Naturally sweet – Page 28 – Wait…are those…cookies?!

August 22, 2013

Throwback Thursday and the Lentil Life

AND THEN. I made lentil bars! Because… well, why not?! And then I sort of became the lentil bar fairy and handed out several at work, one of which went to this particular friend who *claims* that she doesn’t like lentils. Uh-huh. Just wait.

Said friend ate lentil bar.

One day later…

Friend commissions an entire batch of lentil bars for eating purposes!!

VICTORY OF THE LENTILS! Muahhahah.

And guess what? I have a new nickname!

I’ll give you one guess…

…

Lentil!!!

Naturally. The now lentil-converted friend decided I was henceforth to be dubbed Lentil (always said with some sort of accent, of course), mostly because we have a running joke that she brings meat and I bring rabbit food for lunch…and then when I bring beef it’s like.. WOAH. So yeah. A very apropos nickname, I would say ;)

And one more for your viewing pleasure… Throwback Thursday! I was six. Things haven’t changed much…

Lentil Bars

Recipe slightly adapted from She Bakes Here! I’ve made this twice—once as a single recipe, once doubled. I used green lentils once and red lentils once, and I think I prefer red, though you can use either. If using green, make sure you cook them just a little bit longer so they’re easily mushable (technical term). I reduced the sweetener a little so these aren’t overly sweet, but perfect for a mid morning or on the go snack. They were a big hit with the work peeps!

As posted, the recipe makes a single batch in an 8 by 8 pan (I used a circular pie dish).

Vegan, refined sugar free.

1/2 c red lentils
1 c water
1.5 c rolled oats
1/2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 c ground flaxseed
1/2 tsp cinnamon
heaping 1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp almond butter
1/3-1/2 c maple syrup
1/4 c dark chocolate chips

Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add lentils, reduce to a simmer, and cook for about 15 minutes until very soft. Drain, if needed. Mash lentils a bit with a fork (though they should be pretty much like puree already), and set aside in a large bowl.

Preheat oven to 300, and line your baking pan of choice with parchment paper.

Using the same bowl the lentils are hangin’ out in, add oats, whole wheat flour, flaxseed, cinnamon, salt, almond butter, and maple syrup. Toss in chocolate chips and stir to combine (seriously, could this be any easier?). Once incorporated, spread the dough into your prepared pan—I found it easiest to use my fingers to spread it out, as it’s really thick. Get it mostly even and then pop it into the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the oats on top are slightly crispy.

Let it sit in the pan for a few, then pull the whole thing out by grabbing the parchment. Let cool completely on a rack before slicing! These keep well in tupperware at room temp for a few days.

August 16, 2013

Apparently I love veggies. Who knew?!

Stuffing things is fun!

It’s somehow very rewarding to encapsulate your dinner into a tidy little package. Or into a pepper, whatever. And it’s even better when there’s cornbread involved because seriously, when does cornbread NOT make things better?! Right, never, that’s what I thought.

But ick. Why do I always end up making things like this when it’s disgustingly hot outside? It’s like I’m hardwired to automatically want things that require baking as soon as it gets above 90. Because heating your oven to 425 on a day when it’s still over ninety after 5 pm is SUCH a great idea… not. I just love opening the oven door to be subjected to a massive blast of heat… not to mention sticking my face anywhere near it to check and see if things are done.

Ughhhh. Is it fall yet? Because I have an abundance of winter squashes that snuck into our garden and I need to use them. And they usually rudely require ovens. Or at least sometimes. But it’s also too hot for soup and I sadly don’t have an immersion blender (anyone have an extra they want to chuck my way? Anyone? Anyone? … Bueller?) which makes soup making messy.

Okay. Enough whining because I can’t do anything about the weather and these stuffed peppers were delicious!! Easy and healthy too, so obviously they should go at the top of your to-make list immediately. Maybe just wait until it’s not ninety in the shade…

Apparently I love veggies. Who knew?! I “discovered” this after I chopped up a metric ton very meticulously… there was a massive pile of greens in there too (natch) that didn’t make it into the picture (sneaky little suckers).

Bean and Green Stuffed Peppers with Cornbread

Serves 3, with leftover bean/green mixture and cornbread (mostly because I looooove leftovers). Recipe from… the inside of my slightly disorderly brain! The cornbread is my favorite recipe—SO FREAKING GOOD. A little crumbly but properly hydrated (we know how I hate the ‘m’ word), and slightly sweet. So delicious combined with the beans and greens, and crammed inside a pepper. Vegan, full o’ veggies, refined sugar free, and whole grain. Wheeee!

For beans+greens:

3 largeish bell peppers, de-seeded
1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
3-4 c mixed greens (I used spinach, chard, kale)
1 zucchini, finely diced
bell pepper remnants from around the stems (waste not, want not!)
a handful of mushrooms, finely diced
a pinch of nutritional yeast
~1 tbsp tahini
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

For cornbread [lightly adapted from this bomb recipe, at Eat Well, Party Hard, here!] [refined sugar free, vegan]

1 c cornmeal*
1 c whole wheat pastry flour*
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 tsp sea salt
2 flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flax+6 tbsp water)*
1/4 c coconut oil, melted*
1/6 c maple syrup (1/4 if you like a sweeter bread)*
1 c non-dairy milk (I use rice milk usually)*

*Always organic!

For the peppers, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, drop in peppers and cook until they’re soft, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from water and place in a casserole dish, and set aside.

For the cornbread: Make flax eggs and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In a smaller bowl, combine melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and rice milk. Add wet into dry, stir in flax eggs, and mix until just combined. Set batter aside temporarily.

Preheat oven to 425.

In a largeish sauté pan, heat a glug of olive oil over medium, and add diced zucchini, bell pepper remnants, and mushrooms. Sauté for a few minutes, then add greens and continue to let them cook (you may need to cover the pan to let the greens reduce in size a bit). Add more olive oil if needed. Stir in both types of beans, then nutritional yeast, tahini, and salt and pepper to taste. Let cook over low for 5-10 minutes, enough to let the oven finish preheating.

Fill the cooked peppers about 3/4 of the way with the bean mixture, then top with a layer of cornbread batter. I had leftover cornbread batter, so I baked it separately into my two 6″ cake pans. Use whatever pan you have on hand, or else bake it on top of the remaining beans (sans peppers). I let my peppers go for 17 minutes, until a tester came out clean from the cornbread layer. The cornbread usually bakes for 15 minutes in a dark pan, but these went a bit shorter as they were smaller volume. Test as you go! Mine took about 10-15 minutes total, as I put them in with the peppers at first.

Serve hot!

July 12, 2013July 9, 2013

Out of coconut?! What? No. This is a travesty.

So yeah. You remember that day that I made the roti flatbread? Right.

I made cookies that day too! [I had a very productive day]

And guess how long it took us to eat all of that delicious carby goodness?

Yep. Like six hours.

Let me see… I made roti around 11… and they were gone by 12:30. And then I made the cookies around 11:30 and they were gone by 8 pm. Okay okay so more like 8 hours but do you see my point?! Delicious. Granted, there were four of us and I made half batches due to lack of coconut, but even so. Impressive, wouldn’t you say?

Besides, these are good for me so obviously this is an excuse to make them again…

Sweet Potato Coconut-Almond Cookies

Recipe lightly adapted from the legit blog Mangia!, here! I made a half batch and got 11 cookies, but I’ll post the full recipe here. These are deeelicious. Healthy fats, beta carotene, and whole grains. Winner, winner.

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp+6 tbsp water)
1 sweet potato, mashed (I microwaved mine, laaaazy)
1/2 c unsalted almond butter
2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
3 tbsp maple syrup (I use grade B)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c almond flour
1.5 c rolled oats
1/2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 c unsweetened, shredded coconut\

Preheat oven to 350, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Make your flax eggs and set them aside to gel. In a smallish bowl, combine mashed sweet potato, almond butter, coconut oil, maple, and vanilla: stir until just combined. In a larger bowl, whisk together almond flour, oats, flour, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon, and coconut. Pour wet into dry, and stir until the batter is incorporated (I added a tablespoon or two of water to help it all come together). Drop dough by the spoonful onto the prepared baking sheet, and flatten slightly. Bake for 11-12 minutes (Mine were done perfectly at 11, with slightly golden tops). Let cool on the sheet for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack!

June 2, 2013

Happy Birthday, Bloglet!

Happy Birthday, little Bloglet!!

My little baby bloglet is TWO years old this week!! (I say this week as I’m really not sure what day I started, and wordpress isn’t telling and I’m far too lazy to look back at my posts, whoops).

I feel like a proud parent! It’s so cute. To celebrate, I made… pie!!! (of course). I love my bloglet. Pie equals love. Therefore (QED?!), because I love my bloglet, I have made it a pie! And then I get to eat said pie, so everybody wins. Mmm, warm pie. Happy birthday, little two year old bloglet! Thank you for giving me an excuse to make pie (right. As if I ever needed an excuse to do that), even if it was a thousand degrees the day I made it and my dough got all sticky. Note to self: hot weather = sticky things = use mo’ flour! Whatever, got the crust in the dish in one piece so sticky is clearly sooo not a big deal.

There has been such a massive amount of change over the two years I’ve been writing this, I’m so thankful I’ve had this as a creative outlet. It’s hard to believe it’s been two years since I started! 142 posts, lots of snark, and some epic fails later, I can look back with quite a bit of pride! Lots of growth to be had if you check out the early pictures (actually, do me a favor and let’s ignore those, shall we?) versus the later ones. Lots more invisible internet friends! You know I love you. Some things haven’t changed though: I’m still as irreverent and ~~alternative~~ awesome as I’ve ever been (wait. Probably even more than I was…you can be the judge of that ;) and the food is still delicious. I think. Most of the time!

For now, here’s a list (because I love them) of things I’m loving right now:

1) Gottschalk’s Symphonie romantique, “La nuit des tropiques”! Love love love.

2) Monarch of the Glen. Ob.SESSED.

3) Whole wheat english muffins. Like that’s ever going to change…

4) ALLL the grains and seeds (bird food. whatever): barley, amaranth, millet.

5) LENTILS! Enough said. I eat them for breakfast (I heard that and saw that eyeroll. Let’s not be judgy, you wouldn’t love me unless I did weird things like that, riiiight?!)

6) Reading several books at once. I think my current total is 4. And yes, I will finish them all ;)

7) Raw honey and cinnamon on toast. How have I not discovered this before now?

8) Single crusted pies. That way, you get smacked in the tastebuds by summer’s gloriousness!

Anyway. Random things that were on my mind, and now they’re on yours. Muahha! Next thing you know you’ll be eating lentils for breakfast…

Marionberry-Peach Pie

Makes one 8″ pie. The crust is the same one I’ve used before, coconut oil-whole wheat. It’s delicious and easily the fastest and least irritating pie crust I’ve ever made. Even when it’s ridiculously hot in your kitchen, it still cooperates with only minimal fussing. Oh yeah, and it’s absolutely delicious as well!

Crust: 1 whole wheat coconut oil crust, 8″

For the filling*:

1 bag frozen peaches (I cut up the slices a bit because they’re usually really chunky)
2 bags of frozen marionberries
1/4 c whole wheat pastry flour
1 tbsp tapioca (I use quick-cooking)
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp honey

*I used the amount of fruit that would fill my pie dish—the pie was 8″ single crusted, and I didn’t want the filling to sink too much so I threw in an added bag of berries. In my relatively shallow pie pan it was perfect!

Prepare pie crust of choice and preheat oven to 425.

In a large-ish bowl, toss together peaches, marionberries, flour, tapioca, cinnamon, and honey. I usually thaw my berries/fruit slightly, since honey tends to be difficult when it hits frozen things—it mixes a bit better when the fruit is slightly thawed. Once everything is combined, pour filling into the prepared pie crust, and bake for 15 minutes. Lower the oven temp to 350, and bake for about another 45 minutes, until the juices are bubbling and the crust is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let cool a bit (but serve warm!).

May 19, 2013

Sunday things and pudding.

Things.

Pictures today, since I’m feeling more visual and less like the chatterbox I usually am.

This. No words needed.

Architecturally glorious, but…

Mother Nature always wins!

Look! A barley-rice yin-yang!

And now the real subject of this post… pudding!!

Mmm, pudding. There has been so much pudding in my life lately, this is a trend I’ll be continuing. This one is barley and brown rice (would have been all barley but I was a little short—a fortuitous happening since barley and brown rice go well together!), made with rice milk and coconut milk. I like it for breakfast with more milk added, or dessert with a chopped date or some raw honey (or maple). Kind of whatever floats your boat, any way you eat it, it’s delicious! Comforting in the tummy, warming, and soothing.

Coconut Barley-Brown Rice Pudding

Recipe lightly adapted from The Gouda Life, here! Makes a fairly good-sized vat… I got maybe 5 servings out of it? They were varying sizes though, some were bigger than others.

3/4 c purple barley, rinsed
1/2 c brown rice (mine was kashikiri)
1 c original rice milk
1/2 c water
2 c light coconut milk
2 tsp cinnamon, plus more to taste
2 tsp cardamom, plus more to taste
3 dates, pitted and chopped
2 tsp vanilla extract
shredded unsweetened coconut, for garnish
pistachios, for garnish

In a pot, combine barley, brown rice, rice milk, water, cinnamon, and cardamom. Bring to a boil, then turn down and let simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed. Stir in chopped dates. Once the liquid is mostly gone, add coconut milk 1/4 c at a time, stirring frequently (I found it helpful to stand there with a book and stir…it’s kind of like risotto), adding the next batch after the previous has been mostly absorbed. When all of the coconut milk is added, the barley should be mostly cooked (it should be a little chewy when done). Mine needed a little more time, so I added a bit more rice milk and let it cook longer. I tasted it as I went and added more cinnamon/cardamom or vanilla to taste. Let cool a bit, and top with shredded coconut and pistachios to serve. I liked mine with chopped date or raw honey, but maple is good too!

May 10, 2013

Transcendental Pie.

Oh little bloglet, I do love you. I wasn’t even going to post today, but I suppose the bloglet muse struck…

AND I have this pie. Oh my goodness.

There are no words. So, you get pictures.

Actually, there are words. Words like family. Sunshine. Warm fruit. Warm weather. Nostalgia. Long evenings, dusky twilights. Memories. Summers that felt endless. Fresh. Happiness. Peace. Soul.

Pie.

Pie to me seems older than many traditional desserts or foods… it’s one of those intrinsically ‘family’ foods. When I make it and eat it, I feel a connection to generations of female family members who made pie before I did, and fed it to their loved ones. This is why I make pie by hand, not with a food processor or any other technical kitchen implements. I like just using a simple pastry cutter, and my mom’s wooden rolling pin. So simple, yet I think it makes the best pie. Why is it that the simplest things are so often the best? Probably because we get so much more out of the taste sensation than delicious food: nostalgia and taste receptors go hand in hand. To me, pie is generations of strong women. It makes me proud to feel connected to them in a physical way—those strong, wonderful, loving women who came before me.

So this pie is an homage to them: I am proud to derive my lineage from such a long line of fantastic women and their pies!

Happy early Mother’s Day to my mama, and to all of the wonderful mothers in this world!

Simple Peach Pie

I know this is the second peach pie recipe on the blog, but um… I LOVE peach pie. So I’m giving you choices! This one is slightly healthier than it’s predecessor, not like that particularly matters when it comes to pie. But actually, this is my favorite of all of the pies on here! Simple, and delicious. The crust comes together easier than anything, and the filling is easy as well. Since it wouldn’t be a Hayley post without some nutritional tidbits, of course I have to add a note about the healthy fats from the coconut oil crust, and the blood-sugar regulating properties of cinnamon. Peaches are fruit, fruit is good for you… Whole wheat crust! And minimally processed sweeteners, from unrefined sources. Wheee!

Crust recipe lightly adapted from The Joyful Pantry, here! I made 1/2+1/4 of the recipe, as I wanted cut outs for the top. My pie pan was a shallow 8″, and I had just enough left for a few decorations. The measurements below are for a double crust, makes two 8″ crusts.

Make pie. Eat. Love.

Crust:

3/4 c coconut oil
2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp salt
1.5 tbsp coconut sugar
5-6 tbsp ice water

Filling:

2 bags frozen organic peaches (I think between 2-3 c sliced)
1/4 c honey
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp whole wheat flour
1 tbsp quick cooking tapioca

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and coconut sugar. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the coconut oil until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Add in ice water, a tablespoon at a time, until you can form a dough (I like to do this part with my hands). Gather the dough up into a ball, then roll out on a floured surface (I like waxed paper, as it makes it easier to flip the crust back into the pie dish). Once it’s larger than the circumference of the dish, flip the dough carefully back onto your pie dish, and press into place. Poke the bottom a few times with a fork, and crimp the edges so it looks pretty!

Combine peaches, honey, cinnamon, flour, and tapioca in a large bowl. Give it a few stirs… see? I told you this was easy. Pour this into the prepared pie dish, top with whatever kind of crust you’d like (double, lattice, cutouts, whatever), and then pop it into the oven. Bake for 30 minutes uncovered, then use foil to tent it and prevent excess browning, baking it for another 30 minutes. The filling should be bubbly when done, and will thicken as it cools.

Let cool a bit before slicing, but not too much… pie should be eaten warm!

Haha, what leftovers??

May 6, 2013

Spinach. On. The. Ceiling?!

Did I tell you that vaccuum vati found a piece of spinach on the kitchen ceiling the other day?

…

Yeahhhh. That happened. How on earth did I manage that?! Welcome to my life: “Hello, my name is Hayley and I am obsessed with spinach!” I toooold you I put spinach where it didn’t belong, but um I had no idea it had gotten on the ceiling..?! I mean, I know I eat it multiple times a day, but that must have been some pretty ferocious chopping. You know, like Chopped Kitchen type of chopping.

On. The. Ceiling. The mind boggles.

Anyway.

Today’s post has nothing to do with spinach and everything to do with apples. Mmm. Appleeesssssss. I feel like the witch in the Wizard of Oz when I say that…

This tart is simple, good for your body, and good for your soul. It’s not very sweet–if you’re looking for a sweet dessert, this isn’t it. But I like it for a mid-meal snack post workout… or dessert, since I like mine less sweet anyway. I liked it with some added applesauce, and a few pieces of chopped date. It’s gluten free, vegan if you sub out the honey for maple, and contains no refined sugar. Hooray! I made it on a day that was cloudy and overcast, perfect for apples and baking. Simple, beautiful, and good for the soul.

And here. Happy Monday, here’s something beautiful! Have a wonderful day :)

Apple-Almond Tart

Recipe lightly adapted from Tales of a Kitchen, here! This makes one full-sized tart/pie, depending on the pan you use. I would recommend a pie pan, as the crust is very crumbly—I don’t think it would come out of a tart pan too well. Next time I make this I think I’ll add dates to the crust instead of honey—I’d like it to be a bit crustier, less crumbly. But still delicious as is! Serves 8.

Laze around with me on a cloudy Sunday and produce the following:

1 c oat flour
1 c almond meal/flour (I grind my own from an equal amount of almonds in the food processor)
1/2 c unsweetened, shredded coconut
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp honey
zest of one lemon
3 apples, cored, peel on (I used fuji and daisy girl)
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla
5-6 tbsp almond meal
2 apples, finely sliced, peel on

Preheat the oven to 375, and lightly grease your pan of choice (I used a pie pan).

In a large bowl, combine oat flour, almond meal, coconut, coconut oil, honey, and lemon zest. Mash it all together (ideally using your hands, it’s much more fun) until combined. Press the resulting mixture into the prepared pan, making sure it’s evenly distributed. Poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork, and bake for 9-10 minutes, until lightly browned. When done, set it aside to cool slightly.

While the crust is baking, toss cored apples, cinnamon, and vanilla into the food processor (or blender). Blend until a smooth puree is reached. Toss this into a bowl, and stir in 5 tbsp almond meal. If it’s not thick enough and is still a little watery, add another tbsp of almond meal. Pour the filling into the slightly cooled crust, and arrange the finely sliced apples in a pretty pattern (this is very soothing, I found).

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until your house smells delicious and the apples are a golden brown. Let cool before slicing, and store in the fridge! Excellent with a little extra applesauce, or I’m sure whipped coconut cream would be delicious as well, if you can be that on top of things (unlike me).

April 28, 2013

My personality in four words: I eat bird food! Peck peck peck…

Ahhh, a day off.

And… I have THIS!

Mmm… birdseed. Peck peck peck.

Not even joking. You know those little seed thingies they put in birdseed mix? Yeah. These things:

That I just ate for breakfast! And youuu thought I couldn’t get any weirder. HA!

These little birdseeds remind me of being in my grandma’s backyard and blowing bubbles… and feeding the birds! And quite often the squirrels… Anyway. I associate millet with sun-drenched afternoons with my gram, eating ice cream and getting soapy bubble stuff all over the dish towel in my lap. And then probably running through the sprinklers! So obviously I’m naturally inclined to like this seed, besides it being totally delicious.

But anyway. Millet is an excellent grain substitute: creamy and kind of nutty tasting, high in manganese, magnesium, and phosphorus. So far I’ve only used it as a breakfast/pudding/dessert thingy, but savory biz is coming soon, just wait. I can’t believe I haven’t eaten this before—it’s like rice pudding but a thousand times better! AND it’s good for you, soooo… why not eat it for every meal?! This one has heart healthy fats from coconut milk, natural sweetness from dates (as well as a boatload of other good bennies like vitamins and minerals), and cardamom has the added benefits of (in Ayurveda theory) of being warming, improving blood circulation to the lungs, and balancing the doshas.

Coconut Millet Pudding

Recipe slightly adapted from Delicious Living, here. As listed below, this one is vegan, gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free. Hooray! And… it’s delicious. Obvs. Otherwise I wouldn’t share it with you!

Rustle around and collect the following:

1/2 uncooked millet, rinsed
1 (14oz) can of light coconut milk
3/4 c milk bev (I used Eden Soymilk, which is just soybeans+water)
2 tbsp water
1/4 c medjool dates, chopped
3/4 tsp ground cardamom
dash of sea salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
optional: pistachios for topping

Combine millet, coconut milk, soymilk, water, chopped dates, cardamom, and sea salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil (Being careful not to let it boil over, oops no of course I don’t speak from experience…), covered, then turn it down to a simmer and let it cook, covered, until millet is fluffy and most of the liquid is absorbed, about 20-30 minutes (mine was more like 20), stirring frequently. Once millet is cooked, remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Top with pistachios for a garnish if desired! Excellent warm or cool.

April 7, 2013April 5, 2013

I’m alternative… or awesome? Let’s go with awesome.

I eat greens in three meals a day.

No joke.

I even put spinach in my oats. (I can hear you ewwwing, you know, through my computer). NOT cooked, mind you—it only goes in my overnight oats. With a buhhnahhhnuhhh. And then I eat them in lunch. And dinner. And probably a snack, if I could finagle it. You know how in previous posts I’ve mentioned putting spinach where it totally doesn’t belong? Yeah. I suppose oats would be one of those places… as would a banana scramble…? Whatever. I’m kind of alternative. Or awesome… let’s go with awesome.

Ahem..

Movingggg… on!

This time, spinach went in a smoothie! That’s at least a little more normal… but why I chose to make and eat this on day when it was cold and raining outside is beyond me. It was delicious but then I was promptly freezing. Whoops. Whatever, worth it!

And then you can do almond butter art on top of your smoothie, if you eat in in a bowl. Which is obviously reason enough to eat in a bowl, right?? Who doesn’t like an excuse to play with their food? Come on, channel your inner Jackson Pollock, you know you want to!

Almond Coconut Green Smoothie

Gratefully inspired by The Edible Perspective, here! Makes one largeish smoothie bowl. Note that you need to freeze the coconut milk first, so make time for that if you want this later in the day!

1 c light coconut milk
1/2 c milk bev of choice (I used 1% milk)*
2 c fresh spinach
2 tbsp almond butter+more for drizzle
1.5 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut+garnish
1 medjool date, pitted
1/2 ripe banana
1 tsp vanilla extract

*I would have liked mine thicker, more like a milkshake consistency—next time I won’t add as much extra milk. Up to you! If you want it drinkable (as opposed to spoon-able), use 1/2-1 c extra milk bev.

Freeze 1 c of coconut milk in ice cube trays. Once it’s frozen, pop them out into your food processor (or blender, if you happen to have a decent one). Add in spinach, almond butter, coconut, date, banana, and vanilla, and blend until combined. Pour into a bowl (because that’s more fun!), and top with almond butter and coconut, and maybe some chia seeds. Preferably eat when it’s not freezing outside…

March 28, 2013

Instant Date-ification

I used to looove fig newtons. Love them. I don’t really think they’re a universally loved-by-kids snack, but whatever. As a kid, I loved them. I used to nibble around the sides and eat off all of the cakey bits (come to think of it, I ate around madelines from Starbucks the same way…) and then eat the figgy bits in the middle.

In college I graduated to organic ones. Oooooh. Organic obviously makes processed things okay… ?! Um no… not really.

But… I’ve graduated college and am now a real person (um.. no) (immaturity keeps me forever young) (part of being an adult is being a kid at heart, right? Right) now I’ve graduated to making my own! And even better than figgy type newtons… these are DATE newtons! Pshh. Who WOULDN’T love something stuffed with dates?!

I’m pretty sure I’ve already mentioned this, but juuuust in case you haven’t noticed… I also LOVE dates! As in, I love dates beyond all reason. They are delicious and good for you and I could easily eat them all day long all day every day for the rest of my life. End of story. Stranded on a desert island, can only pick one food? Dates. Well, okay. Dates and almond butter, because clearly I couldn’t survive on dates alone (and okay… maybe some toast to put the dates and almond butter on. Picky, aren’t I?). I would obviously try though.

So I made these! And they were maybe one of the best things I’ve put in my face all week. Aaaamazing. And raw. Which means no dealing with ovens and all that silliness, just instant date-ification. Yum yum yum. Oh. And they’re fabulous for you, so it’s just a win win win all around. Healthy fats [almonds and flaxseed], omega 3’s [flaxseed], whole grains [oats], protein, fiber, tons of vitamins and minerals and excellent energy [dates, dates dates!].

Raw Date Newtons

Recipe gratefully borrowed from the Pancake Princess, here!

Makes 16 little guys. Gluten free, could be vegan [non dairy milk bev+maple].

First we rummage for this kind of biz:

1/2 c raw almonds (mine were already partially ground)
1/4 c flaxseed meal
1/4 c rolled oats
pinch of salt
2 tbsp honey
1.5 tbsp milk bev (I used 1% dairy)
1 c dates, pitted and soaked for a few minutes
1/4 tsp vanilla

Then we:

Lug out the trusty, zillion pound food processor. Open lid, put in blade, yadayada. Toss in almonds, flaxseed, oats, and salt, and pulse until blended. If your almonds are whole and not partially ground like mine, you might want to grind them alone for a bit so that they’re more broken up, but that’s up to you (and the strength of your food processor). Add in honey and pulse until the mixture starts to come together and be clumpier. Add milk, 1/2 tbsp at a time, until it sticks together like a dough (and if you pinch it between your fingers it stays together). Remove the dough from your food processor, and roll it out really thinly between two pieces of wax/parchment paper. Aim for a mostly rectangular shape, just to make your bites even sized. I cut mine in half so that I would have two even-ish rectangles, about 1/8-1/4″ thick.

Without even bothering to wash out your food processor (quite possibly my least favorite part of baking), drain dates, and add them with the vanilla to the bowl. Process until a paste forms—it should be spreadable. Spoon that goodness directly onto each half of your rolled out dough, and then fold it up and around the filling to make a cute little date newton bite! Repeat with the other piece of dough and filling. Slice each log into about 8 bites, for a total yield of 16.

Store them in an airtight container in the fridge… if they last that long…