Sprouted Cut-Out Cookies (GF)

Cookies Decorated by my Little Love

My Little Love and I really enjoy baking together.  One of her favorite things to bake is Vanilla Butter Cookies, especially when we make them into cut-out cookies.   

These cookies are sweet enough on their own (I prefer them plain), but they are an extra special treat with homemade Vanilla Honey Buttercream Frosting.  Enjoy them plain or frosted.  If you want to add color to your frosting, make sure to look for all-natural, plant-based food coloring (stay away from artificial food coloring!).  

Little Love excited about the cookies.

Sprouted Cut-Out Cookies (Gluten-Free)

These are so versatile, they are great any time of the year, just switch up the cookie cutters. 

Equipment: Large Baking Pan (I use a Stoneware Large Bar Pan), Medium-Size Mixing Bowl, Parchment Paper, Rolling Pin, Cookie Cutters

• 1 batch Vanilla Butter Cookies
• Extra sprouted flour for dusting

1. Make one batch of Vanilla Butter Cookies.

2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  

3. Place a large piece of parchment paper (about 12 inches long) on a flat surface.  Place a small amount of sprouted flour in the corner of the parchment paper for you to use as needed.  Get your cookie cutters ready.  Lightly sprinkle a little bit of sprouted flour in the middle of the parchment paper.  Break cookie dough ball in half and place on top of the sprinkled flour.  Sprinkle sprouted flour on top of the dough ball.  Rub a little bit of sprouted flour on the rolling pin.  Roll the dough out about 1/4 inch thick.  

4. Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes/cookies.  Repeat until all dough is gone.

My Favorite Little Helper

5. Place cut-out cookies on baking pan.  [Note: If you are not using clay stoneware for baking, make sure to line your baking pan with parchment paper.]

6. Bake for about 15 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.  

7.  Allow cookies to sit on the pan for 10 minutes before removing.  Use a flat spatula to move the cookies to a cooling rack. 

8.  Allow to cool completely if you decide to frost them.  

Admiring her cookie.

Little Love enjoying her first bite of the cookie.

Yield: Varies.

Storage: Store in an airtight container.  


This post is part of Simple Lives Thursday @ GNOWFGLINS, Fight Back Friday @ Food Renegade, and Fresh Bites Friday @ Real Food Whole Health.

Roasted Broccoli w/ Meyer Lemon

Roasted broccoli is so incredibly delicious.  If you have never tried broccoli this way, you've been missing out.  Roasting it brings out a whole different level of flavor.  Add a little bit of fresh lemon juice, and oh my, it's unbelievable.  

    

Roasted Broccoli w/ Meyer Lemon

Super yummy, bursting with flavor from the Meyer lemon.  

Equipment: Large Baking Pan (I use a stoneware Large Bar Pan), Large Mixing Bowl 

• 4 heads broccoli florets
• 2 tablespoons pasture butter, ghee or fat of choice, melted (See Resources)
• 1-2 teaspoons fresh Meyer lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon kelp granules (optional, I use Maine Coast)
• 1/2 teaspoon Celtic sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Place baking pan in the oven to get hot.  

2. Melt fat of choice.  I find the easiest way is to melt fat of choice in the oven in a 4 oz. mini oven-safe Ramekin, otherwise melt it on the stovetop.

3. Prep broccoli - wash and shake dry, cut into florets.

4. Add broccoli florets to a large mixing bowl.  Add melted butter, lemon juice, kelp granules and sea salt.  Mix to coat.    

5. Pour broccoli onto hot pan in oven, spread evenly and set timer for 10 minutes.  At 10 minutes, stir broccoli and spread evenly.  Set timer for another 10 minutes, check again.  They are done when some parts are golden brown.  Do not overcook, you don't want burnt broccoli.  

6. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for later. 

Yield: Makes about 2-3 cups cooked.  

Note: Broccoli should cook in about 20-25 minutes, but every oven cooks very different.  Make sure to watch them carefully so they don't burn.  The type of bakeware can change cooking time too.  I prefer to use stoneware (clay) because it cooks evenly and never sticks.       

This post is part of Weekend Gourmet Blog Carnival @ Hartke Is Online, Real Food 101 @ Ruth's Real Food, Fat Tuesday @ Real Food Forager, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday @ Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, Gluten-Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Real Food Wednesday @ Kelly the Kitchen Kop, Make Your Own! Monday @ Nourishing Treasures, Healthy 2day Wednesdays @ day2day joys, Hearth and Soul Hop @ Premeditated Leftovers, and Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Turning the Table @ Around My Family Table, and Pennywise Platter Thursday @ The Nourishing Gourmet.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

I love this frosting, it's probably one of my favorites.  It's sweet, chocolaty and so delish!  

Enjoy!  

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

This is a very simple frosting recipe, it only takes minutes to make.  

Equipment: Standing Mixer & Bowl/Hand Mixer, Spatula

• 1/2 cup pasture butter (See Resources)
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons raw honey (I use local raw clover creamed)
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free organic vanilla extract (I use Simply Organic)
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons cacao powder (I use Divine Organics Sacred Cacao)

1. Fit standing mixer with the flat beater (if you don't have a standing mixer, you could use a hand mixer or food processor instead) and mixing bowl.

2. Add butter, honey and vanilla to the bowl and mix on low speed until the butter starts to soften.  Increase speed and whip until creamed and it begins to have a lighter white color, about 1 minute.  

3. Add cacao powder, turn mixer on low until the cacao powder starts to incorporate.  Increase speed to whip until creamy and it begins to turn a light brown color, about 1 minute.  Stop mixer and scrape down sides as needed with a spatula to make sure ingredients are combined well. 

4. Use immediately or store in a small bowl in the refrigerator.  Make sure to scrape the bowl and lick the spatula!  

Yield: Makes about 1 1/2 cups frosting. 

Storage: If storing for later, make sure to take the frosting out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before frosting so it's not so hard and will spread easier.  

Serving Suggestions: Use this to frost cupcakes, vanilla cake, Chocolate Pumpkin Cake, cookies, etc.

This post is part of Monday Mania @ The Healthy Home Economist and Melt in Your Mouth Monday @ Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms.

Chocolate Pumpkin Cake (Sprouted Gluten-Free Flour & Egg-Free)

Little Love and I made this cake for Thanksgiving this year.  She wanted to make a cake (not a pie), so cake is what we made.  Chocolate cake was her request, and I wanted something holiday related, so we decided to make a Chocolate Pumpkin cake.  

The heart decoration was her idea too.  We were talking about what we were grateful for, and number one for both of us was each other, and so the heart was created.  Little Love said the heart was for love and being together.  

This cake is super moist and chocolaty.  It's even moist the next day (it doesn't dry out like some cakes do).  I like to store it in the refrigerator and a enjoy a slice of it cold the next day.     

Chocolate Pumpkin Cake (Sprouted Gluten-Free Flour & Egg-Free)

This makes 2 cake rounds to make a two layer cake.  Recipe can be divided in half if you only want to make 1 layer of cake or 12 cupcakes.

Equipment: Small Bowl, Food Processor, Standing Mixer or Hand Mixer w/ Bowl, Medium-Size Bowl, Two 8-9" Cake Pans, Parchment Paper, Cooling Racks

• 2 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1/2 cup filtered water
• 1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
• 6 organic apples, peeled, cored, quartered
• 1/2 cup pasture butter (See Resources)
• 1/2 cup honey (I use local raw clover creamed)
• 2 teaspoon gluten-free organic vanilla extract (I use Simply Organic)
• 2 1/2 cups sprouted brown rice flour (See Resources)
• 1 cup cacao powder
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt (See Resources)

1. At least 10 minutes prior to making the cake, combine chia seeds and filtered water in a small bowl.  If possible, soak chia seeds in 1/2 cup water overnight or 24 hours prior to making cake.  [Note: Chia seeds will absorb water and form a "gel", this becomes the egg-replacer.]

2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Grease cake pans.  Cut 2 pieces of parchment paper into a circle that will fit in the bottom of the cake pans.  Add parchment paper circles to the greased cake pans and set aside.  

3. In food processor, add apple pieces and pulse until apples become "applesauce", about 45 seconds-1 minute, scrape down sides during process if necessary.  Add pumpkin puree to the "applesauce" and pulse to combine.  Set aside.  Check out my post on How to Roast a Pumpkin & Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree.  

4. Fit a standing mixer with flat beater.  Add butter and honey, mix on low speed until combined, then increase speed until butter and honey become creamed, about 45 seconds.  

5. Add vanilla, chia seed gel and pumpkin-applesauce to butter-honey mixture.  Mix on low speed until combined.  

6. In a medium-size bowl, combine sprouted brown rice flour, cacao powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Stir to combine.  Add to wet mixture and combine on low speed just until incorporated.  

Little Love mixing the dry ingredients.

8. Add batter to cake pans, making sure to divide the batter evenly in both pans.  

9. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until knife inserted into center of cake comes out clean.  Let cool for 15 minutes in cake pans before removing cakes to cooling racks.  

10.  Do NOT frost until cake rounds are completely cooled.  Frost cake with your favorite frosting.  This cake was frosted with Vanilla Honey Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Buttercream Frosting.  

Vanilla Honey Buttercream Frosting

Yield: Makes two 8-9" cake rounds.

Storage: Store cake in the refrigerator up to 3 days.  


This post is part of Healthy 2day Wednesdays @ day2day joys, Gluten-Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Real Food 101 @ Ruth's Real Food, Real Food Wednesday @ Kelly the Kitchen Kop, Hearth and Soul Hop @ Premeditated Leftovers, Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Simple Lives Thursday @ A Little Bit of Spain in Iowa, Pennywise Platter @ The Nourishing Gourmet, Fight Back Friday @ Food Renegade, Freaky Friday @ Real Food Freaks, Fresh Bites Friday @ Real Food Whole Health, and Homestead Barn Hop @ The Prairie Homestead.

Spiced Pumpkin Smoothie

My little love calls this smoothie "pumpkin pie in a glass."  And it kind of is, minus the crust of course.  I look forward to making this smoothie every Fall when pumpkins are readily available.  It's one of my favorites.

I love the pumpkin and ginger flavors, they go so well together.  I go heavy on the ginger, which makes it pretty spicy.  Adjust the flavors to your liking, not everyone likes ginger as much as me (including my daughter who says "It's too spicy!", so when I make it for both of us, I only use 1 teaspoon ginger). 

Spiced Pumpkin Smoothie

Creamy, spicy, sweet pumpkin goodness in a glass.  Enjoy it for breakfast, as an afternoon snack or for a yummy dessert.  

Equipment: BPA-Free Ice Cube Tray, Microplane/Rasp Zester/Standing Grater, Blender.

Advance Prep: Pumpkin puree needs to be frozen a day prior to making smoothie.

• 1 1/4 cups frozen pumpkin puree (10 cubes from ice cube tray)
• 1 1/4 cups raw milk* (See Resources) or full-fat coconut milk
• 2-3 teaspoons freshly grated/minced ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (See Resources)
• Pinch ground cloves (See Resources)
• 2-3 tablespoons raw honey or organic maple syrup grade B
• Handful ice cubes from filtered water (optional)

1.  The day before you want to make the smoothie, freeze pumpkin puree in a BPA-free ice cube tray.  1 cube = about 2 tablespoons.  Check out my post on How to Roast a Pumpkin & Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree. 

Frozen Homemade Pumpkin Puree

2.  Assemble blender.  

3.  Prep ginger - with a spoon, "peel" the ginger by scraping the skin.  With a Microplane or a standing grater, grate/mince the ginger.  

Use a tea spoon to "peel" the ginger.

3.  Add frozen pumpkin cubes to the blender.  Add milk or coconut milk, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, honey or maple syrup and optional handful of ice cubes.  Place lid on blender.  Blend/puree until everything is combined and becomes smooth.  

4.  Pour into glasses and serve immediately.    

Yield: Makes 2-3 servings.  

Note: Adjust the flavorings to your liking.  If you have a old or cheap blender like I do, you might have to use a little extra milk to help it blend.  My blender has a mind of it's own, sometimes I don't have to add any extra milk and sometimes I do.  


*For California residents, check out my favorite raw milk from Claravale Farm.  They sell to stores and co-ops all over CA. 

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday @ Kelly the Kitchen Kop, Simple Lives Thursday @ GNOWFGLINS, Turning the Table Thursday @ Around My Family Table, Pennywise Platter Thursday @ The Nourishing Gourmet, Fresh Bites Friday @ Real Food Whole Health, Freaky Friday @ Real Food Freaks, Living Well Blog Hop @ Common Sense Homesteading, Real Food 101 @ Ruth's Real Food, Fight Back Friday @ Food Renegade, Monday Mania @ The Healthy Home Economist, Melt in You Mouth Monday @ Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, Fat Tuesday @ Real Food Forager, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday @ Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, and Wellness Weekend @ Diet, Dessert and Dogs.

Creamy Herb Chicken Salad w/ Pomegranate

I LOVE this chicken salad!  I know, there are so many chicken salad recipes out in recipe land, but this one truly is a favorite of mine.  

The pomegranate arils add such a beautiful color to the salad.  When you bite into them, the juice pops in your mouth and adds such a wonderful sweet flavor.  The creaminess comes from my absolute favorite salad dressing, which is made from ground sprouted sunflower seeds.  The combination of the herbs, the sweet pomegranate arils, the crunch from the celery and the creaminess of the dressing is absolutely divine!  

Enjoy!

Creamy Herb Chicken Salad w/ Pomegranate

Make up a batch of this to have ready for the next day.  It's perfect to serve to guests and makes great appetizers in lettuce cups for parties too!

Equipment: Food Processor, Large Mixing Bowl, Cutting Board, Sharp Knife, Medium Mixing Bowl, Small Fine Mesh Strainer

• 1 3/4 cup Creamy Herb Dressing (recipe x 3)
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup pomegranate arils (juice sacs w/ seeds) + filtered water
• 3-4 celery stalks with leaves, thinly sliced
• Shredded meat from 1 whole pasture roasted chicken*
• 2-3 sprigs fresh thyme, stems removed

1. Prepare Creamy Herb Dressing, set aside.  [Note: This dressing can be made up in advance and stored in the refrigerator.]

2. Prep and wash the pomegranate.  Cut pomegranate into quarters with a sharp knife.  Place pomegranate sections in a bowl of filtered water, then gently roll out the arils with your fingers.  Remove white pith and any other parts of the pomegranate.  With a small fine mesh strainer, strain out the water leaving the pomegranate arils behind, set aside.  [Note: The arils are ready to eat now (eat whole arils, seeds and all).  Eat or store (in the refrigerator) whatever arils you don't use in this recipe for later.] 

3. Wash and prep the celery.  Thinly slice celery stalks and place pieces into a large mixing bowl, set aside.  

4. Shred roasted chicken, add shredded meat to large mixing bowl with celery, stir to combine.  

5. Add Creamy Herb Dressing and fresh thyme leaves to the chicken-celery mixture and stir to combine.  

6. Add pomegranate arils to the chicken salad mixture, GENTLY fold in the arils (if you stir too hard, the juice sacs will open and release the juice into the salad, if it happens to some arils, don't worry, it just adds a beautiful pink color to parts of the chicken salad). 

7. Serve cold or store in refrigerator for later.  Make sure to garnish with extra pomegranate arils.  

Yield: Makes about 4-5 cups chicken salad.

Note: This chicken salad is delicious the next day too!  

Storage: Store in the refrigerator, keeps well for 2 days.

Serving Suggestions: Serve on a bed of mixed lettuce greens, place in lettuce cups for small appetizers, serve for lunch or a snack with some raw veggies.  

* If you are a Northern California resident, check out my favorite pastured chicken from Cache Creek Meat Co.  They sell at farmers markets in Sacramento, Davis and Elk Grove as well as select grocery stores. 


This post is part of Monday Mania @ The Healthy Home Economist, The Homestead Barn Hop @ The Prairie Homestead, Melt in Your Mouth Monday @ Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms, Weekend Gourmet Blog Carnival @ Hartke Is Online, Fat Tuesday @ Real Food Forager, Traditional Tuesdays @ Cooking Traditional Foods, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday @ Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free, Gluten-Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Hearth and Soul Hop @ Premeditated Leftovers, Healthy 2day Wednesdays @ day2dayjoys, Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage, Lunchbox Love @ Allergy-Free Vintage Cookery, and Made From Scratch Tuesday @ From Mess Hall to Bistro.