Recipe with a special announcement from Alison's life!!!
Original Cookie Recipe has been Adapted from Valerie Bertinelli
This is one of the most epic cookie recipes I’ve ever made. The purpose of this recipe post is also to share a piece of exciting news from my life that’s related, in part, to candy cane dream cream!
Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg plus 1 yolk (save the extra white because if you need a tiny dab of extra moisture when kneading the dough, then you can add a spoonful of the extra white!)
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp peppermint extract
3 cups flour
Pinch of salt
Red gel food dye
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling, or nonpareils, or crushed candy cane pieces
This week I decided to join Pure Haven Essentials as a consultant. I have been using the Pure Haven line of products since June 2015, when I received the hand and body lotion as a teacher gift from the mother of two kids when I was a teacher for mixed-age preschool. At that time, it was the Ava Anderson brand, and it has since re-branded. Since June 2015, I have switched out the vast majority of products that I put on my skin for exclusively Pure Haven products because they are safer and more effective than other brands. Pure Haven products make me feel physically healthier, and they really do work.
Directions:
I decided to join this company and become a consultant because I believe in the soaps and lotions and all of the products in the Pure Haven line from the evidence of my own trial and error of using many different brands of soaps and lotions. I believe Pure Haven products are the safest products and the best products out there, period. As Galileo says in the Brecht play, “There are few things more seductive than the evidence of your own eyes.”
Cream butter and sugar. You can use an electric mixer or a wooden spoon. If you use the mixer, I recommend the paddle attachment. I bet the whisk attachment will do in a pinch, though!
Because I have so many eczema reactions from so many different triggers, my skin is extra-sensitive to any product that goes on the skin. The only soap I can currently use that does not trigger an eczema reaction is the Pure Haven liquid hand soap. It comes in original, candy cane, and holiday spice flavors, plus one flavor of body wash for the shower. The original and the body wash both smell like limeade because they contain actual essential oils from citrus, which has several benefits: you smell like limeade, and you feel extra-clean because citrus genuinely has cleansing properties!
Add egg and yolk, and beat mixture to incorporate.
Am I the canary in the coal mine? I know my immune system is extra-sensitive. My allergies are over-blown; my immune system is in a state of overreactions to many different allergic triggers. But could it be possible that many of my eczema triggers are chemicals that are genuinely harmful for all of our bodies, yet I am the one whose immune system has reacted to these chemicals first? Can I tell which products are safe before everyone else’s body knows how to differentiate between safe soaps and harmful chemicals in other soaps?
Add vanilla and peppermint extracts and mix thoroughly.
I am listening to my body so carefully. And the message that my skin, which is an organ covering the entire body, has to tell me in concert with my immune system, is: there are certain chemicals, especially chemical fragrances, that my body cannot tolerate.
Slowly add flour and salt. Mix until incorporated evenly. Knead gently for a minute or two to make sure everything comes together. If the dough feels too dry and crumbly, you can problem-solve by kneading in a teensy bit of the extra leftover egg white, or a teensy bit of water.
All of the Pure Haven products are free from chemical fragrances and a number of other harmful chemicals. One chemical in particular that my body cannot tolerate is called decyl glucoside. Decyl glucoside is the agent that creates the suds in soap suds, so you can imagine it is hard to avoid because most soaps have suds. There is no decyl glucoside in any Pure Haven soap product, and that’s what sets the Pure Haven line apart from all of the other soap options for me. A product free from decyl glucoside is what works for my body.
Dye half of the dough red. Keep the other half cookie-colored. I found that because you need to knead the gel dye into the red dough, the two colors of dough will be different textures if the cookie-colored dough just sits there, so for best results: your baking buddy should knead the cookie-colored dough for the same amount of time that you knead the gel dye into the red dough!
Every single day, I use the Pure Haven line to wash my hands, my body, and my hair. I use the deodorant. I regularly use three different types of lotions to moisturize my skin: the dream cream, the hand and body lotion, and the body butter. I brush my teeth with the toothpaste. If I want my body to feel good, then I can make the commitment to myself that I will use Pure Haven products over any other brand whenever possible.
Form the dough into two discs. Wrap each dough disc individually in plastic wrap or a baggie and refrigerate for a minimum of twenty minutes, and preferably half an hour to a full hour.
If I had to pick one favorite product, I would choose the dream cream. The dream cream is the most effective eczema cream I have ever used. It has allowed me to cut down my usage of prescription steroidal cream by approximately one third of my previous steroidal cream usage. Instead of immediately going to my prescription for a bad eczema flare-up, if I apply dream cream immediately upon the flare-up and continue to apply several times through the day, then the dream cream works to calm down the reaction. In approximately two thirds of my bad eczema flare-ups, the dream cream works so thoroughly and instantaneously that I never have to use my prescription at all. This way, the prescription can be used as an emergency back-up rather than an immediate go-to, which minimizes the side effects of long-term usage of prescription steroidal cream.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
I’ve tried out all three flavors of the Pure Haven dream cream – original, holiday spice, and candy cane. I wasn’t a huge fan of the smell of holiday spice because although it smells exactly like ginger, I don’t particularly like the smell of ginger. The original flavor smells like limeade, and that brings me so much joy because limeade is one of my favorite foods. It feels refreshing and awesome when you apply it to your driest skin. And the candy cane flavor contains peppermint, which makes it absolutely the most special flavor of all because peppermint not only has a variety of health benefits, but it also makes you smell like Christmas spirit! And yes, I’m Jewish, and I STILL want to smell like Christmas spirit!
Divide each ball of dough into the number of people baking the cookies so that each participant has a ball of each color. The bakers can create candy cane shapes with the two colors of dough: First roll out the dough into logs, then smoosh together the two colors of logs. Next, bend into candy cane shape, then place on cookie sheets and flatten slightly.
Choosing Pure Haven products is an easy decision for me because of my allergies, and it has obviously turned out to be the right decision. I’m not going to pretend to tell you that I can decide for you that buying Pure Haven products is also the right decision for you. Only you can make that decision.
Bake until golden brown (and red), about 13 minutes.
I can tell you my story in hopes that you will try out the Pure Haven line so you can discover how awesome it is to use these safe and effective products.
Cool candy canes on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then take off of the cookies sheets to cool completely.
If you would like to browse the products, you can enter the Pure Haven website through my page so that if you make the decision to buy something, then we would both win at life. You are also welcome to contact me with any questions or if you would like a recommendation on which product to try out first. My link is www.purehavenessentials.com/aschwartz
ENJOY!
Original Cookie Recipe has been Adapted from Valerie Bertinelli
This is one of the most epic cookie recipes I’ve ever made. The purpose of this recipe post is also to share a piece of exciting news from my life that’s related, in part, to candy cane dream cream!
Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg plus 1 yolk (save the extra white because if you need a tiny dab of extra moisture when kneading the dough, then you can add a spoonful of the extra white!)
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp peppermint extract
3 cups flour
Pinch of salt
Red gel food dye
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling, or nonpareils, or crushed candy cane pieces
This week I decided to join Pure Haven Essentials as a consultant. I have been using the Pure Haven line of products since June 2015, when I received the hand and body lotion as a teacher gift from the mother of two kids when I was a teacher for mixed-age preschool. At that time, it was the Ava Anderson brand, and it has since re-branded. Since June 2015, I have switched out the vast majority of products that I put on my skin for exclusively Pure Haven products because they are safer and more effective than other brands. Pure Haven products make me feel physically healthier, and they really do work.
Directions:
I decided to join this company and become a consultant because I believe in the soaps and lotions and all of the products in the Pure Haven line from the evidence of my own trial and error of using many different brands of soaps and lotions. I believe Pure Haven products are the safest products and the best products out there, period. As Galileo says in the Brecht play, “There are few things more seductive than the evidence of your own eyes.”
Cream butter and sugar. You can use an electric mixer or a wooden spoon. If you use the mixer, I recommend the paddle attachment. I bet the whisk attachment will do in a pinch, though!
Because I have so many eczema reactions from so many different triggers, my skin is extra-sensitive to any product that goes on the skin. The only soap I can currently use that does not trigger an eczema reaction is the Pure Haven liquid hand soap. It comes in original, candy cane, and holiday spice flavors, plus one flavor of body wash for the shower. The original and the body wash both smell like limeade because they contain actual essential oils from citrus, which has several benefits: you smell like limeade, and you feel extra-clean because citrus genuinely has cleansing properties!
Add egg and yolk, and beat mixture to incorporate.
Am I the canary in the coal mine? I know my immune system is extra-sensitive. My allergies are over-blown; my immune system is in a state of overreactions to many different allergic triggers. But could it be possible that many of my eczema triggers are chemicals that are genuinely harmful for all of our bodies, yet I am the one whose immune system has reacted to these chemicals first? Can I tell which products are safe before everyone else’s body knows how to differentiate between safe soaps and harmful chemicals in other soaps?
Add vanilla and peppermint extracts and mix thoroughly.
I am listening to my body so carefully. And the message that my skin, which is an organ covering the entire body, has to tell me in concert with my immune system, is: there are certain chemicals, especially chemical fragrances, that my body cannot tolerate.
Slowly add flour and salt. Mix until incorporated evenly. Knead gently for a minute or two to make sure everything comes together. If the dough feels too dry and crumbly, you can problem-solve by kneading in a teensy bit of the extra leftover egg white, or a teensy bit of water.
All of the Pure Haven products are free from chemical fragrances and a number of other harmful chemicals. One chemical in particular that my body cannot tolerate is called decyl glucoside. Decyl glucoside is the agent that creates the suds in soap suds, so you can imagine it is hard to avoid because most soaps have suds. There is no decyl glucoside in any Pure Haven soap product, and that’s what sets the Pure Haven line apart from all of the other soap options for me. A product free from decyl glucoside is what works for my body.
Dye half of the dough red. Keep the other half cookie-colored. I found that because you need to knead the gel dye into the red dough, the two colors of dough will be different textures if the cookie-colored dough just sits there, so for best results: your baking buddy should knead the cookie-colored dough for the same amount of time that you knead the gel dye into the red dough!
Every single day, I use the Pure Haven line to wash my hands, my body, and my hair. I use the deodorant. I regularly use three different types of lotions to moisturize my skin: the dream cream, the hand and body lotion, and the body butter. I brush my teeth with the toothpaste. If I want my body to feel good, then I can make the commitment to myself that I will use Pure Haven products over any other brand whenever possible.
Form the dough into two discs. Wrap each dough disc individually in plastic wrap or a baggie and refrigerate for a minimum of twenty minutes, and preferably half an hour to a full hour.
If I had to pick one favorite product, I would choose the dream cream. The dream cream is the most effective eczema cream I have ever used. It has allowed me to cut down my usage of prescription steroidal cream by approximately one third of my previous steroidal cream usage. Instead of immediately going to my prescription for a bad eczema flare-up, if I apply dream cream immediately upon the flare-up and continue to apply several times through the day, then the dream cream works to calm down the reaction. In approximately two thirds of my bad eczema flare-ups, the dream cream works so thoroughly and instantaneously that I never have to use my prescription at all. This way, the prescription can be used as an emergency back-up rather than an immediate go-to, which minimizes the side effects of long-term usage of prescription steroidal cream.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
I’ve tried out all three flavors of the Pure Haven dream cream – original, holiday spice, and candy cane. I wasn’t a huge fan of the smell of holiday spice because although it smells exactly like ginger, I don’t particularly like the smell of ginger. The original flavor smells like limeade, and that brings me so much joy because limeade is one of my favorite foods. It feels refreshing and awesome when you apply it to your driest skin. And the candy cane flavor contains peppermint, which makes it absolutely the most special flavor of all because peppermint not only has a variety of health benefits, but it also makes you smell like Christmas spirit! And yes, I’m Jewish, and I STILL want to smell like Christmas spirit!
Divide each ball of dough into the number of people baking the cookies so that each participant has a ball of each color. The bakers can create candy cane shapes with the two colors of dough: First roll out the dough into logs, then smoosh together the two colors of logs. Next, bend into candy cane shape, then place on cookie sheets and flatten slightly.
Choosing Pure Haven products is an easy decision for me because of my allergies, and it has obviously turned out to be the right decision. I’m not going to pretend to tell you that I can decide for you that buying Pure Haven products is also the right decision for you. Only you can make that decision.
Bake until golden brown (and red), about 13 minutes.
I can tell you my story in hopes that you will try out the Pure Haven line so you can discover how awesome it is to use these safe and effective products.
Cool candy canes on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then take off of the cookies sheets to cool completely.
If you would like to browse the products, you can enter the Pure Haven website through my page so that if you make the decision to buy something, then we would both win at life. You are also welcome to contact me with any questions or if you would like a recommendation on which product to try out first. My link is www.purehavenessentials.com/aschwartz
ENJOY!