I don't know how Canadians can afford to eat.  I returned to my native land for an educational course recently, and continue to be amazed at how expensive food is in the grocery stores there.  A few years ago, when the Canadian dollar was weak, the higher cost wasn't too significant.  However, with the dollars now around par, I might be eating Mr. Noodles every day if I lived up there (Canadian version of Top Ramen).  That would make my food blog much more challenging.

The 3 day course I attended discussed the New Trends in the Prevention of Running Injuries.  It's not that everything I knew about preventing and treating running injuries was wrong, it's just that 90% of it might be.  Where do I go from here?  I contemplate the information.  I discuss it.   I learn from it.  And I apply it.  And then I go eat my cookies.  Because, despite the beans, these are pretty good. 

Yes beans.  In a cookie.  The batter smells like white beans when you're mixing it.  Slightly disgusting.  But push through this and you will be rewarded.  The beans provide a great source of fiber and protein while adding some density to the cookie, without the beanie aftertaste.  Mostly, the anise flavor comes out in this cookie. Star Anise is a star-shaped spice that tastes like liquorice and originates from China and Japan.  Imagine a very subtle black liquorice flavor being added to your food.  You can use this to flavor drinks and candies, but it can also add an extra dimension to chicken by applying it as part of a rub or putting the whole star anise in a pot of blueberry jam while it cooks, removing it afterwards.  The original recipe called for aniseed, which I thought was the same thing as Star Anise.  Apparently, the two are similar with a slightly different flavor.  Aniseed has been used medicinally to treat menstrual cramps and head lice.

Marathon Cookies

Adapted from 101cookbooks.com

Ingredients

·         2 cups rolled oats (not instant)

·         1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

·         1 tbsp aniseed (or star anise), ground

·         1 tbsp baking powder

·         1 tsp baking soda

·         Zest of one lemon

·         ½ tsp fine grain sea salt

·         1 15oz can white kidney, great northern, or navy beans, rinsed and drained

·         ¼ cup olive oil

·         1 cup natural can sugar (or brown sugar)

·         1 large egg

·         1 tsp vanilla extract

·         1/3 cup chopped dates

·         1/3 cup sesame seeds

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F with rack in the top third.  Prepare a cookie sheet by lining it with parchment paper.

Place oats in a food processor or blender and pulse until they resemble course flour.  Put them into a large bowl and combine with the flour, aniseed, baking powder, baking soda, lemon zest and salt.

Use your food processor again to blend together the beans and oil until smooth.  (You don't want any bean bits in your cookies!)

Pour in the sugar, egg, and vanilla extract and blend again until well combined.  Just like when using electric beaters, you will need to stop your blending a couple of times to scrape down the sides so everything gets mixed in.

Transfer the bean mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients and use a spatula to combine until everything is just mixed.  Top with the dates and fold the dough a few more times until those are mixed in as well.

In a small bowl, measure out the sesame seeds.  Use an ice cream scoop to form the dough into balls. (Everyone enjoys a giant cookie from time to time, so feel free to be adventurous with the size.  The baking time will increase with the size of your cookies, so be sure that whatever size you make them, they're all the same size so they cook evenly.)

Place the scooped cookie dough in the sesame seed bowl and roll until coated. 

Transfer the cookie to the baking sheet and flatten the dough a little with your hand. 

Make all of the cookies this way and then bake for about 15 mins or until the seeds are lightly browned.