Jam & Toast Breakfast Muffins

Thanksgiving is just a few days away.  

 

AKA the time for food industries, food blogs, and anything related with food to go all out with pumpkin, pumpkin spice, nog, and peppermint.

These muffins were made with Califia Farms* Holiday Nog. And by golly do these muffins hold up.

After searching Whole Foods’ racks for weeks, I finally found Califia Farms’ new flavors: pumpkin spice latte and holiday nog. While the latte was, of course, a winner, the holiday nog was a really great addition to baked goods.

Toast & Jam Muffins Recipe

(makes 6 muffins)

• 1/2 tbsp vinegar (I used white)
• 1/2 cup milk of your choice (I used Califia Farms Holiday Nog)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 3/4 cup flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup maple syrup (can use sugar, agave, honey, etc.)
• your choice of fruit jam (I used blueberry and orange marmalade)

Preheat oven to 350 F and line a muffin tin with liners.

Mix first 4 ingredients and let sit for 5 minutes.

Mix in the rest of the ingredients.

Pour a spoonful of batter into each muffin liner, or enough to cover the bottom. Drop in a small spoon of jam in the middle of the batter, and cover the rest (3/4 full) of the liners with the batter. Bake for 19-26 minutes or until lightly browned and risen.

Let cool and enjoy!

*Note that I was not paid by Califia Farms or in any way affiliated with the company

 

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Summer Fresh Salad

I don’t know about you guys, but I love a good salad. One with a good base of leafy greens, spinach is my favorite (sorry kale!), some crunch, and good flavor.

I know I’m late to the salad game, but I recently realized massaging the leaf base with a bit of oil and lemon or vinegar really ups the whole salad. Adding a bit of chopped nuts for a crunch and some fruit for sweetness.

I’ve also come across cold-pressed juices. I got a pack of 6 bottles of juice from Pressed Juicery recently and though the juices are amazing, I love the lemon cayenne water. I know it’s probably super easy to make, which I probably will be making soon! It’s spicy, but sour, and delicious.

 

Summer Fresh Salad Ingredients

Yields 1 serving

• 1 cup baby spinach
• 1/2 to 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice
• handful of baby carrots
• handful of grape tomatoes
• a few grapes (apples, strawberries, any types of berries, and sliced peaches are also great for this salad)
• 1 tbsp nuts (I used half pistachios and half slivered almonds)

Massage the oil and vinegar or lemon into the spinach and set aside.

Chop up the vegetables and fruits into small bite sized pieces. Add to the spinach. Chop the nuts as finely as possible and mix into the salad.

 

This really did not need instructions, but this can just act as a base for any salad you like.

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Cauliflower Vegetable Tart Casserole

Hey everyone! So I know I haven’t made any posts for months! But I will assure you, I WILL be posting regularly again (hopefully!).

So for a while now, cauliflower has been BIG. Like used as a pizza crust, rice, and even “mashed potato.” I have yet to try the latter two, but I have tried making the pizza – emphasis on the try. The crust didn’t bake through enough so the “pizza” turned out as a sort of mash with pizza toppings. Nonetheless it was absolutely delicious.
So, with the sort of twist-success, I wanted to make a sort of tart made with the same cauliflower mash tart.

This tart is almost vegan, but can be made vegan – or even made with meat! This dish is completely versatile and can be made to suit your tastes.

  Cauliflower Vegetable Tart Recipe Yields 2 9-in diameter tarts Base:

• about 3/4 o head of a cauliflower, florets chopped
• 1 small broccoli bunch, florets chopped
• a bit more than 1/4 cup greek yogurt (can substitute same amount of pureed silken tofu or 1 egg)
• a generous pinch of salt
• your choice of spices

Filling:

• your choice of cooked meat, I used the Beef-less Ground Beef from Trader Joe’s
• 1/4 cup baby carrots, chopped
• 1/2 of a zucchini, chopped (plus slices for topping)

Directions: Preheat your oven to First chop the cauliflower and blend in a food processor until finely ground. Then spritz some water and microwave for 2 minutes. Chop the broccoli and blend. (If you want you can blend the broccoli and cauliflower further to create a paste). Mix in the greek yogurt or egg or tofu. Add the spices. Bake for about 20 minutes or until edges and middle start to brown and harden. Chop the carrots and zucchini and mix in with the meat. Take out the cauliflower base and press the meat filling in. If desired you can add slices of vegetables on top, I like zucchini and/or tomato. Spritz the top with a bit of oil and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the top starts to brown and the zucchini shrinks and shrivels. *Optional: You can top with hummus, or lay some hummus on top of the base and add the filling on top of that.

*By the way, if you’d like please comment any suggestions for future posts. That would be greatly appreciated. 😀 *

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Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Hey everyone! So Summer has begun and what better way to celebrate summer than with a nice bowl of hummus and pita?

This is more of an upgrade to my previous hummus recipe, but better nonetheless, if I do say so myself. 😉

This hummus is so creamy thanks to all the liquids of course. The key to making hummus taste sort of like store-bought, I recently found out, is adding a ton of citric acid, in this case, lemon.

I upped the amount of lemon in this recipe as well as adding a bit mroe salt and less tahini. 

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus

• 1 15-oz can of garbanzo beans/chickpeas
• 1 large red bell pepper
• 1/2 head garlic
• 1/4 cup lemon
• 2-3 tbsp tahini
• 1/4 cup water
• 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• a few pinches of salt, to taste
• optional: herbs for the top

First, roast the red bell pepper. One way to do this is by roasting it in a 400 degree oven, 10 minutes each side.

I roasted the bell pepper by holding it over the stove and rotating it with a fork.
After, when the bell pepper is blackened, place it in a plastic bag and once it is cooled, gently peel off the blackened skin. Chop into small pieces.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas well. Blend the chickpeas and garlic in a food processor and wipe down the sides until most of the chickpeas are cut up. Add the liquids, water, tahini, lemon, and oil. Then blend in the salt and bell pepper. Pour into a bowl or container and add the optional red pepper and oregano topping and drizzle some more olive oil. Set in the fridge so all the flavors can mingle. Enjoy!

 

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Texanerin’s Original Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

Hey everyone. Yes, I am finally posting again! After exactly two months, I’ve decided to go back into the blog/photography game and I’m glad to report I have a delicious post for you. 

So, this isn’t an original recipe – but don’t worry, next week I have a delightful original recipe planned. 😀

This recipe is from Texanerin, a blog I’ve been following for  few years. This is her original recipe, but I wanted to bake some and take some snaps of them. 

The cookies are so soft and peanut buttery and chocolatey – but guess what? They’re made with chickpeas! (or garbanzo beans, depending on what you call them).  Oh, my lord. So, check out her post here and tell me how it goes for you. 😀

 

Healthy Funfetti Cake Batter Dip

Cake Batter Dip. Creamy, sweet, buttery. Everything you want in cake batter, most importantly: the  sprinkles!

I myself have never been a huge fan of funfetti, but after seeing so many funfetti and sprinkle-laden desserts on FoodGawker, I couldn’t resist buying a bottle of sprinkles. And what else to make besides cake batter with sprinkles?

Yes, yes, I know. Sprinkles are not the healthiest item, but really, it all evens out with the high fiber oats and calcium-rich cottage cheese, right?

Healthy Funfetti Cake Batter Dip Recipe

• 1 16 oz tub of cottage cheese
• 2 tbsp coconut oil or vegan butter (vegan butter will give a more cake batter like taste)
• 2 tbsp agave, maple syrup, or other sweetener (or to taste)
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup almond milk or milk of choice
• 1/4 cup oat flour
• 2 tbsp sprinkles (if mixing in)

In a food processor or blender blend everything except the sprinkles until smooth and creamy.

Mix in the sprinkles and transfer to a jar or bowl.

Serve with graham crackers, pretzels, fruit, or simply with a spoon!

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How to make your own oat flour

So this is more of a how-to post than an actual recipe, but you know… whatevs. Instead of spending $13 on pre-made oat flour, you can make your own oat flour at home! It’s incredibly easy and you just need oats and a food processor. 

If you’re crazy, like me, you can sift the oats after blending to get a fine flour, but that of course requires at least TRIPLE the time and energy. If you’re bored, then doing that is a great way to use up time.

I like to use oat flour in place of flours in many baked goods, I love it in this cookie recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie.  The oat flour gives a more fudge-y and cakey texture. 

And because I am terrible at making oatmeal with real oats, I use oat flour to make porridge. Makes me feel like I live in the Oliver Twist times, eating gruel and porridge.
Oat flour makes anything more delicious and cakey, not to mention its high fiber content. And because its oats, you can basically call anything you make with it breakfast. Like cookies. 😉

Oat Flour Recipe

For about 2 cups you will need

• 2 cups oats (about 300 g)

Just blend it in your food processor, blender, or Magic Bullet. If you don’t want to spend time sifting the flour, blend a little longer. Blend for at least 30 seconds or until you have your desired flour consistency. Happy baking!

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Healthy Homemade Take-Out

Sometimes you need some good old fashioned fake-Chinese food. So, instead of going out to Panda Express, bring Panda Express to you!

The sauce is incredible simple, requiring basic staples that you probably already have in your pantry. Just throw everything into a pot, simmer, and voila! You have the sauce to make anything taste amazing.

I used cauliflower, but you can also use tofu, chicken, or just use the sauce for other things like noodles! Mmm…

Sweet Orange Sauce

• 1 cup vegetable or chicken broth (240 g)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch or flour (60 g)
•  1/2 cup orange marmalade* (120 g)
•  2 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp powdered ginger
• 3 tbsp white or rice vinegar (either will work)
• 4 tbsp liquid sweetener or sugar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce (60 g)
• optional: 2 tsp sesame oil

Whisk the broth and cornstarch together. Then add in the rest of the ingredients and heat on medium low. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 5 minutes. Then take off heat.

Orange Cauliflower

• 1 head cauliflower, chopped
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup+ 3tbsp  water
• 1 orange sauce recipe
• optional: sesame seeds or chopped green onions for garnish

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper

In a very large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and water until the consistency is a little thicker than cake batter.

Dip the cauliflower nuggets in the batter and tap off any excess liquid. Bake for about 10-20 minutes in the oven.

When the cauliflower nuggets are done, pour into another large mixing bowl. Pour in the orange sauce and mix gently with a large spatula. Garnish with sesame seeds and serve over brown rice, quinoa, cous cous, or soba noodles. Enjoy!

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Raw Chocolate-Hazelnut Bites/ My New Toy

So… I got a new toy this week. I got this awesome new scale! So for those of you who live outside the US or just happen to use the metric system, I got ya covered! It is so fun to use and I am now a full advocate for measuring scales.

Onto the bites… these are DELICIOUS. The taste amazing, smell like Nutella, and are incredibly rich and decadent. All you need to make these are a few simple ingredients, a food processor, and a hand spoon to shovel these into your mouth. ;D
‘

Raw Chocolate Hazenut Bites Recipe

• 1 cup hazelnuts** (120 g)
• 1 1/3 cups pitted dates* (220 g)
• 3-4 tbsp cocoa powder
• optional: 3-4 tbsp shredded coconut (I added this)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• optional: a pinch salt

Simply blend everything together in your food processor or blender. Then scoop them with a teaspoon, tablespoon for bigger balls, or a cookie scoop and roll them with your hands. You can also cut them out into fun shapes with a cookie cutter or shape them into bars. Enjoy!

*I used Medjool dates because they are softer. If your dates are in the fridge and are not very soft, soak them in warm water for 5 – 10 minutes.

**You can also toast the hazelnuts in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes, but then the balls will not technically raw, but I do recommend this as it adds a deeper hazelnut flavor.

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Strawberry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

Guys, t’s almost Valentine’s Day. And you know what that means: the only thing you see in grocery stores are either red, white, or pink!

Wow. I just noticed I’ve been making these cookies every year for the past 3 years. Woah. This recipe is originally from Sinfully Spicy‘s Strawberry Nutella Thumbprint Cookies, but I changed it up a bit.

As most cookies, these are best served warm, straight from the oven or kept overnight and microwaved, if that’s your thang. I love when these cookies are melted so the chocolate gets all… melty and it gets all over your hands, fingers, and various parts of your face. Once these are kind of cooled, these cookies are amazingly chewy in the middle and crispy on the edges. These cookies are completely versatile, you can fill them up with whatever you want! I usually make them with Hershey’s Kisses, but I didn’t have any on hand so I used Chocolove’s Almonds & Sea Salt Dark Chocolate. Some fun fillings are Nutella, peanut butter, strawberry jam, fudge! Oh the options!

Strawberry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

• 1 1/2 cups flour (I used baking flour, but all-purpose, whole wheat, and oat flour* will work as well)
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 4 tbsp vegan butter (I used Smart Balance Omega-3) or coconut oil, melted (I have not tried any other oils so I cannot vouch for results)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• about 1/4 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
• filling: chocolate chips, peanut butter, Kisses, nutella, broken pieces of a chocolate bar**

Sift the flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl. Then sift in the sugar. Melt the strawberries in the microwave or stove and mash with a fork or blender. Mix in the strawberries, vanilla, and butter with a fork until your form a dough. Cover with a plastic wrap and leave in the fridge for an hour or until the dough is firm.

Preheat the oven to 350.

Using a tbsp or cookie scoop form the dough into balls and place about an inch apart on a silicone baking sheet or parchment paper. The dough may be a bit sticky, just wet your hands every now and then to roll smoother balls.

Now press your thumb or a teaspoon into each cookie dough ball. If the dough is too sticky, lightly coat your thumb or teaspoon with flour and keep pressing.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the edges start to brown.

*I like using oat flour because it lends a more cake like and fudgy texture to the cookies, but if you’re more of a crispy-cookie person then use normal all-purpose.

**If you use chocolate bars or solid chocolates, immediately press the chocolate into the hole of the cookies right after taking them out from the oven.

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