Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Granola Bars


I have been wanting to try to make my own granola bars for a while now, but haven't been able to find a recipe I liked. This one is a mix of a few I found on the interwebs.
Forgot to take a "before" picture, but here they are in the oven! 
Ingredients
2 tablespoons (softened) unsalted butter
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. honey
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour (or all-purpose)
2-1/4 cups rolled oats
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup raisins (or other dried fruit of your choosing)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 13x9 (or similar size) pan with olive oil or cooking spray.
Combine the butter, applesauce, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and flour by hand or with a hand mixer (I have a lovely purple hand mixer I use every chance I get).
Add the baking soda, rolled oats and cinnamon. Mix again.
Stir in the raisin with a wooden spoon.
Pour mixture into the pan and spread evenly with the  wooden spoon.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are brown and top is golden. (see photos).

How freaking delicious do these look!? This is right out of the oven, pre-cutting. 
I'm glad I finally got around to making these! They came out so good and we're ridiculously easy to make. The whole thing probably took about 10 minutes, including clean up (but not baking time). I let them cool for about 30 minutes before I cut them into bars, and wrapped them up for easy breakfast grabbing.


Give them a try and let me know what you think!

Mallory :)

Easy Pull-Apart Rolls!

I'm eating a fresh baked dinner roll right now and it's so good, I cannot form words. You'll just have to look at the photos.

The one roll I couldn't wait until dinner to eat.
It snowed here today and I stayed home from work, (I hate the snow by the way, but that's a story for another day), so of course I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to bake! I am so happy these rolls came out so good!

I got the original recipe from http://www.halfbakedharvest.com/easy-fluffy-pull-apart-whole-wheat-buttery-dinner-rolls/ but tweaked it a little since I have a bread machine.

Here's my version:
Ingredients:
1 cup very warm water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2-3/4 cup white whole wheat flour (I use the Trader Joe's brand)
2 tablespoons honey
1 egg
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

Directions:
Place all ingredients (in the order listed) in your bread machine. I think some bread machines could be different, so if your machine says to put the ingredients in a different order, then by all means, do that! 
Set it to the "dough" setting.
When it's done (mine takes about 90 minutes), pour the dough out onto a floured surface (it will still be a little sticky) and form into a ball. 
Cut it into 9 sections and form a small ball from each one.
Spray an 8x8 inch pan with olive oil spray (we have a Misto!) 
Place the dough balls in the pan.
Cover with a dish towel and let rise for 20-25 minutes. 
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
When the dough is done rising, spray (or brush) with olive oil, and sprinkle with spice of your choice (I used rosemary).
Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown on top. 
ENJOY! :)
The dough right after I took it out of the bread machine.

Dough balls in the pan, ready for the towel and some rising.

Dough balls after they rose, sprayed with olive oil and sprinkled with rosemary! 

Finished rolls! Right after I took them out of the oven! Mmm! 

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Chocolate Coconut Crinkle Cookies

Hello again!
I know I said I'd be posting mostly "healthy" recipes and DIY things, but turns out most of my recipes are dessert related...
I like to think these cookies are fairly healthy as far as cookies go, since they are made with coconut oil instead of butter, and cocoa powder which I keep telling myself is in the health-food category. They also happen to be vegan! I didn't intend for them to be, there just happens to be no dairy in them. Don't get me wrong, I like dairy as much as the next 'Merican (most notably cheese), but it really is not good for you, like at all, so it's nice to unintentionally eat vegan once in a while.
So here's the recipe!

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups sugar (I used organic)
1 cup cocoa powder
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup coconut oil (I used organic)
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cup flour (whole wheat or all-purpose)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
powdered sugar for rolling

Directions:
Mix sugar, cocoa, applesauce, oil and vanilla in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and blend with a hand mixer. Put the mixture in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight. (This allows the coconut oil to harden enough to make dough balls).

Preheat oven to 350℉. Pour powdered sugar in a bowl. Take dough out of fridge. Roll dough into small meatball-sized balls. Roll balls in sugar. Place on cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool on cooling rack. 



On the cookie sheet ready to be put in the oven!


I brought some of these to work around Christmas time and everyone loved them! The coconut flavor is subtle to me, but if you absolutely hate coconut, then use another kind of oil. Also, you probably won't like this blog because I'm kind of obsessed with coconut things. My boyfriend is still undecided about the whole coconuts taking over the grocery story thing, but he really loved these cookies. Like I said, the coconut flavor is subtle. 
I hope you try them! :) 


Fresh out of the oven! They smell amazing!

Sunday, January 12, 2014

French Onion Soup (In the Crockpot!)


A few months ago, I found this recipe for French Onion Soup (made in the Crockpot!) on Pinterest. I had to change it slightly (I didn't have enough beef stock - oops!) But it still came out delicious!
I'll post my slightly edited version of the recipe or you can use the link above. It was very easy, but has a few more steps than most Crockpot recipes, so it's best to save for a weekend day.
Enjoy! :)

INGREDIENTS
¼ cup (1/2 a stick) unsalted butter
4 medium onions, halved and thinly sliced
2 tsp. crushed garlic (we always have some in the fridge)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons flour
1 can beer
2 cups beef stock
~1/2 cup water if needed
1-1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
½ teaspoon pepper
bread, rolls, or crutons (we had leftover rolls I used)
Shredded Gruyere and/or Swiss cheese

DIRECTIONS
Turn on your slow cooker and set to high. Add butter and let melt. Add onions, garlic, vinegar, brown sugar, and salt. Mix well. Cover and let cook for 1-1.5 hours, stirring every 15 minutes, until onions begin to turn brown. Stir in flour, allow to cook for a couple minutes then stir in beer and beef stock and water a bit at a time, stirring well between each addition to avoid lumps. Stir in thyme and pepper. Cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low. Taste and season with additional salt, if desired.
To serve: Top with cheese and serve with bread either on top or on the side. (Our rolls didn't fit well in the soup...)




Saturday, January 11, 2014

Bacon is an addiction I have

BACON. mmm.

Sooooo, I know I just posted an organic juice recipe, but while I was doing that, there was bacon cooking in my oven. (Hey, nobody's perfect). Anyhoo, as I was taking it out of the oven, I realized how the cooking method I started using is so much easier than pan frying, not to mention it's a lot less messy, and the bacon comes out flat and perfectly crisp every time! (The proof is in the pictures).

Here are the steps I take when cooking bacon:
1) Put foil on a cookie sheet.
2) Put a cooling rack on top of the foil. (See photos)
3) Place bacon slices on cooling rack.
4) Place pan in cold oven, on the bottom rack. (no pre-heating!)
5) Turn oven on to 400 degrees F.
6) Set timer for ~20 minutes. (I left mine in for about 23 minutes.)
7)When it looks crisp enough for you, take it out. You can let it cool on a plate if you want, or taste a piece immediately like I did. Fair warning, you might burn your tongue doing this.



This is definitely my preferred method for bacon cooking, and once you try it, I'm sure it will be yours too.

My most popular juice recipe

I posted this on Pinterest a few months ago and it's been repinned 50 times! I don't know whether to call it a smoothie or juice since technically I didn't use a juicer, but whatever you call it, it's easy to make and delicious! 
I used my Nutribullet to make it, but I'm sure any other super speed smooshing device will do. 
Note: there's like A LOT of pulp in this since I didn't use a juicer. I like some drinks better that way. I know I'm getting all the nutrients and fiber too. 
Ingredients:
2 organic carrots, scrubbed with a veggie brush or peeled. 
1 peeled orange
1 banana
Directions:
Put everything in the Nutribullet, blend it up real good. Drink. :) 
This makes the two small glasses shown in the picture. 
I hope you like it! 

Friday, January 10, 2014

Why I eat organic produce

Why I eat organic produce

Click the link to watch a video about a third grader and her unintentional organic science experiment. She basically explains why I try to eat organic whenever possible. Sorry I couldn't post the video right in the blog :( But here's a picture of potatoes for you to look at!



Apple Cranberry Pie

This is a recipe for an apple cranberry pie I made a little before Thanksgiving. I didn't make it for Thanksgiving, but because it was November and I wanted a damn pie. I wanted it to have cranberries (fresh ones because I had never cooked with them before), and I wanted to make it from scratch.
I found a recipe similar to this one (which I tweaked slightly), and let me tell you - pies might be my new thing because this one was amazing. My boyfriend and I each ate a slice every night for a little over a week. And hey, there's fruit in it, this is a healthy pie!
I hope you try the recipe. It was really fairly easy and as I mentioned, a-freaking-mazing.
And look! There's a picture this time! :)

Apple Cranberry Pie 
Ingredients: {Filling}
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. orange zest
1 TBS. salted butter
1 unbaked pie shell
1-1/2 cups fresh cranberries
3 cups peeled and sliced granny smith apples
{Topping}
1 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup rolled oats
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter cut into pieces
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large pot, stir together the syrup, sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, orange zest and butter over low heat for about 2 minutes, then add the cranberries and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the apples. Pour the mixture into your pie shell. Prepare the topping: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, oats and cinnamon. Add the butter with  your fingers to incorporate. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit filling.

Place the pie on the middle rack of the oven. Place a cookie sheet lined with foil on the rack underneath to catch any escape juices. Bake 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the pie to a cooling rack to cool completely before slicing and serving.

*Note: I made the pie crust from scratch for this pie (whole wheat too...). If you have time/want to try it, I will post that recipe too, however, since then I've been buying pie crust because it just takes too damn long. Maybe in the future when I'm not working full-time I'll be able to handle the pie crust challenge again. 
Here's the recipe I used:

Whole Wheat Pie Crust
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
4 to 5 tablespoons ice cold water

Directions:In a food processor, combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture had turned into crumbs the size of peas. Drizzle in the water (4 tablespoons) and continue to pulse until the dough comes together. Add the 5th tablespoon of water, if needed. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball, then flatten slightly. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

And here's the pie! 




Monday, January 6, 2014

Pecan Pie

Did you know most pecan pie recipes call for corn syrup? Ugh. I didn't realize that was still a thing....
Luckily for me, there's the internet (all hail the internet), so I googled "pecan pie recipes with NO corn syrup" and I found one similar to this:

Pecan Pie
Ingredients:
1 unbaked 9″ pie shell
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
2 eggs
2 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter (melted)
1 cup pecans (halves)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350℉. 

In a large mixing bowl, mix sugars and flour. Add remaining ingredients, beating very well with a hand mixer. Pour mixture into prepared 9″ pie shell. Sprinkle nuts evenly on top. Bake 40-45 minutes. Cool for at least four hours.

***UPDATE*** 
Made this again for thanksgiving this year so here are some photos!! Enjoy!!



PS - I made this for Thanksgiving AND Christmas Eve because it was such a hit at Thanksgiving! :-)
I hope you try it! 

Sunday, January 5, 2014

DIY Deodorant

Since I previously talked about, I will post my recipe for DIY/Homemade Deodorant. Like I said, I've been making and using it for over a year (maybe 2?), so I think it's safe to say I like it.

Backstory: I don't know how it happened exactly (I'll blame the internet), but sometime a few years back, I started to become more concerned with eco-friendly products and organic food. So I bought some Toms of Maine junk-free deodorant. It smelled okay, and was more 'junk-free' than the Dove's I had been using, but it really did an awfully terrible job at stopping sweat/smell of any sort. And it kind of stung my armpits when I put it on. So, as I googled what else I could try, I can across a blog by a lady who had made her own. I think she had gotten the recipe from another blogger as well. It looked easy enough, so I figured I would give it a try. And what do you know? IT FREAKING WORKED. 

So here is the recipe that I have been using. I'll tell you some details about it below.

DIY Deodorant
Ingredients
1/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup cornstarch
5 tablespoons coconut oil
Who would have thought 3 simple ingredients could literally make the best deodorant EVER.

Directions: 
Mix all ingredients together very well. Use a finger size scoop under each arm. If it's too hot where you live, you can keep it stored in the refrigerator. I just keep mine in the bathroom cabinet. 
*Note: I had to melt my coconut oil in the microwave before mixing, because it's winter here and everything is cold and terrible.





This deodorant smells amazingly coconut-y (if you like that sort of thing). I apply it once a day. The only time I've had an issue of it not being 'strong' enough or lasting long enough, was when there was a 90+ degree heat wave in September and I had to teach 25 6-year-olds for 7 hours in 'work' clothes in a second floor un-air conditioned classroom, with windows that only opened half way. I was fairly sweaty that week, but then again, so was everyone else. 
Of course, not everyone is the same so you might not have the same totally awesome results I did, but I hope you do! Give it a try! 
Finished product! :) 

I guess it is easy to start a blog...

I was hoping it would be slightly more challenging to start a blog, because that's a fairly good excuse for not starting one. Turns out, it's really easy. Drat.
We'll see if this lasts though. I've been thinking about starting a blog for the last few years (because hey! I know about some stuff! And I took that creative writing class!...10 years ago...)
Who knows, maybe I'll be an internet sensation!
It's probably more likely I'll forgot to post/make excuses. However! IF I do post regularly, I suppose these are the things I will write about (even if it's only for myself):

1. DIY beauty products - I started making my own deodorant about a year and a half ago. I guess it's a weird place to start DIYing when you think about. Anyway, when I told a colleague of mine about it, she said, and I quote, "Oh my God, really?! Are you like, granola!?" I told her I didn't think so, but maybe you will disagree if this blog thing actually gets going.

2. FOOD! (aka Recipes) - If anyone ever actually reads this, they will come to find that I really really (like really) enjoy food (and cooking!). Pretty much of any sort, though I've been trying more and more to eat clean. (Except during the holidays - that's a free for all).

3. Things I Try - I once tried to make my own toothpaste. It was terrible. But I could have blogged about it! I also just got my first ever "gel" manicure. Also very terrible, but perhaps I'll write up a review/my opinion if anyone is ever interested.

I think that's a fair introduction for now.

Mallory :-)