The BEST Matcha Chocolate Chip MONSTER Cookies #Blogtober

The wonderful health benefits of Matcha are added to these fun, healthful and delicious cookies! Candy eyeballs make them perfect for HALLOWEEN!!

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I have embarked on a wellness journey. I have started to exercise 5 days per week and am being more mindful of what I am eating. I still enjoy my favourites, but try to find more healthful alternatives, or have smaller portions. I am the type of person that will obsess, if I deprive myself. So I still have a small piece of birthday cake, or dessert on holidays. But I try to center most of my eating around fruits, vegetables, healthy carbs and proteins.

I first saw this recipe on Selena + Chef; an HBO series, which featured Selena Gomez, virtually learning how to cook at home during the pandemic. Every episode focused on a different Chef, that taught her how to cook a wonderful meal. In return, Selena donated money to the Chef's charity of choice. On the episode featuring Candice Kumai (Well+Good Council Member), they made Matcha Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Now, I LOVE green tea. That is what I drink most mornings. It gives me a great boost, to get my day going, plus it's full of antioxidants. So I was intrigued by these Matcha cookies. I quickly tried to jot down the recipe as they were making the cookies and then tucked it away in my blogging note book. (Candice also posted the recipe on her Instagram feed.) I recently remembered them, thanks to my daughter mentioning she wanted to try a Matcha latte. So off I went to buy Matcha! Matcha is made by grinding young, green tea leaves, into a fine powder. Usually this bright green powder is whisked into hot water, or milk. So I was curious to see how it would do, baked into a cookie.

I based my recipe off of the recipe I had jotted down, but changed a few things, to suit my needs and tastes. I was hoping that they would be bright green once done baking. After all, green cookies would be perfect for Halloween! Regardless of them baking to a yellowish brown, I decided to put candy eyes in these, just to make them festive and turned them into healthy MONSTER COOKIES 👾. I was so happy that they taste AMAZING! The matcha is offset by the sweetness of the banana and sugar. The oats make these hearty, so one cookie can go a long way. The kids loved them as well and I'm excited to have a sweet treat, that I know is made with healthful ingredients!

Matcha Chocolate Chip Cookies

adapted from Candice Kumai

3/4 C whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

2 tsp matcha powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/3 coconut oil

1/3 C brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp almond extract

1 large ripe banana, mashed

1 1/2 C oats

1 C dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, matcha powder and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat the coconut oil, sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and mix until silky. Add the banana and almond extract, until well combined.

Stir in the flour and mix until just combined. Fold in the oats and chocolate chips.

Using a small cookie scoop, place rounded scoopfuls of batter onto your parchment lined cookie sheet, spacing them 2 inches apart.

Bake for 8-10 minutes; until cookies are lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wired rack. Store in an air tight container for 3-4 days.