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

Pancakes and Blue berry syrup

Blueberry Syrup recipe:
1 bag frozen or fresh blueberries
agave nectar or maple syrup
Combine the blueberries and a little water and bring to a boil then simmer on low for 1-2 min. Transfer to a blender and add sweetner- blend and put in a glass jar. You can keep this for quite some time in the fridge.

 We served this pancake at our 4th of July community breakfast we put on last year and everyone raved about them and much preferred them over the yucky white ones you make out of the bag. Yahoo!!
The trick to pancakes is to NEVER flatten them with the spatula while cooking. These are real buttermilk kind, fluffy, soft and full of flavor and nutrition.
Recipe:
2 C soft wheat and barley mix flour (or as always just wheat)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 C honey
1/4 C oil (coconut melted)
2 eggs
2 C buttermilk or water or milk alternative

Combine all ingredients and let sit for a moment to soak together. Then put on a greased pan (use coconut oil) and do not press down on them when flipped. Watch them rise and then eat with pure maple syrup or blueberry syrup and fruit.

Potato Salad

This potato salad always gets compliments and is so very easy.
Recipe:
Around 5-6 Red and Gold pototaos cut
2 green onions chopped
5-6 Hard boiled eggs chopped
dash of dried mustard
S&P
Vegan mayonaise (we like veganaise)
Combine and serve

Black bean burger

I came up with this one night when we have some leftovers and all the fixins for a burger but no burgers. I wondered why all of the black bean burgers on the web look so lifeless but mine came out the same way and when you bite in- you get a wonderful surprise. It is much more flavorful than it looks.
Recipe:
In a food proccesor combine:
1 C chickpeas
1 C black beans
1/2 C oats
handful of fresh parsley
handful of bell pepper chopped
1 egg
S&P
Put in a hot pan with melted coconut oil and cook.
Serve with burger fixins.
(I think I will try adding some carrots and sweet potato next time too)

Veggie cups

I have to give credit here to a friend of mine who served these at her little boys birthday party. I thought it was such a great idea and tried it at home for a snack before lunch. They really like it.
Recipe:
(Cut all the vegetables in stick like shapes)
Cucumber
Jicama
Carrot
Red, yellow or orange bell pepper
Celery
Broccoli
Or any combination you like
Put dressing in the bottom of a slender dish and stack the veggies on top. Voila!

Oven Fries

These are easy to make if you plan ahead just an hour before. I love sweet potatoes and my family prefers the regular ones. Although, if I have leftover sweet potato ones, I just mash them up in another meal the next day, like burgers or mac and cheese etc. 
Recipe:
2 sweet potatoes peeled and either sliced rounds or cut into triangle fries like pictured
2-4 regular (red or gold) potatoes the same
1-2 Tbsp olive oil or better yet melted coconut oil
S&P and rosemary or any herbs and spices you like
Combine together in a large ziplok and layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment (which happens to be my best friend in the kitchen :) )
Bake at 350* for 35-45 min give or take. Try flipping once to get even crispiness.

Perfect brussel sprouts

This is so easy and if they are on sale or you get them fresh it is a great way to use them up.

Just Quarter the sprouts and steam them
then saute them in a little butter or coconut oil with some s&p and enjoy hot!

Southwestern Rice

This is a made up dish that incorporates a lot of leftovers around here and we like to have it for lunch either in a burrito or with good quality corn chips or for dinner as a side. This is also a great packed food for get togethers and potlucks.

Recipe:
Brown Rice cooked
1 can black beans drained or 2C cooked black beans
1 can corn or 2C frozen and thawed or leftover corn
green onions
2 tomatos chopped
1 avacado diced
southwestern seasoning and Real Salt to taste
Mix together and enjoy

Greens and Fruit smoothie

I love smoothies especially for on the go snack or breakfast. This one is a go-to here. And trust me you can't taste the greens. The smoothies finished below are of smoothies without any berries and you can hardly see the greens as is. We love to change around the ingredients and see what we come up with.

Ingredients:
1-2 C of spinach or kale (with kale- strip the leaves off and discard the stem)
1 orange peeled
1 C homemade non-dairy milks (hemp, almond, cashew etc) we love hemp!
1-2 bananas fresh or frozen
2 C mixed fruit of ANY kind (we like berries and they hide the green well)
1 tbsp ground flax seeds
Other great additions are coconut oil, frozen coconut milk, probiotics, and filtered water

1. Put the greens and milk in first and blend till smooth (if you have an awesome blender such as a vitamix or blendtek then no need to seperate the steps)
2. Add in the fruit, flax seeds, and any other add ins and put in water or milks as needed then blend till smooth
3. enjoy as a smoothie or freeze into popsicles for later

9 Grain brekfast cereal

This is a great porridge cereal- we call it pioneeer cereal. My boys love to eat it and get really messy.
It have just a couple of ingredients and hadly any clean-up.

Recipe:
2 C water
1/2 tsp Real Salt
~3/4 C Bob's Red Mill 10 Grain Cereal
Agave, Maply Syrup or Honey
Milk of choice

 Bring water and salt to a boil and add cereal
Turn down to low and simmer covered for 5-10 min
add sweetner and milk
Enjoy!

Banana Raisin Oat muffins

Ok so I have been absent for a while- really just reading and getting to know some more wonderful food blogs. I'm excited to say that I have found some really good ones lately and have been experimenting more. This is not new to us but we have been having different forms of this muffin a lot lately. I'm not sure why but I have been craving moist, flavorful muffins a lot and this is what we have been coming up with. I have adapted this recipe from already pretty healthy to over the top healthy.

Recipe:
Combine in a large bowl:
1 1/2 C soft white wheat and barley flour (you could use all soft white)
1/2 C rolled oats
(I also like to make them with 1 C barley/wheat flour and 1 C oat flour, unless I'm too lazy to grind the oats to flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp real salt
cinnamon (the recipe calls for 1/4 tsp but I just dump it in cause I love cinnamon)
Then add:
2 ripe bananas mashed
2 eggs
1/2 C honey
1/4 C maple syrup ( I never mesure my sweetners- just through um in until it looks good ha!)
1/3 C coconut milk or water
1/4 C melted coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 C raisins
Mix till moistened

Put in muffin tins and bake at 375* for 15-18 min Yum Yum!
Variations:
Put chocolate chips in place of raisins
Omit banana and put in applesauce
Swap cranberries for raisins and add some orange peel and orange juice

Roasted Whole Chicken and Chicken Stock

I am fortunate to have been given a wonderfully yummy, grass-fed, basically organic, home-grown whole chicken from our egg lady and boy was it good.  I have to admit I have never cooked one before and it was a little intimidating, but lucky for me it was already cleaned and ready for cookin'.  After roasting and eating for our Sunday dinner, I took some of the scraps (kept the rest for future use) and boiled it into homemade chicken stock.  It was both a little scary (because of inexperience) and totally thrilling and a huge sense of accomplishment.  I am brimming with pride over such an easy task.  I ran into a nice woman today at the grocery store who was impressed to know I make such things at home and mentioned how sad it is that many do not even know they can do such things.  I agreed that it IS SAD and hw I would love to inform the world, so as to get the word out I want everyone to encourage your friends and others to read my blog and links to my blog roll so that we can together change the world one blog at a time :) Ok! that sounds a little crazy! But truthfully feel free to share your knowledge or others. Thanks for reading. Ok Ok here it is! The beautiful bird ( I realized mid eating I didn't take a pic of it first AHHHH! ) So here it is partially eaten.

Like I said it was soooo good! It's gonna be hard buying store chickens after this spoiling.  But I then took the bones and drippings and left overs from the pieces we ate and boiled them down and then strained to make a lovely gallon of chicken stock for free- at home- delicious!!!  I then bagged each in a freezer Ziploc and laid it flat to freeze and know it will be easy to store in the freezer. Awesome! 

greens Anyone????

At our house you can usually walk in at any given time and see what looks like grass growing on shelves in the kitchen.  It looks beautiful and tastes well...........like grass! I wanted to tell about another one of my secerets to health.  I have both a hesitiant and gung ho approach for you.  I went to a lovely presentation led by our chiropractor a little while back and he gave us a fun little goody bag to take home.  It felt like christmas to me. (Is that nerdy when you think a bag full of health products is like christmas??) Anyways, I have to say honestly, I didn't try these until just a few weeks ago. We normally have wheat or barley grass groing at the house and never needed this supplement, but lo and behold, I found myself without any grass and I was feeling very heavy and cloudy.  I rummaged through my "medicine box" (which is really just an herb box ha!) and saw these- I looked at the ingredients and was so excited.  (the picture above only shows the berry first packet but I also had a greens first sample and needless to say they are all gone :))
So I mixed it with some water and it was not bad at all and I felt great!  Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing that takes the place of fresh juiced grass- nothing! But,, it was darn close 2nd.
So I will leave it at this today, but soon I will post a 2nd addition to this post and tell you and show you all about wheatgrass and how we do that!

Potato harvest soup

This is a soup that adds a lot of veggies in a very non-threatening way.  And whats more is that you can throw whatever is left in your fridge in there and it is great. Next time I think I will add some corn too.

Recipe:
6-8 gold potatoes (or any you have on hand)
red pepper
4-6 carrots
zucchini
yellow squash
onion
garlic
leafy greens (kale, spinach, chard, etc)
leftover quinoa, millet, teff, amaranth

Chop and put all but greens and pre-cooked grains in a pot and cover with water and generously salt. (If you have grains not yet cooked, throw them in there too).  Then when almost ready to serve throw in chopped greens.  Bring to a boil then simmer on low for 20-30 min.  Voila! Serve with some crusty bread.

P.S.  Some poeple would frown upon salting generously but instead of using chicken stock filled with sodium we are using ingredients we have control over. Besides when you cut out all of the refined foods and processed foods and make from scratch you don't need to worry as much about sodium content.  People with sodium issued almost always eat a diet high in processed and highly refined foods and very little fiber. NOT HERE MAN!!

Raw broccoli salad

I just have to say before beginning here that my husband informed me that he no longer wants any "regular" salads, he "only wants the raisin one and the caesar one." So here is our wonderful broccoli salad that is more healthy than others out there.  It is soooo delicious and broccoli is so good for you too.  I got my inspiration on the dressing from the wonderful blog http://healthyeasyrecipes.blogspot.com/  and just added a little mayo because my family is used to it that way but great without too.

Recipe:
2 crowns of broccoli- cut into bite-sized pieces
1 apple cut into bite-sized pieces
hanful of raisins or dries cranberries
1/4 C sunflower seeds
1/2 red onion sliced thin
dressing:
1/4 C olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and maple syrup (maybe not that much on the syrup-but add 'to taste'
salt and pepper and a little mayo (omit mayo if you do not use this and still great!)
YUM!

Wonderful Waffles

These waffles are a favorite around our place. They are light, fluffy, and especially yummy when placed in a deep Belgian waffle maker.  We have been making ours in a professional grade one that flips over to ensure deep pockets. LOVE IT! Anyways, they are as fluffy and tender as the old yucky white ones that have no nutrition. :)

Waffles:

3 C whole wheat flour (I mostly use soft white kernels, but occasionally I use hard white or red)

1 C Barley, quinoa, brown rice, millet, amaranth flour (just use all wheat if you don't grind your own flours) 

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp real salt

2 tsp cinnamon

6 eggs

3 C milk (dairy, non-dairy or water if needed, but will need to adjust flour)

1/2 C butter melted or coconut oil or applesauce

I almost always grind my wheat and barley together and make my "breakfast flour".  Then add all ingredients together and let sit for a min or 2.  It seems to make a bit more and maybe a little fluffier if you seperate the eggs but I never do due to time. 

beautiful blue bridal bash AND homemade chewy granola recipe

As crazy as it is, I have a niece getting married next month- a niece! I am getting older it is true.  But all that aside, we had so much fun putting together a fun and creative bridal shower for her. My mother was a great overseer and Michelle made some wonderful cupcakes while my other sister Heidi (who is our party guru), sent some fabulous deco and creativity to the mix. I made some food and did an interview with the groom-to-be which we showed at the party.  I thought I would share some of the fun.

These were yogurt, granola parfaits made with greek yogurt, banana, blueberry, and my own homemade chewy granola. The cute little flute glasses and labels come from Heidi.  She sent so many darling things.

I did make this granola at 5 am this morning and sad to say did not write down the measurements, but I will do my best to give you an idea.

Granola:

1 1/2 C oats

1 C leftover cooked red quinoa 

1/2 - 3/4 C each pumpkin seeds, pecans, dried cherries and raisins

1/4 C sesame seeds

Lay out on a cookie sheet with parchment (my friend), and cook at 350* for 20-30 min or so. Longer if you like crunchy

1/4 C coconut oil melted 

enough maple syrup and honey to make it pretty wet (sorry not sure, maybe 1 C together)

Other fun items

Spinach, Feta, Cranberry salad

 Feta is either a love it or hate food, I know, but even the tasters with a not so pleasant love for it, liked this salad just fine. I really like it. It had spinach, walnut, dried cranberry, feta, and this well used dressing consisting of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, a small amount of s&p, and maple syrup. 

Roasted Cauliflower

This too is a wonderfully simple side dish. Simply drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper and bake at 400* for 25 min or so.