Be My Valentine Paleo Rosemary Flatbread

Oh, Clean Eaters. It's that magical time of year again.

The one day in Febuary that causes all CVS and grocery stores around the world to shove brightly colored cards into shopper's faces. Heck, even Walmart falls victim, lining their deceptively addicting boxes of sweets oh-so cleverly in your realm of reach as you enter their doors. Yes, it's that holiday...

Valentines Day.


Image via google images

Now I don't know about you, but Valentines day has always been more of a depressing holiday to me than a happy one.

The only thing it does is cause rukus...

Single women looking in awe at all the presents their dating friends are getting (and those dating friends secretly wishing all that candy wasn't in their possesion!). Not to mention the stress it puts on couples! How many poor men have to rush and buy their darling a teddy bear each season, just because it's the madatory "thing to do?"

So this Febuary 14th, I say poo poo to all the processed sweets, all the heart shaped boxes, all the fluffy toys and roses.

And you know what I say YES to? I say hello, yes, PLEASE, to bread.

(However, if you are down for sweets, might I suggest these DELICIOUS looking Dark Chocolate Fig Brownies from Abby at Yes toYummy. Seriously, they look gooey enough to lick the computer screen..!)

Now that I am avoiding gluten, and grains and legumes that are not properly prepared, I have not been making the Whole Wheat bread that I was during summer.

Instead, I have been experiementing in some non grain based, "Paleo" type breads. I was wary at first because most are really bland, most flavor wise and nutritionally. However, I recently came across a recipe from The Saffron Girl that changed my mind...

Paleo Rosemary Flatbread
(I used a medium sized brownie pan)

4 eggs
1 TSP baking soda
3/4 cup coconut flour
1/3 cup ground flaxseed
2 TBSP coconut oil, melted
1/3 cup almond milk (more or less as needed)
1 twig fresh rosemary
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1) Preheat the oven to 400


2) Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. At first I thought I needed more dry ingredients, but I didn't! Keep mixing and it will all blend.



3) Spread the mixture (it should be thick and hold its shape, not runny) into a brownie pan. Mine was about 1/2 inch thick.

Bonus points if your bread is heart shaped.

4) Place in your oven and bake 15-20 minutes, checking at the 15 minute mark to see its progress. You know it is done when the top is firm and the edges are SLIGHTLY brown.

And there you have it ladies and gentlemen! I suggest storing it in the fridge... if it lasts that long./

I hope you have a happy, healthy Valentines day!!

What do you usually eat and do on Valentines day?
Have you tried Paleo bread before?

Natalie 

Just In Time For Halloween...Pumpkin Walnut Oatmeal Bread!

Like I mentioned in my last post, I LOVE Halloween. Maybe just because it's my birthday? Actually, I just love Fall!

All the colors, smells, and feelings associated with this time of the year here in Texas make me happy. I especially adore being able to walk into Bath and Body and pick out their latest Fall or Winter scent... Whew, that store certainly gets a large chunk of this household's income! There's nothing my mother and I love better than "good smelly stuff", as we call it. Going to Bath and Body and choosing a candle or two happens once or month or so... we also use their wallflowers.

Image via Google images 

Our favorite scents are currently Winter, for when it gets more chilly, and Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin for right now!

Speaking of pumpkin... guess what ingredient is perfectly used in today's recipe? I figured it was time to use the iconic squash, especially now that they're in season and it seems that the giant flavor of "Pumpkin!" is put on every type of food out there at the moment.

The great thing about this recipe, though, it that it is actually healthy! Plus it is easy and cheap to make, and creates a delicious scent while baking. Hey, why not hit two birds with one stone?

Thank you Kathy over at Happy Healthy Life for inspiration for the recipe! I basically fallowed her guide with just a few tweaks. I received her recipe via email alert when it was first posted a while ago and literally made it THAT DAY after school.

Pumpkin Walnut  Oatmeal Bread
Yields one 9x5inch loaf 

2 cups oat flour, made from regular oats grinded in a blender
1/4 cup crushed walnuts (or pecans) 
1TBSP baking powder
TSP cinnamon 
 1/4 TSP ginger powder 
 1/4 TSP nutmeg 
1/8 TSP cayenne 
1 cup almond milk, or other non dairy milk. 
3 TSP chia seeds, ground in blender OR 1 egg. (If you use the egg, use less milk.)
1/2 TBSP vanilla extract
1 (15oz)can unsweetened pumpkin puree
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted 
3/4 tsp apple cider vinegar 
1/3-1/2 cup raw local honey (adjust according to desired sweetness)
1/4 cup zest of orange or lemon, optional (the original recipe calls for this. I used it with and without, both turning out delicious!)

1) Preheat the oven to 415. In a blender, place your oats and grind until it forms a non-grainy powder. Do the same for the chia seeds, if using. 

2) Take your melted oil and combine it with the milk, vinegar, honey, and chia seeds OR egg.

3) Mix all your dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Add in your pumpkin puree and walnuts, and slowly stir in the liquid mixture. 

4) You should have a thick mix. Once there are no clumps and everything is smooth, pour into a 9x5 inch loaf pan greased with olive or coconut oil. 

5) Bake at 415 for 20 minutes, and then turn your heat down to about 375 for another 20-30. Just check with a toothpick to see how your loaf if doing.

And yum! This bread is great with peanut butter. I also would think that It might goes nice with some local butter or coconut oil, or even some jelly. Heck, even eat this thing alone! It is still good, and makes for a perfect breakfast, snack or dessert. 

What are you making to celebrate Halloween? 

Natalie 

WIAW #11

Hello guys and gals! Time for another dose of WIAW, featuring the Clean Eating Teen's food!

Im such a dork. 

Breakfast:

YUMMY!! Oh, words can not even describe how wonderful this tasted.

And apple and peanut butter with...Chocolate oatmeal made with 1/2 cup rolled oats, spoonful cocoa powder, 1 cup water, cinnamon, and honey. 

I usually refrain from all types of sugar except that found naturally in fruits, but after reading a blog post from Girl Meets Nourishment on Why Your Body Needs Salt and Sugar, I decided to try and in cooperate natural, local honey in my diet more often.

My honey is from my uncle. His neighbor gave to to him after he harvested it right in their town! My uncle only lives 45 minutes away, so that's about as local as you can get!

Lunch:

Healthy open faced sandwiches, with my homemade bread, some homemade hummus, turkey cutlet, avocado, and veggies.  With a side of carrots and peanut butter of course!

Dinner:

More lentil quinoa melody. I documented making this one, so a recipe is coming your way!

What have you been eating?

Natalie

Blame the BREAD! Recipe

I know that I haven't posted for the past two days, but I have a GOOD reason.
Blame. The. BREAD.

Some people blame the bread for their stomach issues, for their curvy booty, ext... however, I am blaming it for my lack of active blogging.

Allow me to explain.

Just as I am using my Holistic Meal Planning services as a way to raise funds for my fitness and health education, I also briefly sold homemade bread at my church for the same reasons, and had tons of orders to fill in time for Sunday! I passed them out today, and things went great. So now that I am not pounding flour about, I can use my hands to type up some posts!

I am still offering loafs for order, so if you are in my local area message me either here, from my email (natiann123@yahoo.com) or my Facebook page!

These loafs are SO easy to make. They are not going to turn out like what you are used to in the store... this bread is MUCH heartier and dense, and depending on how you form it, it will not yield slices as tall. However I actually prefer it this way... I went a LONG time not eating bread due to the fact that you can hardly buy any kind from the store without preservatives and added fake sugars. I then went on to find Ezekiel, which I adored for quite some time... but then I realized how easy (and CHEAP!) it is to make my own, so that's how I roll now ;)

Now on to the recipe!! Thank you, Elise from Hungry Hungry Hippie, for inspiration for this.

Hearty Whole Grain Bread 
Yields 2 medium loafs 

1 1/2 cup WARM water
2 TBSP active yeast (1 packet)
1-2 TBSP Coconut Oil
4 1/2 cups 100% whole wheat flour
1 TSP dry rosemary *
1 TSP dry basil *
Other desired dry herbs *
Salt to taste (optional)

*I used fresh herbs from my garden, and it turned out fine. I just am assuming most people have access to dry herbs rather than fresh.

1) Combine the warm water, yeast, and oil. Wait a few minutes and let the yeast 'froth', or get foamy.
2) Add the flour and knead your heart out! Because I had so many orders from church, my hands are raw from this... The flour and water should form a pliable dough. Make sure no flour is left, and it all is mixed well!
3) In a bowl greased with olive or coconut oil, place your ball of dough and cover. Let this rise for TWO hours in a WARM area.
4) After this first rising, the dough should have about doubled in size. Knead it down again, this time adding in your herbs.
5) At this point, you can either cover the dough and let it rise the second time for an hour, or you can cover and leave in the fridge to rise over night.
6) After the second rising, break the dough into two and form into "loaf" shapes (or whatever shape floats your boat... maybe next time I could try a heart or something neat?)
7) Bake in the oven at 450 for about 20 minutes, or until the top has developed a slightly hard crust/shell. You could poke it open a bit just to make sure it is done!
NOTE: I found that if anything, these loafs come out better under cooked than over. In other words, they probably need less time than you think! You definitely DON'T want stale balls of dough. I find that about 15-20 minutes is about perfect, leaving the center doughy and chewy.

 
So much bread I had to make. So much. 

I guess one of the REALLY GREAT effects of making 50+ loafs of bread in a matter of 48 hours is that your house smells flipping awesome. Downside though, having the oven on for so long in this Texas heat is a bit like self sabotage.

So there you have it folks... the reason my neighbors were probably salivating for a few days, why my hands are raw, and why I have made a mental note to thank the Lord for oven mitts instead of pot-holders (a burn or two will teach you quickly to cover your ENTIRE hand as it enters the mouth of the beast oven.) Oh, yeah! And also the reason why I've been MIA for two days.

Try this bread out! There is no way you can be disappointed. It can transform simple ingredients into sparklers in your mouth. Put honey on it as a treat, smear it in hummus, or...my favorite...

Make it into a sandwich with AVOCADO. Oh my yummy yes.

Do you enjoy bread? If so, what store brands do you use, or how do you make your own?
What do you eat your bread with?

Natalie