In my previous post I had written about how I miss few things in Canada and how I was a little disappointed. I think I have to take back my words now, because I have discovered few amazing things here.
I'm sure I'm going to find more interesting stuff once I start exploring the place. Last week we had been to a mall and found a store called Bulk Barn.
From where I was looking I was able to see only the name of the store in big letters and big packets of bird food. With the name and the bird food I thought it was some pet store where they were selling pet supplies in bulk and was thinking of skipping it. But I turned back again and marched towards the store and I'm so glad I did it or else I would have missed something very amazing. It's a grocery store where supplies are sold in bulk and not in ready to go packs, so you can decide to buy how much you want.
Also they have an unbelievable selection of specialty flours/grains, baking supplies, nuts, candies and many more. I felt like a kid in a candy store. I was able to find a lot of stuff which was not easily accessible to me in US as well.
Another exciting find was the community center in our area. It's just 7 minutes walk from our home. It has a decent size library (not much in the cooking section but a lot of materials for my son) and also a fitness center with reasonable prices. There are a couple of parks and walking trails also nearby. I'm loving it here!
Now coming to today's recipe, while grocery shopping last week I found oat bran and wheat bran in the store. Back in US these and similar items were available but was either costly or I had to make a special trip to the health food store. So I did not get a chance to use oat bran. When I saw it here I immediately grabbed a pack of each. I didn't know what I was going to do but bought it anyway.
Here I have to mention something, I'm a shopaholic. Not that I buy countless dresses and shoes (I used to be one back in India) but I love to buy grocery supplies and cookbooks. While browsing the web for recipes using oat bran I found this recipe. I have tweaked it little bit to suit our taste.
Recipe
Outrageous Oat Bran Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (1 and ½ stick) Softened Butter
- ¾ cup Brown Sugar (I used light)
- ⅓ cup Granulated Sugar
- ½ cup Unsweetened Applesauce
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 cup White Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 cup Oat Bran
- ¼ cup Flax Seed (I used powdered flax seed)
- ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¾ teaspoon Baking Soda
- Little Ground Cinnamon (Optional)
- ½ cup Raisins,Nuts,Coconut,Chocolate Chips (Optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F for 15 minutes. Grease the baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.
- In a big bowl combine together the flours, bran, flax seed, baking powder, baking soda and raisins (if using) and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, blend together butter and sugars until creamy.
- Add applesauce and vanilla and mix until well blended. If you use an electric beater to mix the applesauce it may look curdled, but don't worry.
- To the wet ingredients add the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Drop the dough by tablespoon on prepared baking sheets. Lightly spray the tablespoon with non stick spray, so that the dough will drop easily. Use a butter knife to scoop out the dough from the tablespoon.
- The baking time mentioned in the recipe is 8-10 minutes. The cookies look very even after 9 minutes but I removed them out anyway. After it cooled we tasted it and felt that it required further baking. So baked again for another 3 minutes. This time it had a nice golden brown color. Leave it in the baking sheet itself for a minute and then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
Taste & Texture
- The earthy smell of white whole wheat flour was predominant when the cookies were consumed fresh (on the day of baking). But they tasted very good the second day. The smell was very mild. My son is enjoying the cookies very much, so I guess he doesn't even smell anything different.
Vaishali says
Madhuram-- Canada sounds great! A friend in Vancouver is always telling me how wonderful it is, and I can see you are smitten too. Getting health food at bulk prices is amazing indeed-- I wish I could visit for a grocery-shopping trip! 🙂
Glad you're settled in. Those oat bran cookies look great.
You got the right word Vaishali. Yes I'm smitten!
Divya Vikram says
Glad you like the place! Looks healthy n delicious!
Bharti says
Yeah..I know the feeling, now days retail therapy comprises of overspending on groceries! LOL..hey that's what foodies do.
The cookies look delish.
Cham says
Is that fun discovering a new place? Oat bran , I ve seen many bread recipe, try some yeast bread 😀 The cookies are plump.
Sweatha says
Wow,loved hearing about Canada and esp the availability of spclty flours.The cookies are very healthy.I am surprised at the earthy smell of WWWF.I too have been using it for quite a while and have not felt anything.Maybe the brand may be diff or I do not know.I too freeze the dough as you do.
Also Thanks also to the 'nagger' who will not allow you to take a looooong break 😀 -we got yummy cookies and nice info on Canada.
Sweatha, maybe its the flax seed powder or oat bran. But as I have mentioned, from the second day onwards it tastes very good. I think we can cut back on the butter too to make it even more healthy.
Ashwini says
YUmmy , crispy and healthy cookies.
Deepa says
Hi Madhu,
How are you? COngrats on the move, I haven't been reading your blog for a couple of months but am back again. Amazing you're back at this so quickly after the move. If it was me, I'd still be getting the computer set up!!
Deepa
Thanks Deepa. The nagger at home won't let me take some time off!
sunshinemom says
My friend had bought some totally fat free oat cookies from Hyderabad and I wanted to replicate it. Never got down to doing it but I like your recipe as the butter seems quite low. Cookies look good! Is that a new dish too, M? I love the fluted edges:)
Fat free oat cookies! That's interesting. May be Susan has a recipe for that too. The dish is old, but have not used it for sometime now.
jayasree says
cookies look crisp. Waiting for new healthy treats from your kitchen.
Nags says
they look so innocent, not outrageous at all 😀 The plate is lovely, btw.
A&N says
I'd love to try some bran too! I've been eying it for sometime but find it expensive.
Tanvee says
Hi Madhuram,
Welcome to Canada! I go to school in Waterloo, Ontario and it's pretty nice here. Some other good grocery stores are Zehrs, Loblaws and Sobeys. Each of these has a health food section so you'll be able to find your healthy ingredients there. Hope this helps 🙂
Tanvee
Thanks Tanvee. I have a Superstore/Loblaws nearby but not the other two.
Priya says
Crunchy oatbran cookies looks amazing!
Kalyani says
cookies look so tempting ... i love cookies ... will try ...
Parita says
Wow cookies look wonderful crispy and healthy with oats and wheat flour, also flavourful with dry fruits..perfect 🙂