Strawberry Chia Freezer Jam

Today I'd like to welcome guest blogger Noah Wiebe (age 4), our son!  This past weekend after great friends' recommendation we took a little drive up to Oliver to pay a visit to Covert Farms.  An amazing organic u-pick farm!  We had a blast.   They grow practically everything there...it's amazing and completely worth the drive.  We filled our truck with many amazing things.  One thing we were most excited about was the fact that they still have strawberries!  We completely missed that season in Kelowna this year.  We're pretty sure that next summer we will be making multiple trips to Oliver to visit the farm:)

Our boys LOVED all the picking they got to do!  Strawberries definitely were the hit though...Levi would scream everytime he moved the leaves out of the way and spotted a large strawberry...I laughed so hard!  Noah was a very focused picker and little did I know that he had plans to not only pick the berries himself...but to come home and make the jam from start to finish by himself!  This recipe was a bit of an experiment, but we were very pleased with the results!  Super simple and very quick.  Involves no cooking of the berries so it's safe and easy for kids to help out with...and also helps keep that fresh berry taste that we all love.  If you've never worked with Chia seeds before, you'll see that they act as a thickener.  The seeds loose their crunch once they are put in liquid for about an hour or so, and they thicken everything around them...very handy!  As a bonus, they have huge nutritional value too!  You can buy white or black chia seeds.  I used white for the jam, it's what I had in our pantry, but either would work.  The bonus of the white seeds is that they end up looking like strawberry seeds and blend right in.

The reason why this works best as a freezer jam is that it eliminates the canning part...makes it easier for kids to help...AND...it lets you control the amount of sweetener that you add.  Canned jam has to have a certain amount of sugar in order for the jam to seal properly and not spoil...you don't have that issue with freezer jam.  Any sweetener will work for this!  We sprinkled a bit of coconut sugar in ours...like only 2 or 3 spoon fulls...and then tasted it once it set.  We found it wasn't quite enough so I added 1 teaspoon of honey to each jar and stirred it in before moving the jars to the freezer.

Tip: Using small jars is best since this jam will only keep for about 1 week once it's taken out of the freezer!

This recipe would work great for any berry...or any combination of berries!  We're off to pick up some more chia seeds so we can continue our jam making!

And now...I officially welcome my first guest blogger, Noah Wiebe!

STRAWBERRY CHIA FREEZER JAM
inspired by source
makes one small batch...multiply as much as you desire!

1 cup fresh berries
1 Tbsp chia seeds
1 Tbsp water

sweetener of choice, to taste

We first drove to Oliver to pick lots of berries and stuff.

You put on your 'maker' (aka...apron!) so that you don't get red on your shirt.  Then you measure out the right about of strawberries.  Wash them and pull all the green tops off.

Next was my favourite part.  You get out your masher and squish all the berries.  I let my brother try too.  Add your seeds and water...stir lots.

Then get your green thing out of the pantry.  Put it on the jar and scoop the jam in.

Leave a little space at the top.

Put your lids on.

All done!

 (Put your jars in the fridge for about 2 hours.  This lets the chia finish up the thickening process. Then move the jars to your freezer!)

Eat for lunch with a fresh bun!  ( I think they liked it!)

Thank you Noah!  We look forward to featuring many more of your recipes in the future!

xo, mom!

Almond Flour Zucchini Loaf

You will have a hard time convincing your friends that this zucchini loaf isn't DRIPPING in butter...I'm serious.  There is no butter in these...or oil...none...yet that's all you taste...it's amazing.  Jay was a HUGE fan of this loaf...as were the boys.  Super moist from the almond flour, and just amazing.  No better way to use up all the zucchini that's growing these days!

Photo look a little blurry?  I had a husband and two boys drooling over that last chunk while I quickly took a photo!  Most good things don't last long enough in this kitchen to get a good photo!!

Enjoy!

Almond Flour Zucchini Loaf
original recipe found here

1 1/2 cups almond flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 eggs
1/4 cup honey, maple syrup...or sweetener of choice
1 ripe banana
1 cup shredded zucchini

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl.

Place the wet ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer, then beat on medium for 1-2 minutes until frothy and fully combined. Add the zucchini and beat again just enough to incorporate.

Slowly add the dry ingredients with the mixer running, until all combined.

Spoon the batter into 2 mini loaf pans, or one large loaf pan.  A muffin tin would also work!

Bake for 30-35 (longer for a large pan...shorter for muffins) minutes until the middle is set and a toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Summer Salad Rolls

These guys have definitely been the favourite lunch in our house this summer!  Surprisingly quick and easy to make...VERY low cost...and you can change the ingredients easily for each person's serving based on their taste buds or diet!  If you let your little boys make their own I promise they will gobble them up too!  Great for entertaining, or for enjoying alone in your backyard:)

I've tried many many different dipping sauces...here's links to the last 3 that I've tried.  My favourite green salad dressing is also AMAZING with these rolls!

The rice paper rounds can be found in the Asian section of your grocery  store.  They are usually around $2 a pack and you get about 20....that's a steal!  Follow the directions on the package for soaking.  If you haven't tried them before...you literally soak them in hot water for about 5 seconds and then let them sit for about 30 seconds...then stuff them and roll them...that's it!

You can totally make these ahead of time...or pack them for the beach...just lay a damp paper towel over them to prevent them from turning back into crunchy rice papers:)


SUMMER SALAD ROLLS

INGREDIENTS

Rice paper rounds (about 3-4 per person)
*Brown Rice noodles...prepared according to directions, drained very well (noodles...NOT pasta)

any or all of the following, sliced thinly...options are endless!
spinach
lettuce
avacodo
sprouts
red peppers
mango
carrots
red cabbage
cucumber
basil
cilantro
green onions
tuna
salmon
shrimp
quinoa

*totally optional...including them makes for more of a 'meal'...but they taste great without too!


SAUCE
Mustard Soy-Sauce
Easy Thai Peanut Sauce
Favourite Green Dressing

Alright....it's high time I got OFF Pinterest...and actually updated my blog with one of the many fabulous recipes that I try from there!!

Sorry I've been a little MIA this past month:)  Had a wonderful long trip to Ontario to visit family...ate lots of yummy food...did a little detour to Atlanta to hang out with some amazing people and eat local organic peaches...I still think about them daily.  Now we're home and back into the swing of things...picking from our garden daily and shopping at the Farmer's Market as much as we can!  I love summer in the Okanagan!!

Last Friday morning I made a HUGE batch of quinoa...just plain.  I love the versatility of this super grain.  These cookies were the result of the first few servings of the quinoa.  Then I used some more to make a salad for great friends who just had a sweet baby girl.  THEN there was still enough left to make one of these!  There are not many foods that you can be that creative with!  My bag of quinoa is now currently gone....so to Costco we must go!

These cookies are an amazing and healthy treat to whip up...and are super quick if you're already cooking quinoa for something else anyhow!  Our boys loved them...they are super high in protein...so they held them over until a late dinner that night.  We brought them to a friend's house to share while we hung out together in their backyard on a Friday afternoon...I recommend you do the same:)

Nut Butter Chocolate Quinoa Cookies
original recipe found here

sidenote:  You can choose to make these with warm quinoa (I did) and the result will be an actual chocolate-looking-cookie...or you can used cooled quinoa and the result will be a chocolate-chip-looking-cookie.  
 
Ingredients:
2 cups cooked quinoa
1/2 cup nut butter (I used almond...I think peanut would taste better!)
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut (optional...I used it!)
1/2 cup chocolate chips
 
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine quinoa, peanut butter, maple syrup, salt, and oats in a large mixing bowl.   Mix with spoon or mixer...I found a spoon to work no problem.

Stir in coconut and chocolate chips.

Roll small balls of dough between hands and flatten on cookie sheet.

Place cookies on parchment-paper-lined baking sheets and bake for approximately 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are nicely browned.

ENJOY!...nice cold almond milk is a GREAT partner to these:)

Quinoa Chocolate Cake

It's about time I made this cake!!  I've had it three times already...always made by someone else...and conveniently found in one of my favourite cookbooks that I've promoted on here many times...Quinoa 365!

The first thing I love about this cake is that it doesn't take quinoa flour, or any other inconvenient ingredients...you actually use quinoa that's already cooked...leftover from another meal...just waiting to be used for cake:)  I made it for a BBQ we had on the weekend...and also made a quinoa salad to add to the table...which is actually a great idea cause you just make an extra big batch of quinoa, take enough out for the cake...and turn the rest into salad!

The second thing I love is how simple it is!  I actually did the entire thing in my food processor!  A high speed blender will work great too...just dump all the ingredients in and go.  Make sure you really really puree it...you want the texture of the quinoa gone.

The cookbook suggests making the cake into two separate pans so you can layer the middle with jam or something.  This works, but will result in two very thin layers.  I made mine all in one pan.  If you were wanting the two layers I would recommend making a double batch, baking them in separate pans that way.  I decided last minute to swirl melted peanut butter into mine right before baking...HIGHLY recommend this!  I wish I would have taken the time to also make a fresh strawberry sauce to drizzle over top...oh well, next time!

(I have since made it many times with pure peanut butter frosted on the top...always a hit!)

This cake is amazing...moist...rich...not too sweet...and incredibly healthy!  Make it this weekend for some special friends:)

Like so often...I completely forgot to take a picture of the cake...so here's what the very last sliver looked like that I stashed into our freezer...you can kinda tell that it's frozen in the photo...oops!  I think it just might be dessert for me tonight!

Disclaimer...serve this cake in much larger slices than the photo shows!

QUINOA CHOCOLATE CAKE

2 cups cooked quinoa
1/3 cup milk...I used almond
4 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup melted butter or melted coconut oil
1 1/2 cups maple syrup or coconut sugar (syrup will make it more moist which is great...and make it easier to blend...the batter will be very very thick if you're using a dry sugar)
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease an 8 inch round or square pan.

Combine the milk, eggs and vanilla in a blender or food processor.  Add the quinoa and butter and continue to blend until smooth.

Whisk the remaining ingredients together in a large bowl.  Add the contents of the blender and mix well.  Pour into the pan...don't be alarmed by how thick it is.  I tried using only 1 cup of coconut sugar...and found it a little bitter...so I'd recommend the full 1 1/2 cups of sugar, unless you're making a sweet sauce to drizzle over top.

Bake for 50-60 minutes...checking often.  Cake is cooked when inserted toothpick comes out clean.   This won't taste good under or over baked:)

Avacado Egg Salad

So if you're like me and spend far too much time browsing Pinterest...then you've seen the many many Avocado Egg Salad Recipes.  Well...today I could just not get them out of my mind so I decided to give it a whirl!  I quickly realized that they all vary quite a bit...and for most of them I wasn't a fan of certain ingredients they used...so I made my own based on what we had on hand.  The result...AMAZING!  All of them had some form of mayonnaise...which is not something I normally buy and didn't want to buy just to make egg salad...so I left it out and I honestly don't think you can even notice!  The avocado gives that creamy texture you'd normally get from mayonnaise.

So here's my take on this delicious and filling lunch!  I made mine into a wrap...but certainly some fresh bread would make a great sandwich too!  Enjoy!

Avocado Egg Salad
makes 2 large wraps, or 3-4 sandwiches

1 avocado, pitted and mashed
4 eggs, hard boiled
2 dill pickles, chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely diced
salt and pepper
1 squeeze of lemon juice
fresh dill or chives

Directions

Peel your hard boiled eggs, then separate the yolks from the white.  Mash the yolks in with the avocado.  Season with salt & pepper and lemon juice.  Add in pickles, celery and chopped egg whites.

Prep wrap...I put a very thin spread of cream cheese on mine, with a squirt of dijon mustard.  Then added a layer of spinach to the whole wrap, followed by some purple cabbage (for crunch and colour!)...really any veggies would taste amazing!  Then add the avocado egg salad and wrap it up!  You will LOVE it!

Alright enjoy...I'm wishing I had made more than one servings worth!!  Jay's out of town...so I may just be having another one of these for my dinner tonight!

PS...incase any of you missed out on our exciting announcement over the weekend...here you go!!  We are thrilled!

18 hour Pizza!

We are all lovers of pizza in this house!..or 'peeta' according to Levi.  Levi insists that his always has olives on it...cracks me up!...Noah likes it simple with sauce, spinach and cheese...Jay likes anything BUT mushrooms:)
I have to say though that as often as we eat pizza (always homemade...never delivery)...I've never found a crust recipe that tastes amazing and is worth repeating.  Traveling to Italy and eating pizza literally everyday there may have upped our standards a tad:)  Valarosos Italian Market in Kelowna has phenomenal fresh crusts that you can pick up and make your own...but that's not always  convenient...and sometimes you just want to make it yourself...or atleast I do!
One blogger I follow is always talking about pizza...and recently she caved and decided to stray from her standard simple crust recipe and try this 18 hour crust.  She could not stop talking about it!!  I figured to had to give it a whirl!!  18 hours sounds tedious...but it's actually really simple.  You mix the 3 ingredients the night before...cover it...and don't touch it again til an hour before you're ready for dinner!!  Could it get easier?  No kneeding....no rushing to get home 3 hours before dinner time to start your dough process....I'm hooked.

This recipe makes 3 pizzas...we ate all 3:)  Did I mention Levi loves his peeta??!!

Disclaimer...photos were taken with an oven mitt on one hand and a spelt flour-covered iphone in the other hand...know what I mean?...all sauce and toppings were put on by a 2 year old and 4 year old, hence the little piles of black olives:)

First one is a standard for us...sauce (just crushed tomatoes..that's how they roll in Italy), spinach, some olives, chicken breast and buffalo mozzarella.

Second one is sauce with some of the pesto we brought back from Cinque Terre, Italy...slowly rationing it out:).  With more of the same toppings from above.  (side note...a few months ago I found the identical pesto that we bought in Cinque Terre...at Homesense!!!???...pesto was invented in Cinque Terre...it's amazing.   Needless to say I bought them out that day!)

Third one is a summer time fav of mine.  BBQ Chicken!  Mix some of your favourite bbq sauce with tomato sauce...spread on pizza.  Then add chicken, caramelized onions (I didn't take the time for this...you should though!), red peppers, spinach and buffalo mozzarella...roasted garlic is also amazing! 

18 Hour Pizza

Ingredients

3 3/4 cups of flour (I used Spelt)
2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp active dry yeast

Directions

Night before...put all ingredients in a large bowl.  Slowly stir in 1 1/2 cups of water.  I found I needed to add about 1/2 cup more water...likely because I used Spelt.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise. This should be done at room temperature and will take around 18 hours. It’s ready when the dough’s size has about doubled and it’s surface is covered with small bubbles.

Next day...about an hour before dinner.  Flour work surface and move dough to begin gently shaping it into a rectangle shape. Divide it into three equally sized portions and work on each portion individually.  One portion at a time, create four folds by gathering the four corners together. Turn dough upside down and gently shape into a ball; dust with flour, set aside and work on remaining portions.

Cover again with plastic wrap and let rise for about another hour (use this time to get all your toppings ready!) It can be made up to this point 2-3 days ahead and kept in the refrigerator.

Preheat your oven to 550 degrees.

Once ready, take each ball and roll them out using generous amounts of flour.  Add toppings.  Bake on well floured or corn meal covered baking sheet or pizza stone.  This site has some great tips on different baking methods.  I tried their pizza stone method...it's truly the only way to go!  The crust bottom was crisp and light while the toppings were bubbly and perfectly broiled...mmm.

HUGE thanks to Katie at Yes, I Want Cake!  You're welcome to come over for pizza anytime!