Zucchini & Ginger Spelt Muffins

Usually about this time of year I try to eat more raw foods like zucchini pasta with carrot-cashew creme sauce, fresh vegetable juices, and caramel and fudge brownies (my favorite!).  But, this weird foggy, drizzly Seattle weather is confusing my senses.  Could this really be July? Or is it somehow already late September?  All I know is that instead of wanting raw foods and light summer lunches I've been craving sweet potatoes, curries, and greens. 

So then, what to do with all these zucchini if I'm not making raw pasta?  Make muffins, of course!

I tend to shy away from baked goods because they're usually loaded with fat and sugar, but these are definitely some of the heathiest and heartiest muffins I've seen.  I love the taste of the spelt flour and it goes together perfectly with the flavors of ginger and zucchini.  I even cut the amount of agave in half for my last batch and they were still super yummy!  These go perfect with a cup of peppermint tea at breakfast or with soup for lunch.  

Zucchini & Ginger Spelt Muffins

From Babycakes by Erin McKenna

Makes 12 muffins

2 cups spelt flour

1/2 cup ground flax seeds

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

1/2 cup coconut oil

3/4 cup agave syrup

3/4 cup rice milk

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 cups zucchini, shredded

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line muffin tin with liners.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, flax seeds, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Add the ginger, oil, agave, rice milk, and vanilla to the dry ingredients and stir until smooth.  Fold in the zucchini.  Fill the cups evenly with 1/3 cup of batter and bake on the center rack for 22 minutes, rotating the pan 180 degrees after 15 minutes.  

To test the muffins, insert a toothpick into the center.  The muffins are ready when the toothpick comes out clean.  Let stand 15 minutes then transfer and cool.  Store the muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. 

Summer Black-Eyed Pea and Spelt Berry Salad

Can you believe that next week is July?  Hello, where did June go?

I can't believe that one year ago around this time I was graduating with my Master's degree, freaking out about what to do with the rest of my life, and doing weird things like dying my hair platinum blonde.  At home.  Using a box of 7-year old hair bleach.

Ladies (and lads), let me share a lesson with you that I hope you never have to experience first-hand:  if you are a natural brunette never, ever try to bleach your hair platinum blonde at home.  (Spoiler alert:  it doesn't turn a nice shade of platinum blonde; instead it's a nice mix of bright yellow and orange.)

Or, if you've already completed that step and learned by mistake, then quickly head to a salon and have them fix it.  Definitely don't try to dye it back to brown at home 'cause your stressed out and over-processed hair won't absorb the dye and instead of brown it will become grey.  And then you will spend the first few months after your 25th birthday with hair the color of Richard Gere's.  I'm not kidding.  It was not pretty.

So let's just say I'm really looking forward to summer with my natural brown hair this year.  And if I ever dye it again on my own?  You can be sure that the only thing touching this head is henna.

One of my favorite parts of summer is eating outside and I think a hearty go-to picnic salad is absolutely necessary this time of year.  For the bulk of this salad I chose spelt berries and black eyed peas because they both hold up well and don't get mushy when mixed with the dressing.  This is a very simple salad that can easily be adapted for some fun variations.  I used produce that was all available from my garden, but as the summer heats up some shredded zucchini or fresh corn would be great additions. 

Summer Black-Eyed Pea and Spelt Berry Salad
Serves 4

1 cup black-eyed peas
1 cup spelt berries
5 carrots, shredded
3 radishes, shredded
5 green onions, chopped
1 cup rainbow chard, shredded
1 cup arugula, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
juice from one lemon
1/4 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons mint, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons basil, finely chopped
Freshly-ground black pepper and sea salt to taste

The black-eyed peas do not need to be soaked before cooking.  Place them in a large saucepan, cover with about 4 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until peas are soft and easily chewable.  (This can take 20 - 45 minutes depending on your peas.)  Drain and set aside.

While the peas are cooking, add the spelt berries to a separate saucepan and cover with about 4 cups of water.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to low and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes.  Drain the berries and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together the minced garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and herbs and set aside.  Add the carrots, radishes, green onions, chard, and arugula to a large bowl. Add the black-eyed peas and spelt berries when ready (they don't have to cool before being mixed together).  Add in the dressing and mix well.  Add black pepper and sea salt to taste.  Refrigerate and serve cold.

Samoa Cookies

Somewhere in between a vacation with my partner, a gigantic plumbing failure in our apartment, and baking these cookies... it's suddenly June.  Hello sunshine.

I've appreciated the down time of the last few weeks more than I can possibly explain.  Taking a vacation and focusing on being present, relaxing, and taking care of myself was exactly what I needed.  Thank you for all of your support in the process.  I've missed you. 

And since I've been away from my computer, Blogger seems to have lost my last post and my Feedburner service keeps emailing you folks posts from January.  It's good to be back. 

Now, let's get to these cookies.  If you're one of those people staying away from sugar right now I commend you.  And I'd hate to be the person to spoil that so, please, stop reading and look away.

These are some dangerous ones.  I made these to indulge in my post-vacation sugar cravings and now I can't get enough of 'em.  Some of you may be wondering why there is only one cookie pictured below when this recipe makes two dozen.  Ahem, ahem.  Guilty face.

It wasn't all me, I swear!  They just go fast.

These cookies involve coconut, chocolate, more coconut, more chocolate... you get where I'm going with this.  These are perfect for late-night snacking, picnics, chocoholics, and it doesn't get any better than eating these on your front porch in the sunshine while drinking iced tea.  

Samoa Cookies
Makes 24 cookies

Ingredients
2 cups grated unsweetened coconut
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1 cup brown rice syrup
1/3 cup almond milk (or another nondairy milk)
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour (I've used both whole wheat and spelt and either works great)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Chocolate layer: 1 heaping cup vegan chocolate chips, 2 tablespoons coconut oil

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot or skillet, pour in the coconut and toast over medium low heat for 5 – 10 minutes, until the coconut turns golden brown. Be careful not to burn it, and stir occasionally. Once the coconut is toasted, remove it from the heat to cool.

In a large bowl, combine the coconut oil, brown rice syrup, almond milk, flaxseeds, and vanilla and blend until smooth. Sift in the flour, baking soda and salt and stir until the batter is thick. Fold in the cooled, toasted coconut.

Drop tablespoons of dough on a parchment lined pan. Using a measuring cup, press down the dough balls until they are flat discs. Bake the cookies for about eight minutes, just until the edges start to turn golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool for a few minutes on the pan and then cool completely on wire racks.

To make the chocolate glaze: Using a double broiler, melt the chocolate chips and stir in the coconut oil. Allow the mixture to cool for five minutes to allow it to thicken a bit. Once the cookies are completely cooled, dip the bottom in the chocolate mixture and place on a pan lined in parchment paper. Repeat with all the cookies. Use the remaining chocolate to drizzle glaze over the top of each cookie.


To allow the chocolate to cool, place the cookies in the fridge for half an hour, then enjoy!  They are also great frozen and eaten straight from the freezer.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies with Agave

Happy Mother's Day! Here's to all of the amazing women in our lives that give us so much! I don't know if you are in need of a cookie like I am, but here's one that's delicious and won't make you feel guilty for indulging in! I found this recipe on Healthy Endeavors and fell in love with it.

Ashley was momentarily excited that I had made cookies, but after a quick bite informed me that this was not, in fact, a cookie. I disagree. I think this is, in fact, exactly how cookies should taste. Sweet, but not over the top. Somewhere between chewy and crisp. And covered with dried coconut. These go amazing with tea and I swear you'll have to hold yourself back from eating a whole handful.

1 cup organic rolled oats
1 cup spelt flour
1 cup ground almonds
¼ cup shredded coconut
½ tsp. salt
¼ cup raisins
¼ cup chopped walnuts
½ cup agave nectar
½ cup canola oil
½ tsp. vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
3. Mix the wet ingredients and stir into the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon.
4. Form 1” balls and place on an oiled cookie sheet, pressing the balls down with your fingers. (I also garnished a few with the shredded coconut.)
5. Bake for 12 minutes or until crispy.