Oatmeal Bars

This recipe makes a great snack for breakfast, lunch, or at school.  You can add different ingredients depending on what you like, and it's super easy. 

Combine:
1 1/2 cups oats
1/2 cup gluten free flour mix (I use Namaste Perfect Flour Blend)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Then add:
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 cup milk or coconut milk
Your choice:  dried fruit (raisins, or cranberries, or blueberries, or all of them!), chocolate chips, shredded coconut, sunflower or pumpkin seeds are just a few of my favourite choices.

Pour batter into parchment lined baking pan.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until done. 

Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread

This chocolate zucchini bread tastes like moist chocolate cake!  In fact I will use this recipe for my son's next birthday (he has already requested it!).

This recipe is NOT nut free!

In food processor, process dry ingredients:
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup gluten free flour mix (I have been using Namaste Perfect Flour Blend)
1/4 cup cacao powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Remove dry ingredients, and process wet ingredients:
2 large eggs
2 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup raw honey
1/4 tsp stevia
3/4 cup grated zucchini

Add dry ingredients to processor and pulse until combined.  Pour into greased and floured loaf pan.  Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350, cool in pan for 2 hours.  I usually use a medium sized zucchini which gives me enough for a double batch, so I make two loaves at once doubling the above amounts.

Sooooo chocolatey and moist!

Gluten Free Apple Oatmeal Muffins

Yesterday my mother in law showed up with a giant bag of honey crisp apples and I needed something to do with them.  Apple muffins!

I made these yesterday, again taking an ordinary recipe I found off the internet and substituting certain ingredients to make it gluten free.  These turned out amazing!!  I will be making them again for sure.

These muffins ARE nut free!  Also, I tripled this recipe to make a huge batch.

Process dry ingredients:
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup gluten free flour mix (I have been using Namaste Perfect Flour Blend)
1 1/4 cups oats
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Remove dry ingredients from processor, then add and process wet ingredients:
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine dry and wet ingredients.  Fold in 2 chopped apples.  Fill muffin cups 3/4 full.  Bake for 18-20 minutes at 375.  The above amounts would make about a dozen muffins, I tripled it and got two dozen regular muffins and two dozen mini muffins.  Perfect for breakfasts, and for school snacks!

Amazing Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

For this recipe I simply googled a standard chocolate chip recipe and then tweaked it to make it gluten free.  I love playing with recipes and making them my own.  This one turned out absolutely amazing, with even a cookie dough worthy of licking the bowl!

I use my food processor for pretty much every recipe now because I am always experimenting with different flour/dry ingredient mixes.

This recipe IS nut free so it is perfect for school lunches!

In food processor, process the dry ingredients:
2 cups gluten free flour mix (I have been using Namaste Perfect Flour Blend with great results)
1 cup oats
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup ground chia
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

With a mixer, combine:
3/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter
Then add:
2 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla

Add dry ingredients to mixing bowl and combine.  Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips.  Roll into 1 1/4" balls and place 2" apart on baking sheet, flatten slightly.  Bake for 12-14 miutes at 350.  Makes 4-5 dozen depending on size.

Yum!

The Best Gluten Free Banana Bread

I finally have something I feel like posting about - FOOD!  I even briefly considered starting a new blog to share recipes but then decided against it since I've already started 4 blogs and that is enough.  This one will do fine.

Baking has been something I've always enjoyed but haven't done that much of it since having kids, mainly due to not having time and not wanting to make a mess.  I mean I did bake from time to time, but wouldn't say I was a weekly baker.  That is not until recently.  With both boys starting school full time I decided I wanted to try and make lots of baked good we can use for breakfasts, lunches, and snacks.  I was tired of constantly buying store bought cookies, cereal bars, and other snacks.  Plus I also have a wicked sweet tooth of my own, so I figured if we're all going to be eating 'treats' then I might as well be making them, and trying to make them as healthy as a baked treat could be.

My first challenge is making gluten free stuff.  My second challenge is also making much of it nut free so the kids can take it to school.  This was especially hard since my main go to for gf baking was almond flour.  I still use nut flours and butters for the treats we eat at home, but needed some nut free option for school snacks as well. 

I'm going to post my successful recipes here (individually so they're easy to search for again), starting with this gluten free banana bread recipe that I have been working on.  Not to toot my own horn or anything, but it is pretty awesome.

(This recipe is NOT nut free)

In a food processor, process dry ingredients:
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup gluten free flour mix (I have been using Namaste Perfect Flour Blend with great results)
1 tsp each - cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder
1/4 cup cacao nibs
3 tbsp chia or hemp hearts

Remove dry ingredients from processor, then process wet ingredients:
4 bananas
1/2 cup nut butter
4 eggs
4 tbsp coconut oil
4 tbsp raw honey
1tsp vanilla

Mix dry and wet ingredients together.  Add chocolate chips if desired.
Originally I was making this recipe in my cast iron skillet, but most recently I doubled the recipe and put it in two standard bread pans (greased and floured).  When using my skillet I baked for 45 minutes at 350.  When I made it last I accidently turned the oven off at some point and had to turn it back on again, so I'm not 100% sure how long they needed to be baked for but I would start with 45 minutes and check them, then bake for longer if needed.

I tend to be experimental with my baking so it's hard to write down exact recipes, but this is the gist of it.  I have also played around with converting this recipe into a gf carrot cake one, using a similar format as above but substituting shredded carrots instead of bananas, and applesauce instead of nut butter (and omitting the cacao nibs and chocolate chips of course, plus adding extra spices).  It still needs a bit of tweaking but it did taste good!

Enjoy!

Yummy Vegetable Soup

I love soup.  I could eat it every day, even in the middle of summer.  There is this organic vegetable soup that I would sometimes buy for lunch for the boys and I, and we all really like it.  But it gets costly buying it all the time, there would never be enough veggies in it, and I know it was loaded with salt (hence why it tasted so good!).  I tried on several occasions to make my own vegetable soup but it never tasted as good so I would just revert back to buying the store bought stuff.  Finally I think I got it, a super yummy homemade vegetable soup.

I based it loosely on this recipe that I found but ended up tweaking it depending on what veggies I had available.  I'm also pretty bad at keeping track of amounts, but this is basically how I made it today:

Vegetable Soup

1 diced potato

2 or 3 chopped carrots

1/2 chopped onion

2 stalks chopped celery

1 pint diced cherry tomatoes (or you can used canned diced tomatoes)

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen corn

1/2 can drained and rinsed kidney beans

3-4 cups vegetable juice

2-3 cups vegetable broth or water (whatever I have really)

*the amounts of liquids vary, I basically just keep adding until the pot is full

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1-2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp dried herbs

1 cup cooked pasta

Put all veggies, liquids, and seasonings in a pot and simmer until vegetables are tender.  Add cooked pasta last.  You could do rice instead if desired.

This makes a huge batch so we can eat soup all week or even freeze some.  I love it because it tastes good, and it has a good variety of vegetables in it that my picky kids will actually eat.  They especially love kidney beans so I like putting them in for that reason, but you could use chickpeas instead.

You could add any veggies you want to this really, I would have put some green beans in as well if I had some, or maybe some leeks or even broccoli.

Going to eat some now!  Yum!

Baking With Children

I don't like to do it.  It always seems like a fun activity, but in the end I find it's almost more frustrating than it's worth.  Still, every now and then I attempt it because I know my kids will have fun and we all enjoy the goodies that come out of it.

I used to enjoy baking before I had kids.  Not so much since becoming a mom.  But I do love baked goods!  And I do like to try and make them myself instead of buying store bought stuff.  I figure that even if I make goodies that are full of sugar, they're at least not full of chemicals and preservatives like the stuff you buy at the grocery store.

When Tristan was younger, a little older than two, I could set him up with two bowls, a few cups and spoons, and some flour and he would scoop the flour from one bowl to the next for hours while I baked.  It was messy, but he loved it.  Finn is not quite that age yet and so it doesn't occupy him quite the same way, and Tristan is older now and so he wants to be more involved.

My problem is I'm too much of a control and a clean freak to let him do that much.  I can set him up with stuff to mix and try not to cringe too much when I see it spilling all over the place.  That part is easy.  But the constant sticking his hands in the bowl, trying to eat it when I told him not to because of the raw eggs, and requests for the goodies to be done so he can eat them really starts to get to me.  He's 3.5 now and so patience is a little hard to come by (for both of us!).

Nope, I'm not really cut out to bake with small children.

Nevertheless, we attempted to make some muffins today and it was fun for the boys.  Finn scooped some flour for about 5mins before getting bored and wandering off, and Tristan helped mix the filling for the muffins as well as all the dry ingredients.  And of course, he was VERY proud of himself when they were done and when Daddy got home proudly exclaimed that he had helped make them.  So that in itself does make it worth it.

So what did we make today?  I decided to try this recipe I found on Pinterest for Strawberries and Cream Muffins.  They were a fair bit of work (or maybe they just seemed that way with two little people trying to 'help'), but they were very very yummy.  Of course I opted to use whole wheat flour instead of white flour, and because Tristan wanted 'sprinkle cupcakes' instead of muffins we sprinkled some red sugar sprinkles on top of them before popping them in the oven.

I'm feeling rather ambitious this week so I'm thinking after we've polished off all the strawberries and cream muffins we'll bake some banana ones.  At least those ones are a little easier to make.

Single Serving Chocolate Cake in 5 Minutes

And from the too good to be true category....

I found this on Pinterest (which I am starting to get addicted too though still not as much as some people I know).  Last night I saw it, checked out the recipe, realized I had all the ingredients, and decided to give it a shot.

What is it you might ask?  Well, it's a single serving of decadent chocolate cake that is not unhealthy and that you can make in 5mins.  I know, I know, how is this possible?  Well, it is.  The recipe works, it's relatively healthy, and it's easy.

And so, I share it with you here (though it's taken from the blog Chocolate Covered Katie, so I cannot take any credit for this brilliant invention).

• 1 tablespoon plus 2 tsp cocoa powder
• 3 tablespoons spelt flour (or white, or even peanut or coconut flour)
• 1/2 tsp instant coffee granules
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 tsp evaporated cane juice (or sugar)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 stevia packet (or 1 more tablespoon sugar)
• 1 tablespoon coconut or veg oil 3 tablespoons milk of choice
• 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Combine dry ingredients and mix very, very well. Add liquid, stir, then transfer to a little dish, ramekin, or even a coffee mug. Microwave 45-50 seconds (or more, depending on how powerful your microwave is). If you don’t want to eat it straight out of the dish, be sure to spray your dish first (and then wait for the cake to cool before trying to remove it).

So fast, so easy, so yummy.  So much so that I made it again today.  And maybe later tonight.  Oh dear.

Best Butternut Squash Soup Ever

Mmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2 tbsp butter (or more if needed)

1 small onion

1 celery stalk

1 medium carrot

2 medium potatoes

1 medium squash

5 or 6 sprigs fresh tarragon

32oz chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 cup cream or less (optional)

salt and pepper

1 tsp curry powder (my husband's secret ingredient, he tries to put it in everything)

1 tsp pumpkin spice (nutmeg & cinnamon)

plain yogurt and parsley for garnish

Melt butter in saucepan and sautee vegetables for about 5mins.  Cover with broth and simmer for about 40mins.  Once vegetables are cooked, add tarragon and cream (if you prefer a creamier version) or more broth if needed, and spices.  Use a hand blender to blend everything until smooth, add more broth if thinner consistency is desired.  Garnish with a dollop of plain yogurt and some chopped parsley.

I think this makes about 6-8 servings but I'm not sure.  I always end up chopping up a bit more vegetables than the original recipe called for, and since I don't have a very large pot I had to use two.

This is the best butternut squash soup ever, hands down.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Stevia Ice Cream

So I don't blog for ages and when I finally do it's about ice cream.  I guess we can see what's important to write about here!

What I really wanted was the chocolate chocolate chip cherry stevia ice cream I had made awhile back.  So I had went out and bought all the stuff to make it, except the cherries because I thought I had some.  Today it was a toss up between making the ice cream or taking a nap (it was a hard decision).  I decided to make the ice cream, got everything out, then realized the cherries had gone bad.  Arrrghhhh!!!  But it was too late for a nap and I still wanted ice cream, so I decided to make just chocolate instead.  And instead of searching out a new recipe for chocolate, I went ahead and made the same one minus the cherries since I knew from last time that it was yummy.

HEAVENLY!!!!  Is all I can say.

Here it is:

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Stevia Ice Cream

3 squares unsweetened baker's chocolate

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup milk

2 eggs

2 cups cream

1-1 1/2 tsp powdered stevia (I used 1 1/2 tsp because I wanted it sweet!)

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

Melt chocolate in a pan, add the cocoa powder and milk slowly and stir until smooth (this was tricky and I could never get completely smooth).  Beat the eggs in a separate bowl, add cream and chocolate.  Mix, then add stevia and vanilla.  Add to ice cream maker.  When ice cream thickens add chocolate chips.  It didn't take long for mine to finish, maybe 15mins.

Oh.my.goodness it was so good.  I honestly wasn't sure if it was going to be any good, but it was amazing.  SO creamy and SO yummy.  I'll be making it again for sure.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes

Tyler is usually the maker of pancakes in our house.  I can only recall making them once before, though they did turn out well.  The official pancake maker is away this weekend, and I have been wanting to make a batch for freezing for some time, so I figured I'd give it another go.  We have a really great buttermilk pancake recipe from Tyler's mom that we have used in the past, though we are constantly trying to tweak it so that we can use more wholesome ingredients.  Today was no exception.  After having already decided I was making them (and telling T about it, so there was no going back), I realized that we didn't have any buttermilk or yogurt (the latter being what we usually use in place of buttermilk).  With a little creativity though I was able to whip up some super yummy, healthy blueberry pancakes using whole wheat flour instead of the traditional white stuff, and agave instead of sugar.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes - recipe makes about 2 dozen pancakes

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

3 eggs

3 tbsp light agave nectar

3 1/2 cups buttermilk OR plain yogurt (or in today's case I used 1 cup ricotta cheese and about 2 1/2 cups milk)

3 tbsp melted butter

1 1/2 cups blueberries

Sift together dry ingredients.  Beat eggs in a separate bowl then add agave, buttermilk/yogurt, and melted butter.  Add wet ingredients to dry and mix, then add blueberries.  Use 1/4 cup batter per pancake and cook on a hot, lightly oiled skillet about 3-4mins per side or until golden brown and cooked all the way through.

I like to freeze them wrapped in 4's for a quick breakfast throughout the week.

End of the Week Chicken Soup

Lately what we have started doing is making a crock pot chicken soup on Fridays.  We often pick up a whole chicken that we can make several meals out of, and so we save the leftovers for the soup.  Saturdays is when we go to the Farmer's Market and grocery store to pick up more food for the week, so making a soup on Friday helps us clear out whatever is left in the fridge that might not last much longer.  It helps ensure we are not wasting food while making a super yummy and healthy meal (or two!) at the same time.

This week's soup ingredients:

leftovers from two chickens, including bones

carrots, potatoes, broccoli, onions, tomatoes, peas, green beans, spinach, bean sprouts

seasonings (dried herbs, onion powder, bay leaves, salt and pepper)

organic chicken broth and water

wild rice

I threw the chicken, veggies and seasonings in the pot the night before.  At lunchtime today I added the broth and water and turned it on high.  An hour before dinnertime I removed the chicken and took the meat off, then added it back into the pot.  Cooked and added the rice.  Super easy, super yummy.

Our soup needed something to go with it, so I raided the fridge once again for stuff and came up with a fresh summery salad consisting of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, green peppers, and yellow beans, tossed in a raspberry vinaigrette.

Quickly whipped up some homemade whole wheat biscuits, and voila!

There were 11 different veggies in this meal.  (well, 12 if you let me count green and yellow beans as two!).  This is such a great way to use up veggies that are looking a little wilty.  Another thing we like to do with these veggies at the end of the week is to use them to make our own vegetable broth.  Just another way to make sure we're not wasting anything.

The very definition of comfort food I think.  I hope my boys grow up thinking "Mom's cooking is the best!"

California Spring Salad

Thursday night's dinner was inspired by the salad of the same name from Milestone's.  I used to work there and it was probably one of my favorite dishes.  So I decided to try and recreate something similar for chicken salad night.

Ingredients

sliced chicken breast
organic field greens and herbs
organic strawberries, sliced
red onions, thinly sliced
maple glazed pecans (easy to make, just toss in maple syrup and a bit of melted butter and toast in the oven)
honey balsamic vinaigrette
goat cheese

Toss all the ingredients with the vinaigrette and top with goat cheese.  So easy, and so yummy!!

The Great Cookie Experiment

I originally got the recipe for breakfast cookies from my BW friend Karen.  I decided to tweak and add a few things to see if I can make them even healthier.  I started out with the recipe she gave me, but soon it turned into an experiment to see how much wholesome stuff I could pack into them.

So I started with putting this stuff in a bowl:

2 cups crushed cereal (I used PC Organics Ancient Grains)

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup spelt flour

1/4 wheat germ

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

Then I started to go a little nuts.  Every time I looked into our newly organized pantry I saw something else that I thought about throwing in.  So I added (approximate amounts, I wasn't even really measuring at this point)

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

1/4 cup ground almonds

1/4 cup ground oatmeal

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1/4 cup sesame seeds

In another bowl I mixed:

3 eggs (original recipe called for 2, but seeing as how I was significantly adding to the dry ingredients, I figured I'd better add another egg)

3/4 cup ricotta cheese (Karen also recommends tofu)

1/4 cup peanut butter (not in the original recipe, but I thought why not?  Next time I will use a different type like almond or cashew)

6 tbsp agave nectar (originally called for brown sugar)

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp vanilla

1/4 cup oil (I used some melted butter and coconut oil)

1/4 cup apple butter (again, not in original recipe)

I think that's everything?

I mixed the contents of the two bowls together then assessed the consistency.  Still a little on the wet/sticky side.  So I threw in some more spelt flour to make it more cookie batter like.  What the heck, I threw in some more of the Ancient Grains cereal too, this time leaving the flakes whole instead of the crushing them.

Then I put balls of batter on a greased cookie sheet and flattened them a little. 

Stuck them in the oven and prayed they would work.  16 minutes at 400 degrees.  I got 3 dozen cookies out of it.

Success!  They were yummy, moist, and chewy.  I think you could flatten them a little more and cook for a little less to get a crunchier variation.

They were a hit with the boys for sure.  Now I won't feel so guilty when they ask for a cookie.

So, next time I'm thinking shredded apple or carrots.  I'm thinking raisins or other dried fruit.  I'm thinking chopped almonds.  I'm thinking pumpkin and sunflower seeds.  I'm thinking shredded coconut.  Really, the possibilities are endless.  Try it yourself and have fun with it.  I don't think you can mess this recipe up really, just keep adding stuff until you get the right consistency.  It was fun and easy!  And definitely better than any store bought stuff.

What should I call them?  Hmmmmm.........

Strawberry Lemonade Bars

I seem to be all about the recipes these days (and a big thank you to my friend Mashi for letting me in on this one!).

So unlike my recent treats, these ones are not sugar free (hey, I can't be good all the time!).  But I did manage to reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe by more than half by using stevia instead for the filling.  I didn't want to try messing around with the crust since I figured the lack of sugar would change it too much.  For the filling however I omitted the sugar (all 1 1/4 cups of it!) and used 1 tsp powdered stevia, then made up the rest of the lost bulk with extra strawberry puree (which actually was sweetened with a little bit of sugar, so I can't claim the filling is entire free of the stuff!).

The recipe worked out just fine though and the bars were delicious.  A very refreshing alternative to other baked sweets.  Actually they weren't very sweet at all, more on the tart side.  Basically like pouring an entire pitcher of strawberry lemonade onto a crust and baking it!

So here is the recipe.  (original recipe and picture here)

Strawberry Lemonade Bars

Crust
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

Filling

1 cup fresh lemon juice
2-3 tsp lemon zest
1 1/2 cup pureed strawberries
1 tsp powdered stevia
4 large eggs
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.

To make crust:

In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until smooth and fluffy.  Gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly. Press into pan and bake for about 17 minutes, until set at the edges.
While the crust bakes, prepare the filling:
In the bowl of a food processor, combine lemon juice, lemon zest, strawberry puree, sugar and eggs and process until smooth. Add in flour, baking powder and salt, then pulse until smooth.
Gently pour the filling over the hot crust when it has finished baking. Return pan to oven and bake for 23-26 minutes, until the filling is set.

Cool completely before slicing and use a damp knife to ensure clean slices.

Makes 24 bars.

These bars lasted about 24hrs in the house before they were all gone.  And I will admit that I ate most of them (they're suitable for breakfast, right?).  Good thing about the reduced sugar part.

Strawberry Stevia Ice Cream

Seeing as how I am still on my sugar-free goodies kick, coupled with the fact that we went strawberry picking the other day and have an overabundance of them, the only logical thing left to do would be to make sugar free strawberry ice cream using stevia.  So here is what I did.  *note to self: must remember to take pictures next time!

Strawberry Stevia Ice Cream

3 cups strawberries

2 eggs

2 cups half and half

1 cup whipping cream

1 1/2 tsp stevia

1/2 vanilla

about 1/2 cup chopped strawberry chunks

Puree 3 cups strawberries with 1 cup half and half cream.

Whip  eggs, the add remaining cup half and half, whipping cream,  stevia, vanilla, and pureed strawberry mixture, then mix it all together.

Turn on ice cream maker and pour mixture in.

While it's making the ice cream, chop up some more strawberries into small chunks.  I wasn't measuring, but I think I had about 1/2 cup.

Once ice cream has started to thicken add strawberry chunks.

I think in total I had it in the machine for about 25mins. 

Transfer to another container and put it in the freezer to firm up.

It was so good I couldn't wait for it to freeze up properly before helping myself to a bowl.  It had more of a soft serve consistency but was delicious none the less!

Fantastic Sugar Free Banana Bread

So we have this amazing banana bread recipe Tyler found online awhile back that yields seriously the best banana bread ever.  I wanted to make a sugar free banana bread using stevia, but still wanted to use our usual recipe, so I just figured out how to substitute stevia for sugar.  Basically 1 cup sugar = 1tsp stevia, but you have to make up the lost bulk with something that works in whatever recipe you are using.  The original recipe called for 3/4 cup sugar, so we used 1 tsp stevia and made up the rest with extra mashed banana. 

Sugar Free Banana Bread

Combine:

2 cups flour

1 tsp stevia

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Mash 3 ripe bananas (+extra bananas to make up for the lost 3/4 cup sugar) then add:

2 large eggs, beaten

6 tbsp melted butter

 1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt

Pour wet ingredients into dry and fold.  Pour into greased and floured pan and bake at 350 C for 45-50mins.

So how did it turn out?  Amazing!!  Still moist and delicious, and just sweet enough.  We made one plain loaf and one loaf with home made sugar free chocolate chips.  (not sure how Tyler made them, but I think it was something along the lines of melting baker's chocolate then adding stevia to sweeten, then spreading on a parchment lined baking sheet, cooling, then breaking into 'chips')

And the best part is feeling good about offering it to our kids as a snack knowing that it's sugar free.  They love it too!

Homemade Chocolate Cherry Ice Cream....Yum!

I have a wicked sweet tooth.  If sugar is the devil then I most certainly am the devil's advocate.  Ice cream in particular is my weakness, I could easily eat a bowl a day.  Tyler is always on my case about how much sweet stuff I consume, and I really do try to curb my demon but it's hard!

Anyways, this weekend I am on my own with the kids so thought I deserved a tub of my current favorite ice cream, PC Cherry Chocolate Chip.  Instead of obliging my request, Tyler suggested that I try making my own since we have a rarely used ice cream maker sitting in our cupboard.  He went one step further and googled chocolate chip cherry stevia ice cream.  This is what he found.

So today I gave it a go.  Ok ok, I cheated a little bit.  Instead of baker's chocolate I used semi-sweet chocolate chips so there is a little bit of sugar in there.  And at the end where it calls for pouring melted chocolate into the ice cream while it's mixing, I got lazy and just added the remaining chocolate chips.  But the overall outcome?  Fantastic!

You'd never know this recipe is essentially sugar free.  It's just sweet enough to satisfy and of course has my two favorite things in an ice cream - chocolate and cherries.  I would definitely make this recipe again, and am thinking of looking for more ice cream recipes using stevia that I can make to satisfy my ice cream cravings.  Give it a try!

Cupcakes!

For my children's birthdays, and also at other times as well, I like to bake treats that are healthier and not loaded with tons of refined sugar and processed ingredients.  I have this fantastic book called Baking with Agave Nectar by Ania Catalano that I picked up a few years ago.  I have never been disappointed with any of the recipes I've tried.  Agave is a natural sweetener that is healthier to use in baking and cooking than refined sugar.  It's made from the agave plant (the same plant that gives us tequila, it's the plant that just keeps on giving!) and has a honey-like consistency. 

I like the recipes in this book because not only do they use agave instead of sugar, they also call for more wholesome ingredients including fruits and vegetables, and use different types of healthier flours instead of processed white flour.  There are lots of vegan and gluten free recipes too, if you're so inclined.

For T's first birthday I made this amazing dark chocolate cake (pg 47) that was made with zucchini, and I layered it with dark chocolate ganache (pg 108) and iced it with vanilla buttercream frosting (pg 106).  It was so yummy!

For F's birthday I opted to do cupcakes, and decided to make 3 different varieties from the book:  Fudgy chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream, Hopsie's cupcakes (made with carrots and zucchini), and Spiced pumpkin apple cupcakes, both iced with cream cheese frosting.

They were all amazing.  Here are the recipes.

Fudgy Chocolate Cupcakes (pg 49) - gluten free and low fat

Makes 12 cupcakes

1/4 cup unsalted butter or nonhydrogenated butter substitute

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup light agave nectar

1 1/4 cups quinoa flour (quinoa is high in protein and fiber)

1/2 tsp each baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt

2 large eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt or unsweetened soy yogurt

Preheat oven to 375.  Line cupcake pan with liners. 

Place butter and water in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil and remove from heat.  Whisk in the cocoa powder and agave nectar.  Let cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add the cooled cocoa mixture, egg yolks, vanilla, and yogurt to the flour and mix well.  In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer at medium speed, beat the egg whites until stiff, but not dry, approximately 2mins.  Gently fold into the batter.

Spoon into prepared cupcake pan and bake for 15-20mins, until toothpick comes out clean.  Frost with buttercream frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting (pg 106) - gluten free

Makes 2 cups

1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 tbsp light agave nectar

1 cup nonfat dry milk

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 tbsp whole milk

pinch of sea salt

Cream the butter with an electric mixer until light in colour.  Slowly add the agave and beat until fluffy, about 1-2mins.  Gradually add the dry milk and beat again.  Add the vanilla extract and the milk, one tablespoon at a time, until completely blended.  Add the salt, turn the mixer to high speed, and beat about 2mins, or until very fluffy.  Store in the fridge for up to 3wks.

Hopsie's Cupcakes (pg 58)

Makes 12 cupcakes

2 cups packed finely grated zucchini (about 2 medium zucchini)

1 cup packed finely grated carrots (about 5 or 6 medium carrots)

1 tsp sea salt

1 1/2 cups sprouted spelt flour or whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp each baking powder and baking soda

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

3/4 cup light agave nectar

2/3 cup canola oil (I used melted butter instead)

2 large eggs

1/2 cups walnuts, chopped plus extra for garnish (optional, I omitted these)

1/3 cup currants or raisins (optional, again I left them out)

Place zucchini and carrots in a strainer.  Sprinkle with the salt and mix well.  Let drain for 15-20mins, until most of the moisture is released.

Preheat the oven to 350.  Line cupcake pan.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer beat together the agave nectar the canola oil (butter).  Add the eggs and beat well.  Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat until well combined.  Squeeze out any remaining moisture from the drained zucchini and carrots.  Using a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, fold in the zucchini, carrots, walnuts, and currents/raisins (if using), and spoon the batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 20-25mins, until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Cool and frost with cream cheese frosting.

Spiced Pumpkin Apple Cupcakes (pg 59)

Makes 12 cupcakes

3/4 cup canned organic pumpkin

2 large eggs

3/4 cup amber agave nectar

1/2 cup canola oil (I used melted butter)

1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice

2 cups sprouted spelt flour, regular whole grain spelt flour, or whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 tsp each baking powder and baking soda

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

pinch of sea salt

2 apples (any variety), peeled and chopped into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350.  Line cupcake pan.

In a large bowl, whisk the pumpkin, eggs, agave, canola oil (butter), vanilla, and lemon juice until well blended.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.  Add the pumpkin mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just blended.  Stir in the apples.  Spoon into prepared pan and bake for 25-30mins, until toothpick comes out clean.  Frost with cream cheese frosting when cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting (pg 110) - gluten free

Makes 2 cups

6 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature

12 oz cream cheese, low-fat Neufchatel cheese or a combination of both

3/4 cup light agave nectar

1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

juice of 1/2 lemon

Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and cream cheese.  Add the agave, vanilla, and lemon juice.  Beat well until smooth and fluffy.

I also made these yummy treats as well.  They're a healthier take on rice crispy squares, and are great for an everyday snack too!

Crispy Brown Rice and Cashew Treats (pg 36)

*This is my own variation*

1 cup light agave nectar

6 tbsp cashew and almond nut butter

pinch of sea salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tbsp vanilla extract

8 cups (one 10oz box) unsweetened crispy brown rice cereal

1 cup cashews, toasted and chopped

1/4 cup each pumpkin, sunflower, and sesame seeds

*The original recipe omits the seeds and includes unsulfured apricots.  You could probably do any combination of dried fruit, nuts, and seeds that you like*

Lightly oil a 9x13 inch glass baking pan with canola oil or butter.

In a large bowl, combine the agave, nut butter, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla.  Mix until well blended.  Add the cereal, cashews, and seeds and mix well.  Firmly press the mixture into the prepared pan and cover with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for 2 or more hours, or until firm.  Cut into squares to serve.

Enjoy!!