I must admit that when I read back my last post about starting our renovations, I felt rather silly for admitting to being stressed over something as trivial as door handles. Of course, the door handles were symbolic of the project as a whole, in all it’s enormity and expensiveness and overwhelm. But still, I woke up the next morning worried of how it had come across.
Since I started my blog, my love for cooking and creating, as well as styling and photographing my dishes, has developed and grown, but the self-doubt and sense of trepidation and fear around posting my thoughts and feelings – as well as my food – and opening them up to judgement, interpretation and criticism continues to linger. It’s something that I can’t seem to get used to, and can’t seem to shake. Knowing that people that I know may see them, may judge them (and me), never fails to knot my stomach.
For as long as I can remember, I have always been somewhat shy and conscious of what other people thought of me, and even as I grow more confident and comfortable in my own skin and ideas, that fear still remains.
But – the more I do this, the more confident and proud I am of my work and of what I have achieved, and of how I have grown, the easier it gets. The thoughts are still there, but these days they arrive with a rational companion who eases my fears and downplays my worries. I doubt that I will ever get to the stage of not caring at all, as much as I crave it – I just don’t think that being that carefree and confident is in my nature (though hey – I might one day surprise myself, you never know!) but I love that I am at a stage now where I am able to consciously brush those worries to the side and continue doing this thing I love.
Had I not, perhaps these thumbprint cookies may not exist.
Yes, yes – I am aware that thumbprint cookies are few and far between on the interwebs these days.
But these thumbprint cookies are not just any old thumbprint cookies.
For a start, they can be made with only five ingredients! And yes, I mean five wholefood ingredients in total – nothing hidden here! I used spiced chia jam in mine for the extra extra flavour (divine!), but if keeping things to a minimum is where it’s at for you, then these are totally doable by omitting the spices and keeping your jam to just berries and chia seeds.
Secondly, it’s the individual ingredients used here that really set the flavour off. The combination of using roasted almond butter with coconut sugar gives an amazing depth of flavour and creates an almost caramel-y taste, which is beautifully complimented by the chai-tinged berry jam.
And lastly, these work out to be a little healthier than your standard cookie. There’s no refined grains, they contain only healthy fats from the almond and chia seeds, and only a smidge over 1 tsp sugar per cookie of added sugar (not including the sugar naturally occurring in the berries).
- 1 cup roasted almond butter
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ cup Spiced Berry Chia Jam
- Preheat oven to 175 C | 350 F
- Whizz coconut sugar in blender until fine.
- Mix the egg, almond butter and coconut sugar together in a bowl with a fork (ie in a "mashing" motion) until well combined.
- Roll into small balls, then flatten into discs with your hand (they should roughly be around 4cm | 1.5"). Place on a lined baking dish and use your thumb to press down gently to create a slight indentation.
- Using two small teaspoons, scoop a little of the chia jam into the indentations in each cookie, around 1 - 2 tsp per cookie.
- Bake 6 - 8 mins, then check. They are done when they are slightly browned on the bottom side (lift edge of one up gently to check).
- Allow to rest on baking tray a minute or two - they'll firm up a little during this time - then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
It was and actually is the same thing with me. I mean worying about other people’s feelings. That’s ok because a blog is not a private diary but a public journal where you share not only a mere recipe but also a part of your soul.
I was thinking a lot whether to publish posts concerning not only food but some other aspects of my lifestyle, my baby. But I decided to do that and started receiving lots of positive letters and feedback.
I think people who trully like your blog will never judge and stay with you. Those who don’t will pass by and never stop.
I really like your blog, photography and stories you have to tell. Have a wonderful day ))
Thanks for sharing Sasha – it’s nice to hear that you have been receiving such positive feedback after publishing some more personal posts.
Thanks so much for your kind words x
Hi Dearna! These cookies look and sound delicipus! I always have almond butter and raspberry chia jam on toast so i am just SURE i will love this! However, i think there r some instructions missing from the recipe? It doesnt say what to do with the batter after mixing it and before baking it, or when to add the jam?
Ps: i love how u talked about ur insecurities. I think inam very similar to u in that area, as much as i would like to, i know i will never be 100% confident and carefree…but the more i blog the better and more assured i get :)
Oops – not sure how I missed this Noha, I’ve now added in the missing instructions. Thanks so much for pointing this out :)
hahaha it happens! i sometimes make the strangest mistakes when i publish a new post, there is so much to tick on the checklist lol! I’ve been browsing through your site for the past half an hour Deanna and am absolutely blown away. everything looks and sounds mouth watering, i love your combination of flavours and can’t get over your gorgeous photography and styling! So happy i discovered your wonderful blog! xx
hey, your blog got a new, fresh look since last i saw! i like it a lot.
i am such a sucker for thumbprint cookies, so i think i pin every one i see. these looks beautiful, and especially simple and good! there’s a distinction between simple and lazy, and you always find a way to make simple recipes feel amazing and special. i’m such a fan! (and those tiny jam spoons are sooooo freakin’ cute.)
i can definitely relate to the fear and self-doubt wrapped up with blogging and sharing. my sense of privacy and my threshold for what feels right to share fluctuates heavily, so sometimes i’ll go back and read a post i wrote weeks or months ago and go “cool story, bro”, and then wonder what the heck other people must have thought of it. bleargh. i guess it helps a little to ask myself “what’s the worst that could happen if someone read what i wrote and thought i was a giant dork/asshole/worrywart?” because the answer, whatever it is, never weighs on me as heavily as the question. people judge all the time, but people connect all the time, too. creating that opportunity can never be a bad thing, i think.
anyway, you probably know this, but i love what you do and am so glad you do it. wishing you the best with your renovations!
Thanks Jaime – yes I had a little makeover a while back, a little fresher and cleaner looking now :)
I love your approach of asking “whats the worst that can happen” instead of “what would they think” – that’s a much better approach as the answer is always going to be far more positive! I’ll have to try this myself from now on :)
And glad to see I have found another thumbprint cookie lover – they are the cutest little cookies arent they! x
These look fantastic Dearna! So good
And I know how you feel about opening up. “What do people want to hear”, “is this too much”, “is this even interesting” – I ask myself constantly. But honestly I love all of your posts! Including those few where you whine about door handles ;) Loved it – it made me smile!
Thanks so much Josefine – Im so glad to hear you have been enjoying my posts and they have put making you smile :)
It is really interesting you wrote this in your post today as I have been having similar feelings lately. I used to place so much value in what other people thought and I would worry left, right and centre about how I came across. I can still worry, like you said it is hard for it to completely go away, but the more self love and inner work I do, the less I am caring what others think. I think it is a gradual journey and we both will get there. The funny thing is, from an outsider looking in you are super talented and lovely so why would you worry what others think? But when you are in your own shoes, it is hard to see that isn’t it!
Anyways, these cookies look so great. Not only have they got hardly any ingredients which I love, they look super tasty too!
Gorgeous! Both the almond cookies and your stunning photography – love the action shots and the lighting is just perfect. I understand where you are coming with blogging – I think it would be unusual for a blogger not to have wondered about what they are writing about, whether people are interested and what people actually think of their writing (and by extension, them). I certainly have!! But I think it is your own space to say what you like, what you are thinking about, what things are making you feel on that particular day – and if people can relate to you in some small way (as clearly lots of us have with this post haha!) then they are likely to respond and keep reading. And if they can’t relate – then who cares! Someone else might, or it just doesn’t matter at all. Xx
What a beautiful post, Dearna. Thank you for being so honest and isn’t it nice to know you are not alone in your fears?! :) I think we can all relate to what you’ve said on one level or another. And these thumbprint cookies have me drooling. Probably my favorite cookie variety and flour-free nut butter cookies are something I’ve just discovered the past few years and absolutely adore. Love the simplicity of these especially.