My Favorite Chia Pudding.

Most likely you've seen and heard about all the hype surrounding chia seeds. And most likely you've seen a gazillion recipes for "chia pudding." And... if you're like me, you wrinkle your nose and think sarcastically "really, how can THAT be good?!" Well this food craze wasn't going away, and I decided to stop being a baby and to stop saying "eww" inside my head when I hadn't even tried it. (You know that if you're a foodie, that's rule #1: Don't knock it till you try it). So I sucked it up and haphazardly threw some chia seeds in my smoothie bottle, poured in some vanilla, some this and that, enough liquid that looked appropriate, shook shook shook shook, and left it in the fridge to do it's thing.

Now I can easily say that the jokes on me people. The next morning, as I pulled the chia goo out of the fridge, I was skeptical. But I dipped my spoon in anyways and took a bite. My brain exploded. Holy cow how is this good?! This tapioca-like substance is SOOO not tapioca-like at all. I think I proceeded to eat half the batch I made right then and there. But then I showed restraint, because I knew I'd want some more yumminess later.

Ever since that fateful day, where I felt both like a Queen (hey hey, this girl tried chia pudding and LIKED it) and like a fool (this idiot waited too long to make omg-delicious-pudding), I've been experimenting with my own chia recipes. It is a little bit of a science and an art. You have to combine the right ratio of liquid to chia in order to get the right consistency. The right consistency may be firm after it has set overnight, or it maybe slightly more runny after setting overnight. But the best thing is, you can choose the texture of your pudding! See my tips after the recipe for getting this part right.

I've made this stuff with herbal coffee and coconut milk (divine), with coconut milk and vanilla (divine divine), and also with raw milk and vanilla. I like this recipe because it's the easiest of all, and it literally takes 1 minute to make. Have your roommate/partner/spouse come into the kitchen and time you. Real food doesn't have to take forever to make.

A couple notes, the quality of the liquid which you use as the base of your pudding makes the biggest difference here. In all the test-runs in my kitchen I've always used black chia seeds from my local Whole Foods or other awesome grocery store here in Seattle, so I can't speak for the other varieties of chia. But I do know that whatever milk you use DOES make an incredible difference. The milk I used here is non-canned Arroy-D coconut milk which comes in tetra packs. You can use other alternative milks, but it may make slightly different pudding. For instance, raw grass-fed milk has a much higher fat content than say rice and almond milks, so the end result has slight creaminess to it, and therefore milk alternatives like almond and rice probably will not. But really, this recipe is so versatile, and sure to please anyone in your family.

Someone obviously ate some already ;)

Classic Vanilla Chia Pudding.
     makes one quart mason jar

    1 qt  organic coconut milk, tetra-pak Arroy-D is my fav
    1/2 cup  whole organic black chia seeds
    1/2 tsp  vanilla extract
    15 drops  stevia clear liquid

To make your pudding:
  1)  Grab a clean mason jar with a tight fitting lid.
  2)  Add milk; add vanilla, add stevia
  3)  Pour your chia seeds into the jar.
  4)  Screw on lid and shake shake shake.
  5)  Put jar in fridge and go do something for 5 minutes. Come back, shake shake shake. Return to  fridge, come back a few minutes later. Shake, shake, shake. Repeat.
  6)  Let puddin' do it's thing and get all yummy overnight.

Getting the texture right: Now I know that pudding is like brownies (cakey or fudgey?) and smoothies (thick or thin?), everyone has their own opinion about the perfect texture. This recipe features a pudding that holds together but is not either super firm or very runny. My advice? Start here. If you want the pudding a bit more thick, add a Tbsp of chia seeds and give it time to absorb into the liquid. After a few hours, if it's still too runny, add more, but please know that as this sits in the fridge it does get progressively (just slightly) less runny and a bit more firm as it continues to sit. If you like your puddings more runny, just add 1-2 Tbsp less chia, give it time to sit (4+ hours, overnight is best) and then see where you're at. Overall, very forgiving and you can adjust from there. But in general it's good to have a baseline recipe, and then you can easily switch up some of the ingredients to make it more interesting.

On a non-recipe note, I have been trying to enjoy my summer since it's post-basic science Boards! I am still in classes though, so even though I haven't been doing much studying (me need break) I haven't been sharing my new recipes with y'all. I've got a bunch of them on Notes on my iPhone, and I really need to get cracking, buckle down and make some of these babies and take photos of the yumminess and then share them with you!

Thanks for sticking around even though my posts are less regular as they used to be. Med school kind of re-prioritizes your life.
:)

"Good For You" Hot Cocoa.

I recently posted about this on my Instagram account, and it was one of my most popular posts, so I thought I'd better share the recipe!

Hot cocoa or hot chocolate has been one of my favorite things ever since I was little. Unfortunately what I had when I was younger was the very processed, very sugary, completely fake Swiss Miss from a package, mixed with hot water. It tasted good at the time, but it was definitely not good for me!

Hot cocoa does not have to be hard to make to be tasty, and it doesn't have to be loaded with fat and sugar either! My version is light, satisfying, and won't cause any blood sugar spikes, as it has virtually ZERO sugar. Cocoa is also rich in flavanoids and good fats. You could have this every day!


"Good For You" Hot Cocoa.
    makes one serving (mine is a large 16 oz mug)

    2 tsp - 1.5 Tbsp*  unsweetened cocoa powder
    pinch or two of real salt, to taste!
    1 cup  unsweetened organic almond milk (I like to add a touch of stevia, vanilla and real salt right to the carton to make it taste better); you can also use whatever other milk suits your fancy; I also recommend coconut milk, raw goat milk, and raw cows milk
    1 tsp  vanilla extract
    1/2 to 1 dropper  Stevia clear liquid (adjust to desired level of sweetness) 
    8-16 oz boiling water (depending on the size of the mug and how rich / thick you want it)

To make your hot cocoa:
  1)  Boil water.
  2)  In a small saucepan, heat up almond milk gently on the stove. Stir frequently!
  3)  In a dry mug, add cocoa powder and sea salt.
  4)  When water is boiled, let it settle, then pour about 1/4 cup into mug with cocoa powder.
  5)  Use a small whisk, or spoon, and stir vigorously, to incorporate all cocoa powder, and to be sure there are no lumps.
  6)  Slowly pour in hot almond milk. Stir, stir, stir!
  7)  Add vanilla and stevia. Stir. Taste. Top it off with some more hot water. Adjust if needed. You can't add more chocolate at this point, however, otherwise it will clump!
  8)  Enjoy your piping hot delicious chocolate beverage :) This does make enough for two people to have a cup, so if you're so inclined to share.. then share away! :)


*The reason there is a range on the cocoa powder is because sometimes I want it slightly less chocolatey (yes, that is possible) or sometimes even more chocolatey! There is room to vary it for taste. I usually stick around 1 Tbsp cocoa powder, though. You can use whatever type of cocoa powder you have on hand, just as long as it's unsweetened. I've made this with raw cacao powder, Ghirardelli cocoa powder, and Trader joes cocoa powder; all yield a good result, just with different flavors of chocolate!

This hot cocoa will really warm you up.  What a perfect recipe for winter!  For even greater warming effect, add a dash of warming spices like nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger!

Grain-free Unsweetened Banana Cake.

Today is my birthday, so I thought sharing a cake today would be only appropriate.  I didn't make this cake today, however, but made it sometime early summer.

Banana bread has always been one of my favorites.  Since going gluten-free, I've made lots of different versions.  Up until now, my best recipe has been my original banana cake recipe.  Then there was a banana cake made with oatmeal.  There was also my gluten-free whole-grain banana bread, which I adapted from my favorite wheat-based recipe when I first went gluten-free.  And now there is this banana cake.  Made with grain-free flours, left-over soured milk, and bananas, this banana bread is easy to digest, primal and absolutely delicious!  I also love it because it give me a use for raw milk that has gone a little bit too sour to be palatable.  Raw dairy is so valuable nutritionally, it's such a waste to not use it!

I've made this recipe twice now, and it's been fantastic.  The first time I made a frosting over the whole cake made with peanut butter, butter, yogurt and coconut oils.  It was fantastic and I ended up eating it for breakfast because it had enough protein and fat to make my metabolism happy :)  The pictures you see here have one layer of a peanut butter-butter frosting in the middle, but not over the entire cake.  I hope to tweak my peanut butter recipe, get it just right, and then share it with you.  For now, feel free to mix equal parts, butter, fresh ground peanut butter, a few drops of Stevia clear, and vanilla extract together to make a wonderfully nourishing peanut butter filling for the middle of these cakes.  And be sure to share with family!  It's so good (and makes a lot) so sharing should be mandatory!  This cake is also completely unsweetened (bananas only) and it's Primal!

Grain-free Unsweetened Banana Cake.
    makes two 9" rounds

    1 cup  blanched almond flour - source
    1 cup  organic coconut flour - source
    3 cups  ripe bananas, mashed
    6 small  real eggs
    2 cups  soured raw milk
    1 Tbsp  warm spice blend (mine was a mix of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom, nutmeg, allspice)
    1 Tbsp  vanilla
    1 tsp  baking soda
    1/2 tsp  unrefined sea salt
    2 Tbsp  grassfed butter (to grease the pan) - source

To make your banana cake:
  1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (convection or non-convection, same results for this cake). Use your fingers to butter the cake pans liberally.
  2.  In a large bowl, mash bananas, whisk in eggs, sour milk, and vanilla.
  3.  In another medium sized bowl, combine flours, baking soda, and sea salt.
  4.  Mix wet ingredients into dry, using a spatula to incorporate.
  5.  Distribute batter evenly between both pans. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until sides have pulled away from the pan and top is golden brown. When the cakes have cooled, remove from pans by gently inverting them onto your hand or a plate.  Wait until cakes are completely cooled to frost, if desired.

Texture up close.

This cake has quickly become one of my favorites, I hope you enjoy it too!

Chocolate Yerba Mate Iced Tea.

It's August, and in most areas of the USA, the weather is hot.  This weekend in Seattle is going to be extremely warm.  On Friday, 90 degree temps are expected.  This is definitely NOT your typical Seattle weather.  I love to drink water, but sometimes when it's so hot outside, liquid with a little bit more interest is way more appealing than plain H2O.  This iced tea fits the bill precisely.  It is sweet, with a hint of chocolate, so it tastes a lot like chocolate milk, but without the calories.  So it's light - it's refreshing!  And the raw milk adds some healthy fats along with probiotics and enzymes!  This would be a great iced tea to serve at a party.  Your guests, real foodies, primalists, paleo, or not, will drink it up!

Chocolate Yerba Mate Iced Tea.
    makes one large pitcher

    4  chocolate yerba mate tea bags - source
    1 cup  raw milk
    2 tsp  vanilla extract
    3 full droppers stevia - source
    dash unrefined sea salt - source
    ice cubes
    water

To make your tea:
  1.  We have an iced tea maker at home, but if you don't, simply boil a pot or tea kettle full of water, pour it into a glass bowl, and place tea bags in the water to steep.  After about 5 to 10 minutes, remove the tea bags, push the rest of the tea from the tea bags.
  2.  Pour about 1 quart of ice into the bowl, add the stevia, pinch of sea salt and vanilla.  Mix well.  When the tea is cool, add cup of milk and stir.  Return to pitcher and place in the fridge!
  3.  Serve in a cool glass with more ice.  Straws are optional!

Wherever you are, stay cool!  Happy summer :)

Peanut Butter Frozen Yogurt.

Happy August everyone!  As I type this post, it's July, and I anticipate some hot weather ahead for New Englanders in August.  But as you read this post, it's August, and I am busy busy studying Organic Chemistry.  I am completing my last pre-requisite before starting the ND program (naturopathic medicine program) in the fall at Bastyr University in Seattle, Washington.   This East Coast girl, turned California girl, is now a Seattlite(?)  I never imagined this!  Now can say I've lived in all four corners of the USA.  I was born and raised in Florida, lived in New Hampshire until college, lived in Southern California for my undergrad, and now I am pursuing my doctoral degree in Washington state!  How cool.  Even though I haven't moved around "a lot" in comparison to some people, I still feel as if I have.  Am I an East Coaster now?  Or a West Coaster?  For the past four plus years the West Coast has been my home, and now for the next four plus years (at least) the West Coast will continue to be my home, only instead of the Southwest I'll be in the Pacific Northwest.  Once I was just starting to feel like a true CA girl,  I'm off to Seattle.  Sunshine to rain.  Dirty LA traffic, to clear Seattle roads.  It's a new adventure.

But enough about traveling.  Let's take a look at this yogurt.  YUMMY.  This recipe was inspired by a guest post over at Kimi Harris' blog The Nourishing Gourmet.  I didn't have exactly the right ingredients the original recipe called for, so I made some changes, and now instead of honey and tahini ice cream, it's more like peanut butter frozen yogurt.  The 1/2 cup of raw honey was a little sweet for my taste, so next time I will probably reduce to either 1/3 or 1/4 cup.  If you aren't partial to peanut butter, feel free to use tahini, cashini, cashew butter, almond butter, coconut butter, sunflower seed butter, etc.  But if you're a peanut butter fan (in moderation of course) like me, you'll love this recipe!  Chocolate chips would go great with this too!


Peanut Butter Frozen Yogurt.
    Makes almost 2 quarts

    3 cups  raw milk yogurt
    1 cup  raw whole milk or full-fat coconut milk (mine was mixture of both)
    ½ cup  organic peanut butter
    ½ cup  organic raw honey
    2  real eggs
    1T  vanilla extract
    1T  arrowroot powder
    ¼ tsp  unrefined sea salt

To make your delicious peanut butter fro-yo:
  1.  Mix all ingredients in a blender.
  2.  Pour into ice cream maker and churn per manufacturers instructions.
  3.  When ready, scoop into reused plastic yogurt containers (or another vessel) and freeze for at least 12 hours.  Serve when frozen yogurt has hardened.  You may also want to remove from freezer a few minutes before serving.  Enjoy!


Make this frozen yogurt as a healthy "cool-off" treat to beat the August heat.  East Coast humidity is something that I definitely don't miss on the West Coast!  You can also put this fro-yo into popsicle molds for yourself or the little kiddos in your life.  I can't wait to do this when my little nephews get older!

Question for you: how much does your location relate to your identity?

Grain-free Kefir Brownies.

Sometimes my best recipes come from nowhere.  These brownies are definitely a testament to that.  One day I was in my apartment and I had some soured kefir that I had made.  It was past the palatable drinking stage, and not wanting to waste it, I threw together these brownies.  I didn't expect the results to come out very well, but I was completely surprised.  These are so incredible, I may like them better than my favorite grain-free brownie recipe.  I gave the pan away to one of my advisors as a thank-you, and he ended up (due to the pestering of his students) sharing them the with his entire class!  I got an email the next day with rave reviews.  I think you'll rave about them too ;)

Mhmm. Fudgey cakey chocolatey goodness!

Grain-free Kefir Brownies.
    makes one 8x8 pan

    2 cups  soured homemade kefir
    1 cup  organic coconut flour - source
    4  happy eggs
    1 cup  raw cacoa powder - source
    16 oz  chocolate chunks, I used Enjoy Life
    1 Tbsp  vanilla extract
    1 tsp  baking soda
    1/4 tsp  sea salt
    2 full droppers plain stevia - source

To make your brownies:
  1.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees (mine is convection).
  2.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except chocolate chips.  Mix well.
  3.  Add chocolate chunks and mix again.
  4.  Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until the top is cracked, the sides are slightly firm and there is a tiny bit of jiggle in the middle of the pan.
  5.  Remove from oven and let cool.  Try a slice warm.  Let it cool and try another slice.  Share.  Serve with a nice cold glass of raw milk. Yum!

I love these brownies, not only because they are delicious, but that they are low in sugar and carbohydrates!  The only added sugar comes from the sugar in the chocolate chunks.  If you use unsweetened chocolate the brownies will not taste very sweet.  For those of you who are not partial to stevia, feel free to omit it.  I haven't made the recipe without stevia so I don't know if it will grossly affect the flavor, but my guess is that it will make a small difference in sweetness.

Mhmm. Chocolate chunks.

These will freeze very well.  They will also make a great accompaniment to homemade french vanilla ice cream and homemade raw whipped cream.  I love anything chocolate and vanilla combined!

Here are some of my other delicious brownie recipes:

Grain-free Coconut Flour Brownies
Banownies
Gluten-free Brownies (for you whole-grain folk)

Grain-free Spaghetti Squash Casserole

Coming back to NH and the frigid winter temperatures for Winter Break is fun to a point, but it's also freezing! I find myself turning away from salads to warmer dishes. Incorporating protein, vegetables and fats is top priority in each dish, to ensure that it is nourishing and satisfying. Having something warm and easy to make to come home to is wonderful. Driving in the car home after a day at work is freezing! Whipping this up for dinner and sipping some green tea or raw hot cacaolate does the trick for me. I know that this dish will warm your insides too :)

This recipe was inspired by this recipe and this recipe. My version is probably more like the first than the second. It was delicious - thank you ladies for the great idea! This is one of the first dishes in a long time that I couldn't wait to eat the leftovers. The next day I warmed up a piece gently in the toaster oven in a glass baking dish and dinner is served, as delicious and flavorful as the first time!

Melted and gooey mozzarella

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

    serves 6, no leftovers, serves 3 with nice amount of leftovers :) Tastes just like lasagna!!

1 large spaghetti squash

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp dry italian herbs

1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

2 egg whites

garlic powder - as needed

3 cups leftover spaghetti meat sauce (spaghetti sauce with ground beef)

1/2 one small zucchini, diced

1/4 one large vadalia onion, diced

1/2 cup frozen chopped green beans

2 Tbsp fresh chopped green scallions

1 1/3 cup fresh grated raw parmesan cheese

1 fresh whole milk mozzarella ball, sliced thinly into circles

To make your casserole:

1. To cook spaghetti squash, chop open with a knife into two halves the long way. Place on a sheet pan with a Silpat with the cut side down, or spray with olive oil and place in a glass baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until it is easy to pierce through the squash skin.

2. Remove the squash from the oven and while holding in an oven mitt, shred out the squash with a fork. Place it into a olive oil sprayed glass casserole dish and push down, going up a little on the sides like you would a pie.

3. While the squash is cooking, on the stove-top sautee zucchini, both onions, and green beans in half of the herbed olive oil until tender. Add the spaghetti sauce (with meat) and bring to a simmer. Sprinkle garlic powder on top and stir.

4. Mix the ricotta with the other half of the herbed olive oil and egg whites. Spread on top of the bottom layer of spaghetti squash, avoiding the taller sides of the dish. Sprinkle garlic powder on top and add parmesan cheese on top of this.

5. Gently spoon spaghetti-veggie sauce on top of the ricotta layer. Spread evenly. Sprinkle lightly with more parmesan. Place sliced mozzarella on top, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and then finish with the remaining parmesan cheese.

6. Bake in the oven until bubbly and slightly browned on top about half an hour. Remove from oven and let cool/set on counter before serving. Yum!

I had so much fun eating and making this dish. This is going in the "make more often - I love love love this dish - put into normal rotation" recipe pile. My parents agreed. Give it a try and I know you will too!

Enjoy :D and stay warm. I believe my thermometer says 1 degrees Farenheit outside.... Eek!

Raw Milk Eggnog, no HFCS!

That title says it all. What could be better in a drink than full fat, rich raw milk from grassfed cows, raw honey to lightly sweeten and no preservatives or artificial colorings or flavors?

Nourishing Raw Milk Eggnog

    2 cups raw cream, from grass-fed cowies
    2 cups raw whole milk, also from grass-fed cowies
    8 real eggs, from pastured chickens and a farmer you trust
    1/4 - 1/2 cup raw honey - I used a full half cup
    1 full vanilla bean, open and scrape out seeds
    ~1/4 tsp nutmeg - fresh is best, but we had none and ran out of the regular ground nutmeg!

To make your eggnog:
    1.   Combine cream, milk, honey, eggs, vanilla bean seeds and nutmeg in a blender.
    2.   Blend until smooth and frothy.
    3.   Chill immediate or pour into glasses and enjoy. Make sure you shake the jar before pouring some more into your glass! The spices tend to settle.

Some people use only the egg yolks, but I accidentally used the whole egg! I really don't think it matters this time, but next time I will remember to only use the yolks since raw egg whites have enzyme inhibitors so raw egg white shouldn't be consumed raw, whereas egg yolks can.

It's really that easy! This recipe is so nourishing you can eat it all year round, breakfast lunch and dinner, for a snack, dessert or treat, or even after a hard workout at the gym! The eggs and milk provide lots of nourishing fats and proteins, which balance out the sugars from the raw honey. No sugar rush from this eggnog. Only real food goodness. Drink up! Good-bye store-bought eggnog.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Morning: Grain-free Waffles and Fresh Eggnog

Grain-free coconut flour waffles,
pastured fried egg on top.

This Christmas was all about "breaking" tradition and making new ones. My brother G is engaged to a wonderful girl who lives "close-by" so this Christmas it was important to accomodate both families, and also do what was best for them. A happy engaged couple does not want to spend one minute apart, as I am sure some of you have experienced :) We ended up celebrating Christmas with the two of them on the day after Christmas, the twenty-sixth, instead of actual Christmas day. At first, the thought of this really bothered me. But as soon as the day came, I was more than happy to wait. We were very happy to wait and see them and be together as a family. That is the most important part of Christmas day to me. My family means the world to me. The next we had church, since it was a Sunday, what a better way to kick off celebrating Christ's coming and birthday than by going to church that morning? The rest of the day we had fun eating pot-roast, gluten-free Yule Log, opening presents and joking around and sharing stories.

On Christmas morning, my brother and I usually wake up, go down stairs with our presents we bought for our parents to place them under the tree. "Santa" usually comes in the middle of the night. When my parents get up, we have a "grab breakfast" where we eat a little, and open a few presents, and repeat. It's a really relaxing way to do Christmas. When my mom was not so educated in nutrition in my younger years, I would remember she would always make warm blueberry muffins for us. We always had egg nog, but it was the store bought stuff which is full of oxidized cholesterol, HFCS and preservatives. I used to love the stuff growing up, but I haven't touched it since learning about WAPF and real food. This year I was determined to make some real stuff. Thanks to these recipes from Wardeh and AnnMarie, I made the most delicious eggnog I have ever tasted. My brother, who is sold on the stuff from the store, even enjoyed it! That means it passed the "test." This eggnog is so nourishing, full of protein from raw milk and pastured eggs, lightly sweetened with raw honey, a sweetener that actually has benefits!

You can find the recipe for my raw milk eggnog here.

Real delicious EGGNOG, in process!

Farm fresh pastured eggs from happy chickens.

Foamy, nourishing and delicious vanilla
bean-flecked  raw cream/milk eggnog.

Before the eggnog making commenced, however, my parents and I were hungry. We slept in and eventually wandered into the kitchen to make some breakfast. I was lovingly given a new waffle maker from my Aunt on Christmas Eve. The adults in my family do a Secret Santa system, and she had me. Luckily she is a good cook, so she knows what to buy! She gave me the VillaWare UNO Pro Belgian waffle maker, it's so cool because it's one that you turn! Super fun. I was anxious to try it out, so we whipped up some waffles and did! I really enjoyed using it. It was actually my first waffle in about 3 years. I hadn't had any since going gluten-free; we never got around to replacing our old "glutened" waffle maker which my parents received as a wedding present. Miraculously it still works. Mom is going to take it to a second home next week!!

See here for my delicious grain-free waffle recipe.

I trust that you all had a great Christmas. I would like to officially say

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

I must admit I hate saying that, but everyone does, and it would be impolite of me to not ;) right?
Did you do anything different with your family this Christmas?

French Vanilla Ice Cream.

Have you ever wondered why some recipes are so complicated? I like to read a lot of food blogs (or glance at a lot at least), and I find myself becoming very excited about the featured recipe as I see the first, second or third photo. Then I find myself scrolling down the page as fast as I can, my eyes are glued to the screen, in a state of all-out anticipation as I wait to find out the first few ingredients of the recipe. A long ingredient list, complicated measurements, or too many steps and long prep time often strike those feelings dead, however, and that will be the end of that recipe.

All that to say, I love uncomplicated recipes. In January, I shared with you my favorite vanilla ice cream. Now that it's summer, I'm back to cranking out ice cream recipes again. As I read other cookbooks and food blogs, however, I notice that most ice cream recipes are too complicated. It requires tempering eggs, boiling milk, chilling the mixture for hours, unnecessary amount of churning, etc. Because I don't believe it is healthy to eat heated milk (raw milk is best) and I am not afraid of raw eggs (eggs from a healthy source shouldn't be worrisome), I find a lot of these recipes annoying. The picture may look downright delicious, but I just can't get by the process. I'd rather have an ice cream that tastes amazing, made with real ingredients that does not a very long time to put together. 

That being said, here is my homemade vanilla ice cream recipe now updated. I've dubbed it french vanilla ice cream this time around because the color, taste and texture remindes me just of a french vanilla version of vanilla. What's the difference between french vanilla versus regular vanilla ice cream? French vanilla uses eggs and has a more custardy taste and texture, whereas vanilla and vanilla bean versions are usually less creamy, more icy, often do not use eggs, and have tiny black vanilla bean flecks throughout.

This has become my go-to ice cream recipe! By keeping the basic ratios the same, it's easy to make many many different flavors! Yumm!

French Vanilla Ice Cream.

    adapted from Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon

    4 cups  raw grassfed organic jersey cream (or 2 cups cream, 2 cups raw whole milk)

    2/3 cup  raw grassfed organic jersey whole milk

    2/3 cup  organic maple syrup

    4  egg yolks from pastured chickens

    2 tsp  organic coconut flour

    8  drops vanilla creme liquid stevia

    3  good dashes unrefined sea salt

To make your ice cream:

  1 . In a large bowl, crack egg yolks, add coconut flour and whisk until combined. Add milk, maple syrup, salt and stevia and whisk well.

  2.  Lastly, pour in four cups of cream, whisking very well to make sure there are not lumps.

  3.  Pour into your ice cream maker and freeze per instructions. Mine churned for 25 minutes and was done!

After sampling some after taking the picture, this ice cream would probably make a good "eggnog" ice cream (after adding fresh ground nutmeg). Look at the yellow color!! That comes from real milk and real eggs ;)

Breakfast Ideas

Sometimes I feel like I am stuck in a rut when it comes to breakfast. The normal person tends to grab anything they want, and they usually do not even care about it's nutritional value! But since I have a different food philosophy, I know that this is not an option. I want to eat food that nourishes my body. Food that is gluten free and soy free, local, sustainable. REAL traditional foods that our grandma's and grandpa's used to enjoy. Nothing that's packaged, genetically modified or is something you can't pronounce. Food that is traceable back to it's source. Food in its simplest possible form. Food that is alive, not dead.

Nutrient dense, healthy and delicious food is what I crave. I don't eat wheat, or soy. I avoid sugar and conventional dairy products like the plague. I don't eat very many grains. Most surprising thing of all? I don't miss it, and I don't focus on the food I can not or will not eat. There is so much REAL food out there in the world! Vegetables, raw dairy, cultured/fermented food, properly raised meats, traditionally prepared whole grains, beans, legumes, nuts and seeds, real fats, real eggs. The list goes on!

When it comes to breakfast, I love to chop things up and throw it all together in a bowl to savor - there are so many flavors, why not have fun? But when not doing a breakfast bowl, I love to have roasted vegetables and eggs (fried, scrambled, baked) for breakfast.

My favorites list:

goat whole milk yogurt

raw whole milk

butter

cinnamon + other spices

rice protein powder

bananas

raspberries, blueberries, strawberries

watermelon

pineapple

raisins

dried apples

cocoa nibs

organic coconut flakes

raw honey

organic maple syrup

walnuts, almonds, macademias, pecans, brazil nuts, peanuts, hazelnuts

sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flaxseed, chia seeds

oatmeal

soaked granola

The mix in the above picture is: warmed and crumbled Upside-down Creamy Sweet Potato Breakfast cake, with fresh raspberries, goat milk yogurt, cocoa nibs, organic coconut flakes, cinnamon, pinch salt, raisins, and chia seeds. Delicious! Buying a few ingredients and mixing them up makes the combinations endless :) It stops the boredom of breakfast on a budget short!

And this? This you say? THIS is my very first Green Monster (smoothie). I have heard so much about it from Kath's and Emily's and Sarah's blogs that I just had to take the plunge! I used my handy dandy Hamilton Beach multipurpose hand blender - so the consistency was not super smooth, but after a little bit of a fight, it worked!!

Green Monster

The components:

~3 cups spinach - I have no idea because I was stuffing my tupperware full (thanks cafe!)

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup chopped cucumber

some scallions (yes I am that adventurous even on the first time!)

1 frozen small banana

~2 oz goat milk yogurt

aloe vera juice for liquid

To make your green monster:

1. Place all ingredients in blender, or bowl.

2. Blend on high until mixed together!

3. Eat with a spoon or pour into a glass! Enjoy.

This was for today's lunch. I made a lot and couldn't finish it all! You might notice that the recipe is lacking protein-- I opted to have 2 HB eggs on the side instead of going for my rice protein powder. I have to admit that my first Green Monster wasn't a total success, but I loved how it gave me so many good nutrients and is easy to digest on my tummy. I will be experimenting further in the future!!

By the way, my phone is dead/has officially died. Pray for me as I navigate the world without technology. It's more difficult than you would realize!

What to do with soured Raw Dairy products?

Have you ever bought some raw milk and cream from your lovely local farm and gotten so busy that you could not find the time to eat or use it up? It is too expensive, not to mention nourishing to waste... So what is one thing that you can do with soured raw milk cream? You turn it into a breakfast cake! The cake in the pictures are my attempt at making a date-nut-coffee-cake-like gluten free breakfast option, while not wasting cream! The top has a lovely dry flaky layer (like the top of box brownies) while the inside has a layer of cinnamon, nuts and dates. This coffee cake (sans the coffee) is certainly a work in progress. I don't believe the flavors are quite there yet, but my mom loves the dry texture!

How do you use up your soured raw dairy products?