Apple Cookies and Herring Salad
Hello friends. Today was a beautiful day. We dressed lightly and went out with my daughters. My older daughter went to her course and I went to the market to do some shopping. After taking care of a few errands, we headed to the children's park. My daughter rode her favorite slide. She loves this slide, laughing as she goes down. She uses her legs to safely descend. She slides down repeatedly, going back up without stopping.
Then we went to the store. I had ordered a t-shirt and a suit from here. But the t-shirt was a bit big on the shoulders. I ordered a smaller size, let's see how it turns out. I also ordered new shoes to try a different model. The new shoes are both cheaper and fit better. They are not from a well-known brand, but the quality feels slightly different. Not quite like Adidas.
I bought only royal dates from the vegetable section, the price was quite reasonable and there were no worms. I had bought half a kilo earlier and only one had a worm. I bought zucchini, eggs, pasta and flour because I plan to bake a cake tomorrow. I also got bananas, apples and chicken thigh fillets. I prefer the fillets because they are clean and not too fatty. I also bought various creams because I need them for the cake. My daughter grabbed a few biscuits and opened almost all of them to taste. We also bought our favorite bread, preferring sourdough. Since only yesterday's bread was left I bought half a loaf. Finally I picked up some white flour products and breakfast cereals. Today, we planned to visit a few more stores. Since we were out with the stroller we didn't have to carry all the weight, which made things much easier.
It's cooking time now. I'm preparing ingredients for a herring salad. I boiled eggs and prepared the vegs. I was planning to make pancakes today and I also made apple cookies or small breads. This is my favorite recipe because everything mixes quickly and tastes amazing. All ingredients should be at room temperature. I had three eggs, which I beat with a pinch of salt. I was supposed to add 100 grams of sugar. But I used a bit less because I'm trying to limit sugar intake. I used about 50 grams of sugar and added some vanilla sugar. I combined all the ingredients.
The original recipe calls for 100 grams of sugar, but I added only 55 grams because the apples are already sweet. I also added raisins because they add a lot of flavor. I pre-soaked the raisins and a handful is usually enough. A fork is all you need to mix everything. No need for a blender or mixer. After that, I added 100 grams of melted butter. The butter may not be fully melted, but that's okay, it still holds the mixture together.
Then it was time to add the flour. The recipe called for 300 grams of flour but I usually add 270 grams, because adding too much flour can make the dough heavy. It’s best to add the flour in parts and mix it with half a tablespoon of baking powder.
A friend once asked me, How did you manage to give up sweets and stay in shape? The reason I decided to cut out sugar and sweets from my diet was actually because of my health. I had terrible blemishes on my skin and it bothered me a lot. These issues persisted for a long time and finally, I decided to give up sweets. As the blemishes began to clear up, I felt much happier. However, I still cheat from time to time with my own homemade cakes and cookies.
The dough should have a dense consistency. I cut the apples into small cubes and dried the raisins. I mixed all the ingredients. I preheated the oven to 180 degrees. Little hands were grabbing apple pieces.
You might think there are too many apples, but that's how the recipe is supposed to be. The apples are mixed into the dough and all the ingredients are blended. I used two large apples. I use a small spoon to scoop the dough onto the baking sheet. I bake it at 180 degrees for about 20 minutes, until the tops are nicely golden brown. You can use a toothpick to check if they’re done.
The recipe suggests making 16 cookies, but I got 20. The cookies are small and bake without oil. I also cooked some small pancakes in a pan.
What I feared happened. The cookies didn't rise much. Normally these cookies are fluffy and smooth and the apples shouldn't be sticking out. But when I reduced the amount of sugar in the recipe, this is what happened. I had a similar result when I made them for my daughter without sugar. It’s clear that following the recipe’s measurements is important. Still they're delicious even if they don’t look perfect. I let them cool a bit and then tasted them.
The first taste revealed that they were quite fluffy and soft. The outside had a slight crispiness and the inside was soft. They weren’t very sweet, but still tasty.
I bought a few household items from the store. I’ve been trying to organize my bathroom recently, so I got a new bathroom organizer, a nice basket. I also ordered suitable bottles for soaps. The first set I ordered had defects so I returned them and reordered. The new ones finally arrived and I hope there are no issues.
Later I prepared herring salad. The layers included potatoes, herring, onions, eggs, carrots and beets. I covered it and let it rest for a bit. My daughter was in the kitchen with me all day, then I did some cleaning. I'll quickly revisit the topic of sugar and diet. Staying away from sugar and sweets improved my skin. The blemishes and irritations decreased. It's hard to avoid sugar and sweets, but I managed to stick to my diet for two weeks. I ate a lot of vegetables, greens and fruits and avoided fried or smoked foods. After two weeks my skin improved, I felt more energetic and I was less tired. But sometimes, I can’t resist sweets. My family sometimes makes cookies or cakes and I eat them too. This brings immediate consequences and my skin starts to act up again, making me feel bad.
To stay healthy and in shape, it's important to avoid sugar. It wasn’t difficult for me because I'm not a sweet tooth. But sometimes it's hard to resist a tasty pastry. However, everyone has different body types. I tend to be on the thinner side, but some people struggle to gain weight. My height is 1.74 meters and I usually weigh between 52 and 53 kilograms. My ideal weight is around 55 to 56 kilograms. I like having a bit of a fuller face. But the most important thing is health. Healthy eating plays a significant role in health. If you're interested, you can try avoiding sugar. Or at least reduce unhealthy sweets like candies and cookies. It might increase your energy and improve your overall health.
Finally the kitchen cleanup is over. The table still has a bit of clutter, but everything is mostly in order. Thank you for reading and see you next time.
