Homemade Wheat Crackers

This wheat cracker is simple, inexpensive, and healthy!

Ingredients:
3 and 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour (preferably freshly milled)
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 - 1 and 1/4 cup water
Flaxseed and millet, to taste (optional)
Italian seasoning, to taste
Salt for sprinkling

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine flour, salt, flaxseed, millet and seasoning (if using).
3. Add oil and 1 cup of water and mix until blended. Add an additional 1/4 cup if needed.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough as thin as possible (no thicker than 1/8 inch).
5. Place dough on ungreased baking sheet, cutting excess from edges.
6. Mark squares with knife or pizza cutter, but don't cut through.
7. Prick each cracker with a fork.
8. Brush a light coat of olive oil on top and season with parmesan cheese, additional seasonings, and/or salt.
9. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until crisp and light brown.
10. When cool, separate crackers into squares.

Homemade Pretzels

Ingredients:
1 package active dry yeast or 2 ¼ tsp instant yeast
1/2 C. warm water
1 egg, separated
1/4 C. honey
1/4 C. or 4 T. of unsalted butter, softened
1 C. milk
1 t. salt
5 C. freshly milled flour (equivalent to 3 ¼ cups wheat)
2 T. coarse sea salt

Directions:
In mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add egg yolk, honey, butter, milk, and salt. Mix thoroughly. Add flour one cup at a time until blended. On floured surface, knead dough for 5 minutes. Place dough in greased bowl and cover with a damp paper towel for 1 hour to let rise. Roll out on floured surface using a rolling pin. Cut into one-inch strips with a pizza cutter and roll into ropes. Shape dough into pretzels (I made different sizes as you can see below).

Place on baking baking sheet. Brush pretzels with egg whites and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes. Serve with mustard or freeze for later enjoyment.

Greek Pizza

Last night, I made homemade pizza crust from my freshly milled flour! I used the crust for a Greek Pizza recipe I've made many times before. My husband, who has previously eaten the pizza served on store-bought whole wheat crust, even commented on the improved crust!

To make this pizza crust, you will use the basic bread recipe from my last post (with half the honey). Make sure to select the dough prompt on your bread machine. When the dough is finished, divide it in half. Roll out 1/2 of the dough on the pizza pan (using cornmeal for stickiness). Add your desired toppings (my recipe for Greek Pizza below) and let it rest for 10 minutes. Finally, bake at 400 degrees for 15ish minutes (oven times vary).

Next, bake the other 1/2 of the dough without toppings for 10-12 minutes. Freeze for later use (I'm told a clean trash bag works great for freezing the pizza crust).

Greek Pizza Recipe

Ingredients:
12 inch whole wheat pizza crust (or dough from instructions above)
2 1/2 cups whole fresh baby spinach leaves
8 ounces of cooked, chopped, seasoned chicken (I sautee chicken with salt, pepper, oregano and rosemary)
3/4 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup feta cheese crumbles
2 Tbs. chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients together and spread evenly on pizza crust/dough. Bake for 15ish minutes.

The Basics of Milling

After weeks of researching and gleaning insight from experienced millers (i.e. my sister and cousin), I have finally milled my own flour! It all started when my sister, Katie, heard a woman speak at her weekly bible study on the nutritional benefits of milling flour. After sharing the information with me, I was immediately hooked! I no longer felt okay about buying "whole wheat" breads at the local supermarket that offered little to no nutritional value. Here are the basics of what I've learned:

A whole grain is made up of 3 main layers.

1. Bran - the outer layer containing the roughage that helps move unwanted toxins and poisons through your digestive system. The bran also contains many vitamins, minerals, and proteins.

2. Germ - the health center of the grain, overflowing with vitamins B and E, as well as unsaturated fat and protein.

3. Endosperm - the starchy white center. Blah.

Now, whole grains comprise nearly 90% of all the vitamins, minerals, and protein your body will ever need! Unfortunately though, commercially milled products do NOT provide you these nutrients.

Why you ask? Once the whole grain is milled, the oils located in the bran and germ oxidize and turn rancid within just 3 days! So for commercial purposes, both the bran and germ—and all the nutrients contained therein—are stripped in order to allow product shelf life.

Yes, most of the bread you buy at the store is made up purely of endosperm! You’re basically eating gluten, starch, and sugar. For marketing purposes, you’ll see products claiming to be “enriched with vitamins and minerals!” Don’t be fooled. The fact that a product requires enriching is a warning sign on its own. Besides, most of the essential vitamins stripped are not able to be replaced through the enrichment process.

If you're like me, you may be thinking to yourself, "Who has time to mill their own flour??" But I can assure you that milling hasn't been nearly as time consuming as I originally imagined. Yes, it takes longer than picking up a loaf at your local grocery store, but the extra time is certainly worth the added benefits. Plus, if you have a bread machine, it does all the work - you just pour the ingredients straight into the machine and wait for your bread to be done!

If you are interested in milling your own bread, here's what you'll need to get started:

1. Mill - I have the Wondermill and love, love, love it! It's extremely simple to use and takes about 30 seconds - from start to finish -to mill a few cups of flour! Mine was a birthday gift bought off Amazon...you can also check out your local health food store.

2. Bread Maker - Although you don't have to have a bread maker to make your own bread, it cuts out a lot of time and effort needed to prep the bread for baking. Breadmakers can be expensive, so I recommend going on Craigslist and purchasing a gently used one for between $15 - $30.

3. Grain - I buy my grain in bulk (50 pound bags) because it's cheaper in the long run. Keep in mind, whole grains do not expire (only after the whole grain is milled does it have an expiration date). I found a vendor at my local farmer's market that sells bulk grains. Also check out local health food shops. You will probably need to request a bulk size order as most stores won't have 50 lb. bags hanging around. I store the grain in airtight paint containers in a closet. I have both Hard Red Wheat and Soft White Wheat which I usually combine in recipes.

Now you're ready to begin milling and baking bread! Remember, only mill enough flour for what your recipe calls for. Otherwise, it will be nutritionally depleted after 72 hours.

Here is a basic bread recipe to follow:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups hot water
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup honey (local honey is preferred because it helps in preventing allergies)
2 tsp salt
1 egg (optional)
2 Tbs. Lechitin (found at your local health food store)
1 tsp gluten (this makes the bread smooth)
4-4 1/2 cups freshly milled flour (equivalent to 3 cups of un-milled wheat berries)
1/2 cup ground flax (buy whole flaxseed and grind it in a food processor -- do not mill)
1 Tbs yeast

Directions:
Add all ingredients, except yeast, directly into your breadmaker in the order shown above. Make a little burrow in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the yeast. Follow the prompts on your bread machine for making wheat bread. Wha-la, you're done!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Balls

These are so easy and they make a delicious, healthy snack for a child (or in my case, a hubby). Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
3/4 cup nonfat dry milk
1 cup of chrunchy, natural peanut butter (ingredients should be only salt and peanuts)
3/4 cup honey
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 C. raisins
3 -4 tablespoons of ground flaxseed and millet (optional, but makes it super healthy!)

Directions:
Stir together oats, milk powder, flaxseed, and millet. Blend together peanut butter, honey, vanilla, and raisins. Stir mixtures together. Shape into small balls and store in refrigerator. Serve chilled.



Enjoy :)

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

Ingredients:
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 small can chopped jalapenos, with juice
1 small can corn, rinsed and drained
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
handful of chopped cilantro
garlic and salt, to taste
1 lime squeezed
3-4 tablespoons of salad vinegar

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve with Tostitos.

TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

Vegetarian Chili

My mom and I made vegetarian chili for dinner last week. I was skeptical of the whole soy-meat thing, but it turned out to be really good. You can't even tell it's not meat...I promise...even ask my step-dad, he still doesn't know :) But if you must, replace the vegetarian meat with ground turkey. Enjoy!

Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
½ medium onion, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. ground cumin
2 tbsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. salt
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 (4 oz.) cans chopped green chile peppers, drained
2 (12 oz.) pkg. frozen vegetarian burger meat crumbles, thawed
3 (28 oz.) cans whole tomatoes, crushed by hand
2 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. ground black pepper
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, drained
1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans, drained
1 (15 oz) can black beans, undrained
1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, undrained

Directions:
Heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Stir in onions and first 4 spices. Cook and stir until onions are tender. Mix in next 6 vegetable ingredients. When vegetables are heated through, mix in the vegetarian burger meat. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer for 5 minutes. Mix in the remaining ingredients, except the corn. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low, simmering for 45 minutes. Stir in corn and continue cooking for 5 minutes before serving.

TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 15 minutes

But for the grace of God, there go I...

Ok, so this is the history of the muffins...

After graduating from college, Mallory moved home from Alabama to begin the second leg of her college schooling...her Master's Degree. Since we live 30 miles or so north of Atlanta and there was a raging gas shortage going on, she decided to start taking mass transit - MARTA. Walking to and from the train station, Mallory would pass many homeless people. Having been blessed with a caring heart, an extra peanut butter and jelly sandwich was made and served with a bag of chips or whatever was abundant in our pantry. However, it didn't take long before there were more homeless people than a student can afford peanut butter for.

Then, one day, Terry happened. Terry was a regular recipient of whatever leftovers Mallory could find. He showed his appreciation by singing to her and chaperoning her on her walk to keep her safe (from the other homeless?). He also spoke to her heart about the plight of the homeless in downtown Atlanta.

Mallory shared, with me, her desire to make a difference. Together we decided that we can't solve world hunger, but we can make a contribution toward the betterment of mankind through something small...like a muffin. Who doesn't like a homemade muffin made with wholesome ingredients and lots of love?

To date, we've made a batch of fruity granola muffins with a little too much applesauce. One good thing about baking for the homeless - they love it all! Our second batch was a recipe from the Food Blogga (foodblogga.blogspot.com/). These were de-lish-ous! We followed that up with another of the Food Blogga's recipes for healthy scones. Only problem is we were getting a little too full of ourselves, as potential world class bakers, and forgot the sugar....and the vanilla. Still, we thought they were OK. We'll see what Terry thinks tomorrow.

Tonight, we made sugar free pumpkin muffins. All the recipes are below. Don't forget the sugar and vanilla!

Laura


Health Nut Muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tbsp. flaxseed
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup low fat buttermilk
3 tbsp. honey
1 cup light brown sugar
4 tbsp. smart balance butter substitute, melted
1 large egg
2 egg whites
¼ cup golden raisins
¼ cup coarsely chopped toasted walnuts
2 tbsp. sunflower seeds

Directions:
Place rack in center of oven. Preheat to 375 degrees. Grease 12 muffin pan. Combine flours, flaxseeds, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon in large bowl and stir well. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk, honey, sugar, smart balance, and eggs. Whisk well. Add to flour mixture and stir just until combined. Fold in raisins, walnuts, and half flower seeds. Spoon batter evenly into 12 muffin cups. Sprinkle remaining sunflower seeds on top. Bake 16 – 18 minutes or until tops are golden and cake tester comesout clean. Transfer to rack to cool.

TOTAL TIME: 35 minutes

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Heart Healthy Date, Fennel, and Pistachio Scones

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp Smart Balance, chilled (butter substitute)
1/4 cup non-fat cottage cheese
1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup fresh Medjool dates, coarsely chopped (about 10-12)
1 Tbsp fennel seeds, toasted
1/4 cup pistachios

Optional egg wash for top of scones: 1 egg, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place oven rack in the middle of the oven. To toast the fennel seeds, add to a dry skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, until aromatic. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk cottage cheese, buttermilk, and vanilla; set aside. In another bowl, mix dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add chilled butter (in small pieces), and mix with a pastry blender or fork, until a coarse meal forms with tiny pea-sized butter pieces. Mix in orange zest, dates, fennel seeds, and pistachios. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and, using a fork, mix until just combined. Do not over mix or the dough will become leaden.

Using a floured surface, shape the dough into a disk, about 1/2-inch thick. With a wet knife (to make slicing easier) cut the dough into 8 triangular shaped scones. Place scones on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet leaving about 2 inches between them.

If using, then brush egg wash over the tops of the scones before baking. Otherwise, place in oven.

Bake scones 15 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Once baked, transfer to a rack to cool.

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Sugar-Free Pumpkin Muffins

1 and 3/4 cups of whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 eggs, lightly beaten ( or 4 egg whites)
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup apple sauce
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup water
3/4 cup raisins (or coconut, seeds, nuts)

Mix wet and dry ingredients separately, then mix together until combined. Bake in muffin cups at 350 for 20-25 minutes.