Deliciously Green

I generally try not to make new year's resolutions as I have a terrible time keeping them but this time I made a promise to myself to live this year intentionally. I want to grab the year by its horns and live it to the fullest, taking control of my days and getting the most out of them for both myself and my family :)

There are so many facets of our life that that encompasses. Such as my desire to slow down the rhythm of our days in order to make even more time to cherish my family, enjoy the simple things life brings no matter how small, increasing our self sufficiency by growing more vegetables and raising more livestock, and fine tuning our diet to try and make sure the foods I prepare for my family are as wholesome as possible to name just a few.

That last one is a tough one though but I'm working on it :) Which is actually where I'm heading with this little ramble that I've taken you on *grin*.

For the last couple of months I have made it a morning habit to blend up a surprisingly yummy spinach smoothie for myself and the children :) When I first thought about making a green smoothie I was a little worried that I was going to hate it despite my want to love it but I think the whole scary thing was in my head because I do really like it *grin*.

I pack my blender right to the top with fresh spinach leaves along with a little bit of fruit, a splash of maple syrup and ice cold herbal tea. Usually I put in an apple or a pear but blueberries are delicious and soon there will be fresh strawberries from the garden to add :)

When I first started making it I was using plain water as my liquid to help puree everything in the blender but I love the extra flavor that herbal tea provides. Our latest favorite is raspberry and each morning after I've used up what was in the fridge I replenish my mason jar with hot tea and pop it into the fridge for the following morning :)

I think I'm going to have to start making two blenders full though as it seems the kids want to drink more and more of it every morning *grin*. I'm not complaining though but tomorrow I'm heading out to weed out a patch in the garden so that I can plant a whole lot of spinach :)

Hugs,
Rosina

PS. Looking for more yummy recipes?? Check out this week's Hearth and Soul blog hop :)

Soaked Fruity Oats ~ Recipe

Oatmeal is a main staple during the winter months and to keep the children happily munching away on it without growing tired of it I like to spice it up with fruit :) I use steel cut oats which can take considerably longer to cook than quick oats and since I usually don't beat my children out of bed I needed a fast track cooking method!

Soaking the oats the night before provides this. By popping them in a bowl with water right after dinner (so I don't forget to do it) I have soft oats first thing in the morning that cook up in a matter of minutes :) The perfect solution when surrounded by a pack of hungry monkeys as soon as my feet hit the floor each day *grin*.

You will need:

3 3/4 cups of water

1 2/3 cups of steel cut oats

(rolled oats or quick oats can be substituted)

Assortment of chopped fruit

Maple Syrup

~ Serves 4

The night before place your oats and water in a glass bowl or jar, cover and let stand until you are ready to use them in the morning. Like I mentioned above, I like to do this when I'm cleaning up after dinner so that I don't forget and then they get a chance to soak a little over 12 hours :)

When you are ready to make breakfast in the morning, transfer your oats to a pot, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir continuously as they cook for 5 - 10 minutes. The shorter cooking time will provide a chewier texture. Remove from the heat and stir in some yummy maple syrup to sweeten it. I usually use 2 - 3 tablespoons of maple syrup and find that it is sweet enough. Pour into bowls and top with chopped fruit.

Right now we are using an assortment of kiwi, pomegranates, oranges, apples and banana :) After Christmas the pomegranates came on for a super good price so I couldn't resist buying some and since not everyone likes the same fruit I like to have a few different kinds in the fridge.

Nuts, seeds and dried fruit are other delicious additions to your oatmeal to. Oh there are so many different ways to spice up your breakfast... literally! Try adding cinnamon with your apples or a touch of pumpkin pie spice with pumpkin seeds :)

Enjoy making your oatmeal a little more exotic the next time you cook it and don't forget to sing *grin*.

Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold,
Pease porridge in the pot, nine days old;
Some like it hot, some like it cold,
Some like it in the pot, nine days old

Hugs,

Rosina

PS. Looking for more yummy recipes?? Check out this week's Hearth and Soul blog hop :)

Great Granola ~ Recipe

We love granola!
I don't think any of us can ever quite get enough of it *grin*. I'm forever making it and it is delicious served with a splash of milk, topped with a tablespoon of plain yogurt and some fruit. I found some blueberries in the freezer so that was what we used today but bananas, apples, raisins and more make great tasty toppings for your granola breakfast bowl :)

I had to replenish our supply today and I thought that you might like to have a peak at my recipe and perhaps whip up a lip smacking batch for your family :)

This is for quite a large batch but you can definitely half the recipe!
You will need:

8 cups rolled oats
4 cups barley flakes
2 cups unsweetened coconut
2 cups raw sunflower seeds
2 cups raw chopped nuts (I used almonds & pecans)
1 cup raw sesame seeds

Mix all of the above ingredients, preferably all organic, in a very large bowl.

On the stove top warm:

1/2 cup of raw honey
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of sucanat or brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Just heat the pot until the honey melts enough to easily mix all of the ingredients into a thick syrupy sauce. It doesn't have to be really hot and this is important because you will probably need to use your hands to mix everything together. I find that using a wooden spoon just doesn't cut it :)

Once you have everything mixed together spread it onto 2 or 3 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper and pop it into an oven that has been pre-heated to 300* Fahrenheit.

Pop one of the trays into the oven and cook for 1o minutes then pull it out and flip all of the granola around on the cookie sheet so that the bottom is now the top and put it back in the oven for another 10 minutes. Keep repeating this for about 30 minutes for each tray or a bit longer if needed until each batch is a nice golden brown :)

Let it cool completely before storing in a large glass jar. I love to use 1 gallon pickle jars and you can usually pick them up for free or less than a buck at any restaurant or diner as they usually buy all of their pickles, mayo & relish in them and they make awesome storage jars in the pantry for rice, noodles, granola, baking supplies or whatever you like. Plus they are a great alternative to plastic!

Have fun making a batch and get creative with the ingredients. If there is something on my list that you absolutely hate sub in something you like. I promise you won't hurt my feelings if you don't like coconut *grin*.

~ Rosina