oatcakes

30 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by Delena Rose in cook, whole grains

Tags

breakfast muffins, coconut oil, muffins, oat cakes, oatmeal, rolled oats, walnuts, wheat-free

Another fantastic recipe from Heidi Swanson’s super natural every day cookbook. These are excellent as breakfast muffins as they are quite filling. I also love the taste of the coconut oil in these.

Oatcakes

3 cups rolled oats

2 cups spelt flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)

1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder

2 teaspoons fine-grain sea salt

1/4 cup flax seeds

3/4 cup chopped walnuts, lightly toasted

1/3 cup extra-virgin coconut oil

1/3 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup natural cane sugar

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 325 degrees (F). Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan.

Combine the oats, flour, baking powder, salt, flax seeds and walnuts in a large mixing bowl.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, combine the coconut oil, butter, maple syrup and sugar and slowly melt together. Stir until the butter melts and sugar has dissolved but don’t let the mixture get too hot. You don’t want it to cook the eggs on contact in the next step.

Pour the coconut oil mixture over the oat mixture. Stir with a fork, add the eggs and stir again until everything comes together into a wet dough. Spoon the dough into the muffin cups, nearly filling them.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges of each oatcake are deeply golden. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for a couple of minutes. Then run a knife around the edges of the cakes and tip them onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. Yield: 1 dozen oatcakes.

Resource:

Swanson, H. (2011). super natural every day: Well-Loved Recipe From My Natural Foods Kitchen. New York: Ten Speed Press.

fruit and nut oatmeal bars

23 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by Delena Rose in cook, whole grains

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bars, breakfast bars, dried fruit, flax seed, fruit and nut, hazelnut oil, nuts, oatmeal, oatmeal bars, rolled oats, snacks, walnut oil

I sampled another one of Lorna Sass’s recipes this weekend. These Fruit and Nut Oatmeal bars were very moist and did tend to fall apart a little. I found that toasting them in my toaster oven just before eating them dried them out a bit and prevented them from falling apart. Otherwise, these are very flavorful! Feel free to use any combination of dried fruits and nuts.

Fruit and Nut Oatmeal Bars

1-3/4 cups rolled oats

1/4 cup honey

3 tablespoons orange juice concentrate

2 tablespoons walnut or hazelnut oil (or canola oil)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup raisons, preferable golden

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/2 slivered almonds, toasted

1/4 cup hilled, raw unsalted sunflower seeds, toasted

3 tablespoons ground flax seed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Grease an 8×8 square baking pan. Sprinkle two tablespoons of the rolled oats on the bottom of the pan and reserve two tablespoons to sprinkle on top.

In a medium saucepan, bring 1/2 cup water to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and blend in the honey, orange juice concentrate, oil, salt and cinnamon. Cover and turn off the heat.

Place 1/2 cup of the rolled oats in a spice grinder and process into a flour. Stir the oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, remaining cup of oats, apricots, cranberries, raisons, grated orange zest, almonds and sunflower seeds into the honey mixture in the pot. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix together the ground flax seed and 1/2 cup of water. Whisk vigorously until the mixture becomes gummy, about 1 minute. Fold the flax seeds slurry into the oat mixture. Pour into the prepared baking pan and and smooth off the top. Sprinkle the remaining oats on top and gently press them into the batter. Bake until the bottom and sides are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes.

Cool in a rack. Slice the cake down the middle while it is still in the pan. Then cut each half into 1-inch wide bars. Enjoy warm, at room temperature or chilled. You can refrigerate the bars in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Enjoy!

Resource:

Sass, L. (2006). Whole Grains Every Day Every Way. New York: Clarkson/Potter Publishers.

adventures with whole grains: almond oatmeal cookies with spelt

25 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by Delena Rose in cook, whole grains

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almond, cookies, freshly milled flour, ground almonds, healthy snacks, oatmeal, oatmeal cookies, oats, spelt, spelt flour

I took my basic oatmeal almond cookie recipe and simply substituted freshly milled spelt flour for the all-purpose flour. The cookies turned out a bit darker in color but there was no other difference in taste or texture. They were just as yummier as the ‘unhealthier’ version (using white flour) only with the added benefits of a more nutritional flour that also has a lower Glycemic Index. Oh… I added half a cup of chocolate chips to this batch just for fun!

Oatmeal Almond Cookies with Spelt Flour

1/2 cup raw organic sugar (or maple syrup)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

1/2 cup spelt flour

1/2 ground almonds, toasted

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1-1/2 cups large-flake oats

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Heat oven to 350 degree (F). Mix together sugars, butter, vanilla and egg. Stir in oats, flour, ground almonds, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir in sliced almonds. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes or until light brown. Cool for 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet. Enjoy!