Treats happen, especially in the weeks after big races. Wins call for celebratory sweets; losses require comfort food. Either way, the key for Laurel and Rebeccah at this midpoint in the triathlon season is to make sure the post-race treats don’t sabotage their three-a-day training sessions.
While the twins rocked the podium these past few weeks, I started looking for a cookie that would offer a more sustained energy—and no post-sugar energy crash.
I found the perfect template in the Seeded Chocolate-Chip Oatmeal Cookies Martha Rose Shulman wrote about for the New York Times. Her recipe met all my criteria: Would I feed these to my kids before swim practice? Yes. Would I eat them before a hike? Yes. Are they flat and sturdy enough to use for ice cream sandwiches? Yes. Is the recipe quick and easy enough that I could mix the batter in those bleary moments between my kids’ bedtime and mine? Yes.
I baked the first batch for my son’s all-day swim meet. The weather that week in Nashville hung in the 90s, so I made a few adjustments to reduce the melt factor. I halved the amount of chocolate and subbed mini semi-sweet chocolate chips for the chopped chocolate. How did they rank? My son didn’t ask for packaged junk from the snack bar.
I whipped up the next batch while Laurel was halfway through the Ironman. Out went the chia seeds, since they kept getting stuck in my teeth. In came the pecans and cocoa nibs, two of Laurel’s favorites. I subbed whole-wheat pastry flour for the whole-wheat flour, since that’s what I keep in my pantry. For the mix-ins, I used raw sunflower and pumpkin seeds, a scant 1/2 cup of cocoa nibs, 1/2 cup pecans, chopped, and 90 grams of chopped dark chocolate. Apologies for the mixed measurements! I was so excited to taste the dough that I forgot to convert the chocolate measurements from grams to cups. If you don’t have a scale and want to replicate this Seeded First version, try a scant half-cup of chocolate pieces. Or just go with your gut. This recipe is so versatile, I’d guess it would handle an endless variety of mix-ins and still come out on top.
--Melissa
