Coconut Palm Sugar makes Chickpea Brownies

These dark chocolate muffins are delicious and surprisingly healthy.

Total Time: 22 min.

Prep Time: 20 min.

Cooking Time: 12 min.

Yield:12 servings, 1 cupcake each

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained, rinsed

3 large eggs

½ cup coconut palm sugar1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

3 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup dark chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.

2. Prepare 12 muffin cups by lining with muffin papers or coating with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

3. Place chickpeas, eggs, maple syrup, cocoa powder, baking soda, coconut oil, and extract in blender or food processor; cover. Blend until smooth.

4. Divide batter among 12 prepared muffin cups.

5. Top each muffin with about four chocolate chips; push into batter.

6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

7. Cool completely and enjoy!

Apples N Greek Yogurt *Gluten Free!

1 Apple, peeled, cored and sliced

2 tsp organic raw agave nectar

sprinkle Cinnamon and Nutmeg to taste.

Microwave for 1 min and 45 seconds

Remove from Microwave, allow to cool.

Add 1/2 Cup of Homemade plain Greek Yogurt.

Mix it up and enjoy!

So I've been making my own homemade Greek yogurt for a while now.  I'm really loving my process and the results!   It turns out more creamy and naturally sweet than any Greek Yogurt I've ever bought from the store.   I just need to figure out how to use all the Whey it produces!  

So How easy is it to make Greek Yogurt?  

 Here's what you will need:

1 6qt Crockpot or Slow cooker

1 large colander

1 bowl to go under the colander to catch the whey, keep in mind, you want there to be enough space under the colander so the whey doesn't rise up to the level of the yogurt. You want the Whey to all drain out, not keep the yogurt soupy from setting in the whey.

1 cloth (I use a homemade red checkered table cloth folded in 4ths.

12 cups whole milk

3/4 cup Greek Yogurt with Live Cultures

1. Turn your slow cooker on low for 15 minutes, empty, but with the lid on.

2. Add 12 cups Whole Milk.  I prefer raw milk or the minimally processed milk.

3. Replace the lid and set the timer for 2 1/2 hours.

4. after 2 1/2 hours on low, unplug the slow cooker and set the timer for 3 hours.

5.   When 3 hours is up, remove the lid, place the Greek Yogurt with Live cultures in a smaller bowl, add 2 cups of milk from the slow cooker and mix with a whisk.  Add to the slow cooker and stir to combine.   Replace the lid and wrap the whole crockpot in a bath towel  Leave set for 7 hours.   

6.  Place colander in a bowl that it will fit down in well, line colander with the cloth, remember I use a thin cotton table cloth folded in 4ths, so it's draining through 4 layers.   Cheese cloth is too holey the yogurt will just run through.   

7.  Pour the contents of the slow cooker into the cloth, place the whole thing in the fridge and allow to drain several hours or overnight.

8.  When the whey has drained into the bowl, remove the Greek Yogurt into a bowl for storing in the fridge.  Pour the Whey into a glass jar and label with the date.

Now you're ready to enjoy your Greek Yogurt.   Yes it's a process, and you will need to be home all day to make it, but it's super easy and it's so worth it! 

If you have any questions about making Greek Yogurt, please post them in the comments.

Coconut Sugar makes Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip cookies, America's favorite cookie!  And oh, so addicting, but the effects are not forgiving, not to this body anyway.   I remember in my "Refined Sugar Addiction" days I would eat 5-6 chocolate chip cookies in a setting and at least 12 ounces of Milk along with them, and Whole Milk is best!  Through pregnancy my cravings were even more severe, especially with my first and third, I would consume more refined sugar products than anything else, that's what my body was screaming for and at that time I didn't know everything that I know now.   So today, I revamped that famous New York Times Cookie recipe that's been circling and getting rave reviews, into an amazing guilt free cookie, that is so delicious, even my husband couldn't believe it! And the amazing thing is, I stopped at 2, that was plenty!   No desire to eat 4 more, because the sugar wasn't making my body cry for MORE, MORE, MORE!  

ARE YOU READY?

ARE YOU SET?

WHY AREN'T YOU BAKING?

*Note, again I am not a Dr, or a Nutritionalist, I just go on how my body responds to foods and ingredients. 

.

This is the Unbleached Non GMO Flour that I use, I get it at Walmart and HyVee in the Health Market. 

I've been buying my Coconut Sugar at Sam's Club lately, it comes in a 4# bag for only $12.98, which is a huge savings from the $5.99 a pound I was paying when I first started using Coconut Palm sugar.

Another thing to be aware of when you purchase Coconut Palm Sugar, look at the ingredients and make sure that there is nothing but unrefined coconut palm sugar in it.   My Aunt bought a bag somewhere and there was Fructose added to it.   I'm not a fan of refined Frustose either,  So be sure you're getting the pure stuff!

Emily's Guilt Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 2/3 C. Unbleached Non GMO Flour

1 1/4 tsp aluminum free baking soda

1 1/2 tsp aluminum free baking powder

3/4 tsp sea salt

1 stick butter

3/4 C unrefined Coconut Oil

2 C Coconut Palm Sugar

1/4 C Agave Nectar

2 large free range organic eggs

20 ounces bittersweet chocolate morsels

1.  Sift together dry ingredients (Flour through salt)  

Set aside.

2. ( I use a Kitchen aid to mix my cookie dough, but you never want to over mix cookie dough, so take care when using a stand mixer. )

In mixer bowl,cream coconut oil, butter, coconut sugar and agave nectar on medium speed till fluffy, add vanilla and eggs, beat till well blended and lighter in color.  Add the dry ingredients and blend on low, just until the flour is all mixed in.  Remove bowl from mixer and stir in the Chocolate morsels with a wooden spoon.   Scrape dough into an air tight container and refrigerate overnight.

3.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.   (I use baking stones that are well seasoned, but if you don't have stones, line cookie sheets with parchment paper)

Drop dough with cookie scoop onto baking stone and flatten to about 3/4" thick with the bottom of a glass or mug, dipped in flour.

4. Bake about 10-14 minutes, until edges are crispy.  The centers should still feel soft to the touch, so don't wait till they're firm in the center, or you'll have crunchy cookies all the way through.   Mine I baked for 14 minutes (Not Refrigerated) and they turned out perfectly crispy around the edge and moistly chewy in the center.

5. Allow cookies to cool on baking stone for a few minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Yields approx. 31 cookies.

You really gotta try these to believe how amazing they taste!  I honestly cannot tell a difference in sweet treats made with Coconut Palm Sugar and those made with refined sugar.  But the results of eating them are so extremely different.

Happy baking.....and snacking!

Coconut Palm Sugar makes Caramel Popcorn

Those who know me, know I'm a big sweet tooth and in May of 2014, I gave up refined sugar products.   I'm insulin resistant and so my body doesn't know how to process refined sugar especially. Though I don't have the intense cravings anymore, once in a while something sweet still sounds really good.  And to prevent myself from running back to my former Refined Sugar Addiction, I've learned ways to create sweet treats with low glycemic natural healthy sweeteners.    You may question me on this, "How do you know Coconut Palm Sugar and Agave nectar doesn't effect your blood sugar and body the same way as Refined Sugar...."    Well, I did a little personal test.    Last May, I started a life changing lifestyle, I became a Beachbody coach and started replacing one meal a day with Shakeology, eating clean and doing intense fitness programs from Beachbody.   I was very successful in losing my first 38#.   Then I decided to see if these new low Glycemic sweeteners really were better for my body.    Here's what I did, I quit exercising for a few months, drank Shakeology off and on, those months, continues to eat clean, but I did pick up on the amount of sweet treats that I was eating,  though I still avoided refined sugar sweets, I instead made my own with Coconut Palm Sugar and Agave Nectar.   Over those months my weight fluctuated by a pound or two on any given day,  I did not binge and become out of control with my sweets intake like I use to when I consumed refined sugar sweets, I didn't have the desire to binge, I didn't become addicted  as I did with refined sugar, which use to result in headaches when I didn't have sugar.   And I DID NOT GAIN ALL MY WEIGHT BACK!    Had I gone back to eating refined sugar sweets, as I have many times before after losing weight, I would very rapidly gain all my weight back and more.   It was a sad and depressing cycle.     This time, imagine the joy, when I am still able to enjoy a sweet treat without fearing instantly becoming addicted again and binging on sweets till I was back at square one.  Yes, sheer Joy, Excitement and Taste bud pleasure with no guilt!    Though I do still have several pounds to lose to reach my ultimate goal and weight, I'm so excited to jump back into my fitness programs and on a lower calorie intake to lose the rest of my weight, without having to start at the beginning again!

*Note, this is just my personal experience, I'm not a Dr, I can't treat or diagnose you, this is just my findings from what I know about my own body.   

So, would you like to learn how to make delicious sweets without refined sugar? You've come to the right place!  I'm going to start posting recipes for Coconut Palm Sugar and Agave Nectar Sweet Treats and sauces!  

Caramel Popcorn

Popcorn:

1/2 C. Unrefined Coconut Oil
2 tbsp Butter  (I never use margarine)
1/2 tsp salt
1 C popcorn

I just use a regular soup pot to pop my popcorn, but you can pop it however you choose.   As a clean eater, I never use Microwave popcorn, because of the chemicals they use on the inside of the bags.  

Once your corn is popped, pour it into a large bowl and pick out the unpopped kernels, this is very important, you don't want those hard unpopped 'old maids' stuck in your caramel, biting down on those are cruel!

Caramel

1/4 C Unrefined Coconut Oil
1 tbsp Butter
1/2 C Coconut Sugar
2 tbsp Agave Nectar

In a small sauce pan, over medium heat, melt and stir until combined, bubbly and smooth.  It will look grainy at first, but keep cooking and stirring and it will become smooth and caramelly looking!

Pour over your popcorn and stir until well coated.   I then poured it out on sheets to cool and crisp up, it takes longer to do that, if you want it crisper faster, you can bake it in a low oven and stir every 10 minutes for about 45 minutes.   Take it out and let it cool.   And ENJOY YOUR GUILT FREE SWEET TREAT! 

Homemade Saltine Crackers

So Crackers is something I always cringe a little when I think about buying them, or do buy them.  I've heard and this isn't verified, I know you can't believe everything you hear, but I just haven't taken the time to research it more, that crackers may contain powdered plastic as a filler.   It just kind of grosses me out so that's why I cringe a little.  However Label Watch also has given me some reason to be concerned about what is going in those crispy little squares that we so generously put in our soup, snack on with cheese, eat when our tummy hurts..... you can read more here: http://www.labelwatch.com/prod_results.php?pid=281513


So I decided to try my hand at making some homemade crackers.   This is the first recipe I tried.

Saltine Crackers

• 1 cup all purpose flour (you can also use wheat or cornmeal)

• 2 tablespoons melted butter

• 4 to 8 tablespoons water

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

My dough ended up wanting about 5 tablespoons of water, but if you use wheat flour instead, you may have to use more. Then I rolled out the dough on my baking stone, sprinkling with additional salt and used a pizza wheel to score them into squares.  Use a fork and poked holes in each of the squares to prevent bubbles
and baked them for about 15 minutes, checking them after 10, until lightly golden brown. This amount of time makes them chewy. Then, leaving the crackers in the oven,  turn off the heat and let the crackers crisp for about 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes,  remove the crackers and let them cool on a wire rack.

I preheated my oven to 400 degrees. mix the flour, melted butter, and salt. Adding the water 1 tablespoon at a time, I mixed ingredients until the dough cleaned the sides of the bowl.

I want to try a few more recipes as well as some homemade graham crackers!

For now, here's my finished product.   Kids loved them, they're delicious in soup, easy to make, just be sure to roll them out thin!   :D

After I rolled them out, I just scored them and poked them with a fork, but next time, I will cut them and seperate them so the center ones will get crispier.

Blueberry Custard Crepes

So my biggest discovery that has really changed the way I bake, is Coconut Palm Sugar! Here's a little info about Coconut Palm Sugar and why I love it and now use it in place of sugar in all my sweets! 

So last night I decided to make Crepes, I've never made Crepes, but love them and have wanted to for a  long time.  Last night for supper I served them with Bacon, Eggs and Cheese!  They were a hit, my kids and I loved them!   So with the leftover batter, I made these sweet little babies for breakfast this morning!   Enjoy!

Blueberry Filling!

1 tbsp Orange Juice concentrate

1/3 c Coconut Palm Sugar

3 tbsp Arrow Root Powder

4 c. Blueberries (I used frozen)

1 1/2 c. water

Combine all ingredients in a sauce pan and stir till completely combined.  Cook over medium heat till mixture thickens.

Vanilla Custard for the filling

• 2 cups Almond milk or milk
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 2/3 cup Coconut Palm  sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 pinch  salt
• 1 teaspoon Real Vanilla
• Combine all ingredients and cook until thickened.  Set aside to cool.

Crepes

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 2 cups whole milk, room temperature, plus more if needed
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 1/2 ounces (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for skillet

1. Sift flour and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together milk and eggs in a medium bowl. Pour milk mixture into flour mixture, whisking to combine. Whisk in butter. Strain mixture into a medium bowl, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or up to 1 day).  [I did not refrigerate them before dinner last night, but the batter was in the fridge overnight for Breakfast this morning.  I couldn't tell any difference at all.] Batter should be the consistency of heavy cream; add more milk if needed. (I did add more milk)
2. Heat an 8- or 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, and brush with butter. Ladle or pour 3 tablespoons batter (for small crepes) or 1/3 cup batter (for large crepes) into pan, turning and tilting skillet to coat bottom evenly with batter. Cook until top of crepe appears set, bottom is firm and golden brown in spots, and center is lifted by pockets of air, about 1 minute.
3. Run a spatula around edge of crepe to loosen. Slip spatula under crepe, and gently flip in one swift gesture. (If it doesn't land quite right, that's okay; use the spatula to unfold or rearrange it.) Cook until bottom is firm and golden brown in spots, about 45 seconds. Transfer to a plate, and cover. (The first one will not be your finest.) Repeat with remaining batter, brushing pan lightly with butter as needed (every 2 or 3 crepes). Serve immediately.       Recipe courtesy of http://www.marthastewart.com/312411/basic-crepes

After you've fried your crepes, spoon Vanilla Custard in the middle, 

Wrap it up, flip it over and top it with your blueberry topping!

Old Time Wheat Bread



Mom's original recipe:

 

6 c. unbleached flour

3 c. whole wheat flour

2 tbsp. yeast

1 tbsp. salt

1/2 c. brown Sugar

3 tbsp. gluten or dough conditioner (optional)

1/3 c oil

3 c warm water

1/2-3/4 c chopped walnuts or sunflower seeds (optional)

 

Mix dry ingredients in large bowl or mixer. Add oil and mix well.  Add as much water as possible until dough is smooth and soft but doesn't stick to bowl. Place in a greased bowl and grease top.  Let rise until double. Punch down and shape into 2 loaves. Put in greased pans, let rise until double.  Bake @ 350-375 for 30-35 minutes

 

 

 

My alterations:

6 c. white whole wheat flour (it's still brown, but not as brown as reg whole wheat, you can use either.  I buy organic Non GMO flour as I believe GMO flour is harder to digest and not healthy)

1 1/2 c unbleached flour

1/4 c Wheat Bran

1/4 c milled flax seeds

1/4 c. wheat germ

1/4 c ground chia seeds (optional)

2 tbsp. Yeast (I use Instant)

1 tbsp. sea salt or pink Himalayan salt

1/2 c coconut sugar

2-3 tbsp. gluten or dough conditioner. (again, I use organic non gmo)

1/3 c coconut oil

3 c warm water

1/4 c sunflower seeds

1/4 c sesame seeds

follow directions above.