Whole Wheat Brownies

I have really enjoyed trying the recipes over at 100 Days of Real Food

I just tried her recipe for these Dark Chocolate Whole Wheat Brownies. I doubled the recipe and used my Pampered Chef mini muffin pan to cook them in. Bite size brownies. I sprinkled chopped walnuts on top.

I used some dutch chocolate (cocoa) I had on had. I don't know if it was "dark" or not, but oh well. I also did the honey version. They were a little...bitter at first, but after eating 3 of them, I decided they were pretty good. There is no sugar in the recipe at all. I may try them again and change the recipe up to see if I can make them a little sweeter, naturally.

Spring is in the air

It has been a beautiful week here in Winter Paradise. It was about 70 degrees yesterday. Oh how I worship the warm sun! We got to work in the yard this week. We (ok, it was really all Justin) finally dug up all the rose bushes (there was a borderline obscene amount of them) and picked up to bare root fruit trees at Costco. We have been wanting to get some fruit trees since we bought this house and when I saw the price at $14.99 we couldn't pass them up. We bought a cherry tree that has 4 kinds of cherries: Bing, Rainier, Sweetheart, and ____________? We also bought an apple tree that has: Golden Delicious, Gala, Fuji and Honeycrisp (my favorite!). "Dear Lord, please let these trees live and be fruitful!"

We have also been gearing up for planting our 2nd garden in this area. Last year was a HUGE letdown. A couple of weeks ago I picked up some books on gardening and have been trying to learn what I can. Growing things is not one of my natural talents. But I am determined and hopeful that one of these days we will get it right. This year I am not going to waste time planting anything that we don't love to eat, like peas. And unfortunately, they were the only plant that grew well last year.

This is what we'd like to plant this year:

green beans, tomatoes, carrots, corn, potatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, pumpkin, zucchini, herbs (basil, parsley)

I'm crazy about...

Alaina!





From very, very early on in Alaina's life she has made me laugh. Even as a baby. I thought to myself, that she would be our "funny" kid. She has continued to live up to that impression.

She has been in that stage that falls somewhere in between baby and big girl, for a while now. I sort of just want to keep her in that spot for a while longer. That spot where it's still kind of cute when she tells me "no". The spot where you can't exactly force her to eat her vegetables...cause she still too young. The spot that her cheeks are still so round and pudgy you could just bite em'.

She has the best facial expressions. She is funny, but what's even greater, is that she knows when she is being funny and sometimes actually tries to make you laugh. I love this about her.

I love how she still waddles a little when she walks. I love how she tries to run. I love her lisp, even though I hope she eventually outgrows it. I love her bright eyes.

I love the sound of her cute little voice.

She came into this world with a fierce determination and has given us so much joy every day since. Stay sweet little girl!

Whole Wheat Muffins

Orange/Cranberry Muffins-100% Whole Wheat

I got the recipe from 100 Days of real food and added 2 T orange zest and 1 C chopped, dried cranberries to the batter. These are really yummy. Hearty and just mildly sweet. There is no "sugar", just honey. I used fresh ground hard white wheat (my new favorite) flour.

Sorry for the bad phone picture. I left my camera in Idaho and am waiting for it's return. Enjoy!

Good Read

I just got done reading this great book called: "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan. This is the 'youth' edition and it says it's specifically written for kids, but it really didn't seem like a kids book to me. I don't know what the adult version is like, but if it's anything like his book "In Defense of Food" (which I also have read some of, but not all), it is probably a little too wordy for my taste. In this youth edition, he speaks in real people language, with no overabundance of flowery vocabulary, so it's reads easy and is down to earth.

The author, Michael Pollan is a journalist. This book follows him on a journey through our world of food, from "Industrialized" to "Beyond Organic". While you do get a sense for which type of food he prefers and supports, I still feel like he presents both sides and in between fairly well, without being too biased.

If you aren't too concerned about what kind of food you eat, this book probably won't interest you at all. If you are concerned and want to learn more about where your food comes from and how it is made, or if you want to make better choices in the types of food you eat, then I would definitely give this book a read. I loved it!

Homemade Granola

This was my first try at homemade granola.

Recipe:

3 1/2 C rolled oats
1 C cranberries
1/2 C raw sunflower seeds
1/2 C raw pumpkin seeds
1 C unsweetened coconut
1/2 C raw, sliced almonds
2 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 t allspice

Mix all the dry stuff together. Then, in a small pot melt 6T unsalted butter and 1/2 C Honey. Once butter is melted add 2t Vanilla Extract. Pour over the dry stuff, mix it all in and spread on a baking sheet. Cook at 250 for 75 min. Let it cool before breaking it up into pieces.

My opinion: It needs some salt! But I think it will be good on yogurt.

Anyone else have any tasty, healthy granola recipes?

Red Mountain Egg Farm

I came across this place during my internet search for local chickens. It's called Red Mountain Egg Farm and it's right here in our area.

I ordered my eggs yesterday and they were delivered right to my doorstep tonight by the Farmer himself. What service!

These eggs are between 1-2 days old. Fresh! I love the idea of knowing where my food is coming from and it's also fun to teach my kids where our food comes from too. Katelyn was a little confused when the eggs came. She thought there were chickens inside. And I also love the idea of buying and supporting local people.

I am sure a lot of people think this might be unnecessary, but I personally am excited about it.

I enjoyed reading their FAQs listed on their website.

http://redmountaineggs.com/questions.html

Red Mountain Egg Farm

Whole Wheat Sugar Cookie Recipe

Ask and ye shall receive.

Whole Wheat Sugar Cookie Recipe

2 3/4 C Whole Wheat Flour (I used white wheat)
1 C sugar (I used Raw Demerara Cane sugar)
3/4 C butter, softened
1 t vanilla
2 eggs
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt

Cream together sugar and butter. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla.
In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add to dry mix and blend it all together.

Put dough in plastic wrap (it will be pretty soft) and refrigerate for about an hour. Take the dough out and roll it out on a lightly floured surface about 1/4" thick. Use cookie cutters...you know the drill.

Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes (my oven needed 11 minutes)

Blah Day

It's one of those days. Cranky beyond cranky and for no "good" reason. I keep trying to hide from my kids. I go downstairs, they come downstairs. So I go back upstairs and pretty soon they are upstairs. Sometimes Mommy just wants to be ALL ALONE! I wonder what my neighbors would think if I went out onto the back deck and screamed. Very loudly.

I went to the gym at 8:30am. Got a good workout in. Managed to make it 5 miles on the treadmill and then do some upper body exercises. Still haven't showered and I look nasty! I like to remind myself on days like this, when I feel like crap, that I have accomplished a few good things. I worked out (although, one of the reasons I am cranky is because think I have Plantar Fasciitis and I refuse to stop running). I vacuumed out the nasty car after our long road trip this weekend. I have done some laundry. I have mostly cleaned the kitchen. I have fed my children and kept them alive. Oh, and I got the sugar cookies made for Katelyn's Valentine's Day party tomorrow. Since I threw out all of my white flour, I tried a whole wheat version. I used a combination of soft white wheat and regular white wheat along with Raw Demerara Cane Sugar. Guess what? They taste great!

Now, I need to do something meaningful. Perhaps read stories?

Cleanse: Day 3

Day 3: Final day and last time I ever try this...maybe.



I have not exactly followed protocol today. But here is the outline:

Morning: 32 oz pure Alkaline water with lemon

Breakfast: Green Smoothie (16-32oz)
2 big handfuls spinach, de-veined
1 C frozen berries
1 t coconut oil
1 T chia seeds
2 C Almond milk
Blend until smooth

I forgot the coconut oil. Woops. And I definitely only drank 16 oz of that thing. It wasn't disgusting, but it wasn't delicious either. To me. Justin drank the other 16 oz and he said it was pretty good. I have a fairly sensitive palate.

Mid-Morning: Exercise and drink herbal tea or Alkaline water to replenish. I ran 3.5 miles outside because it was another gorgeous day today. Good run too! I actually at a banana and possibly another small piece of that gingerbread "cake", then went on my run, then did the Green Smoothie.

Lunch: Balancing Broth (not having that because I tossed what was left) & Orange Spinach Salad with Tahini dressing. *What actually happened today was that I got caught up in grinding some hard white wheat berries into flour and making a new bread recipe, which is absolutely divine! And I had a piece of warm, fresh, whole-wheat bread with some butter and homemade spiced peach jam. It was heavenly.

Afternoon: Have another green smoothie (Oh c'mon! Seriously?!) and try to get some rest time. *Didn't happen today. And I did not have another green smoothie.

Dinner: Start with Smart Cocktail or Ecstatic Elixir (Razzle-Dazzle cocktail again), then a salad on mixed greens with grated carrots, beets, purple cabbage and an Avocado Dressing. Have a side of steamed broccoli & onions with Braggs Liquid Aminos. (I don't have that last ingredient and I am not going to have the onions with my broccoli) *What happened today with dinner is there was no Elixir and I planned on making the Orange Spinach Salad with Tahini dressing instead of what was suggested for the dinner salad. I made the Tahini dressing and it smelled gross. I tasted it and decided not to eat it on my salad. Went with the Raspberry Merlot again. So, the salad was the same as the lunch, but I added some avocado and omitted the red onion because I don't tolerate raw onion well. The salad was tasty and fresh with the oranges in it. I plan on trying a hummus recipe with that jar of Tahini that cost me $6.99. Hummus, I like.

*In bed by 10pm (yeah, right!)

I wanted to share some information in the textbook about Chia Seeds:

"Nothing compares to the chia seed when it comes to hydration and endurance. Once soaked, these tiny seeds open up and absorb nine times their volume in water. The seeds, once fully hydrated, form a gel that is phenomenal at keeping your body hydrated. This gel is also 90% soluble fiber, which is beneficial for your digestive tract and helps to lower cholesterol even more efficiently than oatmeal. And talk about an impressive nutritional profile: the seeds have twice the protein of any other seed or grain, five times the calcium of milk, and copious amounts of omega-3 and omega-6, essential oils for the body. *One word of warning: Don't use chia seeds unless you have soaked them for at least 10 minutes. If you eat them dry, they will use your body fluid to expand, and that can cause digestive issues and dehydration." pg. 28-29

Also, if you don't know what Tahini is (because I sure didn't). It is ground sesame seeds, which makes a sort of sesame butter. Kind of like peanut butter.

Today resulted in about 1300 calories or so. But the best part of the day was grinding the wheat. A friend from church let me come and use her grinder. I got to make fresh bread made with fresh ground flour. The other ingredients in the bread are: Honey, Oil (I used olive oil), salt, yeast, and water. Did I mention how amazing that bread is? I highly recommend trying out white wheat flour in your bread. Made from Hard White Wheat Berries. It's a lighter berry, and your family might actually think it's "white bread", but it is 100% whole wheat! Man, I love learning about this stuff!

My conclusions on the Cleanse: Not necessarily the most fun thing I have done, but it's definitely do-able. I was not nearly as hungry as I thought I would be. That was the thing that surprised me the most. I'm not a RAW food kind of girl. I mean not all the way. I haven't decided what percentage I would like to be. 80% maybe? I like my grains and I like some meat too. I feel good physically after eating all of this wonderful, nutritious food and I am excited to continue learning and making changes for better health, for myself and for my family. Hope you have enjoyed or gotten something from all of this.

My changes so far: (as for me and my house)
No white flour
No white sugar
Start using good oils: coconut and olive so far
No pop
Start weeding out highly processed foods/snacks