Tag Archives: Healthy Recipes

Seeded Baguette, gluten free & vegan

Gluten Free Baking, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

wp-1455638709298.jpeg

 

Gluten Free Dough

  • 2 cups brown rice flour
  • 3 cups tapioca flour
  • 3/4 cup oat flour
  • 3/4 cup almond meal
  • 2 tbsp yeast
  • 2 tbsp guar guar (or xantham gum)
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 2 and 2/3 cups of lukewarm water
  • 4 large egg substitue: (1 egg = 1 tbsp ground chia or flax or combo of both mixed with 3 tbsp of water)
  • 1/3 cup neutral flavor oil, i.e. avocado or olive oil
  • 2 tbsp honey

*makes enough for about 4 loaves (1 lb each) — I made two small baguettes with 1/2 of this recipe

  1. Combine ingredients for dough, dry ingredients first, then wet.
  2. Cover mixing bowl and let sit for 2 hours.
  3. Careful not to disturb the bubbles, shape dough, on wax paper, to desired shape with WET hands (not flour like when baking glutenous breads) and cover with plastic wrap, loosely, let sit for 90 min. (Refrigerate any remaining dough)
  4. Pre-heat oven with baking stone to 475 for at least 30 min
  5. Remove plastic wrap and cover with your choice of seeds, I used sesame and pumpkin, and make 3 diagonal slits.
  6. Bake at 475 for 30 min and let cool on a rack for 15-30 min.

With little experience baking I was grateful for the awesome guidelines provided by: www.artisanbreadinfive.com 

The recipe I followed and modified: Artisan Bread in Five, Baguette

 

 

 

Oat Milk, raw & vegan

Raw Food Creations, , , , , , , ,

wp-1455638954663.jpeg

 

Simple as can be:

1. Soak 1.5 cups gluten free rolled oats in a nut milk bag overnight (8-12 hrs) with 4 cups of filtered water.
2. Squeeze all the liquid from bag, refrigerate and enjoy!

(Can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days.)

*Heads up, the consistency is very gooey. If you have kids, this is a wonderful sensory activity for them to help out with. The gooey oats that remain afterwards can also be a lot of fun to play with. Hint: try adding natural food coloring and toys to the mix as well.

 

 

Sweet Potato and Chickpea Bites

Appetizers and Side Dishes, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sweet Potato, chickpea bites

These delicious bites turned out better than I’d ever hoped. I’m really pleased with how tasty they are.

Original Recipe:

http://cheapeatsforthegreenbean.com/2014/08/03/sweet-potato-and-chickpea-bites/

I modified the recipe to include ingredients I already had on hand. I only had one sweet potato for instance, and I used Tarragon as a garnish instead of scallions as the recipe originally calls for.

Ingredients I used:

  • 1 large sweet potato
  • equal amount chickpeas as sweet potato (I used frozen, thawed)
  • Kale, fine chopped
  • Garlic
  • Coconut Milk
  • Coconut Oil
  • Seasoning: paprika, cayenne, red chili flakes, curry powder, nutritional yeast, salt & pepper
  • Fresh Herbs I used: Thyme & Tarragon

 

Directions:

  1. Boil sweet potato & prepare chickpeas (frozen, thawed on stove)
  2. Sautee garlic (briefly, until fragrant)
  3. Add Kale and reduce heat to low, cover and steam (very briefly)
  4. Season with: Paprika, cayenne, red chili flakes, curry powder
  5. Add thawed chickpeas and stir well.
  6. Combine in a large bowl with sweet potato mash, 3-4 tablespoons of coconut milk and nutritional yeast.
  7. Add S & P and any additional seasonings. I added fresh Thyme and Tarragon from the garden.
  8. Bake in a greased muffin tin (coconut oil works well for greasing) –  20 minutes at 450 degrees.

Voila !

 

 

Raw Almond Thai Noodles

Raw Food Creations, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Raw Almond Thai Noodles

I am often creating dishes from whatever I have and here is an example of something I threw together in a hurry before work recently. I am really pleased with how it turned out and have since recreated this dish several times.

I recently started eating a lot of zucchini noodles, and this is by far my favorite version I’ve made yet. If you’ve never used or even heard of a spiralizer be sure to check out this link:

http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Spiralizer-Tri-Blade-Spiral-Vegetable/dp/B006THC75E/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1406215399&sr=8-4&keywords=spiralizer

Without a Prime membership to Amazon.com there may be a cheaper option available (I didn’t check shipping prices) however, with Prime I found this to be the cheapest option. If you are not used to unusual kitchen appliances, do not be intimidated! Here’s a link to a video I like that shows just how simple and straightforward using it really is:

Ingredients:

  • Raw zucchini noodles, spiralized
  • Pine Nuts
  • Cilantro
  • Shelled Hemp Seeds
  • Pairs well with Avocado

Sauce:

  • Almond Butter
  • Water
  • Hoison Sauce
  • Gluten Free Soy Sauce (or Braggs Amino)
  • Lime juice
  • Coconut Milk (optional)
  • Udo’s oil (add last, also optional)

To make the sauce I whisked together a fair amount of Almond Butter (main ingredient, be sure to use enough) with just a bit of water until the consistency was smooth and creamy.  And then I added about a tablespoon of Hoison Sauce, a dash of GF Soy Sauce, squeezed the juice from about half of a lime, a tablespoon or so of coconut milk and at the end I also added a bit of Udo’s oil for added nutrients.

I hope you give this a try and enjoy it as much as I have!

Cheers to good Health!

Carrot Ginger Delight

Juices and Smoothies, , , ,

wpid-20140320_115759.jpg

Carrot juice is one of my least favorite things to drink, though I love the way I feel afterwards, so it’s worth it in the end. Here’s what I put together today, and it turned out great!

Ingredients:

  • 6 large organic carrots
  • generous chunk of fresh ginger root
  • 1 green apple

I just processed it through my Champion Juicer and voila!

 

Making Healthy Food Fun for Kids!

Educational, , , , , , , , , ,

wpid-storageemulated0DCIMCamera2014-01-20-21.04.06.jpg.jpg

Working as a nanny I have found that the most important thing to getting kids to eat healthy food is to start when they are young, and as they get older, making healthy food fun really helps them to stay on the right track. As parents and caregivers to the children in our lives, we are able to help pave a path that they can take and benefit from for the rest of their lives.

When working with infants I like to begin introducing solids with savory soft foods first like squashes and avocados and waiting before introducing sweeter foods like bananas and apples. Once they’ve acquired a taste and liking for sweet foods, it’s likely going to be harder to get them to eat their vegetables as well.

I’ve worked with a lot of infants and really young children over the years, and more recently have been working with older children as well, around the ages of 3-6. I am encouraged seeing how much kids really enjoy healthy food when they have the taste for it, when they get to participate in the preparation or be engaged with the food in some way while eating it and when it’s just fun. Kids always want to have fun, and this carries over into food. One way to make food fun is with the presentation and here are just a few protein and nutrient rich food ideas that I’ve used and had success with over the years. I will continue to add more with time. I do love these tasty treats and eat them regularly myself.

Almond butter is great of course because it is rich in protein. Apples, bananas and celery make for a great base, and cinnamon and honey are full of immune strengthening and anti-inflammatory properties.

wpid-20140122_115141.jpg wpid-20140122_121148.jpg

I set these up usually to allow the kids to have as much participation as possible, unless under a time constraint of course. They love topping the celery with either raisins or Goji berries. Apples and bananas with either cinnamon and/or honey, and on special occasions I even pull out the sprinkles. If there is something here you’ve tried before or plan to make, I will love to hear what other wonderful ideas you come up with!

Note: A fun trick to making something like a plain apple or banana fun to eat is to slice a few pieces and then put them back together. Sell it to the kids as ‘Puzzle’ fruit!

Bon Appetit and cheers to good health!

Autumn Harvest Stuffed Acorn Squash

Spiritual Foodie, , , , , , , ,
Autumn Harvest Acorn Squash
Autumn Harvest Acorn Squash

Ingredients:

  • Acorn Squash, cut in 1/2
  • 1 cup Organic Brown Rice (cooked with 2 1/2 cups of water)
  • 1/4 cup Chopped Pecans
  • 1/4 Organic dried Cranberries
  • 2-3 medium-sized stalks of Celery, Thinly sliced
  • 1 small Onion, chopped
  • 1-2 cloves of Garlic
  • Fresh Thyme
  • Ghee / vegan Butter/ Coconut Oil (any)
  • dash of Maple Syrup (optional)
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Measurements are approximate, if replicating this dish please use your discernment for right amount and enjoy the leftover stuffing!

Directions:

  1. Prepare rice
  2. Pre Heat Oven to 450
  3. Cut Squash in half and remove seeds
  4. With 1/4 inch of water in pan, cook Squash cut side facing downward for 15 minutes
  5. Flip Squash and coat with ghee / vegan butter / coconut oil (any), drizzling a dash of maple syrup on as well and cook for an additional 10 minutes cut side facing upward.
  6. Meanwhile prepare veggies in your choice of oil: Onions first, then celery slices, adding garlic towards the end. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally until softened, approximately 6 minutes. Then add Thyme and cover for about 1 minute until fragrant.
  7. Remove from heat, stir in rice, pecans, cranberries and S & P.
  8. Stuff Squash, drizzle with ghee or vegan butter, cover with aluminum foil and cook for 10-15 minutes.
  9. Remove foil and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes, until squash is tender when pierced with a fork

Stuff squash, garnish with Thyme and continue to cook 20-25 min

Green Goddess

Breakfast of Champions

Ingredients: 

  • Lots of Greens: Kale, Spinach, Cilantro
  • 1/2 Cucumber
  • 1 Apple
  • Pineapple Chunks, Frozen or Fresh
  • Slice of Ginger and Turmeric
  • 1 tsp Lemon Juice, Fresh squeezed
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds, pre-soaked
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, or any milk substitute
  • 1 1/2 cups of coconut water
  • dash of cayenne (optional)
Green Goddess

Directions:

  1. Soak chia seeds ahead of time until they become a gel like consistency
  2. In a high-speed blender combine all ingredients and blend until smooth