Pumpkin Apple Flax Muffin (Gluten Free)
I have lately observed the increase in demand for gluten-free recipes. Gluten is the protein found in wheat, barley and rye. More and more people are being diagnosed with gluten sensitivity, but want to be able to eat some of the recipes they love. I adapted this muffin recipe from one I found on bigeatstinykitchen.com. It uses almond flour instead of wheat flour. Almond flour is pretty pricey, but can be made using blanched almonds and a food processor for a bit less money. I made a few modifications to this...
Read MorePeach Jam
Recently I took the kids to a local peach orchard where we picked the most beautiful, scumptious peaches. In my quest to learn about canning, I decided we would make peach jam to preserve a little bit of summer. I’ve made freezer jam with my mom since I was a kid, and there is nothing like homemade jam, especially on top of a slice of warm, fresh bread. Yum!! Canning is not that hard as long as you have a little time and a few basic tools. We used pint sized jars. Today we made three batches at once which...
Read MoreOatmeal Breakfast Cakes
This recipe idea came from my friend Debbie who is a vegan and teaches vegetarian and vegan cooking. I misplaced her recipe, but sort of recreated it the best I could. I hesitate to call these “pancakes” because even though they look like pancakes, they taste and feel quite different. They are dense like a bowl of oatmeal. Imagine a yummy bowl of oatmeal that looks like a pancake! I used almond milk which was delicious, and the banana adds a nice sweetness. I have a hard time getting Tiny...
Read MoreFriteenie Frittatas
I have a lot of swiss chard growing in the garden. I asked friends for ideas on how to use it up, and one good friend suggested making frittatas. Of course! Like a giant baked omelette, frittatas are a wholesome vegetarian meal that can be served for breakfast or dinner. They are also a great way to use up extra veggies. While I started making frittatas I saw a great egg muffin idea from a wonderful facebook page called, “Help! Mom’s on a Health Kick!” Then it occured to me that I could...
Read MoreCrêpes
I love crêpes. They are super versatile, kid-friendly, and easy to make. We were introduced to crêpes by a lovely French exchange student named Hélène who stayed with my family for a summer when I was a child. Hélène and I recently reconnected after MANY years, and as it turns out she is a nutritionist! For years my family would make these on the weekends and fill them with different fruits. These can also be made with savory fillings like ham, cheese and vegetables. Spinach and cheese would also be...
Read MoreDoctor Yum’s Waffles
This is a recipe I recently doctored up to include more whole wheat flour. I have been afraid to do this, because I thought that the lightness and fluffiness would suffer. This morning I tried using white whole wheat flour (King Arthur’s brand is the most widely available) which is a much softer, milder wheat flour. When I swapped out half of my all-purpose flour for the white whole wheat the results were great. The kids didn’t notice the difference either! We all could use a little more...
Read MoreBreakfast Ideas for Vegetarian Kids
This week Cara, our vegetarian nutritionist talks about breakfast. _______________________________________________________ I was really looking forward to writing a post about my perfect daughter and how she ate the plateful of scrambled eggs and toast I made her every morning. Evelyn did eat eggs…at one point…but now she swats them away as if they were poison. Alas, we had several great months of a high protein, high iron breakfast. (By the way, eggs are the perfect protein and contain just about every...
Read MoreGranola Bars with Cherries and Chocolate Chips
This recipe idea came from weelicious.com which is a great resource for family recipes. I used the same basic proportions but put my own spin on it. If you don’t like chocolate chips and raisins, you can certainly use other chips or dried fruit to put your own spin on it. Even cinnamon and raisins would make a great version. Budget Friendly- I priced a batch of these at about 4 dollars (using organic old-fashioned oats and dried cherries from the bulk bins). The batch makes 20-30 bars (my kids are...
Read MoreLunch Idea – Letter Pancake Sandwiches
This past Sunday I made my homemade pancake recipe (with white whole wheat flour, and flax). I decided to make the kids a surprise by making the pancakes into the first letter of their names. I couldn’t find a squeeze bottle, so I put some of the batter into a zip top bag and cut a small hole from the corner. I then piped out the letters onto the skillet. I found that cooking them on a lower temp made it easier to flip the letters (the tops could cook longer and were less runny). When they saw their...
Read MoreBlackberry Breakfast Muffins
I bought the most SCRUMPTIOUS, melt-in-your mouth blackberries at the farmers market yesterday. I was so in love with them that I bought more than usual so that I could to try them in some recipes. Breakfast muffins are a great way to pack in nutrition, and because they freeze well can be a quick easy breakfast. This recipe uses some whole grains and my favorite ingredients, flax and wheat germ. The result is a crazy good muffin that’s high in fiber and nutrition. As a side note, I also used a few to make a...
Read MoreChocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
This is a classic summertime bread made healthier with a few substitutions. I also made it enticing with some dark chocolate chips! This recipe could be a great breakfast or snack bread. I even sliced small cubes of it as a sweet side dish for school lunch today. INGREDIENTS 3 eggs ½ cup vegetable oil ½ cup low fat vanilla yogurt 1½ cups light brown sugar 2 cups grated zucchini 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1½ cups white whole wheat flour 1 cup all-purpose flour ¼ cup flax meal ¼ cup wheat germ ½...
Read MoreSteel Cut Oatmeal with Apples
This recipe is great for a quick nutritious breakfast. Put this in the crockpot at night and just serve in the morning. As opposed to traditional oatmeal, the steel cut variety is less processed (it’s basically the oat kernel cut in 2-3 pieces). Steel cut oats have a nutty flavor and an interesting texture when cooked well. Generally oatmeal has a low glycemic index. This means the energy that you get is released more slowly and evenly, so you feel full longer. I love having this in the wintertime...
Read MoreCheesy Green Eggs
Baby spinach is a great green to hide in lots of savory foods because it wilts so easily. You can often get it to blend into the background and Tiny Tasters will never know it’s there. In this case the spinach highlights playfully with its bright green color. At my house I’ll occasionally serve this with bacon and we call them “Green Eggs and Ham”! INGREDIENTS 1 small handful of baby spinach 1/4 cup milk 2 eggs 1 egg white 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese salt and pepper DIRECTIONS Place milk...
Read MorePancakes
My kids and I love pancakes on the weekend. It’s a tradition of many families. Most of us buy the store bought pancake mix which makes preparation much faster. I started using an Alton Brown Pancake Mix recipe a few years ago. You can make about 3-5 weekends worth of mix at once. I store it in a Rubbermaid cereal dispenser and use it just like pancake mix with Alton Brown’s pancake recipe. This method is economical, and I have found that I can sneak some fiber with white whole wheat flour,...
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