Anna's Coconut Crunch Granola

Hearty, Whole-grain, and Satisfying!

Ingredients:

1 cup of Coconut Flakes

1 ½ cup of Oats (GF)

½ cup of Almond Meal

½ cup of Walnuts (or almonds, pecans, etc)

¼ cup of Pumpkin or Sunflower Seeds

¼ cup of Coconut Sugar (or sugar in the raw)

½ cup of Coconut Oil

¼ cup of Honey, locally sourced

1 teaspoon of Coconut Extract

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400*F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.

Melt the oil in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add in the honey and extract, and set aside. In a separate large bowl, add all dry ingredients. Using a spatula or large spoon create a crater in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour the liquid mixture into the crater. Thoroughly mix all ingredients.

Lay out the uncooked granola on the baking tray and brown in the oven for 7 minutes.Remove the tray from the oven and turn the granola with a spatula. Reduce heat to 200*F and bake again for another 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let set. Do not remove the granola from the tray until has completely cooled and hardened.

This is the perfect healthy breakfast or a hearty snack on-the-go. Your family is sure to rave!

Yellow Bell Omelet with Dill & Feta

If you lived at my house, this would be your breakfast!

Besides being gorgeous to look at and absolutely delicious,

 this omelet is a powerhouse of Protein and Vitamin C.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon of real Butter

3 Eggs, beaten*

1/2 Yellow Bell Pepper, finely chopped   

2 tablespoons of Feta Cheese

1 tablespoon of dried minced onions

1/2 leave of fresh Dill (1/2 teaspoon of dried)

Salt and Pepper to taste

*You can substitute for egg whites only, but use a bit less dill so as not to over power the egg.

Directions:

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, gently fry the bell pepper pieces until they are fully warmed but not soft. Pour the egg around the bell pepper in the saucepan and allow them to run and fill all the spaces between. Sprinkle with the dried onions, dill, salt, and pepper. Swirl the egg mixture gently to help it cook evenly. Just before you flip the omelet, add the feta cheese. Flip, cook the rest of the way and fold. 

This recipe serves 2. Plate with a sprig of dill and a glass of fresh orange juice. 
This is the way to kick start a day!

Oatmeal Raisin Goodness Cookies

Can you smell these scrumptious cookies?? 

Maybe you need to lean a little closer to the screen...

This is about the least healthy recipe I make. However, I’m OK with that, because they are still high-fiber, whole-grain, and gluten-free. Go ahead, bake a batch and leave them on a plate for your loved ones to enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups of Rolled Oats (GF)

½ cup of Sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon of Baking soda

½ teaspoon of Salt

½ cup of real Butter, softened

1 ½ cups of Sugar in the Raw

3 large Eggs

1 teaspoon of pure Vanilla extract

1 cup of Raisins*

 *You can also use Chocolate Chips, or go half &half and do both!

Directions:
Preheat the oven for 325*F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Grind the oats and sunflower seeds together in a food processor until a fine powder forms. Add the salt and baking soda and pulse a few times to mix well. Leave in the machine while you work on the other ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl,  cream your butter and sugar together, beat in the eggs and vanilla. Slowly pour the dry ingredients into the creamed sugar a little at a time until a nice batter forms. Work in your raisins (or chocolate chips).

The batter will be thin and will triple in size as they bake and spread out. Keep this in mind when you lay your cookies on the baking tray. 1'' inch drops of batter will produced the baked cookies you see in the photo above. Bake the batter on 325*F for about 8 mins.

Garden Style Pasta Sauce

A quick and delicious dinner idea!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 small Vidalia onion, finely chopped

1/2 Zucchini, peeled and chopped into 1" pieces

1 can Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted Tomatoes*

1 can Muir Glen Organic Tomato Paste

1 cup of Water

1 teaspoon of minced Garlic

1/2 teaspoon of Basil

1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt

1/4 teaspoon of Oregano

1/4 teaspoon of Ground Pepper

 

Also needed: 1 box of whole wheat pasta, cooked according to the directions

 

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil until it becomes runny. Throw in the chopped onion and zucchini, gently fry them until the onions go clear. Next put in the tomato paste, and stir in the water slowly until the paste thins. Now add the can of fire roasted tomatoes and all the spices. Allow to simmer for 10 mins over a low heat. This is a great time to complete your whole wheat pasta. Serve together and enjoy!

*Don't let the title 'Fire Roasted' intimidate you, these are not spicy, they've just been roasted over an open flame. Yum!

Applesauce Cake with Scotch Caramel

Whole-grain, Plant-strong, Gluten-Free, Vegan

and totally delicious!

 

 Ingredients for cake:

1 1/2 cups of Unsweetened Applesauce*

1 1/3 cups of ground Oats (GF)

1/3 cup of sugar in the raw

1 teaspoon of Apple Pie spice (you can also sub equal parts cinnamon and nutmeg)

1/2 teaspoon of sea salt

1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

Ingredients for caramel sauce:

4 tablespoons of butter

1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar in the raw

1 tablespoon of honey

2 tablespoons of Scotch

1/4 teaspoon of Cinnamon

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350*F and line a square baking pan with parchment paper. 

 

To Make the Cake - Mix applesauce, sugar, spice, salt, and soda together. Add the ground oats and stir until the oats are completely saturated. Place in the oven on the center rack and bake until it rises well and turns golden brown. 

 

For the Scotch Caramel -  Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the honey and cinnamon; stirring until they blend with the butter. Next, add the sugar and continuously stir until a warm syrup forms.  Lastly, remove from heat and stir in the Scotch. 

I like to serve this cake with a sprinkle of cinnamon and heavy drizzle of Scotch Caramel. 

 

*Please use unsweetened applesauce even though this recipe calls to put in sugar later. The processed sugars of jarred applesauce are harder on the body. Raw sugar has a heavy flavor and makes this cake delightful.