Pumpkin Monster Cookies

You know, you never realize how much you use your phone - rely on your phone - NEED your phone, until it dies. Mine took a big ol' crap today. Yep, said just a few expletives. I was already out on my lunch break, heading to Whole Paycheck to pick up a few specialty items when it happened. Luckily, I was able to make a U-turn and head to a T-Mobile store I had just passed. They're going to overnight a new phone to me, but in the meantime, I'm stuck with this old dinosaur that won't do crap. All my apps, all my pictures, all my contacts - GONE.

I mentioned apps, right? That means my beloved ChefTap app. More than 140 collected recipes are gone. I'm going to have to start collecting them again. BOOO!

I'm an emotional eater. I always have been. Fortunately for me, I packed a Monster Cookie for a snack today. My super healthy lunch left me feeling unsatisfied, and the Monster Cookie was what finally did the trick and made me not want to punch out the next person I saw.

So, as you can see, Monster Cookies save lives. I highly recommend you whip up a batch right away. I found this recipe on Busy But Healthy's website. They're not the greatest cookies I've ever tasted, but they had chocolate in them and that's what mattered. I'll sacrifice a little bit of the yumminess for something that's better for you.

Note: In the recipe I call for soy butter. You can use any type of nut butter, peanut butter is fine - most people have it in their cupboard. Almond butter, sun butter, cashew butter - use whatever you have.

Okay, let's make some cookies and save some lives.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pie mix)
1/2 cup sucanat (or unpacked brown sugar)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup soy butter
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/4 cups oat flour (grind up oats in your blender)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups whole, old fashined oats
1/3 cup chocolate chips (or try carob)
M&Ms

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two large cookie sheets by covering them with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, combine all wet ingredients and sugars: pumpkin, sucanat, sugar, egg, vanilla, soy butter and apple sauce. Give it a good whipping with an electric mixer. Add oat flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, and whip again until smooth. Stir in oats and chocolate chips.

Drop by spoonfulls onto prepared parchment paper - I did mine about the size of golf balls. Stick 3 M&Ms on top of each cookie, pressing just firm enough so they stick. Bake for 15-16 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks. Once cool, store in an airtight container.

Note number 2: I didn't think these were very good AT ALL when they were warm. They had a funny taste to them. I suspect it was the soy butter, since it was the first time I had ever baked with it. Once they were cool and had been stored overnight, though, they were much tastier. It's still not a Nestle Toll House cookie, but it's good. So if you don't like them when they're warm, wait a bit before you give up on me. :) That being said, though, my teenage boys scarfed them down straight out of the oven. I guess I'm a little pickier than a teenage boy.