Green Juice

My friend Kelli introduced me to a new way of making green juice this spring and I am completely hooked. This method is super easy. I also love that I only use a fraction of the food I would use to make a green juice in my juicer.  I love juices and swear that is how our family managed to stay so healthy last winter despite entering the school world and being exposed to so many germs.

I make this in a vitamix so I don't know how well it would do in an average blender or food processor but if anyone tries that out please leave a comment as to how it turned out.

The juice is a simple as this:
1)  Add a handful of greens (kale, spinach, beet greens, cilantro, parsley, mint (or any combo) ,...),  2 stalks of celery, 1 cucumber, 1/2 peeled lemon to a blender.  Fill the rest of the blender with water.  A couple drops of liquid stevia is a nice addition. Blend for around 1 minute.

2) Once the mixture is blended well poor it into jars. There is a foam that forms on top so as I poor the juice into the jars I use a spoon at the blender spout to prevent the foam entering the jars.  I end up with 2 quart jars and a pint jar of green juice. That is a ton of juice!!

 I LOVE this juice,  It is my "go-to" on those sluggish afternoons when I just don't know how I will possibly make it the rest of the day.  I always feel so much better and vibrant after drinking this juice. It is also fairly filling.  My husband recently remarked how much "fuller" he felt after drinking this vs. our normal juices. Yes! Yes! The fiber of the produce stays in the juice so there is more of a satiety factor. It is also super cost effective. Juicing can be so expensive because of all the produce that goes into one little glass of juice.  This is just simply fantastic all the way around.

Cheers to good juice and good health!!

Jell-o (Vegan)

Jell-o seems like a childhood novelty.  I have fond memories of those brightly colored jello jigglers at almost every holiday, just in different bright, radiant colors . BUT now I would rather my girls not be ingesting the gelatin and food dyes found in most of those tasty little treats geared to kids.  I have played around with homemade jello for the last couple of years.  My girls have usually liked it but recently I nailed it. It's so easy and quick and I feel way better about serving this to the little ones in my life.

This recipe uses Agar Agar, which is plant based and derived from sea vegetables. Over the past year I have learned so much more about good quality gelatin and it's health benefits that I would actually like to try that as well. Either way it's creating a snack with a quality ingredient that doesn't have all the extra dyes, chemicals, and preservatives.

The recipe I used had 3 ingredients.  Below is the base or skeleton of the recipe. Start there and play around.  Adjust the flavors.  Get creative.

It would work to combine different juices, fruit purees, or even add fruit pieces (which I haven't tried but everything I have read online says it will work).  Sweetener could also be added.  I have been using 1 cup of elderberry tea  that I make from simmering whole elderberries with water.  Elderberries are  immune boosting so I will be making these this fall when the nasty colds and flu start rearing their ugly heads again.
I then add 1 cup of 100% Organic Grape Juice.  My girls seem to think it is sweet enough so we roll with it. I personally think the trick is what the jello is poured into to set.  I have been using little silicone molds I picked up at Ikea and Michaels, and my silicone muffin cups.  This has made a world of difference. Not to mention they turn out cute and are in fun little shapes.  Yep, move on over Jell-o Jigglers.
  If you come up with a favorite combination please do share.  This is becoming a staple at our house, and I would love to experiment with some different flavors and fruits we haven't used yet.

Jell-o 

2 cups of fruit juice

2 tsp Agar Agar powder

Heat juice on stove.  Before it boils add agar agar and stir constantly until it boils. Once it reaches boiling make sure agar agar has been dissolved and then allow the mixture to simmer on low for 5-10 minutes. Finish by pouring into molds.  Allow to cool on counter top and then serve.

*if using agar flakes you will need to add 2 TBS 

Mango Salsa

Mango Salsa.  Not much needs to be said about this delicious salsa.  I love tossing it on quesadillas, tacos, nachos, or just eating it with some delicious chips.  My girls love this salsa and will pretty much eat anything that it is on.
I have been buying organic frozen mango at Costco.  I love buying frozen mango because it makes the prep for this salsa so much easier.  I love a good fresh mango but I really despise peeling them.  Frozen mango makes that job so much easier.  I toss some frozen mango in the toaster over or on the stove for a few minutes to thaw.  Then I add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor.  I just do it by sight because it really depends on how much I need.  I have made little batches to be a light topping on a meal and bigger batches to serve as it's own salsa dip for a party.  The following is what you will need and then you chop or let the food processor chop away.  It's simple and easy.  If you are the type of person that needs a recipe or exact measurements,
creating something in this way might just be good for you.  You can thank me for that challenge later.

Mango Salsa

Mango 
Tomato(s)
Red Onion
Cilantro
Salt 
Lime (I squeeze a bit of the juice in the salsa)

Hummus

One of the staples around our house is hummus.  There are so many things I love about hummus.  One is that it is incredibly easy to make. I also love that it packs a nice protein punch.  It is a great way to get kids to eat fresh veggies.  It is easy to pack up for a picnic lunch or a lunch on the go. It goes well on wraps and sandwiches.  Makes a great dip for all kinds of fresh veggies and/or crackers.  Really it is just a staple to have in the fridge. 

This is my basic hummus recipe. I will sometimes add roasted red peppers or sun dried tomatoes to this recipe to give it a little more spunk and to mix things up a bit. 

Hummus

3 cups of garbanzo beans (or use 2 cans which is sligthly more)
**1/4 cup raw sesame seeds
1 1/2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
2-4 garlic cloves
1 tsp cumin
Fresh parsley (to taste.....I enjoy parsley and use a pretty good size handful)
2 TBS fresh chives
2 tsp Herbamere
Sprinkle Sea Salt

**tahini is typically the ingredient here, which is simply ground sesame seeds.  If you have a vita-mix or other high powered blender you can just toss in the sesame seeds and don't need to buy tahini. 

Mix all of the above ingredients together in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  I sometimes add a little water if the mixture is to thick. 

One trick I learned a few years ago is that the best hummus is made from freshly cooked garbanzo beans.  So if you cook your own beans make the hummus shortly after the beans are done for a smooth, creamy hummus. If you are using canned beans warm them up and then make your hummus.  It really does make quite a difference. 

Broccoli Bisque (vegan)

I rediscovered an old favorite soup recipe today.  I will cut right to the chase.  I don't know about you, but  I often find my self scrolling through blog posts just to get to the recipe.  So I won't go on any long tangents and just get right to the soup goodness.
 I hope you enjoy this hearty, filling, delicious soup. Cheers to warm soups as the chilly winter settles in!

Broccoli Bisque (Vegan)
**adapted from "Vegan World Fusion Cuisine"

5 cups veggie stock
3 1/2 cups broccoli
1 onion
1 1/2 cups raw cashews
3 cloves garlic
1 TBS Herbamere seasoning (optional)
sea salt (to taste)
dill (to taste)
 
Lightly sauté onions and garlic.   Add stock and broccoli.  Allow to cook until broccoli is soft, about 10-15 minutes.  Remove from heat to cool.  Once cool add everything to blender and puree. (I have done this in the past with just a regular blender). 

A couple 
extra thoughts....
*I just pulled out some frozen broccoli for this but fresh could work as well.  I would use the broccoli stems as well.
*If you plan ahead, soak the cashews which makes them easier to blend and digest, especially if you don't have a high power blender. 

Halloween

Halloween is one of those "holidays" I love and dread.  I have always been a sucker for a good dress up party.  In fact, my husband and I have a costume bin for theme parties we used to throw before we had the kiddos.  I LOVE dressing up.  I LOVE that my girls love dressing up.  It's fun.  It's cute.  It's silly.  It makes for awesome pictures that I treasure.
Now the idea of Halloween is bizarre to me as I think about it from a parent view.  Where did the whole idea of kids dressing up and going door to door to beg and look cute and ask for candy really originate? Hmmm...  I know we have friends that celebrate the holiday faithfully and get as excited (if not more so) as the kids.  We have friends that have chosen to forgo the whole thing because of faith based reasons or a true disgust for all the refined sugar, dye filled candy being passed out to the littles.
I have found that, as most things in the world of parenting, we are striving for a balance.  I was talking to a girlfriend the other night and we were laughing about how we used to be such perfect parents in our minds BEFORE we had kids.  Now it is a lot of learning as we go.  Halloween is one of those things.  My girls are old enough now they know about it and ask about.  We talk about it.  We realize it's fun. I LOVED it as a little girl.  We also talk about food and candy and chemicals and food dyes and what it looks like to find balance.  As I am sure you've gathered by now if you've been reading this blog, I really really want my girls to love real, whole foods.  BUT even more than that I want them to grow up with a healthy view of food and health and in my opinion (remember I am learning this as I go too) I have realized completely restricting something is only going to want to make them want that thing more.  (I have my own versions of this as an adolescent...no drinking alcohol lectures=why not try binge drinking in college..). Ok yes it's very different and yet it's the same.
I love that as a culture we celebrate so much around food and around gathering together with friends and loved ones around a table.  What I wish we could change is how we celebrate young children by giving them ridiculous amounts of candy. I am all for balance.  If this was the only holiday of the year that candy was dished out so freely I would probably relax a little more about it.  But every holiday seems to be an excuse for people to give kids bags, baskets, stockings, valentines, etc.. full of candy. Parades. Schools.  Birthday parties.  Birthday parties at school.  It seems to be a never ending cycle.  Think about how much candy your kiddos are given in a year.  My word!
So here are a few thoughts about what we do for Halloween but also throughout the year for holidays and candy laden events.
The most popular approach we've come up with so far is trading it in.  I grab some "healthier" versions of candies that I am comfortable giving my girls.  Things that don't have refined sugars, food dyes, etc..
I make up a little goodie bowl.  I usually keep a stash for unexpected events as well.  You know that time you have to run into the bank and the sweet teller dishes out suckers to the kids.  I also add other goodies or treats into that bowl.  I like Target's dollar bins.  I have found some super cute coloring books, headbands, glow sticks, stickers, activity books, crayons, and much more in those bins.  This way it isn't just food that is a "treat".
When we trade our candy in we make it a game.  An example would be "this headband costs 7 pieces of candy.."  It becomes fun and a also a time of learning numbers and value.  So far this goes over great with my girls.  We've never done it any other way so this is what they know at this point.  Will there be a day they say  "NO way mom"?  Sure there will and we will cross that bridge when we get there.  Right now this is where we are in the journey and it seems to be working. But we've also talked about why we want to trade it in so it doesn't appear that we are just being nasty parents that don't want our kids to have fun.  We make the trade in time fun and silly and sometimes munch on a few of those alternative goodies while we are trading.
My husband has been doing some little lessons on money with the girls lately.  So this year he told them they could trade some candy in for money (a.k.a coins) and save them to buy something else they would really like.
In our Halloween bowl for tomorrow we let the girls pick out some extras that they thought would be fun to hand out to the neighbor kids.  They chose tattoos(mustache tattoos included), a few whistles (neighbors beware!),glow sticks, and these silly little animal critter toys.  All from this place in town called Kent Novelty.  We tossed in some all fruit snacks and a few Trader Joe's suckers.  There's a variety in that bowl.  It's fun to have a mix of treats in our bowl.  We didn't spend anymore than all those big bags of candy from the grocery store which certainly aren't cheap and usually get eaten before  the festivities begin.
So these are just a few rambling thoughts from a mom who is learning along the way.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (GF, DF)

Well hello friends! It's been awhile since I've posted on the blog.  This summer our family was blessed to welcome our third little girl into our tribe.  She's been so sweet and snuggly and I am just soaking up all that snuggly goodness.  Not to mention the nine months preceding her birth were quite a whirlwind of an experience.  I was so sick for the majority of my pregnancy and one of the last things on my mind was creative cooking or really cooking at all. Now I feel like we are settling into a rhythm and all of a sudden I have my love of cooking returning.

I have been neglecting the actual blog a bit, but I tend to post more on the Pint Sized Foodies Facebook page because I can post from my phone while I am in the cooking process.  So if you haven't already please like Pint Sized Foodies on Facebook.

I want to share with you a muffin recipe I made this weekend that was a hit around our house. I must admit that I ate several of these today. They were just so good.  I actually made these muffins to leave in a freezer at my daughter's school for a dairy free treat on a "birthday treat" day.  That is if we have any left in a couple days!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

 2 1/2 cups GF flour [I used a mix of sorghum, tapioca, oat, and buckwheat]
 1/4 cup cocoa
 3/4 cup coconut sugar [or other sugar option]
 2 tsp baking powder
 1 tsp baking soda
 1/2 tsp sea salt
 
2 chia eggs [1 TBS Chia seed to 3TBS water=1 chia egg]

1/2 cup coconut oil
1 cup non-dairy milk

1 cup shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chocolate chips



Mix all dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately. Add the two mixes together. Fold in zucchini and chocolate chips.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.  Enjoy!

***A few extra thoughts......

*Regular wheat flour can be used if you aren't concerned with Gluten Free
*Other granulated sugar can be used.  I rarely use any granulated sugar but when I do I like to use coconut sugar. 
*Eggs can be used instead of chia eggs
*I like the Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips b/c they are dairy free