Real Milk is Raw Milk - Guest Post for Lilith's Apothecary

I had another great opportunity to write a guest post for the Lilith's Apothecary Blog. I chose the topic of raw milk this time. Not drinking conventional milk is something I feel very strongly about. Go on over and take a look!

Real Milk is Raw Milk

Enjoy!

Keep it real!

~Sarah

Tyler's “Healthy Junk Food” Carrot-Applesauce Muffins

Oh goodness! Has it really been two weeks since I posted last? Where has the time gone? I am posting an oldie but a goodie here today. These are my son's favorite muffins. In fact, I named them after him after creating this recipe specifically for him. It is a variation on a classic. He was craving something sweet but didn't want fruit at that moment so muffins it was! Chances are, your kids will love them too! I've been passing this recipe around for a few years to my friends, making them with my elementary cooking classes, and even had it published in the first Holistic Moms Network Cookbook. I would love for you all to have it! I am working on an even healthier "soaked" version of this recipe. I will post the results and method as soon as I get it perfected.


Tyler's “Healthy Junk Food” Carrot-Applesauce Muffins

Use organic ingredients whenever possible.

1 1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry or spelt flour (can substitute gluten-free flour)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup melted coconut oil, or melted butter.
3/4 cup evaporated cane juice sugar (or Rapadura)
2 large cage-free (preferably farm fresh) eggs
1/2 cup organic applesauce
1/2 teaspoon natural vanilla
1 1/2 cups finely shredded organic carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped organic walnuts (optional)

For Icing: Optional
1 pkg organic cream cheese
1 stick organic butter(unsalted)
1/2 tsp natural vanilla
1/2 tsp fresh, organic lemon zest(optional)
Honey, Sugar, or Stevia to taste


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or grease with coconut oil or butter.
Sift together the first 5 ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, sugar and eggs until well combined. Whisk in the applesauce, vanilla and carrots. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

(optional) Stir in 1/4 cup of the chopped walnuts.

Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Optional Icing:

With an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, sweetener, and lemon zest until smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts. The cupcakes should be stored in the refrigerator if iced.


Makes: 1 dozen full-size cupcakes.

Nutritional facts:

Coconut oil is the healthiest oil to cook with because it does not break down when heated. It is a healthy fat that is good for your body. Don't be afraid of healthy fats! Your body needs them! Rapadura sugar is an unprocessed, unrefined sugar that you can find at Whole Foods or Wegmans. Organic carrots are best because they do not have chemical nitrites in them from fertilizers. All ingredients used can be purchased at Whole Foods or Wegmans. Some ingredients can be found at Trader Joe's.

Enjoy and keep it real, especially for your kids!

~Sarah


Shared at Monday Mania

Valentine's Day Family Dinner

Yesterday was Valentine's Day and to celebrate the occasion I decorated and cooked up an organic, gourmet meal for my husband and family.

I went to Delish.com and found a few recipes that I liked for the entrée, Pepper-Crusted Filet Mignon, and the dessert, Romantic Molton Chocolate Cakes. I hit up allrecipes.com  for the Gourmet Mushroom Risotto, and myrecipes.com for the Raspberry Asparagus. I used all organic ingredients whenever possible in place of the conventional ingredients listed in the original recipes. I eat in season but made an exception for the holiday with the use of berries. 

The Main Course

The Molton Chocolate Cake

 It was divine!

No Valentine's Day is complete without chocolate covered strawberries. These are organic strawberries with organic chocolate.

Here is the recipe for the Molton Chocolate Cakes. I couldn't find it written, just the video (which is quite helpful) so I thought I would jot it down and make it easy on you. You will definitely want to make these!

Romantic Molton Chocolate Cakes

4 oz bittersweet chocolate

4 oz butter

2 egg yolks

2 whole eggs

4 oz sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

4 Tbs flour (I used whole wheat pastry)

Strawberries

Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Butter 4 or 5 4-6 oz ramekins

Melt Butter and chocolate in a saucepan on low heat. Do not let boil - just melt.

Turn off heat and in a bowl, mix the next 5 ingredients. Add the chocolate. Stir. Fold in flour. Pour into prepared ramekins and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and take a knife around the edges so that you can flip the over onto your plates. Dust with powdered sugar and arrange a sliced strawberry on top. Serve warm.

Yields 4 1/2 cakes. I needed 5 so I made 4 regular size and 1 half size for my youngest child.

These are delicious!

Enjoy!

Keep it Real!

~Sarah

Vegan and Organic Chocolate Banana Muffins

My friend, Stephanie over at the Green Earth, Green Home Blog recently shared a recipe for Vegan/Organic Chocolate Banana Muffins. This recipe was given to her by Cassie, the proprietor of the Pomegranate Cafe in Phoenix, AZ. If you are ever in Phoenix, be sure to stop in and say hello! I made these today and can I just say, these are the BEST muffins I have ever eaten in my life! My kids said the same thing as well as a dear friend who stopped by today. This recipe uses maple syrup, and coconut oil to create the moistest, most decadent banana muffin you will ever eat. 

Here is a link to the recipe for these must-bake muffins.

Chocolate Banana Muffins - Vegan and Organic

Enjoy!!!

Real Food Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I call it the "no pressure" holiday because it has all the perks of the food without all the commercialism of the modern Christmas. I love planning the meal, shopping for ingredients, and best of all, the preparation of the food! It’s all about the food and being eternally grateful for all that has been given to me.

My cooking has evolved over the years. Twelve years ago when I was first married, I was living in Germany and used the single soldiers in my husband's platoon as my culinary guinea pigs. They didn't seem to mind since they were far away from home and longing for a home cooked meal. Back then, I wasn't "organic" and just bought my ingredients conventionally from a grocery store. I still bought fresh ingredients and made everything from scratch. Over the years I have adapted the very same recipes that I used back then to organic and whole food ingredients.

When I lived in California, everything was fresh from the Farmer’s Market in my town that ran year-round. I could get fresh, organic green beans through December! I purchased my free-range, organic turkey from Whole Foods and my organic canned pumpkin from Trader Joe’s. We enjoyed many healthy, home-cooked, real food Thanksgiving dinners that way.

Since moving to New Jersey last year I have discovered local food co-ops. I have come to rely on these so heavily that I rarely have to step foot in a grocery store. I am able to get my organic, raw, grass-fed milk, organic butter, truly pastured eggs, grass-fed beef, chicken, pastured pork, kefir starter grains, raw honey, and many other real foods right from a local farm that delivers to a drop point right over the bridge from me in Philadelphia. My vegetables come from a local North Jersey CSA and I pick them up a few miles from my house at a drop point. We have thoroughly enjoyed fresh, local, in-season foods this year. The sad thing is that CSA’s here in the North East are not all year round and I am going to miss my farm fresh vegetables immensely!

Back to Thanksgiving! I was able to get a free-range, pastured, organic turkey this year from my farm co-op and am looking forward to preparing it. I wanted to share the recipe since it is a family favorite. I prepare a “Mustard-Rubbed Roast Turkey with Mushroom Gravy” recipe that I found in the November 1999 issue of Bon Appétit. I changed the recipe to all organic ingredients.

Another favorite is “Green Beans with Mustard and Thyme” from that same Bon Appétit issue. I do not like “Green Bean Casserole” at all so this is a fantastic alternative.

4 pounds green beans, trimmed

½ cup butter

3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons garlic salt

1/3 cup slivered almonds

Working in batches, cook green beans in a large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes per batch. Strain beans to a large bowl of ice water, cool completely. Drain well.

Melt ¼ cup butter in each of two heavy skillets(or just cook these in two batches in one skillet) over medium-high heat. Whisk one tablespoon thyme, 1 tablespoon mustard, and 1 tablespoon garlic salt into butter. Add half of the beans and toss until heated through, about four minutes. Season to taste with pepper. Transfer to a large bowl. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and remaining tablespoon of thyme.

For the past two years I have been making a mock Boston Market style sweet potato dish. All the ingredients in this dish are organic also. Toonie Moonie has a wonderful organic alternative to conventional marshmallow fluff that works splendidly in this recipe. You could always be adventurous and make you own. Real food is key! I really try not to compromise just because it’s a holiday. You can also replace the marshmallow completely with some pecans for a nice crunchy texture.

“Organic Boston Market-Style Sweet Potatoes”

6-8 Servings

6 cups mashed sweet potatoes (5 to 6 potatoes-see step #1)

3/4 cup dark brown sugar plus extra for sprinkling( I prefer to use organic evaporated cane sugar or Rapadura instead, for health reasons)

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2 cups mini marshmallows (preferably organic) or approx 1 cup Toonie Moonie Marshmallow Fluff

1. Rub a little olive on the skin of each sweet potato and bake them in a preheated 400 degree oven for 60 to 70 minutes or until they are tender. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, scrape out the insides and use an electric mixer on high speed to beat the potatoes until they are mashed and smooth.

2. Add 3/4 cup brown sugar, heavy cream, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt into the sweet potatoes and mix well with the beater until all the ingredients are incorporated. Pour this mixture into an 8x8 or 9x13-inch baking dish.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

4. Bake for about 30 minutes

5. Pour Marshmallows into potatoes, let melt slightly and swirl.

6. Sprinkle with a little brown sugar (or evaporated cane/Rapadura) and serve.

These are just a few of our favorites. I could go on and on. Just remember that real cream, butter, and raw milk are not unhealthy and should not be replaced with skim, ultra-processed milk or margarine. We try to eat like they did in traditional diets, way back in the day.

My cooking is still evolving. It probably always will. All I know is that cooking is one of my favorite things to do and I love the way real food tastes. If you take the time to prepare a fresh, out-of-the-box thanksgiving dinner, you will taste such a tremendous difference. You will never go back!

Keep It Real!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Love,

Sarah – The Real Food Outlaw Mama