CONFESSION: I am not a “cookie” person. Give me a piece of rich dark chocolate with flaky sea salt all day any day — but cookies? They just don’t really do it for me.

But now that we’re in full-on #christmascookie season I kind of came down with a case of FOMO (standard).

So I decided to get in on the fun with a little challenge to myself. What could I bake that wasn’t a traditional “Christmas cookie” per se but that I could still bring to holiday parties and people would love? And perhaps even love so much they’d feel inspired to bake them with their families and gift to others this season?

Besides being a crowd-pleasing, untraditional “non-cookie,” I had a few more “cookie-challenge” requirements —

— Must be so easy to make you can simultaneously watch “The Holiday” or dance  unabashedly to Christmas Trap Music in the kitchen

— Must be so insanely delicious people will never guess how healthy it is

— Must be nutrient-dense and filled with REAL ingredients only

— Must feel better after you eat it, not worse (because who needs yet another food baby this season?)

And I have to tell you —  I seriously nailed it with these Fudgey Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt Cashew Butter Brownies.

Not only do they completely pass all of the aforementioned criteria, but they also contain a little special (and totally optional) ingredient that raises the bar with how you feel post-consumption.

It’s called CBD oil, and if it’s not yet on your radar, it’s already gaining major traction in the wellness world due to it’s anti-inflammatory, anti-anxiety, pain- reducing and immunity-boosting effects.