Organic Chocolate Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

So Easy!

I loved when my mom would make these kind of cookies when I was growing up, but somehow I never got the recipe when I started baking on my own and I never made them. Then, when I started this quest to eat healthier and use organic and Non GMO ingredients, I thought that I would have to give up all of my favorite treats. Needless to say, I am so happy to find recipes that I can make that are quite similar to my familiar favorites and still be able to use my newly favored ingredients.

This recipe uses fresh ground peanut butter. I discussed the awesomeness of that in the post for peanut butter cookies.

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Hormone Free Butter (1 stick)
1 Cup Organic Sugar
4 Tbsp Organic Non GMO Cocoa
1/2 Cup Almond Milk
3 Cups Organic Oats (not quick)
1 Cup Fresh Ground Peanut Butter
1 Tsp Organic Vanilla Extract

Getting Ready:

1. Line 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper, or just put out 3 of the papers about the size of cookie sheet onto the counter 
2. Spoon peanut butter into one cup with spatula and set aside
3. Put butter into large pot and cook at medium heat to melt
4. Get out all other ingredients so that you are ready to put them in 

Directions:

1. Add into melted butter, sugar, almond milk, and cocoa
2. Stir constantly until it boils and then boil for about 1 minute
3. Remove pot from heat and mix in 1 cup of oats at a time 
4. Add vanilla and peanut butter and stir until well mixed
5. Drop spoonfuls onto the wax paper
6. Allow to cool for about 30 minutes to harden into cookies

Makes about 38 cookies depending on size

I was so excited, they taste just about like my mom's! (Nothing ever really tastes just like hers unless she is here to make it. I haven't quite figured that out.)

Organic Peanut Butter Cookies

My Favorite Peanut Butter Cookies

These are by far the best peanut butter cookies I have ever had. I was so happy to find this recipe as it introduced me to fresh ground peanut butter (you should be able to find it in your health food stores or even some grocery stores). My brother and I used to get excited about opening the new jar of creamy peanut butter, the smooth, untouched goodness and the awesome aroma. That does not even begin to compare to the absolute perfection of freshly ground peanut butter. It is a sublime ratio of tiny crunchy pieces of peanuts mixed with a thick creamy peanut butter. And that fresh taste in these cookies is splendiferous (ok, I had to break out the thesaurus to describe how wonderful these are!) And they are so fast and easy to make!

As with some other recipes on this blog, you may want to double the recipe as it does not make a whole lot. 

Ingredients:

1 Cup Freshly Ground Peanut Butter
1/2 Cup Organic Sugar
1/4 Tsp Sea Salt
1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Tsp Organic Vanilla Extract
1 Organic Cage Free Egg

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Beat peanut butter in large bowl (it flies out) with a mixer on high
3. Add sugar, salt, baking soda, vanilla, and beat 30 more seconds
4. Add egg and beat until just mixed
5. Form balls with the dough and place on cookie sheet about 1 inch apart
6. Press a fork into the balls to make a criss-cross 
7. Bake 14 - 16 minutes

Makes 12 - 15 cookies depending on how big you make them

Enjoy!

Organic Buttermilk Pumpkin Banana Pancakes

Pumpkin Goodness in a Pancake

This is another one of my half invented recipes because I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for. I got a recipe for Pumpkin Banana Pancakes from the Natural Grocers, but upon closer inspection, it called for 6 eggs which seemed excessive, and no flour. I decided I was not that adventurous yet, but I liked the idea of Pumpkin Banana Pancakes, so I started looking at different recipes and kind of put a few together and then added my own substitutions. My family was brave enough to try my creation, and to my delight, they liked them. My husband said not to change anything. You can go to the recipes that I looked at here and here, and let me know your ideas. 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups Organic Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1/8 Tsp Nutmeg
1 Tsp Vanilla
1 1/2 Cups Buttermilk
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Puree
2 Eggs
2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
1/3 Cup Honey
1 Banana

Getting Ready 

1. Put 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil in a small saucepan and simmer over a low heat. As soon as it is melted, turn off and let sit until you are ready to use. 
2. Set out the eggs and pour the buttermilk into a measuring cup and let sit so they are not quite so cold. (The coconut oil will harden again if mixed with really cold ingredients.)
3. Mash banana. I put it in a ziploc bag, sealed it, and mashed it up with my hands. Then, it's easy to pour out of the bag with no mess. 

Directions: 

1. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
2. In another bowl, mix together the vanilla, buttermilk, pumpkin, eggs, coconut oil, honey and banana. 
3. Combine all together in the first large bowl and stir well. It will be lumpy because of the banana. 
4. Set your griddle to 350 F, or you can cook them in a skillet on the stove. 
5. Optional - I like to put a little butter (organic, non hormone) on the griddle before I pour on the pancake batter. 
6. Cook the first side until little bubbles form and the edges look cooked, then flip and brown the other side. 
7. Enjoy with the topping of your choice. 

My sweet five year old likes to cut shapes in hers and put powdered sugar on them. She ate the first one so fast, I didn't get a picture of it (and not just because of the powdered sugar, I made a different recipe once with almond meal and she didn't like them even with the sugar).

Wheat Grass Mocha

Luscious Flavor for Wheat Grass- Who Knew?!

So I have friends who drink Wheat Grass and have been reading articles about its awesomeness, and I finally had to try it for myself. Thanks to the very nice man in my local HEB, I found a way to try it without going full out straight wheat grass flavor. He showed me the Amazing Grass Green Superfood Chocolate flavor and said that he put it in his coffee. 

This is what I came up with, and I really like it. It took me a few tries to get it just right, and as everyone tastes are a little different, you might have to play around with this recipe some too. But I wanted to share because I wasn't sure where to start on my journey to discovering wheat grass and I thought maybe this would be helpful for those of you who are also contemplating it. 

I store my Superfood in the freezer to keep it fresh, so with that being cold and pouring in half a cup of cold almond milk in it, I don't have to wait for it to cool down. I can drink it immediately. If you like your drinks really hot, you might want to microwave it once you have it all mixed together. 

Ok, so I am probably the last person on earth to own a 4 cup Mr. Coffee. Do they even sell those anymore? You can use whatever coffee, and coffee maker, you like. ;)

Ingredients:
1 Scoop Chocolate Green Superfood
1/2 Cup (of Whatever Size Coffee Cup You Use) Coffee (I make about 2 cups in my 4 cup maker)
1 Spoonful Organic Sugar
1/2 Cup (of Whatever Size Coffee Cup You Use) Vanilla Almond Milk

Directions:

1. Brew coffee
2. Put scoop of Green Superfood in cup
3. Put spoonful of sugar in cup and mix up with Superfood (it helps to stir it up so that the wheat grass dissolves)
4. Pour coffee over mixture of sugar and Superfood til it's about half full
5. Pour almond milk into coffee mixture til the cup is about full
6. Stir
7. Enjoy!

Organic Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Healthy Holiday Yumminess!

I got this recipe from Natural Grocers and I was so happy to have a healthy alternative to all of the not so healthy holiday pumpkin flavored goodies. I have only made them once and already have some variations that I want to try with them. 

This recipe calls for egg whites, which I haven't done in quite a while and am always slightly hesitant about, but they really weren't hard at all. So, if you're a little uncertain of the egg whites, know that you're not alone. And if you have an egg separator, it's really a breeze. Then, I scrambled the yolks and cooked them for my little girl so they weren't wasted.

                              

Ingredients:

1 3/4 Cups Whole Wheat Organic Pastry Flour
1 Tsp Aluminum Free Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Sea Salt
1 Tsp Organic Ground Cinnamon
3/4 Cup Organic Pumpkin Puree
2/3 Cup Organic Buttermilk
2 Tbsp Organic Coconut Oil Melted
1/2 Cup Honey
2 Egg Whites

Getting Ready

1. Put 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil in a small saucepan and simmer over a low heat. As soon as it is melted, turn off and let sit until you are ready to use. 
2. Preheat oven to 400 F. 
3. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper baking cups (or grease with coconut oil).
4. Separate egg whites and beat lightly.

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
2. In another bowl, stir together the pumpkin, buttermilk, coconut oil, honey, and egg whites. 
3. Combine all together in the large bowl.
4. Divide batter equally among the 12 baking cups. 
5. Bake for 20 minutes.  

Optional Glaze:

1 Cup Organic Powdered Sugar

2 Tbsp Orange Juice

1 Tsp Organic Pumpkin Puree 

1/2 Tsp Organic Cinnamon

Mix glaze ingredients together and smear onto tops of muffins with a spatula. 

Variations: 

I really think they could use 1 full cup of pumpkin and 3/4 cup honey, but I haven't made them like that yet and wanted to post it as is until I try it out. I also want to put in some dried cranberries and/or pecans or walnuts. And I wasn't sure til I made them if they could handle adding shredded zucchini to them, but I think they would be perfect with about 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup zucchini. 

Update: I made them with a whole zucchini (about 1 cup), one full cup of pumpkin, and 3/4 cup honey and everyone liked them. I also made the glaze to top them with. It's yummy. It is best to allow the muffins to cool before putting the glaze on them. 

Hydrating Lemon Cucumber Mint Detox Water

Such a Yummy Way to Stay Healthy

So this is almost self explanatory by the name and picture, but I wanted to share this simple and tasty way to hydrate and naturally detoxify your system. I for one do not drink enough water, and this water concoction makes me want to drink more and has a few more added benefits than plain water. The cucumber is known for its hydrating qualities (although to add a disclaimer, I am not a doctor) and lemon is naturally cleansing. I also add mint leaves when I have them, which is a natural tummy soother and aids in digestion. 

Directions:

1. Slice Organic Lemon & Cucumber 
2. Place in Container of Choice (along with Mint)
3. Pour Bottled/Filtered Water Over Slices
4. Refrigerate Overnight

I only use half of a cucumber if it is good sized, and one lemon with the ends cut off. If I drink all of it the next day, I will pour water over the same lemons and cucumber slices one more time and refrigerate again. They tend to get bitter after the second batch and look like they need to be thrown out. Then I use the other half of the cucumber and another lemon and do it all again. So, you should be able to get about 4 days worth out of 1 large cucumber and 2 lemons. 

It also makes a great drink for when you have company. I even squeezed some lemon into ice cube trays and put little mint leaves in them to freeze in the ice, which was a huge hit. My brother had some the last time he came over and nearly drank the whole thing. Then, today when he came over, he said "So, you got any of that cucumber water??"

Update...I got this 2.15 Gallon container with a spout. Now, I don't have to fill it as often and the cucumber and lemon doesn't seem to sour as quickly. :)