Black Bean Butternut Squash Brownies

I'm always looking for new ways to incorporate more nutritional value into my baked goods. I am so pleased  with this new recipe. It is both gluten free and refined sugar free. Black beans and butternut squash pair very well together especially with the chocolate. While they were cooking both of my boys were intrigued by the delicious smell in the kitchen. My seven year old said "they taste like regular brownies".

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked black beans
2 cups roasted and pureed butternut squash
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup raw cacao powder
1/2 cup honey
3 eggs
1/2 cup chopped bittersweet (can also use dark chocolate or carob)
1/3 cup finely chopped raw walnuts
1/4 cup yellow rasins

• In a food processor, combine the beans and eggs and process until smooth.
• Add coconut oil, honey and butternut squash and process
• Add remaining ingredients and process
• Pour into a greased 13x9x2 glass pan. Spread with a silicone spatula.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. 

These brownies are extremely moist. When I make them again I may add another egg and possibly 1/4 cup more coconut flour. I cut them and let them cool on a wire rack before putting the cooling rack in the freezer. Once frozen the brownies can then be transfered to a freezer bag.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes and Waffles

I've been experimenting with a variety of squash and pumpkins lately and I have concluded that my favorite variety is the long island cheese pumpkin. Roasted, this pumpkin has a delicate and delicious flavor. I have used this pumpkin for both pancakes and waffles and I always make large batches so I can freeze them for later use.

A word about cooking pumpkins:
I have tried several different ways to cook pumpkins. My favorite however was recommended by my friend and health coach Nina Manalson. She suggests placing a whole pumpkin on a pan lined with parchment paper and cooking whole. When the pumpkin is soft enough to pierce with a fork it is down. Once cooled, it was to scoop out the seeds and all of the yummy, nutritious pumpkin flesh.

Pancake Recipe:
4 cups cooked and pureed pumpkin
4 cups oat flour
2 cups almond meal
1 cup almond milk
1 cups raw apple sauce (peeled apples pureed in the Vitamix)
6 eggs
3 T cinnamon
4 T maple syrup
2 tsp baking soda

Combine all ingredients until mixed through. Cook for 3-5 minutes per pancake.

Waffle Recipe:
4 cups oat flour
2 cups almond meal
3 cups cooked and pureed pumpkin
2 cups raw applesauce (peeled apples pureed in the Vitamix)
2 1/2cups almond milk
5 eggs
3 tsp baking powder
3 tsp cinnamon
3T maple syrup

Combine all ingredients, add small amounts of almond milk if batter is too thick. Cook waffles for 4-5 minutes in a waffle iron.

These pancakes and waffles are excellent  with fresh fruit, berries or apple sauce.  I made this pumpkin butter using coconut sugar as a replacement for refined sugar so that it was low glycemic. On top of the pancakes it is out of this world.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Zuccini

I just love shopping at the local farmer's market and trying new and different recipes. It is funny that I like to tinker in my kitchen and create recipes but it is the day to day grind of meals that truly bogs me down.

My recent find at the market was round zucchini squash. They were just begging to be baked and stuffed. Here is what I did:

1. I cut the top and a little bit of the bottom off the round zucchini so that when I sliced it in half it would stand up in the pan.
2. I put about a cup of water in the bottom of a glass dish and baked the zucchini at 350 until it was soft
3. In a pan I cooked garlic, onion, and mushrooms. 
4. I mixed these veggies with cooked black lentils and cooked quinoa and filled the zucchini added salt and pepper and then cooked them for another 5 minutes.
5. Gluten, free, dairy free, vegetarian, easy and delicious!

Blueberry Muffins (gluten, dairy and sugar free)

After an amazing day picking an epic 30 pounds of blueberries with my family, I am excited to create some new healthy recipes.

Here is recipe #1. These scrumptious muffins are dairy free, sugar free and gluten free.

1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 almond meal
1 cup oats

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup cinnamon apple sauce
3 eggs
1/4 cup honey
2 cups blue berries

I combined all the ingredients in my food processor and then mixed in the blueberries by hand. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes.

Banana Bean Bread

Past attempts at creating a healthy banana bread have turned out more like door stops then light, delicious bread.  This new version using coconut oil creates a delicious and nutritious bread. I made this entire recipe in my Vitamix, you can easily use a blender or food processor for it.

1. Puree one can of small white beans
2. Add 4 bananas and puree
3. add 3 eggs, 1/4 cup coconut oil, 1/4 cup of honey, 2 drops liquid stevia and blend
4. add 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon and 2 cups of oat flour
5. add 1/4 walnuts (optional)

Pour mixture into a greased bread pan. Cook at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes until toothpick comes out clean when tested.

Vegan Lettuce Wraps

It's been awhile since I have posted any new recipes here. While I have been playing in my kitchen I have been mostly following recipes from others.

Funny thing is that at 3:00 today while standing on the playground chatting with the other moms, the conversation was focused on what to make for dinner tonight. I was a bit surprised at what some said they were serving, but then again I admit that I tend to be on the particular side especially since eliminating soy, dairy, most gluten, refined sugars and processed foods.

It came to me around 4:30 while I was browsing my favorite blogs looking for a vegan recipe for lettuce wraps. I was a bit shocked to discover that the sauce in most recipes is actually made up mostly of hoisen sauce which is basically sugar. Not wanting the glycemic sugar spike, I decided to try something totally different. It came out great and my older son, husband and I ate it up happily. My younger son did not even try it but that is par for the course in our house.

Here is how I made it:

1. Chop one can water chestnuts, 3 scallions, 6 baby bella mushrooms, 2 carrots, 2 stalks of celery, 6 shitake mushrooms that have been soaked.
2. Heat a pan with cooking spray and sauté
3. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic and the juice of one small lime
4. Add grated ginger to taste (fresh ginger is best, I keep mine in the freezer so I always have it on hand)
5. Saute until everything is soft
6. toss in 1/4 cup of chopped walnuts
7. add sauce and serve with lettuce, these are typically served with Boston lettuce leaves but I couldn't find any today so I used green leaf lettuce which was perfect.

The Sauce:

1. 2 T dark soy sauce
2. 1 T rice vinegar
3. 3 T of the water from hydrating the shitake mushrooms
4. 1 tsp arrowroot powder to thicken the sauce (You can use corn starch,  I used arrowroot powder since that is what I had on hand)

The Noodles:

1. Wanting a small amount of crunchy noodles I experimented with bean threads. I heated a pan with cooking spray and broke up some uncooked bean threads and sautéed adding small amounts of water to the pan. 
2. The noodles were yummy but next time I think I will cook them first and then sauté to see if they come out any better.

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Bread: gluten and dairy free

Faced with the challenge of eliminating wheat from my diet this week as part of the 21 Smokin Hot Mom Challenge I am participating in, I decided to try a new variation of snack bread. It combines 2 super foods, lentils and quinoa, with the sweet potato which is high in phyto-nutrients.

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked sweet potato (peeled and mashed)
2 cups cooked lentils (cooked soft and pureed)
1 cup cooked quinoa
2 cup brown rice flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground ginger
ground fresh nutmeg to taste
raw millet to sprinkle

Combine sweet potato and lentils and mix well. Add quinoa and rice flour, mix well. Add remaining ingredients.

Bake in mini-bread pans (greased) . Sprinkle with millet and press gently into each bread before baking.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

This bread is light and mildly sweet. It makes a wonderful snack on its own and is delightful cut in half and toasted. Drizzle maple syrup or raw honey for a sweet treat or spread with raw almond butter for more protein.