Steel Cut Oats Cereal

Great on a cold Winter morning. I like to eat it cold with nothing on it too.

4 cups Water
1 cup Steel Cut Oats
1 cup Raisins

Slow cooker method:
Add above to slow cooker and turn on low late at night. Cook for about 8-9 hours and it will be ready for breakfast! (it may take less time depending on your slow cooker)

Stove top method:
Bring above ingredients to a boil. Cover and turn heat to low. Simmer on low for 20-30 minutes. Top cereal with milk and your favorite natural sweetner or have it plain.

The ratio of oats to water= 4 parts water: 1 part oats

Noodle Lettuce Wraps

1 pkg Buckwheat Soba Noodles
2 medium Zucchinis, julienne sliced
4 Tb Extra Virgin Olive Oil (cold pressed), divided
1 large Shallot, minced
1 Garlic Clove, minced
2 Tb Ginger, minced
1 Red Bell Pepper, sliced thin
1 Orange Bell Pepper, sliced thin
1 Avocado, sliced thin
1 medium Tomato, diced (optional)
Water chestnuts, chopped
1 head of Iceberg Lettuce, Boston Bibb or Butter Lettuce

Sauce:
1/4 cup Braggs Liquid Aminos
Honey
Roasted Chili Paste (optional)


Cook soba noodles according to the package directions in a large sauce pan. When noodles are done coat with 2 tablespoons olive oil and add zucchini. Slice noddles and zucchini with knife, criss-crossing to create very tiny strips. Set noodles aside. Add remaining oil to a skillet with shallot, garlic, and ginger; cook on medium for 3-4 minutes until the aroma becomes strong. Add shallot mixture to noodles and stir.

Arrange toppers (peppers through chestnuts), in serving bowls or plates. Wash and dry whole lettuce leaves, being careful not to tear. Serve, allowing people to spoon noodles into lettuce and topping with favorite sides and sauce.


Sauce directions:
We like to prepare a mild sauce and hot sauce for people to choose from. Add to Liquid Aminos honey and paste to taste. Start with small amounts and work toward likeness.

I have a julienne slicer to slice my zucchini, makes it super easy!

Breakfast Flax Muffins

This is a great mildly sweet muffin, perfect for your morning meal. We made these muffins with golden raisins, my favorite. Also if you notice, there is no oil used in this recipe. Ground flaxseed can be substituted for cooking oil and shortening with a ratio of 3 to 1 in baked goods (1-1/2 cups ground flaxseed can replace 1/2 cup butter, oil, or margarine) and will still end up surprisingly moist.

1-1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
¾ cup organic Flax Meal
¾ cup Oat Bran or Oat Meal
1 cup Honey
2 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Baking Powder
½ tsp Real Salt
2 tsp Cinnamon
1-1/2 cups Carrots, finely shredded
2 unpeeled, shredded Apples
½ cup Raisins (optional)
½ cup chopped nuts (optional)
¾ cup Rice Milk
2 beaten Eggs, Egg Substitute, or Egg Replacer
1 tsp Vanilla

Mix all of your dry ingredients together starting with the whole wheat flour and ending with the cinnamon. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a Vita Mix and blend thoroughly. Pour wet ingredients into the dry mixture and fold gently. DO NOT OVER MIX. Mix until ingredients are just moist. Fill muffin cups mostly full. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Makes about 12-15 muffins.

Seafood Marinade and Bok Choy Stir-fry

These are great party pleasers especially in celebration of the Chinese New Year.

Seafood Marinade

2 Tb Extra Virgin Olive Oil (cold pressed)
2 Tb lime juice
4 Tb Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
1 Tb Honey
½ tsp minced Ginger
2 Garlic Cloves, minced

Mix all ingredients well in a small bowl. Place seafood into a zip top bag and pour marinade over. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Cook seafood according to the food’s cook time.

Bok Choy Stir-fry

2 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, (cold pressed)
2 small heads Bok Choy or 3-4 baby Bok Choy, sliced into long strips
1 Red, Orange, and Yellow Bell Pepper, sliced into strips
¼ cup vegetable broth
1 medium Garlic Clove, minced
1-2 Tb Ginger, minced
2 Tb Braggs Liquid Aminos
1 Tb Honey
¼ tsp Red Pepper flakes

Heat the oil in a wok or skillet. Add the bok choy and peppers to the skillet and cook for about 3 minutes, not overcooking the veggies. Remove veggies from skillet and cover. Add all remaining ingredients to the skillet and cook for a minute, mashing mixture until fragrant. Stir mixture into the veggies and serve over rice.

Lentil Soup aka Mama's Mud Chowda

My family loves this soup. Even my small children will eat it. Lentils are another great source of protein.

1 lb brown Lentil beans
4 cups Vegetable Broth or Water
2 Tb Extra Virgin Olive Oil, cold pressed
1 cup Onion, about half of a large onion
½ -1 cup Carrot, shredded
1 tsp Cumin
2 tsp Real Salt
Avocado
Chives or Onion

In a large soup pot prepare lentils by placing them in the pot and covering them an inch up with vegetable broth. Add more broth or water if needed to completely cover. Bring mixture to a boil for 2 minutes. Then cover lentils with a lid and simmer on low for about 30 minutes or until lentils are tender (depending on how old your lentils are, this could take even up to a full hour).

While lentils are cooking, add olive oil, onion, and carrots to a skillet and sauté on medium low for 5 minutes. Then add onions and carrots, along with cumin and salt, to the lentils when they are mostly done; about 25 minutes into the lentil's cooking time. Cook mixture together for about 5 minutes, try not to overcook the onion and carrots. Now, remove pot from the heat. Take 3/4 of the soup and blend it in a blender then pour back into the pot (or use hand held mixer to blend soup to desired consistency). Stir soup together and ladle into soup bowls. Garnish with avocados and chives or onions for a more Mexican taste. Enjoy!

Broccoli and Penne Pasta

This is an easy dinner, for those crazy nights, that the whole family will enjoy.

1 box whole wheat or brown rice Penne
olive oil
2 to 3 cups fresh or frozen broccoli
3 cups or 28oz of homemade or your favorite jar tomato based sauce
Sea Salt

Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box. When your pasta is done lightly coat it with a little olive oil. Steam your broccoli just enough to be tender. Do not over cook, you don't want it to be mushy. Also the least amount it is cooked the more nutrients it will have. Add your broccoli and sauce to the pasta. Then season to taste with sea salt. It's really that easy! I usually serve this with sour dough bread and a spinach salad.

Of course homemade sauce is best but if you are using a store bought pasta sauce, make sure you are reading the labels. You don't want to buy a sauce that is loaded with sugar, high fructose corn syrup, salt or preservatives. Try to stick to a sauce that is pure and simple. For example the sauce I have on hand for those crazy nights is made from, organic tomato paste and tomatoes, organic basil, chopped onions, garlic powder, oregano, chopped garlic. That's it! Pure and Simple!

Creamy Broccoli Soup

This soup is mildly cooked to retain enzymes and nutrient value of the veggies. I love this with a side of avocado spread on top of yeast free, whole grain bread.

2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (cold pressed)
1 Onion, diced
4 cups Broccoli Florets
4 cups Vegetable Broth or Water
2 Tbs. Coconut Cream Concentrate
Real Salt and Pepper to taste

Chop broccoli into small pieces and set aside. In a large pot heat the oil on medium low. Saute onion for about 5 minutes then add broth and broccoli. Cover with a lid and turn heat to high for 5 minutes. Then turn heat off for another 5 minutes. Broccoli should be lightly cooked not overcooked. Remove from heat and let cool, uncovered. Pour half of the soup into a blender and puree. Add blended soup back into the pot (you can achieve the same results with a handheld mixer). Once soup has cooled for at least 5 minutes, after taken off heat, add coconut cream and mix in thoroughly. Serve immediately.

Quinoa Super Cookies

Quinoa is a great source of protein. I would classify these cookies as a transitional food. Something on your way to being healthy.


1 cup Quinoa Flour
1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
½ cup Sugar or favorite all natural sweetner
2 teaspoons Vanilla Flavoring
1 tablespoon Baking Powder
½ cup Vegetable Oil
3 Eggs or Egg Substitute or Replacer
1-2 teaspoons Coral Calcium (100% above ground coral calcium), optional

In a large bowl, mix all wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Combine dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix by hand or with a mixer. Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie mix onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for eight minutes at 350 degrees.

Cucumber Refresher

I'm not a big fan of avocado shakes even though they are extremely healthy. While messing around with some recipes my husband and I came up with this recipe in lieu of an avocado shake. Surprisingly sweet and perfect for in the morning.



2 handfuls of Spinach
3/4-1 cup sliced Cucumber (about 5-6 inches of a cucumber)
Half of 1 Avocado
Juice of 1 Lemon
1-2 cups Water
2 handfuls of Ice Cubes
2 1/2-3 packets of Stevia
A scoop of your favorite super greens (optional)

Place all ingredients into a blender (I use a Vita Mix blender) and blend on medium for a minute. Then turn blender to a high setting and blend until all ingredients are completely smooth and blended. Serve immediately.