On the fifth day of Christmas…

December 11, 2014 Off By mkelly

Has anyone noticed that EVERYONE is using coconut oil lately? I’m assuming everyone thinks its healthier than Olive Oil or butter, but I’m pretty sure its just a passing health fad. Regardless, so many of my current Pinterest/blog recipes call for coconut oil. I’m not one to follow a fad, but I was curious what all the fuss was about. I have to say, I’m not impressed. It’s fine for baking, but for cooking, I’m not so sure. I’d used it a few times previously in various dishes and I wasn’t a fan, but I thought maybe it was another one of the ingredients that made it taste funny. Then earlier this week I used it to roast some butternut squash and it was GROSS! I love butternut squash (as proven by my purchase of 40lbs of it last fall) but I couldn’t even finish it.

So for those keeping track that’s a yes for butternut squash, a no for coconut water and a no for coconut oil. Oddly enough, I actually like coconut. So today we are going to go with a cookie that gives the coconut a little bit of love. I made these granola cookies for my friend’s Birthday last year. In fact I traveled with them all the way across the country and they didn’t look worse for the wear. I mention their portability because I know a lot of people like to send cookies or care packages around the holidays, and these might be the perfect traveling cookie!

These are like the fruit cake of cookies except they are AWESOME. You’ve got granola, dried fruit, raisins, nuts, coconut. Everything but the kitchen sink! You can use any granola you have on hand (homemade or store-bought). I used Cascadian Farms Fruit and Nut, but next time I’m gonna make my own and play with the flavors a little more.

#tbt to a year ago when I was enjoying some sunshine and warmth in   California

#tbt to a year ago when I was enjoying some sunshine and warmth in California

Happy Baking!

The 12 Cookies of Christmas recap
1. Almond Butter Snickerdoodles
2. Pomegranate White Chocolate Chunk Cookies
3. Sparkling Cranberry Gems
4. Red Velvet White Chocolate Chip Cookies
5. Granola cookies