So here is the recipe for the biscuits that made Mr Meat&Potatoes cry.
The sight of these freshly baked goodies had him so excited that he was dancing with joy and then he spotted the chickpeas and came to an abrupt and dramatic halt. It was the moment when he realised that THERE ARE ALWAYS VEGETABLES IN HIS FOOD. Even the biscuits. The tears came. He cried to me, “But why mummy, WHY are there always vegetables in everything?”
After a bit of explaining about how I’m the vegie-smuggling lady, and that surprise nutrition is kind of an occupational hazard, he sucked it up and ate one. Then asked for another. Because they taste delicious.
And that’s the thing, see. Kids need to learn that healthy food is normal and part of every day. They need to accept that while it doesn’t always thrill them, they’ve got no choice so they may as well eat it. And if it tastes good, they’ll learn that healthy food is normal and yummy.
These are also the biscuits that make Mr VS fat. Or so he says (just quietly, it could be the beer, prolonged commuting and lack of exercise). But he can never eat less than three of these at a time. I manage to stop after two, so long as I know that there will be one more of them with my cup of tea after dinner.
Even better, they’re a tongue twister. Try saying ‘choc chip & chickpea cookies’ a few times, fast.
Good.
Choc chip and chickpea cookies
100g butter, softened
1 tbsp grapeseed or olive oil
1 cup brown sugar (use 3/4 cup caster sugar instead if you want to give the cooked biscuits a longer shelf life)
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 egg
1 1/4 cups wholemeal plain flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup choc chips (I like the dark ones)
3/4 cup cooked chickpeas (I use tinned ones, just rinse and drain well)
Preheat the oven to 180C. Line oven trays with baking paper (you’ll probably need 3 trays).
Use hand-held beaters or your mixmaster to cream the butter, oil and brown sugar together. Start with the butter, then combine in the oil, then add the sugar and whip for a couple of minutes until it’s lovely and creamy.
Add in the vanilla and egg. Beat well, then sift over the flour & baking powder. Fold it in (don’t worry, it seems like too much at first, but trust me it will combine in). Mix in the choc chips and chickpeas.
Use your hands (wet them slightly first) to roll ping pong-ball size quantities of mixture, press (& flatten slightly) onto the trays (allow a bit of room for spreading) and bake for 15 minutes until golden.
Makes 24ish good-sized biscuits.
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Other biscuit recipes on Vegie Smugglers…
Anzac biscuits
Oat, sultana & sesame seed biscuits
Marmalade biscuits
Vegie Smugglers 