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Ginger Cookies!

2/26/2019

I participate in a health group in my area every now and again, and every month I try to focus on one medicinal herb, what it does for your body, and how we can use it in our everyday food! So, this month's herb is GINGER, and these cookies are not your average ginger snaps!

Ginger is a great anti-bacterial herb, and you can use it in many ways! This is obviously ground ginger that we use in these cookies, but you can grate fresh ginger into your favorite chili recipe, or you can make ginger tea by boiling diced ginger in a pot for about 10 minutes and adding honey. Ginger tea is great for keeping colds and flu viruses away, and it works wonders for a natural remedy for strep throat!

These cookies are thick and chewy and VERY GINGERY! If you're looking for cookies with a kick, then these are for you! These cookies are also completely organic and refined sugar-free! They're sweetened with pure maple sugar, which means that they're sweetened with dried maple syrup which is filled with lots of minerals and nutrients!

Ginger Cookies!

Ingredients:
3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 Tbs. ground ginger
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1/2 cup palm shortening
3/4 cup organic maple sugar
1/4 cup molasses
2 eggs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°
Line baking sheet with silicon baking mat, or parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until combined.
In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream the butter and shortening then add the maple sugar and molasses. Beat until light and fluffy.
Add in the eggs and stir until combined.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in thirds, stirring well until combined in between each addition. The dough should hold together well and be soft.
Form half inch balls of dough and place on prepared baking sheet in rows of 3x4. Do not flatten your dough balls.
Bake on middle rack for 10-12 minutes or until they are set. (Do not over cook or they will be hard and crunchy.)

*Use organic ingredients when feasible.

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Banana Nut Muffins

2/26/2019

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I recently had this major craving for banana nut muffins, and so these refined sugar-free delights were born! These babies are made with organic, whole wheat flour. And they are sweetened with organic maple sugar! For those of you who don't know, maple sugar is basically just dried maple syrup, and so it's important that you find a brand that is 100% pure and organic so that we can stay away from extra additives and chemicals that are harmful to our bodies. Otherwise, maple syrup is a sweetener that is full of nutrients that your body will love you for! This is why maple sugar is a great sugar substitute and can be used for all of your baked delights!

Healthy Banana Nut Muffins!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
3 ripe bananas (mashed)
1/2 cup organic maple sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup butter (melted)

Topping:
1/4 cup maple sugar
2 Tbs. whole wheat flour
2 Tbs. oats
1/3 cup chopped walnuts (or you can use your nut of choice)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375° Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon until well combined.
In a separate bowl, mash your bananas and add the maple sugar, egg, vanilla, and butter. Whisk together until well combined.
Add the flour mixture and stir with wooden spoon until just combined. (Do not over-mix.)
Divide the batter evenly into 12 muffin cups. (Each muffin cup will be filled about 2/3 full.)
In a small bowl, combine flour, maple sugar, and butter until mixed. Stir in the oats and walnuts. Divide topping over muffins.
Bake for 18-20 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean.

*Use organic ingredients when feasible.

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Chicken Salad Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

2/19/2019

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Looking for a DELICIOUS paleo, gluten-free dinner idea? Look no further because these loaded sweet potatoes are absolutely AMAZING and they are something the whole family will love! These sweet potatoes are stuffed with a chicken salad filling, and they are completely gluten-free and filled with healthy fats! They're topped with cilantro and can be served with any of your favorite homemade dressing. I was so surprised at how delicious these turned out, but it's a great way to turn boring sweet potatoes into an exciting dish that virtually anyone will love!

Chicken Salad Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:
2 lbs chicken breast
3/4 cup celery (diced small)
3/4 cup avocado oil mayo
2 Tbs. mustard
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried dill
1 tsp. dried parsley
4 large sweet potatoes
butter and salt for potato filling

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°
Wash and prep potatoes by poking with a fork to allow air to get through while cooking. Place potatoes on a baking sheet and cook for about 45 mins. to 1 hour or until potatoes are soft all the way through.
While potatoes are cooking, prep your chicken.
Grill chicken in a large skillet. I used salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and basil to flavor my chicken. You can use whatever you normally would to flavor your chicken while it's cooking.
Once your chicken is cooked all the way through, shred with a fork and remove from heat. I transferred mine into a large glass bowl. Then allow to cool completely before mixing the filling.
For the filling add the mayo, mustard, pepper, salt, dill, and parsley to your chicken and mix until well combined. Store in fridge until your potatoes are ready. (I seasoned my chicken salad to taste so I would highly recommend tasting your chicken, and then adding more mayo or spice according to your taste.)
When your potatoes are finished cooking, remove from the oven and cut down the middle of your potato. Push the two ends of your potato using your thumbs and pointer fingers to open your potato. Using a cookie dough dropper, scoop as much potato out of the skin as you can without mutilating the potato. Place potato in a small bowl. Repeat this step with all four potatoes.
Using a fork, mash your sweet potato in your bowl until well mashed. Mix with a few Tbs. of butter and a tsp. of salt. Then place some of the filling back into each potato but spooning it in and pushing it up against the side of the potato, leaving room for the chicken. (You may not use all of the filling that you just mixed.)
Stuff your chicken filling into each potato. Stuff as much as you can into the potato. Top with cilantro or organic, refined sugar-free dressing of choice. Serve immediately.

*Store in refrigerator.
**Use organic ingredients when feasible.
**You will have leftover chicken filling which you can use for sandwiches or wraps the next day!

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Homemade Veggie Pizza!

2/6/2019

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Every kid's favorite food... pizza!! This is one of my favorite recipes for a Friday night, mainly because pizza is perfect weekend food, and pizza is really easy to make vegetarian if you're trying to cut down your meat intake. I generally eat meat only three times a week, so this is a delicious option for one of the meat-free nights of the week! This pizza is also completely organic and refined sugar-free!

This is also my PERFECTED crust recipe! I love cooking gluten-free, but not all of my recipes are gluten free because I believe that whole, organic grain is healthy and full of necessary nutrients. So, this crust is made with whole wheat flour, and it's the perfect mix of crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside!

Also, you can top with ANYTHING you like! I topped this one with olives and peppers. But I've also used fresh pineapple, mushrooms, cilantro, fresh tomatoes, really anything you like!

Homemade Pizza!

Ingredients:

Dough:
1 1/3 cup warm water (between 100-110°F)
2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
1 Tbs. raw honey
2 Tbs. olive oil
3/4 tsp. salt
3 1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour
sprinkle of cornmeal for dusting

Sauce:
1 12 oz. can organic tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1 Tbs. Italian seasoning
1 Tbs. basil
Cheese
Desired Toppings

Directions:

Whisk the warm water and honey together together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Gently mix the yeast into the mixture and allow to rest for 5 minutes. (If the yeast is live it should bubble up after you let it sit for a bit.)
Add the olive oil, salt, and flour. Beat on low speed for two minutes. Then knead your dough by mixing for another 2-5 minutes. After kneading, the dough should feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger and if it bounces back it's ready to rise. Otherwise, turn it back on low and keep kneading.
Lightly grease a large glass bowl with butter, place the dough in the bowl and turn it to coat the dough in the butter. Cover the bowl with parchment paper and let rise in a warm, dry environment for about 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 375°F and place your pizza stones inside. Allow the stones to heat inside as you shape the dough. (This is what creates the crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside texture.)
Line your counter top with parchment paper and sprinkle cornmeal on top. When it's ready, punch the dough down to release any air, and divide the dough in half. Use lightly floured hands and a lightly floured rolling pin to gently flatten your dough into a disc your desired size. Do this with both balls of dough on separate sheets of paper.
Spread your sauce, cheese, and other desired toppings on your dough, and slide the parchment paper with the dough on top onto your preheated pizza stones. (They're super hot at this point so be careful and use oven mits!)
Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top, and slice and eat immediately.
Store any leftovers in the fridge.

*Use Organic ingredients when feasible.