Year: 2013

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Wild Rice and Apples

Melissa King 51 Comments

Let me just say that this recipe is so good!  I wanted to do a stuffed squash for Thanksgiving and we gave this a test run yesterday.  What usually happens is that I come up with the savory recipe ideas, and my husband Marcus puts them together.  He is an amazing cook and this is one of his creations.  I am more of a baker than a cook.  He has also came up with the Pumpkin Enchiladas and the Homemade Re-fried Beans.

Stuffed-Acorn-Squash-My-Whole-Food-Life

Usually, I am not a fan of fruit in savory dishes, but the apple works so well in this!  We will definitely be bringing these to our Thanksgiving celebration.  Yes, I know mine looks slightly charred in the photo, but this is real life and in real life, food doesn’t always look pretty.  It tastes amazing though! 🙂

Stuffed Acorn Squash with Wild Rice and Apples

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Wild Rice and Apples

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Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 40 min

Ingredients

  • 1 acorn squash
  • 2-3 cups cooked wild rice
  • 3 celery stalks chopped
  • 2 large carrots chopped
  • 1 small onion chopped
  • 1 honey crisp apple diced (Another apple would work too. I just think the honey crisps have such good flavor)
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1 tablespoon walnut oil (Another oil would be fine too)
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ginger
  • salt to taste

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 and roast the squash for 40 minutes or until it’s done.
  2. Cook enough wild rice to make 2-3 cups of cooked rice.
  3. As the squash is roasting, chop the carrots, onion, and celery as well as mince the garlic.
  4. Add all of it to a pan under medium high heat and saute for 7-10 minutes.
  5. After the onions begin to become translucent, lower the heat to medium and add the rice and spices, including the salt.
  6. Stir well for a couple of minutes and remove from the heat. Let this mixture cool down significantly.
  7. Once the rice mixture has cooled off and is more of a lukewarm temperature, add the diced apples. You want these apples to retain their crispiness, so it is important to not add them too early or they will soften.
  8. Stir the apples in the mixture so they get coated in some of the oil from the pan. This will keep them from browning.
  9. When the squash is fully roasted, remove it from the oven.
  10. Once it has begun to cool, you can add the rice to the inside of the dish as shown and serve. Enjoy!

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Recipe Notes

Friendly tip, you can tell when the squash is done when you are able to stick a fork through the skin easily.

Gingerbread Overnight Oats

Melissa King 80 Comments

Overnight oats are some of the most popular recipes on my blog.  I can totally understand why.  They are so easy to make, healthy and filling, and there is no cooking required!  I’m sold.  Probably why I eat them everyday.  With the holidays approaching, I knew I had to come up with a recipe for gingerbread overnight oats flavor.

Gingerbread Overnight Oats Watermark

These gingerbread overnight oats can be made 5 at a time so you have quick grab and go breakfasts throughout the week.  I know there are cranberries in the photo, but not in the recipe. I did that for color, but feel free to add them in if you like.

Gingerbread Overnight Oats

Gingerbread Overnight Oats

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Prep Time 5 min

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Throw all the contents in a jar and store overnight in the fridge.
  2. In the morning, you can eat them cold, or heat them up for a warm breakfast. Enjoy!

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Grain Free Pumpkin Pie

Melissa King 88 Comments

Grain Free Pumpkin Pie.  Who doesn’t like pumpkin pie? I find people will scour the internet for a good pumpkin pie recipe this time of year too.

I’ve been trying pretty hard to get a pumpkin pie recipe just right.  I have had several fails.  I am happy to tell you that this grain free pumpkin pie is delicious.

This pumpkin pie is not only grain free, but it’s vegan, gluten free and soy free as well!  So I am happy to say I finally have a healthy grain free pumpkin pie recipe that is good enough to share!

 

Grain Free Pumpkin Pie

 

This pumpkin pie even got the thumbs up from my girls.  They both wanted to eat it before I had a chance to take photos!  Just for the record, they claim to not like pumpkin. 🙂

For the crust, I decided to use a recipe from Elena’s Pantry.  Because, why mess with perfection?  Her crust recipe is amazing and so simple.

I hope you enjoy this pumpkin pie recipe as much as we enjoyed eating it.

Grain Free Pumpkin Pie

Grain Free Pumpkin Pie

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Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 60 min Serves 1 pie     adjust servings

Ingredients

    For the crust

    For the filling

    Instructions

    For the crust

    1. Preheat oven to 350.
    2. In a food processor, mix the flour and salt. Then add in the egg and coconut oil and mix until a dough starts to form.
    3. Once the dough forms, press it into a greased glass pie dish . I used a 9 inch. Bake it in the oven for about 9-11 minutes.

    For the filling

    1. In a food processor , blend all the filling ingredients until smooth.
    2. Pour into baked pie crust and bake in the oven at 350 for about 50-60 minutes.

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    Recipe Notes

    When mine was done cooling, it still felt slightly loose, so I put it in the fridge and it completely firmed up. That worked out great. I think that arrowroot is just a tad less stable than cornstarch. However, it is free of GMOs and that’s why I used it over cornstarch. Enjoy!

    Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

    Melissa King 52 Comments

    I made you gluten free pumpkin pie pop tarts.  Yes you read that title right. While I was at Target the other day, I happened to notice a box of Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts.

    You can see the very long list of ingredients here. That gave me an idea to create my own gluten free pop tart recipe.

    My gluten free pop tart recipe is healthier than that boxed version.  I filled these with a pumpkin pie filling, but you can really fill them with whatever you like.

    gluten free pumpkin pie pop tarts

    I used the base recipe for my Homemade Pop Tarts and just changed a few things around.  These came out 10 times better than my original pop tart recipe.  These would be great with a glass of almond milk.

    Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

    Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts

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    Prep Time 40 min Cook Time 25 min Serves 6 - 7 pastries     adjust servings

    Ingredients

      For the dough

      For the filling

      Instructions

      1. Preheat oven to 350. 
      2. In a small bowl , mix up the filling and set aside.
      3. In another bowl , add all the dry ingredients for the dough. 
      4. In a mixing bowl , add the wet ingredients and mix. 
      5. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, while mixing.  If the mixture looks slightly dry, add a little more milk. 
      6. Once the dough has formed, gather it into a ball and wrap it in plastic.  It will be sticky. 
      7. Store it in the fridge for 25-30 minutes. 
      8. Once the dough is firm, pull it out and cut it in half. 
      9. Line your counter with parchment paper the size of your baking sheet .
      10. Take one half of the dough and place it on the parchment paper. 
      11. Put the plastic wrap between the dough and the rolling pin, and roll it out to a 1/4 inch thickness. 
      12. Spread the filling on top.  Then roll out the other half of the dough the same way as the first. 
      13. Once it’s rolled out, carefully place it on top of the other half of the dough. 
      14. Very carefully, peel the parchment paper off.
      15. Transfer the whole thing to your baking sheet . 
      16. Cut the dough into squares using a pizza cutter .
      17. Bake in the oven for 15-17 minutes.

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      Recipe Notes

      I got 6-7 out of my batch. I cut them larger. They should last a few weeks if kept in the fridge. Enjoy!

      Chocolate Pistachio Truffles

      Melissa King 44 Comments

      A few weeks ago, my husband made some amazing pumpkin enchiladas.  They had a pistachio dust on top.  Well he ground up too many pistachios and I have been wondering what to do with them ever since.  So I decided to make chocolate pistachio truffles.

      chocolate truffles watermark

      These chocolate pistachio truffles remind me of chocolate ganache.  They simply melt in your mouth.  I think it is due to the pecan butter I added.  If you haven’t tried pecan butter, you need to!  Amazing stuff.  There are dates in these chocolate pecan truffles, but I honestly can’t even taste or detect them at all.  This easy dessert can be made in a matter of minutes.  Vegan, gluten free and grain free. 🙂

      Chocolate Pistachio Truffles

      Chocolate Pistachio Truffles

      Chocolate Pistachio Truffles

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      Serves 10 truffles     adjust servings

      No fuss truffles that are melt in your mouth delicious!

      Ingredients

      Instructions

      1. In the food processor or blender , combine the pecan butter and dark chocolate.
      2. Once they are mixed well, add in the dates and salt and mix until well combined.
      3. A ball of dough will form.
      4. Spread your chopped pistachios onto a plate.
      5. Roll the dough into balls, then roll the balls through the chopped pistachios.
      6. Once that is done, place the balls on a lined baking sheet .
      7. Once all the balls are done, stick the baking sheet into the fridge to firm up.

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      Savory Pumpkin Dip

      Melissa King 23 Comments

      Most of you wanted more pumpkin, so here is another recipe.  This one is savory and really good!  It’s kind of a pumpkin version of hummus made with different ingredients.

      Pumpkin White Bean Dip Watermark

      This dip would be great with chips, crackers or veggies.  Great for those holiday parties and a healthy alternative to traditional veggie dips.  No added fats in here at all. 🙂  The flavors are very similar to those in my Smokey Roasted Chickpeas.  It comes together in just minutes.  If you enjoy savory pumpkin recipes, then you may also enjoy my Pumpkin Enchiladas.

      Savory Pumpkin Dip

      Savory Pumpkin Dip

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      Prep Time 10 min Serves 1.5 cups     adjust servings

      Ingredients

      Instructions

      1. In a food processor or blender , combine all the ingredients until smooth.

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      Recipe Notes

      Serve immediately or refrigerate for later. This should last a couple weeks in the fridge and can even be frozen. This recipe makes about 1 1/2 cups dip. Enjoy!