My cure to the winter Blues - Oatmeal Raisin protein cookies

There are too things that always cause me to be depressed this time of year. It is not my dwindling savings, nor the cold weather like many people. The first is the simple knowledge that Christmas is over and the next one is so very far away. The second is all the eejits harping on about new years resolutions to lose weight and the unfortunate fact that I too have gained a few pounds over the holiday festivities and could probably do with losing weight too. Everyone is on a diet in January and it annoys me. I want to bake, I want to share my baked goods with others. However the usual joy and excitement in people's eyes I see when I produce cookies or brownies in January is replaced by an entire faceful of guilt and mild dislike of the person who is making them break their resolution. My delicious offerings are met with choruses of 'I can't,' and 'I am not eating...' and I hate this.
So this January I am changing it up. I am on  mission to create a cookie that is both delicious and tempting as well as healthy and guilt-free. This is my first attempt. I am aware that January is almost over so the project will continue into February but the winter blues cure will be achieved before the daffodils appear.

Oatmeal Raisin Protein Cookies

3 Egg whites and 1 egg
1 cup/125g Peanut or Almond Butter
2 Tbsp Agave Nectar/honey
3 scoops Protein powder
2 Cups/250g Oats
1 Cup/125g Raisins
2 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Vanilla essence
Icing sugar to dust

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Beat together the eggs, almond or peanut butter, agave nectar/honey, vanilla essence and protein powder until it forms a thick but smooth consistency. Add the raisins and cinnamon and stir until they are covered. Finally add the oats and mix thoroughly. The mixture will be very thick and sticky. Using wet hands form the dough into 18 balls and bake for 10-12 mins. Half way through the baking process press the cookies flat with the back of a fork or a spatula.  Once done, move to a cookie sheet and dust with icing sugar.

The end result is quite tasty and the cinnamon and icing sugar is a delicious reminder of holidays past. Each cookie has about 80-90 calories and 4.5-5g protein. That's a lot of protein bam for your buck. However in my next attempt I intend to make the cookies smoother and slightly sweeter with the addition of more agave nectar or possibly something else. It would probably mean about 100Kcals per cookie but the extra sweetness is needed in these. I will update further when I know. These cookies certainly got the stamp of approval from the picky eater in our house so despite tasting, as he called them, 'healthy,' they are definitely delicious and worth a try. Enjoy = )