MOTHER'S CHILDREN

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MOTHER feels strongly that youths can be creative "doers" working toward more ecological and self-reliant lifestyles . . . whether their tasks be raising chickens on a farm or maintaining rooftop container gardens in the city. To support the endeavors of our often overlooked "underage" citizens, we're glad to publish well-written articles from younger children and teenagers concerning projects they've undertaken. However, we recommend that all young authors query (that is, send us a letter telling about the story you'd like to do) before writing a full article. Address inquiries to Mother's Children, THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS®, 105 Stoney Mountain Road, Henderson vilk, North Carolina 28791.

My eating habits have really changed since I switched to healthful foods. I like my natural diet, especially because I make a lot of desserts ... and those wholesome treats taste great!

Of course, natural goodies are better for you than the kind of sweets most people make or buy, since they contain healthful ingredients like whole wheat flour ... sunflower seeds. . . carob ... raisins ... and nuts. And my desserts are always made with molasses, honey, yinnie rice syrup, or barley malt syrup instead of white sugar. I don't use sugar because I know it's bad for my body. (Did you realize that a 12-ounce cola drink can have 9 teaspoons of sugar in it? Anyone who drinks a lot of sodas is likely to have rotted teeth. By eating good food, though, I can help keep our family's dentist and other health bills low!)

Anyway, one day my mother was doing the wash and my sister was asleep, so I was all alone. I sat down and wrote up a little cookbook, called "Nature's Goodies", that contained the dessert recipes I'd made up. I'd like to share them with you here.

NATURE'S GOODIES

CRUNCHY COOKIES

1/3 cup of soft butter or margarine
1/2 cup of molasses
1 egg
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1-1/4 cups of oatmeal
6 tablespoons of whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
3/4 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 cup of carob chips or raisins

Mix the butter or margarine and molasses with a whisk until there are no lumps. Then stir in the egg, vanilla, oatmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix the dough well and add the carob chips or raisins. Drop teaspoonfuls of the dough onto an oiled cookie sheet and bake the cookies in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes, or until they're golden brown.