(www.101 cookbooks.com)
This quinoa and grilled zucchini bowl (or platter) is tossed with a pretty, pale green cilantro-flecked avocado dressing. It makes more than you will use for this particular recipe, but I like to have the extra on hand to add to salad throughout the rest of the week. If you dislike cilantro feel free to substitute chopped chives.
1 large avocado, ripe
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup lightly packed cilantro
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3 large eggs
1 large zucchini, cut into 3/4-inch thick coins
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
couple pinches of fine grain sea salt
2 cups quinoa, cooked, room temperature
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup goat cheese, crumbled
a bit of chopped cilantro for garnish
Prepare the cilantro-avocado dressing by blending the avocado, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, yogurt, water, and salt in a blender (or us a hand blender). Set aside.
Hard boil the three eggs. Place the eggs in a pot and cover with cold water by a 1/2-inch or so. Bring to a gentle boil. Now turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for exactly seven minutes. Have a big bowl of ice water ready and when the eggs are done cooking place them in the ice bath for three minutes or so - long enough to stop the cooking. Set aside.
While the eggs are cooling start preparing the zucchini by tossing it with olive oil and salt in a medium-sized bowl. Prepare your grill (medium-high heat). If you are worried about the zucchini coins falling through the grill you can thread them onto kabob skewers (stab through the green skin). Grill until zucchini are tender and cooked through, roughly 5 minutes on each side. Remove from the grill and cut each zucchini coin into quarters. (I COOKED THESE ON BROIL FOR 20-30 MIN INSTEAD. I HAVE ALSO TRIED THIS WITH RAW TOMATOES AND CUCUMBERS).
Crack and peel each egg, cut each egg into quarters lengthwise. Assemble the salad by tossing the quinoa with about 2/3 cups of the avocado vinaigrette. Top with the grilled zucchini, pine nuts, eggs, goat cheese, and a bit of chopped cilantro for garnish. I serve this family-style, but you could do individual platings.
Serves 4 to 6.
HOW TO COOK QUINOA -- Soak for 1/2 hr. in water. Rinse well. Cook like rice - 1 c. quinoa to 2c. water. Bring to boil and simmer, covered for about 20 min.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
Homemade Granola Bars
HOMEMADE GRANOLA BARS #1 (complements of http://www.spinachandhoney.com)
These bars use no refined white sugar and no white flour. The most important part about making any homemade granola bar is that you know what is in them. Granola bars are also a great way to feed kids nuts. Mikey can easily eat half of the picture above in one day. He loves these things! We've even nicknamed them, "Mikey Bars." I would never let him eat that many packaged granola bars.
I have made this recipe with and without soaking the oats and nuts and it's good either way. Read how to soak oats here and nuts here. If I use the nuts within three days, I don't dry them, but if I am drying the oats, I'll throw the nuts on the cookie pan too. Again, you can skip this step, it makes little difference to the taste but is much healthier for the body.
1 cup rolled oats (soaking is optional) – see below
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) melted butter
1/4 cup finely chopped nuts any combination of almonds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, or walnuts (soaking is optional) – see below
1/3 cup milk or water (only use when soaking and drying oats, do not double)
If I soaked the oats and nuts overnight, I dry them in a 300 degree oven for about an hour or until the oats are crisp again. If I soak and dry a lot of oats it can take a lot longer. Some people use a dehydrator. I flip the oats and crumble them with my fingers a couple times during the process. I always turn off the oven when I leave the house. It doesn't hurt them to dry them some and then let them sit for a bit. I have also made this recipe with the soaked but not dried oats and nuts. It made for a more moist bar and I definitely don't use the 1/3 cup milk.
Mix with oats, 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour, 1/4 cup finely chopped mixed nuts or processed in a food processor for a very fine chop, 3 tablespoons honey, 1/4 cup melted butter, and 1/3 cup milk if I soaked and dried my oats.
Butter an 8x8 square baking dish or something similar.
Pour mixture evenly into the dish and spread flat.
Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until the sides turn golden brown and pull away from the edges of the baking dish.
Let cool on the counter before cutting bars.
These bars help us avoid processed snack food. Enjoy!
HOMEMADE GRANOLA BARS #2 (http://www.spinachandhoney.com)
1 cup rolled oats (soaked and dried)
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup spelt flour
1 cup almonds (soaked and dried)
1 1/2 cups dried fruit (apricots, dates, and raisins)
1 tablespoon flax seed
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Homemade granola bars are surprisingly easy to make.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
I butter two 2.75 quart baking dishes because that's what I own, but one larger baking dish would be less washing afterward. I want the mixture to be about an inch thick.
Toast wheat germ in a frying pan until golden brown. While that is toasting, put all the ingredients except the syrup, vanilla, and eggs into a food processor. I use whatever dried fruit that I have on hand. I normally always have apricots, dates, and raisins. I also use whatever nuts that I have on hand. I just soaked and dried a ton of almonds so I used almonds in this recipe. Add the wheat germ and pulse the food processor until the ingredients are corsly crumbled.
Then add the syrup, vanilla, and eggs. Pulse a few more times until incorporated into the mix. Pour into the baking dish(es) and spread evenly. Cook uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the bars are hard and bounce back when poked with a finger. Cut the bars into squares or rectangles and store in the refrigerator. No need to double this recipe, it makes 12 to 16 bars depending on how I cut them.
SOAKING OATS:
I soak and then dry my rolled oats for making granola bars like these here and granola breakfast cereal. Read here for more info on why I like to soak my oats.
I don't have a dehydrator so I use my oven. I can't do huge batches because to dry the oats they have to be spread on one layer like the picture. I sometimes do two or three cookie sheets but I learned the hard way never to over populate the cookie sheet. Here is the process.
1 cup oats
2 tablespoons yogurt or lemon juice
2 cups water
butter for cookie sheet
salt to taste
Pour the oats, yogurt (or lemon juice), and water in a bowl. Cover and let sit on the countertop overnight. Lightly butter a cookie sheet and preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Drain the oats in a colander and run water over them. I mix them around with my fingers to rinse off the yogurt. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet and lightly salt. Put in the oven for an hour or until the oats are dry. Mix them around and fold them over halfway through the drying time. Now they're ready for bars or granola cereal.
Without processed snack food in the house, we eat nuts and seeds quite often, maybe every day. I make granola bars with them for Mikey. I soak our nuts and seeds overnight before eating them.
SOAKING NUTS AND SEEDS
Here are two reasons to soak your nuts and seeds:
1) Unsoaked raw nuts and seeds have enzyme inhibitors, our bodies need enzymes, so we don't want to eat enzyme inhibitors.
2) Unsoaked raw nuts and seeds contain phytic acid which is indigestible and bonds with minerals in the digestive tract, leeching them out of the body and possibly causing mineral deficiencies.
The drying part of the process is to preserve the nuts and seeds and make them taste good. Drying the nuts and seeds preserves them for about four months. When I use them in a recipe within three days of soaking, I skip the drying.
1 cup raw nuts and seeds (ex. almonds, walnuts, sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds)
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
Cover the nuts and seeds with water and stir in salt. This is how to partially sprout seeds before eating, which decreases the enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid. Soak for a minimum of 7 hours. Drain and rinse in a colander. Spread on a baking pan and put in a 150 degree oven or a dehydrator for 12 to 24 hours.
Read more about soaking nuts and seeds:
http://www.avenaoriginals.com/library/recipe_display.asp?a=Soaking_Nuts_and_Seeds
http://anniecrawford.com/2006/03/22/404/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_%28fruit%29
These bars use no refined white sugar and no white flour. The most important part about making any homemade granola bar is that you know what is in them. Granola bars are also a great way to feed kids nuts. Mikey can easily eat half of the picture above in one day. He loves these things! We've even nicknamed them, "Mikey Bars." I would never let him eat that many packaged granola bars.
I have made this recipe with and without soaking the oats and nuts and it's good either way. Read how to soak oats here and nuts here. If I use the nuts within three days, I don't dry them, but if I am drying the oats, I'll throw the nuts on the cookie pan too. Again, you can skip this step, it makes little difference to the taste but is much healthier for the body.
1 cup rolled oats (soaking is optional) – see below
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) melted butter
1/4 cup finely chopped nuts any combination of almonds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, or walnuts (soaking is optional) – see below
1/3 cup milk or water (only use when soaking and drying oats, do not double)
If I soaked the oats and nuts overnight, I dry them in a 300 degree oven for about an hour or until the oats are crisp again. If I soak and dry a lot of oats it can take a lot longer. Some people use a dehydrator. I flip the oats and crumble them with my fingers a couple times during the process. I always turn off the oven when I leave the house. It doesn't hurt them to dry them some and then let them sit for a bit. I have also made this recipe with the soaked but not dried oats and nuts. It made for a more moist bar and I definitely don't use the 1/3 cup milk.
Mix with oats, 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour, 1/4 cup finely chopped mixed nuts or processed in a food processor for a very fine chop, 3 tablespoons honey, 1/4 cup melted butter, and 1/3 cup milk if I soaked and dried my oats.
Butter an 8x8 square baking dish or something similar.
Pour mixture evenly into the dish and spread flat.
Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 40 minutes or until the sides turn golden brown and pull away from the edges of the baking dish.
Let cool on the counter before cutting bars.
These bars help us avoid processed snack food. Enjoy!
HOMEMADE GRANOLA BARS #2 (http://www.spinachandhoney.com)
1 cup rolled oats (soaked and dried)
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup spelt flour
1 cup almonds (soaked and dried)
1 1/2 cups dried fruit (apricots, dates, and raisins)
1 tablespoon flax seed
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Homemade granola bars are surprisingly easy to make.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
I butter two 2.75 quart baking dishes because that's what I own, but one larger baking dish would be less washing afterward. I want the mixture to be about an inch thick.
Toast wheat germ in a frying pan until golden brown. While that is toasting, put all the ingredients except the syrup, vanilla, and eggs into a food processor. I use whatever dried fruit that I have on hand. I normally always have apricots, dates, and raisins. I also use whatever nuts that I have on hand. I just soaked and dried a ton of almonds so I used almonds in this recipe. Add the wheat germ and pulse the food processor until the ingredients are corsly crumbled.
Then add the syrup, vanilla, and eggs. Pulse a few more times until incorporated into the mix. Pour into the baking dish(es) and spread evenly. Cook uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until the bars are hard and bounce back when poked with a finger. Cut the bars into squares or rectangles and store in the refrigerator. No need to double this recipe, it makes 12 to 16 bars depending on how I cut them.
SOAKING OATS:
I soak and then dry my rolled oats for making granola bars like these here and granola breakfast cereal. Read here for more info on why I like to soak my oats.
I don't have a dehydrator so I use my oven. I can't do huge batches because to dry the oats they have to be spread on one layer like the picture. I sometimes do two or three cookie sheets but I learned the hard way never to over populate the cookie sheet. Here is the process.
1 cup oats
2 tablespoons yogurt or lemon juice
2 cups water
butter for cookie sheet
salt to taste
Pour the oats, yogurt (or lemon juice), and water in a bowl. Cover and let sit on the countertop overnight. Lightly butter a cookie sheet and preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Drain the oats in a colander and run water over them. I mix them around with my fingers to rinse off the yogurt. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet and lightly salt. Put in the oven for an hour or until the oats are dry. Mix them around and fold them over halfway through the drying time. Now they're ready for bars or granola cereal.
Without processed snack food in the house, we eat nuts and seeds quite often, maybe every day. I make granola bars with them for Mikey. I soak our nuts and seeds overnight before eating them.
SOAKING NUTS AND SEEDS
Here are two reasons to soak your nuts and seeds:
1) Unsoaked raw nuts and seeds have enzyme inhibitors, our bodies need enzymes, so we don't want to eat enzyme inhibitors.
2) Unsoaked raw nuts and seeds contain phytic acid which is indigestible and bonds with minerals in the digestive tract, leeching them out of the body and possibly causing mineral deficiencies.
The drying part of the process is to preserve the nuts and seeds and make them taste good. Drying the nuts and seeds preserves them for about four months. When I use them in a recipe within three days of soaking, I skip the drying.
1 cup raw nuts and seeds (ex. almonds, walnuts, sesame seeds, and pumpkin seeds)
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
Cover the nuts and seeds with water and stir in salt. This is how to partially sprout seeds before eating, which decreases the enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid. Soak for a minimum of 7 hours. Drain and rinse in a colander. Spread on a baking pan and put in a 150 degree oven or a dehydrator for 12 to 24 hours.
Read more about soaking nuts and seeds:
http://www.avenaoriginals.com/library/recipe_display.asp?a=Soaking_Nuts_and_Seeds
http://anniecrawford.com/2006/03/22/404/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nut_%28fruit%29
Day 1: Fasting from coffee and cookies
So, I'm curious to see if the energy I still feel at 9:45pm after a full day with kiddoes has any correlation to the fact that I had no coffee and no refined sugars today. Now I consider myself rather healthy, not totally, bc I do like my morning cup of Joe and I also like my post-dinner cookie or ice cream or some other sweet. But I have been noticing that I have been really extra draggy throughout the day, and I can see the effect of caffeine on my moods and so I've been wanting to try and cut them out, but it takes more determination than I generally have. So, we'll see how long this lasts, and how I feel...
homemade "Larabar"
homemade lara-type bars (complements of www.bunnyfoot.blogspot.com)
makes 1 bar
1 Tablespoon dates, pureed
3 Tablespoons dry ingredients (nuts, dried fruits, coconut, oats, etc.)
pit dates and whir in a food processor or mash by hand until they're one sticky mass. this will be the base, the "glue" that will hold it all together. to this base, add about 3 Tablespoons of finely diced dried ingredients - the nuts of your choice (almonds, cashews, pecans, hazlenut, etc.), dried fruit, oats, spices, etc. with your hands mix it all together and form into a tight ball. roll this ball into a rope and then pat it flat into a rectangle. tightly wrap in plastic wrap (the wrapping will help the bar hold it's shape as you further mold it) and apply pressure to the top using a flat surface - a cutting board works well. to shape the sides you can take two knives and apply pressure to opposite ends of the bars. refrigerate wrapped. for larger batches shape into a larger square, chill and cut into desired bar shapes with a very sharp knife.
some tasty combinations:
cashew: 1 Tablespoon dates + 3 Tablespoons cashews
almond coconut: 1 Tablespoon dates +2 Tablespoons almonds + 1 Tablespoon unsweetened coconut
almond spice: 1 Tablespoon dates + 3 Tablespoons almonds + 1/4 teaspoon each:
cinnamon & nutmeg + 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger.
cranberry coconut: 2 Tablespoons minced dried cranberries, 1 Tablespoon unsweetened coconut
makes 1 bar
1 Tablespoon dates, pureed
3 Tablespoons dry ingredients (nuts, dried fruits, coconut, oats, etc.)
pit dates and whir in a food processor or mash by hand until they're one sticky mass. this will be the base, the "glue" that will hold it all together. to this base, add about 3 Tablespoons of finely diced dried ingredients - the nuts of your choice (almonds, cashews, pecans, hazlenut, etc.), dried fruit, oats, spices, etc. with your hands mix it all together and form into a tight ball. roll this ball into a rope and then pat it flat into a rectangle. tightly wrap in plastic wrap (the wrapping will help the bar hold it's shape as you further mold it) and apply pressure to the top using a flat surface - a cutting board works well. to shape the sides you can take two knives and apply pressure to opposite ends of the bars. refrigerate wrapped. for larger batches shape into a larger square, chill and cut into desired bar shapes with a very sharp knife.
some tasty combinations:
cashew: 1 Tablespoon dates + 3 Tablespoons cashews
almond coconut: 1 Tablespoon dates +2 Tablespoons almonds + 1 Tablespoon unsweetened coconut
almond spice: 1 Tablespoon dates + 3 Tablespoons almonds + 1/4 teaspoon each:
cinnamon & nutmeg + 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger.
cranberry coconut: 2 Tablespoons minced dried cranberries, 1 Tablespoon unsweetened coconut
Raw food energy bar
Sort of Like Larabars (complements of www.cookiemadness.net)
Makes about 3 bars or a quarter or a 4×4 inch square which you can form and then cut or punch into shapes.
1 1/2 ounce almonds (about 1/3 cup)
3 ounces pitted dates (about 14, if you don’t have a scale)
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon prune puree
1 tablespoon quick cooking oats.
Place almonds in food processor and process into crumbs. Pour into a bowl. Place dates in processor and process as much as possible. Add almond crumbs back into processor and process until well mixed. Add cocoa, prune puree and oats. Process a little more, then dump into a bowl and knead until ingredients stick together. Shape into a rectangle. If it’s too sticky, knead in some more almonds or oats. Slice into about 3 bars or press into a square and cut out cute shapes.
Makes about 3 bars or a quarter or a 4×4 inch square which you can form and then cut or punch into shapes.
1 1/2 ounce almonds (about 1/3 cup)
3 ounces pitted dates (about 14, if you don’t have a scale)
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon prune puree
1 tablespoon quick cooking oats.
Place almonds in food processor and process into crumbs. Pour into a bowl. Place dates in processor and process as much as possible. Add almond crumbs back into processor and process until well mixed. Add cocoa, prune puree and oats. Process a little more, then dump into a bowl and knead until ingredients stick together. Shape into a rectangle. If it’s too sticky, knead in some more almonds or oats. Slice into about 3 bars or press into a square and cut out cute shapes.
granola
Recipe for Granola-
6 cups of Old fashion oats
toast for 10 min
mix:1/2 cup honey
1/4-1/3 canola oil (you may have to add more of each in order to mix all the oats into it)
1 tsp almond extract/vanilla
Mix in nuts, seeds Coconut ect with the oats and then add the honey mixture
Cook for 10 min stiring 2 or 3 times
add raisins and fruit
Complements of Malora Mulhern
6 cups of Old fashion oats
toast for 10 min
mix:1/2 cup honey
1/4-1/3 canola oil (you may have to add more of each in order to mix all the oats into it)
1 tsp almond extract/vanilla
Mix in nuts, seeds Coconut ect with the oats and then add the honey mixture
Cook for 10 min stiring 2 or 3 times
add raisins and fruit
Complements of Malora Mulhern
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