This is such a yummy fall treat! We always made these to send into preschool to share with the class since they're homemade and much healthier than store-bought cookies. We LOVE these cookies, especially this time of year. 
The Best Pumpkin Cookies!
- 2 ½ cups whole wheat flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 drops Cinnamon Bark Vitality (or 1 tsp ground cinnamon)
- ½ tsp salt
- 1½ cups coconut sugar
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 (15oz.) can pumpkin purée
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt, set aside. Beat sugar and butter until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheet. A mini ice cream scoop works so well for this!
Bake for 15-18 minutes. Make sure to cool them completely before adding the glaze!
When cool, drizzle glaze over cookies.
Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 or 2 drops Lemon Vitality
- Milk (or even water) to thin glaze
Unless you've been living under a rock, you have no doubt heard some buzz about elderberry syrup. So, what’s the deal with elderberries? Elderberries are rich in vitamins A, B and C and have been a traditional cold and flu remedy for literally hundreds of years. They’re known to have high antioxidant activity and the bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice of the berry can destroy the ability of a virus to infect a cell. Whaaaaat!
I know making your own can sound a bit daunting, but I promise you it's actually really easy! And WAY more cost effective! I love to add essential oils to ours to add an extra dose of amazingness (and flavor) to our elderberry syrup. Here’s the recipe that we've been using for the past few years...
Elderberry Syrup
- 1 cup dried organic elderberries
- 1½ cups organic raw honey (not only is raw honey naturally antimicrobial, which will keep your elderberry syrup fresh for a long time, it also contains far more nutrients since it hasn't been heated)
- 4 cups filtered water
- 7 drops Copaiba Vitality
- 6 drops Orange Vitality
- 3 drops Thieves Vitality
- 1 drop each Frankincense Vitality, Nutmeg Vitality, Cinnamon Bark Vitality, Clove Vitality
Pour the water into a medium saucepan and add the dried elderberries. Bring to a boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour, or until the liquid has reduced by almost half. Then, remove from heat and let it cool enough to be handled. Mash the berries carefully using a spoon or other flat utensil. I like to use a potato masher! Pour through a mesh strainer into a glass jar or bowl and try to press the berries against the strainer to get the most liquid as possible out of them. You could also use some cheesecloth, or bags like these.
Toss the elderberries (or compost them!) and let the liquid cool to lukewarm. When it’s no longer hot, stir in the honey and essential oils. I like to use a whisk to mix it all really well.
When everything is mixed well, pour the syrup into a large mason jar or glass bottle of some kind and store it in the fridge. We all take about a teaspoon daily as a preventative (we don't really measure, haha). To make it easy, I just pour a little into our daily shots of NingXia Red. (Side note: if you haven't learned about the incredible benefits of NingXia, ya need to ASAP. Check out my Instagram highlight where I talk about one of our biggest testimonials HERE.
Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of the essential oils used in this recipe and what they can do for you! Most of these are the essential oil versions of the spices called for in traditional elderberry syrup recipes. Knowing that 1 drop of peppermint oil is equivalent to 26 cups of peppermint tea in potency, it’s easy to see why using oils is a no-brainer!
I highly encourage you to do some research on the benefits of the essential oils and how they help support your immune system. Your mind will be blown! If you have an Essential Oils Pocket Reference, that's a great place to start! ;-)
Keep in mind that there are so many Vitality Oils you could choose from, so feel free to pick and choose which oils you use and how much of each you put in your syrup. This recipe can serve as a guide for you to make it just the way you like it. Too spicy? Add more honey. Too thin? Add more honey. Not enough flavor? Add more oils! It’s pretty much impossible to mess it up. Just tweak it as needed to suit your taste!
I've put together a bundle of my favorite vitality oils for this recipe for you here: elderberry syrup bundle
Do you already take elderberry syrup? Make your own or buy it?
Did anyone else ever do Plated? You know, one of those subscription boxes where they send you the ingredients and recipes to cook a few meals. Sadly, that one is no longer. I did Plated off an on for a few years and there are a few recipes that I've made again and again! This is one of them! However, just like most recipes I try, I tweaked it slightly each time until I ended up with my own favorite version. My kids actually LOVE this fish!
Miso-Glazed Cod with Sesame Mashed Potatoes and Baby Bok Choy (makes 2 servings)
For the fish...
- 12 oz. cod or pollock
- ½ Tbs soy sauce
- 2 Tbs rice vinegar
- 2 Tbs miso paste
Whisk the soy sauce, rice vinegar and miso to combine. In a bowl or ziploc bag, marinate the cod, making sure the fish is well coated. Let it sit for at least 10 minutes.
For the potatoes...
- 10 oz. Yukon Gold potatoes (or I love the multicolored little potatoes, whatever they're called, haha! When some purple potatoes are in the mix, these turn out so pretty!)
- ½ Tbs miso paste
- ½ Tbs toasted sesame oil
- 1 scallion, sliced
- And 1 drop of Black Pepper Vitality, if you'd like
Soak potatoes in a bowl water and a splash of Thieves Fruit & Veggie Soak for a minute or 2. (Don't dump that bowl, you'll need it to wash the baby bok choy!) Rinse and dice into 1 inch size pieces. Add the potatoes to a pot with a generous pinch of salt, then cover with cold water. Bring it to a boil and cook until tender, about 12 minutes. Drain and return the pot , but turn the heat off. You can either add the scallions now, or wait until just before serving.
For the Baby Bok Choy...
- 12 oz. baby bok choy
- 2 Tbs avocado oil
- 1 to 2 drops Ginger Vitality
- 1 clove garlic, minced (or like 3 if you're like me and LOVE garlic, haha)
- ½ tsp salt
Preheat your oven to 450°. Chop off the base of the bok choy, separate leaves, and soak for a minute or 2 in your veggie wash bowl. Rinse, then dry with a few paper towels. Lay the bok choy out on a large baking sheet. Mix the avocado oil, garlic and Ginger Vitality, then toss well to coat the bok choy. Try to lay the leaves out in a single layer and sprinkle with salt. Pop them into the oven for a total of about 8 minutes, flipping halfway. You want them to get a little brown and crispy on the leafy ends! When they're done, take them out and switch your oven to broil (if your oven has low and high broil settings, I've found low works best for me).
OK, time to cook the fish! Remove it from the marinade and place on a baking sheet lined with foil. Don't make the mistake I made once by using parchment paper for this part. Trust me! Haha! Pop the baking sheet into the oven on the top rack and broil until glazed on top and the fish is opaque, about 7 minutes.
Place a piece of fish, some bok choy, and a scoop of potatoes on a plate and impress someone with this fancy dish... even if it's just yourself!
