“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.”
Jack Kerouac, On The Road
These ginger cookies are for you, you with the fire in your belly. For you who has a burning thing inside your being that says “you must create, you must go, you must love, you must dive head first, you must stand up, you must be brave, you must not be afraid to fail.”
Feed and surround yourself with the fuel that lights up your soul. People. Places. Things. Thoughts. Torch it all. It’s the one true thing you really have to offer this world. Don’t let others put it out. But more importantly, don’t get in your own way by worrying what others will think of that brain you were given, that heart that beats loudly in your chest, that burning thing you’ve cultivated and believed in. Throw it out and set it all aflame. Watch it glow. Watch it spread. Watch it change this world.
Ginger Oat Cookies
slightly adapted from Jude Blereau
- 1/2 cup dried dates, chopped
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 3/4 cup cooked oatmeal
- 1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped
- 1/2 cup glacé (crystalized) ginger, chopped
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
Preheat the oven for 350.’ Cook the oatmeal on a stovetop first 1/2 cup of oats to 1 cup water. Set aside, let cool. Soak the dates in 1/4 of extra hot water, and mash with a fork. Add the vanilla to the date paste when room temp.
In a large bowl, combine oats, oatmeal, nuts, and ginger. Add mashed up dates/vanilla as well as the coconut oil, brown rice syrup, and eggs. Mix together with your hands until well combined and coated. Mixture will feel wet and not overly sticky. Shape into balls and place onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned on the edges and top.
More on the cake-y side than in cookie camp. I think these would make excellent morning-0n-the-run bars if pressed into a 8×8 pan and cut into squares.
Another full weekend has come and passed. I attended my first Padres game with the most beautiful kids from the IRC’s First Things First program and watched anxiously (and amusingly) at how cotton candy, ice cream, peanuts, and soda take charge in a tiny 40 pound body. But it was their first time experiencing the Padres too, any professional US sporting event for that matter, so it wasn’t really the time for a nutrition lesson. I think (well, I hope) that little binges like those for excited attendees across the stadium are rendered harmless by the joy, laughter, and companionship of those that joined them. Padres won handily, and I think I’m finally starting to enjoy the sport and the pursuit of the season. I’m a homegrown NBA fan (thanks, dad), but I think my previous conceptions of the in-athleticism of MLB are being softened by Shaun’s love of the Rockies and my desire to root for something again. Plus, as frivolous as the stadiums and the jerseys and the salaries of the players are, the games spread good ‘ju-ju’ which always gets a thumbs up in my book.
I’ve been seeing so many Strawberry Shortcake recipes floating across the food-blog world, and I thought I’d throw something a little different into the ring. Strawberries are still a’flowin in SD, so I thought I’d get creative with a crumble and hope for the best. I must say, I was a little apprehensive if this concoction would be as nutritious and sweet as I imagined, but the smell of maple and oats crystallizing in the oven abated those doubts. The amount of sweet potato I used was not measured, so use your best judgment based on the notes I jotted while in the baking process.
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