How a Diabetes Diagnosis Led to Cookies
ChipMonk* is cookies.
Except, not in the way you might think. Founders Jose Hernandez and David Downing have created something much more magical than your average cookie. All of their cookies -- from peanut butter to coconut to white chocolate macadamia -- have very little to no impact on blood sugar.
ChipMonk cookies have all the sweet, gooey goodness that comes to mind when thinking of your standard cookie, but without the carbs, the sugar, or the gluten. All their cookies are low carb- and keto-approved, sugar and gluten free, and comprised entirely of natural ingredients.
And they taste delicious.
Magic, right? ✨
The ChipMonk Story: It Starts With Diabetes
Co-founder Jose Hernandez had none of the risk factors associated with type 2 diabetes. He wasn’t overweight, he had little to no belly fat, he was extremely active, had no immediate family with type 2 diabetes, and he was was very young.
Yet, Jose found himself feeling perpetually lethargic, constantly craving sweets and carbs, struggling to maintain lean muscle, and would even doze off uncontrollably (particularly after carb-heavy meals).
His entire life up until this point, Jose had been extremely active. But, as he is very quick to point out, it wasn’t Jose’s activity levels that were problematic; it was (always) his diet.
Jose was driving home one night from work and fell asleep behind the wheel. This was the wake up call. Incredibly, he walked away from the accident unscathed. But Jose knew something had to be done.
He immediately had his blood drawn for an A1C test. His result came back at 6.9%. Jose was very well into the diabetes zone.
The physician prescribed metformin, but Jose said no -- he was going to to challenge this diabetes diagnosis head-on and through all-natural means. Jose drastically changed his eating and drinking habits.
For the next 2-and-a-half months, he followed a very low carb, high fat diet. Then, he took another A1C test.
The result? 5.3%. He was in a very normal, healthy, below-prediabetes A1C range.
Jose continues to follow a low carb, high fat diet; in this instance, it’s more a lifestyle than a diet for him. He’s kept his A1C levels in the normal range ever since his diagnosis. But, even still, sweets and desserts continue to be a struggle.
A Personal Need for Low Carb Sweets
ChipMonk Bakery came directly from necessity. It’s the result of Jose’s overwhelming desire for sweets and his unrelenting pursuit of health.
To satisfy his sweet tooth, Jose researched how to make desserts using alternative ingredients that wouldn’t harm his blood sugar. He learned about the benefits of almond flour and natural sugar alternatives like monk fruit and allulose.
Over the course of a weekend, he used these new ingredients to make all sorts of foods he previously thought he couldn’t have. That weekend, with the help of then-roommate (now co-founder) David, the ChipMonk chocolate chip cookie was born.
And they just kept going. The ChipMonk family of cookies now includes chocolate chip, white chocolate macadamia, lemon, snickerdoodle, coconut, and peanut butter. Each cookie is extremely and naturally low carb (get every single bit of nutritional info here).
They’re also incredibly delicious. Unlike other no-sugar-added treats, ChipMonk cookies are actually greasily baked, gooey sweetness.
In fact, I personally have now purchased 2 monster-size packs of the peanut butter flavor. And, I can attest, they hardly affect my blood sugar. I have type 1 diabetes, so they do have an impact. But it’s one that is essentially the same as when I consume my vegetable-packed smoothie (spinach, collard greens, kale, avocado, and lemon).
Watch this space. The ChipMonk crew is on to something and you should be in on it.
*Since the writing of this post, ChipMonk has changed their baking strategy so that there are no longer two smaller cookies per pack; instead, they’ve transitioned to a single, larger cookie per pack.
