Healthy Christmas Treats to Give Away This Holiday Season
Looking for a creative and thoughtful gift idea? Instead of store-bought gift baskets or treats, why not make your own? Pair homemade goodies with items like herbal teas, jams, gourmet chocolates, and other items for a perfectly curated holiday gift that’s easy on your wallet and good for the health of your friends and loved ones. These three delicious recipes are the perfect way to share Christmas treats that are both tasty and healthy!
1. Coconut-Berry Raw Cookies
These Christmas treats are fully raw, preserving all the nutritional density, vitamins, and minerals in each healthy ingredient. And while it requires zero baking, this effortless recipe is bursting with flavor and nutrients. Every bite delivers lots of healthy fats (including medium-chain triglycerides from the coconut, which may support your immune system) and digestion-boosting fiber. Best of all? The tart sweetness of the goji berries!
A single 5-tablespoon serving of goji berries packs exceptionally high levels of vitamins and antioxidants, including five times your daily needs of vitamin A. Plus, studies have found that the berries strengthen your immunity and promote a general feeling of improved wellness.
1/2 cup organic sorghum flour
1/4 cup organic almond flour
1 tbsp tapioca flour
2 tsp psyllium husk powder (unsweetened)
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup organic coconut sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup organic goji berries
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tbsp full-fat coconut milk
In a bowl, combine the baking soda, sorghum flour, almond flour, tapioca flour, psyllium, and salt. Whisk well.
Beat in the sugar, vanilla powder, coconut milk and coconut oil. Mix well.
Stir in the goji berries, then kneed into a ball.
Spread out the dough and cut it into your favorite Christmas shapes. Place on a baking sheet, sprinkle with shredded coconut, and place it in your freezer until you’re ready to enjoy!
2. Paleo Gingersnap Cookies
Gingersnap cookies are a quintessential Christmas treat, and your friends and family will love getting these home-baked goodies. Unfortunately, traditional gingersnap cookies are very high in sugar. But you can have your Christmas treats without sacrificing your health!
These cookies taste sweet but are low in sugar, in part due to the sweet flavors of ground cinnamon. The additional sweetness comes not from white sugar, but from coconut sugar, molasses (it’s high in immunity-boosting minerals) and dried apples, which provide lots of antioxidants plus gut-enhancing fiber.
The end result? Your home will smell amazing, your gift recipients will be delighted, and everyone can indulge in the holidays without triggering their diabetes risks.
CARAMEL SAUCE
1/2 cup coconut sugar
2 1/2 tbsp butter, ideally organic and grass-fed
1/4 cup full-fat coconut milk
COOKIES
1/4 cup extra-virgin coconut oil
1 cup coconut sugar
1 egg white
2 tbsp molasses
1 1/2 ground almond meal
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp ground ginger
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup dried apples, cut into small chunks
First, make the sauce — it’s low sugar and paleo friendly! Heat all the caramel sauce ingredients on low heat until well mixed, then bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer to thicken. This process should take approximately 4-5 minutes. Stir often to avoid burning the caramel sauce.
Set the sauce aside to cool, then make the cookies!
In a mixing bowl, combine the sugar and coconut oil, then stir in the molasses and egg white. Mix well.
Fold in the rest of the ingredients and mix. Form into a thin layer of dough, cut into your favorite shapes, then bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Drizzle with the sauce and enjoy warm!
3. Low-Fat Gingerbread Cookies
Many recipes for baked Christmas treats call for ingredients like lots of a butter, or shortening — both of which are high in saturated fats and sometimes trans fats. These gingerbread cookies are so decadent and delicious, you won’t believe they’re actually low fat and require absolutely zero shortening or lard. Plus, they’re rich in vitamins and antioxidants, including anti-inflammatory ginger powder and vitamin C-rich applesauce (the applesauce reduces your need for butter while keeping these cookies delightfully moist).
COOKIES
3 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 egg, ideally free-ranged, local and organic
1/3 cup dark molasses
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
3 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
ICING
1 1/2 tbsp egg whites
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1 cup powdered coconut sugar
1/2 tsp of cream of tartar
First, make the icing. Combine the lemon juice and egg whites until well-mixed, then stir in the sugar. Whisk well and put into a piping bag for decorating your cookies later.
Then, make the cookies. Combine the butter, sugar and applesauce until well-combined, then fold in the molasses and egg.
In another bowl, stir together the dried ingredients (e.g., baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, flour, etc.).
Pour the wet ingredients from the first bowl into your second bowl and stir quickly.
Preheat your oven to 35o degrees Fahrenheit. While your oven is heating up, roll out the dough and cut into gingerbread people using your favorite cookie cutters. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown, then decorate with the icing.