Peanut Butter Pie

My husband recently turned 34 and I made him the most delicious peanut butter pie. He goes crazy at Christmas time when we make homemade buckeyes so I thought this would satisfy his craving and be a huge hit. It was pretty darn good..fatty (like all of the best desserts) but it hit the spot in the most perfect way. Aaron did comment though that he would have liked it better with a graham crust instead of cookie...so there's an idea for you! I pretty much followed this recipe spot on except for adding some of my homemade ground up coconut flakes into the peanut butter filling just to make it a bit thicker and to add more coconut flavor. Please check this awesome vegan blog for the recipe and other delicious ideas! http://www.namelymarly.com/2011/10/chocolate-peanut-butter-pie/

Happy Eating!

Coconut and Red Lentil Soup

Things have been busy around here and we've been traveling a bit so there haven't been too many creations in the kitchen. Tonight though I had to dig deep in the cupboards and get back to basics because we haven't been to the grocery in a while. Enter Coconut and Red Lentil Soup. There is something about red lentils that is just so comforting to me. The flavor is reminiscent of the chicken soup of my youth and every time I use them the dish just turns out delicious. And then coconut...if you know me at all you know that I have an obsession with coconut. IF I ever do a cook book it will be loaded with things to make with coconut products. I just love them that much.

Ingredients:
6-8 cups water or veggie stock (depends on how thick you like your soup...red lentils expand a lot!)
1 1/2 cups dried red lentils
5 potatoes peeled and chopped
10 baby carrots chopped
1/2 cup coconut milk (canned)
lots of sea salt
pepper
TBSP of curry or garam masala
coconut flakes to garnish if you like

How To:
Just boil the water and add all of the ingredients at the same time. Let the soup simmer for at least 20 minutes and then serve pipping hot with brown rice or fresh bread.

The spoon pictured is a cedar spoon from Russia. It is amazing to eat with wooden utensils....especially when you are eating hot soup. The wood naturally cools it to a comfortable temperature just like magic. http://www.ringingcedarsofrussia.org/articles/story-behind-cedar-spoon.php
Hope you enjoy this sweet simple meal!
xoxo

Snippets from our weekend~

The Bigger Boys enjoying dinner out~

A mini helper in the garden~

We had a birthday party too~

The weather has been so nice...picnic time!

They are such a big help around the house~

Daddy took them on a strange adventure~

Growing so big and strong~

Hope you all had a great weekend as well!

xoxo

No Bake Chocolate Macaroons~

 These are one of my most favorite "raw" desserts I've ever made. If you like coconut then you will love these little guys ;) After you dehydrate them, they will be crispy on the outside and moist and chewy on the inside, the most perfect combo.....they are almost gone in my house and it hasn't even been 24 hours since I've made them!

Raw Chocolate Macaroons
2 cups unsweetened organic coconut shreds
1/2 cup organic cocoa powder
1/2 cup agave or maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut butter/oil
a sprinkle of sea salt
that's all!

Mix all ingredients with a large spoon and then form into 1 inch balls with your fingers and dehydrate for 5-10 hours or put in fridge and eat them chilled w/o dehydrating. Either way is so delicious and I've even been thinking this recipe would be a delicious crust for a raw pudding or fruit pie. mmmmmmm.....

The homemade coconut butter made from dried coconut shreds and the Vitamix blender.

                                            

Dehydrated at 105 degrees F in the Excalibur

The finished product! This recipe made exactly 25 macaroons so adjust the recipe to make more for sure :) Also, if chocolate is not your thing, you can make them "blonde" by replacing the cocoa powder with almond flour and it's just as delicious~ In joy.

Beefless Stew so good it will make your toes curl~

Wow, today was an intense day! My iphone died and i ended up losing 1000+ pictures and videos from the past six months that were not retrievable....huge bummer. But now I have learned to back them up and that will never happen again...fingers crossed~ I got a new phone just in time though so I could take some lovely pictures of tonights dinner. We were busy and I had many intense conversations with fabulous women (Yay for Women's Day) but the highlight for the family was the dinner, of course :) I've been inspired by so much lately and I wanted to point out one blog in particular that is just so interesting to me: /http://bleubirdvintage.typepad.com/

The recipe below was inspired by one from this blog so I wanted to give credit where credit is due~

We rarely eat "meat and potatoes" dinners so this was a huge treat for all because of it's thick and chewy texture and deep flavor. 

Ingredients are as follows:

2 onions chopped

5 large carrots chopped

1 1/2 cups peas

olive oil

1/3 cup flour

1 pound Gardein brand beefless tips (vegan beef)

3 cups veggie broth

2 cloves garlic

5 bay leaves

6 large potatoes chopped

sea salt

pepper

 First you chop all of the veggies and then saute the carrots and onions for about 5 minutes in 3 TBS olive oil. Then add the vegan beef (it's delicious and filled with protein) and saute another five minutes or so until the "beef" is cooked through. Add the flour to soak up all of the oil. This is also what makes the stew so thick. Then, add the three cups of broth (or three cups water with two veggie bouillon cubes) and the bay leaves and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 20 minutes. There is no need to cook any longer than this because everything will become tender and soft and full of flavor. Remember to add sea salt and pepper to your liking.
                                               
After the stew begins boiling, fry the potatoes in another 3 TBS of olive oil until they are browned on all sides. They should be done at the same time as the stew. Add the peas and cook several more minutes.

The potatoes look so good right?!

Serve the stew in a deep bowl and add the potatoes on top.

A close up of the Gardein brand beefless tips~ I think they are pretty great tasting for being meat-free~

And dinner was over in a shorter amount of time than it took to cook...story of my life ;) My husband even told me this was so good I need to save the recipe!! Full Bellies in the house~

"Peanut Butter Punch" Smoothie

This peanut butter smoothie is to live for, I promise. Eleven years ago, while pregnant with my first son, (who I swore was a daughter at the time) my husband ran an organic juice/smoothie shop so he got really good at making healthy drinks. Now I'll admit that this particular smoothie is not the best choice to have everyday but ohmygoodness is it the perfect dessert when you are looking for a treat. So when I was first pregnant I got spoiled with juices and raw foods and smoothies constantly but my favorite was the "peanut butter punch"....with it's pow of peanut flavor and the thick richness the oats bring to it, it hits the spot each and every time.

To make one serving:

1 cup dairy free milk (my fav is almond breeze)

1 1/2 frozen bananas

large spoonful of peanut butter

tablespoon of raw sugar or agave

1/4 cup uncooked oats

add ice if you like it thicker

We use a Vitamix blender which is a high powered blender and gets the ingredients nice and smooth. A great blender is truly a kitchen necessity if you are a smoothie junkie like myself.

Here are a few pics from the day today~

Safety first! Baby T loves to ride on his "bike" as he calls this but we have a very steep hill for a driveway and mama is on the Safety Team ;) After we pick up "the brothers" from school we've been spending lots of time outdoors together lately because the weather has decided to change to Spring in February~

One of the many benefits to having children play outdoors is added laundry and dirty toes..I wouldn't change it for anything~

Baby T doing his daily workout on the backyard bridge~

Our house is a modest three bedroom ranch but we bought it because of the park like setting in the back yard. It is a dream come true for three growing boys who love to explore. We have the woods behind us with over an acre of playspace and a creek that runs right through the middle of it all. This is just one tender moment in time.

Throwing rocks in the creek~

Finding tons of fossils~

"Enjoy this time while they are young" is the best advice I've ever gotten :)

Some Simple Staples

Here are some meals that were so simple there really isn't a recipe for them~ We've been so busy lately and I haven't really taken the time to photograph like I should but I wanted to share these nonetheless :)

Quinoa with chopped tomato and cucumber, hummus, a side of kale chips and some macadamia nuts.

Fresh fruit!

fried rice

protein blast: baked beans with sprouted wheat toast and avocado

a huge everything salad