Bran Muffins

Here is my tried and true bran muffin recipe. I usually double it and make 6 jumbo muffins and 12 regular sized ones.

• 1 1/2 cups wheat bran
• 1 cup milk with a tablespoon of lemon juice ( or soymilk, to make them dairy-free)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil ( can replace most with applesauce to make them lower fat- needs at least 1T of oil)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup honey or combo of honey and molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Combine wheat bran and milk/lemon juice in a small bowl and set aside
2. Combine oil/applesauce, honey, egg and vanilla in a large bowl.
3. Add in soaked bran mixture and stir until combined.
4. Add flour, soda, powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and stir until combined.
5. Bake at 350 for 10-15 min for regular sized 15-20 minutes for large. Makes one dozen regular.

*Note- these are supposed to be moist. If you over bake them, they will be dry and not very good. I usually just smell and check them to see if they are done (not sure how to say that more precisely in a recipe)

**Since the advent fast is coming, I'll mention that you can substitute an egg replacer or 1T ground flax seed mixed with 1T water for the egg.

Hope you all enjoy!

Katie

By Request

Lent began this afternoon with the Forgiveness Vespers Service. This is our first year in an Eastern-Rite Orthodox Church. I really enjoyed the service today and look forward to the weeks ahead.

Emily asked me to join in on the lenten discussion and about some good vegetarian/vegan recipes, etc... The focus of lent is truly about fasting from sin, but fasting from certain foods, prayer, and almsgiving are avenues to this end. Here are some of my "tips" or getting through lent. Let me add the disclaimer that I am NOT an expert at fasting. These are just some things that I have found helpful.

1. Pray! Pray like you are really in a battle (it is more real than we know). If I begin the day praying, I have more energy to journey on and am less likely to despair. I suggest Met. Philaret's prayer for the beginning of the day, and the Lenten standard: The Prayer of St. Ephraim (see below). Really embrace the words and keep them with you throughout the day.

2. Go to the extra church services if at all possible. It is SO encouraging to remember that we (the Church) are all in this together. It is easy to get bitter if you feel alone in fasting. Truly, I have found that struggling through Lent with my fellow parishioners glues our community together in a way that nothing else can.

Since Luke doesn't do well at the night services in general, I am going to try to listen to Ancient Faith Radio podcasts during the season. We will try to actually make it to church too, but it may not always be possible.

3. Have a project. If you are spending less on food, buy extra food for the local food bank, send money to Haiti, etc... Almsgiving really helps fasting make more sense to me.

4. Find good recipes and recycle them. I always face the temptation of trying out all sorts of recipes and spending hours in the kitchen. As our priest in CA said, Lent is about simplification. The fast is to focus our minds on the spiritual, not on proper meal preparation. OrthodoxMom.com and Orthodox Mother's Digest have hosted several fasting recipe swaps.

5. Have a baked potato night each week. Baked potatoes are great, and there is little prep time involved. I like to rub oil on the skins before baking them. They are 10x better this way and it encourages everyone to eat the skin (the best part in my opinion!). Vegans-serve with baked beans, chopped green onions, BBQ sauce, salt, pepper, grilled onions. Vegetarians- use cheese, cottage cheese, butter, sour cream, etc... Homemade pizza once a week is also good, and fun for a Saturday night.

6. Make breakfast easy. I like Emily's idea of having oatmeal every day. For myself, I know that the more I have to think about, the more distracted with food I become. I also like cheese or a homemade energy bar for breakfast.

7. Prep veggies and fruit and dips to have on hand. Tomorrow I will make hummus, ranch dip (160z sour cream + 1 packet dry ranch dressing mix), and cut up a bunch of carrots.

I guess I will end with a central prayer for the Lenten season. May God bless you all and multiply your efforts to His glory!

Lenten Prayer Of St. Ephrem The Syrian

O Lord and Master of my life!
Take from me the spirit of sloth,
faint-heartedness, lust of power, and idle talk.

But give rather the spirit of chastity,
humility, patience, and love to Thy servant.

Yea, Lord and King! Grant me to see my own errors and not to judge my brother, for Thou art blessed unto ages of ages. Amen.

It's Like Kix

You know, "kid-tested, Mother-approved!"

This is another in my series of great recipes for toddlers. In this piece of banana bread, they will get carrots, apples, bananas, and a whole grain!

Banana-Oatmeal Bread

Mix together in a large bowl:

• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 3 very ripe large bananas, mashed
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2T oil
  

Then, mix these in another bowl:

• 1 cup oatmeal (Scottish is good)

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/8 teaspoon allspice

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until combined. Bake in a large loaf pan (greased) for 50-60min at 350 degrees. We all loved this- Luke said, "More, more!"

Smoothies

Luke's favorite treat is a good fruit smoothie. I like them too and usually I just put a bunch of fruit, yogurt, honey, etc... in the blender and let it whirl. Sometimes though, it is too sweet, sometimes not sweet enough, sometime its too thick, to thin, etc...

Here is the recipe that we like best:

In a blender add:

one banana
1 1/2 c. frozen strawberries
3/4 c. milk
2T frozen orange concentrate
2T agave nectar (or honey)

Blend until smooth.


Notes: I used the frozen orange concentrate since I buy it anyways for economical orange juice. Agave nectar is the best sweetener I have found and I use it because it doesn't raise my blood sugar as much as other sweeteners. (I can't have Jamba Juice anymore because the overload of sugar gives me a headache). I use milk instead of plain yogurt because it seems to be less sour.

Enjoy!

Good Muffins for kids

Oatmeal Pumpkin Muffins:

This is a good recipe for kids because there is no refined sugar and it helps them eat good fruits and vegetables.

• 1 1/2 cups flour (I used a whole wheat pastry/ white combo)
• 1/3 cup honey/molasses or combo
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup oats
• 1 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1/4 cup applesauce
  
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Oil or spray muffin tins with cooking spray.

3. Sift together the dry ingredients.

4. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until just moistened.

5. Divide into 12 muffins and bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked in centre.

6. Remove from pan after 5-10 minutes and let cool.

For Grandma Pederson

These are the cookies that I made for our Easter dinner at Church- easy and tasty:

Mexican Wedding Cookies (Makes 36)

Ingredients:

* 1 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup powdered sugar
* 2 cups flour, sifted
* 1 cup nuts, ground (I used almond meal)
* 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Form into 1 1/2" balls.
3. Bake on cookie sheet at 350°F for about 10-15 minutes or until set.
4. Sprinkle powdered sugar on while still warm.

Cinnamon Breakfast Cake

This is very delicious. I was excited about the simplicity of the recipe too, and how wonderful it made my house smell!

I adapted a recipe that I found to fit my own taste. I am amazed at how MUCH sugar people put into their recipes. Seriously!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups flour (I used 1/2 all purpose, 1/2 graham flour)

3/4 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups milk

2-3 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 pinch salt

1 large egg

TOPPING:

1/4-1/2 cup brown sugar, more if desired

2-2 teaspoons cinnamon

2-3 T melted butter

chopped walnuts or pecans (I used almond meal in the main dough instead)

1. Set oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Prepare a greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish.

3. In a bowl mix the flour, sugar, milk, vanilla or almond extract, baking powder, pinch of salt and egg until just combined, careful not to over-mix.

4. Pour into prepared baking pan.

5. Generously spread brown sugar and cinnamon on top.

6. If desired, sprinkle chopped walnuts or pecans over top.

7. Drizzle melted butter over top.

8. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until cooked through.

Sickies

Luke and I have been under the weather since Friday. This is not a flat-on-our-back type cold, but more a runny nose, congested, achy-type cold. Poor Luke has not slept as well due tot he fact that he has to choose between breathing and sucking on his trusty binky sometimes. :(

I am continuing to experiment with Veggie meals. Last Thursday we had a yummy oven-baked omelet and toast. Basically, you mix up an omelet in a mixing bowl and then put it into a greased glass dish and bake it until the eggs have cooked. I used garlic, onion, and cheese in mine, but it is versatile.

To keep up with pictures/videos of the little guy, here is one that Nathan took when he got Luke up after a nap. Note the surprise exhibited when big Daddy-O shows himself to little Baby-Boo:

Lenten Meal #1- Curried Lentils and Rice

What better to have during Lent than lentils? Actually, I looked at the nutritional information on the label, and lentils are really a good thing for lent. They have 8g of protein in one serving, a perfect lean protein. We tried the recipe below last night and it was fantastic. So good in fact, that I almost think that I shouldn't eat it. :) In all honesty, I think that I like the Lenten foods better than cooking up my regular meals.

This meal is cheap (about $1.25 for the whole thing!), healthy, and simple. I had to modify it slightly because I didn't have turmeric on hand, and used cumin instead. Also, if you are the kind of person who likes a more uniform taste- like regular oatmeal cookies better than oatmeal raisin cookies, you might want to leave out the apples and raisins. I like them in.

Serve with some tasty bread.

Ingredients:

* 1/4 cup vegetable broth (instead of using oil)
* 1 onion, chopped
* 3 garlic cloves, minced or put through a press (can use garlic powder)
* 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
* 2-3 teaspoons curry powder, to taste (I recommend only 2t.)
* 1 cup brown rice, washed
* 3/4 cup dried lentils
* 4 cups water
* 2 vegetable bouillon cubes
* salt (may need a lot, but make it to your taste)
* 1/3 cup raisins or currants
* 1 large tart apple, diced

Directions

1. Heat the 1/4 c broth (or you can use oil) in a heavy-bottomed soup pot, saucepan, or Dutch oven and saute the onion and garlic.

2. Add the ginger, turmeric, and curry powder and saute for a few minutes longer.

3. Add more broth (or water), if necessary, and the rice, and saute for 2 minutes.

4. Add the lentils, 4 cups water, bouillon cubes, and raisins and bring to a boil.

5. Cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 25 minutes.

6. Add the apples and simmer, covered, for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed.

7. Optionally, serve topped with plain yogurt and some more raisins.

Perfected Granola Bar Recipe

I have made several variations of this recipe over the past few months, and here is my favorite.

Toast in the oven at 350 until browned.:
2 c quick oatmeal
1/2 c almond meal (only 3.99 a lb at Trader Joes)
2 T. sunflower seeds

Meanwhile, heat the following ingredients on low in a large sauce pan:

1/4 c honey
1/4 c molasses
1/4 c brown sugar
3 T. butter
1/2 t. salt
2 T. vanilla or almond extract

The mixture should be bubbly, but don't let it burn.

Turn off stovetop heat. Add toasted oats and nut mixture to the liquids. Also add 1 c. dried fruit of your choice (I like a mix of craisins and raisins), and 2 T protein or flax powder (optional). Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are well coated.

Place into a greased 9x9 inch pan. Makes 12-16 bars.

These taste great, have lots of protein and good for you stuff in them. They make a good breakfast, or a good snack after exercising.

So Delicious- Thai Coconut Soup

Ok, so this is a little bit unusual. I an not much of a Thai eater, but I bought a can of light coconut milk from Trader Joes a while back, and I was itching to try it out. The soup is very rich, even using light coconut instead of the regular. Also, this recipe is vegan so if you are looking for good Lenten recipes (I can't believe that it is coming so soon, where has the Epiphany season gone!), then this will work. I am gathering up recipes and will post more throughout Lent.

To make it easier, you can buy canned butternut squash and use that in place of the whole squash. I served it with some rolls, but people who actually know Thai food could probably suggest somehting better. :)

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into chunks
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 (13 1/2 ounce) can coconut milk (can use TJ's light coconut milk)
• 1 cup vegetable (or chicken) stock
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a heavy based pan and cook the onion until soft.

2. Add the stock, butternut squash and curry powder to taste- as spicy as you like!

3. Bring to the boil and then cover and simmer until the squash is tender.

4. Once the squash is cooked, stir in the coconut milk.

5. If desired, pour into a food process/liquidiser and blend until smooth.

6. Return to the pan and warm through.

7. Season to taste and serve.

Gingerbread Biscotti

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This year, I have been busy in the kitchen making treats to give away. I made homemade apple butter, chocolate dipped pretzels (dark and white), and gingerbread biscotti. The biscotti turned out the best. I used the recipe below and dipped the finished product in vanilla icing for a more festive look. You can sub raisins for currants if you don't have those on hand.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 egg whites, lightly beaten
• 2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• 1/4 cup dried currant

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients; In another bowl, combine the egg and egg whites, brown sugar, molasses and vanilla until smooth.

2. Stir the egg mixture into dry ingredients just until moistened; fold in pecans and currants; cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Divide dough in half; shape each half into a ball; on a baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray, roll each ball into a 14-inch x 1 1/2-inch rectangle;Bake at 325 for 24 to 28 minutes or until frim to touch; remove from the oven and reduce heat to 300 degrees.

4. Cool for 5 minutes, transfer to cutting board; cut diagonally with a serrated knife into 1/2-inch slices; place cut side down on baking sheets coated with nonstick cooking spray; bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned turning once, remove to wire racks to cool, store in an airtight container.

Late Autumn Stew

This is a super-healthy, super-tasty soup that I made for dinner today. Great vegetarian dish and great for the cold weather. I served it with homemade 50% wheat bread. Makes six-eight servings.

• 1 1/2 cups dried lentils
• 5 cups water
• 2 vegetable bullion cubes
  
• 1 1/4 lbs butternut squash, peeled, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 8 ounces green beans, ends trimmed and beans cut in half (canned beans are fine)
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 large white potato, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (preferably extra-virgin)
• grated parmesan cheese, to serve

Directions

1. Mix lentils and 5 cups water in a 3-quart or larger (slow-cooker) crock pot.

2. In a large bowl, mix together remaining ingredients EXCEPT olive oil; Place mixed ingredients on top of lentils in crock pot.

3. Cook on LOW 8 to 10 hours until vegetables and lentils are tender; Stir in olive oil, Serve in soup plates or bowls and sprinkle with parmesan cheese
   

Persimmons- Yum!

Here is a lovely fall recipe for persimmon cookies. I have "healthified" it a bit from a recipe from allrecipes.com.

• 3 ripe persimmons, pureed
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
  
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 egg
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup raisins
  
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Mix the wet ingredients and sugar first, then add the dry.

Bake 12-15 minutes at 375of

Power Granola Bars

Since having Luke, I have needed quick, on the go snacks and breakfasts. As you can tell from the pictures, he is growing bigger all the time, and I have to keep eating to feed him.

I like granola bars, but they rarely have enough protein to last very long, and are usually over-sweetened. I have bought some balance bars to get the protein content up, but they are expensive and also too sweet.

So, in an effort to save money and keep the sugar level down, I went on a quest to find a homemade nutrition bar recipe that met my needs. I searched Recipezaar (my favorite site), All Recipes, and the Food Network. I even googled nutrition/balance/power bar recipes. The best I could come up with was a recipe for granola bars from Alton Brown of the Food Network. His recipe had all the wholesome ingredients I was looking for. I modified it, adding some soy protein powder, and changing the amounts of some ingredients, etc... and came up with this:

8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, about 2 cups
1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, about 1/2 cup
3 ounces sliced almonds, about 1 cup
1/2 cup whole what pastry flour
1/2 cup soy protein powder
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2T unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup dried cranberries or raisins

Butter a 9-nch glass baking dish and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, combine the honey, brown sugar, molasses, butter, extract and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook until the brown sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the oat mixture is done, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. Immediately add the oat mixture to the liquid mixture, add the soy protein powder, flour and the dried fruit, and stir to combine. Turn mixture out into the prepared baking dish and press down, evenly distributing the mixture in the dish and place in the oven to bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

It does end up being a but crumbly, so it is best to turn the bars out of the pan before they have completely cooled, wait for them to cool, and then cut. If it is still crumbly, it makes a nice granola snack.

The Best Oatmeal Ever

This morning I think I stumbled upon the best (healthy version) of oatmeal ever. I am a huge fan of the fruit and creamy variety, but that comes in instant packets and has a lot of sugar. Here is my version:

1/2 c. whole oats
Dash of salt
2 T. Apple Butter (this morning I used some fresh Julian apple butter)
Cinnamon to taste
1/3 c. Vanilla Soy Milk, or 2% regular milk (I can't drink regular)

Cook oatmeal on the stove with salt, apple butter, and cinnamon. After cooked, put in a bowl and add the milk.

The key here I think is the apple butter. Apple butter is not butter like peanut butter. It is usually like a saucy, thick applesauce. It is a great natural sweetener.