Low Carb Peanut Butter Cookies Second Attempt

I am a sucker for a chewy peanut butter cookie, and with fall on the way all I want to do is bake! Well... As much as I love baking delicious treats, my waistline doesnt. Instead of avoiding baking all together, Ive decided to try and make low carb alternatives to my favorite fall goodies. So, first up: Peanut Butter Cookies!

Just as a disclaimer, this is my second attempt at these cookies. The first one was using coconut flour and honey instead of flour and sugar. The cookies were wayyyy dry and had a very different texture.  I didnt do a blog on those because I felt like there had to be a better recipe, I just needed to figure it out. So,  the recipe Im sharing today is my second attempt. This one is flour-less and uses stevia as the sweetener (the only stevia I like is Trulicious. No gross after

taste and its blended with monk fruit!)

This one is MUCH better than the coconut flour recipe, but if you want to try the coconut flour

recipe, just post a comment and Ill give it to ya. Im still working on perfecting my recipe, but this is a good start. :) They are kind of dry and crumbly, but the flavor is awesome!!!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup Trulicious powdered stevia
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Mix ingredients together in a bowl. At first your dough is going to be runny, just keep mixing. Its going to stiffen right up. If youre not worried about eating a little bit of raw eggs, taste the batter to make sure it tastes sweet enough. If not, add a little more Trulicious. Roll the dough into melon baller sized balls and flatten with your fingers on the cookie sheet. I got about 24 cookies out of my batch. Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet.

Pro tips: Dont store cookies in a Ziplock bag, lay them flat in a container. :) These little guys crumble pretty easily. Also, try sprinkling additional Trulicious on top of the cookies before you put them in the oven.

Nutritional Info:
These are actually a healthy option when you need your peanut butter cookie fix. One cookie has 127 calories, 3 net carbs and nearly 6 grams of protein (this is based on a batch of about 24 cookies).

These cookies are much better than my first attempt, but hopefully next time I make them I can figure out a way to make them a little more moist (sorry for using the M word). If you have any suggestions on how I can do that, feel free to post them in the comment section! Happy baking everyone!

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Life Update Balancing Life for Better Health

Life has this way of pulling you into chaos. When this happens, you hang on for dear life and pray you make it through.

Ive realized lately that I havent been very personal on here lately, mostly because Ive had some big things to handle recently and I tend to withdraw from friends, family, and readers when that happens.

Whenever I feel stressed, its usually because there is an imbalance in my life. My physical, mental, and emotional health are all very important to me. Usually when something goes amiss in one of those aspects, the other ones fall apart too. You cannot be healthy if any of those things are lacking. Its no surprise that as I started to get overwhelmed, I started to put on a few pounds here and there. Im not yet where I want to be because Ive been neglecting myself, and so I have made it a goal to refocus myself in every aspect of my life. So, just to catch everyone up... Heres what Im working on:

Physical

FitBit Fun! I got a fit bit a few weeks ago and its been so fun competing with my friends to get all my 10,000 steps in. :) I got the FitBit Zip on sale at Best Buy and its been an interesting challenge trying to move more on days when Im not scheduled to run! Each day I have the goal to hit 10,000 steps.

Speaking of Running... Last month I did phenomenal with my running. Each week I set up a schedule on Mondays and would make sure I stuck to that schedule. Three weeks ago, I finished a run and was having a really hard time breathing. A day later it was much worse and I went into see a doctor after having a really bad panic attack that led to a fit of coughing that I was not able to catch my breath from. I was having chest pain and felt terrible. Turned out I had a breathing virus causing inflammation in my lungs, and a fever of 103! I did a breathing treatment, was put on steroids and an inhaler, and told I needed to take a little break from running. That little break turned into about two weeks. The first week doctors orders, the second week being terrified that I wouldnt be able to finish a run without having an asthma attack. This week I am putting that fear aside and going for a good run tonight! :) My goal is to get my mileage up to 15 miles per week with my average mile time being 10:30. Im not a very fast runner, but I am enjoying celebrating the little victories of getting my mileage up and my pace down! Im also working toward increasing my long runs to 6.2 miles. Once I have my mileage up, Im going to work on my speed. Id like to be able to run a mile and a half in 11:56. 

As far as my diet goes, I am trying to cut out all candy this week. I am also trying to stick to 1300 calories M-F, 1500 calories Sat & Sun.. My focus is on eating balanced meals. Low carb during the week, and still being mindful during the weekends, trying to only eat whole grains. Woohoo. Ive been trying to take my focus off the number on the scale and instead focus on how well Im sticking to the goals above. If I do all these things above, I know my weight will be fine.

Mental

I am trying to take control of my life by taking control of my thoughts. I realized that Ive lost sight of some of the things I really enjoy just because Ive been too unmotivated to put the effort into keeping up with them. One of my goals to improve my mental healthy is to things that I dont want to do if I know they will improve or contribute to my life. So that pile of laundry that is sitting in my room, Im going to fold it. And that blog Ive been wanting to start, Im going to start it. That phone call Ive been needing to make, Im going to make it. Those articles and documentaries Ive been meaning to read, Im going to read them. One of my greatest fears in life is becoming stagnant. I dont want to settle. I want to progress. Progressing means overcoming yourself mentally and learning to push through the lazy thoughts that are holding you back. And thats exactly what I plan to do.

Emotional

Emotionally, Ive been having a difficult time. Going through a breakup basically destroys your confidence, then add all the other pressures of life onto that, and it becomes really easy to feel negative. Emotionally, Im trying to come to terms with the fact that being alone doesnt mean you have to feel lonely. My happiness is not dependent upon another person. Ive made a goal to be productive with my alone time instead of trying to escape it by making plans, spending all night on social media. Im also working on serving others to feel more confident about myself. I know that I have a lot to offer this world, and that thought is empowering, but if I never take opportunities to help others, I dont feel like Im living up to my full potential.

Remember that no matter how hectic your life gets, you still are capable of rising above all of the things that try to hold you down. Your life is in your hands. Your happiness is solely dependent upon how you react to situations. Are you going to be a victim in the your own story? Or are you going to be a hero? Its your choice. Ive made mine.

What are some of your goals?

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