Bulgar wheat pilaf

This is a recipe from my neighbor from Saudi Arabia, she shared it with me the other night and I wanted to give it a try with the family. It turned out great and the whole family loved it! It is so simple and fast and a nice change up from rice.

Ingredients:
2 C Bulgar Wheat
Approximately 2-4 cups water
Coconut oil
1/2 onion chopped
2-3 garlic cloves chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste






Directions:
1. Put the grain in a bowl and cover with hot water just until it reaches the top of the grain and let sit for about 10-15 min.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a pot and saute onion and garlic until fragrant and translucent.
3. When the onion mixture is done add the bulgar (which will have soaked up the water and be plump) to the pot and fill with water until it covers the mixture 1-2 inches.
4. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes or so, until the water is gone and it is easily fluffed like rice.
5. Add salt and pepper and fluff with a fork.

cranberry orange butter syrup

I made this up after having leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving and nothing to use it with. It was a huge success with me and my kids liked it too!  It seriously makes me feel like I am at a bed and breakfast (well I've never been to one but I bet this is what they serve. :)) It takes just a little bit of time but once you have it made it will last for a while in the fridge. And will be handy everytime you have pancakes or waffles.

Ingredients:

-2 oranges
-2 Tbsp butter
-3-4 Tbsp maple syrup
-cranberry sauce


Instructions:

1. Zest the oranges and then peel the orange by cutting with a knife around the edges so the white and segment skin is removed.
2. Seperate the orange slices and try to remove the segment skins from them (easiest if you pull from the side already free of skin.
3. Put the oranges plus all other ingredients into the pan and simmer until a sauce starts to form
(If you like the segments whole, don't let it go too long, otherwise make a sauce) and then smash together with a fork.
4. Pour onto pancakes warm and eat as is or with maple syrup drizzled on it.

cranberry sauce

I made this cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving this year and it was tangy with a hint of sweetness. I then had lots of leftovers because we did Thanksgiving by ourselves this year and I am the only one who likes it so I got creative and made a cranberry orange syrup for pancakes after and that was sooooo delicious. I couldn't stop eating it.

 

 Ingredients:

-12 oz bag of cranberrries fresh
-1/2 C honey
-1 cinnamon stick
-zest of one orange and the juice from it
-1 C water

Directions:

1. Put all ingredients into a pot and simmer over medium heat for 30-45 min and watch to be sure the liquid doesn't run out. Simmer till it is a thick sauce, then let it cool or serve warm. This can easly be frozen and put in the fridge to thaw. It came out just as wonderful after being frozen.

Clean and tasty Orange Julius

I had a hankering for an orange julius, reminisant of the days when I would go to the mall and get them ones loaded with all sorts of things. I hopped online to see if I could find any inspiration and ended up devising my own. So here goes.....

Serves 4

Ingredients:

-4 oranges (or a combo of oranges and manderans which is all I had)
-2 bananas frozen
-about 3/4 C whole fat coconut milk
-1 tsp vanilla
-orange juice fresh or not OR I used coconut water cause that all I had again (enough to get it mixing well)
-Stevia
-Ice cubes

Directions:
1. Combine all but ice cubes in the blender and blend till smooth
2. Add ice cubes to your liking (I love icy drinks so I do about 8 or so)
3. Pour and enjoy!

Breakfast Fruit Bars and Chia Seed Spotlight

Chia Seed Spotlight
The chia seeds offer a large serving of omega 3's and are a power food as well. The Incan, Mayan and Aztec cultures used this as a staple food and said it made them run faster and longer. It is hydrophilic and can hold 10 times it's weight in liquid. It makes a great gel for jam, replacing eggs (1TBSP chia to 4 parts water), and so much more. It is a great source of antioxidants, calcium, potassium, iron and omegas. Not to mention the trace element boron which helps transfer calcium to your bones and high in protein too. It can also level blood sugar....I could go on but please research more if you like.

 

Breakfast fruit bars

If you plan on this for breakfast, it saves a lot of time by making the fruit filling the night before. These are also fabulous packable foods for lunches, picnics and potlucks.

Ingredients:

Jam:
1 12 oz bag of frozen fruit
2 TBSP maple syrup or agave (could use stevia)
4 TBSP chia seeds

1. Add fruit and sweetner in a sauce pan and boil till soupy
2. Add in chia and mix around. Let this sit over night in the pot

Bars:
2 C old fashioned oats
3/4 C whole wheat pastry flour (soft white)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 C maple syrup
1 TBSP chia seed + 4 TBSP hot water
1/2 C melted coconut oil
2 TBSP milk (nut, hemp or coconut)

Preheat oven to 350*
1. Combine chia and water to an "egg" and set aside
2. Combine the dry ingredients and add the wet to them including the "egg"
3. Line an 8x8 dish with parchment and put 3/4 of the bar mixture in the bottom, pressing to make even
4. Put the jam mixture on top and spread evenly
5. Crumble the remaining bar mixture on the top and put in the oven for 30 minutes
6. Let this cool for 30-60 minutes before serving

Healthy Energy Bars

 This is a delicious recipe I've mildly adapted from a co-worker of my husbands.  It is healthy, hearty and great for a snack or even chilled for a dessert or potluck. Flax seeds in their whole form cannot offer omegas but are a healthy dose of fiber which everyone could more of. We use raw honey which offers enzymes, anti bacterial properties and many more healthy benefits, (although heating kills enzymes, we still feel better about). Coconut oil needs to be UNREFINED and COLD-PRESSED. Organic is best, but is has many, many health benefits which I will cover later in another post. And instead of chocolate chips sometimes I will melt down a bar of solid 100% cocoa and add some sweetner and coconut oil and put that on top instead, it tastes darker and I really love the benfits.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 C old fashioned oats
3/4 C dried cranberries or raisins
2/3 C sunflower or pumpkin seeds (can do chopped nuts as well, or a combo of all)
1/2 C oat bran
3 TBSP flax seeds
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 1/2 C natural peanut butter or almond butter (no sugar or hydrogonated oils)
1 C honey
4 TBSP coconut oil
1 C dark chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. Combine the dry ingredients and mix well
3. In a small sauce pan combine peanut butter, honey and oil and over low heat, stir and mix only till softnened
4. Add wet to the dry mix and combine well, then put in a greased 9x13 pan and bake for 15 minutes
5. Put chocolate chips on top and melt and spread
6. Chill for about 2 hours in the fridge for a solid granola bar