April 13th, 2012
These are sooooo good!
This is actually my first time making crackers. Now that I’ve made some, I have no idea why they always seemed so intimidating. I think it was something about spreading them out thin enough that always scared me off. These crackers are a snap to make (hehe) and make an excellent afternoon snack. They are also seriously healthy – packed with nutritious seeds they provide lots of omega 3 fatty acids, calcium and fiber.
They’re actually quite addictive. Lightly sweet, toasty and super crispy. They remind me a little bit of a healthified sesame snap.
I’m sure you could also make these raw by dehydrating them instead of baking them. I haven’t tried that yet but I likely will this summer when it get too hot to cook so I’ll report back then!
I’m also submitting these to Ricki’s Wellness Weekend!
Cinnamon Sugar Seed Crackers (Adapted from Angela’s Endurance Crackers)
¼ cup chia seeds
¼ cup whole flax seeds
¼ cup ground flax seeds (also called flax meal, I make my own in a coffee grinder)
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup sesame seeds
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup maple syrup
¾ cup water
optional 1 tbs cane sugar for toppping
Preheat oven to 325 F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the maple syrup and water and stir to combine. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all the water has been absorbed. The mixture will be wet but there shouldn’t be any standing water. Spread mixture evenly over the lined baking sheet. I just used the back of a wooden spoon to spread it out and because the mixture is wet it spreads very easily. It should cover the whole sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. If you want the optional sugar topping, take the crackers out after 20 minutes and sprinkle evenly with the cane sugar then return to oven. Take out of the oven and using the parchment paper, carefully flip over the entire sheet of crackers. Peel off the parchment paper and cut into squares (I used a pizza cutter and cut into 24 squares). Return to oven and bake for 20-25 minutes more or until all the crackers are lightly golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and let cool completely on a baking rack.
Posted in Recipes | 4 Comments »
November 22nd, 2011
Apple Butter Chia Seed Pudding (using white chia seeds)
A few people have asked me about chia seeds lately. They know that chia seeds are super healthy but just aren’t sure how to eat them. So I though I would share how I’ve been loving my chia seeds for the past few months.
For those who don’t know, chia seeds are packed with omega 3 fatty acids, calcium and iron. And yes, they are the same seeds that grew hair on our Chia Pets when we were kids!
I’m a huge chia pudding fan. It’s quick and easy to make, yummy, and incredibly healthy. There are two main ways to make chia pudding, blended and unblended. I used to be all about blended chocolate chia puddings but lately I’ve been making a plain chia pudding in the morning and stirring in different mix-ins based on what I’m in the mood for that day. I find this is faster to make and I don’t have to struggle to clean stuck on chia seeds out of my blender! The consistency of an unblended chia pudding is similar to tapicoa pudding.
For the basic chia seed pudding, put 2 tbs of chia seeds in a bowl or container. Add 1 cup of non-dairy milk and give it a good stir with a fork. If you use unsweetened milk, add a bit of sweetener. I use 2 drops of liquid stevia. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes and then give it another really good stir with the fork and break up and clumps. Ideally, let it sit for at least another hour before you plan to eat it. I make it in the morning before school and bring it with me for my afternoon snack.
Now it’s time to choose a mix-in. If you use a good quality non-dairy milk, the pudding will be yummy on it’s own, but it’s always more yummy with a mix-in! Here are some things that I like to mix in:
- 100% fruit jam
- left over cranberry sauce
- apple butter
- chocolate almond butter sauce
- chopped up fruit (peaches, frozen berries, bananas)
- chocolate chips or cocoa nibs
The options are really endless! I guess I sort of treat it like a plain yogurt.
Do you guys have any other mix-in ideas?
Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment »
October 25th, 2011
I attempted to work from home today but I ended up doing what I always do when I work from home. Baking. Hence, here is a recipe for some Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins based on the Cranberry Walnut Pumpkin Muffins that I made a few weeks ago. I love these muffins because they’re whole grain, low in sugar and fat but still super moist and delicious!
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins (Whole grain and low fat)
2 cups spelt flour
½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
pinch salt
1 tbs ground flax
1 cup almond milk
1 cup pureed pumpkin
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tbs oil
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
½ to ¾ cup chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl (except the flax). In another bowl, mix together the soy milk and the ground flax seed. Let the soy milk/flax mixture sit for 5 minutes then add the pumpkin, maple syrup, oil and vanilla. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in the walnuts and chocolate chips. Spoon into a muffin pan that has either been greased or lined. Bake at 350 F for 26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Posted in Recipes | No Comments »
October 11th, 2011
I’ve been looking for a great pumpkin muffin recipe for a while now. Most of the recipes out there are loaded with sugar and white flour, but I like my muffin recipes to be fairly healthy – whole grains, low in sugar and oil. I decided to try and make a recipe using Dreena Burton’s Pumpkin Raisin Loaf as a starting point. I love how healthy her baking recipes are! I decided to add fresh cranberries and walnuts to make these muffins extra delicious.
This is also my recipe featuring cranberries for the Sweet or Savory Kitchen Challenge over at Diet Dessert and Dogs and Affairs of Living.
Cranberry Walnut Pumpkin Muffins (Whole grain and low fat)
2 cups whole spelt flour
¼ cup unrefined sugar
½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
pinch salt
1 tbs ground flax seeds
1 cup almond milk
1 cup pureed pumpkin
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tbs oil
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup chopped walnuts
1 cup fresh cranberries
Topping – 2 tbs unrefined sugar mixed with ½ tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl (except the flax). In another bowl, mix together the soy milk and the ground flax seed. Let the soy milk/flax mixture sit for 5 minutes then add the pumpkin, maple syrup, oil and vanilla. Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in the walnuts and cranberries. Spoon into a muffin pan that has either been greased or lined. Combine the topping ingredients and sprinkle over muffins. Bake at 350 F for 26 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
You can use sweetened dried cranberries instead of fresh but omit the sugar topping or they will be too sweet.
Posted in Recipes | 6 Comments »
June 24th, 2011
This is my entry to the
Sweet or Savory Kitchen Challenge hosted by Ricki over at
Diet Dessert and Dogs. The ingredient for June is blueberries! I love the combo of blueberries with coconut and I have about 5 bags of shredded coconut that I bought on sale and need to use up! So I decided to make a blueberry chia seed pudding with homemade coconut milk. The coconut milk was amazing, and so was the pudding. I tried this two ways, straining the coconut milk, and leaving the fiber in. The end result is a lot creamier if you strain the coconut milk. If you don’t have a nut milk bag or you’re just too lazy to strain it, you’ll still get a yummy pudding, it will just be a little bit fibrous.
Blueberry Coconut Chia Pudding (yields 2 servings)
½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 ½ cup water
Sweetener to taste (I used 2 drops of liquid stevia extract)
¾ cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
¼ cup chia seeds
Blend coconut with water and sweetener until completely smooth. Strain through a nut milk bag or cheese cloth. Give your blender a rinse and add the coconut milk back to the blender. Discard the coconut pulp (it would probably be yummy in some sort of raw cookie). Add the blueberries to the blender and blend until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl and whisk in chia seeds. Transfer to the fridge to let the chia seeds absorb the liquid. Let sit for at least an hour, but 3-4 hours is preferable. Top with fresh blueberries and shredded coconut to serve.
Posted in Recipes | 2 Comments »
June 22nd, 2011
Is there a combo better than strawberry and rhubarb? I don’t think so. As I mentioned in my
Sloppy Joe post, I was an oddly picky eater as a child. I didn’t actually try the magical strawberry rhubarb combo until at my boyfriend’s house for Christmas Dinner a few years ago. I tried a piece of his mom’s strawberry rhubarb pie and fell in love. But truth be told, I’m more of a crisp gal. You still get all of the fruity goodness without having to bother with a pie crust. And they are usually a fair bit healthier, which means I get to eat them more often!
I harvested the rhubarb in my garden a few weeks ago and just tucked it in the back of the fridge waiting for the first of the local strawberries to ripen. Finally the strawberries were out in full force at the farmer’s market this weekend!
One of the downsides of a strawberry rhubarb crisp is that it usually requires a lot of sugar to counteract the tartness of the rhubarb. I decided to try making one sweetened mostly with stevia. This was a bit of a gamble because I couldn’t really tell if the sweetness level was OK until after it cooked. But this turned out perfectly for my tastes.
Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Filling
2 cups chopped rhubarb
3 cups sliced strawberries
¼ tsp (scant) liquid stevia extract
1 tbs tapioca starch
Topping
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
½ cup flour (I used spelt, just about any type will work)
3 tbs agave or maple syrup
1 tbs coconut oil
pinch salt
Preheat oven to 400 F. Mix together the filling ingredients in a square glass baking dish. Mix the topping ingredients together in a bowl until combined and crumbly. Spread the topping evenly over the filling. Cover with tin foil and bake for 20 min. Remove tin foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the filling is bubbling and the topping is browned.
Posted in Recipes | 1 Comment »