Organic Granny

I love pumpkin pie and could eat it any day any time, but the fact is that pumpkin pie is generally pretty much off my dietary radar what with the custardy ingredients and pie crust.  So, how nice to know that there is a ' pumpkin pie "fix" that is healthy, vegan, gluten-free and a great breakfast item full of Vitamins A, B and fibre!  I have also included the recipe for Pumpkin Pie Spice, a mixture you can make it bulk and then just add a spoonful to your future pumpkin porridge pie recipes.  Make your own with organic spices.   The spices will help to keep your LDL and triglycerides at normal levels. Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix Ingredients: (for one pumpkin pie porridge recipe below)  1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon   1/4 teaspoons ground Ginger 1/8 teaspoon ground Nutmeg   1/8 teaspoon ground Allspice   1/2 teaspoon organic Stevia powder  Preparation: Combine all ingredients. If you make extra, store in an airtight container. Pumpkin Pie Porridge  

When I asked my husband what he wanted for breakfast this morning, he said, "Well, seems like you're on a roll with those porridge recipes". Aha. So, a new recipe needed today. And thus, thanks to Google, here is my take on a carob-blueberry pudding porridge.  It's a little fussier in the making, but well-worth it (fussier in that it needs to be done in a couple of steps vs. just throwing everything together in a pot from the get-go). It smells soooo yummy as it cooks-- remember that chocolate was once known as "the poor man's carob".   This porridge will meet all your chocolate cravings, but with wonderful nutrients and none of the stimulants of  caffeine or theobromine found in chocolate.   Remember to use Gluten-Free Oats if you are sensitive to gluten and wheat. Ingredients: 1 C.     Steel Cut Oats 1/2 tsp. Salt  1/4 C.   Chia seed 1/2 C.  Coconut shreds 3 C.     Water 1/2 C.  Carob powder 1/4 C.  Fairtrade Raw Cane Sugar (I use Who

Deluxe Apple Pie Oatmeal Porridge-- and YES, that is a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream-- (optional) The Crazy Carrot Cake Oatmeal Porridge (Vegan and Gluten-Free) was such a hit that I thought I would add in some more tarted-up porridges.  Today you will find a recipe for Deluxe Apple Pie Oatmeal Porridge -- the "deluxe" reference alludes to the inclusion of more than 5 ingredients (I don't think any recipe should contain more than 5 ingredients in this stressful world we live in, but, sometimes, alas, more is tastier...)  This could be your company's-here breakfast.  This could also be adapted to the crockpot with very little hassle.  Be sure to use the best organic ingredients as much as you are able. Ingredients (Makes 2 very hearty helpings... could be 3-4 with less zesty eaters) 1 C. Steel Cut Oats (use a GF brand) 1 T. Chia Seed 3 Apples , cored and chopped (skin on) 1/2 tsp. Salt (or to taste) 2 T. Cinnamon 1 small nob fresh Gin

Another sort of gloomy, cool, and foggy morning here on Vancouver Island.  We know that Spring is on the way, but ... So, it calls for a bowl of porridge-- something that "sticks to your ribs" as my mother used to say (I think she said that, but it may have been someone else).   Here is a plug for healthy organic eating (and cooking)-- food actually TASTES better when it is organically-grown.  That is my observation, and apparently, it's true, according to food scientist Harold McGee (quoted from a blog over at The Kitchn.com ): " when plants are under attack, they begin to ramp up production of their chemical defenses. This can mean releasing an aroma that attracts counter-attacking bugs (wasps for caterpillars, for instance), manufacturing something toxic or distasteful to the insects themselves, or producing an anti-fungal compound. For us, these "defenses" translate directly into flavor and aroma. McGee says, "Because they're not prote

Do you, or someone in your household, bake this fragrant, hearty, genuine crusty bread?  The particular loaf above is a rye bread with caraway seeds in it.  It has a crispy, crunchy crust and a hole-y crumb (inside of the bread).  I baked it using the fantastic recipe and videos from Breadtopia AND my brand new favourite tool (read: kitchen toy) called LaCloche (you can see it in the background.)  It's a stoneware, or clay (or you can use enameled cast iron) "baker" that comes in two parts: a baking 'pan' base (more like a cake pan in shape) and a heavy lid. Available from Amazon. Click Above. The LaCloche simulates baking your bread in a clay oven (the highlight of Pioneer Days in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan was the delicious bread the Hutterites baked in an earthen/clay oven behind their booth). This rye bread is no-knead... that means you don't thump and knead it as part of the process.  It's made with quite a lot of water, and allowed to rise

So, I made this delicious Upside Down Banana Cake adapting a recipe from the blog US Masala I saw on Pinterest -- dee-lish-us!  I did lots of substitutions to the original, but I'm sure it tasted just as good, but not better.  This is a great way to use up 3 or 4 over-ripe bananas.  I made fresh apple sauce in my Vitamix, but you can, of course, use the ready-made stuff.  And I used both coconut oil instead of butter and coconut oil (melted) instead of the oil called for in the original recipe.  AND, I made full use of my food processor, as usual.  But other than that, well, it could be the same recipe. INGREDIENTS: For the Upside-Down Layer: 3 ripe bananas, cut in 1/2" pieces 1/4 C. Brown Sugar 3 T. Melted Coconut Oil For the Cake: 1 C. Unbleached Flour  (or sub 1 1/2 C. GF mix for this and the tapioca starch) 1/2 C. Tapioca Starch 1 tsp. Baking Powder 1 tsp. Baking Soda 1/4 tsp. Sea Salt 1/2 - 1 tsp. Organic Cinnamon 5 T. Coconut Sugar 1 tsp. Vanilla (

Every Girl Should Know How To Make A Salad I have had a lovely summer... and lots of great salads! Above is a picture of my 6-year old granddaughter making a salad -- what I want her to be skilled at in the kitchen, actually.  In my day it was an omelet.  But we vegans have different ideas about what is appropriate! If you want to see a pile of excellent salad recipes why not go to my Pinterest Salad Board and 'follow' it?  There are great recipes for salads on there right now, and a bunch more to come!  You could have a different salad every day of the year...wow! (Keep them organic of course!)