Happy Thanksgiving- Amazing Adventure Apple Picking

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian and ex-pat friends, family and followers!
On this special day of giving THANKS, I wanted to spread some love and say that I am grateful for each and everyone one of you and mention that without all your love and support I would not have come so far on my healthy living journey! Merci, Gracias, Thanks!

On this Fall Festival of the Harvest, I wanted to share some of our own harvesting we recently dig. One of our favourite Fall activities... the Amazing Adventure that is 'Apple Picking' at our  favourite Milton Farm- Williams Orchards.

This time was an adventure of a different kind because it was Stephanie's first time apple picking. Well, first off, she LOVED the cart.

...she loved trying to eat a whole apple for the first time.

...so did Melanie, but it wasn't her first time !

...so did  my Mom! It got pretty warm and we started peeling off our layers onto the wagon.

Mother- daughter picking moment.

... and I love this 'oooooh' face of hers... so cute!

...maybe she'll try another again?

I love my sister!

...my sister loves apples!

So much fun placing the apples gently into the baskets, right Stephanie? LOL, she was pitching them in... so we had to intercept, and for those bruised ones that got by... well I just cut them up right away. I'll show you below.

Stephanie the Farmer sitting on her big tractor. It was a wonderful day and we were blessed with gorgeous weather.

Then I got home and knew I had to do something with this half bushel of apples. I read somewhere that if you cut up the apple in and place them in a large bowl with water and about 1 tablespoon of vinegar and they won't go brown. It worked! I placed these apples on a cookies sheet all separated, and then once they were frozen, I placed them in large freezer bags. So now I have bags full of frozen, sliced apples ready to go any time I have the urge to bake some crisps!

... and of course, I had to make my delicious apple crisp too... you know, quality control. Had to make sure they were good enough to be called McIntosh!

My first attempt at Biscotti

Yup, this was my first attempt at making Biscotti.... and let me tell you.... they turned out real good! So here are the details.

Biscotti is a healthy alternative during the Holidays as they are made with very little fat and you can fill them with healthy things such as almonds and cranberries.

Here's the recipe I tried:

Cranberry-Almond Biscotti

Adapted from http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/cranberry-almond-biscotti

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup almonds, coarsely chopped (2 1/2 ounces)

1.Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt.

2.In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar at medium speed until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the butter and almond extract. Pour the egg mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Stir in the dried cranberries and almonds.

3.Using lightly floured hands, shape the dough into 2 slightly flattened 10-inch logs on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden. Let the logs cool slightly.

4.Using a sharp serrated knife, slice the logs 1/2 inch thick on the diagonal. Arrange the slices on the baking sheet cut sides up and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the biscotti are lightly browned and crisp. Let cool completely before serving.

SERVINGS: MAKES 2 DOZEN BISCOTTI

Nutritional Details for one cookie:

Calories 111 kcal, Total Fat 3.5 gm, Saturated Fat 1.2 gm, Protein 2 gm, Carbohydrates 18 gm.

I would definitively make these again, next time pecans and dried apricots or dried cherries and dark chocolate chips... ok stop me!!!

Positively the My Favourite Cookie so far! Fruti and Nut Cookies

This reciped comes from Melanie's cookbook. One of our dear friends Robin, gave it to her this past Christmas. It's called the Kid's Fun & Healthy Cookbook. Ok well, I love it, and Mella is warming up to it - but I made these ones by myself. But the whole family and friends and co-workers .... all enjoyed them.

Fruit & Nut Cookies (adapted from the Kid’s Fun & Healthy Cookbook)

Makes 18 big cookies

Ingredients:

½ cup chopped dried apricots

¾ cup whole wheat flour

¾ whole oats

½ cup chopped almonds

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter

5 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp honey

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F and lightly grease baking sheet. Cut the apricots into small pieces and put in large mixing bowl. Add the flour, oats and nuts to the bowl and mix all together. Cut the butter into small chunks and put into a saucepan. Add the sugar and honey to the saucepan and heat over low heat. Stir  gently until the butter and sugar have melted.  Add the butter mixture to the bowl and mix.

 I made some Almond Apricot.

And some Dark chocolate chips and dried cherries.

Put a spoonful onto the cookie tray and flatten the cookies so them about 1 cm thick.  Bake for 15 minutes or until they are light golden.   

Here are the chocolate/cherry cookies. Melanie and I's favourite.

And here are the apricot/almond cookies. Brent's favourite.

Remove the trays from the oven and leave the cookies to cool slightly. Then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool and become crisp.

Tasty twists:

Instead of the apricot and almond you could change it up. I used dried cherries and dark chocolate chips (even better). You could use raisins, cranberries, dates, other nuts.

Nutritional Information:

126 calories, 15g carbs, 7g fat , 2g protein , 1g fibre, 7g sugar

Delicious and buttery!

Dark and mysterious!

Best Blueberry Recipe so far- Make this for your Mother today- Baked French Toast

Happy Mother's Day to all the beautiful Mother's of the World! This is such a delicious recipe, you should make it and share it with your mother. Just look at how healthy and shinny those baked blueberries look.

When I mean that this is a healthy alternative- I am making a comparison to the Paula Dean's Baked Praline French Toast recipe that I used to turn to for brunch- now I don't want all that butter, sugar and more sugar and cream. This recipe was going to be perfect for our upcoming healthy tea party/breakfast party. It contains whole wheat baguette, light milk, almonds and blueberries filled with antioxidants.

Blueberry Almond Baked French Toast

(adapted from http://www.mrbreakfast.com/superdisplay.asp?recipeid=2710)

    1 whole-wheat baguette (about 18 inches long) - cut into 1-inch cubes

    12 large egg

     2 cups lowfat milk

    1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

    1/3 cup pure maple syrup

    2 cups fresh blueberries

    1/3 cup sliced almonds

    2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar

Prepare a 9x13 baking pan by spraying the inside with cooking spray.

Place the bread in a single layer in the baking pan. It fits perfectly in the dish.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and maple syrup. Pour this mixture over the bread in the pan. Scatter the blueberries evenly over the top and sprinkle with the almonds and brown sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (at least 4 hours).

When ready to prepare, bake for 40 to 50 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 degrees. 

Just soaking up the bread and milk goodness- the before baking photo.

Serves 8.

Nutritional Information:

314 calories ,39g carbs, 11g fat,  15g, protein, 3g fibre,  22g sugar



Oatmeal Raspberry Almond Bars ... shared with many

I made a big batch of these squares and loved everyone's comments. I brought them to work (more details on that), brought them to my sister's and shared them on Scrapbooking Night. They were a hit! It's not a 'low fat' recipe, but I cut the squares small enough that you could enjoy one as a snack.

Raspberry Almond Bars (adapted from http://www.robinhood.ca/Recipe-details.aspx?rid=2716)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) ROBIN HOOD® or OLD MILL® Oats

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) ROBIN HOOD® All Purpose Whole Wheat Flour

1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder

1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt

1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup (175 mL) butter, melted

3/4 cup Raspberry Jam ( I used the Triple Fruit, no sugar added)

1/2 cup (125 mL) sliced almonds

 Directions:

1. COMBINE flour, baking powder, salt and brown sugar in mixing bowl. Stir well to blend. Stir in oats. Stir in melted butter.

2. PRESS about 2/3 of crumb mixture into lightly greased 9" x 9" (3.5 L) cake pan. Spread with raspberry jam.

3. ADD almonds to remaining crumb mixture and sprinkle over jam. Pat down lightly.

4. BAKE at 350 F for 25-30 minutes or until golden. Cool. Cut into bars. Just before serving, sprinkle with icing sugar, if desired.

I cut them into 49 little squares (7 x 7) because these are not low fat, but filled with whole wheat and oats.

Nutritional Information per square: 76 calories, 10g carbs, 4g fat, 1g protein, 1g fibre, 1 g sugar

3 weeks after giving birth, my incredible sister invited me for lunch- impressive, right?  I am so grateful that I work only 5 minutes from her home. She had made this little spread for us, so I brought some of these yummy squares to say thank you!

Stephanie wasn't in the mood for lunch, so she just napped.

Well, I couldn't go visit without hugging and kissing her... it was so hard to leave and go back to work after lunch. The only form of comfort was that I had her little baby smell (a combination diaper wipes and Ivory Snow) all over me when I was back at work.

Cranberry Pistachio Dark Chocolate Bark

This is really delicious and 'good for you' and I think the addition of the roasted almonds actually makes it even better, gives it a deeper, richer taste!

Cranberry Pistachio Dark Chocolate Bark (adapted from Skinnytaste.com)

Ingredients:

•             4.5 oz shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped  (I topped it up with some roasted slivered almonds)

•             2.5 oz dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

•             7 oz dark chocolate bar (organic preferred)

Directions:

Place chocolate in a microwave-safe measuring cup; microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until chocolate melts, stirring every 15 seconds. Add  melted chocolate to nut mixture, stirring until just combined.

Spread mixture evenly on a jelly-roll pan lined with foil; freeze 1 hour. Break into pieces. Bark should be kept in an airtight container in the fridge or a cool room. It will keep for up to 3 weeks.

Servings: 14 • Size: 1 oz (roughly 3-1/2 x 3-1/2"  )

Calories: 126.6 • Fat: 8.1 g • Protein: 2.6 g • Carb: 15.3 g • Fiber: 2.1 g • Sugar: 10.7 g

Here's what it looks like after the chocolate is all melted and all the ingredients added and spread out on the foil.

More Healthier Christmas Baking Recipes- Almond Cranberry Bites

Almond Cranberry Bites (adapted from http://www.eatingwell.com/)

These are delicious. I love the Almond Extract Flavour, it makes them taste them so 'Almondy'.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup whole almonds

1/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup coarsely chopped dried cherries or cranberries ( I used cranberries)

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoon canola oil

1 large egg white

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

3 tablespoons dark chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Grind almonds and sugar in a food processor to desired texture: a coarser texture will give you small almond pieces in the cookie; a fine grind will give great almond flavour without any crunch from the almonds. (Be careful to not overgrind: you will get almond paste.) Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Add cherries/cranberries, flour and chocolate chips; mix to combine.

3. Add oil, egg white, and vanilla and almond extracts; mix with a wooden spoon until well incorporated.

4. Shape the dough into walnut-size balls with your hands or a small cookie scoop (about 1 rounded tablespoon each) and place 1 1/2 inches apart on a large, ungreased baking sheet.

5.Bake until the bottoms are golden (the top will stay white), 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutriotional Information per cookie:

101 calories

4 g fat

15 g carbohydrates

2 g protein

1 g fibre

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

... and sound like it. Well at least in my world. Mella has been singing Christmas songs for a week now and is preparing her Christmas list for Santa. I have done lots of bits and pieces of the Christmas shopping I need to do. Hope to be creative for many!  And check this photo out, enjoying my favourite Cafe Misto, non fat mild with half a pack of splenda... now being served in a Christmas Cup.

Enjoyed at my local Longos along with this healthy treat... it was hard to find something at the Starbucks that wasn't loaded with fat and sugar... but this came in on the healtier side. They are labelled with Starbucks and come in a 42.5g serving.

I tried to search for a recipe to show me how to make these at home and then stumbled upon the manufacturer's website. So they sell these in Whole Foods, No Frills, Shoppers Drug Mart. So maybe I will go check them out in the 'big girl' size at one of these stores as the little pouch cost me about $2 at Starbucks.