Despite lingering throat soreness and a tickly cough that keeps me up in the night, I am feeling a bit better each day. I’d say I am about 80% healed. The flu just seems to be leaving my body very. very. slowly.
My flu fighting plan includes:
- Juicing first thing every morning (ginger, lemon, grapefruit, carrots, cucumbers, beets- are my go to’s)
- Gargling with warm salt water 3 times a day (now I’m down to 1-2)
- Neti Pot (1-2 times a day, as needed)
- Oil of Oregano drops (few drops, 1x a day) + Echinacea drops (1ml, 2-3 times a day)
- Continue with usual Vitamins (what I normally take: Probiotic, vegan vitamin, B12, Calcium/magnesium, Vit D)
- Fresh lemon and ginger tea (Grate 1” piece ginger and steep with a tea steeper + juice half a lemon + hot water + maple syrup to taste)
- Japanese Sencha tea
- REST (This is the hardest part for me…I am not a ‘rester’)
Whether actual physical healers, or mental placebo healers, it’s probably a bit of both. I’m just happy to be feeling better.
I’m really ready to bid farewell to April though. It was not a stellar month for me. An injured sciatic nerve, a bad flu, and a record amount of rainfall all knocked me off my course.
I’ve been feeling pretty down lately because my exercise has been totally side-lined and I’m feeling really out of shape. I keep telling myself that this is just another pothole or obstacle along my journey and it will pass. I miss running. I miss Body Pump. I miss endorphins. I miss the Hot Yoga class that Ange and I planned to try out. But it will come…in time.
I think I’m going to call the month of May ‘getting my groove back’ month. 
Despite a crummy April, this breakfast was a good way to end the gloom and doom! And we woke up to sunshine for the first time in 2 weeks.
My breakfast inspiration came from Tina’s hot off the press Carrots ‘N’ Cake book. I was sent this book as a review copy from the publisher last week.
Tina Haupert, who has been blogging at Carrots ‘N’ Cake for a few years, wrote this book to share her healthy living journey. The book contains over 50 of her go-to recipes (many of which are vegetarian and a few of them are vegan), as well as her workout and healthy eating tips.
I took it as a sign that the very first recipe in the book happened to be vegan.
And cookies.
And quite healthy cookies at that!
So I whipped them up this morning and made it into breakfast.
Oh She Glows
Banana Oatmeal Chip Cookies
Lightly adapted from Carrots ‘N’ Cake book.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour (I used spelt and added 1 tbsp)
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp chia seed
- 1 tbsp ground flax seed
- 1/4 cup non-dairy milk
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp coconut oil (or canola or olive oil)
- 1/2 banana
- 1/4 cup chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment or a non-stick mat.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, chia seed, ground flax). Now add in the liquid ingredients (milk, maple syrup, vanilla, oil) and stir well.
3. In a small bowl, mash the banana. Stir in the mashed banana, chocolate chips, and walnuts into cookie mixture.
4. Spoon onto prepared baking sheet, leaving 2 inches apart. I made 6 large cookies and baked them for 14-16 minutes at 350F. You will likely need to adjust the time based on the size of the cookie you make. Cool on rack for 10 minutes before serving.
I adapted this recipe lightly based on what I had lurking in my pantry…
- I added a tbsp of chia seeds
- I used spelt instead of whole wheat
- I used maple syrup instead of agave or honey
- I used coconut oil instead of canola
- I used 1/2 a banana instead of 1
- I reduced the chocolate chips down to 1/4 cup
They turned out delicious- big, pillowy soft, fluffy, and lightly sweet. Like a bowl of oatmeal in cookie form. Thanks Tina!
For breakfast, I had a bowl of Nature’s Path Spelt Cereal, with almond milk, buckwheat groats, and a cookie crumbled over top. And some Japanese Sencha on the side.
Shortly after breakfast, the deck guys arrived to install the deck beams around 8am. Not having the experience or equipment to do it himself, Eric hired the pros to install the 22-24 deck beams.
The rest of the deck, Eric plans to do on his own, with the help of myself & friends here and there.
We were really worried when they dug by the well, but thankfully no pipes were broken!! Here’s hoping that everything goes smoothly today!
I hope the sun is shining where you are!
Giveaway!
If you’d like a chance to win a copy of the Carrots ‘N’ Cake book, leave a comment below and I will select 1 random winner on Monday. Goodluck
{ 424 comments… read them below or add one }
Angela,
Those cookies look wonderful and I can not wait to eat them! Maybe I will make them for the relief efforts we have going on here in the southern US. The death toll looks small compared to recent disasters but the devastation is still great.
Thanks for being a positive point in the day
Yay to feeling better! I have been thinking about you and your flu all week and hoping that it takes it’s walking papers. I’m so glad that you finally have some sunshine (I do too). Happy May!!!
Thank you Michelle!
WOOHOO you’re kicking that sickness away!! YOUR BREAKFAST looks SO GOOD!! esp cuz im hungry! and these cookies are of course a win in my book!
Glad you’re feeling better
May is going to be a great month because it’s one month closer to SUMMER!!! yahooooo! I love cookies. Cookies for breakfast = a healing breakfast to me.
I am so glad juice is helping you feel better!! I know that whatever is ailing me, fresh juice always helps:) I am so excited to get my hands on a copy of that book, Tina is a culinary genius! I can’t imagine how amazing a cookie would taste crumbled into cereal!
Man, with that kind of regimen, no measly flu stands a chance against you and your germ-fighting powers. Hope May brings you renewed health and energy!
Is it wrong that my favourite blog posts are always pictures of other bloggers’ yards and houses? I love getting glimpses into how other people live their lives! Looking forward to seeing the end result.
is you contest open to the whole word ? Thanks for sharing so many recipes on your blog though
yay waking up to sun! it makes such a difference for me in my mood so hopefully it’ll pick you up some! may!? already!? say it isn’t so
glad your feeling better! Hopefully May brings forth good health!
Hope you feel better soon! I am actually suffering with you, because yesterday I got flu myself:) Today I tried gargling the salted water, but it was too “gross” for me to make it:/ I know they say you should rest when feeling ill, but I am absolutely unable to take a rest even when feeling bad..Hopefully someone will come over at my place and persuade me to lie down and watch a movie or something:)
I used to have a similar recipe (although not vegan) years ago but lost it and hadn’t made it enough to know it by heart. I’ve since started following a vegan diet so this recipe was a great find for me! Heading out to buy the missing ingredients now.
Glad to hear you’re slowly healing, Angela. I hope you’re fully better very soon.
I’ve been wanting to read Tina’s book, and love that the first recipe was for vegan cookies. Yum.
hope you feel better. i use to follow Tina, would love to win her book!
I am so sorry this has been a crummy month. It is so hard t have weeks like that, but it is good to look forward knowing that things WILL get better.
I think you know what this means!! 
I have so wanted to get the Carrots N Cake cookbook! And those cookies look DIVINE! I have ALL of those ingredients in my pantry
Those cookies look to DIE for!!! I can’t wait to try some of the Carrots-N-Cake recipes!
I had the same dreaded flu about a month back. It was a doozy and it took me quite awhile to get back to normal. Best advice I can give you is to pace yourself. Don’t try to do too much too soon like I did and then suffered a setback. Hang in there, it will be over soon
It’s too late for me to make those amazing looking cookies for breakfast, so I’m thinking maybe lunch? Yum.
I really hope that you feel better soon.
That book looks great. I would definately read it
A new cookbook for a new season!!! Yes please!!
With the beautiful Ontario weather today you should feel even better! I think May will be a get back into the groove month for me too.
Glad you are slowly on the mend.
It’s tough to feel out of sorts, mentally and physically.
Some months are just like that.
Sunshine is around the corner!
No one deserves to start feeling better than you! I’m excited to try these cookies this weekend! I’m always looking for a good healthy cookie recipe! Don’t work too hard on your deck today. Maybe sitting in the sun, sipping a green monster and watching the guys work hard is what the doctor ordered!
I hear you on the flu/exercise being side lined. My sickness just doesn’t want to leave – frustrating! Hope you feel better soon
Those cookies look perfect. Can’t wait to make them!
I’m terrible at resting, too! Good luck to you on that! Hope you’re feeling 100% again in no time!
Hope you get over your flu soon!!
Those cookies look AMAZING – I need to make them soon
)
I cannot wait to pick up a copy of Tina’s book, however winning it would be SO much better
Tina’s book sounds great! I’m glad you’re feeling better. And it looks like a nice day for your backyard to be dug up!
We don’t have a Barnes and Noble around here, so I haven’t had a chance to see the famous book! I’d love to try out a few (read: all) of the recipes!
Oooooh,
those cookies look absolutely fabulous!!
I will totally be making them
As well, I think May is a great “get back into the groove” month, because there is the lovely weather, the flowers blooming and lots of charity 5K’s, marathons, relay races, etc.
May is a great month, hope you get your groove back!
Happy to hear you are doing better. I am happy to say goOdbye to April as well! Sounds like a great cookie I will have to bake some of those up soon. I made the cherry coconut butter loaf again yesterday but added chocolate chips instead of cherries
. It was Soooo good! Love your recipes and thanks you for perfecting them and sharing them. Can’t wait to see how the deck turns out. Good luck and rest up! 
Glad to read you are feeling better! I also love the idea that May is going to be your “getting your groove back” month! Same here…too many chilly days and an injury also kept me from running. I am slowly getting back into the swing of things!
Enjoy your weekend!
I would love to win the book! I found your site through a friend (good timing too since my vegan sister in law was on her way to visit when I found it) and tried a few recipes and LOVED them. Now I’ve found 3 other blogs through you and Carrots N Cake is one of them!
Anyway…thanks for the recipes and thanks for the encouragement to start running. Started the C25K training today!
Those cookies look amazing! Will definitely be trying them.
Have you ever tried gargling Grapefruit Seed Extract for a sore throat? I always find that it works even better than salt water. Glad you’re on your way to your normal, healthy self!
Glad you’re feeling better now too! Keep it up!
I”m been aching to read Tina’s book for a while now! That’s so nice of you to do a giveaway!
Those cookies look really good! It’s an enticing sneak peak to her book!
This is my first comment even though I’m a long time reader. I’m a law student who currently has a cold so my April was pretty bad as well. I agree…let’s get our groove back in May! Your recipes really inspire me…thanks for that. I am always excited to read your blog everyday. I read it even if there isn’t a new post! My boyfriend and I are vegetarians. I am aspiring to be vegan as I have lactose issues, so thanks for all the great recipe ideas!
That’s some plan you have there! Feel better soon!
P.S. Those cookies look delish!
yummy-looking cookies.
i’m a carrots n’ cake reader also, and i spotted her book in my campus bookstore the other day!
I LOVE Tina’s blog! I am so happy for her book debut!
i love carrots n cake blog! you and tina r such inspirations! yummm cookies look amazing