cooking ala mel

Chai Spice Granola

May 31, 2012

So far, this week has been pretty fun and exciting to me in probably the lamest way possible. On Tuesday, I began Insanity: the Asylum. The past few weeks after I finished Insanity, I’ve been mixing it up with bike rides, yoga, and a few random Insanity workouts here and there, to allow my body to recover before beginning the Asylum. So far, I absolutely love it. Each workout has been extremely different, which I love, and there’s a lot more strength involved rather than just a bazillion explosive cardio moves like in Insanity. It’s a really nice change of pace, and I’m dripping in sweat pretty much the entire time – gotta love it! With starting another vigorous workout program, I figured I should probably restock my protein powder; I’ve been out for weeks, now. I ended up trying out Nitro Fusion’s chocolate raspberry protein powder that’s from a bunch of natural sources (and it’s vegan). Since I’ve been working at GNC, and I’ve been learning a lot more about protein powders, I figured this one would taste awful since it’s made from pea protein and such, but I was pleasantly surprised by how good it tastes! It’s not overly expensive, either, so I’m pretty excited about it!

Since I’ve been working a good bit lately, I decided I ought to make some good granola to keep me going throughout the day; there’s nothing worse than being at work hungry! I decided to make a chai spiced granola – it’s been something I’ve wanted to do for a while – and I am so happy with how this turned out.

Because I’m not a huge fan of cardamom, I went with a very subtle spice mix for this granola. If you like it stronger, just increase each spice by 1/4 teaspoon. I love the flavor of this, and it’s the perfect mix of soft and crunchy. I used both golden and regular raisins and a dried fruit mixture of prunes, apricots, pears, and apples, but use whatever dried fruit is your favorite, in the same amount! Same goes for nuts and seeds.

This granola is perfect with a splash of milk, over some plain greek yogurt, or just by the handful. It’s full of healthy fats, slow absorbing carbs, and protein, so it’ll keep you feeling satisfied for a long time. Perfect! 🙂

Chai Spice Granola

makes about 2 quarts

4 cups oats

2 cups kamut puffs (or brown rice puffs)

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut

1 cup almonds, roughly chopped

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 t salt

1/2 t cardamom

1 t cinnamon

1/2 t cloves

1/2 t ginger

1/4 t nutmeg

1/4 t pepper

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 t vanilla

1/4 cup (14 packets) truvia *see note

2 cups dried fruit (raisins, etc.)

In a large bowl, combine the oats, kamut puffs, coconut, almonds, sunflower seeds, salt, and spices. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the coconut oil, water, truvia, and vanilla together over medium heat, stirring until the coconut oil is melted and the truvia dissolved.

Pour the liquid mixture over the oat mixture, and stir until evenly coated.

Spread the oat mixture evenly onto two baking sheets, and bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes, until lightly golden. Allow to cool slightly, and then stir in the dried fruit. Store in an airtight container.

*Note: You can use 1/2 cup sugar in place of the truvia, or you can use 1/2 cup honey, and then lower the amount of water to 1/4 cup.

Gluten Free Flax Brownies

May 29, 2012

Lately, I’ve come to realize that I’m much more likely to do something if I write it down. I’m also more likely to go through with something if I tell someone about it. When it comes to working out, I have a chalkboard frame that I made a while ago with a weekly schedule on it hanging in the room I do my indoor work outs in; I’ve noticed that if I don’t update it, I tend to be less motivated to actually do something. I feel like I’m held accountable when it’s in writing, or I give someone my word.

Being held accountable is sort of how this recipe came out of my kitchen. Alex kept commenting on how I haven’t seemed very motivated with the blog lately, and so of course immediately I got to wondering why that was, and I realized I just wasn’t that inspired to make anything. I told him I’d get on it, and immediately went looking through my bookmarked and pinned recipes to see if there was anything that caught my eye. For whatever reason, I can’t seem to get my mind off of brownies these days, so I wanted to try my hand at a flax brownie that Carolyn over at All Day I Dream About Food made.

Because I can’t leave well enough alone (and I didn’t feel like making oat flour), I adapted this recipe a good bit to suit my tastes, using a combination of coconut oil and butter, adding instant espresso, subbing out the oat flour for almond flour, and using truvia in place of erythritol. While these brownies are definitely good and fudgy, the flax does give it an interesting flavor, so it may not be for everyone. As long as it’s chocolate, I usually end up enjoying it, and the addition of chocolate chips really boosts the chocolatey flavor a good bit. I’m definitely a fan of these!

I love how these are so high in fiber and good fats. And without any sugar (other than what is in the chocolate chips), I am pretty okay with having these at any point of the day. Any excuse to have more dessert is fine by me!

My most recent brownie were these gluten free brownies made primarily with almond flour. Should I take a break with the brownie recipes? Haha.. I’ve been having a lot of fun with them! What is your favorite brownie – fudgy or cakey?

GF Flax Brownies
heavily adapted from All Day I Dream About Food
makes one 8×8″ pan

3 T coconut oil
3 T butter
3 oz. dark chocolate
1 T instant espresso
1/2 t vanilla
3/4 cup ground flax seed
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup truvia (or 14 packets)
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Melt the coconut oil, butter, and dark chocolate together, either in the microwave at 30-second intervals or on the stove. Once melted, stir in the instant espresso and vanilla. Set aside. In a medium bowl, stir together the ground flax, almond flour, truvia, baking soda, and salt. Whisk in the eggs, and then stir in the melted chocolate mixture, until smooth. Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour the batter into a parchment lined 8×8″ pan, and smooth with a spatula. Bake at 350ºF for 15-18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before cutting into squares. Store in an airtight container.

Iced Strawberry Lemonade Tea

May 27, 2012

Has everyone been having a nice, long Memorial Day weekend? We’ve had a very relaxing weekend, with lots of episodes of Mad Men, kitty cuddles, and long walks, with some visits with Alex’s family in between. On Saturday, while we had our sliding glass door open for the kitties to look through the screen, I decided we needed a summery beverage for the beautiful weather. With some lemons in the fridge, some freshly brewed iced tea (I have been going through pretty much a gallon a day.. oops!), and frozen strawberries that I keep handy for smoothies, I was all set to make this iced strawberry lemonade tea.

This hit the spot. Nice and cold, with a twinge of sour and a hint of sweet, it’s perfect for a hot summer day (which we’ve been having a lot of lately.. and it’s only the end of May.. what will July be like?!). While the tea flavor isn’t very pronounced in this, since there really isn’t that much in it, it gives it more flavor than it would if you were using water.. obviously.

I love using the whole lemon (minus the rind) in drinks like this. It thickens it up perfectly. I’m a pulp lover. If you’re not that big of a fan of pulp, that’s totally okay too – just use the juice from 4 lemons instead of using the whole thing. No problem!

I can imagine this would make a lovely cocktail, as well, so if you want to add your favorite booze, go for it! Just be sure to let me know how it went! 🙂

Iced Strawberry Lemonade Tea
serves 4

2 1/2 cups frozen strawberries
4 whole lemons, rinds removed
2 cups unsweetened iced tea
liquid stevia, to taste (I used ≈60 drops, or 2 droppers full – you could also use 1/2 cup sugar)

In a blender, combine the strawberries, lemons, and iced tea. Blend until smooth. Add sweetener until it reaches the desired sweetness, and blend until well mixed. Serve immediately.