Treaty Treat

We make these regularly. They are fantastic. Tim especially loves them. 

Itty Bitty Carrot Cake Cookies

These mini cookies are soft yet crunchy, delicate, moist, bite-sized, and most of all, they taste just like carrot cake in cookie form!

Ingredients:

• 2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup regular oats
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 cup shredded carrots, packed
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup pure maple syrup, room temperature (I used half agave)
• 1 cup coconut oil, warmed for about 25 seconds in microwave
• 2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions: Preheat oven to 350F and line 1 baking sheet with parchment or a non-stick mat. Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and oats in a large bowl. Add in the nuts, coconut, raisins, and shredded carrots. In a small bowl mix the maple syrup, softened coconut oil, vanilla, and freshly grated ginger. Add this to the flour mixture and stir until combined.

Drop about 1 heaping tablespoon of dough onto lined baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie. Shape into a ball with hands. Bake for about 12 minutes and cool for 10 minutes on a baking rack.

Yield: 30 bite-sized cookies.

Nutritional info: (per cookie): 54kcals, 2 grams fat, 8 grams carbs, 1 gram fibre, 1 gram protein, 5 grams sugar.

Buns and Buns

I finally learned how to make fluffy, magical, buns like Pam. She came over to hold my hand and then I tried it on my own and SUCCESS on my first try!  

I also cooked a really cute baby "bun in the oven"named Ezra.

Can you tell how much I like this little froggy ;)

 He's having a nice big yawn in this picture.

Thank you Jenny for the fun yellow ruffley skirt.

I have to kiss him on the lips all day long.

Breakfast Just Gets Better and Better...

We made this for breakfast today. Thank you Jenny for sending me the recipe. I LOVE when people send me recipes. We used strawberries instead of blackberries and brown sugar instead of maple syrup. The baked banana in it is so good. 

Healthy Baked Oatmeal

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup toasted and chopped walnut pieces
• 1/3 cup natural cane sugar or maple syrup (and more syrup for serving)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 Tablespoons butter melted and cooled slightly
• 2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 bananas
• 1 1/2 cups blackberries (blueberries, raspberries, or a mixture)

Instructions

1. Mix together the oats, half of the walnuts, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
2. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.
3. Generously butter the bottom of an 8-inch pan and add sliced bananas and half of the blackberries.
4. Add the oat mixture to the top of the fruit.
5. Pour the milk mixture over the oats. Use a spoon to make sure the milk mixture is incorporated throughout the oats.
6. Add the remaining walnuts and blackberries.
7. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven with the rack in the top third of the oven for 35 to 45 minutes. The top should be golden and the oatmeal should be set.
8. Let the oatmeal cool for a few minutes and serve with maple syrup and if you are really feeling wild, more melted butter

Woah Marvelously Woah Good

From ohsheglows again!

 I am so not a natural in the kitchen, so when I find healthy recipes that taste good and that even I can make perfectly, then it must be a good recipe.

I made this for  the treat after Jacob's super duper FHE lesson tonight. He did such a sweet job at teaching all of us. Near the end of the lesson he said that he wants to go on a mission and after adoring him the whole time he taught us, I wasn't so sure I liked him saying that. I had a nice little cry at the thought of him leaving for 2 years someday and then we had tasty fruit pizza. 

Ingredients (8-12 slices)

I doubled the crust part but not the avocado part. This made enough crust for one cookie sheet and there was lots of avocado whip left even though it was not doubled.

Cinnamon-sugar pizza crust

• 1 cup + 3/4 cup white bread flour, divided 
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon
• 2 & 1/4 tsp pizza yeast (no proofing required)
• 3 tbsp oil
• 2/3 cup very warm water
• more flour for kneading dough

Avocado-Lime Whip

• 4 avocados
• Fresh lime juice from half a lime (approx 1 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 2-3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1-2 tbsp coconut milk (We didn't have any so I left this out)
• 12 tbsp icing sugar (confectioner’s)

Fruit

• Fruit salsa: Chop up a mixture of strawberries, mandarin oranges, mango, kiwi, and raspberries. Add in blueberries too. You will want about 2-3 cups of the salsa.
• Fruit layer: Mandarin, strawberries (sliced), blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi (sliced), mango (sliced), and whatever else your little heart desires! Peach would be good too.

Instructions

For crust

• 1. Preheat oven to 500F. I did 425 F In a large mixing bowl, mix together 1 cup flour, plus the salt, sugar, cinnamon, yeast. Stir well. Now quickly add 2/3 cup very warm water along with 3 tbsp oil. Stir well. It will be very sticky but not to worry.
• 2. Now add in 3/4 cup- 1 cup more flour, gradually, as you stir. Once the flour is in, grab the dough and place on floured surface.
• 3. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, adding flour as it gets tacky. After 5 mins the dough should be smooth and not tacky. Form into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl. Cover the ball with a bit of oil so it doesnt dry out. Now cover the bowl and let it rise for 1.5 hours. You can punch out the air halfway through.
• 4. After rising time, punch air out and spread into an oiled pizza pan I used a cookie sheet or you can place it directly onto a preheated pizza stone. Sprinkle with lots of sugar and bake at 
• 500F 425 for 14-15 mins. until golden. Cooking time may vary so watch carefully.

For avocado whip

• In a food processor, add in the avocado, lime juice, and agave. Process until smooth. Now add in the vanilla, melted coconut oil, and coconut milk. As the last step, add in the icing sugar very gradually until the consistency you want is achieved. Cool in fridge for about 30 minutes before using. Spread over the base of cooled & cooked pizza crust.
• The avocado whip is AMAZING! I couldn't believe how good it was. I made lots of extra fruit salsa and we just dipped fruit in the avocado whip after the pizza was gone. Its will be my new fruit dip recipe from now on.

For Fruit

• After you have spread on the avocado-lime whip, it is time to layer on the fruit. I started with an outer layer of fruit salsa, followed by a layer of sliced fruit. After those two layers, I did a very small layer of sprinkled coconut, followed by a layer of raspberries, and then finally fruit salsa. I left the inner circle open as I was going to put a large strawberry there, but then we ate it and that was that!

Baked Tilapia

Baked Tilapia (We get it from Costco)

4 Tilapia Fillets
1 Fresh lemon sliced
1/2 onion- sauteed in olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper

350 degrees

Place Tilapia in baking dish lined with tinfoil.
Sautee onions.
Arrange sliced lemons over Tilapia.
Put onions over the lemons
Dust with sea salt and pepper.
Place in oven and bake for 12 min.

Turn off hear in oven, cover with foil and let sit in oven with door open until ready to eat.

Make These Now

5 Minute Chocolate Peanut Butter Chews

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Crisp Rice cereal (I used Granola)
• 1/4 cup smooth all-natural peanut butter
• 3 tbsp organic brown rice syrup (I used half Agave and half maple syrup)
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp dark chocolate chips

Directions: Line a plate with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl, stir together the peanut butter, brown rice syrup, 2 tbsp chocolate chips, and vanilla extract. Microwave on high for 35-45 seconds. Stir well and immediately add in the 1 tsp cocoa powder. Stir until incorporated. Immediately stir in the rice crisp cereal until all rice crispies are coated (I did all this in a pot on low heat.)

Wet hands thoroughly and shape the mixture into ‘golf-balls’. Press mixture together firmly into balls so it will hold. Wet hands after each ball is formed so the mixture will not stick to your hands. Place the balls onto parchment paper and freeze for 5 minutes. You can keep these chews in the freezer in a sealed container. Let the chews sit at room temperature for about 5-10 minutes before consuming. ( I pressed mine into a small cake pan instead. I was too lazy to make balls. Then I put them in the fridge for half an hour and they were perfect.)

Makes 7 golf-ball sized chews. ( Double it for the perfect family size.)

Press firmly into balls and place on a plate or small baking sheet lined with parchment. Freeze for about 5-10 minutes.

The Silk Road

My mom somehow knows where all the coolest shop are, even ones not even in Edmonton. Why is she so hip?!?!? I am waiting for her to act her age but there's no sign of it yet :0) The problem is most of us grumble a little- its like, "where are you dragging us to now mom?" that kind of attitude. When will we learn that its always so fun. I met my parents in Calgary a few weeks ago and my mom took us to The Silk Road. Its a spice shop and its the coolest place ever. Can't you tell by the "abandoned building look" they have going on the outside. The inside is LOVELY. The spices were so fresh and the fragrance just poured out when you opened the lids. Not to mention the classy thrift shop in the basement. I highly recommend it. 

I got caraway seed (my favorite), Vietnamese cinnamon (apparently is the most cinnamony), whole nutmeg (it lasts way longer in whole form and it makes you feel professional), cloves (for our fall and Christmas pomandering), dried limes (perisan cooking always calls for dried lime), then I got sasparilla root, licorice root, and birch bark, to make homemade, healthy rootbeer (recipe below). 

Jane found all kinds of treasures too. I let pick out a few for homeschool. She chose lavender sugar (which we used for homemade lavender ice cream. See recipe below), organic rose petals (for tea and for the bath), lavender (to make sachets. She's been into that lately, we all have a few in our drawers now :0)   

and she got this blend called mulling spices (you put a Tbs in a muslin bag and put it in boiling apple juice. It smells delicious).

I made this bread with my Caraway. Here is the recipe:

Whole Wheat Bread with Caraway and Anise

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  honey
• 1  package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1  cup  warm water (100° to 110°)
• 1  teaspoon  water
• 1  large egg
• 2 1/3  cups  all-purpose flour, divided (about 10 1/2 ounces)
• 1  cup  whole wheat flour (about 4 3/4 ounces)
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  kosher salt
• 1  teaspoon  caraway seeds, divided
• 1/2  teaspoon  aniseed
• Cooking spray

Preparation

Dissolve honey and yeast in 1 cup warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Combine 1 teaspoon water and egg, stirring well with a whisk. Place 1 tablespoon egg mixture in a small bowl. Cover and chill. Add remaining egg mixture to yeast mixture.

Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 2 cups all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, salt, 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds, and aniseed to yeast mixture; stir to form a soft dough. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes); add enough of remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).

Place the dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 45 minutes or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch the dough down; cover and let rest for 5 minutes. Divide dough in half. Working with one portion at a time, roll each portion into a 12-inch rope on a lightly floured surface. Twist ropes together, and pinch ends to seal. Place dough in an 8-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375°.

Uncover dough. Brush reserved egg mixture over loaf, and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until loaf is browned on bottom and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pan; cool on a wire rack.

 Here is Jane making her famous Lavender Ice Cream. We had it for dessert at our Asian party (more to come on that).

 Homemade Root Beer

Complex and delicious, old-fashioned, home-brewed root beer has deep, intermingling notes of roots, bark, and spices, set against a background of molasses. Our formula is based on 19th-century recipes culled from The Saturday Evening Post, Scientific American, and Prairie Farmer, with guidance from Homemade Root Beer, Soda & Pop by Stephen Cresswell (Storey, 1998).

• 1⁄4 oz. dried sassafras root bark
• 1⁄4 oz. dried birch bark
• 1⁄4 oz. dried sarsaparilla root
• 1⁄8 oz. dried licorice root
• 1  1" piece fresh ginger, unpeeled 
•    and thinly sliced
• 1 vanilla bean, split
  2 cups molasses
  1⁄8 tsp. active dry yeast

1. Put sassafras root bark, birch bark, sarsaparilla root, licorice root, ginger, 1 vanilla bean, and 2 qts. water into a medium pot and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 2 hours.

2. Strain root-infused liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a plastic container that has been washed well with hot, soapy water. (Discard solids.) Add 2 qts. filtered water, stir well, and let cool to 75°.

3. Meanwhile, wash four 1-liter plastic soda bottles with hot, soapy water. Rinse well and air-dry. Stir molasses and dry yeast into the root-infused liquid; cover and set aside to let ferment for 15 minutes. Using a funnel, pour into bottles, filling to within 2" of top but no higher. Screw lids on tightly; set aside at room temperature to let ferment for 12 hours.

4. Chill for 2–5 days. The root beer's character will slowly change: after 2 days, it will taste strongly of molasses; at the end of 5 days the yeast will have eaten up more of the sugary molasses, creating a milder and slightly alcoholic beverage. When it's ready to drink, open bottles very slowly, easing the caps open little by little, to let any excess gas escape gradually. (Yeast produces a high level of natural carbonation that makes for a very fizzy drink.) Serve over ice. 

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