If everything is honey, and I am what I eat, I must be made of honey ... and life is very sweet!
~Winnie the Pooh
Winnie the Pooh Day is coming up next week (January 18th) so here's a quick and simple recipe for some healthy and delicious Honey Bee Cookies that you can make with your little kitchen-helpers for a grrrrr-eat Winnie the Pooh-themed treat!
Hunny Bee Cookies
makes: 13-19 cookies
Ingredients:
80g very softened butter
80g steel-cut oats
3 heaping Tbsp honey
3 heaping Tbsp self-raising flour
50g melted dark chocolate (for decorating)
1 sliced banana (for decorating)
(optional)
3 heaping Tbsp shredded coconut (this will make your cookies firmer and spread out less - easier to shape)
sprinkle of cinnamon
sliced almonds (these can be a substitute for banana slices on a smaller cookie)
Method:
Mix together the oats and flour (and dry optional ingredients - if using) in a medium sized bowl.
Add in the butter, and stir in until it's all clumped together in large lumps.
Stirring constantly, mix in the honey until it has all incorporated into a paste. If the mixture is too runny add in more dry ingredients.
Place the bowl into the freezer for 5 minutes. During this time preheat the oven to 175˚C and line two baking trays with parchment paper.
Spoon the mix onto the sheets. I made my bees approximately the shape and size of a teaspoon, and about 1cm - 1.5cm tall - if you want them to spread out less than you want to decrase the height and make them a bit skinnier. This recipe spreads out a fair bit - so be careful that you don't 'overfeed' your bees!
Once you've shaped all your bees, place the trays in the fridge for another 5 minutes, and then put them straight into the oven.
Bake for around 30 minutes (for approximately 13 medium sized cookies, you may need to adjust this depending on your cookies size) - until lightly golden-brown.
Allow the cookies to cool entirely before decorating.
(For the Decoration):
Create stripes using the melted chocolate - you can do this with a piping bag or drizzling it over with a spoon.
Before the chocolate cools, press the banana slices in place (angled slightly away from the middle of the cookies) to be the bees 'wings'.
Allow the chocolate to dry completely before serving!
My bees turned out a little fat and squishy (which is just the way I like them), so if your looking for crunchier, more bee-shaped cookies you'll want to make them a little flatter and thinner before baking. This is the size I used:
Winnie the Pooh himself wouldn't be able to resist these adorable little bites - and neither will you!
These little Hunny Bees are a guaranteed crowd-pleaser! There are endless decorating possibilities, and I'd love to see your own creations if you try making these cookies!
As always, if you enjoyed this recipe or you have any ideas for future themed-recipes please feel free to let me know! You can subscribe for e-mails straight to your inbox when I update in the future and follow me on instagram for exclusive previews and pics of my latest creations!
Have a very happy Winnie the Pooh Day!!!