Very Berry Spelt Multi-Grain Muffins

Well after that sugar rush of caramel corn last night (I had a handful then had enough), I am craving muffins today.  Multi-grain berry muffins.  I am not a muffin girl and when I do eat a muffin, it’s never the fruit kind but for some reason today, I want a wholesome soft, fluffy fruit muffin. I’m looking forward to having this in the morning, cracked open, drizzled with yogurt and sprinkled with nuts and chia seeds. Perfect breakfast? I think so!

I enjoy the flavour of spelt flour along with the hard wheat red bran in this recipe. In half the batch I threw in some cacao nibs just ‘cause.  This recipe will be sure to satisfy your whole grain and sweet tooth all at the same time!

Ingredients:

2 c           spelt flour

½ c          yellow corn meal

½ c          hard wheat red bran

1/3 c      lightly ground flax seeds

¼ c          chopped walnuts

2 tbsp    sesame seeds

1 ½ tsp  baking powder

1 tsp      baking soda

1 tsp      ground cinnamon

½ tsp     pink Himalayan sea salt

Small handful of chocolate chips (optional)

2              large eggs

1 c           orange juice

½ c          organic coconut oil

½-¾ c     agave

1 tsp      vanilla extract

1 ½ c      mixed frozen berries, thawed

1 tbsp    rolled oats

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a medium-sized muffin tin with your favourite cupcake liners.

2. In a large bowl, combine the spelt flour, cornmeal, oat bran, flax seeds, chopped walnuts, sesame seeds, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

3. In a smaller bowl, whisk the eggs lightly. To the eggs, add the orange juice, coconut oil, agave and vanilla, whisking until they are well combined. Pour the wet into the dry and whisk just until blended. Mix in the berries (and the juice they produced when defrosting) and cacao nibs (if using).

4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins, filling the muffin cups almost to the top. Top each muffin with a sprinkling of the oats. How pretty!

5. Bake for 18 to 25 minutes, or until the muffins are deep golden brown and spring back lightly when pressed gently in the center and a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy my friends!

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

I’ve added one more kitchen appliance to the ‘obsession’ list. The infamous “Magic Bullet”! Although I haven’t been going crazy since I’ve had it (just give me another month okay, I’ve only had it for a couple of days lol), I have made two really successful Pumpkin Pie Smoothie variations.

Thanks to my mom for pureeing up the pumpkin and keeping it in the freezer for me for the last couple of months… otherwise I definitely wouldn’t have made this. I am NOT a fan of canned pumpkin. I didn’t have time to buy them this past October, cut them up, boil.. yada yada.. so this recipe wouldn’t be possible without my momma.

This is not an original recipe, as I’m sure you’ve seen many variations of it online and other blogs.  I read one or two then just threw mine together, knowing my tastes.

I have to say that the one made with coconut milk was just perfect and everything I imagined it to be. Thick and creamy and more resembled a pie. The almond milk version is much lighter and not as thick. Still both are fantastic and I would drink either one any day.

Ingredients

– 1/2 c organic pureed pumpkin

– 1 c light coconut milk or unsweetened original almond milk

– 1/2 frozen organic banana

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground clove

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 squirt of stevia (Oddly, I don’t measure this ingredient)

1 tbsp ground graham cracker crumb

pinch of Himalayan pink sea salt

Throw all ingredients into your handy-dandy Magic Bullet or blender and blend until smooth.  Add two cubes of ice if you want it super cold. Drink and enjoy.

Raw Food Reset – Day 2

Woke up in this morning feeling pretty good.  I unfortunately was up at 4am stretching my glutes, hamstring and inner thigh from the run.  I knew I’d feel it later in the day if I didn’t stretch, so there I was at 4am, laying on the carpet at the foot of the bed, stretching.  My cat Art laid down beside me and watched. Cute. I slept till 6 something, hit snooze a few times and hopped in the shower.

I thought I would wake up starving, but I didn’t. I was a little hungry, but I knew I could wait until work to eat my banana. I had a glass of raw apple cider that I bought from the farm on Sunday before leaving the house. So fresh, so sweet.  I don’t usually drink juices so this is new for me. I like it.

Weighed myself this AM as well. I’m down 2lbs. lol. LoosingI the water weight is so awesome.

I forgot my raw collard wrap that I had planned on having for lunch, so I knew I’d have to grab something from the cafe at work because the salad wouldn’t be enough. It was a long day at work, didn’t leave the office until after 6pm, so the 2nd apple I packed myself came in handy. Back to back meetings, busy designing training material I didn’t leave my desk much. Only to refill my hot water and go to the loo.  Productive person I am! (Yoda voice)

Here’s what I ate today:

Breakfast: Organic banana, raw apple cider

Snack: 1 Kiwi, assorted veggies with almond butter (ate this throughout the day, not just for AM snack)

Lunch: Salad with apple, walnuts, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, tomato, cucumber, grated carrots and kale.

Dinner: Made that cleanse gazpacho soup from the DO EAT RAW app. I failed to add the avocado and lemon juice at first when I was blending it and it came out kinda chunky. Like watery salsa. I wasn’t impressed but figured, what the hell.  I managed to find a ripe avocado and a lime and added the juice and the whole avocado. WHAT a difference.  Creamy and delicious. I also added a good pinch of salt and ground chipotle pepper to it for a kick.

The soup doesn’t LOOK that appetizing, but it is pretty good. I’ll definitely make it again. I forgot to add the spinach, so mine only has kale in it. Next time I’ll add that too. My blender just wasn’t big enough and I had to keep doing it in batches until the consistency was to my liking.

Cleanse Soup

Ingredients

• 2 little red bell peppers chopped
• 6 green onions
• 3 celery stalks
• 1 avocado
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tomatoes chopped
• 5 leaves kale, chopped
• Ginger root, 1/2 inch
• 1 cup fresh cilantro
• 1 cup fresh basil
• 1/2 cup fresh spinach
• Himalayan sea salt, pinch
• 1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper
• 2 tbsp lemon or lime juice
• 1 cup warm water

Blend all ingredients in a blender until creamy and smooth.  Tada!

So I totally cheated a bit tonight and sautéed (on super low heat) some chopped crimini mushrooms.  I really felt like I needed something more tonight but after eating maybe 2 mushrooms, I had enough.  Weird.  I packed the rest for lunch tomorrow.

I didn’t even eat all the soup that I had poured for myself. I’m hungry but I’m not, and I’m not used to it. I’m so determined to eat clean that even though I want a HUGE hunk of cheese or a toasted bagel with whatever salami I can find with mayo spread all across it, I still wouldn’t eat it if you put it in front of me.

No exercise today, some stretching before bed but that’s about it. I will do sprints tomorrow to prep for the race on Sat, but that will probably be the extent of my cardio this week. Yoga on Thursday and MAYBE spinning on Friday. I hate to say no to a spinning class!

So far.. day 2 is a success!

Thursday and MAYBE spinning on Friday. I hate to say no to a spinning class!

So far.. day 2 is a success!

Sprouting Seeds

I have a new obsession! Sprouting seeds!

Last Christmas I was given a seed sprouting kit and was over the moon about it. The seeds however, were not good quality and they did not turn out like I had expected. I can’t remember the brand or the seed type, but they weren’t that good taste wise, and only gave enough for one jar of sprouts. Total bummer.

Thing is, when you buy kits like that, you are not entirely sure how old the seeds are and if they are in fact, organic. So no fault of my beau for picking up the nifty kit, sadly you just never know the quality with the pre-made kits.

I didn’t throw away the jar that came with the kit..I packed it safely away because I knew sprouting was in my future. Sure enough, sprouting popped back up (heh, pun intended) when I volunteered at the Guelph Organic Conference this past February.  I was able to be A/V support for a seed sprouting workshop! Sweet. Lisa Mumm, (daughter of the owners of Mumms Sprouting Seeds) flew in from Saskatchewan to speak to us. What a treat. Lisa was kind enough to bring examples of sprouted seeds to show the group. I was really stunned at how easy it is! Although I had tried it before, she showed the tray method, had a display of fresh sprouts and really broke it down as to how easy it can be, on your own kitchen counter. I was not only armed with new information, I was inspired.

So why sprout anyway? Sprouting raw nuts, seeds, beans and grains is one of the quickest, easiest ways to pack a group of nutrients into your body in just one handful. Raw nuts and seeds especially already have so many good nutrients awaiting you, when you sprout them, the nutritional profile multiplies. The quality of the protein in the beans, nuts, seeds, or grains improves when it is sprouted.  Proteins change during the soaking and sprouting process, improving its nutritional value. The amino acid lysine, for example, which is needed to prevent cold sores and to maintain a healthy immune system increases significantly during the sprouting process.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/10-reasons-to-eat-sprouts.html#ixzz2bmtvySKQ

According to this study from the International Journal of Applied Science, sprouts have the highest concentration of phytonutrients per calorie of any food. Phytonutrients play an active role in the amelioration of disease. Just 100 grams a day of sprouts may prevent cancer. See the research from the University of Ulster.

Took me awhile, but eventually I dug out the jar from the boxes we had in the basement after we moved. I hopped online, went directly to http://www.sprouting.com and ordered the Variety Pack which came with a Starter kit and a whackload of different seeds.

I started sprouting Alfalfa right away and we enjoyed it in a salad 3 days later. So delicious and sweet and MUCH better than the alfalfa you buy in the store. In fact I never buy store bought alfalfa because I don’t like the taste. Trust me, Mumms alfalfa seeds are the bomb. Hmm! I wonder if you could make a seed bomb from these babies? That would be a fun project.

Alfalfa sprouts after 3 days

Fenugreek in the tray, after soaking and first rinse.

 Anyway, I am experimenting both ways with the seeds, both jar and tray. 

Today I started sprouting Fenugreek and Oriental Mustard. Fenugreek in the tray and mustard in the jar.

The mustard seeds are supposed to be hot, and I can’t wait to add them to a salad when they’re ready. I love me some spicy sprouts!  

I had a tray from growing seedlings this spring and so I just poked drain holes in it and after soaking the fenugreek, I spread them across the bottom. Don’t forget to wash all your containers thoroughly before using. Especially if you used your tray outside. You want to ensure it’s super clean and free from contaminants/dirt.

Oriental Mustard seeds after soaking and first rinse.

Next purchase will be the Baby Blanket. I wanted to try sprouting without it first to see how it goes, wish me luck! Basically the baby blanket is a felted grass material that holds moisture around the roots for more even growing conditions. It allows growing soil type sprouts without the mess of soil and without the difficulty of getting good safe organic soil. 

I couldn’t wait to share this experience with you, it’s so exciting to eat fresh sprouts that you are able to watch grow in your own kitchen in a matter of days. What a great kids project too! Not only is it fun, but the health benefits are insane. According to this study from the International Journal of Applied Science, sprouts have the highest concentration of phytonutrients per calorie of any food. Phytonutrients play an active role in the amelioration of disease. Just 100 grams a day of sprouts may prevent cancer. See the research from the University of Ulster.

Have you ever sprouted seeds? If so, what are your favourite brands and methods?

Raw food is a wonderful thing.. I plan to continue sprouting for the rest of the year. I look forward to learning about all the new ways I can use these lovely sprouts in my every day meals. Have you noticed any health benefits from eating sprouts?