Maple Walnut Energy Bars

What NOT to do when you have a bat trapped in your apartment:

Don't attempt to capture the bat by throwing a blanket over it while it's flying around your head. You will never catch that sonnabitch. It also may pee or poop on you. No fun. I don't even know what bat poop looks like and I never want to find out.

Don't let your dogs in the same room as the bat. The dogs will think it's a chew toy and will chase after the bat like it's life depended on it. For HOURS.

Don't try to remove the bat from the corner of a window with a pair of kitchen tongs. You will get bit and have to go to the ER for a rabies shot.  You may also turn into a vampire.

Don't stare into it's beady eyes. The bat will secure total mind control over you.

What TO DO when you have a bat in your house:

Put as many layers of clothing on as possible, including gloves and a winter hat, despite the fact that it's 92 degrees in your apartment. Carefully open the window, run out of the room and shut the door behind you.

While you wait for the killer vampire bat to quietly leave get the hell outta your bedroom, make some maple walnut energy bars. They take about 10 minutes to throw together, just enough time for the bat to realize that it's out of it's element and that it needs to reck-onize and fly back into the night.

You give the bat an extra 20 minutes, you know... just because, which is exactly how long it takes for these energy bars to firm up in the freezer.

You slowly open the door, in case the bat, in your absence, gave birth to 72 baby bats, and they are waiting on the other side of the door to kill you.

You peek around, realize the bat is gone and slam the window shut.

With all that energy expended you go enjoy yourself a shot of whiskey and an energy bar.

You deserve it.

Maple Walnut Energy Bars (makes 12 bars)
Slightly adapted from Muffin Tin Mania

1 1/2 c. rolled oats
1 c. chopped pitted dates
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. raw cashews
1/2 c. walnuts
1/3 c. sunflower seeds
2 T. ground flax seed
2 T. hemp seed
2 T. sesame seeds
couple pinches of sea salt
1/3 c. maple syrup
1/4 c. peanut butter (or any other nut butter)
1/4 c. raw cacao nibs (optional)

Lightly grease a 12 cup muffin tin with a little coconut oil (or any other neutral tasting oil).  This method will give you pretty decent sized energy "cups". However, you can skip this step and form the mixture into small bars or balls and then proceed with the recipe.
Place all ingredients except the peanut butter and maple syrup in a food processor and process until oats and nuts resemble fine crumbs. Add the peanut butter and maple syrup and blend until the mixture clumps together. Divide the mixture between the greased muffin cups and press down to firmly pack contents.
Place tray in the freezer for 20-30 minutes to harden up, then unmold and store in an airtight container in the fridge. If you made bars or balls, simply freeze on a cookie sheet and then transfer to an airtight container or wrap individually in saran wrap and store in the refrigerator.

Green Drank

As much as I love sitting down to a big 'ol bowl of greens, sometimes it's not always practical. As someone who is always on the go, a liquid lunch is an easy way to consume a large amount of fruit and vegetables, but without all of that dang chewing.

Now.. the difference between fresh juice and a green smoothie is the fiber content.  Juicing, removes all the fiber, but leaves you with a nutrient dense, power packed beverage that is easliy assimilated by the body, giving you a quick boost of energy. Smoothies on the other hand, retain their fiber, which is why they will leave you full, longer. I'll usually reach for a juice when I feel a cold coming on, or haven't been eating as healthy as I should, whereas a smoothie can take the place of lunch when I'm running around and need something to keep me going.

I like packing my smoothies with lots of goodness.  Fruit, greens, nuts and seeds, and superfoods like maca, spirulina and raw cacao.  Not only are these great for you body they can give you a serious boost. Throwing some greens in your smoothie is a great way to sneak some vegetables into your diet.

If you are new to the green smoothie phenomenon, start out slow. Add a small handful of spinach or chard to your next blended drink and then work your way up to heartier greens like kale. Most smoothies contain a good amount of fruit which easily masks the bitterness of most greens.

The green drank is the new purple drank. Jump on the bandwagon and get your green on!

Green Drank (makes one drink, approximately 16-20 oz.)

2 bananas
1/2 c. frozen mango
3/4c.-1 c. coconut water
3 leaves of kale, finely chopped
1 T. ground flax seed
2 T. hemp seeds
2 dates, pitted
2-3 ice cubes

Place everything in a blender. Blend until smooth and drink it up!

Spirulina Smoothie with Hemp and Flax Seed

Spirulina is a simple one celled form of algae that thrives in warm, alkaline fresh water bodies and is one of the most nutritious and concentrated food sources on the planet.
It is one of the few plant based sources of vitamin B12 (4 times higher than the amount in raw liver!), it's high in easily digestible protein, and is one of the best sources of GLA (gamma linolenic acid), an important acid for heart and joint health. It is high in minerals (including calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc, potassium and selenium), contains 18 amino acids, is rich in chlorophyll, boosts immunity and can assist in drawing heavy metals and toxins from your system.

Oh, yeah.....

Let's do this.

Spirulina Smoothie with Hemp and Flax Seed (makes 1- 16 oz. smoothie)

1/2-1 c. yerba mate (water or your favorite juice can be substituted with great results)
2 frozen bananas (just peel, cut into chunks, place in a pastic bag and freeze for at least 6 hours)
1 T. spirulina
1 T. raw honey
1 1/2 T. ground flax seed
2 T. hemp seeds

Place bananas, spirulina, hemp and flax seeds and honey in a blender. Add 1/2 c. yerba mate and blend. If your smoothie seems too thick, add more yerba mate until your smoothie is thick and creamy.

Oatcakes

These aren't your typical oatcakes.

Why do I know this?

'Cause I like to look up random facts on wikipedia, so when someone asks me a question on some far fetched subject I will inevitably know the answer.

One day I will be a finalist on jeapordy. Just you wait..

So apparently the Scottish, English, and Canadians all have there own version of a propa' oatcake. 

Some oatcakes are more cracker like or chewy, whereas others are more resemblant of a pancake.

This one here is neither cracker like or chewy and sure as hell doesn't look or taste like a pancake.

Although they look like mini muffins, they are more like a dense biscuit or a cookie.. A cookie biscuit!

My friend/co-worker Renee featured these on her awesome blog, Nourish Your Roots via a recipe from Supernatural Everyday's mastermind Heidi Swanson from 101 Cookbooks.  Both of these ladies got it going on, so I figured if THEY liked them, I would as well.

Packed with oats, whole wheat pastry flour, flax seed, maple syrup, coconut oil and a little organic sugar, and some eggs these are perfect for a quick snack or breakfast on the go.. and because they are so dense, they keep you full for hours.

Oatcakes (makes 12)
Slightly adapted from Nourish Your Roots via Supernatural Everyday by Heidi Swanson
3 c. rolled oats
2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 t. baking powder
2 t. sea salt
1/4 c. flax seed
2/3 c. coconut oil
3/4 c. maple syrup
1/2 c. cane sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
　
Preheat oven to 325 with a rack in the top third of oven. Grease a standard 12 c. muffin pan with coconut oil Combine oats, flour, baking powder, salt, and flax seeds in a large mixing bowl.
In a medium saucepan over low heat combine the coconut oil, maple syrup, and sugar and slowly melt together. stir just until the coconut oil melts and sugar has dissolved, but don't let mixture get too hot. You don't want to cook the eggs on contact in the next step.
Pour coconut oil mixture over the oat mixture. Stir a bit with a fork, add the eggs and stir again until everything comes together into a wet dough. Spoon dough into muffin cups, nearly filling them.
Bake for 25-30 minutes until the edges of each oatcake are deeply golden. Remove pan from he oven and let cool for a couple of minutes. Then, run a knife around the edges of the cakes and tip them out onto a cooling rack. serve warm or at room temp.

Buckwheat Flax Crackers

A cracker that's 100% raw, super healthy and DOESN'T taste like cardboard...

Possible?

Why, yes..

Very possible, indeed...

Sprouted Buckwheat makes up the bulk of these tasty little nibbles. Flax seed, carrot pulp (leftover from juicing), some olive oil and spices give these crackers great flavor and pack a huge nutritional punch.

Buckwheat is a gluten free grain (despite the name) containing eight essential amino acids. It is known to balance the mood due the high amounts of the amino acid, tryptophan and is also high in calcium, iron and vitamins B and E. It's alkalizing (unlike most grains that contain gluten) and is a slow releasing carbohydrate, giving you long lasting energy and if eaten regularly, can lower cholesterol and high blood pressure.
Sprouted buckwheat is packed with live enzymes and vital nutrients, pimpin' up the nutritional benefits of this healthy little grain.

Wanna sprout some buckwheat? Let's get started...

Place 1 1/2 c. buckwheat into a large bowl or sprouting jar.
Add 2-3 times the amount of cool water and give it a stir.
Soak for 6 hours.
Drain in a fine mesh strainer and rinse REALLY well. Buckwheat becomes gelatinous when soaked, so don't be alarmed if it seems slimy, just make sure your grains are rinsed thouroughly.
Place in a large mesh strainer (or colander) and cover with a piece of cheesecloth. Rinse and drain your buckwheat every 4 hours (I usually do this three times). 8-12 hours after your final rinse, you should start to see little tails. Give one more final rinse and your buckwheat is ready to use. 

Buckwheat Flax Crackers

1 1/2 c. raw buckwheat groats
1/2 c. ground flaxseed
1 1/2 c. carrot pulp
2 t. sea salt
1 1/2 T. Italian seasoning
2 cloves garlic, chopped
3 T. extra virgin olive oil

Soak and sprout buckwheat according to the directions above. Place buckwheat, flaxseed, carrot pulp, sea salt, Italian seasoning, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil in a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Add half of the mixture to a food processor and process until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Transfer to a bowl. Repeat with the remainaing mixture. Stir the mixture thoroughly. With a rubber spatula, spread the mixture onto teflex sheets, about 1/4" thick (I got three trays worth). Score the crackers into desired shapes with a butter knife. You could do basic squares or triangles, or make larger shapes to use a a raw pizza cracker base. Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 8 hours, then transfer to mesh trays. Dehydrate an additional 10 hours, or until crackers are crispy.

Pumpkin, Sunflower and Flax seed butter

When it comes to nut butters, most people ride the peanut butter train.  I don't blame them.  It's cheap, easy, and healthy.  It is also good to give to your dogs when they are running laps around the house trying to kill each other.  It's like a spoonful of valium for them.

I'm a fan of peanut butter myself, but there are a whole lotta other nut and seed butters out there that are worth exploring... cashew, almond, sunflower, pumpkin seed, hemp seed etc...
Each one has a unique flavor and offers different health benefits... and different price tags!

My latest obsession has been sunflower seed butter.  I had been shelling out six dollars a pound for this stuff... whereas, one pound of sunflower seeds only cost a buck and some change.

You do the math.

I figured I would try making it at home.

Why not?

I was going to use straight up sunflower seeds which, by the way, are great for you.. They are high in vitamin E (good for the skin) and magnesium (good for frazzled nerves) and they help to lower cholesterol.

To up the nutritional profile I added some pumpkin seeds (aka pepitas) and ground flax seed.

Pumpkin seeds are a great source of magnesium too, as well as iron and zinc. They are good for the prostate (eat up boys!) and have anti-inflammatory effects for people with arthritis.

Flax seed is pimpin' in terms of nutritonal benefits.  It contains alpha linolenic acid, an omega 3 fat, which has anti-inflammatory effects, protects against heart disease, cancer, diabetes and helps to control high blood pressure.  It's high in fiber and is particularly rich in lignans, which can help protect women from developing breast cancer.  It's also super cheap.  Add some ground flax to a smoothie or oatmeal. Sprinkle some on a salad or make some delicious sunflower, pumpkin and flax seed butter, and do your body a favor!

Pumpkin, Sunflower and Flax Seed Butter (makes 1 1/4 c.)

Based on this recipe:
http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/diy-recipe/recipe-pumpkinsunflowerflax-seed-butter-154946

1 c. raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 c. raw sunflower seeds
1/4 c. ground flax seed
6 T. sunflower oil (I used more than the original recipe.  The amount you use mary vary depending on how creamy you like it!)
a pinch of salt

Toast the sunflower and pumpkin seeds in a skillet over low heat until fragrant. Set aside to cool.  Place the seeds along with the ground flax in a food processor and process for a minute.  Scrape down the sides.  With the processor running, stream in the oil a little at a time until it becomes creamy, scraping down the bottom and the sides as needed. Add the salt and process again.

Be sure to share some with your dogs...