coconut cranberry glazed almond butter cookies Valentine’s Day

Coconut cranberry glazed almond butter cookies (vegan, gluten-free, paleo, & sugar-free) if you haven’t noticed Valentine’s Day is my absolute favorite day to celebrate. I just love LOVE. Not just romantic love… all love. I love people watching and seeing someone do an act of kindness. I love seeing couples of all kinds holding hands and walking down the street. I love seeing hearts filled everywhere and people showing love. I don’t believe love just has to be shown on Valentine’s Day but do appreciate the moment to stop the world and just to give and receive love to yourself or your partner. It could even be your best friend or your puppy. I assume you get the point I am trying to get it.

With that being said let’s dive into the cookie details. These almond butter cookies are what I have been searching for nice and fluffy on the inside and filled with really good for you ingredients. I’m still on my sugar-free journey and feeling amazing these days but I still love baking for my partner and friends. Is anyone else’s love language baking or cooking food for other? Mix that with cuddling up with a book & my love. Those all combined you have yourself a happy human here.

I’m sure you have been just as busy in the daily hustle and if that is the case I truly wish you an hour or so just to unwind, relax and show yourself and your loves some love. Don’t we all deserve that? A moment to just sit in stillness. I’ve been getting that message a lot and it is has helped me. I am not one who can just still down on the weekend and relax but I have been adding in moments of stillness as much as possible. I wish the same for you and your loved ones.

coconut cranberry glazed almond butter cookies (vegan, gluten-free, paleo, & sugar-free)

The hero ingredients are almond butter, almond flour, flax seed & coconut oil.

9 Health Benefits of Almonds:

1.  They reduce heart attack risk.
Those who consume nuts five times a week have about a 50 percent reduction in risk of heart attack according to the Loma Linda School of Public Health.

2.  They lower “bad” cholesterol.
Almonds added to the diet have a favorable effect on blood cholesterol levels, according to a clinical study by Dr. Gene Spiller, Director of the Health Research and Studies Center, Inc.

3.  They protect artery walls from damage.
It was found that the flavonoids in almond skins work in synergy with the vitamin E, thus reducing the risk of heart disease (Research at Tufts University).

4.  Almonds help build strong bones and teeth.
The phosphorus in almonds helps make this possible.

5.  They provide healthy fats and aid in weight loss:

• Although nuts are high in fat, frequent nut eaters are thinner on average than those who almost never consume nuts. (Data from the Nurses’ Health Study)
• Those who ate nuts at least two times per week were 31 percent less likely to gain weight than were those who never or seldom ate them in a study involving 8,865 adults. (WHFood’s article on almonds)

6.  Almonds lower the rise in blood sugar and insulin after meals.

7.  They help provide good brain function. 
Almonds contain riboflavin and L-carnitine, nutrients that boost brain activity and may also reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

8.  They nourish the nervous system.
According to Ayurveda, almonds help increase high intellectual level and longevity.

(9 benefits of almonds sourced from https://www.care2.com/greenliving/8-health-benefits-of-almonds-king-of-nuts.html)

Notes:

• If you don’t have raw monk fruit start to add in any sweetener of choice if you are using stevia start with a teaspoon at a time, if using honey start with a tablespoon at a time… etc.
• I used a very concentrated amount of raw monk fruit extract, therefore, depending on what you have that could change.
• For my cookie shape, I used a cookie cutter similar to this one.
• If you want to change the berry feel free to use strawberry or raspberry either would be delicious.
• If you are on Body Ecology the base of the cookie is completely BED friendly. I would leave the glaze/frosting for stage 2.