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

Almond Coconut Milk

This post is a part of Tuesday Twister at GNOWFGLINS.

I have been buying refrigerated coconut milk to use in our smoothies.  At around $4 per half gallon this "milk" is fairly expensive.  When I saw the Nourishing Cook's post for Almond Coconut Milk I decided to give that a try sometime.  This also ended up being my first attempt at lacto-fermenting anything.

The night before I set 2 c. of raw almonds in a jar, covered them with filtered water, added 2 Tbsp. sea salt (shook to mix) and let it set overnight.  The next day I drained them, rinsed them, and put them in my food processor along with 1/2 c. coconut and 1 quart warm water.  I blended for a few minutes (this was a bit much for my processor & I had a little leaking out where the lid connects with the container) then let it sit for 10 minutes.  I poured this mixture into a colander lined with paper towels that was sitting inside a larger bowl.

Once this has drained you re-blend the almond coconut mixture with another quart of warm water and repeat the draining process.  Here you can see my 1st batch of milk in the red pan while the second batch is draining.  I think I would like to try cheesecloth next time & see if it doesn't drain easier.  I've got this batch pressed down & let it sit for several hours to drain out.

Later I combined both milks, along with 1/4 c. whey, 1/2 tsp. sea salt, 1 tsp. vanilla, and 1/8 c. maple syrup.  I tasted it at this point, and while it wouldn't be something I would drink a glass of (neither is commercial coconut milk) it wasn't bad.

The recipe says that this will keep 1 week in the refrigerator, or a month if you lacto-ferment it.  I decided to try lacto-fermenting so it would last longer.  So my next step was to place the jars (I ended up with a little more than would fit in one jar) up in my cupboard for 48 hours.  Here is what they look like after 24 hours.

Layers have seperated and you can see the whey action going up at the top there.  Now, here is what it looked like after 48 hours (it grows- watch out!)

Wow!  Not pretty curdled looking stuff there at the top, and you get a big whiff of sour.  I dumped it all into the blender and pureed to get all those layers mixed up again.  Here, it doesn't look so bad, just frothy...

But this is definitely some sour fermented stuff, almost vinegar like.  Of course, this is my very first time ever tasting anything lacto-fermented so I may not have acquired the "taste".  Since I understand that lacto-fermented things are good for the digestion I have been using this "medicinally".  I add about a tablespoon or so to a big batch of smoothies.  I can drink a tiny bit if I make myself too.

If you are looking for a milk replacement I would suggest you make this without lacto-fermenting.  And do not throw out the finely ground almond/coconut mixture- keep it & use it in granola bars.  I used mine in homemade granola, however; I think it would be better suited to granola bars.  (Yes, I made Wardeh's soaked granola, but because I added the damp almond/coconut meal it made it more like granola jerky & I don't think I can give a fair report on it- though I am eating it!)

I'm going to try this again soon- let me know if you try it too!
Enjoy!
Lisa

Food Revolution

Tonight is the final episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution (on ABC).  Have you been watching?  If you've missed any episodes ABC has them on their website as well.  Have you signed the petition that Jamie Oliver is going to deliver to The President?  You can pass this website on to your friends or post it on your facebook page.  I think everyone should be aware of what is really going into our kids' school lunches (or not going in) and even some small changes would be huge improvements!

I found this interesting article that shows how schools have implemented healthy changes (mainly in snacks/vending machines) and have seen improvements both in revenue as well as in behavior.

Check out this article about the high school in Appleton, Wisconsin that in 1997 dramatically changed the food available in school.  What I love is how their "experiment" has clearly shown that changing what we put into our bodies changes how we behave & feel.  Suddenly kids were behaving well & learning more- amazing!

We all want what's "best" for our kids.  I guess the question is, how hard are we willing to work for it?  Are we willing to work on prevention, not just medicating disease?  I hope so!  And that's why I signed Jamie's petition, because I would love to see some change!

I'll be back next week with some posts on "soaked" muffins & homemade Almond/Coconut milk.  Enjoy your weekend!

Lisa

Pear Sauce or Syrup, in your crockpot!

Sometimes, you can get pears and they are sweet and juicy.  Then other times... well, last week was one of those other times.  I bought two bags of pears, 6 pounds total, and they were so sour & dry!  My husband bit into one & said it was like it was sucking all the moisture out of his mouth!  Now what do you do?  Well, I have a recipe for making applesauce in the crockpot, and I thought, why not make pear sauce in the crockpot?

Crockpot Pear Sauce (or Syrup)

3 lbs. pears

1/2 c. water

2 Tablespoons lemon juice 

1 Tablespoon cinnamon (more or less to taste)

2 Tablespoons maple syrup (1/4 cup if making pear "syrup")

Put water & lemon juice in the crock pot first.  As your processing your pears (peeling, coring, slicing thickly) you can drop them into the lemon water so they don't turn brown.  After the pears are finished add the cinnamon & syrup, stirring to combine.  Cook on low for 6 or more hours.  I set mine to cook before I went to bed in the evening.

In the morning follow the wonderful smell to the crock pot. The pears have reduced quite a bit in cooking, look a little watery & everything is brown (from the syrup or the cinnamon?  I don't know.) but don't let it worry you!

If you have a stick/immersion blender, it would work great for this.  Of course I just used my regular hand blender & it came together well for a "chunky" type sauce.  It is still super hot at this point- if you're planning to have it for breakfast you probably want to get up before breakfast to allow this time to cool off.  It will also thicken slightly as it cools down.

I would suggest you store this in a glass container in the refrigerator & use within 2 weeks.  What really surprised me about this is how sweet it was- wow!  I used 1/4 cup of maple syrup because my pears were so tart, but this sauce was so sweet (that's why I call it syrup)!  My daughter could eat it straight, but I decided it would be better on pancakes.  Both my daughter & I agreed it was great on pancakes (and a lot cheaper than straight maple syrup)!  You should also try it mixed with plain yogurt or add some to your smoothies. 

This post is a part of Pennywise Platter Thursdays

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 Barbecue Sauce

Yesterday was my husband's birthday.  For his birthday celebration I made him Kimi's "soaked" Brownie Pudding Cake.  Sweetened only with honey, but chocolate-y enough to please guests, it was a good choice.  No pictures- I was too busy!  I also made "soaked" Oatmeal Almond Butter Cookies (cookie post is coming later this week- yeah!) which were a big hit with everyone.  For his birthday dinner we had beef short ribs, mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli with butter and cheese.  Our potatoes were mashed with sour cream, butter, and chicken broth.  Sprinkle with some salt & pepper = yum!  My daughter said, "Take a picture of my plate!" and then leaned in close...

Some people's children are so camera shy...

The ribs were marinated in homemade barbecue sauce for about 18 hours & had a nice flavor.  I want to share my sauce recipe with you- I had to hunt on the internet to find one that was sweetened only with honey and didn't include stuff I didn't want (like Worcestershire sauce).  I ended up combining a couple different recipes I saw.  This recipe will make about 16 servings- enough to marinade meat in & have more for dipping, etc.  You may want to make it 24 hours ahead of time to allow the flavors to meld together.

Homemade Barbecue Sauce

1 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. ground ginger

1/2 t. black pepper

1/4 t. chili powder

1/4 t. paprika
2 t. Dijon mustard

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup organic or homemade ketchup

1/4 cup organic soy sauce or apple cider vinegar

1/4  cup honey

Whisk all ingredients together.  You're done!

Do you have one of these tools?  This one is from Pampered Chef, but there is also something similar sold at Bed, Bath & Beyond.  This tool is indispensable for me- I use it several times a week for measuring honey, peanut butter, coconut oil- anything that is sticky or hard to get out of a measuring cup.  You slide the inner cylinder down to the appropriate measurement, add your ingredients, then push them clean out into your bowl.  Just use a scraper to scrape what's left off the end & you've got it all- very easy & accurate.  I love it.  In fact, I have to get a new one because this one, after years & years of use, is cracked.  I just find it so handy I had to tell you about it!

Later this week I will also post about making homemade pear sauce in the crockpot.
This post is a part of Tuesday Twister blog carnival at Gnowfglins.

Enjoy!

Lisa

Spinach Basil Pesto

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

Do you like pesto?  I love pesto!  The produce buying group I belong to had some basil last week & I decided it was time to make some homemade pesto.  I found this great recipe for Spinach Basil Pesto, which was perfect because I also had some baby spinach in my fridge too.  I love this because you just mix it up in your blender (ok, not my blender- it's too wimpy!) or your food processor & it's done.

You start with 1 1/2 cups baby spinach, 3/4 cup fresh basil (I used more), 1/2 cup pine nuts, 1/2 cup grated parmesan, 4 cloves garlic, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons olive oil.  The recipe also calls for lemon zest, but I'm not a fan of "zest" so I left it out.  You blend it together (it was at this point I realized my blender could not handle this & I transferred it to the food processor), then drizzle in remaining olive oil (about 3/8 cup).  OK, it's ready!

What a yummy way to get your greens!  We had ours on.... (true confessions time) store bought ravioli.  Well, it was organic, but a little too processed for me.  But it was my daughter's night to choose what we were eating.  Several years ago I got tired of my daughter always complaining about what I was making for dinner (complaining because she wanted what *she* wanted), so we came up with a compromise: one night a week she gets to choose what we have for dinner (no take-out) & the other nights I choose & no complaints!

She does love to cook & wanted to make pizza for lunch a few days later.  I made Sarah's Sourdough Pizza Crust and my daughter made all the pizzas- she decided to make an assortment of mini pizzas.  We came up with the idea of having pesto chicken pizza (she cut up the leftover Baked Chicken Breasts Supreme).  She also made a cheese pizza for her brother and a couple nitrate-free organic pepperoni ones!   We put the extra mini pizzas in the freezer so she has meal options for a different day.  Since I believe in giving credit where credit is due, I told her she could be in the picture of these awesome pizzas.  She jumped at the chance...

)

And, I have one other great way to use pesto that I have to share- it's so good.  You take a whole cut up chicken with skin on.  Loosen the skin on each piece of chicken and spoon pesto under the skin.  Bake in a pan as usual.  You will get wonderfully flavored chicken pieces!

Enjoy!
Lisa