Making Love in the Kitchen

This Thursday, August 13th, marks the launch of The Healthy Cookie: Unbaked, an inspiring journal that documents a life changing two years from a Crohn’s Disease diagnosis to naturally attained perfect health. This is not a guide on how to get you well but the very personal story of how I got well. More than anything, it documents my discovery of life lessons that don’t just apply to Crohn’s but that can help anyone going through any kind of challenge. All week I am sharing excerpts from the book along with my favourite healthy cookie recipes.

From And the diagnosis…
Written September 6^th, 2006

Dr. Ha told me he could help. He said he could reverse the progression of the disease and send it into remission. Of all the doctors I had seen, he was the only one who told me this disease did not have to be a part of my life. Knowing that I now have someone on my team, someone who believes what I believe, that I don’t have to be sick, made it all just a little bit of a lighter load to bare.

I was ready to sign on the dotted line. The one little catch in this whole plan was that I was scheduled to leave California two days later. I had an apartment back in Toronto. I had a gym membership with a few leftover personal training sessions. I had concert tickets for October.  I was registered for school. I had what I believe is commonly referred to as a life.  Dr. Ha needed me in LA for three months. Suddenly the progression of my life was stopped in it’s tracks…

Some people describe certain points in their lives as coming to a fork in the road where they needed to make a choice, knowing the decision would alter their future in a profound way.  Some may say that this was my fork. Should I stay or should I go? Should I do the three months in LA or carry on with my plans and go back to school and hope things didn’t get worse before I learned how to heal myself?

I however don’t think what has happened in the last couple of weeks brought me to a fork at all.  The way I see it, I was speeding along a super highway, had at last come to see my destination and just as I was about to approach it, I came to a sudden screeching stop, swerved out of control, ran through a ditch and ended up on this very rocky unmarked trail of sickness and disease.

Check back tomorrow for another excerpt.

Orange Almond  Biscotti

1/2 cup raw almonds
2/3 cup  flour of choice (might I recommend sorghum, brown rice, millet, or quinoa)
1/2 cup tapioca or arrowroot starch
1/4 cup sucanat (can use sugar too  I suppose)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp guar gum
1 1/2 Tbs chopped orange zest
2 eggs

Chocolate Drizzle (optional)
1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chunks
1 tsp coconut oil

• Preheat oven to 350
• In a food processor, grind almonds to a course meal
• Add remaining ingredients and process until forms into a ball
• Scrape out dough and press onto parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Form into rectangle about 3-4 inches wide and about 12 inches long
• Bake for 25 minutes
• Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Slice into long 1 inch wide pieces
• Arrange on cookie sheet so will bake evenly and return to oven for 10 minutes
• After ten minutes, turn oven off and open oven door slightly. Leave cookies in to continue to dry out.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool completely

Chocolate Drizzle

• Melt chocolate and coconut oil together.
• Can create a double boiler by filling a large pot up with water. Sit smaller pot containing chocolate inside and stir continuously.
• Drizzle chocolate over cooled cookies and place in fridge to harden

Tags: Health, Meghan Telpner, The Healthy Cookie