chia and goji toasted muesli

It's a bit of a rainy drizzly day today, so I decided that after the house work, some time in the kitchen was called for.

I wanted to make something that would jazz up my breakfasts a bit, as these days I've just fallen into the pattern of fruit and yogurt to start my day. Toasted muesli is exactly the addition that I'm in need of.

Packed with omega-3's in the chia, antioxidants in the goji and wholegrain's in the oats - this will do my growing baby bump a whole lot of good. Not to mention tastes amazing!

Ingredients

1/4 c organic honey

2 tbsp coconut oil

2 c rolled oats

1/4 c chia seeds

1/2 c goji berries

Method

Melt honey and coconut oil in a small saucepan on the stove.

Once melted, remove from stove and stir in all other ingredients.

Spread on to a parchment lined tray and bake for 20 minutes at 100 C, door slightly ajar.

Keep your eye on it, tossing every 5 minutes or so.

Remove from oven and cool completely before crumbling the mixture.

Store in an airtight container up to a week or two.

as of late

I’ve been so busy lately. Understandably it is that time of year when things get a little crazy, but coupled with a move and some thrilling news that we will be expecting our first little bub in early May 2013, things seem to be rolling along quicker than I’d like!

Yes! We are expecting a little girl – currently 19 weeks along – and am so in love with her already. We’ve been enjoying her movements and kicks for a couple of weeks now and the feeling is just so beautiful (I know I say this now, when she’s only 250g).

She’s our little miracle. It took two years of trying, surgery, drugs and being told we’d never conceive naturally to get to this point – but here we are, a natural conception. I will do a couple of follow on posts about our story, how I healed my PCOS naturally and how ‘giving up’ can sometimes be the best thing.

So, what I have been up to lately:

Moving house.

 

Making a chicken coop – I’ve been an assistant to Joel the builder as he constructed his designed from scratch coop. Hopefully we get the chickens this weekend!

 

Growing a baby – she’s just gorgeous!

Setting up the house for Christmas – the tree has be up since the 2^nd week in November, normally it’s earlier but we were moving.

Making Christmas wrapping decorations.

Starting Christmas presents – home-grown and dehydrated lemon myrtle spice.

Amongst the above, it has been sweltering heat and I have been loving the abundance of mangos. This cooling smoothie has been just perfect snack/breakfast in this 2^nd trimester where all I crave is fruit.

Ingredients

(serves 1)

150g natural yoghurt

1 mango, flesh of

A handful of ice

Combine all ingredients in a blender and whiz until thick and smooth. Pour into a glass and top with homemade muesli if desired.

Enjoy.



garden breakfast juice

The weather is certainly getting warmer here and with it comes the desire for lighter and refreshing meals.

This also means that it is time to bust out the juicer and make it a permanent home on my bench top.

Before Joel ducked out to the markets to pick up groceries, I raided the refrigerator for what remnants of fruit and vegetables we had left to make a super breakfast juice. Talk about quick and easy breakfast! It’s just the clean-up that can be a bit of a fuss.. but it’s worth it.

I fed all the components through the juicer and poured it into a tall glass. Then went outside to sit in my garden to check on my summer seedlings and watch the little red-browed finches build a nest in the ficus tree next to our table and chairs.

Ingredients

(makes 400 mL)

2 carrots

3 oranges, skinned

1 grapefruit, skinned

1 inch piece of ginger

¼ bunch celery

1 medium beetroot

Wash all ingredient thorough and feed through the juicer.

Enjoy!

sweet potato breakfast loaf

I turned into our road this afternoon and saw these sweet bright little flowers sitting on the edge of a paddock. This paddock contains a old lovely white horse, her name is Rose.

Whenever we go for walks to the end of the road, I always scoop up a bunch of grass from the other side of her fence and she has a nibble. Grass is greener, right Rose?!

Well, today she was standing by the fence trying to reach these flowers. So, I stopped the car and picked some and held them up offering them to her. She quickly gobbled them down, but I managed to spare a few for me, because they are so pretty.

Sorry Rose, I had to keep some.

Anyway, I've had a sweet potato loaf written on my "to build" list for a while now.
And finally, I've got around to it.

With very minimal effort, the 'loaf' is a great addition to a meal or my favourite - a quick on-the-go breakfast.

Ingredients

(makes 1 loaf, 12 slices)

2 sweet potatoes

1 tblsp coconut oil

2 c wholemeal spelt flour

1 tblsp savoury yeast flakes

1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp himalayan rock salt

1 tsp bi-carb soda

1 c water

1 tblsp sunflower seeds

Heat oven to 180 C and line a loaf tin/dish with baking paper.

Next, thoroughly wash and roughly chop the sweet potatoes (skin left on).

Boil, cool and mash the potatoes, add the coconut oil and set aside.

Combine flour, yeast flakes, spices, salt and soda in a large bowl.

Add the sweet potato mixture, then slowly add the water stirring until well combine.

Transfer the dough to the loaf tin, sprinkle over the sunflower seeds and bake in oven for 1 hour.
Remove from oven and cool before cutting.

 

rustic protein bars: vegan

We’re off to the snow this weekend for a small taster before our big week on the slopes in August.

Our snow gear has been in storage for 2 years as we missed last year’s season and the one before we were overseas. Digging out our gear was fun, it felt like Christmas again. I was constantly saying ‘Oh, I’d forgotten I had that!’. We hung our jackets and pants on the stairs to get some air, but it only made us more impatient to be at the snow.

So, we’re excited.

Joel is a snow boarder, but I’m a skier from way back. It’s always fun to tease each other on the slopes, as we’ve got totally different styles.

In the mad rush of getting everything together, I wanted to make a healthy and cheap energy hit that we could just take with us on the hill.

Because of the busyness I didn’t spend too long on the pretty-ness of these bars, so they really have that ‘rustic’ look.

I know they look rough, BUT, they are ever so yum and will do the trick for our protein and energy hits.

Ingredients

(makes 16)

Dry

1 c rolled oats

2 c popped amaranth

½ c coconut flakes

¼ c protein powder (I’ve used hemp seed protein)

½ c dried/dehydrated fruit (I recently dehydrated some fresh cranberries and gooseberries – took 12 hours)

¼ c pine nuts

Wet

¼ c agave syrup

¼ c unhulled tahini

2 tblsp coconut butter

½ c water

Heat oven to 130 C and line a loaf/slice tin with baking paper.

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Heat the wet ingredients in a small pot over the stove until tahini is well integrated.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and stir well to combine.

Spoon mixture into the lined tray and press mixture firmly down.

Place in oven and cook for 45 minutes to an hour.

Cool completely before slicing.

Can store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or freeze pulling them out as required.

popped amaranth: how to

I’ve been making my own puffed amaranth for a while now.

Back when Joel and I were in college, he used to work night shift at a cereal factory (Sanitarium). So, each time I start popping amaranth, the house fills with smells of roasted grain and Joel says “what smells like the factory?”. 

That's how I know that I'm doing it right.

I know you can buy puffed amaranth these days, but I find it cheaper and fresher to just whip a batch up for breakfast if I have time.

Amaranth is an ancient 8,000 year old grain that was once a staple in the Aztec diet.

The Amaranth plant is related to Swiss chard, quinoa, beets and spinach and produces thousands of tiny seeds that make up this grain-like ingredient.

Amaranth has so many health benefits for you, low in calories, high in fibre, iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese and phosphorous. As amaranth is gluten-free, it acts as a great alternative to wheat, rye or barley.

How to

Ingredients

Amaranth Seeds

Heat a heavy based saucepan (with a completely sealed lid), on high heat for about 3-5 mins.

Drop a tablespoon amount of amaranth seeds in the pot and place the lid on top.

The seeds should start to pop instantly, like pop-corn.

Tip: I tend to pick up the pot and jiggle it a bit for even heating.

Once the amaranth stops popping, tip out of the contents to cool.

Repeat until you have the desired amount.

3 tblsp of amaranth seeds will make 1 c of popped amaranth.

To eat you can top with milk of your choosing, fruits, nuts and seeds etc. Or, add it to homemade muesli, savoury muffins, muesli bars, crackers or even homemade cereal chocolate (recipe for this to come).

chia delight

This is my go-to breakfast; especially on a Monday morning.

No one likes to end a beautiful weekend to go back to work.

So, when I know that I won't have much time in the morning (on account of the snooze button), this is my go-to healthy breakfast.

The night before I put together the following ingredients so it's ready to go as I dash out the door.

I love the way it sets and becomes almost pudding-like.

Chia seeds can soak up to 10 times the amount of its body weight (which can be great for hydration during exercise).

After eating, the nutrients travel to the cells very quickly due to the ease in digestion and assimilation.  Use them when you want to build or regenerate healthy body tissue.

High in fibre, omega 3's and protein, this Aztec super food keeps me going all morning.

My ch-ch-ch-chia breakfasts vary each morning - as to the different fruits, nut butters and kefir water/milk available to me.

This recipe outlines my most basic of recipes and is the foundation of my chia delights.

Ingredients

(makes 1)

1 1/2 tblsp black chia seeds

1 c coconut kefir milk (or any liquid/milk of choosing)

fruit, seeds and nut butters

Combine chia seeds and coconut kefir together, whisk well.

Set aside for at least 10 minutes, or place in refrigerator overnight until set.

Top with desired fruit, nuts/seeds and enjoy.

Good morning sleepy heads! xo

sour orange and fresh coconut sauce

The other day when coming home, we pulled into our street to see two of our little neighbours holding up "oranges, lemons, mandarines - for sale".

They were so cute! I think that was their main marketing strategy.

The two girls had a little table set up at the start of the road, trying to catch customers.

I HAD to stop.

They'd gone out earlier that day and picked some fresh citrus fruit from their orchard.

I ended up with $4 worth of goods (2 kg oranges, 5 lemons, 5 sour oranges). As a tip I gave each of the a $2 coin for being so adorable, they were so happy.

This sauce is super versatile - you could use it as a sweet, kind of like a lemon curd, or you can add it to some grilled tempeh/tofu steaks. We ended up eating it with some steamed blue-eye cod.

Ingredients

(makes 400mL)

2 sour oranges, peeled and de-pitted

1 c young coconut flesh

a pinch of vanilla salt

Combine all ingredients in a blender/food processor and whiz until thick and creamy.

Serve.

coconut kefir yogurt and water

Well, I promised that I would post my kefir experiments.

This is a post about my successful coconut and kefir experiment.

I love using coconut in cooking.

From coconut oil, water, cream, milk and flesh - the rich flavour is so satisfying.

Not to mention the healthful benefits that coconuts have to offer.

Flesh

Young coconut meat differs greatly from mature coconut -- it has a softer, almost gelatinous texture that you can use to mix into beverages or baked goods recipes. You can tell the difference between a young and mature coconut because a mature coconut is hairy and brown, while the immature version is smooth and green. Also, the nutritional value of young coconut meat differs, as it contains fewer calories, no fat and many vitamins and minerals.

High in: Manganese - a mineral that is beneficial for production of blood clotting factors and connective tissues. Potassium - this mineral keeps your muscles and digestive system working properly, and adequate intake may correlate to bone health as well. Magnesium - the magnesium available in young coconut influences energy production and also plays a role in the function of your muscles and kidneys. Magnesium is critical for maintaining mineral and vitamin levels in your bloodstream, including calcium, copper, zinc, vitamin D and potassium.

Water

Coconut water aids the kidney, liver and heart functions as well as enhances the process of eliminating toxins from the body. The electrolyte level re-equilibrates the body's fluid balance; therefore it is sometimes referred to as "Fluid of Life".

Coconut water enhances concentration and prevents headaches by providing the body with all the necessary replenishing fluids as it impacts positively on the electrolyte level content in the body.

With a balanced proportion of potassium, calcium, magnesium and sodium coconut water offers a speedy revitalisation and re-hydration during the course of physical activities - we love it after a big hike.

Coconut water on it’s own can be used as an alternative to milk, as it helps in bone fortification.
Since this drink is lactose free and milk-protein free there is no danger of developing allergies in young children.

From a fresh young coconut, I was able to make this coconut yogurt.

Additionally, as a by-product I was able to make a pro-biotic coconut water drink.

My grandmother was a missionary Nurse out in the islands back in the 50's and she told me that they used to use the fresh water of the young coconuts as a saline solution for injections. This was because the coconut water was more sterile than the drinking water.

Interesting, huh!

Ingredients

(makes 1-2 cups)

1 fresh young coconut

1/2 c water

2 tsp milk kefir grains

Crack open the coconut and carefully drain out the water, set aside*.

Scoop out all the rubbery flesh and combine with water in a food processor/bender and whizz until well thick and creamy - add more or less water for desired consistency.

Pour into a glass jar.

Then, wrap the kefir grains in a small muslin cloth and tie.

Next, place the kefir grains in the middle of the coconut mixture.

Cover the glass with a muslin cloth and fasten with a rubber band.

Cover jar with a tea towel to keep warm.

Set aside for 24-48 hours.

Then, remove the grains and stir up your yogurt, it's ready!

The yogurt should taste slightly sour with the deep rich flavours of coconut.

*You can either drink this straight up or, if you have some water kefir grains you can add 2 tblsp to the coconut water - cover and let the pro-biotics grow for 24-48 hours.

Strain and drink.