Sunday, December 29, 2013

Cookies and Cornbread

The upcoming new year means different things to people. To me, it means a chance to renew, refresh and revitalize! And I know just how to achieve that! Organize, clean, and cook more! Yup, losing more weight is on the list too. Working on it!

So I organized our basement freezer and found out we had lots to work with-enough food for maybe a month or two. I am a bit of a food hoarder, I confess, and the freezer clearly demonstrates this. 

On my journey to cook more, and use up our freezer reserves, I whipped up some cookies and cornbread! My mission was to use up some of the 2 bags of the masa harina ( for making tamales) and oat bran that has lingered in the freezer for a long, long time.

Rather than reinvent the wheel, I asked my good friend (Google) for some suggestions, and here is what I found:

A corn bread recipe using masa harina instead of cornmeal!!
http://wholelifestylenutrition.com/recipes/a-healthier-organic-corn-bread-recipe-made-with-masa-harina/

Here are the ingredients, but click on the link for the directions. I think the butter really makes the difference. Cornbread and cookie recipes must have butter (or do they?)!!

A Healthier Organic Corn Bread Recipe (I don't think it should be called organic, as none of the ingredients called for are organic!...just sayin!)


1 1/2 cup masa harina flour
1/2 cup spelt flour, or other flour of choice, (with the exception of coconut flour, it won't work in this recipe) ....I used white whole wheat
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp unrefined sea salt...I used kosher salt
1/4 cup raw honey ...I used maple syrup
1 tbsp sucanat ...or regular sugar
1 1/4 cup whole milk or coconut milk ...I used skim milk
1/4 cup grass fed butter, softened....my butter did not come from grass fed cows :(



This is how I served it up!! with pulled pork tenderloin, shredded cheese and a tiny dollop of real sour cream!

 
Now, earlier I said that cookie recipes must always have butter! But it just so happens that this recipe uses oil!! I always heard that oil should never be used in cookies. But it really works, and it yields a different type of cookie; a thinner cookie, with a more crisp texture. And speaking of cookies, here is the recipe that helped me use up some of my copious amounts of oat bran:

http://www.madebymichellec.com/?p=3794

Dark Chocolate Chip Oat Bran Cookies (adapted from cdkitchen)

3/4 cup canola oil..I used avocado oil
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1 1/2 cup oat bran
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup dark or bittersweet chocolate chips...I only had mini chocolate chips to work with

- See more at: http://www.madebymichellec.com/?p=3794#sthash.eSeVwCYE.dpuf



I really like making other bloggers recipes! the recipes are already tested, so less chance of a mess for me!





 

 

 

 

Sunday, December 8, 2013

Peanut Butter and Jelly Swirled Protein Bread


If you are reading this post now, or have ever read any of my posts, you are probably thinking, “oh there she is!”, or “she finally got a break from the baby!”….yup, it’s been over two months..and yes, I do get a few breaks from our little critter, not too many though.

Here is an update:

1. Wyatt will be 5 months next week!!
He loves naps! and yes, he is a bit out of season!

2. I am back to work full time with some sort of workout routine (as if we expected anything other than that)

3. I am down 25 lbs. since Wyatt arrived (yep, that includes the baby; it makes me sound like a champ if I include the actual baby weight). 15 lbs to go!!

4. Herbie is being a great big brother!

5. I made baby food today for the first time using my Vitamix blender!! Finally, my mom-in-law’s investment is paying off! And I made the recipe below, in my Vitamix too!

So here I am, taking advantage of nap time, and whipping up something fun for the week. I used a recipe from the kids section of my Vitamix cookbook, as a base and added some key ingredients! Here is it, no pictures of each step this time…who has time for that!?

Peanut Butter and Jelly Swirled Protein Bread


1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 cup vanilla protein powder (yep, totally my idea to replace ½ the flour with this…surprised?)
1 tsp. kosher salt (love kosher salt)
1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. baking powder
1 ½ cups milk-I used vanilla soy milk
1 egg ( added this for fluffiness)
½ cup sugar
2/3 cup natural peanut butter (increased this from ½ cup for more flavor)
½ cup your favorite jam or jelly  (why not swirl in some jammy goodness)

 Preheat oven to 350F.Combine flour, protein powder, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Place milk, egg, sugar and peanut butter in a blender; process until smooth. Stir into flour mixture, until smooth. ( I actually added the flour mixture right into my blender, but this probably won’t work with a regular blender). Coat a standard loaf pan (or a larger one works too) with cooking spray. Pour1/2 of batter into pan and add dollops of jam over surface. Use a knife to swirl jam into batter. Repeat process again.

Place on a baking sheet (in case of spillage) and bake for about 50 minutes, until golden brown. Cool completely and cut into 14 slices.

Nutrition per 1/14th recipe: 210 calories, 8g total fat, 1.5g Sat Fat, 370mg Sodium, 26g Carbs, 2g Fiber, 15g Sugar, 11g Protein, Vitamin A 2%DV, Calcium 15%, Iron 6%