Kayla Hicks and Joeleen Wilkinson of Charmed Counseling
My Takeaway
In our conversing, I was thankful for the time I spent with Joeleen. I was reminded about how developing relationships with other counselors enriches my life and expands the network and connections with each other. Joeleen models connection in both her life and in what she advocates for personally and professionally. I am very aware that no one should walk alone in this world and there is so much we can learn from each other. I also was reminded about how following ones interests will lead to a natural solidifying of what one is called to do in the world. I think Joeleen has followed her evolving path and continues to do so in such a natural way. I know that she has just begun advocating and creating the capacity for connection and a stronger more beautiful world, as a result.
The Cookies (Recipes below)
Some of my greatest learning with baking for the conversations has been to find alternatives with certain ingredients. For this cookie challenge, my parameters were to bake something with no eggs, no gluten or any other flour( except almond), no almonds, no dairy, but butter was okay. Dairy free dark chocolate was okay too. So I set out to find a recipe that fit all of this.
I found a brownie recipe, “Best Ever Chewy Fudgy, Gluten Free Brownies” (recipe below) and decided to give this a try. I baked it exactly as it said, but needing to use an alternative to eggs. I chose flaxseed, carefully following the ingredients for this. After the brownies were baked, it was still too gooey (but definitely chewy like the recipe name boasted). It was sticky to the touch and would not hold it’s consistency. I decided to put the brownies in the freezer and then into the fridge briefly in hopes they would set. They did set further, but were gooey to pick up. The chocolate flavor was good despite this. I was a little concerned about taking something so gooey, so set forth to find another recipe I could bake in a pinch.
I found the recipe for “Paleo Almond Joy Cookies“. This looked easy and quick and I had all the ingredients. With this one, it also did not seem to set, so I added a little bit more coconut and chocolate chips (using dairy free chocolate chips) to thicken it up. I thought these were quite delicious. I loved the idea of these as a breakfast type cookie. The flavors melded together well. I decided to place these in cupcake cups for single servings and baked them in muffin cups. This worked out quite well for creating single servings. 
When I was ready to make the delivery, both of these cookies had set up better. I decided I would deliver both of them exactly as they were and embrace the imperfection that I was feeling with both recipes. I was happy with the brownies with the flavor, but not in the presentation. And they may have been fine with the eggs that were called for in the recipe. The almond joy cookies turned out fine with the perfect type of crumbly one would want in such a cookie.
Joeleen was gracious about the presentation of the cookies. Later, she said of the cookies: “The desserts were amazing! I actually really liked both! And a pairing of ice-cream with the brownies will be so good! For the almond joy remake I would say you could even reduce the amount of sweetness but it is also comforting to have all the sweetness if someone wants that option. I would make the recipes myself but recently I have had to reduce my sugar intake because of my pregnancy.”
Cookie Recipes:
Best Ever Chewy Fudgy Gluten Free Brownies:
https://mygluten-freekitchen.com/best-ever-chewy-fudgy-gluten-free-brownies/
Paleo Almond Joy Cookies:
http://www.thehealthnutmama.com/paleo-almond-joy-cookies/
More about Joeleen Wilkinson of Charmed Counseling
Joeleen Wilkinson, LICSW, MAC, CDP
400 S. Jefferson Street, Suite 200, Spokane, WA 99204
info@charmedcounseling.com
Joeleen Wilkinson is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LW 60649635) and Chemical Dependency Professional (CDP) licensed in the state of Washington (CP 60185163). She is a Nationally Certified as a Master Addiction Counselor (# 508610). She earned her Masters of Social Work degree from EWU’s School of Social Work and Human Services in June of 2011. Prior to this, she earned a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with a major in Alcohol and Drug studies and a minor in Counseling Education Developmental Psychology from Eastern Washington University in 2009.
Supporting individuals and families on their journey to change their relationship with drugs and alcohol has been a personal passion of hers. Since April 2011 she has been licensed as a Chemical Dependency Professional in the State of Washington. She gained extensive experience during 2009-2016 counseling adolescents in both inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol treatment centers. Counseling services including drug and alcohol treatment, education and recovery support are currently offered at Charmed Counseling.
Connection and relationships are so crucial to our happiness as individuals that she has made it a priority to receive specialized training in couples counseling and family therapy to help guide her in my clinical practice. In addition, people may reach out to her to receive help addressing various concerns including depression, negative self-image, eating disorders, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, attachment disorder, sexual, verbal and physical abuse. Along with many other emotional aspects that may cause distress.
Counseling may help with finding ways to increase motivation in life, managing stress appropriately, setting life goals, building communication skills, organizing priorities, strengthening and maintaining relationships, healing from past trauma and creating a positive outlook on life. Joeleen’s therapeutic modalities include Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Attachment Theory and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). She is also trained as a Doula and with Gottman theory when working with couples.
Joeleen’s time away from work is spent with her husband, two boys, two dogs, rabbit and a cat. She enjoys drinking coffee, soaking up the sunshine and experiencing the outdoors as much as possible.
