Teff Hot Cereal (gluten free)

Life continues to move along. We just got back from a trip to Florida. I have never been there before. We had a great time and enjoyed lots of water and sunshine. My favorite part was being with my husband. 

I continue to love having hot cereal for breakfast. It is fun to experiment and try new ones. This is a wonderful one loaded with nutrition. Look here to see some of the benefits to added Teff to your diet. This made a great breakfast. I get a wonderful satisfied feeling when I have a nice hot breakfast. It is a great way to start your day. I think I am going to make some for a snack. It is making me want some looking at the pictures. 

Here is something fun to watch to brighten up your weekend. Here cares about each one of us. 

Ingredients

1/2 C cashew milk or milk of your choosing

1 C water

1/2 T coconut oil

1 T honey or other sweetener 

1/2 C Bob's Red Mill Teff

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 C raisins optional

top with

additional milk

Directions   Serves 2

1. Put a medium saucepan pan on the stove and turn to medium heat. Pour in milk, water, oil and honey. Let it heat up a couple minutes.

2. Stir in the Teff until all combined. Stir in the cinnamon, nutmeg and raisins. Let the mixture come to a boil

3. Turn down the heat to medium low and cover. Let cook for 15 to 20 min. Stirring often. 

4. Pour into bowls and top with milk if desired. It warm. 

*You could make it the night before and store in an airtight container in the fridge and heat up in the morning. 

Oatmeal Teff Quinoa Pancakes

In honor of Mother's Day on May 11, this month's Recipe Redux theme is spotlighting our treasured heirloom dishes and utensils in the kitchen. Even though we only formally celebrate mothers once a year, it's much more often that we cooks use the items they have passed on to us.

One of my favorite heirloom kitchen utensils is this classic egg beater. It used to belong to my husband's grandma, and I have owned it for about 25 years. I am sure it was around much longer than that, but I am not sure on exact dates. :)They sure don't make things like they used to. It works wonderfully, and is so much easier than the typical plug-in-the-electric beater, find the attachments thing. Just grab it and mix up the pancakes!

These pancakes are a delightful version using three wonderful whole grains--oatmeal, teff, and quinoa. You're sure to love them.

Ingredients

2 1/2 C. Oat flour
1/2 C Teff flour Bobs Red Mill is a good choice
1/4 C quinoa flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/3 C honey
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 C. buttermilk ( I used 1% milk and 2 1/2 T. white vinegar)
2 Large eggs
1/4 C orange juice
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 T coconut oil
Toppings for the pancakes
apple toppings
jam
buttermilk syrup

Directions
1. Blend dry ingredients together in a large bowl until all blended.

2. In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredients together.

3. Combine wet and dry ingredients together. Mix until blended. Don't over mix.

4. Cook on hot Skillet. I loved the orange cinnamon combination. :)

An InLinkz Link-up

Maple Almond Whole Grain Granola

We just celebrated my oldest grandsons birthday yesterday. As I watched him enjoy his party last night. it was a delight. It reminded me again why we are suppose to be like little children. He was so enthusiastic and appreciative of everything he received. That is something I could improve on. I love his smile that was captured in this picture. It is a joy to be a parent as well as a grandparent. My amazing husband and I are enjoying this time of our lives. 

It seemed liked it was that time of year to make granola. It is fun to make granola all year. I had not made it for a while. I always like to try new versions. I added some extra grains to increase the nutrition. It added some new textures.

Ingredients:
4 C old fashioned oatmeal
*1/2 C whole grains Optional (I added 1/4 c of teff and 1/4 C amaranth)
1/2 C unsweetened coconut
1 C chopped almonds
3 T coconut oil
4 T honey
4 T maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond extract
1 pinch of salt
3/4 C raisins or other dried fruit

Directions:
1. Mix first 4 ingredients together in a bowl and pour on to cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 275 for 10 min to toast.
2. In the meantime stir on low heat oil, honey, syrup, vanilla, almond extract, and salt. Take off heat when combined.
3. Take the cookie sheet out of the oven drizzle the honey mixture over the oatmeal. Stir until all covered.  Place back in oven and bake 25 to 30 min. Stir often. Bake till slightly golden.
4. Stir in raisins and let cool. Store in airtight container.

Quinoa and Teff Hot Cereal

I am in love with hot cereal lately. It just is wonderful to eat something warm in the morning. The spices added to it our wonderful too. It makes a great snack as well as a meal.  :)  I made this today and loved it. It is great way to start off your day !

Ingredients:
1 C Quinoa
1/2 C Teff
2 T coconut oil
2 C milk
1/2 C water
1 to 2 T honey
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Currants or raisins or other fruit for the top

Directions:

1. Wash off quinoa in a strainer. Heat up a saucepan on medium heat and pour in quinoa and teff. Heat until the quinoa turns lightly brown just to toast it a little.

2. Then stir in oil, milk, water honey, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Let it come to a boil. Cover and turn down the heat to low. Cook for about 20 min. Until the liquid gets absorbed and the grained gets softened. 

3. Pour in a bowl. Top with fruit and a little milk if desired. Yum!     

Healthy Oatmeal Cashew Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan)

Well I went to get my teeth cleaned yesterday, by my one of my sweet daughters who is a dental hygienist. Getting my teeth cleaned is Not one of my favorite things to do, so I really appreciate a daughter who makes it a better experience, with her concern and the extra effort she puts into it. She is a sweetie. :) We have made it a tradition to go out to eat, after she cleans my teeth. We to to the Herb Shop. I Love their bread (It was even warm this time :) they serve with their turkey sandwich and their cookies are so good too. It helps me to soften my concerns about my teeth.
Well I looked at the ingredients in their cookies, and came up with my own variation today. They have a lot of healthy ingredients. I would not feel bad eating them for breakfast. You could add some other ingredients instead of chips too. Like dried fruit, nuts etc... Yum!

Ingredients:
1/2 almond milk or soy milk or...
2 T cider vinegar
3 C whole grain flour ( I did about 2 C kamut flour, 3/4 C spelt flour and 1/4 C teff flour)
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 C cashew powder (1/2 cashews ground into powder in the blender)
1/2 C coconut oil
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 C honey (depending on your sweetness preference) or 2 C sugar for vegan recipe
1 T vanilla
6 C old fashioned oatmeal
1 C chocolate chips or dried fruits or nuts

Directions: Heat oven to 350 Bake 8 to 10 min.
1. In a small bowl pour in milk and vinegar. Set aside for about 10 min. So milk can curdle.

2. Measure and pour the flour, salt and soda in a separate bowl.

3. In a mixing bowl, beat oil, honey and cashew powder till nice and creamy. Then beat in the vanilla. Then beat in the milk mixture.

4. Then alternate adding the flour and the oatmeal. Fold in the Chips.

5. Scoop on the cookie dough on to cookie sheet. (I used parchment paper.)

6. Don't over bake just cook till light golden. Cool on cooling rack.

The cashew powder added a creaminess to the cookie.

* You could flatten them before baking if you want a flatter cookie.

* Cider vinegar can be used in baking to work as a binding and leavening agent. Very Cool! :)

Multigrain Peach Pie Muffins

It is that wonderful time of year to have fresh peaches again. The flavor of a fresh ripe peach is wonderful. One of my favorite ways to have them is with vanilla ice cream. :) I was having a gathering with some friends, so I decided to try something new. They taste a little bit like peach cobbler or peach pie. I think muffins taste even better the second day when all of the flavors have set in. They were a fun treat.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 wholegrain flour (I ground up 1 C kamut 1 1/2 C spelt and 1/2 C teff. There was leftover)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp fresh nutmeg or 1/4 tsp dried nutmeg
2 C old fashioned oatmeal
1 1/2 C milk
2 eggs
1/3 C coconut oil
1/2 C honey
2 ripe peaches diced in small pieces

Directions: Made made about 38 mini muffins

1. Preheat oven to 400.

2. Mix the first 6 ingredients together.

3. In a separate bowl mix the oatmeal and milk together to soften the oatmeal.Set aside for 5-10 min.

4. Then mix the oatmeal mixture with the eggs, oil and honey.

5. Then fold the oatmeal mixture into the flour mixture.

6. Then fold in the diced peaches.

7. Pour into greased muffin pans. Bake 15-20 min. Remove from pan and serve. Enjoy!

* You can also dust them with powdered sugar.

Mixed Grain Apple Date Muffins ( Low Gluten)

These were a fun way to use the apples, that are in season right now. I was really happy with the way they turned out. They are so moist! There was no sweetener used other than the dates and orange juice. The end result was fantastic. I used Teff which is a fun grain, loaded with lots of nutrition. The spices were so good too. :) They are loaded with lots of grains. Daughter # 2 tried them and said "They are good and really moist". If you want them sweeter, you could add a little sweetener. I was excited to not add sweetener this time. :)

2 C Spelt Mixture*
1/2 C 6 Grain Rolled Oats or Oatmeal
1/4 Teff *
2 T Ground Flax
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
12 Pitted Dates and 1/4 C Water
2/3 C Rice Milk Or Milk of your choice
1/4 C Fresh Orange Juice*
4 T Coconut Oil or Oil of your choice
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1 egg beaten
2 C Cooking Apples Finely Chopped (Sweeter variety)

1. I measured all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Then I sifted them to make sure all the spices were evenly distributed. Set aside.

2. Mix the dates in with 1/4 C of Water in the blender until all chopped into smooth mixture.

3. Mix the Date Mixture, Milk, Juice, Oil, Vanilla, and Eggs in a separate bowl.

4. Combine the two mixtures together. Don't over stir.

5. Pulsed the Apple cut up in pieces, in my blender. (With the peels on) Until they were small pieces.

6. Fold in the Apples into the mixture.

7. Scoop into muffin pans. I made mini muffins. It made 36.

8. Bake in preheated oven 350 for 10-12 min. Add time if you make bigger muffins.


* Spelt Mixture 5 C Spelt, 2 C Kamut 1 C Brown Rice 1 C Oat Groats. I ground up extra for other baking. :)
* I ground the Teff up in the Coffee Grinder.
*I squeezed it from a Sweet home grown orange. Thanks! Craig and Ellen

Happy Fall!

Almond Granola Bars

3 1/2 C. Old fashioned oats
1/2 C flax ground
1 C. Teff ground into flour Bob's Red Mill
3 C . Almonds chopped
1/2 C. Sesame seeds
1 1/2 C. Honey
2 Tsp. Vanilla or Almond extract
1/2 C. Coconut oil or other oil
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 C. Dried apricots (chopped fine)
1 C. unsweetened coconut

1. Heat Oven to 350

2. Grease cookie sheet (rimmed cookie sheet)

3. Chop Almonds in food processor or blender

4. Place Oats, Flax, sesame seeds,and Teff on cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown turning often.

5. Meanwhile on the stove heat until all blended honey, and oil. Add Vanilla and salt, after you take off the heat.

6. Turn heat on the oven down to 300.

7. Take grains out of oven. Put in large bowl. Mix in the oil mixture then add apricots and coconut.

8. Place mixture back on cookie sheet. Press down until smooth and flat.

9. Bake at 300 about 20 min.

*Next time I will cook it a little less time. I would like it chewier. :)

All About Teff

Teff is a grain that is actually common in Ethiopia. The grains of teff are very small (it takes about 150 teff grains to weigh the same as 1 wheat kernal), which means it needs less fuel to cook, making it an important food source for those living in the desert. Because the grain is so small, most of the grain consists of the bran and germ portions of the kernel, meaning it is packed with nutrients.

Health Benefits:

• Teff has a very high calcium content--more than milk
• Includes all 8 amino acids necessary for humans
• It contains no gluten, making it appropriate for those with celiac disease.
• Teff is high in protein, fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, aluminum, iron, copper, zinc, boron, barium, and thiamin.
• Contains more lysine than wheat or barley.

What Teff is Great For:

Teff is fantastic as a flour. It works great as a substitute for part of the wheat flour in breads. It works especially well for quick breads such as pancakes and muffins. Since it is so small, it also can be served whole as a substitute for seeds, such as sesame seeds. I am told it also works as a nutritious thickener for soups and stews.

Click here for my recipes using Teff

Oatmeal Teff Quinoa Pancakes

Ingredients
2 1/2 C. Oat flour
1/2 C Teff flour Bobs Red Mill is a good choice
1/4 C quinoa flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/3 C honey
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 C. buttermilk ( I used 1% milk and 2 1/2 T. white vinegar)
2 Large eggs
1/4 C orange juice
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 T coconut oil
Toppings for the pancakes
apple toppings
buttermilk syrup
jam

Directions
1. Blend dry ingredients together in a large bowl until all blended.

2. In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredients together.

3. Combine wet and dry ingredients together. Mix until blended. Don't over mix.

4. Cook on hot Skillet. I loved the orange cinnamon combination. :)