This has been a summer of extremes and reckoning moments punctuated by joyful harvests and transitions. It was one of the hottest Julys on record, and everything and everyone was wilting. It has rained 3 of the last 4 days now, and it appears Monsoon Season has come to New Mexico once again. When I first moved to New Mexico, I remember calling my mom during the first rainstorm and telling her about people seemingly dancing in the streets and running outside to greet the downpour with open arms and laughter. We all send text messages excitedly updating each other about the oncoming deluge and photos of spectacular rainbows circulate across the ether.
One of my best friends asked me the other day if I had ever read “Your Money or Your Life”. I haven’t, but just the title sparked a deep something inside that has been guiding me all the years of my adult life. No amount of money can be worth missing out on the life experiences that bring us back to ourselves. Don’t get me wrong, I work for a nonprofit and teach art in schools that have no art programs. I am not rolling in the dough…ahem, but I feel the pressure to make more, and push more, and do more just like so many other people. In the power of this recent heat wave, I felt like I was drying up into a version of myself I didn’t want to hang out with, and then the rains started.
We weeded the garden as a family last week, thinning ceremonial corn, and dancing in the rain and I remembered my Self in under the falling water and endless skies. If I am feeling lost, I need to get lost in the dirt and play in the water.
A long story short, these cookies are so, so delicious and also totally packed with protein, good fats and antioxidant rich matcha. My daughter is allergic to dairy, so most of my recipes feature dairy free options but regular cream cheese would be delicious also.
Recipe:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; you will need a large mixing bowl and a small bowl.
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of blanched almond flour
1 1/2 tsps. sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp of powdered Matcha Green Tea
2 tsps of fresh grated ginger
1/2 cup of maple syrup
1/2 cup of coconut oil (measured in liquid)
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
2 droppers of chlorophyll ( I used ChlorOxygen for the bright green color, and it’s good for you!)
For the Frosting:
1/2 cup Cream Cheese by Tree Hill Cheese (this is the only brand I have found that does not use tons of fillers, additives or crap, etc AND it is actually cultured almond milk)
2-3 Tbsps maple butter (you can probably use honey if you can’t find or don’t want to use maple butter but it is amazingly delicious and a true treat)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Mix the almond flour, salt, and baking soda together in the large bowl and add the matcha. Whisk the oils, vanilla, maple syrup, fresh ginger, and chlorophyll together(not necessary, but fun), and add that to the large bowl of dry ingredients.
Form into small balls, about 2 Tbsps, and put on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Use your thumb to make an indent for the frosting, a little nest of delicious. Bake them for about 12-14 minutes. Check for light golden browning, but not too much! Let them cool while you whip up the frosting.
Mix the cream cheese and maple butter in a small bowl. I used a small plastic bag and cut the corner off, filled the bag with the frosting and went to town on the cookies, but you could use a spoon also. Make sure your cookies are nice and cool, and store these in the fridge. XO
thewildandthetamed 