How to bake blood-pressure friendly cookies

Looking to indulge your sweet tooth without blowing your diet or increasing your blood pressure? Try these chocolate-nut cookies containing less than half a gram of fat apiece!

Preparation time - 10 minutes; Cooking time - 30 minutes plus cooling; Makes 36

Ingredients:

• 75 g (1⁄3 c) walnuts
• 125 g (1⁄2 c) plus 30 ml (2 tbsp) confectioners' sugar
• 20 ml (4 tsp) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 ml (1⁄4 tsp) cinnamon
• 2 large egg whites
• 0.5 ml (1⁄8 tsp) salt

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Toast walnuts in small skillet, stirring frequently until crisp and fragrant, about 7 minutes. When cool enough to handle, coarsely chop
2. Sift together 125 grams (1⁄2 cup) confectioners' sugar, cocoa powder and cinnamon on sheet of wax paper
3. With electric mixer, beat egg whites and salt in large bowl until stiff peaks form. With rubber spatula, gently fold cocoa mixture into egg whites. Gently fold in nuts
4. Drop batter by generous spoonfuls onto baking sheets, spacing them 2.5 centimetres (1 inch) apart. Bake until set, about 20 minutes. Remove and cool on wire rack
5. Dust with remaining 30 millilitres (2 tablespoons) confectioners' sugar just before serving

• Eliminate the cocoa and add 5 millilitres (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract with the egg whites
• Use pecans or almonds instead of walnuts

• Using parchment paper eliminates the need for greasing baking sheets. The small amount of fat in each cookie comes from the nuts, which contain healthy omega-3 fatty acids
• It's the yolk of the egg that provides the nutrients to a chick embryo, so it's the part with all the fat and cholesterol. Egg whites have zero of both, but still contain lots of protein as well as vitamins and minerals
• Using cocoa, rather than solid chocolate, is a major fat-cutter

Each serving (1 cookie) provides:

• 15 Calories, 5 Calories from Fat
• 1 g Fat
• 0 g Saturated Fat
• 0 g Trans Fat
• 1 g Protein
• 2 g Carb
• 0 g Fibre
• 10 mg Sodium

• 0 mg Vitamin C
• 4 mg Magnesium
• 12 mg Potassium
• 1 mg Calcium

If you're concerned about blood pressure, the next time you're craving chocolate cookies, reach for this healthier recipe to enjoy a (practically) guilt-free treat.

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