Whiteley Creek Homestead

Three days ago, I donated a pint of blood. The phlebotomist, who performed the blood draw, informed me that it would take 24 hours to regain my white blood cells and 56 days for bone marrow to replenish all of the red blood cells. What is the purpose of white and red blood cells? White blood cells protect the body by fighting infection and attacking foreign material. Red blood cells transport oxygen from the lungs to the body's tissues and take carbon dioxide from the tissues back to the lungs. Don't allow loss of these cells to deter you from giving blood. I took one nap 24 hours post donating because I was tired, but that's it. Life is normal. To aid red blood cell production, I was instructed to consume protein and water. My research uncovered the power of pistachios. Among many other reasons to include them in our diet on a regular basis, they are a rich source of vitamin B6 which helps the body make white and red blood cells. So, from Nadia Petrova's blog Nature Insider, a raw pistachio treat. So simple. So good. So good for you. 

1)coconut oil, melting 2)raw, shelled pistachios from Azure Standard 3)pistachios ground 4) pistachio cookie dough log

Raw Pistachio Cookies

1/3 cup melted coconut oil (I used 3 tbsp.)

1 ¼ cup raw (unroasted) pistachios

2 tbsp unsweetened coconut flakes

¼ tsp salt

1/3 cup honey or agave (I used 2 tbsp raw buckwheat honey.)

Melt coconut oil. (I put it in a custard cup and set it in a bowl of hot water. It’ll be liquefied by the time other steps are completed. Pleeeeeeease… no microwave.) Remove outer shell from pistachios (or purchase ones already shelled). Blend into flour and place in a mixing bowl. (I ground ¼ cup at a time in a coffee grinder.) Whisk in coconut and salt. Stir in coconut oil and sweetener. Roll into a log form using plastic wrap. (I chose to use natural parchment paper instead.) Chill in fridge for 24 hours. (It only takes maybe 2 hours for cookies to become firm.) Using a sharp knife, slice into cookies. Eat. Note: Nadia Petrova, a Canadian registered holistic nutritionist and Nature Insider Blogger, stacked the sliced cookie rounds to form an evergreen tree, then sprinkled coconut flakes on the boughs to simulate snow. To add a Christmas flair to her "Raw Christmas Cookies," she scattered bright red pomegranate arils on the branches then positioned a cutout cookie dough star atop the tree. Sweet. (View photo at natureinsider.com.)