Healthy Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal (Vegan, Sugar-Free, Freezable for Quick Kid’s Breakfasts)

Posted: November 6, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Breakfast Foods, Gluten Free, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegetarian | Tags: , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Jackson’s favorite breakfast is oatmeal. He eats a bowl every single morning. To save time, I make a big batch with thick-cut rolled oats, chia seeds, hemp seeds, raisins, cinnamon, and bananas every week, then freeze it in ice cube trays. In the mornings, all I have to do is heat up three or four cubes of frozen oatmeal with one cube of frozen full fat coconut milk (I always freeze extras when making a recipe that calls for less than a can). Sometimes I add blueberries, apples, leftover baked sweet potatoes, canned pumpkin, or shredded carrots to the oatmeal, but this cinnamon raisin version is so simple and it requires no chopping or preparation at all, so I make it most often.

When Jackson sees me putting his frozen cubes of breakfast in a bowl to be heated, he waves his hands in excitement and runs to his high chair begging me to put him in. He acts like the 90 seconds it takes to heat his breakfast is a lifetime.When I finally give him his bowl, he sets the spoon aside, dips his hand in, and eats it by the fist full. Within minutes, it’s all “gone, gone.”

I feel a little bad that I’ve never made him pancakes or waffles, yet I figure, why change a good (and healthy) thing? Most mornings I don’t have time to have a battle of wills or to keep trying different things until I find something he’ll eat. For months, he has had oatmeal for breakfast and he has never turned his nose at it. This little routine keeps our mornings peaceful, at least long enough for me to have my first cup of coffee.

Full of healthy omegas, sweetened with fruit, this oatmeal is delicious and healthy for kids and adults alike.

Healthy Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal

Serves 4 adult-size portions (8 child portions)

Ingredients

3 cups of water

2 cups of milk of choice (I use unsweetened almond or coconut) or use more water

1/4 t. salt

2 c. rolled oats (not quick-cooking) (use gluten-free oats for gluten allergies)

2 T. hemp seeds

2 T. chia seeds

1 c. raisins

1 t. cinnamon

1 banana, mashed

Directions

In a large sauce pan, bring water, milk, and salt to a low boil. Watch closely or you’ll have a great big mess if it boils over. (Don’t ask me how I know this.) Reduce heat to med-low and add all the remaining ingredients. Cook on med-low to low for about 1o minutes or until all the liquid is just absorbed. Stir occasionally. Serve immediately or freeze for later.

Dry ingredients.

Freeze for later:

I made this batch this morning and served Jared, Jackson, and myself a bowl. What was left filled 1 1/2 ice cube trays  (about 24 cubes). Just scoop it onto the tray and with a spoon or spatula, spread it out evenly among the cubes, pressing down gently to make sure it’s packed firmly. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and freeze. Once frozen, pop out and transfer to freezer bags.

I usually heat 3-4 cubes of oatmeal with a cube of frozen full fat coconut milk for 60 seconds. Stir and then heat again for about 30 seconds. With my microwave, this is a perfect temp for my one-year old. Reheat times will vary though. If it’s dry, stir in a little milk of your choice.

Toddler breakfast ready in 90 seconds. I usually add a cube of full fat coconut milk to his too, but I used my last cube yesterday.

Variations:

Add pumpkin, leftover baked sweet potato, or shredded carrots while cooking, or stir in strawberries, blueberries, walnuts, almond butter, or peanut butter. Get creative…or don’t…make life simple and stick to one combination you love over and over again. 🙂

Leave out the raisins and add blueberries for a delicious fruity version. Jackson loves this, but it’s a little messier, so I just do it when I have time to sit and help him eat.

 

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Super Healthy Almond Kale Salad with Clementine-Maple Dressing

Posted: October 28, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Asian Dishes, Fruit Dishes, Salads, Vegan, Vegetarian, Veggies | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

(Becky, the Mama. )

Greg and I just spent two days on a road trip, driving from snow-covered Denver to the blue skies, hot air balloons, rusty-red mountains, green grass, gorgeous flowers and warm sun of Arizona.  As soon as we pulled into the parking lot, I grabbed my bathing suit from the suitcase (still in the car) ran into the condo and threw it on, then dashed to the swimming pool. The sun was still in the sky, but sinking, so I arranged my lounge chair just so, where I could get the maximum rays, then sat down and basked and beamed with happiness. For as long as I can remember I’ve been a sun and a water baby. I wore my dark hair in two braids, as a little girl, and by summer’s end I always looked like Pocahontas, my skin as “brown as a berry,” my mother said.

To this day, I wonder if I am part Indian, as I disdain shoes and socks, preferring to be bare foot, even in the winter. I seek out sun like a lizard, anywhere I can find it. I do know that my grandmother Nonny and her family came to Sweetwater, Texas from New Mexico. Her eyes were a twinkling blue, her hair a stunning natural silver, and her skin turned a deep olive every summer.  She loved being outside in her garden, always in a flower print dress (I never saw her in slacks), and if we grandkids were lucky, she’d see and catch a baby horned toad, which us we loved to hold and play with more than any store-bought toy.

But I digress.  Back to the pool.  When I could see the sun dipping in the sky, I jumped out of the lounge chair, hurried back to the condo, grabbing this and that from boxes of food stuffs and ice chest we brought from home – kale, dried cherries, hemp seed,  sliced almonds, Clementine oranges – quickly creating the world’s fastest salad. Then photographing it while there was still natural light on the patio overlooking an emerald green golf course. After two days of road trip food burgers and fries, my body was craving something green and healthy.  This is truly a Super Salad, loaded with nutrition – and it was soo yummy, I know I’ll be making it again and again.  The nice thing about using kale in salads is that the salad still has lots of chew and crunch the next day, and in fact,  it seems to get even better as it has time to sit and soften a bit in the dressing.

Super Fruit & Almond Kale Salad with Clementine Maple Dressing

Ingredients for salad:

2 to 3 cups of chopped kale, leaves only – no stems (I was able to find it pre-chopped and mixed with some shredded carrots in the grocery produce aisle)

2 Clementine oranges, peeled and pulled apart in sections

2 T. dried cherries or cranberries

1 T. hemp, flax, or chia seeds

2 T. sliced or slivered almonds

1/4 cup sliced water chestnuts

Ingredients for Dressing:

¼ cup red wine or rice wine vinegar

Juice from 1 Clementine orange

1 T. pure maple syrup

1 t. soy sauce

2 t. good mustard

¼ cup olive oil

dash garlic powder or about 1/4 of a fresh garlic clove, grated

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Put kale in a large  bowl and knead and massage it with clean hands for a minute. This will break down the fibers and make the kale tender enough to eat raw.  (Sometimes I run hot water over it in a colander to soften the kale first, knead it, and then rinse again in cold water.)  Add all the rest of the ingredients for a salad and serve in a pretty flat platter.   Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing together and drizzle over the salad.  Serve and enjoy.

This was printed from: We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook
The site URL: http://welaughwecrywecook.com
The Title: Fruit and Almond Kale Salad with Clementine-Maple Dressing
The URL:http://wp.me/p1UwM9-M9
© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved

Powerhouse Chocolate Pudding Pie

Posted: August 15, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Breakfast Foods, Uncategorized, Vegan, Vegetarian | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

This treat is sweet and creamy and crunchy and chocolately and HEALTHY. Not just healthy for a dessert or healthy-ish. Every ingredient is nutritious. You could eat it for breakfast or feed it to your kids for breakfast. They’ll think you are the coolest mom, and you will be (for reasons they’ll understand when they are 30).

(Rachel, the daughter)

There’s this cake my mom used to make. You’ve probably had a version of it. It has a shortbread crust, a layer of chocolate pudding and whipped cream topping, and maybe a sweetened cream cheese layer too. In some circles it’s known as “Better Than Sex in a Pan.” I’ve never had sex in a pan, so I can’t attest to that, but I do remember sitting on a bar stool at the kitchen island eating it strait out of the pan and being very satisfied.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had it (the dessert, that is), but I’ve been craving that shortbread crust and chocolate pudding combination for the last few weeks and trying to think of a healthy vegan version. Yesterday, I saw a recipe for chocolate chia pudding on the Engine 2 Diet’s Facebook page. They had frozen it into “fudgsicles.” Clever. Immediately, I was reminded of my favorite crust that I use in my frozen No Bake Apricot Bars. Made out of cashews and oats, it is rich and buttery like a shortbread cookie. It would be perfect for a cold puddin’ pie.

Chia seeds are like a nutritional powerhouse and they have virtually no taste. I put a tablespoon in my oatmeal and my smoothies. They basically offer all the nutrition of flax seeds, except they don’t have to be ground for our body to absorb the nutrients and they don’t have a strong taste like I find flax often does. The seeds absorb liquid and become gel-like, which is how they turn almond milk into “pudding.”

Chia Seeds

Jackson devoured the pudding and the frozen bar I gave him. I used dates to sweeten it, so I had absolutely no reason to feel guilty for giving my one-year old this dessert. In fact, it’s good for him. He needs the healthy fats from the cashews, coconut oil, and coconut milk; the fiber and protein from the oats; the omegas from the chia seeds; and the heart and skin protection from the flavonoids in cocoa powder (a super food for toddlers).

My little puddin’ pie. Why do boys always get the long eyelashes?

Oh, and I assure you, I don’t post a recipe I don’t love…so you know I loved it just as much as Mr. Long Lashes up there did.

Served frozen (as shown here) or refrigerated (as shown at the top of the post).

Powerhouse Chocolate Pudding Pie

Inspired by FatFree Vegan and Oh She Glows (two of my favorite vegan bloggers)

(NOTE: Plan ahead for this recipe. The pudding must sit for at least an hour and up to overnight.)

Pudding

  • 1 c. nondairy unsweetened milk
  • 3 T. full fat coconut milk (from a can)*
  • 3 dates, pitted and chopped (soak in a little warm water if they are tough or your blender isn’t very strong)
  • 2  t. unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 t. vanilla extract
  • 3 T. chia seeds

Crust:

  • 3/4 c. whole cashews (raw, toasted, roasted – whatever you have)
  • 3/4 c. regular oats (for Gluten-free, use GF oats)
  • 1/4 t. kosher salt (omit if cashews are salted)
  • 3  medgool dates, roughly chopped
  • 1/8 cup coconut oil, melted

Optional Toppings

Kitchen Gadgets

  • Blender
  • Food processor

Pudding Ingredients

Directions

Pudding

In a blender, combine the first five pudding ingredients. Pour into a tupperware bowl with a lid and add chia seeds. Use a whisk or fork to stir in chia seeds. Stir every five minutes or so until all the chia seeds have started to swell a little and turn light grey. Cover and store in the refrigerator for a minimum of an hour, overnight is best. Stir it every so often if you can. You are looking for the seeds to lose all of their crunch and absorb the liquid until it looks like pudding.

The chia seeds immediately start to thicken the almond milk mixture. This is after stirring a couple of times.

Crust

Spray an 8×8 pan with non-stick cooking spray. In a food processor, process cashews, salt, and oats until a fine crumble forms. Add dates and process until crumbly again. Add coconut oil and process until sticky. Press into pan to form a crust. Freeze for five minutes to harden or until the pudding is ready.

My favorite crust for no-bake desserts.

Pour the pudding over the crust and either refrigerate or freeze. Either way is delicious. The refrigerated version is a little crumblier and I’m assuming only keeps for a day or two. I loved it with a few sliced bananas on top. The frozen version comes out in nice bars and if kept covered tightly should keep for a few weeks.

(Update: After two batches and several taste tests, I decided I prefer it refrigerated rather than frozen. Both are good, but the refrigerated version reminds me of chocolate cream pie…mmmm.)

*Freeze leftover coconut milk in an ice cube tray. You can add it to smoothies, oatmeal, or make coconut covered cherries with it later.

This was printed from: We Laugh, We Cry, We Cook
The site URL: http://welaughwecrywecook.com
The Title: Powerhouse Chocolate Pudding Pie
The URL: http://wp.me/p1UwM9-CK
© Copyright 2012 – All Rights Reserved