Sugar cookie is one cookie that I get along with. It’s my kinda pairing. …Maybe yours too?
And with strawberry (or any berry), that’s berry good! 🍓 Like this plate of cookies is made low-sugar, gluten-free… and tasty good. Recipe below 👇
How this low-sugar sugar cookie recipe is different and can be cookie controversial is that there is no white sugar (or sugar crystal substitutes like Stevia that alters tastes).
With an optional light strawberry chocolate glaze at the end, you can keep this naturally low-sugar without missing a sugar beat! 🎉
Think of the strawberry seeds as sugar seeds 😊 And the gluten-free cookie crumbly bits falling off as sugar bits to please your sweet cravings.
This is a cookie challenge because with sugar in the name, NO table sugar doesn’t make sense… but if you’re like me, you’re up for the low-sugar challenge for your healthy body!
It’s a good balance FOR sweet taste buds with a healthy mix so there’s NO compromise.
And this is an EASY challenge because there are only 3 wholesome ingredients needed for this one-bowl sugar cookie to come together.
But it was not easy to come up with this on my end…
This was a journey… because I remember the crunchy hard sugar cookie vividly with sugar crystals on top shaped in dainty flowers with a whole in the middle that I once happily dreamed about. 🧒🏻
I had a sweet relationship with sugar.
…Never in my wildest dreams did I think making and eating my own cookies would be a typical Day in the Life that I’m happy about.
…And I never thought I’d graduate to making my own sugar cookie… without sugar crystals.
Maybe you get it because you too ate spoonfuls of sugar (and enjoyed every sugary food thing out there) like those of us who have a sweet tooth (or a full set of sweet teeth 😊)?
Thankfully for us who also aspire to healthy… the less sugar we eat, the less we crave and the fewer sweet taste buds as we get older.
That helps us align happy and healthy living.
Happy living is good for mental health.
And so if you want to add a glaze top to cookies and desserts, you can balance the healthy and happy ways (…and that’s what pleases my healthy and ex-catering self 😊).
Here on this plate I use a melted chocolate. I chose strawberry chocolate, but white or dark chocolate would work great too.
But in reality, most people use powdered sugar with a flavored liquid for a quick sweet glaze.
And that’s where sugar amounts can be over the top (in more ways than one!). ☹️
Because powdered sugar glazes are using another form of potent table sugar and even more white sugar, that’s not good and can tip the scales.
…AND you need a-lottta powdered sugar to make very little glaze. About 1-3/4 cup of powdered sugar is needed to replace 1 cup of granulated sugar… UGH!
So finding healthier ways like melting real chocolate is a smart and sweet tasty idea…
And you can happily smear the melted chocolate glaze on tops as you anticipate your cookie plate.
That’s one glaze that will go far! A mere 2 oz. of chocolate with a teaspoon of coconut oil will give the shine and get the job done for half-a-dozen cookies.
…You can make this no-guilt, low-sugar cookie batch in minutes when you get the sweet hankering!
No-bake cookie recipes are not common, but I’ve got a delicious one you’ll love. And it’s gluten-free and dairy-free.
This dreamy one has rainbow healthy sweet flavors and a rainbow look… like an Italian flag colors. 🇮🇹
It’s a rainbow cookie.
To match, this one has the eat-from-the-rainbow 🌈 polyphenol healthy filled ingredients like matcha green tea to match-ah if healthy is your jam today!
And you can learn more 👇 about what else you can mix in that will make this one low-sugar, but sweet dessert… that’s also healthy gluten-free.
It’s made with delicious gluten-free almond flour.
You don’t need any other flours, but of course you have your choices available to fold in.
Adding regular or all-purpose (gluten) flour is not needed because there’s no baking in this recipe, so there will not be an oven rise…
But this cookie has the look of a cake that doesn’t fall flat!
The cookie-cake illusion is elevated by the interesting flavor layers like in spumoni ice cream… and they share in common no eggs.
You can make a pinkish or bright fire engine red color from beet juice and graduated green colors from combined green Pandan gel, pistachios, and matcha green tea.
Pandan if you’ve never tried has a strong vanilla, leafy, and earthy tasting quality that matches the bright spring green color. 🍃
And if you’re not a match green tea fan but like the idea of adding matcha, it can definitely drown out the matcha flavor.
Plus adding a healthy light olive oil drizzle is heart healthy good. And each individual layer has healthy raw honey… so there’s plenty of healthy sweetness rolled in.
…You could even call this a Mediterranean diet dessert.
To glue all the layers together, raspberry jam is a great option and is used in this recipe, but you can use another jam like apricot that is traditional, or omit altogether.
And you can make a happy plate of these rainbow cookies that you can share and impress your friends with.
It’s fun to have them wonder if it’s a cookie or a cake… 🍥
AND they definitely won’t guess that you didn’t bake these, but you did make ’em!
The best part is that you can make this shareable dessert without extra prep waiting time.
Because there’s no need to refrigerate in between steps or layers.
And if you have a tendency to forget, you also don’t need to take out ingredients in advance to get to room temps. How sweet is that!?
I mean… it doesn’t get easier than that for impressive tasting and crowd pleasing desserts.
This is enough to make one cookie or a shared cookie bite.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Italian
Prep Time 30 minutesminutes
Cook Time 0 minutesminutes
Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets
Equipment
plastic wrap
3 bowls
Ingredients
3/4cupalmond flour
Pandan gel, several drops
pistachios, finely chopped and extra for topping (optional)
pinchofmatcha green tea
1/4tspbeet juice
1tspalmond extract
1tbspraw honey
1tbsplight olive oil
water
Instructions
Mix almond flour, honey, olive oil, and almond extract. Add enough water so the dough sticks together. There will be crumbles that fall off but can be put back together.
Then separate the dough evenly into 3 bowls.
Add small amount of beet juice to one bowl to desired color. Add green tea, Pandan gel, and pistachios to another bowl to desired color.
When you're happy with your colors in your dough layers, start with the red one at the bottom. Add into a large enough piece of plastic wrap to shape the dough into a 3-d rectange. Set aside. Then unwrap and replace the no added color dough to the same piece of plastic wrap and shape to the same size as the first dough rectangle. Do this step with the green dough and set aside.
Add a layer of jam to the top of the bottom layer and the middle layer. Wrap tightly in the plastic wrap.
Assemble/stack dough layers starting from the bottom to the top. Zhugh with pistachio bits on top. Then wrap tightly with the same piece of plastic wrap. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving.
Vanilla cookie with no butter or margarine is not heard of if you want something delicious.
Like these vanilla whirls 🍥 …
That are healthy cookies (but you would never know it by taste).
Vanilla cookie is cookie that is anything but plain!
Below is this healthy and delicious vanilla cookie recipe using affordable healthy ingredients (PLUS some budget-friendly grocery tips your wallet will love 🛒).
But first things first… what makes this cookie so special is it has NO BUTTER!
…And it tastes so buttery cookie decadent like a cookie should.
These little ones are made like the Stella D’Oro assortment cookies I grew up with. One of the assorted cookies had a fruit filling that look like these (like raspberry hearts 💌 in the middle).
They discontinued making this cookie, but you can make a similar copycat cookie with the recipe below 💕.
That btw is made from plant based (aka Vegan) ingredients. And I already hinted it has a buttery taste. 🌱
So you could use a Vegan butter….
But I found them pricey and they’re not the same butter tastes. Some common vegan butter brands out there are:
Trader Joe’s, Smart Balance, Country Crock, Earth Balance, and Miyoko’s.
So now that I gave you that option, now I can tell you what I used instead of any butter look-alike… 😊
Because who says for a vanilla cookie you need butt-ah (or margarine that I grew up with?) 🧈
Butter types is not what makes the cookie desirable.
For me, it’s more of a childhood fond memory I grew up with (and maybe you did too).
…And maybe you have a buttery tub that reminds you of childhood or home?
But…
BUT-ter memories can stay part of our butterfly journeys that we can change. 🦋
They don’t have to stay as our daily habits for a healthy future if we choose.
And switching to more daily healthy eating ways (to substitute our old ways) is so much easier to do these days.
Sourcing longevity ingredients in a Mediterranean diet is easy.
…Like finding daily olive oil that no one I knew cooked with when I was growing up.
TODAY it’s a norm and an easy switch into healthy tastes.
When you’re grocery shopping, olive oil prices can be even better than butter.
Mostly because you end up using less of the golden liquid.
For $7 you can get 4 sticks of butter or a healthy EVOO bottle.
And if used wisely, you get more out of the liquid gold.
And yes! it can be used for light (more fluffy) cookie dough with the cookie textures we all love!
Which btw, I consider myself a cookie connoisseur (a ‘lil Cookie Monster if you will 🥠).
These days, I only bake my own cookies. I would’ve never have dreamed that would be my grown up destiny.
…But a nice crunch is a nice crunch.
Crunchy cookies like that in commercial cookies are so easy to home bake.
…That and pairing with the perfect low sugar sweet taste (that’s not too sweet and doesn’t make your skin crawl).
So in my mind, it’s the best of both worlds in cookie enjoyment.
Oh and plus, the healthiest cookie on the grocery shelves is not easy to find.
…I used to look at a graham cracker and think it was healthy because it was made with whole wheat. 🌾
…And back then in those days, if I knew how easy cookies were and are to make and bake with 2-3 basic ingredients, I may have made the switch much sooner.
Today, you get to make that decision for yourself. And you can start with an easy vanilla cookie.
In this batch I made, I include basic ingredients like honey (or maple syrup) for the sweetness, non-gluten plant-based flours (like coconut or almond flour), and olive oil (yes, oil instead of butter!).
These ingredient choices cost no more money or time to make and bake than the less healthy ingredients.
So why not?
…And when those around you are complaining about how much grocery costs have gone up.
I look at my grocery receipt total amounts and they’ve gone down. So I’m scratching my head happy because I get everything I want.
So the change is ME and my sourcing shopping mindset and habits.
And that’s something you can easily adopt!…
First, all I do is look for healthier ingredients. Then I get a ‘lil creative resourceful on how to make a delicious taste, texture, and healthy bake!
I have a rough idea in my mind about the final good. But I’m not stuck on the idea. That came from my catering work where I learned to be flexible.
It’s like dreaming up desserts but detaching from the outcome.
And for that to come true, it starts with choosing one ingredient at a time. And then pairing foods that taste good together.
In this vanilla cookie, I chose an extra virgin olive oil and you can use a lighter version or one that is infused with vanilla enhancing sweet flavors for baking cookies.
And even better… come up with infusing your own sweet blend ingredients.
You can squeeze in a ‘lil lemon juice and a capful of flavor extract that you can easily home make.
…With citrus fruity flavors, everything is enhanced brighter. Or you can infuse in zest or tea flavors. 🍋
Lemon goes with vanilla and creates a zesty moment.
You don’t have to visit gourmet specialty food stores or pay a price that you have to think twice about.
That’s the way of the past.
Healthy, delicious and whole ingredients today are comparable in price AND often less pricey.
When I go to the healthy food chains that people nickname Whole Paycheck, I come out saving money.
Healthy foods are NOT for the wealthy.
Like if you use bananas as your mirror… they are often pennies.
So when I’m shopping, I buy what works for the grocery bill wallet while using a planned list loosely.
That works every time and has for years..
…So I’m 100% sure you don’t have to have deep wallets to eat more healthy.
I’m like you and most of us who want good value and ingredients.
You don’t have to feel the effects of grocery bill inflation.
The main mindset I use is that if I don’t like the price I see, I keep looking at other store shelve items… or source online and for substitutes that work (and sometimes turn out even better).
Plus, I do a little research in advance that pays off, but I never go chasing coupons.
And actually, I can only remember using a coupon less than a handful of times in my adult life.
Coupons to me is too much work when you can coupon shop at actual products and prices available… looking for the discount on the shelves.
And having a home pantry full of ingredients to fall back on helps do that too because then you don’t feel like you HAVE to bring back something.
You can use an alternative already in your home.
And you can wait for the nice-to-have food ingredients to go on sale.
And that includes shopping for fruits that often cost less in-season because they have a short perishable shelf-life and their yield is abundant.
The stores can’t sell them soon enough!
And while I may not be balancing your budget, these tips have worked well for me.
And if you’re a green thumb gardener, you have an even greater advantage, as you can grow your own produce grocery store!
Prepared foods are more expensive and they are the ones with less-healthy ingredients.
For healthy, making your own healthy vanilla cookie is one good example. A healthy ingredient like vanilla pods are relatively expensive where I shop, and vanilla extract can also be.
Instead of using either, maple syrup or an infused vanilla tea can be a good sweet flavor substitute.
Honey is another good alternative that’s good in so many ways.
With those substitutes, you can make one mean swirl shape vanilla cookie, like the kind you found in the Danish butter cookie tins (but without the butter and all the sugar).
The best part is you can make delicious cookies with gluten-free flours.
Even if you’re not gluten sensitive, your body is sensitive to the tainted processed gluten flours these days.
For gluten-free flours, you can choose from rice, tapioca, almond, or coconut flour… just to name a few.
Combine ingredients. Use enough water to make a paste that can be piped through a piping bag. Let rest for at least 10 minutes in refrigerator. For gluten-free flours, you will need more water than you would for gluten flours. So if it feels like you're adding a lot of water, don't worry. Use enough for it to hold together without excess dripping water. This will be a soft dough.
Add the dough to a piping bag with a star shape decorative tip for Viennese whirls. Make a round loop (like a wreath or rosette).
Bake on 325°F/165°C for 12 minutes or until bottom edges are golden brown. For a more even bake or more crunchy cookie: flip cookies over and then bake tops for another 2 minutes.
Let cool, and take 2 cookies to make a top and bottom sandwich and then fill middle with jam or add a dollop gem of jam on the top.
Fruit roll up is a happy memory from when I was a kid. 💭
They were a sweet and light snack from the grocery store that melted in the mouth.
It was (and is) a cross between fruit + candy.
They came wrapped up in their own packaging and were attached to cellophane that I liked to play make things with when I was young. They were rolled up like scrolls.
Almost like the Dead Sea Scroll minus the ancient writing.
…And not that far back, my young days was when posters were the rage so anything rolled up meant happy entertainment or enjoyment.
Playing around, I haven’t had a fruit roll up like those until now as an adult. 😋
Decades later and these parchment paper looking treats are naturally preserved…
These were like the ones that ruined me to never want any other fruit roll up wannabes. 😅
These are the REAL DEAL.
Making these fruit roll ups bring me joy (...and maybe for you too?) because they resembled packaged old-fashioned fruit roll ups that you would buy at the store… minus additional sugar that’s not needed for these.
As thin as they are like sheets of music, these stack up nicely! 🪵…
Thin as paper and pretty as rice paper too.
They’re as durable as leather.
Technically they fall in the leather fruit category but are as smooth and supple as suede.
My mom was a dressmaker, so she played a role in influencing my fabric choices where I learned lighter materials are usually higher quality.
And I’d agree about that with this light leather fruit material…
These feel light and feathery (not leathery) and are very apple healthy! 🍏
Plus, they last for weeks at room temperature.
Made with apple they are a great fall snack that can be made year round.
It’s almost like wrapping paper… or maybe it’s an old map or a key to hieroglyphic history. However you want to call it, it’s a SWEEET fruit roll up.
Oh, and kidding aside, the BEST part is (…can you tell I’m getting excited that it just gets better? 😊)…
You can make these in your home oven in one hour and 20 minutes with just 5 minutes of prep time.
How’s that for predictability?
…Seriously it’s that easy!
They are fun (and dare I say relaxing) to make and everyone of all ages will love them! 💕
They make a great sweet snack without any artificial ingredients.
And actually just 2 sweet and natural ingredients that make a perfect duo. 🍏🍯
Using applesauce, you don’t even have to turn the stove on to cook down apples and de-core them… and they will turn out even better. Because for one, the apple fruit roll up will be more even.
…The first time you make them, don’t freak out because they turn transparent on a baking sheet.
Don’t worry, it’s there. 😀
…I tried that once with Aquafaba because I heard you could make meringues that way… and POOF! I wish I could say that was magic, but it was more like a trick. 🪄
They dissolved into thin oven air… but I digress.
These fruit roll ups will turn out… I promise.
These are the proof…
I’m so happy to share these with you through the screen. And I hope they make your day like they did for me the first time I made them. 🍥
(And maybe this will keep the kiddos staying happy and cavity-free as low-sugar goodies with plenty of sweetness… that are substitutable for a certain candy holiday 🎃).
And if you’re into experimenting (like I am gladly doing with sweets), you can try other flavors.
Keep in mind they will take longer to bake with more complex ingredients.
You will know when you touch or look at the baked fruit roll up whether it’s dry and done, or half-baked and almost there….
In this one, you can see here that the dry section is on the upper right area and the rest of the fruit roll up is not done… simply pop it back into the oven.
Change the time but don’t mess with the temperature.
This one took another 20-25 minutes to finish… and was worth the wait. ⏲️
These are no fuss-no muss apple fruit roll ups you can bake in under 2 hours. This will make 4 - 4 inch roll ups that are about 9 inches long.
Course Snack
Cuisine American
Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets
Equipment
Silpat silicone baking mat on sheet pan
Ingredients
24 ounceapplesauce cups, unsweetened
2tbspraw honey (high quality)
Instructions
Thoroughly combine apple sauce in a bowl and add honey. Tip: use a high quality honey with a smooth consistency.
Smear the mixture into a thin layer on a Silpat (silicone sheet) laid out on a baking pan. Tip: Use different light to check that there are no "holes" that show up with shadows.
Bake on 200°F/100°C for 80 minutes. Tip: if you add or experiment with other more vibrant colors and flavors, they can take significantly longer. You'll know it's completely done, when the fruit roll up is one uniform color and dry throughout to the touch.
Let cool completely and then start to peel at one corner and then slowly peel up the entire fruit roll up. Roll up, slice, and enjoy!
Microgreens have been around longer than our modern culture. 🌱
It was a way of food survival during the winter months of the oldest civilizations on our planet… a lot like how modern squirrels have preserved the foraging acorn traditions.
Baby arugula microgreens are tasty additions to a salad 🥗
Which btw… is outdoor entertaining to watch Rocky the flying squirrel in his purposeful scurrying meal prep moves. 🐿️
How they actually feel about their work we’ll never know, but it has kept their species around.
…And to keep ours going, modern food planning is something we do.
In human life, that’s how it can look with us daily running around in our busy lives… and for me, that’s how it sometimes looked behind-the-scenes as a food service professional in organized chaos prepping and planning weekly catered event challenges in hotel ballrooms and for restaurant parties celebrating Mediterranean food styles.
And even with all the variety of food available to our planet we can be bored with our food sourcing options. 🥬
Daily, we open the fridge and pantry cupboards thinking: “what’s for dinner?” or “what can I have for a little snack?”…sometimes coming up short for a good answer. 🤔
Microgreens can be part of the answer as a healthy and tasty choice.
Here are 5 points that make microgreens a smart choice:
Point #1: Microgreens are food like-able and tasty good.
…Because if they weren’t, why bother?
Children seem to love them as some of the pickiest green eaters on earth.
Many microgreens are smaller, cute kid-size bits and bites like baby arugula, so it’s easier to get a handful of the finger foods than the adult version.
The young greens also add interest, taste, and texture to any plate.
…And why they’re not more commonly known today is unknown. Maybe like their shape-forms, they still have a wild-like reputation… 🌿
Like, I remember alfalfa sprout microgreens from a school age where I once saw the jungle wild-looking tangly-fine weeds in a friend’s lunch box that made me curious…
And now as an adult, thinking it’s a good idea. 🎉
You grow into new perspectives and healthy ways and today is a great way to spruce up 😋 and vertically beef up a light protein mustardy salad sandwich or the like (…einkorn finger sandwich idea below 🧡). Or to garnish a bowl of beets…
Point # 2: Microgreens are less bitter.
Microgreens have the reputation of being less bitter that is good news for some people’s tongues who avoid the taste.
That reminds me of green tea…
If you don’t love bitter green tea tastes that can grow stronger if brewed too hot or you picked the wrong flavor for you, then you probably don’t lean toward preferring many bitter tasting superfood veggies and plant greens.
And that’s why certain veggies 🥦🥬 don’t end up on the plate (like green tea in cups)… or in a diet despite their healthy goodness.
…Green teas 🍵 come from the same Camellia Sinensis plant as common black, white, and oolong teas but differ in process where they’re not oxidized like common black teas.
And what makes the difference for microgreens (and similar to green teas) is the process from the same plant.
Microgreens are harvested early, coming from the same plants as the adult version we see mostly on shelf space in grocery stores. 🌱
So they’re fresh and have different tastes worth trying, often more mild tasting and welcoming to all.
Point #3: Young greens are replenishable, sustainable, and abundant.
…Just like other foods from the soil, nature provides and delivers over and over again..
When we think “fresh” we immediately think of the produce aisle in a supermarket, farmers market, or our backyard garden that produces fastly perishable foods that the soil can replenish.
If you’re a green thumb growing your own mini-market, you can have microgreens planted, harvested, and eatable within foreseeable weeks (and not months or seasons that is the time most produce take). 🧑🌾
That makes microgreens more productive… and where you can have more than what you know what to do with! A good problem to have. ✔️
That would be too easy for getting a meal on the table.
And that ideal IS microgreens.
When you choose the micro-world of microgreens, you too help our community and local farmers.
…Those are baby plant little steps that you can take for your health and to support the world. 🪴
Point #4 – Microgreens are often organic without pesticides.
So much of our plant-based foods are exterior sprayed with pesticides to deter mostly bugs, and that offsets the healthy goodness of the healthiest skin parts of the food.
We throw away the skin that could have been healthy edible parts.
And today, reusable composting ways are not yet available for the common household.
So then we end up creating more waste that adds more plastic bag waste that also attracts unwanted critter nuisances to our community. But what if composting machines were as common as house dishwashing machines? 💭
But that not being today’s standards, with organic microgreens we can eat those problems away as the end consumer. And our bodies are healthier for our choice.
Point #5 – Microgreens are low calories and high in nutrition.
There are few (if any) green plant-based foods 🌱 that aren’t low in calories compared to plant-based (as in factory) foods. 🏭
Fresh microgreens from nature come packed with vitamins and minerals, along with some eat-from-the-rainbow 🌈 polyphenols that make you excited to color your plate and palette with anti-inflammatory food ideas! 🎨
And, mighty microgreens can have 4x (and up to 40x!) more nutrients than their full-grown version.
🎯 Final Points:
Microgreens fit in our consumer micro cultures where we are becoming more customizable specific in food diet preferences that impact food growing ways, and where our farming culture impacts our world.
Sustainable food and young microgreens are sprouting interest in our fast climate changing world searching for longevity answers where eating anti-inflammatory foods fit.
One way you can be part of the anti-inflammatory solution is by growing your own portable microgreen micro garden that can be indoors (good for those with outdoor allergies or without garden space).
Plus, so many viable options to bring in more microgreens from dream to life… yasss!
…That’s something to be excited about today. If this resonates with you, could you PLEASE HELP share this message with others so they can join the MICROGREEN movement that’s healthy here to stay.🎉
Go micro GREEN 🌱
Oh, and heres’s an easy whole wheat or einkorn (ancient wheat) sandwich in a modern recipe you can use to make finger sandwiches that was an idea I grew up with in the catering party world… and you can use for lunch, brunch, or an afternoon party.
To gain smiles, simply add delicious microgreens like baby lettuce, cucumber, radishes, carrot, and tarragon.
I have fond memories of tea sandwiches from catering menus, and that are part of English afternoon tea events and traditions. Tea sandwiches are usually bite-size and made of spongey-soft bread where the crust is cut off. And flat crunchy bread like these add plate variety. They work well to celebrate the sandwich ingredients in the middle that can be light and/or all veggies.
Course Breakfast, brunch
Cuisine American, british
Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets
Ingredients
einkorn flour, salt, and water for the sandwich bread.
cottage cheese
cucumber
scallions
carrots
beets or radishes
lettuce
asparagus or favorite veggies
spices: dill, tarragon, black pepper
Instructions
Prepare the sandwich bread. You can make the bread in advance. Let dough proof: develop air pockets and double in size for for at least 2 hours. Then bake dough in oven in a small sheet pan about 1/4" thick until toasted. Tip: Einkorn wheat flour is not a high gluten (rise) flour, so it won't rise much and will lay more like a flat bread when baked. You need not knead long and can omit yeast. Let bread cool and slice the toast with a serated or bread knife.Alternatively if you use regular whole wheat flour, knead a few minutes longer and add about 1/4 tsp of instant yeast (easiest) for a bread that rises. You can cut horizontally into the vertical bread about 3-4 slices to get a similar flat bread effect. Optional: You can turn this into paninis by grilling or baking on a grill pan.
Prepare the raw veggies. Thinly slice into flat or close to flat pieces.
For the sandwich paste, mix cottage cheese, dill, tarragon, and black pepper. You can processor blend the cottage cheese if you would like a smoother paste.
Add paste to the bottom of the sandwich and then layer lettuce, cucumbers, carrots, and others veggies. Add the sandwich bread top. For catering-style zhugh, you can add a toothpicked cucumber slice, or radish and beet and then plate. These easy, new old-fashioned touches show you put in extra detailed care.