Apple-Picking & Apple Burritos!

Now that September is coming to an end, I can FINALLY fully embrace fall.

I snickered when Shipyard Pumpkin was out before my pool closed. I groaned in disgust when all things Halloween and autumn started popping in local stores.

But now’s the right time. The weather is fully cooling off, I’ve bought myself some fabulous new boots, broken out the sweaters and of course, gone pumpkin and apple-picking.

Apple-picking is somewhat of a tradition (OK, it’s only our second year) among the girls at work and we returned to the orchards this past weekend. Arikka and I were ambitious with our apple recipes and we each brought home a whopping 12.2 pounds of apple, to which we paid a mere $15. It’s always a fun experience and picking the apples is just as fun as eating them.

One of my co-workers, Peter, actually came up with the idea for these apple burritos when he’d had one too many beers at Red Sox game. It turned out to be brilliant though and these burritos are perfect for breakfast or dessert. How awesome is it when a drunk idea actually turns out to be a sober success?!

4 whole wheat tortilla/burrito wraps

2 apples of your choice, peeled and sliced

1/3 cup raw sugar

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tbsp water

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp sea salt

• In a saucepan, cook apples in orange juice, lemon juice, sugar and sea salt over medium heat for 2 minutes
• Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook, partially covered for 5 more minutes
• Add cinnamon and nutmeg and cook on medium heat for a few more minutes, stirring continuously
• Add cornstarch and water and pecans and stir together for another minute, so that most of the liquids are gone and the mixture is sticky
• Remove from heat, add maple syrup and pecans and stir until combined
• Wrap up into burritos and serve!

(cool tree at the orchards at Tougas Farm)

 

 

Watermelon Mint Popsicles

So as the pumpkin, gourds and butternut squashes invade my Whole Foods, I am clinging onto summer recipes for dear life. The days of asparagus, fresh garden tomatoes and stalks of basil are long behind us, BUT watermelon, honeydews and large melons seem to still be lingering. I don’t really love the sometimes grainy texture of watermelon, but I absolutely love the flavor. These popsicles are great because you get the sweetness of the melon, but with a better-tasting texture (in my opinion at least). The mint gives it a different fresh, kick and I’d love to try them with fresh basil too. The flavor combinations seem odd, but they actually pair together really well.

And to put a grown-up twist on these I threw them in the blender after frozen and mixed with some tequila and triple sec and made a delectable cocktail. If a mojito had a baby with a watermelon margarita THIS would be its lovechild. A tasty little love child 🙂

3 cups chopped watermelon

1 cup fresh mint leaves

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup raw organic sugar

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

• Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until it makes a chunky liquid
• Pour into popsicle molds and freeze for at least 1 hour

 

 

Raisin Walnut Carrot Cake Muffins

These muffins left me absolutely speechless. They are super sweet although they’re void of much sugar. They’re extremely fluffy and almost melt in your mouth as you eat them. And the raisins and walnuts add great texture elements. I love, love LOVE these little muffins. And so did Jim and EVERYONE at work. I so enjoy hearing people tell me how much they like the treats I bring into the office and these guys got rave reviews. Friday got alot sweeter with these awesome carrot cake muffins.

2 cups organic flour of your choice

2 cups finely shredded carrots

1 cup coconut milk

1 ripe banana, mashed

1/2 cup organic olive oil

1/2 cup organic raisins

1/2 cup raw organic walnuts

1/4 cup raw honey

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup raw organic sugar

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Whisk together flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt
• Mix together coconut milk, banana, honey, oil and maple syrup until well blended
• Fold dry mix into wet mix and stir until combined
• Add in carrots, raisins and walnuts
• Pour into greased muffins tins and bake at 350 degrees for 20-23 minutes

 

Apple Oatmeal Muffins

2 cups organic all-purpose flour

2 cups organic rolled oats

3 apples, peeled and chopped

1 cup organic applesauce

1 cup almond milk

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup organic raw sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Whisk together flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt
• Stir in almond milk, applesauce and oil
• Fold in apples and stir until well mixed
• Pour into muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes

Homemade Peanut Butter

I don’t know about you, but we are finding it IMPOSSIBLE to find organic peanut butter these days. Not at Whole Foods, not at Trader Joe’s, not anywhere. I did find one brand at Hannafords’s but it was a whopping 7 bucks a jar and that just seems crazy to spend on smushed peanuts. It’s been equally difficult to find organic, raw peanuts, or ones that haven’t been smeared in salt or fake honey. But considering I’ve been obsessed with our Peanut Butter & Jelly Popsicles and have been anxious to make these Thai peanut wraps (stayed tuned for the recipe tomorrow), I knew that I needed to find some organic peanut butter-and fast.

I finally decided upon some organic, slightly roasted peanuts and wanted to make my nut butter from scratch. And I’m so glad I did, because per usual, the homemade version is far superior to the store-brand and is a cinch to make. You can adjust the  saltiness and sweetness to your liking, but the ratios I used are a pretty good base in my opinion. This yields a little more than a cup and a half of peanut butter, but it’s fairly heavy and a little goes a long way.

2 cups organic, roasted peanuts

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tbsp raw organic sugar

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp raw honey

• Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until creamy, at least 2 minutes
• Serve or store jarred, in the fridge for up to 2 weeks

Peanut Butter & Jelly Popsicles

I refuse to let the summer go.

It seems like just yesterday I was anticipating the farmer’s markets, asparagus season and lots of salads to get ready for the warm weather.

Now? I see sweet potatoes, butternut squash and lots of apples in my near future.

The fall season is quickly approaching and although I DON’T want to accept it, I have to come to terms with it…eventually. For now though, I’m holding onto the summer season for dear life. That being said, I have been on an absolute popsicle kick. Instead of shaping my grocery list around breakfast, lunch and dinner, it’s been revolving around what mixtures I can throw into a frozen treat.

I got Jim some popsicle molds for our anniversary back in June and have only used them once. When temps started plummeting into the mid 50’s this week during the night (gasp!) I knew I need to start making more popsicles before the weather really started getting cold. But after making these yummy, easy, SUPER creamy sticks, I now have no doubts that I’ll be popping them in the freezer even when there’s snow on the ground. I’ve been freezing a lot of fruits this summer to save them up for the winter, and although I was originally saving them for smoothies, now they’ll be put towards any type of popsicle I can imagine!

FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER LAYER

2 frozen bananas, broken into pieces

1/3 cup organic peanut butter

1/4 cup cashew butter (optional-make your own quick by blending 1 cup cashews with 1/4 cup raw honey)

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 tsp pure vanilla

FOR THE JELLY LAYER

1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries,

1 tsp coconut oil

• Pulse all peanut butter layer ingredients in a food processor until creamy
• Pour mix into 6 popsicle molds, about halfway up
• Blend all jelly ingredients in a blender until pureed, and then pour ontop of the peanut butter layers
• Freeze for an hour, then enjoy!

Baba Ganoush

Seriously, who came up with the name for this scrumptious dip? It’s fun to say, but I don’t understand how eggplant plus chickpeas equals baba ganoush. Either way, I can’t believe I’d never even tasted it before. Rachael, our former Vegetarian Pact contributor calls her adorable dog Baba Ganoush, but that stemmed from her love for “Wedding Crashers” and their use of the nickname in the movie. I asked her if she’d ever made it since I still like sharing recipes with her and even she hadn’t tested it out.

I usually struggle with what to do with eggplant so this dip is a nice way to put it to good use since it’s super cheap at the farm right now and it’s so healthy for you. I like it best a room temperature so it’s a nice, easy dish to bring to summer cookouts.

1 large eggplant, halved lengthwise

2 cup cooked chickpeas

1/3 cup fresh parsley, minced

1/4 cup olive oil

3 gloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp tahini (optional)

1 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Place eggplant halves, face up on a baking sheet and cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes
• Once cooked, peel skin off eggplant and put into food processor
• Add chickpeas, oil, garlic, tahini, salt, pepper and paprika and pulse until creamy
• Remove from processor and stir in parsley

Raw Sunflower Seed & Flax Crackers

If all raw food was this easy to make and this delicious, it would be A LOT easier for me to eat that type of diet. I love these, and they’re great with any soup, raw or cooked!

2 cups ground golden flaxseed

2 2/3 cups water

1 1/4 cups raw sunflower seeds

1/2 cup raw sesame seeds

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

1 tsp sea salt

• Mix all ingredients together
• Spread onto dehydrator sheets and dehydrate at 120 degrees for 1 hour
• Reduce temperature to 105 degrees and dehydrate for another 4 hours
• If you can, flip over and dehydrate for another 4 hours (you don’t HAVE to flip them but it will make for crispier crackers if you can)
• Remove from dehydrator and cut

 

Mountain of Deliciousness..Sweet & Salty Trail Mix

I don’t make alot of snacks very often. But I need to get in the habit, since I’m usually going in a million different directions throughout the day and don’t always have time to enjoy a full meal. This mix is crazy addictive and took less than 20 minutes to whip up from start to finish. It also costs next to nothing to make, which is also a perk of this yummy snack!

2 cups rolled oats

1 1/2 cup crushed pretzels

1/4 cup wheat germ

1/4 cup raw sugar

3 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp coconut oil

2 tsp shredded coconut

2 tsp cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees
• Mix together all ingreidnets until everything is well coated
• Spread onto baking sheet
• Bake for 15 minutes, turning half way though

Epic Kale Bagels!

There were many highlights to our vacation weekend in North Conway, New Hampshire. Canoeing, sleeping for 12 hours at a time, hiking some gorgeous waterfalls and flying down water slides were close to the top. I am mildly embarrassed to admit that my favorite part MAY have been when we stopped in a bookstore and I sat on the floor browsing vegan cookbooks I had never seen before. I came across “Hearty Vegan Meals for Monster Appetities” by Celine Steen and was blown away by almost every recipe. I legit squealed in the middle of the store when I saw the recipe they had for kale bagels though. I was in too much of an excited frenzy to actual document the recipe itself and I have no idea what it entailed. I did come home though and research regular bagel recipes and added kale to it. They’re fairly easy to make, and although mildly time-consuming, the bulk of it is waiting around for the yeast and dough to rise. They’re great for breakfast with some vegan butter OR as a sandwich base for a nice lunch.

4 cups whole wheat bread flour

3 cups chopped kale

2 cups warm water

1/4 cup chopped scallions

1 clove garlic, minced

1 package active dry yeast

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp sea salt

• Mix together flour and salt
• In a frying pan over medium heat, cook kale and garlic in olive oil for 5 minutes or until wilted
• Once cooked, pour into small bowl and stir in water and yeast- let stand for 10 minutes
• Pour kale mix into flour mix and stir together
• Knead for 7-10 minutes with additional flour if too wet
• Roll into ball and cover for 1 1/2 hours to rise
• After 1 1/2 hours divide dough into 8 pieces
• Roll each piece into a ball then wedge a hole through the middle about 1-2 inches wide
• Let sit, and bring a large pot of water to a boil
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Add bagels 4 at a time into the water and boil for 30-45 seconds on each side
• Place onto greased baking sheet when they come out of the water
• Bake bagels at 400 degrees for 20 minutes