Must be NUTS!

I'm nuts for nuts. You may be cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs or know someone who is, but those sugary calories will kill ya. "But nuts are so fattening". Yes they are and herein lies the reason why they are soooo good for us.
Nuts contain the good kind of fats, monounsaturated fats. When we replace the saturated fats in our diet with the good fat from nuts we are helping our heart and our waistline. Did you know that people who eat nuts as part of their daily diet lose on average 1.4 lbs more and have smaller waists than those who don't? These people have replaced unhealthy, calorie deficient food with NUTS. The fiber, protein and fat combination in nuts can help us feel fuller longer so we don't destroy the box of goldfish sitting in the pantry.
Walnuts, almonds, brazil nuts, pistachios, cashews, etc provide many health benefits besides weight management including:

• Protection against the affects of stress
• Decreasing "bad" choesterol levels
• Protection against lung and prostate cancer
• Supporting reproductive health
• Stimulating brain health

SO... Go nuts! Be nuts! Eating nuts as part of a healthy diet can be good for you in so many ways. Nuts contain many nutrients like vitamin E and are a great snack food, too. They're inexpensive, easy to store and easy to take with you to work or school in their pure form or as part of a bar or a mix.
Enjoy some crunchy nuts today!
If you're NUTS like me, you'll love this "cookie" recipe!

Nutty 'nana "cookies"
These are not your typical "toll house"cookie. A less sweet, healthy alternative. My kids love these as an afterschool snack. Most of the ingredients are easy to find in a grocery store (or two) natural foods section, but I have made it super easy for you by including a link to get them in one place.
 
1/2 c  Cashew Nut butter
2-3  bananas (i prefer mine less ripe), but ripe if you like it sweet 
1 egg  if you like them fluffy, or leave it out if you like them more dense 
1tsp  vanilla
IF you prefer them a bit sweeter, you could throw in a bit of honey(2 TBSP). I like to use a local variety.

Mash and mix above ingredients
 
1 1/4c  almond meal/flour + 1/4 chocolate vegan protein such as hemp 
1/2c  shredded coconut
1/2c  walnuts, optional
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp baking powder
couple pinches salt
3/4c- 1c  chocolate chips 

Mix wet and dry ingredients together   
 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spoon onto cookie sheet. Bake for 15min.
Enjoy warm or refrigerate! Yummy!