Recently Nature's Path {which makes the most amazingly fantastic pumpkin flax granola} totally upped their game even more and came out with a Coconut Chia Seed granola. We sampled it at Costco a couple of months ago and Mason and I were both completely smitten. Their granolas contain soy flour so I can't eat it now.
I'm adding coconut in this week and I can't wait. It's been a rough life living without coconut. You all know how I feel about it. So I decided to try and concoct a copycat granola sans allergenic ingredients. Beginner's luck turned out the most incredible granola I've ever tasted. I'm of course going to share it with you now. Simply because I'm so excited about how good it is, and because I'm currently eating a bowl as I type. Yum yum.
You will need:
1 1/2 cups whole rolled, gluten free oats
2 T. chia seeds (I get these in bulk at Whole Foods)
3/4 cup raw, unsweetened shredded coconut (also in bulk at Whole Foods)
1/4-1/2 cup raw seeds, I used half pumpkin half sunflower
1/4 cup honey
2 T. coconut oil
Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.
Microwave the honey and coconut oil together for about 20 seconds and stir until it's all combined.
Pour over the dry mixture and stir to combine.
Spread in a thin layer on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake at 300 degrees for 12-15 minutes, just until lightly toasted. Don't overbake it. The edges should just be barely darkened.
Let cool on the pan.
It's deliciously chewy but with some crunch because of the seeds. To make it even more amazing, eat it with some Silk Unsweetened Coconut Milk on top. That stuff is unreal in the delicious department.
I'm pretty big into granola, another of my favorite granola recipes can be found here at Something Swanky. It's really simple and easy to make, and completely genius. My Aunt Brenda suggested making it with almond butter instead of the peanut butter and it's incredible that way too.
Do you have a favorite granola recipe? Do share!
Showing posts with label Organic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Organic. Show all posts
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
10 Uses for Coconut Oil
I've briefly mentioned how much I love coconut oil and gotten lots of questions about how I use it. So here's a whole post dedicated to my favorite uses for this blessed substance!
{First to Sarah--I use the same coconut oil for everything. I just scoop some out of the container into a tupperware, then melt it down so it takes the shape of the new container and let it harden again. Then I keep it in my bathroom. It's all purpose! =)}
{And to Nicole--I get unsweetened coconut at Whole Foods in the bulk section. Sunflower also sold it in Utah, so I'm assuming most health food stores with a bulk foods will have it. Our Trader Joe's is really small, but they carry some pre-packaged kind that is realllly expensive. So bulk is the best if you can find it. I'm also looking into how to just buy a coconut and make my own. I'll get back to you on that!}
1) First and foremost right now because I'm pregnant, I use it for stretch mark prevention and for that awful itchy skin that accompanies growing a baby. Our homeopathic nutritionist told me that it's the oil most easily absorbed by human skin, so it gives amazing deep down moisturizing relief.
2) Make up remover. It's incredible how the tiniest bit will take off everything-waterproof eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow. I just rub a little onto my eyes and then use a cotton ball to wipe it off.
3) Facial moisturizer. I only do this a couple times a week because it's so heavy duty, and that's all I need. I wash my face with honey (an explanation for a different post) and then use apple cider vinegar toner and then put on coconut oil. It's fabulous.
4) Deep hair conditioning. I only do this once every 6 months or so. You can melt it down and put it on just like that old school Neutrogena hot oil. Then wrap your head in saran wrap for 30 minutes then wash. It's so good for your scalp, and makes your locks completely luscious. Just be prepared to shampoo about four times to get it all out. It is oil after all. You can also add a few drops of tea tree oil (Melaluca) for extra scalp treatment, because it's anti-fungal. And it also smells amaaaazing.
5) A carrier for essential oils. When Mason gets a cold, instead of Vicks vapo rub I mix some Eucalyptus oil in with a few tablespoons of coconut oil and rub it on his chest. It can also be mixed with Lavendar to help babies sleep, and to calm soreness on their nose from a cold. It's also great for teething remedies like clove and grapefruit, and really just any essential oil you want to use.
6) Diaper rash treatment. When Mason had a horrible yeast diaper rash a few months ago, my sister in law told me that for my niece she had mixed Grapefruit Seed Extract (also incredible) with coconut oil and used that instead of a prescription medicine. It cleared up Mason's rash within two days. Now anytime he gets any kind of diaper irritation I use the coconut oil and it clears right up.
7) Cooking and baking. You can replace most oil or fat with coconut oil, and it won't even taste like coconut. I use it in our homemade bread, cinnamon rolls, cookies, even tortillas. And I'll cook Mason's eggs in a teaspoon of it instead of using cooking spray.
8) A dietary supplement. It's great to use as an external moisturizer, but your skin also benefits if you eat it. A spoonful a day can help with eczema and just general dry skin. I also stir a spoonful into Mason's oatmeal each morning to help him get good fat, since we don't give him cow's milk. Eating it also increases your good cholesterol and can help lower the bad because it contains lauric acid. It also helps regulate blood sugar and makes your liver more efficient, helping you burn fat, and it can help regulate thyroid function. Pretty amazing!
9) Chapstick. It's the best lip moisturizer I know of. And it's something I can put on Mason if he needs it and not worry about what he's ingesting.
10) Toothpaste. This is a new one I just started learning about. Studies are showing that the antibiotic properties of coconut oil will fight tooth decay and that it helps with calcium absorption, strengthening teeth. It's also been used for teeth whitening. Ohh how I love my teeth whitening. I'm going to try it this week and I will report back!
It's pretty amazing all the things one humble ingredient can do. There's loads of other things that I've read about but haven't tried yet, including homemade deodorant....hmm. I'm not sure my loyalty to coconut oil runs that deep.
{First to Sarah--I use the same coconut oil for everything. I just scoop some out of the container into a tupperware, then melt it down so it takes the shape of the new container and let it harden again. Then I keep it in my bathroom. It's all purpose! =)}
{And to Nicole--I get unsweetened coconut at Whole Foods in the bulk section. Sunflower also sold it in Utah, so I'm assuming most health food stores with a bulk foods will have it. Our Trader Joe's is really small, but they carry some pre-packaged kind that is realllly expensive. So bulk is the best if you can find it. I'm also looking into how to just buy a coconut and make my own. I'll get back to you on that!}
1) First and foremost right now because I'm pregnant, I use it for stretch mark prevention and for that awful itchy skin that accompanies growing a baby. Our homeopathic nutritionist told me that it's the oil most easily absorbed by human skin, so it gives amazing deep down moisturizing relief.
2) Make up remover. It's incredible how the tiniest bit will take off everything-waterproof eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow. I just rub a little onto my eyes and then use a cotton ball to wipe it off.
3) Facial moisturizer. I only do this a couple times a week because it's so heavy duty, and that's all I need. I wash my face with honey (an explanation for a different post) and then use apple cider vinegar toner and then put on coconut oil. It's fabulous.
4) Deep hair conditioning. I only do this once every 6 months or so. You can melt it down and put it on just like that old school Neutrogena hot oil. Then wrap your head in saran wrap for 30 minutes then wash. It's so good for your scalp, and makes your locks completely luscious. Just be prepared to shampoo about four times to get it all out. It is oil after all. You can also add a few drops of tea tree oil (Melaluca) for extra scalp treatment, because it's anti-fungal. And it also smells amaaaazing.
5) A carrier for essential oils. When Mason gets a cold, instead of Vicks vapo rub I mix some Eucalyptus oil in with a few tablespoons of coconut oil and rub it on his chest. It can also be mixed with Lavendar to help babies sleep, and to calm soreness on their nose from a cold. It's also great for teething remedies like clove and grapefruit, and really just any essential oil you want to use.
6) Diaper rash treatment. When Mason had a horrible yeast diaper rash a few months ago, my sister in law told me that for my niece she had mixed Grapefruit Seed Extract (also incredible) with coconut oil and used that instead of a prescription medicine. It cleared up Mason's rash within two days. Now anytime he gets any kind of diaper irritation I use the coconut oil and it clears right up.
7) Cooking and baking. You can replace most oil or fat with coconut oil, and it won't even taste like coconut. I use it in our homemade bread, cinnamon rolls, cookies, even tortillas. And I'll cook Mason's eggs in a teaspoon of it instead of using cooking spray.
8) A dietary supplement. It's great to use as an external moisturizer, but your skin also benefits if you eat it. A spoonful a day can help with eczema and just general dry skin. I also stir a spoonful into Mason's oatmeal each morning to help him get good fat, since we don't give him cow's milk. Eating it also increases your good cholesterol and can help lower the bad because it contains lauric acid. It also helps regulate blood sugar and makes your liver more efficient, helping you burn fat, and it can help regulate thyroid function. Pretty amazing!
9) Chapstick. It's the best lip moisturizer I know of. And it's something I can put on Mason if he needs it and not worry about what he's ingesting.
10) Toothpaste. This is a new one I just started learning about. Studies are showing that the antibiotic properties of coconut oil will fight tooth decay and that it helps with calcium absorption, strengthening teeth. It's also been used for teeth whitening. Ohh how I love my teeth whitening. I'm going to try it this week and I will report back!
It's pretty amazing all the things one humble ingredient can do. There's loads of other things that I've read about but haven't tried yet, including homemade deodorant....hmm. I'm not sure my loyalty to coconut oil runs that deep.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
This is not a food blog...
...but I'm going to post a recipe. I never really do that but I had about a dozen people ask me for the recipe for these granola bars after I posted a picture on Instagram. Which, by the way, is where I consistently keep up with our everyday lives. I neglect the blog like whoa, but I'm a regular on Instagram.
Anyway.
I love to cook and I love to bake. And I especially love to find ways to make things healthier. Not just cutting out the bad stuff, but adding things with more nutritional value. I never really post recipes mainly because I'm not very good at measuring things when I make stuff. Even cookies, sometimes I just throw things in until it looks like it will bake right. So I'll try to make this as precise as possible, but just know that there's room to add more or less of the things you like.
I've written before about how obsessed I am with coconut oil for about a million reasons. I can't go on enough about all the nutritional benefits of coconut oil. And I've recently been really into using raw honey in baking. And I like to add flax meal to just about everything. So there's some of each in this recipe of course.
I adapted this from a few recipes that I read and took my favorite things from each. So here it is! The recipe for yummy chocolate coconut walnut granola bars.
INGREDIENTS
4 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 1/4 cups honey (I used raw. You could also do part honey, part agave. Agave is suuuuper sweet so don't replace too much of the honey with it.)
3/4 cup coconut oil (you can find high quality organic, cold pressed at Costco for very cheap)
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate (I love Ghirardelli 60% cacao. It's very dark, and has no dairy in it. You could use any kind that you want though. Even butterscotch would be really good in these I think. More like a 7 layer bar kind of thing. Mmm.)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
Line a large baking sheet with rimmed sides with parchment paper.
Put the oats on the baking sheet and let them toast in the oven for about 10 minutes, stirring a few times throughout. Remove them to a large bowl when done.
While your oats are toastin', put your honey and coconut oil in a small saucepan and melt together over medium heat. Coconut oil can tolerate high heat, but be careful not to burn it. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt.
Pour mixture over the oats and stir thoroughly to coat. Stir in the walnuts and coconut. Stir in your chocolate.
It will melt down and become like chocolate coating instead of chocolate chunks. If you want it to stay in chunks you could try letting the oat mixture cool for a while before you add them in. Maybe I'll try that next time.
Pour the mix onto your parchment lined baking sheet, using a spatula to spread it as much as you can. Then you can wet your hands and press the mixture firmly out to the edges, or use another piece of parchment paper on top to keep it from sticking to your hands. I wanted mine to be a little thinner, so I used a very large sheet and pushed them all the way to the edge.
Bake for 8-10 minutes. Don't let them burn! My oven cooks really fast, so I only baked them 8 minutes. Adjust for your oven. They are crumbly when they first come out, but they set up as they cool.
Cool the baking sheet on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes, and then transfer the parchment sheet to the cooling rack.
Let cool for about another hour and then cut them in to bars, whatever size you like.
Mine were about 1"x4". I did them smaller so toddler man Mason could eat them. And he DEVOURS these. My batch made about 50 bars that size.
They are delicious right out of the refrigerator, and I froze half of them. I'm not sure how long they'll last in the freezer because we ate them all within a few weeks. But I'm guessing they'd stay good for a month or two.
Enjoy these admittedly NOT low fat, but still nutritionally amazing nonetheless, chewy granola bars.
Anyway.
I love to cook and I love to bake. And I especially love to find ways to make things healthier. Not just cutting out the bad stuff, but adding things with more nutritional value. I never really post recipes mainly because I'm not very good at measuring things when I make stuff. Even cookies, sometimes I just throw things in until it looks like it will bake right. So I'll try to make this as precise as possible, but just know that there's room to add more or less of the things you like.
I've written before about how obsessed I am with coconut oil for about a million reasons. I can't go on enough about all the nutritional benefits of coconut oil. And I've recently been really into using raw honey in baking. And I like to add flax meal to just about everything. So there's some of each in this recipe of course.
I adapted this from a few recipes that I read and took my favorite things from each. So here it is! The recipe for yummy chocolate coconut walnut granola bars.
INGREDIENTS
4 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 1/4 cups honey (I used raw. You could also do part honey, part agave. Agave is suuuuper sweet so don't replace too much of the honey with it.)
3/4 cup coconut oil (you can find high quality organic, cold pressed at Costco for very cheap)
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate (I love Ghirardelli 60% cacao. It's very dark, and has no dairy in it. You could use any kind that you want though. Even butterscotch would be really good in these I think. More like a 7 layer bar kind of thing. Mmm.)
DIRECTIONS
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
Line a large baking sheet with rimmed sides with parchment paper.
Put the oats on the baking sheet and let them toast in the oven for about 10 minutes, stirring a few times throughout. Remove them to a large bowl when done.
While your oats are toastin', put your honey and coconut oil in a small saucepan and melt together over medium heat. Coconut oil can tolerate high heat, but be careful not to burn it. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and salt.
Pour mixture over the oats and stir thoroughly to coat. Stir in the walnuts and coconut. Stir in your chocolate.
It will melt down and become like chocolate coating instead of chocolate chunks. If you want it to stay in chunks you could try letting the oat mixture cool for a while before you add them in. Maybe I'll try that next time.
Pour the mix onto your parchment lined baking sheet, using a spatula to spread it as much as you can. Then you can wet your hands and press the mixture firmly out to the edges, or use another piece of parchment paper on top to keep it from sticking to your hands. I wanted mine to be a little thinner, so I used a very large sheet and pushed them all the way to the edge.
Bake for 8-10 minutes. Don't let them burn! My oven cooks really fast, so I only baked them 8 minutes. Adjust for your oven. They are crumbly when they first come out, but they set up as they cool.
Cool the baking sheet on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes, and then transfer the parchment sheet to the cooling rack.
Let cool for about another hour and then cut them in to bars, whatever size you like.
Mine were about 1"x4". I did them smaller so toddler man Mason could eat them. And he DEVOURS these. My batch made about 50 bars that size.
They are delicious right out of the refrigerator, and I froze half of them. I'm not sure how long they'll last in the freezer because we ate them all within a few weeks. But I'm guessing they'd stay good for a month or two.
Enjoy these admittedly NOT low fat, but still nutritionally amazing nonetheless, chewy granola bars.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
3) Homemade Baby Food
I know this one sounds like a crazy hippie lady thing. But I am crazy about the idea of not having to buy jars upon jars of baby food, which is getting rather expensive, and having to worry about what might be in it. I could just pick some fresh fruits/veggies from my wonderful garden (documented in the previous post) and make it fresh in exactly the right amount. This baby food maker is my favorite, it's from France and they sell it at Williams-Sonoma, so it must be incredible. It steams, blends, and warms the food all in that same bowl, and it has no BPA. We'll have the healthiest little organic babies!
I would of course also need this precious little baby cookbook.
I would of course also need this precious little baby cookbook.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
2) Gardens
My dream of living on a totally self-sufficient little plot of land would definitely start with incredible gardens. I would want equally huge fruit and vegetable gardens, along with loads of fruit trees. I want to grow everything: corn, tomatoes, peas, lettuce, cucumbers, squash, broccoli, beans, peppers, herbs, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, pears, apples, cherries. And of course we would have one giant pumpkin patch, an entirely separate dream of mine that will be addressed later on.
This book is one of my greatest inspirations for wanting to grow as much of our own food as we can.
Barbara Kingsolver, who wrote The Poisonwood Bible which is also amazing, wrote this as a sociological/investigative journalism piece. Her and her family move from Arizona to the East coast in order to become completely self-sufficient. They only eat what they can grow themselves, or what they can buy from local farmers. It completely changes their family in every way possible, and brings them back to what's most important. They are healthier, happier, and stronger as a family. Who knew that kind of a miracle could happen just by changing what you eat? And who wouldn't want to grow a delicious garden to make that happen?
This book is one of my greatest inspirations for wanting to grow as much of our own food as we can.
Barbara Kingsolver, who wrote The Poisonwood Bible which is also amazing, wrote this as a sociological/investigative journalism piece. Her and her family move from Arizona to the East coast in order to become completely self-sufficient. They only eat what they can grow themselves, or what they can buy from local farmers. It completely changes their family in every way possible, and brings them back to what's most important. They are healthier, happier, and stronger as a family. Who knew that kind of a miracle could happen just by changing what you eat? And who wouldn't want to grow a delicious garden to make that happen?
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