Health Food

Sugar-Free Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups pecans, toasted
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup pureed pumpkin or canned pumpkin
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 3/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pitted dates
• 4 tablespoons honey

Directions

1. Take a baking sheet and roast your pecans for about 10 minutes, watching them carefully so they do not burn. you can also do this on a stove in a wok. or you can buy Toasted Pecans in the first place.
2. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Put pecans and oats in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until a fine meal forms, about 25 times. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cardamom and nutmeg to the ground meal and pulse another 20 times to combine all the ingredients. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.
3. Add pumpkin, orange zest, orange juice, honey, vanilla extract and dates to the food processor. Blend until a smooth puree forms, scraping the sides down occasionally, about 1 minute.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Scrape the pumpkin mixture into the well and fold all the ingredients together with a large spatula.
5. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 1/2 inches apart. Flatten the batter slightly. Bake 20 minutes, until the bottoms are just browned. Remove to a cooling rack and cool slightly before serving. Store in an airtight container.

Nutritional Information (makes 20 cookies; 1 serving 1 cookie): 175 calories, 7.5g fat, 0mg cholesterol, 87.8mg sodium, 24.4g total carbs, 4g fiber, 12.8g sugars, 3g protein

Note: Health Benefits of pumpkin, honey, cardamom, cinnamon, dates, and pecans