanks girl! Sending hugs <3
Anna
December 23, 2016 at 1:44 amI am not a morning person, so I just whipped up a batch of these in hopes of being able to just roll out of bed and feed my kids with no effort in the morning. Of course, I had to sample them. Oh. My. Goodness. These are absolutely DIVINE!!!! I hope I have enough left for them morning ;) Thanks sooooo much!!! I always make stuff like these, esp. since one of my littles is just one and can’t really eat nuts unless they are ground up like this, but I’ve never thought of adding almond extract. What a game changer!!! Happy holidays :D
Sarah
December 23, 2016 at 8:19 amI’m so glad you liked the cookies, Anna!!! :D Reading your comment made my morning :) I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday!!
Anna
September 9, 2017 at 10:44 pmSo, these are our favorite energy bites, by FAR. My son just started preschool though and he’s in a nut-free classroom. So I tried making these with roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds instead of the almonds… and then juuuuuuust after I added the almond extract at the end I started cursing. Anyhow, they still taste amazing, so the sunflower seeds work in place of the almonds, but do you have any ideas for an alternative to the almond extract?! That’s what makes these so amazing!!
Sarah
September 10, 2017 at 7:17 pmHey Anna! I’m so glad to hear you liked these cookies / energy bites!! :D You could definitely sub vanilla extract instead of almond extract, but they won’t have that signature marzipan flavor anymore. Totally up to you – they’d be delicious and healthy either way! :D
Hana | Nirvana Cakery
December 23, 2016 at 5:25 pmI’m working on my blog full-time and I can hardly keep up with posting twice a week, I have no idea how Tieghan does it, incredible! Your blog is looking more and more amazing and thank you for all of these beautiful plant-based recipes!!! x
Sarah
December 27, 2016 at 9:04 amAwww thank you so much Hana!! I’ve been putting in a lot of hard work and it’s so gratifying to know that it’s been noticed <3 Sending hugs, friend!!