So, when I am considering breakfast foods muffins are often top on the list. You can add a lot of things to them to keep them nutrient dense and rib sticking!

I started these with 5 Grain Cereal by Bob’s Red Mill. It contains: whole grain oats, whole grain wheat, whole grain rye, whole grain barley, whole grain triticale (wheat)and flaxsed. O.k..that will seriously stick but I wanted more. I added pecans and grated (organic) carrot.  You could add almost any dried fruit, sunflower seeds, or whole grain. Throw in some brown sugar for sweetness and you have a muffin to battle any morning stomach growls.

I used unbleached flour to keep them light. These are going to freeze great and stay moist so make a few batches and keep them for grabbing as you go out the door. We ate them with butter but they would be equally good with cream cheese. Baked at a higher temperature than a normal muffin the tops come out crunchy-crispy with the tender and moist insides that will remind you of carrot cake.

5 Grain Carrot Nut Muffins

• 2 cups of unbleached flour
• 1 cup of Bob’s Red Mill 5 Grain Cereal (uncooked)
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups sour milk or buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and allowed to brown slightly
• 1 cup grated carrot
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 cup white chocolate chips (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Add liners to muffin pans
3. Melt butter and set aside
4. Mix dry ingredients including sugar
5. Stir carrots, nuts, and white chocolate into the batter
6. Mix milk and egg and butter
7. Add the wet to the dry and stir to combine
8. Spoon into the prepared muffin tins and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until the tops are crispy and a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.

Makes 12

Images: marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Really, does it get better than that? Last week I had taken on an assignment which required a series of ten articles. I had about five days to finish them, and that was on top of my normal stuff. And…as luck would have it, there was no food in the house. A trip to the grocery store was in order. Quick and easy were high on my list of priorities.

Most of you probably have never, and will never, experience regular grocery shopping for a family the size of ours. It is a long and drawn out adventure, full of peril and pitfalls. It takes me about three hours to complete the chore, which culminates in a stress headache at the checkout.  When I went last week I found an unusual treasure- local heirloom tomatoes. Misshapen and off color (compared to commercial tomatoes-perfectly round and fire engine red) no one was buying them and they were marked down.

SCORE!

I wanted to keep the rest of the meal as fresh as those wonderful tomatoes and I immediately thought of pasta. My neighbor had given me a large batch of basil from her garden, and I had several pounds of local Texas sweet onions that needed to be used. My plan was coming together…

You could easily add some grilled chicken to this. I just like to cut back on the meat a couple of times a week to beef up my budget. Get it? Beef up?

So the very fresh menu for that evening was:

• Farfalle with Basil and Romano
• Sliced heirloom tomatoes with a splash of balsamic
• Grilled Romano sourdough (make garlic butter and add the cheese before spreading and grilling)
• Sliced local RIPE peaches.

It was perfect. The entire kitchen smelled fresh and summery.

This is also my entry to Presto Pasta Night for this week. It is hosted by Joanne of Eats Well with Others.

Whole Wheat Farfalle wth Basil and Romano

• 2 lbs whole wheat farfalle, cooked a la dente
• 2 Vidalia, 1015s or other sweet onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Add the olive oil to a large saute pan and saute onion and garlic until soft. This should be done over a medium heat so that the onion and garlic do not caramelize and the oil gets infused with the flavors.
2. Add the basil and the pasta. Cook, stirring lightly until heated through and basil is wilted – about three minutes.
3. Salt and pepper to taste
4. Place in serving bowl and toss with Romano cheese

Serves 8

Post from: Baking Delights

Today is National Wear Red Day.  It is a day that has been set aside to bring attention to women’s heart health  The symptoms of heart attack and heart disease in women can vary greatly from those in men.  They can be so difficult to pinpoint that even medical personnel can miss very dangerous symptoms.

What does that mean for you? It is important to know your own body.  It is important to know what is normal for you and what is not.  If you have symptoms that seem unusual play it safe and call 911.

Here are some of the symptoms of heart attack:

• Chest pain-may including back pain,deep aching, and throbbing in one or both arms.
• Breathlessness, having trouble catching your breath especially on awakening.
• Clammy sweating.
• Dizziness and blacking out.
• Anxiety–unusual nervousness, feelings of impending doom.
• Fluid retention and swelling, usually of the ankles or lower legs.
• Rapid heartbeats, palpitations, fluttering in the chest.
• Nausea.
• Feeling of heaviness, such as pressure-like chest pain between the breasts that may radiate to the left arm or shoulder.

You can copy that list to your word program, copy it and keep it on the fridge.

Now, if you want to celebrate National Wear Red Day with red food recipes check out these:

• Beet and Orange Salad
• Red Lentil Soup
• Red Beans and Rice
• Penne with Roasted Red Pepper Pesto
• Pan Seared Scallops with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
• Roasted Tomato Basil Soup
• Tomato Swirl Bread
• Roasted Bosc Pears with Pomegranate glaze
• Baked Ruby Red Grapefruit
• Red Cabbage Salad

Enjoy the recipes, wear some red, and be more aware of your body.  It’s the only one you get.

image:marye audet (c) 2007

Post from: Baking Delights

Imagine a crunchy snack that satisfies your sweet tooth, is totally organic and sugar free and provides the equivalent of three servings of fruit in each snack sized bag.  Now imagine you could pick it up at Whole Foods, Wild Oats, or Amazon…for around $2 a bag.

So I guess this must be a dream come true, right?

I liked this stuff.  I really felt kinda sad when I gave the bags to the kids after I did my initial tasting for the review.  I mean I love my kids and all, but…

I really did not expect to like these a whole lot.  I think dried fruit is o.k. but the whole chewy leathery thing can put me off unless I am backpacking.  Since I don’t normally back pack in the house I leave the dried fruit for the kids.

The difference with this is that it is freeze dried.  So instead of leathery you get crisp and crunchy and the flavors are bright and natural.  According to the information I got with the packages the freeze drying process preserves more of the nutrients than just plain old drying.  And check it out, the apple still has a peel on it!

My kids scarfed them down.  Seriously, you could not have gotten those packages away from them with a handful of M&Ms to lure them…and M&Ms are the lure of choice around here.  In fact, since each one of my children were three weeks (yes, three weeks) late (except Erin, she was on time due to an impatient mom, a concerned doctor, and an armful of pitocin) Marc and I often joked about holding a bag of M&Ms on my lap to see if it would get labor to kick in…

But I digress, terribly.  The truth is these snacks are really good, and they are really different.  Great lunch box items.

Funky Monkey comes in four flavors:

Purple Funk- Crunchy banana and acai flavored snack sweet with a tangy aftertaste.  I liked this but not as much as some of the others.  It may be because I think that acai is the Paris Hilton of the fruit world.  A little too over promoted for what it delivers.  My kids didn’t care for these at all.

Carnaval Mix-Banana, pineapple, apple, papaya, and raisins  Nice mix, sweet and crunchy with the occasional texture variation of the chewy raisins.  This was delicious, but predictable.

JiveALime- Pineapple and lime.  Very sweet ripe pineapple with tangy lime.  Sort of like that candy that you have to suck the sour off to get to the sweet part.  My kids love that stuff! If you have an Airhead addict at your house this may tempt them away.  These were my kids favorites.

Bananamon- My favorite.  Sweet banana and cinnamon.  I could eat the entire bag.  When I was a kid I used to eat corn flakes with bananas in it and cinnamon toast on the side.  This is sorta like that.  Only not.  If I was really going to treat myself I would add about 1/4 cup pecans to the mix.

Anyway, great stuff.  Highly recommended.

images:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I love spinach but several of my family members absolutely do not!

There is something about the combination of balsamic vinegar and bacon and spinach, though, that wakes up your taste buds and lets them know that you know what you are doing.

This recipe goes together fast and easy.  If you can’t make homemade croutons then use good sour dough croutons from the store.  I used a combination of baby greens in this recipe with really good results as well.

SERVES 8

• 1/4 lb bacon
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/3 c balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 3 pounds fresh spinach
• 2 cups sour- dough croutons (homemade is best)

Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the bacon and the onion.  Saute, stirring until the bacon is crisp and the onions begin to caramelize.  Stir in the spinach and balsamic vinegar.  Cook for three to five minutes until spinach is wilted. Salt and pepper to taste, stir in the croutons, and serve.

image:marye audet

Post from: Baking Delights

I have been making bread for so many years that it is natural to me to substitute ingredients and flours  without much thought.  I know what certain things will add as far as texture and flavor and it is a comfortable relationship I have with bread…no suprises anymore..just old friends that know what to expect from eachother.

With Marc being sick I am trying to get as much nutrition in him as possible so I have been making flour mixtures when I make bread… Freshly ground whole wheat berries, oat groats,  brown rice, lentils, sun flower seeds, flax….and the list goes on.  The magic that happens when the yeast starts reacting with the honey or sugar is amazing, miraculous, but always predictable.

These rolls are perfect for autumn’s chilly weather.  They go with soups and stews and made into a loaf  the dough makes a great sandwich.  Because of the combination the bread is high in B vitamins, fiber, protien and omega-3s…best of all, it is filling and it tastes really good.

This may rise a little slower than you are used to.  Give it plenty of time because the flavor develops as it rises.  Feel free to experiment with ingredients…pumpkin seeds have plenty of zinc, add walnuts, dried fruit… grind up brown rice, lentils, or whatever in your blender..Just make sure that you have a ratio of about 2:1 wheat flour to other ingredients for best texture.

Rustic Whole Grain Rolls

•  4 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup melted butter, or light organic oil
• 1/2 cup honey, brown sugar, or sugar…or a combination
• 3 cups oatmeal
• 5 or more cups whole wheat  flour, preferably Montana white freshly ground
• 2 cups organic white flour
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice, ground in the blender
• 1 teaspoon salt
•  3 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup flax seeds
• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon grated orange peel, optional
• Dried fruit as desired up to 1 cup

1. In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast and 1 tablespoon of the sweetener in 1/2 cup warm water. In a large bowl, mix remaining 3 1/2 cups warm water, sweetener, and butter or oil . Mix well. Add yeast mixture and stir.
2. Gradually add 5 cups whole wheat flour beating well after each addition. Add the flax, orange peel, dried fruit,  and sunflower seeds, stir well.
3. Let stand for 30 minutes, until mixture is very light. Stir in salt and the rest of the flours until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
4. Knead 10 to 15 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic. Put into a greased bowl and cover, let rise in the oven with light on until doubled, about 1 hour or more.
5. Punch down and shape into 18 round balls. Brush the tops with melted butter.  Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
6. . Bake at 400 degrees F  25-35 minutes.When you put the rolls in the preheated oven throw a cup of water on the oven floor and shut the door quickly.  This creates steam that gives the crust a nice, old world texture.  After the first 15 minutes toss in another cup of water.

Images:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

1 1/2 c flour
1 c bran
1/2 c sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c oil or melted butter
1 egg
3/4 c buttermilk
1 c blueberries
1/2 c chopped pecans
confectioners sugar for dusting

Mix dry ingredients together. Stir in blueberries and pecans so they are coated with the flour mixture.
Mix oil, egg, and buttermilk beating well to make sure the egg is well incorporated.
Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture gently. Do not overmix.
Spoon into muffin liners. (I use the silpat ones from wilton..they are awesome! and you can microwave them too!)
Bake at 400 for 20 minutes
Makes about 16

Post from: Baking Delights