Clean Eating #116: Whole Wheat Veggie Burger Sesame Seed Buns

Whole Wheat Veggie Burger Sesame Seed Buns

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water

3 Tbsp Skim Milk

2 TBsp Molasses

2 1/4 teaspoons Active Dry Yeast

2 egg whites, beaten

1 to 1 1/2 cup Unbleached flour

2 1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour

4 tsp salt

2 Tbsp melted coconut oil or EVOO

Topping:

Eggwash (1 egg & 1 Tbsp water)

Seeds of choice, we used: Sesame seeds, chia seeds & flax.

Directions:

Mix all ingredients, leaving out 1 or 2 cups of flour for kneading.

When it is in a kneadable consistency (not too sticky/runny, but not dry), Spread reamining flour onto table or counter and knead the bread for at least 5 minutes.

Clean Eating #112: Cheesey Stuffed Vegetarian Pablano Peppers

Cheesey Stuffed Vegetarian Pablano Peppers

Ingredients:

4 Pablano Peppers

2 cups of prepared wild rice mixture (I seasoned mine with Mrs. Dash "Extra Spicy" seasoning)

Slices of Mozzarella Cheese

Salsa (I used my homemade salsa in the freezer)

Directions:

Split the Pepper down the middle.

Remove the seeds with a fork and dump them out.

Stuff half way with cooked rice mixture.

Top with a tablespoon or two of salsa

Add a slice of mozzarella Cheese & extra Salsa if you want.

If you have room, do the layers again.

Put in a pan and bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes depending on the size of your peppers.

The reaction?  Priceless

I wouldn't change a thing, and if you watched the video, you know exactly why!

Clean Eating #111: Whole Grain Ciabatta Bread

Whole Grain Ciabatta Bread

Our family LOVES Panera Bread.  Since becoming vegetarian around here, I made a lovely discovery... their Mozarella and Tomato grilled on Ciabatta bread.  DIVINE.  So, of course, since I can't afford to spend $6.99 on a sandwich more than once, I decided to try to find a substitute for at home.  I made the sandwich on our normal bread... and that was SO close... but because the bread is SO important, it was really NOT it.  I had to find "the" bread.

This is my first try, with this recipe, slightly altered to 'clean' it up a little, since I can't use refined flour and stay within my eat clean parameters.  Unbeknownst to me, this bread isn't mean for last minute impulsive people, which is why I cooked four recipes yesterday... after I discovered that I had to let my bread 'starter' sit for 24 hours after starting the recipe.

It might do me good at some point in my life to start making plans rather than just flying by the seat of my pants.  Lol.  Yeah, that's going to happen.  And with frequency, too.  I will also be learning to fly in the near future.  You know, with my invisible wings.  Not really, don't worry, that was just my sarcasm.  Perhaps another personality trait I shouldn't exercise quite so much.

So, The day BEFORE you want bread, make your "sponge" or starter.
Sponge/Starter Recipe:

First, mix these:
1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
4 tablespoons warm water


Let that sit for about 5 minutes.  Then ADD:
2/3 cup warm water
2 cup Unbleached flour


Cover with Saran Wrap (Or a leftover plastic produce bag if you're out of plastic wrap) and let sit for 24 hours or so.

Ciabatta Bread Recipe:

Source: This recipe originated in Gourmet Magazine 

Ingredients:

• Sponge/Starter from above
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 4 tablespoons warm water
• 2 tsp Ideal Xylitol
• 1 1/3 cup warm water
• 4 tablespoons melted coconut oil
• 3 cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 cup Unbleached flour
• 3 teaspoons salt
• Wholewheat flour for dusting

Mix the ingredients together, then place on the table for kneading.  Knead for at least 5 minutes (OR go read the directions for the original recipe, because I just did this like my normal kneading bread recipes)

When you're finished kneading, place in a bowl and cover.

Wait until it doubles or triples in size

Then Form it into 4 loaves like so:  

Bake at 375-400 (My oven is a little hot, so I use the lower temp.) for about 20 minutes until lightly browned.

I use a pizza stone and include a pan of water to help the crust get nice and crisp.

Viola!!  Use this for your Panera Style Grilled Tomato Mozzarella Sandwich.

Verdict?  My husband had another meltdown when he tasted this.  I wasn't video taping until he had the sandwich, though... although he STILL flipped out:)

Clean Eating #77: Easy Mexican Rice & a Cooking Class

Easy Mexican Rice & a Cooking Class

Do you love Mexican food?  Does you family love enchiladas so much that they'll eat you out of house and home in seconds?  Mine does!  This time I was smart, though, and made the side dish so it would be done BEFORE the Enchiladas:)  That way we actually had leftovers at the end of the meal.  I'm so clever.

Mexican Rice is SUPER easy... but it takes a long LONG time.  At least it did for me, using whole grain, brown rice.

Ingredients *Remember, I was making a LOT so I could send some home with each of the families, I would probably only make 1/4th of this if it were just my family)
1 bag brown rice
1 Quart bag of Salsa (I used our frozen homemade salsa)
1 small bag of frozen corn
1 quart sized bag of black beans (I used some frozen that I made last time I did a big dried bean cooking day)
handful of chopped & cooked jalapenos
1 carton/quart of vegetable or chicken broth
1 quart of water (at least, I just add water as it cooks down as needed)

Directions:
Add rice to the water and broth, bring to a boil over medium heat.
Add salsa, beans and corn, stir and cover, turn heat down to med-low and simmer.
Stir occasionally, add more water if needed.
Simmer on med-low for at least an hour until tender.

This is the meal that we had for dinner... the cooking students took home the rice and enchiladas, but I forgot to send the beans home... oops!

Cooking Class!

I also had a cooking "class" yesterday.  I teach a nutrition & fitness class for our homeschool group's co-op.  I had 7 students over yesterday to learn how to make Chicken Enchiladas with homemade sauce.  Everyone brought enough ingredients so they could take home a pan of enchiladas for their family.  I also sent home Mexican Rice for everyone as well.

It went SO fast.  We had four pans of enchiladas with homemade sauce done and out the door in an HOUR!  I was impressed.  Those kids were fast!  We had the Tomatillos and various peppers chopped, diced and ready to puree really fast.  I had two girls chopping the tomatillos, another dicing up peppers (with gloves on), a couple chopping up garlic, one chopping spinach... then while the sauce was bubbling, we had girls dicing up chicken breasts and someone else chopping Cilantro.  It made for a fun, fast dinner and everyone went home with a full meal.

I'm thinking this might work as a business idea, if I could figure out how to price things.  I would definitely need to take all the ingredients with me though, as I learned yesterday, not everyone recognizes some of the less common ingredients I tend to use.  What do you think?  Good idea?  Would you or your kids enjoy a cooking class that resulted in a home cooked meal at the end of an hour or two?  (We were in a big rush because of some of the kids having tennis afterwards, so we had to make it quick.  I'd prefer to draw it out a little and actually get a little more instruction in there... and make it 'fun' as well).

Thoughts?

Clean Eating #74: Carrot Cake Muffins with Yogurt Cheese Icing

Carrot Cake Muffins with Yogurt Cheese Icing

Ingredients

(Note:  my son Jaedin made these, and he's not half as concerned with seeing messes during the process.  He did clean up afterwards, though.)

7 cups whole wheat flour 2 tablespoons and 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 3 tablespoons baking soda 1 tablespoon and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 2 teaspoons sea salt 15 eggs 2 1/2 cups agave nectar 2 1/2 cups xylitol 2 cups coconut oil

2 cups ground flax seed 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 12 cups grated carrot

	Grease and flour the bottoms  of 60 muffin cups, or mini loaf pans. Mix together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt; set aside.
	In a separate bowl, mix the eggs,xylitol,and agave nectar. Stir in the coconut oil, vanilla, flax seed and grated carrot; blend into the flour mixture.
	Bake in preheated oven at 350 until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 15 to 25 minutes. Remove to cool on wire racks.

You can find the recipe for yogurt cheese icing here Yogurt Cheese

And then... he went fishing.  For two hours.  It was more fun than baking.  So was my fitness date with my hubby on the biking trails along that same river!

Clean Eating #59: Chicken Enchiladas and Black Bean Vegetarian Enchiladas

Vegetarian Black Bean & Cheese Enchiladas

And

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas with Green Enchilada Sauce

Vegetarian Ingredients:

• Whole Wheat Tortillas
• Green Enchilada Sauce
• FILLING
• 1-2 cups Black Beans, prepared
• 1 pkg chopped Neufachtel Cheese
• 1 cup frozen or fresh baby leaf spinach
• 1/4th cup loose fresh chopped cilantro
  

  TOPPING
• Green Enchilada Sauce
• Mexican Blend Shredded (lower fat) cheeses

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

• Whole Wheat Tortillas
• Green Enchilada Sauce
• FILLING
• 1 pkg, chopped Neufachtel Cheese
• 3-4 Cups Cooked chicken breasts
• 1 cup frozen or fresh baby leaf spinach
• 1/4th cup loose fresh chopped cilantro
• TOPPING
• Green Enchilada Sauce
• Mexican Blend Shredded (lower fat) cheeses

Directions:

• Mix filling together in a pan or bowl and heat justunti easy to mix.

• Holding a tortilla in your hand, fill with warmed filling

• Wrap torillas with filling and place in baking dish covered with thin layer of enchilada sauce.
• When finished, top enchiladas with enough sauce just to cover. 
• Cover with foil and bake at 350 about 15-20 minutes until filling is bubbling.
• Remove foil, top with Mexican Shredded Cheese and return to oven until cheese is melted and slightly brown.
• Serve with Mexican Brown rice and corn.

What I'd Do Differently Next Time:  Make at least 4 times as much.  I'm not joking.  These were gone in one meal... and gone before I even had the chance to start on any side dishes.  It was as if a school of pirhanas swooped down upon my kitchen and cleared the place out.  I was barely able to save some for my hubby.  All I did was ask them to try it out and see if it was worth making more.  I made one huge pan and these three small dishes.  One meal later... all I had left was dirty dishes.

I had planned on a nice family dinner, but my hubby had to work later than expected.  I had also planned on making some Mexican Rice to help spread out the enchiladas, but no such luck.  That's what I get!  I thought that perhaps the homemade tortillas wouldn't go over well, but most everyone (who knew they were homemade) commented about how good they were.  I'll definitely be using that recipe again and again!  They were fantastic!

Clean Eating #57: Whole Wheat Tortillas

Whole What "Clean" Tortillas

Recipe from what may be my favorite site ever now that I've tried these DELICIOUS tortillas.  These ladies are awesome:)  Passionate Homemaking knows their stuff!  There is so much information on this blog, I could get lost for a long, long time.  Stop by and read up on natural eating, health and a wealth of topics.

Regardless of whether or not you try this recipe, you should really go read this article about the health benefits of soaking your grains.  I learned a lot that I'd always vaguely heard about, but not actually researched.  Go look!

3 cups whole wheat *See here for the other recommended options!

1 cup warm filtered water


1 Tbsp acid medium (I used apple cider vinegar)  *See here for the other recommended options!


1/4 cup coconut oil or butter, melted


1/4 tsp. baking powder


1 tsp. salt






Directions:



1.Combine flour, water, melted coconut oil or butter and 1 Tbsp of acid medium. Cover and allow to soak at room temperature for 12-24 hours.


2.After soaking, add baking powder and salt to soaked flour mixture, kneading in the flour until the dough is workable but not too stiff.


3.Shape into 8 – 10 balls and let stand 10 more minutes.


4.Roll to form a 10 inch circle or use a tortilla press.


5.Bake on a lightly greased griddle till done (not browned). Toast for about 20-30 sec. per side.


Yield: 8-10 tortillas.

I didn't bother to form into balls, I don't mind square tortillas:)  They would work wonderfully for sandwich wraps and pinwheel sandwiches this way!

My girls, of course immediately made pinwheel sandwiches for a tea party:)  Or rather "Prom"

What I'd Do Differently Nex Time:  I will definitely be making these again and again and again.  I will experiment with using different seasonings, spinach for wraps, marinara versions for wraps.  We LOVE sandwich wraps, and I love the 'less carbs' of a wrap... Thanks so much to PASSIONATE HOMEMAKING for such a wonderful recipe!

Clean Eating #52: Cassie Schwartz "Breakfast of Champions!" Oatmeal Pancakes

Oatmeal Pancakes

My kids ate theirs with dark agave nectar as 'syrup' & yogurt cheese

One of my fellow fitness instructors offered to share her easy, portable recipe with me for the blog.  I know I have a lot of reader's who are busy like me, so I wanted to share!

"The Healthiest Breakfast in the World for busy fitness instructors on the go (not bad for the kids, either!)" ~ Cassie Schwartz.

And to prove that she knows what she's talking about, here is a photo of her!

Oatmeal Pancakes

• 1/2 C raw oats
• 1/3 C oat bran
• 2 TBS ground flax
• 2 eggs, 2 egg whites
• 1 C water
• fistful of cranberry/nut health mix
• extra raisins
• cinnamon

Put in bowl, mix, let sit and thicken about 15 minutes.  Use like you would 'normal' pancake batter.  *I puree mine in the blender because the wet ingredients weren't completely soaking up the dry ingredients or something, but even just lightly blended, it was perfect.

Makes 4 pancakes- two for today, two for tomorrow

I made this up because I needed a mobile breakfast that would enable me to eat according to hunger, not a clock!

Thanks Cassie!  I love this recipe!

My Way... I had to alter them a bit, because I only had a little bit of almonds, and no cranberries... not nut health mix at all... but I REALLY wanted to try these.  I doubled the recipe, added a little extra oats to make up for the lack of other ingredients and used what I did have on hand and also made a 'kid' version for my kids.

Unfortunately, they will not be useful for me tomorrow because they kids ate them all.  That's the problem with making things around here, people keep eating all the food.  They were REALLY really good, though!  Next time I will mix up a LOT more and freeze some of the pancakes for me:)

Kid's Oatmeal Pancakes

• 1 1/2 C raw oats
• 3/4 C oat bran
• 4 TBS ground flax
• 4 eggs, 4 egg whites
• 2 C water
• 1 1/2 cup frozen bluberries
• 1/2 cup chopped almonds
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1/2 cup chia seeds
• 1 tsp vanilla
• cinnamon

I soaked it for twenty minutes, then pureed the 'batter' in my blender.  Pour pancakes on a hot, oiled pan.  Cook until the edges are dry and the middle starts to bubble, then flip over.  

I sprinkled a little Xylitol Confectioner's Substitute for a photo because its pretty:)  The yogurt cheese was a big hit!

What I'd do differently next time?  Nothing, really.  I liked the extra texture and protein of the quinoa and nutritional benefits of the chia seeds.  And they tasted WONDERFULLY divine:)

The kids ate theirs with yogurt cheese and a drizzle of Dark Agave Nectar

Clean Eating #36: Bagels! Everything Bagels! Whole Wheat Bagels! Healthy Bagels!

Bagels, Bagels, Bagels!

Do you cringe every time you have to pay a fortune for decent bagels?  Especially when you know your kids are going to INHALE them the minute you get home?

You can use your regular bread dough to make bagels, or use this one I posted a while ago (Add about another 1/2 a much of Vital Wheat Gluten to this recipe to make them fluffier)  Or the "Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day" 100% Whole Wheat Bread Recipe... or just clean bread dough you already buy.

Now I can add bagels to my "Bread Variations" recipe post.  I can not believe I forgot about making bagels!

First, pinch off a piece of your refrigerated dough about the size of a small orange.
Quickly "roll" between your hands to form a tube
Press ends of your 'tube' together to form the bagel shape.
Set loosely covered for at least 20 minutes to rise.
Turn oven on to 375 degrees with pizza stone on the middle shelf.
Set a pan of water on the stove with a pinch of sea salt to boil.
When the bagels have risen, carefully use a spatula to transfer the bagels, one at a time, into the boiling water.
Boil for about 2 minutes on one side, then flip to boil the other side for about a minute.

I am never very precise on this part because I can't keep track of several things at once.  About 3-4 minutes is how long mine tend to boil!

After they are done boiling, use a slotted spoon to transfer to a clean towel, flip so the towel absorbs the excess water.
Place directly on the pizza stone & ADD ONE CUP OF WATER to a shallow pan on the shelf below your pizza stone.
Bake for 20-25 minutes.
Let cool... then slice and enjoy!

I made a few tiny baguettes as well to experiment and it was SO good.  Crisp outer crust with soft middle

Here is the bread we used from Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day.  We'll now be able to pull some dough out each day for healthy "everything" bagels or pitas... or just bread!

Bread Ingredients & Directions:
7 Cups of Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1 1/2 Tbsp Yeast
1/4th cup Vital Wheat Gluten (don't try to make 100% Whole Wheat bread without this!  It helps it rise)

Mix Dry Ingredients and desired seasonings well, then add:
3 1/4ths cups of warm water.

Mix well (no kneading), then leave lightly covered for at least 2 hours or until your dough doubles in size.
Then place bread in your refrigerator tightly covered and its ready to use.
The flavor and texture of the bread seems to get better with time.  I would leave it in the fridge for at least 12 hours before trying to use it.

Variations
Add cinnamon & dried fruit & nuts for fruity bagels
Shredded Apples & Pecans
Dried Cranberries & Almonds
Blueberries & Walnuts
Cinnamon Raisin

Everything Bagels:  My guys' Favorite!
For the "Everything" Bagels Seasonings, we added

Seasonings:
1 1/2 Tbsp Garlic Pepper Blend
1/2 tbsp Crushed Red Pepper
2 Tbsp Chives
2 tsp Celery Salt
1/2 Tbsp Sea Salt
3 Small Spanish Onions, diced
1 Red onion, diced

When they are ready to bake, you can brush with egg whites and sprinkle with sesame seeds, flax & chia seeds for extra texture!

I sauteed the onions for just a few minutes in a tiny bit of coconut oil before blending them with the EVOO.  I wasn't sure how having chunks of onions would work with trying to form the dough.  Patrick wasn't thrilled that I took away his 'chunky' stuff:)

Bread:  Dry Ingredients (mix WELL with a spoon before adding oil and water)

And by "we added"... I of course meant, my hubby added.  Hey, he's home from work today anyway, and I know he'll be the one to eat most of the bagels anyway:)

What I'd Do Differently:  Um, nothing.  These were DELICIOUS.  As soon as I get to the store, I will be making a lot of varieties of these! Oh, wait!  I would DEFINITELY remember to get my hubby's reaction on video.  He's so funny.  I know, I think I've said that before, but I keep forgetting.


There you go!  Snow Day #1 for this years big Tulsa Blizzard!!  Tomorrow I'll bake some of this and make some sort of meal to go with it.  I'm also going to make homemade tortillas:)