Delicious whole wheat blueberry muffins

For my third recipe in the grain mill challenge, I wanted to make blueberry muffins for breakfast, and came across a recipe that looked good on Pinterest. I thought they would be good, but I didn’t imagine that they would be as good as they were! These are now my favorite blueberry muffins, and my whole family agrees. They are healthy, but they have such a wonderful flavor. They are moist, not too dense, and sweet but not so sweet that you feel like you are having cake for breakfast. I used coconut oil for its health benefits and I think that it also enhanced the flavor with its subtle taste. I was surprised that these do not have egg in them, as most muffin recipes I’ve made usually call for egg. I wondered if they would bind together well without it, and they did. I didn’t have any brown sugar, so I used a mixture of sucanat and regular organic sugar, and I loved the amount of sweetness. These were incredibly easy to make and I found that flavor to be perfect. I am so glad I found this recipe-it is a must try!

100% Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

Slightly adapted from a recipe I found here and originally adapted from King Arthur Flour

I N G R E D I E N T S :

2 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour (I used freshly milled soft white wheat flour but you can you store-bought wheat if you prefer to)

1 cup (7 1/2 oz) packed light brown sugar (I didn’t have any brown sugar so I used 3/4 cup sucanat and 1/4 cup organic sugar)

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup fresh blueberries (use either fresh or unthawed frozen berries)

1/3 cup coconut oil

1 1/2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle on top

D I R E C T I O N  S :

If milling flour, mill enough soft white wheat berries for 2 1/4 cups flour. I usually mill a larger amount of flour every so often, and store what I don’t use in the freezer (to better preserve it) rather than milling it each time beforehand.

Preheat oven to 400 F. Line muffin pan with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Be sure to break up any clumps of brown sugar. Stir in the blueberries. Add the coconut oil, buttermilk, and vanilla to a measuring cup and whisk to combine. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and stir just until they are incorporated.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared liners, filling each about 3/4-full. Lightly sprinkle a small amount of cinnamon and sugar over each muffin. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when lightly pressed with your fingertip, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes before removing them to the rack. 

Homemade granola

I had been wanting to make some granola for breakfast because we are always buying the packaged kind, and the homemade version is healthier and definitely less processed. I made this and it is delicious. I use coconut oil and combined honey and maple syrup, and loved the flavor. The dried fruit adds a sweet and tart punch and I especially love the addition of dried cherries. You could also use other types of nuts and seeds to your liking. The amounts of what I add in often varies, depending on what I have and after making it numerous times, I just eyeball the amounts rather than measuring out every single ingredient exactly. We love this recipe and I make it weekly! It is healthy, filling, and  my husband and I have both found that our blood sugar feels so much better after eating it than when we eat packaged cereal. It's great served as cereal with milk and also over yogurt with fresh fruit. And I haven't made any granola bars with this recipe yet, but I am sure they would be great as well. I find most of the ingredients from the Earth Fare bulk bins unless I buy them in bulk at Costco (which is where I find my coconut and grape seed oils, sliced almonds, maple syrup and dried fruit).

Homemade granola

I N G R E D I E N T S :

3-4 cups oats

1 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup dried cranberries, cherries, and /or raisins (I use all three but you could use less to cut out sugar)

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (I find unsweetened at earth fare in containers near the bulk bins)
1/4 cup golden flax seeds (if I have them)
2 Tbsp chia seeds (if I have them-I buy them in bulk at Costco)

1/2-1/3 cup Tbsp. coconut oil (if I'm out of coconut oil, I use grape seed oil and it's good, too)

1/4 cup raw honey

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 large pinch sea salt-I use Real Salt from Earth Fare in the bulk bin because it has more minerals
ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Combine oats, nuts, seeds, dried fruit and shredded coconut in a bowl and mix.

Add coconut oil, honey, maple syrup, and vanilla and mix until well combined.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place granola onto it in an even layer. If you've made   a large batch and it's making a pretty thick layer on the pan, sometimes using two pans works better. Sprinkle with salt and cinnamon. 

Bake on 300 degrees for 20 minutes or until granola is a golden brown, tossing once or twice during cooking to keep it from forming large chunks. I usually let it bake for 10 minutes and then toss around and bake for 10 more. You want to make sure to not overcook it or it will taste too done. It's usually good when the edges are turning a light brown, but you don't want it to be very brown all over, or it will taste overcooked.

Let cool and store in an air tight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Incredible breakfast casserole ::re-post::

A few years back when we lived in Memphis, I was part of a supper club. One of the recipes from the book we were going through was this wonderful breakfast casserole. It was so good that I've been dying for a chance to make it again ever since then. I finally made it for Christmas this year and it did not disappoint. We ate every last bit (I halved the recipe for my family of four) and every bite was delicious. I did not get a picture, but trust me, you will want to make this! This is the best breakfast casserole I've ever had. Plus, it's easily assembled the night before, which makes for easy breakfast preparation the morning of. I highly recommend it!

Sausage, Egg, Grits Casserole
From Tables of Content, a Junior League of Birmingham cookbook

I N G R E D I E N T S :
1 pound hot bulk sausage (I halved the recipe and when I did, I only used 1 lb mild sausage)
1 pound mild bulk sausage
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
2 cups cooked grits
1 3/4 cups milk, heated
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted (I actually forgot to add this, and definitely don't think it needed it)
1 (8-ounce) package corn bread mix
1 (6-ounce) roll garlic cheese, cut up* 
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1/8 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce

*For the garlic cheese: Kraft no longer makes this. I halved the recipe and for the garlic cheese substitute, I used 3 oz of a block of velveeta and 1/4 tsp. garlic powder. For the entire recipe you would simply double that amount. 

D I R E C T I O N S :
Brown the sausage in a large skillet, stirring until crumbly; drain. Spread the sausage over the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13-inch baking dish and sprinkle with the Cheddar cheese.

Combine the grits, warm milk, butter, corn bread mix, garlic cheese, eggs, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce in a bowl and mix well. Pour the grits mixture over the prepared layers and chill, covered, for 8-10 hours.

Let the casserole stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the casserole for 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

egg in a hole (or heart)

I've seen this recipe many times before and thought it would be a fun way to serve up eggs in the morning. I finally got around to it, and love it! It's so fun! You can use any shape cookie cutter that will fit inside a piece of bread and make the egg in it. I thought hearts would be cute (wouldn't that be a fun Valentine's day breakfast?), and my daughters loved it. This is so easy to do, and it's pretty mess-free, which I love! Christmas tree or angel cutouts would be especially cute for this time of year, too!

Egg in a hole

I N G R E D I E N T S :
butter
bread
eggs
salt
pepper


D I R E C T I O N S :
Butter and preheat a skillet on medium heat.
Meanwhile, take each slice of bread and, using a cookie cutter, cut out a circle, heart, etc, keeping the piece that you cut out.
Crack one egg and pour it into the hole of the bread. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until desired doneness, flipping once. While you do this, cook the part of the bread you cut out in the skillet on top of a little butter, for toast.
Once the egg is cooked, simply lift the toast/egg out with a spatula, and place on a plate with remaining toast pieces. I like to serve the toast with jelly.

Carrot apple coconut muffins

These were great! My 4 year old daughter loved helping me bake them and the whole family liked having them for breakfast. These are easy and healthy. I'm not a huge coconut fan, but the addition added only a subtle flavor and didn't really effect the texture. To make them even healthier, you could use whole wheat flour.

Carrot Apple Coconut Muffins

from Weelicious

Makes 30 mini muffins or 12 regular sized muffins

I N G R E D  I E N T S :

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (all I could find was sweetened at my grocery store)

2 carrots, peeled and grated (about 1 cup)

1 apple, peeled and grated (about 1 cup, and gala, pink lady, or red delicious are good choices)

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil

1/2 cup honey

D I R E C T  I O N S :

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients

Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet and stir to combine

Place 1 Tbsp. batter into greased mini muffin tins, or fill regular sized muffin tins to 3/4-all the way full.

For mini muffins, bake at 350 for 15 minutes, and for regular sized muffins, bake 20 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).

Yogurt Parfaits with homemade Granola

We are trying to cut out as many processed foods as possible in our home. I recently came upon the 100 days of real food website, and have been very encouraged by it, as well as given many good tips, information, and recipes through it. One such recipe is homemade granola. I have known for a while that it is simple and tasty, but hadn't actually tried it until recently. Homemade granola is a great alternative to store bought cereal. It is cost efficient (depending on what all you put into it), and it really is super simple to make. It also goes great on yogurt parfaits, which is now my 3 year old daughter's favorite breakfast. It is funny to hear has ask for 'my parfait' for breakfast in the morning. 

The version I made is adapted from the original one, only because I was trying to be as frugal as possible. I omitted the cashews, and the bulk bins at my local Earth Fare were out of sunflower seeds. I would like to make this sometime with all of the ingredients because I can only imagine it would be even tastier.

Note: You can also use this recipe to make granola bars.

Yogurt Parfaits

I N G R E D I E N T S :

Plain Yogurt (I use whole milk yogurt)

Granola (see recipe below)

Blueberries (I thaw a handful of frozen berries in hot water for a couple of minutes)

Honey (I use raw honey)

Other possibilities: bananas, raisins or other dried fruit, or other types of berries.

D I R E C T I O N S :

Scoop one cup yogurt in a bowl. Top with granola, berries, and drizzle with honey. 

Homemade Granola

Original recipe found here.

I N G R E D I E N T S :

3 1/2 cups rolled oats (if you want bars use steel cut oats so it will stick together better)

1 cup raw sliced almonds 

1 cup raw cashew pieces (I omitted these but you can also use walnuts or pecans)

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (I didn't have any)

1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds (These would be great, I just didn't have any)

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seed

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger (I'm not big on ginger so I think I only used 1/2 tsp)

1/2 teaspoon grated or ground nutmeg

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup honey

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Also need – parchment paper

D I R E C T I O N S :

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. 

Cover a rectangular baking sheet with parchment paper.

Mix the dry oats, almonds, cashews, coconut, seeds and spices together in a large mixing bowl.

Heat the butter and honey together in a small saucepan over low heat. 

Once the butter melts, stir in the vanilla.

Pour the hot liquids over the dry ingredients and stir together with a rubber spatula until evenly coated.

Spread mixture onto prepared pan in one even layer. Bake for 75 minutes.

The granola will become crisp as it cools at which point you can break into pieces (if making bars) or break it up into small chunks by pounding it in a zip lock bag (if making cereal). 

Store in air tight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Blueberry dream smoothie

We love a good smoothie for breakfast. They are nutritious, filling, and such a fruity treat. I've been avoiding cow's milk lately, so this morning I tried a smoothie with some coconut milk, and I could not believe the difference! I was a little hesitant because I don't enjoy coconut milk on its own, but I needed to use it up. After taking one sip of this delicious smoothie, I am fully convinced that replacing cow's milk with coconut milk in a smoothie is the way to go. Coconut milk is nutritious, a great source of calcium, and the texture and flavor (though it really does not have a flavor on its own) really took our morning smoothie to the next level. For those of you trying to start eating healthier this upcoming year, I highly recommend this yummy breakfast treat. It was such a hit in our house, I had to post the recipe right away.

Blueberry dream smoothie

yield: 3-4 servings

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries

1 cup vanilla yogurt (or you could use plain yogurt and sweeten with honey)

1 1/2 bananas (I was using the other half banana to feed my baby for breakfast, but you could use 1 or 2)

1 cup unsweetened coconut milk ( I used Coconut dream original brand in a carton)

You could also add some fresh spinach for extra nutrition-we do this often

D I R E C T I O N S :

Place blueberries, bananas, and yogurt in blender and blend on high speed. Add coconut milk in gradually.

Incredible breakfast casserole

Last year, I was a member of a supper club some girls in my Sunday school class put together. We went through Tables of Content, which is a Junior League of Birmingham cookbook, and had a lot of fun over some great meals. One of my favorite dishes in the book is this breakfast casserole-it is just incredible. We also served it for a baby shower our Sunday school class hosted for two friends. This is the best breakfast casserole I've had, and I've been dying to make it but just don't have an excuse (I don't usually make things like this just for my family's breakfast). I would love to make it soon, but until then, I wanted to share it with you all. Make it. I promise, it does not disappoint! The instructions for this casserole allow you to prepare it the night before, too, which makes it an easy meal to pop in the oven before a nice breakfast or brunch.

Sausage, Egg, Grits Casserole
From Tables of Content, a Junior League of Birmingham cookbook

I N G R E D I E N T S :
1 pound hot bulk sausage
1 pound mild bulk sausage
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
2 cups cooked grits
1 3/4 cups milk, heated
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 (8-ounce) package corn bread mix
1 (6-ounce) roll garlic cheese, cut up
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1/8 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp. Tabasco sauce

D I R E C T I O N S :
Brown the sausage in a large skillet, stirring until crumbly; drain. Spread the sausage over the bottom of a lightly greased 9x13-inch baking dish and sprinkle with the Cheddar cheese.

Combine the grits, warm milk, butter, corn bread mix, garlic cheese, eggs, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco sauce in a bowl and mix well. Pour the grits mixture over the prepared layers and chill, covered, for 8-10 hours.

Let the casserole stand for 30 minutes at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the casserole for 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

Serves 8-10

delicious breakfast blueberry muffins

These muffins are easy to make and bursting with flavor. I came up with the recipe this morning when blueberry muffins were calling my name. These are a wonderful breakfast treat, and fairly healthy, too! To make even healthier, use all whole wheat.

I N G R E D I E N T S :

For the muffins:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar (or organic cane crystals)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 eggs
1 cup Stonyfield organic low-fat Blueberry yogurt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup frozen blueberries (or fresh, if you have them)


For the topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. each granulated sugar and firmly packed light brown sugar (or sukanat)
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground flax seed (optional)
2 Tbsp. cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces


D I R E C T I O N S :
Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12 muffin tin or line it with paper baking cups. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. In another bowl, stir together eggs, yogurt, butter and vanilla until blended. Toss blueberries with the flour mixture.
Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until the flour is just moistened. The batter will be lumpy. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups.  Sprinkle some of the topping onto each muffin. 
Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Yields 12 muffins.

Banana nut muffins

My friend Amber at This Mommy Cooks was on the lookout for a banana nut muffin recipe, and I have one I've made numerous times and just love. So, I figured, it would be a good time to just post it on here as well! This recipe is super easy, and very basic. Nothing fancy, but just a good, classic banana muffin. We love this recipe, and I hope you will, too! In fact, I really should make it soon...

*Update: I did make these, and, as always, they were so good! This time, however, I tried to make them a little healthier, and we all loved how they tasted! I also sprinkled some of the nuts on top of the muffins, a la my friend Amber. Please note my changes in {parenthesis}.

Banana Nut Muffins

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1-1/2 cup flour {for a healthier version, use fresh soft white wheat, whole wheat pastry,or white whole wheat flour}

3/4 cup sugar {for a healthier version, use honey instead-I didn't have any, but will do this next time}

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

3 very ripe bananas, mashed

1 egg

1/4 cup oil {for a healthier version, use1/3 cup applesauce instead}

1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts {optional, but I love them in the muffins}

D I R E C T I O N S  :

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 

Combine 1st four ingredients in bowl.

Mix in bananas, egg, and oil.

Mix well, and add 1/2 of the nuts.

Fill muffin tins 3/4 full.
Sprinkle remaining nuts on top of muffins.

Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Yield: 12

farmstand omelet

Omelets are tasty, easy, affordable, and nutritious, not to mention they are also versatile because you can add all sorts of different ingredients to them. We like to have them once every week or two for dinner (so easy!), and occasionally for breakfast.

French Omelet

Adapted from a recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook

I N G R E D I E N T S :

3 eggs

2 Tbsp. milk

1/8 tsp. salt

Dash ground pepper

1 Tbsp. butter

For fillings, I use some chopped up ham deli meat, grated cheddar cheese, baby spinach, and sauteed mushrooms and bell pepper.

D I R E C T I O N S:

If desired, prepare filling; keep warm.

In a small bowl, combine eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Beat until combined, but not frothy, with a fork. Heat an 8-inch nonstick skillet with flared sides over medium-high heat until hot.

Melt butter in skillet. Add egg mixture to skillet, lower heat to medium. Immediately begin stirring eggs gently but continuously with a wooden or plastic spatula until mixture resembles small pieces of cooked egg surrounded by liquid egg. Stop sirring. Cook for 30-60 seconds more or until egg mixture is set and shiny. 

If desired, spoon filling across the center. With a spatula, lift and fold an omelet edge about a third of the way toward the center. Fold the opposite omelet edge toward the center and transfer to a warm plate.

Making your own freezer jam, naturally.

(Photo courtesy of Passionate Homemaking)

I have so many recipes I need to post, but in the meantime, here is a great article on  making your own freezer jam from Passionate Homemaking. There is nothing tastier for breakfast in the summer than scooping some  refreshing freezer jam on toast or a biscuit, and this post talks about how to make a more healthy version. The best part is that no cooking or caning is involved! One note: The instructions here say to store in the fridge  once the jam is frozen. You can do that, but it won't last as long. I personally like to keep my jam in the freezer and just  sit it out for a few minutes before we eat it. That way, it lasts for a long time... you can even enjoy it in the winter months. Also, while the type of pectin she recommends definitely sounds superior to other types, if you do not have any of this kind, regular fruit pectin from the grocery store will also work. If you do use regular pectin, you will not need the calcium water. Simply refer to the instructions inside the box for freezer jam. Here is the recipe!

smoothie update

Well, new name, but so far no blog posts! Things have been busy, and I've not made any new recipes lately. Soon, I hope!

I wanted to add a couple of things to my post on the green smoothies. I'll add them to the original post, but here they are as well. These are mostly some things you can think about if you are making the green smoothies for your children.

1) Be sure to rinse your spinach very, very well...EVEN if it says it's washed and ready to be used. Our pediatrician gave me that advice when I shared we had been making them for breakfast. He said their digestive tracks are more sensitive than ours...and then told me he has an awful green smoothie story that he wouldn't go into detail about...but it had to do with a child and e-coli from the spinach. YIKES! Needless to say, I'm re-thinking the green smoothie thing and when we do drink them, I'm washing the raw spinach very, very well! I felt like it is important to pass this on to those of you who might be giving these smoothies to your children, whether you were doing this before I posted about it or you learned about it from this blog.

2) A friend recently mentioned that you can be even more "deceptively delicious" by adding avocado into the smoothie. It adds great texture, lots of good fat that is good for the childrens' development (and for adults, too!), and is tasteless. Actually, I noticed a slight avocado aftertaste when I tried it the first time, so I've started to pour my portion of the smoothie without the avocado, and then I'll throw in about 1/4 of an avocado and re-blend it for my child.

3) You can throw in any fruit, juice, applesauce, etc. for the smoothie if you don't have yogurt or strawberries or traditional smoothie ingredients. Kids love these, and any healthy ingredient will benefit them! Be creative.

"green" smoothies

I've heard about this for some time, but was hesitant. how could you put spinach in a fruit smoothie, and not taste the spinach at all? i decided to try it for the first time last week when i had some leftover fresh spinach and some frozen fruit, and i was very excited that no, you cannot taste the spinach at all! this is a great way to get some extra greens in, and your children are even bound to like it...you can even put it in a sippy cup for them to drink with breakfast. it really tastes just like a regular smoothie, but has a slight green tint to it and is full of nutrition. you can put whatever frozen fruit in that you like, and i don't even measure. below is what i made this morning. i make a blender full, so if you only want half as much, just modify the amounts.

*update*

1) Be sure to rinse your spinach very, very well...EVEN if it says it's washed and ready to be used. Our pediatrician gave me that advice when I shared we had been making them for breakfast. He said their digestive tracks are more sensitive than ours...and then told me he has an awful green smoothie story that he wouldn't go into detail about...but it had to do with a child and e-coli from the spinach. YIKES! Needless to say, I'm re-thinking the green smoothie thing and when we do drink them, I'm washing the raw spinach very, very well! I felt like it is important to pass this on to those of you who might be giving these smoothies to your children, whether you were doing this before I posted about it or you learned about it from this blog.

2) A friend recently mentioned that you can be even more "deceptively delicious" by adding avocado into the smoothie. It adds great texture, lots of good fat that is good for the childrens' development (and for adults, too!), and is tasteless. Actually, I noticed a slight avocado aftertaste when I tried it the first time, so I've started to pour my portion of the smoothie without the avocado, and then I'll throw in about 1/4 of an avocado and re-blend it for my child.

3) You can throw in any fruit, juice, applesauce, etc. for the smoothie if you don't have yogurt or strawberries or traditional smoothie ingredients. Kids love these, and any healthy ingredient will benefit them! Be creative.

green smoothies

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1-2 cups frozen frozen fruit-this morning i used strawberries and a little leftover frozen pineapple. i also love mango, peaches, blueberries, mixed berries....i usually include strawberries as the majority if i am using other berries.
1 frozen banana (I microwave it for 1 minute and then squeeze it out of the skin, or you can use a fresh one if that's all you have)
1 cup fresh spinach (or more. I just do 1 or 2 handfuls).
orange juice-probably between 1/2-1 cup
milk-probably between 1/2-3/4 cup (could be less? i usually just add some to thin the smoothie)
yogurt-I use plain, but vanilla is good as well. i probably put 3/4-1 cup
honey-i add a big squirt of it for the sweetness and because i think honey is good for you.
I've also started putting in some ground flax seed, which is full of omega 3,6,9. So far I've done 1 Tbsp to start off with but I may add more.

D I R E C T I O N S :

blend together and enjoy!

whole wheat banana bread

i love this banana bread recipe and have been making it for a few years now. I love that it uses honey over refined sugar, and whole wheat rather than white flour. Every whole wheat bread I've made has always been overly dense and dry, but not this one! This one is moist and delicious, and you would never believe it's made from 100% whole wheat. Nuts give it a great texture and are a wonderful addition to the flavor. This is a delicious and healthy bread to have for breakfast or a snack.

Again, no time to take a picture...but you know what banana bread looks like!

I have no idea where I got this recipe, but it's a great one.

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup mashed banana (3 bananas...don't skimp- make sure it's a whole cup)
1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup hot water
1/4-1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

D I R E C T I O N S :

Preheat oven to 325.
Beat oil and honey, then add eggs and mix well.
Stir in bananas, vanilla, flour, and salt.
Add baking soda to hot water; stir to mix, and add to batter.
Blend in chopped nuts.
Cook in bread pan on 325 for 55-60 minutes.

whole wheat waffles

these waffles are a delicious treat to have for breakfast. made with whole what flour, they are somewhat healthier than regular waffles. i say somewhat because the recipe does call for quite a bit of butter. i usually try to skimp on the butter, using a couple Tbsp. less than what the recipe calls for.

these waffles are great with berries added in as well, especially blueberries.

we enjoy making these for saturday breakfasts from time to time, but hadn't done so in a while. my husband enjoys having frozen waffles from the store for breakfast, so i decided to triple this recipe and make a lot (i made about 11 waffles) to freeze. if you do this, you can simply freeze them with a piece of wax paper in between each one, and store them in a large ziploc freezer bag in the freezer. if you have a waffle iron that makes larger waffles than will fit into your toaster, you can simply break the waffle in half or 4ths and toast it. i don't know that i'll make these every time, because it's a lot quicker to buy already made healthy ones at the store, but it might be a fun thing to do every once and a while, and it's certainly cheaper than paying nearly $3 for a pack of 6 small frozen waffles, if and when you have the time to make them from scratch.

sorry for the lack of a picture, but i've just not had time to take any!

recipe adapted from Gourmet Magazine

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 cup all-purpose whole wheat flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional-i usually leave these out)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup ground flax seed (optional-i usually leave this out)
1 cup milk (the more cream the richer the waffles-i used whole milk but you can use skim and some half and half)
6 Tbsp. melted butter
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
blueberries, raspberries, and/or blackberries to taste

D I R E C T I O N S :

whisk together dry ingredients. stir in wet ingredients one at a time until batter is thick and smooth. add berries last so they don't get too broken up. pour into waffle iron and cook as directed, or cook in the oven on 250 until golden brown. as each waffle is finished, transfer to a warm cookie sheet in the oven.

serve with honey or warm maple syrup.

making yogurt at home-simple & delicious.

Did you know you can make homemade yogurt, and that it's easy? and that you can make it in a crock pot and don't need a yogurt making machine? and that it tastes good? and it's way cheaper than buying it from the store? yep, it's all true! this is my latest cooking experiment, and it literally could not be easier. I know I've said that before, but this one really is about as easy as it gets. I knew this could be done, but I was leary of the time I assumed it would take, and that it would taste good. But we just eat so much yogurt around here, and so much of the store bought yogurt is just full of sugar and all sorts of less than healthy ingredients, that I decided to just give it a try. Organic yogurt is particularly expensive, which is the main reason that I decided to try and make my own. I was very pleased, and would love to continue to make my own rather than buying it. I am not promising that I will do this every single week, but ideally, I would like to.

Making yogurt is very, very simple, and requires only two ingredients: yogurt (with live active cultures), and milk. No major work is involved, and it can all be done in your crock pot. Whole milk and yogurt supposedly make for the best results, but I did read that you can make it with low-fat ingredients. I used both whole milk and whole yogurt, and was very pleased with the results. And all these years I thought I could only get yogurt from those plastic containers at the store. an added perk-this is better for the environment because you aren't buying all those plastic tubs every week; you can just reuse a couple that you already have on hand.

I looked here and here and here for instructions on how to make yogurt in your crock pot. all three follow the same directions but each have a few extra tidbits of information that i found helpful(health benefits, making it with lowfat ingredients, adding flavors, making it thicker, price comparisons, etc.), so you might want to check them out.

You'll use plain yogurt, so if you want it flavored you'll need to add either fruit, some preserves, honey, maple syrup, or vanilla after the yogurt cultures (sits in the crock pot). I have not experimented with vanilla yet, but if I do I'll let you know how it goes. I did eat this yogurt plain with just a few fresh berries, and found it to have a wonderful, mild flavor on its own (and I honestly find the store bought plain yogurt to be rather tart by itself). I also tried adding some honey, and thought it tasted great. Fresh berries and granola on top, also delicious, and so healthy. For more about adding fruit to the yogurt, read Stephanie's blog about it.

Hands on time: 5 minutes

Hands off time: 13 1/2 to 17 1/2 hours (it just has to sit and culture).

The hands on time for this is really less than 5 minutes. However, the yogurt has to sit in the crockpot and do its thing for several hours, so make sure you time it accordingly. I found that starting it around 5-6PM allows me to complete the final hands-on step just before I go to bed and allows the yogurt to be fully done by breakfast. Or, if you'll be home during the day, you can start it in the morning, and it will be done by the evening so that you can refrigerate it overnight before breakfast the next morning if you want to eat it really cold the first time. It seems like I read somewhere while I was googling about it that letting the yogurt culture for longer (12 hours overnight versus 8 hours) gives it more of a tangy flavor and might make it thicker. I really liked how mild the yogurt tasted after it cultured for 8 hours, and I was very happy with the texture. The texture is not springy or very thick, but I found it to be thick enough. It would also be delicious to use in a smoothie.

Here are the Directions

Recipe taken from nourishingdays.com

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1/2 gallon milk

1/2 cup of yogurt with live active cultures

D I R E C T I O N S :

Turn your crock pot to low and pour in 1/2 gallon of milk.

Heat on low for 2 hours and 30 minutes.

Once 2 hours and 30 minutes have elapsed turn your crock pot off and unplug it. Let the milk cool in the crock with the lid on for 3 hours.

After 3 hours remove 1-2 cups of the warmed milk and place in a bowl. To that add 1/2 cup of yogurt with live active cultures and mix very well.

Pour the yogurt-milk mixture back into the milk and whisk thoroughly.

Place the cover back on the crock and wrap the entire crock pot in a thick bath towel or two.

Let it culture overnight, 8-12 hours.

In the morning stir yogurt (if desired) and store in glass quart jars or a container of your choice.

For optimum texture, refrigerate for at least 8 hours before using.

Store in the refrigerator. The fresh yogurt lasts 7-10 days.

Once you've made the yogurt, simply keep 1/2 cup of it to serve as a starter for your next batch of yogurt, which means all you have to buy for the next time is milk. This means that, once you have the half cup for a starter, you can get 8 cups of yogurt, which is the same as buying two large tubs of it from the store, for the price of a half gallon of milk. The first batch costs a little more because you pay for the yogurt and the milk, and if you are using organic, then you may pay around $8 for both of these (unless your stores have better deals than mine, which they might). But once you've already got the half-cup left over, you can replinish your yogurt supply by just buying a half gallon of milk and making a fresh batch every 7-10 days. Even with organic milk, that means you are paying around $3.75 (this is a rough estimate of what I paid for the organic milk) and getting as much yogurt as you would get in two tubs of yogurt. Considering each tub or organic yogurt typically runs $3-$4, you're saving at least half of what you would normally spend. Not bad! And for me, knowing that I'm getting yogurt that is free of added preservatives, sugar, and processed ingredients, is a good thing.