The Granola Bar That Will Have You Leave Candy Crying at the Altar...

Am I exaggerating?  Ok, maybe just a little bit, but these granola bars were fantastic!  They have chocolate, sweetness, and none of the blood sugar crash you would get from candy.  And did I mention they have protein and you don't have to bake them?  Oh yeah! 

I started with this recipe from Naturally Knocked Up, but I adjusted it.  I decided I wanted some oats in my bars (instead of them being grain free), and I did not have enough nuts anyways.  I also did not have cranberries, so I subbed in dates (which I think were part of the key of how good these were).

Chocolate Granola Bars
4 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
3/4 cup honey
1 cup sucanat (unrefined sugar)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups roughly chopped nuts (I used a mixture of almonds & walnuts)
2 cups uncooked oats (not steel cut)
3 Tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup chopped dates or other dried fruit

In a medium saucepan combine: butter, coconut oil, honey, sucanat, vanilla, and salt.  Place on the stove over low heat until mixture begins to simmer.  Simmer longer for harder bars, less time for "chewy" bars (I think I let it simmer just a few minutes for my soft bars).  In a large bowl stir to combine nuts, oats, cocoa powder, and dried fruit.  Pour the sugar mixture over the top & stir thoroughly.  Pour the mixture into a 9x13 pan and spread evenly (use oiled fingers to press it down into the pan).  Allow to cool completely & then cut.  I kept my bars stored in the refrigerator.

Next time I might try peanut butter in place of the butter...

Enjoy!
Lisa

Sourdough Bagels

If you've been following this blog you know I am baking a lot with sourdough now, as I talked about it in this post and why.  I am actually keeping two sourdough starters right now: both a whole wheat and a white flour one.  The white flour one I made to give to someone who works for us and was asking me how to make this "bread without yeast" that I make all the time.  She never took her starter home, but I have maintained it & use it for two reasons.

One: my kids, especially the Rwandan ones, are not huge fans of whole wheat (ok, the Rwandan kids don't like it at all- it's not used here).  So, I usually go half & half with whole wheat and white flour in my baking, just to compromise.  I need the white flour starter to do this when I make sourdough pancakes & also because of reason number Two: whole wheat flour is not sold in stores here.  I get mine (lucky for me) from a friend who gets it directly from the flour mill in bulk.  But sometimes I run out before I can get more from her.

You will notice in the picture that these bagels are all white flour- this is one of those weeks when I was completely out of whole wheat flour for several days.  Oh, how my kids loved having all white bread, but that's over now, I've got my whole wheat flour again- ha!

Back to the bagels- bagels really are easy to make- just as easy as bread, with only one extra step and that is to boil them before you bake them.  Simple & yummy!  The depth of "sourness" in these will depend on how long you let the dough rest.  The minimum of 6 hours will not be near as sour as say the 10 or so hours mine had.  Mine had a defnite "San Francisco sourdough" twang to them.  We had ours with fried eggs for breakfast, sandwich style.  Yum!

I cruised the internet quite a bit looking for a bagel recipe which did not require me to measure flour in grams & such, and finally found this recipe archived at a cute blog called WillowTreeCreek Farm which now has moved to http://www.eggsandherbs.com/.

Sourdough Bagels

1 cup sourdough starter
1/4 cup oil (I used olive)
1/4 cup warm water
2 teaspoons salt
2 to 2 1/2 cups flour
1 egg
optional: spices or seeds for topping
1/8 cup salt for boiling water

In a medium mixing bowl stir together the starter, oil, water, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 2 cups of flour.  Add more flour if needed to make a smooth, not sticky, dough.  Knead dough for a few minutes.  Place dough back in bowl & cover well.  Allow dough to rest for 6 or more hours (note: my dough did not rise very much, so yours may not either).

Prepare your work area: either dust your counter with flour or lay out a piece of parchment paper.  Divide your dough in half, each half in half again, and each of those in half again.  Now you have 8 equal pieces of dough to shape into bagels.  If you prefer bigger bagels you may want to only make 6.  Roll each piece of dough into a ball.  Poke your finger into the middle & work it around to make the size of hole you want. Set on the flour dusted counter top or parchment paper.  Once all bagels are formed, cover with an oiled piece of plastic wrap (or damp towel?) and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 425 and put water into a large pot to boil.  You may also get out toppings if you're using any.  Once water has come to a rapid boil, add 1/8 cup salt & stir to combine.  Gently drop the bagels into the bowling water, up to 4 at a time if your pot is big enough.  Boil for about 2 minutes and remove to a rack using a slotted spatula (I don't have a rack, so I just placed them on the clean counter).  Repeat with remaining bagels.

In a small bowl whisk an egg.  You can either brush the egg on top of the bagels, or do what I did: pick up the bagel & dip the top half into the egg.  If using toppings, dip your bagels into those.  Place on a baking sheet lined with cornmeal or parchment paper (or a Silpat in my case).  Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden in color.

Enjoy!
Lisa

This recipe is a part of Monday Mania at the Healthy Home Economist
GNOWFGLIN's Tuesday Twister.
Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop
Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade

Chocolate Roasted Almonds

I love this recipe for several reasons.  The almonds are soaked & then roasted or dehydrated, which reduces the phytic acid (see my tab "why soak").  There is no refined sugar in it, only maple syrup or honey.  And the best reason to like it is that I can reach for them when I'm having a chocolate craving, but it gives me protein also.  These would also be a unique & yummy "no clutter" gift to give to someone.

Chocolate Roasted (or Dehydrated) Almonds
2 cups almonds
1 1/2 tsp. salt

Place almonds in a bowl or container and cover with water.  Add salt & swirl around to mix.  Cover and allow to soak for at least 8 hours or overnight.  After soaking, drain and allow to air dry for 2 hours.

1 Tbsp. oil (olive or coconut oil)
2 Tbsp. maple syrup or honey (I used honey)
1 Tbsp. cocoa powder

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a medium bowl and add almonds.  Stir to coat completely.  Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.  To roast, bake at 250 for one hour or until nuts are crunchy, not soft.  Or alternately, you can dehydrate these at lower temperatures for longer periods of time.  Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

I dehydrated these using the lowest temperature setting on my oven for several hours during the day, then I turned off the oven and allowed the nuts to stay in the warm oven for several more hours.

Enjoy!
Lisa

this post is a part of Tuesday Twister

Chocolate Banana Muffin Bites

This was my second attempt at making a “flourless” dessert. The first banana bread was a big flop (or should I say glop?). I think the cocoa powder helps here. This originally was written as a cake recipe, but since I don’t have a round cake pan I tried it in a bread pan first. That turned out pretty good, but I knew that if I made them in a cupcake pan it would be easier to get it cooked all the way in the middle (and avoid gloppy-ness). These are yummy & even those who are not trying to go wheat, grain, or gluten free will enjoy them!

Chocolate Banana Muffin Bites

3 eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup honey

¼ cup oil

1 cup mashed (ripe) bananas

½ cup cocoa


Preheat oven to 350. Beat or whip the eggs for 2 minutes (I’m using my rotary mixer I brought to Rwanda with me- remember those?) Add the remaining ingredients and blend thoroughly. Grease or insert paper liners in your muffin tin (12 muffins). Evenly distribute the batter in the muffin cups (about 1 inch of batter in each one). Bake for about 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes & then remove.


Enjoy!
Lisa

This post is a part of Monday Mania, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Real Food Wednesdays.

Oatmeal Snack Bars

I received this recipe from a family friend and I made it before our camping trip as a packable snack.  You could also use these to put in a lunch box (they're chock full of all kinds of good stuff)!  I made a half batch that day because I was low on peanut butter, but I will give you the recipe with the full batch amounts.

Oatmeal Snack Bars
2 cups oatmeal (want it healthier?  use Soaked & Ready Oats)
1 cup chopped peanuts (or other nut)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used pecans)
1 cup sunflower seeds (I didn't have any so I used cashews)
1 cup ground flax seeds
1 cup wheat germ (or you could substitute dried coconut)
1 cup raisins
1 cup dried fruit (I just used more raisins)
1/2 cup honey
1 16 oz jar peanut butter (2 cups)
1 cup fruit spread (jam, jelly)

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine all ingredients in a large bowl & mix together for about 2 minutes by hand.  Take a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan (I would recommend jelly roll pan) and line it with parchment paper.  Dump mixture onto pan or cookie sheet, and press down (easiest to do this without sticking if you use another piece of parchment paper between your hands & the bars).  Bake for 25 minutes (do not over bake).

 You can see in this picture here what stirring it with a spatula did to my spatula!  Yes, it is thick & sticky stuff!  fyi: The half batch was just the right amount for the pan that fits in my toaster oven.

Once cool, slice into bars & cover.  Will keep for several days at room temperature.  I would suggest putting half the batch in the freezer and then pulling it out when you're almost out of the first half of the batch.  Or, package individually & freeze so they're ready to toss into a lunch box as needed.

Enjoy!

Lisa

This post was written a few days ago and scheduled for today.  As you read this my family is on our way to our new home for the next 9 1/2 months- Rwanda!  We will spend about 28 hours traveling to get there - almost half way across the world from Washington state.  Pray for us!

Raw Cashew Cream

The original recipe for this Cashew Cream came from the She Let Them Eat Cake blog.  I thought I was making a non-dairy substitute for sour cream... but this is more similar to peanut butter than anything else.  She talks about both cashew sour cream and sweet cashew cream, so I discovered this is actually sweet cashew cream.  Great spread for breads, and I also have put a tablespoon in the blender when I make my iced coffees (coffee, milk, sweetener, ice) which was very tasty!

Sweet Cashew Cream
1 1/2 cups raw cashews
1/4 cup water
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
4 Tablespoon maple syrup

Place cashews in bowl, add water, and cover.  (I used a pie plate to soak them in, so more of the cashews would be in contact with the water.)  Allow to soak for overnight (or 8 hours).

After soaking, place in food processor along with lemon juice and maple syrup.  This is what mine looked like after a minute.

Keep processing until smooth.  Cover & store in refrigerator.  Use within one week.

I would make this again to use in my No Bake Granola Bars to replace part of the peanut butter.

Enjoy!
Lisa

This post is a part of Pennywise Platter Thursday.

Creamy Probiotic Popsicles

When I saw this recipe for popsicles using buttermilk, I knew I wanted to try it out.  The day I made mine, I decided to give them a little extra boost.  I substituted some of the buttermilk with 1/4 cup raw milk kefir.  I was unsure if freezing kills the probiotics in kefir or yogurt (or cultured buttermilk for that matter) and after doing some digging on the internet I find myself - well, still unsure.  It seems as though the jury is out on whether or not freezing kills them, but even those who say it kills them admits it does not kill all of them- so you are still getting some benefit.

So, if you're going to have popsicles, why not boost them too?  I also added a teaspoon or two or flax seed oil to the mix.  It completely goes undercover & gives you the benefits of essential fatty acids too.  I might try drizzling in a teaspoon of melted coconut oil next time too.  I was out of fresh fruit when I made mine so I used frozen strawberries.  I also ran out of popsicle molds (this recipe makes quite a bit) so I poured the extra into an ice cube tray (pop them out, put in a ziploc bag, then I throw a few at a time into our smoothies) and a couple small containers.  I ate those with a spoon like sorbet.  Mmmmm.

Here is girlichef's recipe with my adjustments...

Creamy Probiotic Popsicles

1 cup buttermilk (real & cultured preferred)
1/2 cup kefir (or yogurt)
1 banana
1 1/2 cups fruit (fresh or frozen)
1/4 cup raw honey
optional: 2 teaspoons flax oil or coconut oil (melted)

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend completely.  Pour into molds (or muffin tin?) and place in the freezer.  (If adding your own sticks add them in after one hour & freeze for an additional hour.)

If you don't have popsicle molds, why not use muffin tins (or mini muffin tins)?  I remember as kids we used to use dixie cups, cover with plastic wrap, and then put a stick through the plastic wrap so it would stay in place.  I bet that would work for mini muffin tins or ice cube trays too!

Enjoy!
Lisa

This post is a part of Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Pennywise Platter Thursday.

Power Bars

This recipe originally came from the Nourishing Protein Bars over at Passionate Homemaking.  When I tried the recipe for some reason my bars were "missing" something (it was like eating a mouthful of peanut butter) so I let it get soft again (sat the pan inside the recently used toaster oven & it softened right up).  Then I mixed in a bunch more "stuff" and thought I'd share with you.  These are a great in-between meals snack: satisfying & easy to grab one on the go.

Power Bars
2 cups almonds
1/4 cup flax seeds, chia seeds, or pumpkin seeds *gound in a coffee grinder* I forgot that step & will tell you whole flax seeds are not fun to chew! 
1/2 cup dates
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup peanut butter or almond butter
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 cup coconut oil (melted)
4 Tbsp. maple syrup or honey
3 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup raisins or diced figs (I used figs)
2/3 cup cashew pieces
1 cup chocolate chips/chunks (use this recipe for healthy chocolate)

Place almonds, ground seeds, dates, coconut, peanut butter and salt in food processor. 

Pulse for about 10 seconds.  Stir sweeteners & vanilla into melted coconut oil.

Add to food processor & pulse until it forms a coarse paste.

Pour mixture into an 8x8 pan.  Stir in the raisins or figs, cashews, and chocolate chips.  Press into pan.  Chill for 1 hour, until mixture hardens.  Make 4 cuts vertically & horizontally in your pan so you have 16 bars.  Cover & store in refrigerator or freeze for another time.

Enjoy!
Lisa

Please feel free to comment this week, but our family is with a team working at an orphanage in Ensenada, Mexico, so I will not be able to approve or reply to comments until after July 1st.  This week's posts were written & publishing scheduled ahead of time- just for you!

Roasted Cauliflower & Chickpeas

Recently I had a head of cauliflower & I pulled some chickpeas from the freezer because I love cauliflower dipped in hummus!  But then I saw a blog post about roasting cauliflower & I was intrigued.  I also remembered seeing a few posts about roasting chick peas, which I was also curious about.  Come to find out they both cook at the same temperature for the same amount of time, so why not roast them both at the same time?  This would be good for when you want a salty snack...

Roasted Cauliflower (and/or) Chickpeas
1 head cauliflower, stem removed
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans) or 1 can, drained
4 Tbsp. olive oil
salt, garlic, pepper - to taste

Preheat oven to 450.  Chop cauliflower into small pieces (but not tiny).  Pat chickpeas dry with paper towels.

 

Combine chickpeas, cauliflower, oil and a generous sprinkling of salt, garlic, and pepper in a large bowl.  Stir to combine.  Spread out in a single layer on a cookie sheet (I lined mine with parchment paper). 

Since my cookie sheet doesn't have edges I used the cauliflower to keep the chickpeas corralled & from rolling off the edges.

Place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes.  Cauliflower will have a "toasted" look when ready.  Do not over bake or the chickpeas will get too dry.

Some of my cauliflower pieces were too big- the smaller ones were better.

I'm going to have some of these roasted chickpeas and cauliflower on top of my salad today too.

Enjoy!

Lisa

P.S. Did you see Wardeh's post about the USDA food pyramid?  So well put!

Please feel free to comment this week, but our family is with a team working at an orphanage in Ensenada, Mexico, so I will not be able to approve or reply to comments until after July 1st.  These posts were written & publishing scheduled ahead of time- just for you! 

Hummus: Yummy & Easy

This post is a part of Fight Back Fridays at Food Renegade.

Since I had made some sourdough crackers last week I decided I wanted some hummus to dip them in.  Last time, also the first time, I tried making my own hummus I soaked & boiled up a huge batch of dried chick peas (garbanzo beans) and froze them in bags (2 c. each).  This way, when I want hummus I just thaw out a bag (I figure 2 c. is pretty close to what you'd get in one can, which is what most recipes call for.)  In my previous attempt at hummus I used a recipe that did not use tahini- and that hummus was bad.  You could just tell it was missing something (like, hmm, hummus?)  This time though the hummus was great!

Hummus
3/4 to 1 tsp. minced garlic (or one garlic clove)
2 cups (or 19 oz. can) garbanzo beans
4 Tbsp. lemon juice
3 Tbsp. tahini
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil

Combine all the ingredients in your food processor & process til smooth.  Use more or less garlic depending on your preference (more!).  I like to use the minced garlic that comes in a jar because I think it's so much easier than messing with garlic cloves.

Below is the hummus with my spinach sourdough crackers, but I actually found my favorite way to enjoy this is by dipping cauliflower in it- you must try it.  One day I also tried dipping my crackers in both hummus & tuna salad and that was a good lunch!

By the way, I did a little google on chick peas.  Did you know they are a good source of dietary fiber, protein and copper, and a very good source of folate, zinc and manganese?  Now that's the kind of snack (or lunch) you can feel good about!


Enjoy!
Lisa

Loving Our Greens!

This post is a part of Real Food Wednesdays and Pennywise Platter Thursdays.

I told you yesterday how I tried and failed with rainbow chard, now let me share with you some great ways of getting your green on using kale and spinach!

I had read about Kale Chips and I thought, "My family would never even go near something like that."  However, my daughter is on an eating plan right now that requires two meals a day to have at least two servings of green vegetables.  After burning out on the usual suspects, it was time to venture into new territory.  When I told my daughter what I was making she said, "NO!  Don't make kale!  I hate kale!"  After I assured her that she didn't have to like it, she just had to be open minded and try it, she calmed down.  And when she actually did try it, she loved it.  She now asks for kale chips everyday!  The taste is similar to popcorn or if you use spinach I think it tastes like pumpkin seeds.  If you use spinach and kale both, do them in different batches or use separate trays because of the different cooking times.

Kale (or Spinach) Chips
1 bunch kale (or spinach) I use a half a bunch each time
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. salt

Pre-heat oven to 350.  You're going to need to de-vein the kale: just run a sharp knife along either side of the main stem & remove.  Tear the leaves into bite size pieces (about 2" square or smaller) and place in colander (or salad spinner) to wash.

Wash & dry kale, then place in single layer on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.  I used a kitchen oil spritzer to evenly distribute oil on the kale (mine is from Pampered Chef but you can find similar items here or here on Amazon).  I took about a teaspoon of sea salt in my hand and rubbed my hands together all over the kale to evenly salt it.

Place in the oven and bake for about 8 - 10 minutes or until crisp (if using spinach you will need to cook it for closer to 15 minutes).  Watch carefully when it's getting close to time- burnt ones don't taste good!

Eat them up!  (about 2 - 4 servings depending on if you eat them like I do or my daughter does!)

My parchment paper is a little dark because I was reusing a sheet I had made something else on previously (cookies I believe).  Here is a great tip for you: because I used half of the bunch of kale, I saved the parchment paper & reused it the next day to make the second batch with the other half of the kale.  Now, wait- don't throw the paper away yet!  Make yourself a batch of Sourdough Cracker dough and roll it right out onto the parchment paper.  You see, after a couple of batches the paper has the perfect amount of extra oil & salt on it for your crackers.  I wanted to use up more of my spinach (I had several bunches) so before I rolled it out I tore some spinach into pieces & incorporated it into the dough.

If you were making these for your family you would probably want to chop it a little more finely- but these were for me & I didn't mind (plus I'm lazy- ha!).  Bake as normal- the crackers are salted from underneath!  These were great!

I didn't stop there though.  Last time I had a bag of basil I had more than I was ready to use then, so I measured out the amount of leaves needed for a batch of Spinach Basil Pesto and put it in bags right into the freezer.  I was ready to make pesto this week so a day or two earlier I got a bag of basil out of the freezer to thaw & then put those leaves right into the food processor.  They don't look pretty then, but once everything mixes together you can't tell anything is different.  I didn't have any pine nuts for my pesto, so I decided to use pecan pieces instead.  I may do that from now on- have you seen how expensive pine nuts are?  Wow!

Those spinach crackers taste awesome dipped in Spinach Basil Pesto- yum!  Now I'm really getting my green on- but wait, I'm not done yet!  (It's fun to sound like an infomercial sometimes...)

Don't forget about throwing a few fresh spinach leaves into your smoothies.  If you've got some spinach or kale that is about to go bad you can do this: lightly steam them, while still hot put them in the blender along with a few tablespoons of coconut oil (the heat from the leaves melts the oil) and a little bit of milk just to help things move around.

Puree until smooth, pour into an ice cube tray, and place in the freezer.  Once they're frozen solid you can put them in a bag in the freezer.  Throw one or two into your smoothies for a boost of healthy greens & healthy fat too!

OK, whew!  Now I'm done!  Did I wear you out too?

Have some fun with greens this week!
Enjoy!
Lisa

P.S.  Do you know about the US Wellness Meats Giveaway at Nourishing Days blog?  You can enter for a chance to win an $85 gift certificate- yeah & yum!

When Life Gives You Bad Apples...

My kids have absolutely no interest in apples that are soft, puckered skin, or with blemishes- oh, how we are spoiled now aren't we?  We are so used to the "perfect" food presented in the grocery store that we really will tolerate nothing less. But I digress!  When life gives you bad apples... make applesauce!  It really was so easy- you should try it!

Applesauce
makes about 4 cups of applesauce, you can adjust to recipe to make more or less!
about 6 apples
1/4 c. water
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 - 1 Tbsp. maple syrup (depending on how sweet your apples are, or how sweet you like it)
sprinkle of cinnamon

Put water, lemon juice, maple syrup and cinnamon in your cooking pot, stir.  Chop the apples into about 1" pieces (I did not peel them, you may, but you might be surprised how easily those peels blend into the finished sauce- so try it without).  As you chop each apple, toss it into the cooking pot & stir to coat the pieces (the lemon juice will keep them from turning brown as you chop more).
Heat to boiling, them reduce to simmer for a few hours, or until very, very soft.  (Yummy smells in your kitchen!)  Remove from heat & allow to cool slightly.  Toss it all into your food processor (or blender) and blend to desired texture.

Can you see any apple peel in there?  Nope! 

I found a few more apples that were less-than-perfect and I decided to make Apple Oven Pancakes.  I am not sure where I printed this recipe from, but I have adjusted it to include soaking of the flour.  If you want to shorten your morning prep time (like I did) and don't mind heating your oven twice, you can cook the apples the day before.  I also combined the remaining batter ingredients in a jar, shook it up to mix, and put it in the fridge to make my morning even quicker!

Apple Oven Pancakes

about 6 servings

1 c. buttermilk (or plain yogurt thinned with milk)

2/3 c. whole wheat flour

*12-24 hours before baking, combine buttermilk & flour in blender (gently).  Let soak til ready to cook.

4 Tbsp. butter

2 apples, sliced very thin (peeling optional)

Preheat oven to 425.  While oven is heating place butter in 9x13 pan & put in oven to melt.  Once melted, place apple slices evenly across bottom of pan.  Bake in oven for about 10 minutes.

4 large eggs

2 Tbsp. honey

2 Tbsp. raw sugar (if using tart apples)

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Add these ingredients to the flour/buttermilk mixture in the blender and blend to combine.  Pour over apples in dish.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Pancake will be very tall & puffed up when you first remove it from the oven, but will collapse back down after cooling slightly.  Slice & serve with applesauce or maple syrup.

Hmm, not the most flattering picture, but we were headed on a train trip that day & I didn't have time to make a pretty picture!  If you plan ahead you only need to spend 5 minutes in the morning on this (plus oven preheat time & bake time- but you can be getting ready then) plus you get more protein than a regular pancake too.

And just for fun, here's a picture from our trip to Seattle that day.  My son trying to get a good view from the top of the Space Needle- using the telescope backwards of course. ;)

Enjoy!

Lisa

This post is a part of The Nourishing Gourmet's Pennywise Platter Thursday.

Success with Muffins!

One of the first things I attempted to bake by "soaking" my flour was the muffin recipe from Nourishing Traditions.  I don't know if it was user error, or what exactly happened, but what I ended up with were flat, dry, tasteless muffins.  Yuck.  I am not a picky eater at all, but I couldn't even eat them.  Of course the silver lining in this little story is that in my desire to use those muffins for something (rather than throw them out) I discovered my bread pudding recipe.  That recipe has become a staple in my kitchen (partly because it's so good & easy, and partly because I have had so many failed bread attempts!).

Not being one to give up so easy, I decided to try muffins again when I saw Wardeh's recipe for Basic Soaked Muffins.  I saw the pictures and the comments, and this made me feel confident that these might work out- and they did!  You start by combining 1 1/2 c. flour (it says pastry flour, but all I had was regular whole wheat), 1/2 c. rolled oats, 1 c. milk, and 2 Tbsp. vinegar (I actually used whey, because I have so much after making yogurt cream cheese.)

I let it soak for about 20 hours.  To melt the 1/2 c. coconut oil I needed, I placed it in a glass jar inside a pot of water on the stove.  In a bowl separate from the flour mixture I whisked together 2 eggs, 1/2 c. turbinado sugar, and 1 t. vanilla.  Then I slowly poured in the melted coconut oil, whisking continuously.  I added in 1 teaspoon salt and 2 teaspoons baking powder.  I also added in Wardeh's suggested spices of 2 t. cinnamon, 1 t. ginger, and 1/4 t. nutmeg.  At this point I also began preheating the oven to 375.

Now it's time to add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture.  Here is what my flour mixture looked like:

Can you see the discoloration that is on the surface?  This darkening seems to happen when I soak using cultured dairy (kefir, whey, yogurt, buttermilk) but it doesn't affect the finished product.  When I was adding in the egg mixture to the flour, I had a "lightbulb" moment.  I decided to finely chop some organic crystallized ginger & add it to the dough.  I took two squares (example below) and mixed it in.

And here is what the dough looks like when it is all mixed together (I added 1/2 c. raisins in later to part of the batter).

I didn't have enough muffin liners, so part of the pan I just rubbed generous amounts of coconut oil inside (one of the great things about using coconut oil when you bake is if you get it on your hands you just rub it in!  Great moisturizer!)  The ones that have no liner are without raisins.  I used my cookie scoop to drop a few scoops of batter into each cup.

After baking for 20 minutes I stuck a toothpick in one of them & they were still very wet inside.  About another 8 minutes & they were perfect.  Everyone in the family liked these.  They have a nice risen shape, good flavor (I really liked the ginger), and moist.

This post is a part of Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

Enjoy!
Lisa

Cookies... for breakfast?

If you're of my generation that line may bring back memories of Saturday morning commercials for a certain sugar filled cereal...  but what we've got going here is a whole different animal!  Last week I had some soured milk that I needed to use up and I felt like making something different for breakfast.  I decided to try out the recipe for Breakfast Cookies at Heavenly Homemakers.

Since I started cooking with soaked grains I have been missing cookies something terrible!  The only cookie recipes I have found either require sprouted flour or are macaroons (nothing against macaroons, but it's not quite the cookie experience I was craving).  The first time I made this recipe I soaked it for 12 hours, the second time was closer to 24 (which is much better for you).

"Soaked" Oatmeal Cookies
Makes about 50 cookies (unless you make giant ones)

The recipe calls for 1 c. melted butter, but I melted 1/2 c. butter with 1/2 c. coconut oil.  Stir that together with 2 c. flour and 2 c. oats, then add in about 1/2 to 3/4 c. of  buttermilk (I added a tablespoon of kefir to my soured milk to make sure it was cultured).  You want to mix well so that everything is moistened & you will have something that is a very thick oatmeal consistency.

Cover and let sit for 12 to 24 hours.  For the next step you better get ready, because you are going to get a good arm workout!  What was oatmeal consistency has now become much more cement-like!  Use a sturdy spoon to start breaking it up.  I added the 2 eggs & 1 t. vanilla at this point, as well as 1/2 c. honey (the recipe calls for 3/4 c., but because these were for breakfast I didn't want them too sweet) & I began to work that moisture into the dough.

Eventually it will begin to get smooth and you can add a teaspoon each of salt, cinnamon, and baking soda.  Once that is thoroughly mixed in add 1 c. raisins (my raisins were low so I only had 1/2 c.).  Preheat your oven to 350 and get out your cookie sheets & parchment paper (optional).  I was using a cookie scoop, so my cookies were not "giant" like the original recipe.  I filled two very large cookie sheets and baked them one sheet at a time for 15 minutes each.

Oh, my cookie scoop, how I missed you!  You have no idea how delighted I was to make cookies again!

If you use the full 3/4 c. honey your cookies will not be as firmly rolled as these are (and when I made almond butter ones they were much looser & spread much more).  When they are done you get a light & fluffy cookie.  But the real fun was when my daughter (who did not know what was for breakfast) got a whiff of them baking and said, "What is that smell?"  When I got to tell her, "Breakfast Cookies," her whole face lit up!  Priceless.

These are healthy so if you want to serve them for breakfast, go ahead, but I would use them as a side with some other protein item (bacon & egg, whole milk yogurt, etc.) to really start your day right.

Now we get to have cookies again- hurray!  I even made almond butter cookies (with the full 3/4 c. honey) for my husband's birthday celebration & they were well liked.  Even with 3/4 c. honey they are still not overly sweet, which is great for us.  These are handy for dessert, after school, or as a quick on-the-go snack.

Almond Butter or Peanut Butter Variation: substitute 1 c. almond or peanut butter for the 1 c. butter/coconut oil, omit cinnamon, optional: add 1/2 c. chopped almonds or peanuts
 In case you're wondering, I did include the almond butter with the oats & flour that "soaked" for 24 hours.  I did not try almond extract instead of vanilla, but you might want to if you're using almond butter.  This batter will spread more, so make sure to space them 2" apart on your cookie sheet.

(Suggested) Apple Spice Variation: subsitute 1 c. finely chopped apples for the raisins, add 1/8 to 1/4 t. ground nutmeg (I have not tried this yet but I think it would work great!  I'll let you know soon!)

Chocolate or Carob Chip Cookies: this is the one my son can't wait for- use chocolate or carob chips instead of raisins, omit cinnamon (or leave in depending on preference)

Do you have any other ideas for variations on this cookie?  How about a tropical version- use 1/2 c. shredded coconut & 1/2 c. tropical dried fruit, instead of raisins, and a different extract instead of vanilla?  Have some fun!

Tomorrow will be my post on making homemade pear sauce (or syrup) in the crockpot.
This post is a part of Real Food Wednesday.

Enjoy,
Lisa

P.S.  Have you seen Food, Inc?  Did you know it is premiering on TV tonight on PBS?  Check your local listings, in my area it is on at 9pm.  Then watch it, record it, DVR it, or Tivo it.  Tweet about it, update your facebook status, email your friends, talk about it and get people watching & learning!  If you want to talk about it after you watch it you can visit my Food, Inc. post to comment & discuss there.  I am sure that change can happen if people learn & begin to care about what they feed themselves!

Homemade "Soaked" Bagels & Yogurt Cheese

This post is linked up with Cutting Back on Sugar on Naturally Knocked up
and Pennywise Platter Thursday at The Nourishing Gourmet.

I stopped buying bagels in the store a long time before I ever stopped buying bread.  The reason is that my daughter loves them & will eat them all day.  It seemed like a lot of empty calories & sugars for her so I just stopped buying them.  But as we struggle to find things for my daughter to take in her lunches (she's picky) I decided to make some bagels for us all.  I had made homemade bagels once before, a long time ago, and it really is not too hard.  This time I used the recipe from Passionate Homemaking  soaked grains & no added sugar equals bagels I can feel good about.

First you mix 1 cup warm water, 2 Tbsp. acid medium (I used kefir), 1/4 cup honey & 4 1/4 cups whole wheat flour.  I had to use a fork because this is a lot of flour relative to not much liquid.  After a while of mixing I pressed the dough down (trying to get all the flour in contact with the moisture) covered it and let it "soak" for 12 hours.

When I was ready to make the bagels I combined 2 Tbsp. of yeast, 1/2 cup warm (100-120 degrees) water, and a dab of honey & let it "puff" for about 5 minutes.  DO NOT use a 1 cup measuring cup to do this in!  I turned around to do some dishes & when I turned back around I saw this!

OK, well we know that yeast is active!  I tossed the soaked flour mixture into the bowl of my Kitchenaid mixture.  You can see, it is very dry, but I think that's how it has to be...

Because once I added the yeast mixture (and 1 Tbsp. salt) I got a dough that was really very...

STICKY!  I added about a 1/2 c. of spelt flour to it & kneaded it for several minutes.  It did eventually become more of a dough, though still very sticky.  I wanted this dough to rise quickly, so I put it in the oven with the light on & a pot of just boiled water.  After two hours my dough had risen well.

Time to punch down the dough & since I wanted cinnamon raisin bagels I added about a teaspoon of cinnamon & 1/4 cup of raisins at this point.  The dough is still very sticky, but I did not want to add more flour.  If your dough is sticky I would suggest oiling your hands very well (I used olive oil).  After kneading in the cinnamon & raisin I picked up the dough & split it into half, then each of those into half, then each of those into thirds (making 12 balls).  I laid them out on the same oiled plastic wrap I had used to cover my dough while it was rising (oh yes, I reuse around here- a lot!)

While those are resting I've already got out my big skillet & started the water boiling.  I purposefully used this one, with the most surface area, because I wanted to be able to cook several at once.  Lindsay says to cook 2 or 3 at a time, but I just don't listen.  I am either lazy or I love being super efficient- or both!  After 5 minutes you then poke a hole in the middle of the balls & let them rest for another 10 minutes.  You can see mine are kind of wonky- but that doesn't bother me!

While they're resting you can also start pre-heating your oven to 350.  Hopefully by now your water is at a good boil.  Cooking them first in the boiling water is what gives bagels their characteristic "chewy" texture.  I cooked them for about 45 seconds to 1 minute on each side, and drained them on a wire rack.  A lot of the raisins fell out of the dough in the water, but when I had boiled all the bagels I just used the spatula to strain the raisins out of the water & poked them back into the bagels.

They were still very soft so I carefully transferred them onto a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet.*  I did not do the egg white glaze. I'd rather not mess with an egg white, and they are fine without it, just not shiny.  After baking for 35 minutes they are done (and your kitchen smells wonderful).  The instructions are to flip them half way through, but my cookie sheet is insulated so I don't need to.  They aren't the prettiest things ever but they are very tasty!

*I always use parchment paper on my cookie sheets because I'm sure they are aluminum & I don't want aluminum touching my food.  And did you know you can reuse parchment paper?  Oh yes you can!  Since most things just slide right off you can keep reusing that parchment paper until it turns a dark brown.  I do this with my bread pans too- parchment paper makes getting the bread out so easy.


Have you made yogurt "cheese" before?  You just line a strainer with coffee filters, put it inside a larger bowl, and pour the yogurt in.  After a few hours the whey is strained out (save this in your refrigerator & use for soaking grains) and you are left with something very close to cream cheese.  I had put a large container of yogurt in my freezer (it was about to go bad & I didn't have time to use it up).  A few days ago I pulled it out so it could thaw in the refrigerator before I used it to make a wonderful creamy yogurt "cheese".  I like to put a couple spoonfuls of yogurt cheese in a small cup & then dip bits of bagel in there.  For my daughter I mixed the yogurt cheese up with some fruit syrup (frozen fruit cooked with maple syrup, leftover from breakfast).  And then I had a craving for ginger- so I took some candied ginger (ok, I confess there's some organic sugar in there), minced it & mixed it in with the yogurt cheese- that tasted awesome with a cinnamon raisin bagel!

Good stuff!
Enjoy!
Lisa