DIY Adventure

The other day, I made my own chocolate syrup. I found a great recipe on Pinterest (and by found, I mean I stole repinned the recipe from my friend, Henna). The finished product tasted so much better than store bought syrup and it really could not have been easier. My husband LOVED it, I LOVED it. It was a win. Riding the wave of my DIY victory, I pushed forward to tackle another recipe idea from Pinterest: Honey Roasted Peanut Butter.

One of my favorite things to do at Whole Foods is hit up the peanut butter grinding machines for freshly ground honey roasted peanut butter. It seriously may be one of the most delicious things on this planet. My only problem is Whole Foods is not located all that close to our house, so I don't get there very often. This recipe I found seemed to solve my pesky little problem by bringing the delicious directly to our kitchen. I roasted the peanuts in the oven, threw them into my trusty food processor with some honey, pressed the "on" button and waited for the magic to happen as the recipe promised. In a few minutes, these little peanuts would transform into peanut butter.

It didn't matter that I had to wear ear plugs because my beloved Cuisinart is so loud and high pitched it could cause early hearing loss. My excitement could barely be contained! I was told to expect the process to take a few minutes and one thing I have is patience. Patience did no good. The magic did NOT happen. The peanuts grinded to a paste and remained a paste. Eventually I added some oil to the mix to help the texture and the paste did turn into a more liquid, edible version of itself. While it is pretty tasty, it does not reach my peanut butter standards. My DIY peanut butter was a failure. I will NOT be attempting this again. Lesson learned: purchasing my peanut butter is the way to go.

How fortunate for me that a few days later, a delivery arrived with THIS:

Heavenly!

THIS is giving my favorite freshly ground honey roasted peanut butter some serious competition! I heard about Wild Squirrel Nut Butter and I knew I had to try it. Wild Squirrel Nut Butter is an Oregon based company created by two creative young ladies. They started making peanut butter while they were roommates at the University of Oregon and they have turned their snack session into a successful business. I really enjoy that.  

I ordered a variety pack to sample four of their five flavors from OpenSky.* Honey Pretzel is the first to be opened. I love to dip pretzels in peanut butter as a snack. This peanut butter does all of the work for me. You don't even need to put it on anything, just eat it directly off of the spoon! Wild Squirrel Nut Butter is definitely a company to check out. They have a variety pack with all 5 of their flavors on their web site or you can check out the deal I got below. When you open the box, be prepared to feel like a kid in a candy shop!

*OpenSky is a shopping site that offers deals on a variety of products including food, clothing and beauty products.  Curators (some celebrity, some not) offer these deals after they have tried a product and and given it a positive review.  I have placed a few orders through the site because their gift sets were discounted from the full price of the products.  I like really like it and they have terrific customer service.  (Easy returns and when an order was going to be shipped later than expected, they automatically gave me a merchandise credit to apologize.)  If you would like to check it out, they give you free shipping and $10 toward your first purchase.  Pretty sweet deal.  Why not use that credit to get your own variety pack?  Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some peanut butter to eat!

Summertime And The Living is Delicious!

Yum! There is nothing better than fresh produce.

Summer is in full swing and that means we are all enjoying more fresh fruit and vegetables in our lives (most likely).  It also means CSA season has started. CSA stands for "community supported agriculture" and it has recently become one of my favorite things.  To participate, one pays for a share of the harvest from a local farm. My husband and I joined a CSA three summers ago at an organic farm about half an hour from our home. It was truly a life changing experience for us. It has really made us more mindful of what we eat and how our food is grown.  We love to see the new vegetables that Phil (our farmer) has prepared for us each week. (Yes, we ARE on a first name basis with our farmer, are you?)  

I have learned through practice that organic produce really does make a difference.  Organic produce is better for us not because it contains more nutrients, but because it does NOT contain the added chemicals of pesticides and it is kinder to the soil.  If you are able, buying local, organic produce is preferable. It supports local agriculture and business and the produce gets to your table faster.  The nutrients in produce are diminishing from the moment they are harvested, so a quick trip to your home means more nutrients in your meals.

Now, I know that going all organic can be extremely expensive and quite frankly, changing the way you eat isn't a change that happens all at once.  It is a process that occurs by making one or two small changes at a time.  If you are interested in buying more organic foods, but you also don't want to break the bank, here are some foods to start you out.  The following 12 fruits or vegetables are items that we should all buy organic as they absorb the highest amounts of pesticide when conventionally grown.  These results were collected by the EWG, an advocacy nonprofit organization.

"The Dirty Dozen"
1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries  (this one in particular kills me because organic strawberries are hard to come by)
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Grapes (imported)
7. Sweet Bell Peppers
8. Potatoes
9. Blueberries (domestic)*
10. Nectarines (imported)
11. Lettuce
12. Kale/collard greens

Fear not, there is some good news if I just listed many of your favorites and you are seeing your entire food budget disappear before your eyes.  If you make the commitment to spend the extra money on the organic items listed above, you can save money by buying THESE conventionally grown items.  This produce is more resistant to absorbing pesticides than their thin skinned counterparts above.  Happy days!

"The Clean Fifteen"
1. Onions
2. Pineapples
3. Sweet corn
4. Avocado
5. Asparagus
6. Sweet peas
7. Mangoes
8. Eggplant
9. Cantaloupe (domestic)
10. Kiwi
11. Cabbage
12. Watermelon
13. Sweet potatoes
14. Grapefruit
15. Mushrooms

If you're in the grocery store and you can't remember these lists, don't panic.  I certainly don't have them memorized!  Shopping in a more mindful manner, is as easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. Thin skin or berries = ALWAYS buy organic
2. Thick skin or eggplant = OK to buy conventional
3. Shop at a local farmer's market WHENEVER possible

If you have the opportunity to join a CSA this season or in the future, I highly recommend that you join.  It is really special to be part of the process and to see where your veggies are grown.  It can also spice up your culinary skills as you learn new ways to prepare all of that fresh produce! Go enjoy some organic summer produce!

Delicious yogurt!

AH, yogurt!  It's so tasty.  Easy to grab on the go, it gets along well with others and it's a healthy choice.  I love mixing it up with granola for a filling breakfast or making dips with it.  It also does a killer job of thickening soups without the fat and calories of cream.  Clearly, I'm a big fan. 

My absolute favorite store brand is Stonyfield Farms Low Fat French Vanilla.  It is important to me to choose organic yogurt to avoid antibiotics and growth hormones and Stonyfield Farms is a great little organic company based out of Vermont.  I always buy the 32 oz. container because it uses less packaging and it is better for the environment. 

 As I said, that yogurt is my favorite store brand, but my ABSOLUTE favorite is the yogurt I make at home.  I was so happy to discover that yogurt is not that difficult to make.  I'm happy to share the recipe with you here. 






When you're done, you can use a bit of your homemade yogurt as a relaxing face mask.  Apply a thin layer, lay down and let it sink in for 20 minutes.  Rinse and enjoy your softened and renewed skin.  Yogurt, the good little multi-tasker!

Homemade Organic Yogurt
 
Ingredients:
4 cups organic milk (whole or low fat)
1/4 cup of yogurt with live active cultures - this will be your 'base"(I used Stonyfield Farm, obviously)
Equipment:
You will need a candy thermometer, pot and glass jars/containers (I use the Small Batter Bowl from The Pampered Chef because it is the perfect size.)

Directions:
Attach the candy thermometer to the pot. Over medium heat, bring the milk to a simmer. Stirring frequently to prevent scalding.  Now, adjust the heat accordingly to keep the milk foamy and steaming at 185 degrees for 30 minutes. DO NOT let the milk boil.

After 30 minutes, remove the pot of milk from the heat and allow it to cool to lukewarm (112 degrees). This takes about 30 minutes. If you have an electric stove, boil some water while you wait.  If you have a gas stove, you can skip that part.

When the milk has reached lukewarm status, either turn the oven on warm (electric) or turn the pilot light on (gas). Whisk the yogurt into the milk until well incorporated. Pour the milk mixture into a glass container(s) and cover. You can use plastic wrap.

Place a lasagna pan on the bottom rack of the oven and pour the boiling water into the pan if you have an electric stove. (Skip this step if you have a gas stove)  Put the covered milk mixture in the oven. Turn the oven off and leave it there for 8 hours. Voila, yogurt! Transfer to the fridge and enjoy. For a milder flavor, shorten the oven time up to 2 hours. Makes about 32 oz.

Be sure to put some of your yogurt aside to be the base for your next batch.  And if you start to experiment with flavors, be sure to add them when you are heating the milk on the stove.  

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2011, a year in which I am hopeful I will update my blog more frequently (for all 3 of my readers). :)

If you are anything like me, you may have spent the last 2 weeks or so eating more delicious treats than you are apt to do the rest of the year.  I have a MAJOR sweet tooth and so many heavenly desserts abound during the holiday season that I go a little buck wild.  One can't feel beautiful while hopped up on sugar all the time, so after the New Year, I really need to hit the reset button and get back to my usual, reasonable eating habits.

If you could also use a little "reset" action, check out this detox eating plan I discovered last spring in Yoga Journal.  It is short term (3 days) and gently eliminates the accumulated toxins in your body through eating simple foods and avoiding caffeine, meat, and added sugar. Say "adios" to the holiday treats until next year and welcome your healthy eating habits back into your life. Your body will thank you! 

If you are hungry for more, you can also join the 21 Day Yoga Challenge.

Delicious Snack!

Beauty starts on the inside.  Therefore, from time to time I may include tasty treats that I discover.  Up first is Yogi Granola Crisps - Mountain Blueberry Flax.  I picked these up on a whim. Ok, ok, I was hungry while I was shopping and what a delightful surprise!  I love Yogi Teas, so I figured their new line of snacks might be just as good.  They look like giant Special K flakes.  They are super crunchy and taste like real blueberries.  Lots of healthy stuff inside of them as well with no artificial flavors or sweeteners.  They are seriously addicting.  I can't wait to try the other flavors!  I bought mine at Stop N Shop, but I am sure you will be able to find them in your local stores.