Chocolatey Sweet and Salty Energy Bar

It's no secret that I've been trying to lose weight lately (4 weeks, 9lbs down, 5lbs to go). In order to do so, I had to make a few changes to my current lifestyle. I ramped back up my exercise regime from 3 days a week to 5-6 days a week, started making better food choices, and have been far more careful about portion size.  The way I keep track of it all?  MyFitnessPal.com  (super quick MFP plug--It's free, easy, and a fantastic resource to help you set goals, keep track of food and exercise, and encourage friends and family who are on the same journey.)  It seriously rocks the house. Go check it out.  :) 

But for me it's not just about losing weight, it's about becoming healthier, for both me and for household of boys/men.  Believe me...I didn't put on the extra weight by eating what was good for me (unless you count candy and ice cream in large quantities every day good for me....he he he).

To describe how drastically things have changed in the last 5 weeks, I give you a direct quote from Roberto last night, "Mel, I don't remember the last time we went so long without candy in the house (minus the week of Halloween, or course).  Sometimes I hate it, but most of the time I don't even think about it."  Ha ha ha....makes me laugh.

Anyhow.....

It was while I was browsing the recipe forum on myfitnesspal.com today that I came across a recipe, well, not even a recipe, they call it a FORMULA, for The Ultimate Energy Bar.  The idea behind this "formula" is that you are given the basic components and their measurements.  Next you are given a list of recommended options for each component.  It's amazing.  The possibilities are endless....I mean ENDLESS.  The woman who made the formula even gives 3 "recipes" built from the formula to give you a jumping off point. 

I just about died, or cried, or shouted for joy.  It doesn't matter.  I was THAT excited.

I put my kiddos down for naps and went to work.

I was in the mood for chocolate so I took the formula and let my thoughts roll in that direction.  Here's what I came up with: 

But first, my recipe posting disclaimer:  I do not pretend to take fantastic pictures.  Please do not be turned off of the recipe because of my lack of photographic abilities.  I do, however, possess excellent taste testing skills and only post things I deem worthy of my taste buds.

 Chocolatey Sweet and Salty Energy Bar

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (or 1.5 cups cooked beans)
1/2 cup natural peanut butter (they sell this GV brand at Walmart now)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp sea salt
1-1/2 cups oats
1/4 cup cocoa
1/4 cup brown rice flour (see pics below)
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup crushed pretzels

1/2 cup chocolate chips

First things first:  I chose to use brown rice flour.  Since I didn't have any on hand, and have actually never bought it from the store, I had to make my own.  Really simple.

Place 1-2 cups of brown rice in a blender.

Pulse or blend until you reached the consistency your are looking for.  I was going for fine.

That's it.  Now you have extra for next time too.

In a food processor, combine beans, peanut butter, honey, applesauce, vanilla and salt until smooth. 

for an even smoother texture smash or blend beans beforehand

Add oats, cocoa, rice flour, and whole-wheat flour and pulse just to combine.  Add crushed pretzels and chocolate chips and pulse, again, just to combine.  If consistency seems to be spreadable, you are done.  If it seems to dry, add 1/4 cup water, if it's too runny, add an additional 1/4 cup wheat or rice flour.

Grease 9 x 13 pan with baking spray or rub pan with 1 TBSP oil, then spread in mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

Makes 12 servings

They turned out pretty darn tasty and most of my boys ate and liked them (success).  My super picky (unless it is covered in Ketchup) one saw a whole-ish bean and asked "What is this, mom?"  When I chose not to answer him, he chose not to finish it.  (ha ha ha!)  He ain't no dummy.

Next time I'll blend the beans until they are unrecognizable.  Muahahahaha!   

I think I will try pumpkin something or other next.


Nutrition Information (provided by myfitnesspal.com) 1 serving:  

Calories 243, Carbohydrates 37g, Fat 9g, Protein 8g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 159mg, Sugars 12g, Fiber 6g

 

Blender Wheat Pancakes and syrup recipes too.

Yeah, I know I've been sharing a lot of recipes lately.  And there are more to come.  I just can't help it.  I've been looking at/for a lot of recipes lately and have found some real goodies. 

This one is not only quick to make, easy to follow, extremely easy to clean up after, but it can be made entirely from food storage.  Not that I make it all from food storage but I COULD if I wanted to.  And I think that is pretty dang cool.

Blender Wheat Pancakes 

recipe from Everyday Food Storage  (buttermilk substitution added by yours truly)

1 Cup Milk (translation for powdered milk is 3 T. Milk and 1 C. Water) **

1 Cup Wheat Kernels, whole & uncooked
2 Eggs (2 T. powdered eggs 1/4 C. Water)
2 tsp Baking Powder
1-1/2 tsp Salt
2 Tbs. Oil
2 Tbs. Honey or Sugar

**Milk can be substituted for buttermilk.  Don't have buttermilk?  Try this.  Put 1 TBSP lemon juice (or vinegar) in a one cup measuring cup and fill the rest of the way with milk.  Let sit for 5-10 minutes to allow time for the milk to curdle and use in recipe as directed.

Put milk ( or buttermilk) and wheat kernels in blender.Blend on highest speed for 4 or 5 minutes or until batter is smooth. Add eggs, oil, baking powder, salt and honey or sugar to above batter. Blend on low. Pour out batter into pancakes from the actual blender jar (only one thing to wash!) onto a hot greased or Pam prepared griddle or large frying pan.Cook; flipping pancakes when bubbles pop and create holes.

Berry Syrup 
2 C. Mixed Berries (Raspberries, Blueberries, & Marionberries or any mix that are red and blue
3 T. Sugar
Mix together and let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.

I love pancakes.  Lots of room for interpretation. 

Other topping ideas:
I LOVE peanut butter and bananas on mine.  Peanut butter is an excellent source of protein and a good addition of flavor without a bunch of empty calories, like most syrups.  Try adding peanut butter to the berry syrup recipe above.  Yummy.  Like a PB and J sandwich.

If you think pancakes just aren't the same without syrup (my boys wouldn't DREAM of venturing away from their beloved syrup), try this amazing recipe from Our Best Bites, Buttermilk Caramel Syrup.  You may just think you have died and gone to heaven.  Sigh.

Or

Here is a basic of all basic maple syrup recipes.  A great alternative to store bought (super bad for you) syrups with additives and high fructose corn syrup.

Homemade Maple Syrup
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1/2 tsp maple extract (or any flavor you desire)

Place sugars and water in small pan.  Bring to a boil on med-high or high heat.  Allow to boil for 30 seconds, or until sugar is completely dissolved.  Take off heat and add extract.

Note:  This syrup is a lot runnier that you would find in the store (because it is made without thick corn syrup).  If you want a thicker syrup, try whisking in corn starch or refrigerate for several hours before use.  Warm to serve. 

Happy Pancaking!

Do YOU have any yummy topping combos to share?
 

Heaven on Earth "Skinny" Soda Bread (commonly known as Beer Batter Bread)

Have you ever heard of Tastefully Simple? I LOVE Tastefully Simple food. So, so good. So many favorites...this Beer Batter Bread being right at the top.  Others super tasties include, but are not limited to their Key Lime Cheese Ball and my newest indulgence the Irish Cream Fudge Sauce  (added a TBSP to my hot chocolate yesterday.  Squeal! I think I may be drooling...yep, I'm drooling.) 

Anyhow...

I'm not trying to steal their thunder here. I promise.  I LOVE them.  And it's not the price of their products either, okay....maybe a little...but usually I am totally willing to pay that kind of money for that kind of perfection.

That's not the problem .  The problem for us is that a lot of my favorite products, including the Beer Batter Bread, are manufactured in a plant with peanuts/tree nuts. That doesn't bode well for my child who is deathly allergic to cashews. I can make it here but he can't have any.  Which means I can't give any to my other kids ("not fair").  Which means I end up making it AFTER the kids are in bed.  And then it's just the hubby and I.  And then I end up eating half of the loaf on my own (true story, happened yesterday).....and that doesn't go along so well with the whole "trying to lose weight" thing so I just HAD to find a better solution. These kids should not have to be deprived of such a delicacy and I should not be allowed to indulge alone in it.

I found a simple copy cat recipe and tweaked it a bit, making it a bit more skinnylicious.

So, without further ado.

Heaven on Earth "Skinny" Soda Bread  

(commonly known as Beer Batter Bread)

adapted from this recipe at Food.com

Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1 TBSP baking powder
3 TBSP sugar
1 tsp salt
1 (12oz) can carbonated soda**--see notes
3 TBSP unsalted butter, melted (omit for "skinny"--trust me, it doesn't need it)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  Add soda/beer all at once.  Mix vigorously for 20-30 seconds, just until well combined.  Batter will be thick and lumpy.  Scrape and spread batter into a greased 9x5inch loaf pan.  Bake in the oven 35-40 minutes, until sides separate from pan and knife in the center comes out clean.  Turn out onto rack to cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.   12 servings per loaf  (Nutrition Info--each slice:  calories: 125, carbs: 30g, fat: 0g, protein 3g)

Notes:
The sweeter the soda, the sweeter the end product will be.  Lemon-lime is fairly middle ground.  Orange soda will make it VERY sweet and ginger-ale or club soda will drastically cut it down.  Play with the recipe.  Experiment.  You can even use rootbeer, cola, or carbonated juice.  Whatever.  The carbonation is the key.

 This recipe is fantastic as is.  FANTASTIC!

But it's also very versatile.  If you feel like mixin' it up a bit, here are a few variations.


Melanie's (that's me) Cinnamon and Sugar Soda Bread (pictured above)
Prepare recipe as directed above.  Once the loaf is spread into the pan, pour 1 TBSP melted, unsalted butter over the dough.  Combine 3 TBSP sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon.  Sprinkle over melted butter and bake as directed above.   Or divide into muffin tins for a scrumptious breakfast treat.  12 servings per loaf. (Nutrition info--each slice:  calories: 145, carbs: 33g, fat: 1g, protein: 3g)

Other ideas from Tastefully Simple, themselves:
*Mix Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese into batter for an Italian twist. 
*Add carbonated juice, nuts, and diced fruit to make muffins or breakfast breads.
*Make cornbread by substituting liquid with a 16 oz can of creamed corn and 1/3 cup oil.
* Drizzle with honey
*Spread with butter and sprinkle with Seasoned Salt; then grill.
* Use cubed bread for bread pudding.

Also...a not so sweet version of this is SO SO SO GOOD with warm dips.  Think spinach, and/or artichoke, nacho cheese, you get the idea.  Ooohhhh...I think I may need a bib.

I hope you enjoy it.  I know I will.
 

Where has the time gone? Playing Fall Catch-up

I'm typing this now as the first snow of the year is falling.

I can NOT believe we are a third of the way through November. What the heck....where has the time gone?

It's crazy to think about how this year has virtually flown by.  I feel like I've been in a bubble since we moved here to Okanogan way back in April.  Has it really been 7 months?  Holy Cow.

Anyway....

How's life around here, you ask?  Crazy as usual.  Just all-in-all out crazy.  What more would you expect?
 
Leaves
After living for 3 years in a house without a single tree, these big boys have been quite the adventure.  Leaves when we first moved in, lots and LOTS of tree climbing in the summer and now that fall is here.....more leaves.  This picture was taken just before all these suckers fell off.  Holy Moly!  They were everywhere. 

 A few days ago, I spent over an hour raking.  The pile was ginormous. 

I had to leave for an appointment soon after, and Rob let the boys out to play. 

When I got home my pile was destroyed and the yard looked worse than it had before I started (except that the lawn was mowed underneath).  All that hard work, undone.  Sigh...a mothers lot in life, I suppose.  However, Rob said the boys had SO MUCH FUN!  That made it all better (almost).  Besides, do you know how many extra calories I burned during that hour.  :)

Pumpkins

We grew our own pumpkins this year.  They ended up being massive.  Massive!  We saved a lot of seeds from them to plant next year.  I wonder if we will have the same success?

The biggest three weighed in at 78lbs, 76lbs, and 58lbs. There are also a few "babies", coming in around 25-30 lbs. Ohhh...and a 12lb zucchini.

Some friends and the local missionaries came over to help us carve these bad boys.  We were so grateful for the help.  We wouldn't have been able to tackle them all on our own...and wouldn't really have wanted to either. 

We were looking at this picture the other day.  Kian points to the scary side of the two faced pumpkin (Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde) and says, "He have a bad dream, Mom?"  So cute.

All a-glow.  This picture is missing one, maybe two, that were still being carved.

Halloween 2012

 This year was the Halloween of homemade costumes.  Gabe wanted to be Harry Potter and Cael, a dementor (although he ended up looking more like Senator Palpatine because he really didn't like the black make-up all over his face and neck).  We looked for costumes online and, after realizing I wouldn't get by spending less than $50, I decided to make them myself.  I thought they turned out well (only that's hard to make out in this picture) and it cost me less than $8 combined.  Isaac and Kian went as Batman to our ward trunk-or-treat (which costumes we already had) and switched to CTR guy's on Halloween night.  Fine by me.  Free, free and...oh yeah....free!

We were told we would get between 300-400 trick or treaters and prepared likewise.  Unfortunately the pouring rain....I mean, POURING RAIN (note how soaked the kids are...make-up running down Gabe's face)...deterred a lot of people from venturing out.  We only got 265 kids.  He he he.....ONLY!  We kept a tally sheet.  Yeah, we're that weird.  

Mr. Kian
Silly Mister Kian.  He came up to me the other day, "Wook Mommy, I wear Babe's lasses."  Funny thing is...they look really "normal" on him.  I wonder if he'll be sporting them for real sooner than later. 

Such a sweet (and slightly naughty) boy.  He he he....

Other Items of news.......

*Rob is still enjoying his job.  All except the 2 or 3 days of the month he has to do conservation loans.  He hates those.  He just got the new Halo game (oh joy) and is quite enjoying that too.

*Gabe is doing well in school.  By the second week of school he had already qualified for the semesters ice cream party for readers and hasn't slowed down since.  He is blooming with personality and quite the funny boy (at least in a nine year old way).

*Cael is enjoying school and is finally willing to show us just how good of a reader he is (because he is forced to for homework).  The way he reads reminds me a lot of how I used to play the piano.  Instead of slowing down and taking the time to read my music (and him, sounding out the words) I would just plunk at the key until I hit the right one (by ear), and he just starts spewing out words until he finally finds the right one.  It can be irritating but how do you blame the kid for something they inherited from you.  :)  Instead I try to be patient and help him sound out the words.  Sometimes it just really makes me want to laugh.  Cael really misses his friends from the Tri-Cities.  He had an awesome gang (8 or so) of boys his age in the ward and we loved to have them around.  He just doesn't have the same thing here.  Sad.  But, his relationship with Gabe is blooming and they have quite the time playing together (most of the time).  It's very fun to watch.  Cael's smile just keeps getting bigger and brighter (if that's possible) and I love to see it.

*Isaac is blossoming on his own.  His independent nature takes him on all sorts of adventures (some of which his mother wishes she did not have to be a part of--like peeing in the chapel of the church during aerobics---yeah, that was a fun one).  He really wishes he was in school but enjoys the "special time" he and I are able to have after I put Kian down for a nap.  We do puzzles, games, and sometimes just work on "preschool" type things.  He loves the attention and I love having the time with just him and me.  He is quite the sweet boy when he wants to be.  He's always telling me, at least on days when I actually shower and get ready for the day, "Mom, you look beautiful."  Melts my heart, sweet thing.

*Kian, for all his cuteness, has really hit that two to three year old stage.  You know the one.  The one where they turn from adorable toddler to crazy demon child.  Kidding.  Sort of.  He has long been a pupil of Isaac's and is quickly becoming quite the scholar, except with his own twist of Kian thrown in there.  Oh boy....am I ever doomed.  I find it hard to keep up with his independent "ideas" and we often find ourselves in a battle of wills. 
His biggest "battle" lately being over nap time/bedtime.  It was quite touch and go for a while. We finally came to some sort of treaty.  It's working out fairly well for both parties.  Mommy (or Daddy) sets up camp for Kian by the crack of his door, and for his part, he stays in his room and goes to sleep.  Seems to be working.  Most of the time.  For now.

Fortunately for all parties involved, Kian is actually fairly easy to reason with.  It surprises me how well he understands choice and consequence and is willing to do what needs to be done (when he want to) in order to get what he wants.

 *As for me, I have finally woken up out of the stressful/hormonal/emotional haze that has held me captive for the better part of this year.  I'm really enjoying teaching aerobics at the church (and recently contacted the ONLY local gym about a job...still waiting for follow up on that) and have started all sorts of new hobbies.  Cooking/Baking being one of them.  And I actually don't burn everything like I used to.  :)  I also found the determination, that seems to have alluded me for the last 18 months or so, and am GOAL BOUND to losing weight.  I've been waiting over 2 1/2 years to reach my "pre-Kian" weight and am on the home stretch now.  5 lbs to go.  It's taken a while to feel up to the challenge but here I am.  Able to get back into my old clothes and just feeling good about pursing something I've set my mind to.  It's been a while since I've even tried.

Ohhh....one more thing.  Rob and I are finally catching up on some of our "to do" / "to spend way too much time,effort, and money on" list and finally, FINALLY got our coat rack up with very minimal swearing (on my part) and only a little bit of giving up (on his part).  All I have to say is that it's about diggity dang time. 

Now just to finish the boys closets, finish painting Gabe and Kian's room, install a new garage door/opener, finish weather proofing doors, start Christmas shopping, Christmas goodie baking, etc, etc, etc........  Oh Boy!

I guess that's all the "catch up" news I have for now.

Until next time.

Love,