Bible Apps for Children

Barcelona Multimedia has some really good apps for children. Here is a link to their website  http://www.childrenbible.org/nouwp/?app=my-first-bible-games-activities

Incredibly Easy Artisan Bread

I've just discovered this recipe and its amazing! These photos are from yesterday's batch. 

You can use white whole wheat with the same results if you keep the dough wet/sticky.

This blog has step by step directions:  http://www.simplysogood.com/2010/03/crusty-bread.html

RECIPE

3 cups flour

1 3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp instant yeast

1  1/2 cups water

Cinnamon Bread

"Healthier Cinnamon Bread"

A friend recently taught me that when working with whole wheat you need to make sure the dough is really moist. Now I frequently add extra water to the dough. As long as the dough forms a ball, it's not too wet. Wet is better than dry. This recipe works really well with WHITE whole wheat flour (available at Trader Joe's).

Ingredients

1 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup milk (or non-dairy milk)

1/4 cup oil

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup bread flour

2 tsp yeast

Put all ingredients into the bread machine in the order given. Use the dough cycle.

After the bread machine has completed its cycle, let the dough rise for at least an additional hour. Roll out the dough and sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar (I don't usually measure, just cover the dough evenly). Roll the dough into a loaf and let rise. I like to cook it on a pizza stone. It will rise a lot more while baking. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.

If you have any left the following day, it toasts really well!

Boys' Smoothie!

This smoothie is bright green, very easy, and the boys like it!  Now It's a pleasure to eat spinach!

INGREDIENTS

  Frozen pineapple

  Spinach

  Pineapple juice

*** Vanilla soy "ice cream" or cream of choice (you only need a little bit)

***(optional) for myself, I leave it out

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Brussels sprouts have always been one of those vegetables that seemed to me hard to prepare correctly. I found this recipe online and it is great. 

How to cook Brussels sprouts by roasting them:

Trimming

Alright, the next step in learning how to cook Brussels sprouts. Once the vegetables are washed, you want to make sure they look good! And that means a few things.

• You'll want to remove any yellow or brown leaves from your Brussels sprouts. They're wilted and won't be any good. Just keep the nice, tight, bright green sprout!

• After a while, the Brussels sprouts' stem can get kind of tough. You can trim a little bit of the stem off to get a more tender sprout. Don't take off too much though – not much more than an eighth of an inch – or the leaves will just won't hold together anymore.

Cutting

Finally, once the sprouts are clean and trimmed, you may need to cut them up a little bit. It's important that the sprouts not be too big, or it'll take too long for them to cook. And then by the time the center is cooked, the outside will be overcooked and will release that nasty sulfur smell.

It's also important that your Brussels sprout pieces all be about the same size, for just the same reasons. If some pieces are much smaller, they'll be overcooked by the time the bigger ones are done! And that's no good.

So here's what you need to do:

• Any Brussels sprout that has a diameter much bigger than an inch and a half should be cut in half.

• If you have a variety of sizes, cut the medium sprouts in half, and the bigger ones in quarters, so that all the pieces are about the same size.

And that's pretty much all you need to do! And we're ready to learn how to cook Brussels sprouts.

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

2. Prepare the Brussels sprouts as described above. Be sure to quarter them or halve them if they're too big.

3. Toss the sprouts with a bit of oil, salt and pepper. You can also add some herbs or spices to the mix. Garlic is especially good!

   • Each sprout should be coated in oil, to keep it from drying out, but it doesn't need to be very thick at all. In fact, the thinner the better!  YOU ONLY NEED 1-2 TBSP.

4. Place the Brussels sprouts on a sheet pan in a single layer.

5. Roast the sprouts for about 30 minutes, until they're starting to get nicely browned. Stir them halfway through the cooking time.

6. Serve, and enjoy!

Salad Dressing

After trying many salad dressing recipes, here's the one my family likes best. It just happens to be the easiest one too!

This simple recipe will dress a large green salad.

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp vinegar (we like the white balsamic from Trader Joe's)

2 tbsp maple syrup ( or sweetener of choice)

Dash garlic salt

Combine all ingredients and whisk together or blend in magic bullet. For a nice variation add a few berries before blending. After dressing the salad, add fresh pepper and (more) garlic salt to taste.

Variation: blend a few raspberries with the rest of the ingredients. Add some pecans!

Chocolate Milk

This a non-dairy version which my son enjoys regularly. I like mine heated.

Ingredients:  

1 cup very cold  non-dairy milk, vanilla flavored

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp cocoa

Blend all ingredients until foamy. 

Oven Roasted Sliced Potatoes

These potatoes are one of our favorite snacks and are so easy to prepare

Simply quarter potatoes then slice each quarter into 3-4 pieces. Spray a sheet pan with vegetable oil spray. Lay the  potatoes on the pan and sprinkle with salt and parsley and any other seasonings you like. Cook at 425 for about 30 minutes. When you see a little browning you'll know they're done.

Refried Beans Without the Refry

A friend gave me this recipe and it is so flavorful!  This is a favorite, especially over brown rice, very healthful, no fat.

INGREDIENTS:

1 onion, peeled and halved

4 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed

1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

2 tablespoons minced garlic

5 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin, optional

9 cups water

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. 

2. Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency. 

You can also eat as a bean soup.

Chaco Canyon

If you're looking for a healthy restaurant in the Seattle area,  I recommend Chaco Canyon. 
We especially like the lentil burgers and the Thai Peanut Bowl.

Description from menu:

Chaco’s spicy, gingery peanut sauce atop brown rice, sesame-baked cabbage (raw mixed vegetables available on request), and fresh baby spinach, topped with toasted peanuts.


Fresh baby spinach with brown rice is really good ... Something you can always have on hand !

Scalloped Potatoes

This is a recipe from the Newstart Club. It tastes just like the butter and cheese version. Super good and healthy!

Ingredients

• 1 qt. thinly sliced, scrubbed raw potatoes (with skins)
• 1/2 c. raw cashews
• 2 c. water
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. onion powder, onion flakes or raw onions
• 
  

Instructions

1. Put potatoes in thinly oiled baking dish
2. Liquefy all other ingredients and pour over potatoes
3. Cover with foil and bake 1 1/2 hours at 375 degrees
4. Remove foil, sprinkle with paprika and return to oven just long enough to brown.

Delicious Fruit Shakes

In our family, these shakes have taken the place of ice cream.

Ingredients

Vanilla soy creamy from Trader Joe's

Frozen fruit of choice
100% fruit juice or juice squeeze

Put frozen fruit of your choice with a scoop of soy creamy in the Vitamix and add juice until desired consistency 

ABOUT JUICE SQUEEZE

Lightly carbonated with 70% real fruit juice, Crystal Geyser® Juice Squeeze® is a natural and delicious sparkling juice refreshment.

Our five all-natural flavors are sweetened only with fruit juice and contain no added sugar, no corn syrup, no artificial ingredients, and no preservatives.

A wholesome alternative to sugared or artificially sweetened soft drinks, a 12 oz. bottle of Juice Squeeze provides a USDA full serving of fruit.

Honey Bread

Put all ingredients into bread machine in the order given. Use the dough cycle. Once it is complete knead into a loaf and place on a pizza stone to rise for up to an hour. Bake at 350 for 30 - 45  minutes.

1 cup       water

1 tbsp.      oil

1/4 cup     honey

1 tsp.        salt

1 cup        oatmeal

2 cups      whole wheat flour

2 1/2 tsp   yeast

Basic Granola

Combine on cookie sheet

6 c oats
1 c dry roasted sunflower seeds
2 c nuts (I prefer sliced almonds, pecans or walnuts )
1 c unsweetened coconut

Mix  together, then pour over dry ingredients on cookie sheet:

1/4 c  b sugar (optional)
1/2 c  maple syrup
1/2 c  vegetable oil or coconut oil
1/2 c  honey

Cook at 350 until desired color,  stirring frequently 

I have tried an additional cup of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, cashews, etc.
Dried fruit should work just as well.

You can make it healthier by leaving out the oil and brown sugar. With the nuts and coconut there's enough natural oil.

Granola Bars

Granola  Bars ...Protein Packed!

I double this . You can use any nut or seed combination you like

old-fashioned rolled oats, 2 cups

sunflower seeds, 1/2 cup

sliced almonds, 1 cup (any nut)

wheat germ, 1/2 cup

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes 

honey, 1/4 cup

brown sugar,  1/4 cup packed

1 tsp oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt  (optional )

Optional:

6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries

Directions

Line 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish with parchment paper and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, coconut and wheat germ onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, combine the honey, brown sugar, oil, extract and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook until the brown sugar has completely dissolved. It will be bubbly and light brown

Once the oat mixture is done, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. 

Immediately add the oat mixture to the liquid mixture, add the dried fruit, and stir to combine. 

Turn mixture out into the prepared baking dish, distributing evenly and press down with a sheet of parchment paper...VERY  HARD!!

Bake for 20 minutes. 

Remove from the oven and allow to cool (About 20 min) 

Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Trader Joe's

From Trader Joe's website:

 What can I expect from Trader Joe's private label products (anything with Trader Joe's, Trader Jose's, Trader Ming's, etc. on the label)?

Trader Joe's private label products promise great quality fare for exceptional, everyday prices. We taste everything before we put our name on it and offer only what we feel is extraordinary. We tried it. We like it. If you don't, bring it back for a refund or exchange — no hassles.

When you see our name on a label, you can be assured that the product contains:

• √ NO artificial flavors or preservatives
• √ NO synthetic colors
• √ NO MSG
• √ NO genetically modified ingredients
• √ NO partially hydrogenated oils (artificial trans-fats)
• √ NO "marketing" costs
• √ YES tasting panel approval
• √ YES quality ingredients
• √ YES great price

Cashew Coconut Granola

This delicious recipe is from the Newstart Lifestyle Club 

 http://newstartclub.com/

Ingredients

• 3 c. rolled oats (or half rolled and half quick oats)
• ⅔ c. raw or dry roasted whole cashews
• ½ c. unsweetened shredded coconut
• ½ c. ground flaxseeds
• ⅓ c. almond or cashew butter
• ½ c. maple syrup
• 2 tbsp. vanilla
• ½ tsp. cinnamon (optional)
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 300° F. In a large bowl, place oats, cashews, coconut, and flax seeds, stirring together.
2. In a small food processor or blender process remaining ingredients.
3. Mix liquid ingredients well with oats and nuts in bowl.
4. Transfer to a large baking dish or tray, spreading it out loosely.
5. Bake 50 – 60 minutes until crunchy and lightly brown.
6. Stir once or twice during the baking to loosen any clumps.

Makes 5 cups or 10 servings

Luther's Small Catechism

THE LORD'S PRAYER

The Fourth Petition.

Give us this day our daily bread.

What does this mean?--Answer.
God gives daily bread, even without our prayer, to all wicked men; but we pray in this petition that He would lead us to know it, and to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.

What is meant by daily bread?--Answer.
Everything that belongs to the support and wants of the body, such as meat, drink, clothing, shoes, house, homestead, field, cattle, money, goods, a pious spouse, pious children, pious servants, pious and faithful magistrates, good government, good weather, peace, health, discipline, honor, good friends, faithful neighbors, and the like.