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!

Triple Vanilla Ice Cream.

Vanilla ice cream is definitely one of  my favorite flavor of ice cream. I like to try sample at every ice cream shop I visit, to see if I have found the vanilla ice cream. So far my search has found some pretty good vanillas, and some pretty mediocre vanilla ice creams. By far, the standard of my comparison has been the storebought super premium ice cream, Double Rainbow. Since trying this ice cream, no other vanilla I've tried has stacked up to it's incredibly creamy, smooth, bright and comforting vanilla flavor.

So when I whipped up this ice cream last weekend, I thought that it would come out very well, but I didn't know how well. Even before pouring this ice cream into the ice cream maker to freeze, I knew this batch was special. It tastes like a dream, scoops like a dream, and melts like a dream (unlike some homemade ice creams which just seem to melt right away, or to never melt at all). I have to admit, it certainly rivals the amazing taste of Double rainbow, which is a feat in and of itself. I will definitely be making more vanilla ice cream exactly like this. Below is a photo from my brother's birthday celebration.

Since the vanilla sugar and cream are simmered together (in order to dissolve the sugar), the final product as a slight caramel taste! No doubt if you simmered the cream and sugar longer, you could easy make a dulche de leche version.

Triple Vanilla Ice Cream.
    makes two quarts

    6 oz  vanilla sugar - source or make your own
    4 cups (1 quart)  raw cow's milk cream
    1  vanilla bean
    1 Tbsp  vanilla extract
    1 Tbsp  coconut flour - source
    5  egg yolks
    1/2 tsp  unrefined sea salt

To make your ice cream:
  1. In a small sauce pan, combine sugar and 1 cup cream. Turn on high heat, bring almost to a boil, when first bubbles appear at sides reduce heat to simmer, and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 5-10 minutes. Mixture will thicken, coat the back of a spoon, and be caramel-like when ready. Remove from heat and allow to cool (this may take a while).
  2. In a separate bowl, combine coconut flour, salt, vanilla bean flecks, and egg yolks. Mix until yellow and thick. Add vanilla extract. Whisk in remaining 3 cups cream. Slowly add the cooled vanilla sugar mixture, whisking constantly.
  3. Add to your ice cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturers instructions. Mine churned for about 25 minutes. This ice cream comes out perfectly straight from the ice cream maker. Freeze overnight before scooping for hard ice cream. No need to remove ice cream from freezer for 10 minutes before serving. It's scoopable as is!
  4. This ice cream is so delicious, serve with your favorite brownies, chocolate sauce, nuts or whipped cream. Or you can serve along mint cake, like I did here! Enjoy :)

Want some cake with your ice cream? Try my grain-free chocolate cake! It's super easy, just make sure to follow instructions and to both grease and flour the pan.

Other ice creams I've made:
- Original vanilla ice cream - my first attempt, these basic proportions are what I use as a "template" for making all my other ice cream recipes
- French vanilla ice cream
- Chocolate ice cream
- Chocolate peanut butter ice cream

Have a lovely summer day!

Grain-free Sweet Potato French Toast.

Growing up I have a lot of fond memories of my mom's cooking.  On the weekends, she would make a special breakfast for us, and my brother and I would get to choose between either pancakes, french toast, or waffles.  French toast was my brother's particular favorite.  It always came out the same, (tasty), and it was the faster of the three options for my mother to prepare, which always meant breakfast would be sooner!

To be honest I haven't had regular french toast in a long time. Last summer I spontaneously took some left over sweet potato, combined it with some eggs and warm spices, and this recipe was born! I didn't write it down, however, and this last year of medical school has stopped virtually all my recipe development time. Since I am free this summer, I have more time, and so one morning last week I spent time in the kitchen whipping this up! It feels good to be cooking again :)

If you're paleo, primal, grain-free or just wish to avoid unecessary carbs, this recipe is for you. It doesn't actually contain any bread, just some delicious orange sweet potatoes. The eggs and warm spices combine to make the french-toast taste. The texture isn't like bread, but it's moist and melts in your mouth!! Yum!

Grain-free Sweet Potato French Toast.
    makes one 9x13 pan

    1 Tbsp  cinnamon
    1/2 tsp  fresh ground nutmeg
    3 dashes  ground cloves
    1/4 tsp  black pepper
    1/2 tsp  unrefined sea salt
    2 tsp  vanilla extract
    2 Tbsp  raw honey - source
    2 Tbsp  organic coconut oil, melted - source
    1/2 cup  organic raw milk
    6  happy pastured eggs

    3 large sweet potatoes, washed and peeled

    Toppings: (optional, choose your favorites!)
      pecans
      sunflower seeds
      coconut chips
      maple-cinnamon sugar - source

To make your french toast:
  1.  Wash and peel your sweet potatoes. Cut lengthwise in half, then cut each half into half moon shapes about a half inch thick. Arrange on a cookie sheet and roast at 425 degrees until just fork tender.
  2. In a large bowl, combine all spices, honey, oil, milk and eggs. Be sure coconut oil is not hot. Whisk until well combined and there are no lumps of spices or egg.
  3. Grease a 9x13 glass casserole dish with about 1 tablespoon of butter.
  4. Arrange pre-baked sweet potatoes on the bottom of the dish. Pour egg and spice mixture on top. Sprinkle with toppings of choice! I used pecans, sunflower seeds, coconut chips and a maple sugar-cinnamon mixture. Other good choices would be whole walnuts, shredded coconut, ground pecans, and raisins.
  5. Bake at 400 degrees convection, covered in foil, for a total of 45 minutes. At 30 minutes check to see how it's doing. For the last 5 minutes, remove foil. Let cool to set before serving warm with plain yogurt, thick greek yogurt or maple syrup. This will freeze very well and is also great for the next few days straight from the fridge. Enjoy!

This recipe would be a great brunch option, since you can easily make the sweet potatoes and egg mixture the day before and store it in the fridge. Then in the morning before guests arrive, grease the baking dish, add the sweet potatoes, pour in the egg mixture, add the toppings, and in an hour you'll have some delicious paleo french toast baked, cooled, and ready to be devoured! I'd serve it topped with your favorite greek yogurt and fresh blueberries or strawberries, with sizzling bacon on the side, and warm green tea in your mug!

I'd eat this up within a week after you make it, but then again I don't think that will be a problem :)

Real Chocolate Ice Cream.

I got an ice cream maker for my birthday a few years ago, and I've put it to good use!  It's been so fun to experiment with different ice cream recipes.  Some have been really good, and some have been, not so good.  Several batches have come out too sweet, not sweet enough, or too icy or crumbly and hard as rock.  But this summer I think I've got the whole process down!  I am so happy with this recipe.  It's incredibly scoopable and you don't need to remove it from the freezer for any amount of time before serving.  It's texture is fantastic and the sweetness is just right.  

Real Chocolate Ice Cream.
   makes 2 quarts

    1 pt  raw cream
    2 cups  raw whole milk
    4  egg yolks
    1 T  arrowroot starch
    1/2 cup  cocoa powder
    1/2 cup  raw honey
    1 T  vanilla
    5 dashes  unrefined sea salt

To make your ice cream:
  1.  Combine all ingredients in a blender.
  2.  Pour into ice cream maker and freeze per manufacturers instructions.
  3.  Freeze overnight until hard.
  4.  Serve  and  enjoy! Try it with fresh whipped cream and chocolate sauce.  Or top it with peanut butter!!

Mhmm. The goodness is beginning to melt! YUM.

I like to freeze my ice cream in leftover yogurt containers! They are the perfect size, and I can put equal amounts in two 32 ounce containers.  Eat one, save one (shove it in the back).  In a few months you'll have several types of ice cream to choose from waiting for you in the freezer!

Chocolate not your style? Check out my other flavors:

Homemade French Vanilla Ice Cream
Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream
Peanut Butter Frozen Yogurt

Cauliflower Garlic Mashed Faux-tatoes.

Like most people, I love mashed potatoes.  I think they are the best when the skins are left on, they are creamy but hold their shape, and they have a nice garlic flavor.  Every since going gluten-free, becoming healthy, and really changing my diet, mashed potatoes have gone out the window.  While they were a treat before, they are now a complete rarity.  Until now.

Since I found out about the Weston A. Price foundation and Primal eating, I have rediscovered mashed potatoes. Only now they aren't actually made of potatoes, they're made out of cauliflower!  I used to think cauliflower was ghastly, and I would say that it was just a bad tasting version of broccoli (I love broccoli).  Well I am a firm believer that vegetables must be tried in several preparations, and more than one time, before anyone can say they don't like them.  Because now, I love cauliflower.  And after trying several fruits and vegetables several times, I now like them.  Once I didn't like cucumbers!

Now that cauliflower has made it's way into my diet, I've decided to make them in mashed potatoes.  This idea has been floating around in the Primal community for a while, and while I have made "cauliflower mash" before.  This time was different.  I went all out.  Roasted garlic.  Butter.  Whole milk.  Food processor.  Super smooth texture.  Oh yeah! 


Cauliflower Garlic Mashed "Faux-tatoes."
   makes about 8 servings

    1 head of cauliflower, steamed or boiled
    1/4-1/2 cup  raw whole milk
    4T - 6T  real grass-fed butter
    8 cloves of home-roasted garlic
    1/2 tsp  unrefined sea salt
    1/2 tsp  black pepper

To make your mashed potatoes:
  1.  Place hot boiled or steamed cauliflower, in a food processor.  Add butter and roasted garlic cloves.  Blend until smooth. Add spices. Blend.  Lastly, add milk until desired consistency is reached.
  2.  Taste.  Modify if needed. (Becareful, these are really good, it was hard to stop eating them! ;)
  3.  Serve warm with some more butter (if desired) along with a nicely cooked protein, like grass-fed beef, chicken or turkey!


Leftovers (if there are any) keep really well in the fridge.  Eat within a week.  They are even great cold!  This recipe is a great side dish option for those of us who do best on low carb, low starch, Primal, paleo diets.

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 :)

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?

Grain-free Cranberry Orange Muffins.

I have to admit that I've always been kind of afraid of cranberries. As long as I can remember the only thing I've ever known about cranberries has been in the form of sugar-overload canned cranberry sauce and equally sweet cran-raspberry juice we used to drink as kids. Only now that I am older did I learn that cranberrries are actually a real thing, and there is such thing as cranberry sauce NOT from a can. Through doing lots of reading, I learned that cranberries are a nutritional powerhouse, full of wicked strong anti-oxidants, but they are very tart. Since they are tart, food companies load all forms of cranberries with sugar (try buying plain cranberries, it's nearly impossible). But around Thanksgiving and Christmas, you can find these berries in their raw natural state in the local grocery stores. 

Yesterday was my first day home, which of course involved a trip to the farm, the grocery store and the natural food store with my mom. It was such fun :) To say that I like the grocery store is a bit of an understatement! As I was walking through the produce section, I spotted some organic cranberries. So I took a risk, bought them, and brought them home. My main motivation for the purchase was my dad, who is currently under the weather with a bit of a cold. He's been busy and his immune system is tired, so it caught him. What better to help him fight the icky germs than to make him a superfood muffin and brew him a cup homemade immune boosting tea? (Which I made myself at the health food store :D) So I set to work on these muffins.

Dark chocolate chips, plain, and sugar crystals!

Grain-free Cranberry Orange Muffins.

    3/4 cup  coconut flour – sifted

    1/2 cup  blanched almond flour – sifted
    1/2 tsp  celtic sea salt

    1/2 tsp  baking soda

    1/2 one  large (7”) organic vanilla bean pod seeds

    1/4 tsp  cloves

    1/2 cup  maple syrup (grade B is best for flavor)

    1/2 cup  organic coconut oil – melted

    2  real eggs

    1 cup  soured raw cow’s milk - buttermilk would work too

    juice  of one clementine orange

    zest  of one clementine orange

    1 cup  ground walnuts

    1 cup  organic fresh cranberries

   

To make your muffins:

  1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees convection. Place muffin papers in muffin tins.

  2) Combine milk, vanilla bean seeds, orange juice and zest in a large bowl. Mix well to make sure the vanilla seeds are distributed, and pour in cranberries.

  3) In another bowl, combine coconut flour, almond flour, salt, cloves and baking soda, making sure there are no lumps.

  5) In a small sauce pan, combine coconut oil and maple syrup. Gently heat until coconut oil melts. To not let mixture get very hot.

  6) In a small bowl, crack the eggs and whisk until bright yellow.

  7) Whisk eggs and coconut oil mixture into the large bowl with the dry ingredients. Pour in milk, and lastly, add the cranberries and walnuts. Mix until just combined.

  9) Scoop batter into standard muffin sized tins with a 1/3 cup measure.

 10) Sprinkle the tops with dark unsweetened chocolate chips or large sugar crystals, if desired.

 11) Bake for about 30-35 minutes (mine took exactly 33) and remove when a test inserted in the middle comes out clean, the tops are set and golden brown. 
  12) Let cool in the muffin tins for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. This lets the bottoms of the muffins firm up and not become soggy. Enjoy!

Dark chocolate chips

These are a great dessert or breakfast option. My family and I each had one after our dinner last night. They are not overly sweet, which I like. The liquids, eggs and coconut flour makes this muffin super moist and not the least bit dry. And the combination of immune boosting coconut oil, cranberries, nourishing eggs and mineral rich maple syrup pack a nutrition punch against these foreign invaders...

A bacteriophase (form of virus), infecting a cell!
Photo credit: USC

This is a human rhinovirus - the cause
of the common cold! Photo credit: Virusworld

I couldn't resist showing some science pictures. ;) 

Merry Christmas! 

^ It's after finals and I am finally beginning to believe that it's Christmas time. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and enjoyed the time with family, friends and good food. Many of you mentioned how happy you were for all the Thanksgiving ideas I shared. I'm so glad that I helped! Since I heard such a great response from my Thanksgiving post, I will definitely be compiling a Christmas recipe post. I hope to do this soon so you readers will be able to plan ahead! My Thanksgiving was great, and I only have ONE picture to show for it. I enjoyed the day and wasn't taking pictures. I do wish I had taken more, but it was nice to spend the day relaxing (and cooking). N's family was so nice to host me again, since I have too far to fly home.

Also, for all of you who would like to know, I survived finals. Survived is the word to describe it because that's just what happened. Since I am a human biology major, I have alot of work to do. I am not complaining. I love it. That being said, it is very hard to study for tests for three science classes as well as a Theology class, as well as complete other miscellaneous homework that has to be done. I believe that I did alright on all my finals, which is definitely a praise.. but I won't know what my grades are like until January! I don't like the suspense!! Overall, I've had a very emotional week, and I can easily say my limbic system is exhausted. I still feel joyful, blessed and happy to be home. We don't even have snow yet! :( Cross your fingers for a white Christmas!!

See the muffin? = Yummy topping!

It's so nice to be back! Enjoy making these muffins! They also make a GREAT breakfast topping! 

Real Food Recents

Here are some snapshot of real food meals I've enjoyed recently. Eating nourishing food at college (or anywhere) doesn't have to be hard, you just have plan ahead and make it a priority.

Bananas, raw milk, chia seeds, raisins, nuts,
freeze dried assorted fruit, and this "trail mix."

A delicious salad - romaine, spinach, red onion, baked chicken,
olive oil, pomegranate balsamic, spicy pineapple pico de gallo
and red peppers and cucumbers.

I am thinking about making "Real Food Recents" a weekly part of this blog. I hope to inspire others to eat healthier food, while also emphasizing that it does not have to be difficult. My ideas can also (hopefully) spark new ideas in your own mind for creating nourishing meals. As readers, if you like this idea I would really appreciate your thoughts.

Banana Cake II

Last night I had the opportunity to bake! I had some ripening bananas that needed to be used up. I've also been out of the kitchen for a few weeks, and the coconut flour - banana combination was just calling to me! Smeared with some almond or peanut butter for some extra protein, this will be a great grab-and-go breakfast item for me.

Remember my original Banana Cake? I decided to do a second version, hence the name Banana Cake II, with all the ingredients I had available to me in my dorm room. The original recipe has a special topping, while this one is plain for ease of transport.

Overall I am happy with the results. It smelled amazing, rose well in the oven, and came out ooey-gooey banana-y. The recipe is not perfect, and that's why I am not sharing it with you today. Next time bananas are too ripe for eating, I will be baking banana cake II again. This time I need to add a bit more coconut flour (the cake was too moist), a bit more sweetness and maybe change the fat from butter to coconut oil, with a splash of vanilla for taste.

Bananas + Coconut flour + GF oats soaked in raw milk + cinnamon = Real Food for breakfast.

Want a recipe NOW? Click here for my original Banana Cake recipe! I've made it several times and it's a winner. Having either ripe bananas always on hand, or pre-measured mashed bananas frozen in the freezer, makes this recipe easy to whip up anytime!

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 ;)