Year: 2013

Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

Melissa King 19 Comments

Sorbets are so perfect for this time of year.  Light and refreshing.  I have been wanting  to make a strawberry rhubarb sorbet ever since I got my ice cream machine.  I can honestly say that this is the very first time I attempted anything with rhubarb.  I have eaten it, but I had been intimidated to cook with it.  I know both rhubarb and strawberry are seasonal ingredients so now was the time to make a strawberry rhubarb sorbet recipe. I think this rhubarb sorbet with the strawberry came out pretty good.

strawberry rhubarb sorbet watermark

Yesterday was the perfect day to try.  It was super hot and humid and I had just walked all over the mall with the two kids.  We are doing a family photo this weekend and they needed matching shirts for that.  I was super hot when I got home, so I popped this in the machine real quick.  I must admit, my older daughter was not a fan. Not sure why since my younger daughter and I loved it!  I threw a few carob chips on top for some crunch.  This recipe couldn’t be easier.  If you don’t have an ice cream machine, you can pour the mixture into popsicle molds.  🙂

Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

Strawberry Rhubarb Sorbet

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Prep Time 2 hr Serves 4-5 servings     adjust servings

Ingredients

  • 2-3 large stalks of rhubarb
  • 1 16oz package of strawberries
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • Juice of 1/2 an orange
  • 1 cup water

Instructions

  1. In a sauce pan , add the rhubarb, orange juice, water and maple syrup.
  2. Bring to a boil. Then turn down and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb has turned to a mush. Mine took about 10 minutes.
  3. Once it is mushy, turn it off the heat and let it get back to room temp.
  4. Once at room temp, place the mixture in a container in the fridge for a few hours.
  5. Once cooled in the fridge, pour the mixture into a blender with the strawberries. Blend until smooth.
  6. Take a taste test. Mine came out a bit tart. I liked that, but if you prefer a more sweetened sorbet, you can add a few tablespoons of maple syrup or honey and blend for another 30 seconds.
  7. Pour the mixture into the ice cream machine. Mine took about 15 minutes to get to a soft serve consistency. If you like a harder sorbet, you can put it in the freezer for an hour before eating.
  8. Enjoy!

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Healthy Homemade Pop Tarts

Melissa King 103 Comments

I made Healthy Homemade Pop Tarts for you.  I have been thinking about doing a pop tart recipe for quite some time.  After looking at the ingredients on the label, I knew I would never buy those again.

You can get decent store bought pop tarts with the Nature’s Path brand, but I wanted a homemade pop tart version as well.  Now, I know that store bought pop tarts are normally crisp.  I tried two batches and mine didn’t get crispy.

Mine are on the softer side.  Most likely due to the applesauce and coconut oil.  However, all my taste testers thought they were good.  So I thought I would share anyway. 🙂  Maybe if you put them in a toaster oven, they will crisp up.

 

healthy homemade pop tarts

I filled mine with two different fillings.  Some have my Blueberry Chia Jam and some have my Homemade Vegan Nutella. Make these ahead of time for a quick breakfast on those busy mornings.

Healthy Homemade Pop Tarts

Healthy Homemade Pop Tarts

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Prep Time 30 min Cook Time 15 min Serves 15 pastries     adjust servings

Ingredients

    Healthy Pop Tarts

    For the filling

    • Your favorite fruit spread

    Instructions

    1. Preheat oven to 350. 
    2. Mix all the dry ingredients in one bowl |.
    3. Mix wet in another bowl |. 
    4. Add dry to wet and mix until combined. 
    5. Wrap the dough in plastic and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up. 
    6. Once the dough is firm, cut two pieces of parchment paper the size of your baking sheets . 
    7. Lay one of the sheets out on the counter. 
    8. Using a bench scraper , cut the dough in half. 
    9. Using a rolling pin , roll the dough ball out onto the parchment, putting the plastic wrap between the rolling pin and the dough. 
    10. Rolling it onto the parchment will make for easy transfer to the baking sheets .
    11. Try to roll the dough into a square shape.  Roll out to about 1/4 in thickness. 
    12. Using a pizza cutter , cut the dough into even squares. 
    13. Put a spoonful of jam on a square and cover with another square of dough. 
    14. Use a fork to press the sides together. 
    15. Repeat this until all have been done. 
    16. Do all the same steps with the other half of the dough. 
    17. Transfer the parchment paper onto the baking sheet and put in the oven. 
    18. Bake for about 15-17 minutes.

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    Recipe Notes

    I got 15 small sized pop tarts out of my batch. These should last a couple weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze them for longer storage. Enjoy!

    Gluten Free Snickerdoodles

    Melissa King 235 Comments

    Gluten Free Snickerdoodles.  I have had a lot of requests for a cleaner version of the snickerdoodle.  So when Wholesome Sweeteners sent me a sample of all their products, I knew that now was the time to make a healthy gluten free snickerdoodle.

    These gluten free snickerdoodles came out really good!
    gluten free snickerdoodles

    These came out really good!  Between my husband and older daughter, they didn’t last long!  I got about 12 cookies in my batch.  They should last a week or so, but if you plan on keeping them longer, you can refrigerate or even freeze them.

    Gluten Free Snickerdoodles

    Gluten Free Snickerdoodles

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    Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 15 min Serves 12 cookies     adjust servings

    The classic cookie made gluten free!

    Ingredients

      For the cookies

      For the sugar coating

      Instructions

      1. Preheat oven to 350.
      2. In a large bowl , combine all the dry ingredients.
      3. In another bowl , combine all the wet ingredients.
      4. Add dry to wet and mix until combined.
      5. Roll dough into balls and coat them in the sugar/cinnamon mix.
      6. Place onto a lined baking sheet .
      7. Once all the balls are rolled and coated, use your palm to flatten them out.
      8. Bake in the oven for 13-17 minutes, depending on your oven. Enjoy!

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      Recipe Notes

      To get the oat flour, I just used my Vitamix to grind up rolled oats into a flour. If you do that, make sure the rolled oats you buy are gluten free. Some are produced in factories that also produce wheat.

      Wheat Berry Salad with Cranberries

      Melissa King 23 Comments

      On Memorial Day, my daughter wanted to have a picnic at the park.  It was kind of impromptu, so we stopped by Whole Foods to pick up a few things.  One thing we got was this delicious salad with wild rice and kamut.  I decided right there that I would have to create my own version.

      wheat berries watermark

      I used wheat berries and black rice instead of kamut and wild rice.  It turned out even better that way.  This is perfect for summer.  If you have never had wheat berries, they have a nutty flavor that goes perfect with the long grain black rice.  This is the kind of meal that will keep you full for quite some time.  Since it contains wheat berries and black rice, it could be a complete meal as well.

      Wheat Berry Salad with Cranberries

      Wheat Berry Salad with Cranberries

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      Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 30 min

      Ingredients

      • 2 cups wheat berries
      • 7 cups water
      • 1 cup long grain black rice
      • 1/3 cup dried cranberries
      • 2 T fresh thyme
      • 2 T fresh parsley
      • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
      • Juice from 1 large orange or 1/4 cup orange juice
      • 2-3 T oil (I used avocado oil)
      • salt to taste

      Instructions

      1. Put the 2 cups of wheat berries and 7 cups of water in a large pot on the stove. 
      2. Bring to a boil and then turn down, cover and simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed.
      3. Cook the rice according to the package instructions.  You can even do both of these steps a day ahead if you like.  I did that myself. 
      4. Once the rice and wheat berries are cooled, add in the thyme, parsley, cranberries and salt. 
      5. In a small bowl, mix the remaining ingredients together to make a dressing. 
      6. Pour the dressing over the dry ingredients and mix well.

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      Recipe Notes

      This makes at least 4-5 good sized portions. Enjoy!

      Blueberry Chia Jam (Vegan)

      Melissa King 147 Comments

      Blueberry Chia Jam is super easy to make! I first got the idea of doing a chia seed jam from my friend Miryam over at eatgood4life.com. Did I mention she is also selling an ebook? Check it out if you get the chance.

      Her recipes are great! Anyway, she came up with this recipe and I knew I had to make it! I used blueberry instead of raspberry for mine.

      Blueberry Chia Jam

       

      On Saturday, we picked up our co-op basket. This week, there was an optional add-on for 12 pints of organic blueberries. So we took it! I already had used some of them to make my Grain Free Blueberry Tart. So with some of the remaining blueberries, I made this jam. Adapted from eatgood4life.com

      This healthy chia jam should last at least a week in the fridge.  You can also freeze it for longer. It makes about 2 cups worth.  It also makes a great filling for my Blueberry Crumb Bars or my homemade Nutri-Grain Bars.

      You can really use any fruit you like to make this.  I have also used apples and peaches and both jams turned out great.  The apple spice jam was great for Fall.  You can also put it in overnight oats.  Yum!

      Blueberry Chia Jam

      Blueberry Chia Jam

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      Prep Time 5 min Serves 1 cups     adjust servings

      Ingredients

      Instructions

      1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until everything is well mixed.
      2. Put the mixture in a covered container and place in the fridge for a good 3 to 4 hours.

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      Recipe Notes

      Once it’s set, use it as a topping for yogurt, on toast or even on waffles instead of syrup. My two year old absolutely loved it. Then again she does love anything chia seed related. She tears up my chia seed pudding . Enjoy!

      Almond Joy Cookies

      Melissa King 118 Comments

      If you have been following this blog for quite some time, you know that I love to bake.  Before I started to eat clean, I loved to bake all of those decadent gooey desserts that you see on sites like Pinterest.  Changing my diet has taught me to be creative in baking healthier sweets.  My husband is a big fan of almond joy, so he had the idea to make almond joy cookies.

      almond joy cookies watermark

      These cookies were inspired by my Almond Joy Energy Bites.  They are gluten free as well as vegan.  My husband worked from home yesterday and he got to taste test them right out of the oven.  To quote him verbatim, “These may be the most delicious things you have ever made.”  So I had to share them with all of you!

      Almond Joy Cookies

      Almond Joy Cookies

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      Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 12 min Serves 12 cookies     adjust servings

      The taste of the candy bar with none of the guilt.

      Ingredients

      Instructions

      1. Preheat oven to 350.
      2. Mix all the dry ingredients in one bowl.  (I actually ground up some rolled oats to make my oat flour.)
      3. In a saucepan on med heat, combine the almond butter, coconut oil and maple syrup and stir until smooth.
      4. Let mixture cool.
      5. Once it’s cooled add it to the dry ingredients and also add the vanilla, egg and almond extract.
      6. Once everything is well combined, fold in the dark chocolate.
      7. Drop cookies onto a lined baking sheet. 
      8. Bake for about 12 minutes and serve.

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      Recipe Notes

      Store them in a jar if they will be eaten quickly. For longer storage, keep them in the fridge or even freeze them . Enjoy!