Category Archives: 6 Farm of Life Recipes

Fruit & Millet Muffins {spelt flour, coconut oil, maple syrup}

These are my absolute favourite muffin recipe. They are moist, yet crunchy thanks to the millet. It really is an easy way to include millet into our diet… it’s not just for the birds! Millet is a traditional gluten free grain that is high in minerals, especially magnesium, copper and manganese. It is also the most alkalising grain, unlike most grains which have an acidic effect on the body.

I prepare the muffins with my go-to flour, spelt. Spelt is one of the oldest cultivated crops in human history! It is not gluten free, however it contains less gluten, making it easier to digest. Spelt is also higher in protein, compared to conventional wheat, and filled with B vitamins and minerals. I love how you can take any recipe, and replace the flour with the same amount of spelt, without needing to add any binding agents, and it turns out perfect every time!

You can make this recipe with any fruit. My favourites are raspberry, apple, blueberry, peach and my new addition, strawberry. Thank you to Jae Steele’s cookbook, Ripe from Around Here, for this amazing recipe.

Fruit & Millet Muffins

2 cups Spelt Flour

2/3 cup Millet

2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

½ tsp Sea Salt
1 cup Non-Dairy Milk, such as almond or coconut

½ cup Apple Sauce, preferably homemade or unsweetened

½ cup maple syrup
1/3 cup extra virgin coconut oil

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

1 ½ cups fruit, fresh or frozen (but not thawed) – strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, apple, peach

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a 12 cup muffin tray with liners or a light coating of oil and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, millet, baking powder and soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add the milk, applesauce, sweetener, oil and vanilla. Mix together just until all the flour has been absorbed. Gently fold in the berries. Pour evenly into the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are domed and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Makes 12 muffins- keeps in an airtight container for 3 days or in the fridge for up to a week.

Raw Cacao Superfood Truffles

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These little divine bites are my “go to” recipe. They are perfect size for dessert, or an afternoon energy boost. They are sweetened with dates and contain the benefits of raw cacao. High quality chocolate, in its pure, natural state, is actually good for you! Let’s celebrate. Cacao is one of the worlds most antioxidant-rich superfoods, is high in magnesium (an important mineral for calcium absorption, especially for women) and offers a variety of benefits for cardio vascular health. Cacao is also rich in tryptophan and has the ability to open the heart and spirit, therefore acting as a mood elevator. If you had to, you could replace the raw cacao with cocoa (the roasted version of the bean).

Ingredients

1 cup raw cacao

2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

20 pitted dates

1/3 cup water

1/3 unrefined, extra virgin coconut oil1/4 chopped almonds, walnuts or nuts of choice

Dash of vanilla

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of sea salt

For rolling truffles

Shredded coconut, hemp hearts or chia seeds

Topping

Almonds, goji berries

Method

Soak dates in 1 cup of warm water for at least 10 minutes.

While dates are soaking, in the food processor mix 1 cup of coconut with coconut oil. Add cacao, water, nuts, vanilla, cinnamon and salt. Drain water from dates (save water) and add dates into the food processors. If the mixture is too dry, add some of the date water.

Mix until well combined. Mould into balls and roll in either shredded coconut, hemp hearts, or chia seeds. Top with almond or goji berry.

Place in fridge to set for 30 minutes before serving.

Makes 12-15 balls

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Herb Garden Biscuits with Spelt flour {vegan, light and fluffy!}

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In 2013, I had the opportunity to design and publish Shanti Retreat’s first cookbook. I selected all the recipes, wrote the forward, came up with the design and assisted in all steps of production until it came to realization.

Shanti at Home is a collection of the retreat’s favourite recipes from the past and present. The recipes are vegetarian and focus on cooking at home with whole foods which are local and seasonal. The photography is absolutely incredible, as is the page design, thanks to Anne and Alex who volunteered their time and skills.

I love how light and fluffy this biscuit is, even though it is made with spelt. The recipe contains high quality coconut oil, is dairy free and sweetened with maple syrup. You can also prepare this with buckwheat flour but they do tend to fall apart more easily than when prepared with spelt. Spelt is an ancient grain which is easier to digest compared to wheat, and also contains a higher amount of protein.

What I love is how versatile they are too. I like to leave out the herbs and add a bit more maple syrup and orange zest for a breakfast biscuit or cake for strawberry shortcake with coconut whipped cream!

photo by http://www.lesbonheurs.fr

Herb Garden Biscuits

2 cups light spelt flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp sea salt
½ cup fresh herbs or ½ cup dry (We like to use parsley, rosemary, basil, oregano and sometimes use even up to 1 cup of fresh herbs)
½ cup coconut oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
¾ cup of almond or soy milk
1 tsp maple syrup

photo by http://www.lesbonheurs.fr

Preheat oven to 450 °F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda and salt in a large bowl. Add the herbs and whisk again. Cut in the oil using a pastry cutter until a coarse meal is formed. In a small bowl, add the apple cider vinegar to the almond milk. Add maple syrup and then combine with dry ingredients.

The mixture will resemble a muffin batter; add more almond milk if necessary.

For the next step, we use a large trigger ice cream scoop and scoop the batter onto the parchment paper. Place in the oven for 10 – 12 minutes.
Makes 10-12 biscuits

Please visit Shanti Retreat’s homepage to order your copy of Shanti at Home.

Banana Oat Milk – A creamy, dairy-free (and nut free!) alternative

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The first time I tried banana oat milk, was during a silent retreat in Mexico. It was so creamy and delicious, and I knew it would be easy to re create.

I am a fan of making homemade nut or seed milks, my favourite is probably hemp milk as it is so easy and requires no soaking. Most store bought dairy free milks contain a lot of additives and preservatives to keep it shelf stable.

Soaking is optional with this recipe. You can try it both ways and see if you can tell a difference.

Ingredients

1 cup rolled oats, soaked overnight

3 cups of water

2 tbsp maple syrup, or 2 Medjool dates

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 – 1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 bananas

Instructions

Place water and oats in a high speed blender, and blend until smooth. You may also need to add more water, if necessary. Using a fine sieve, strain the oat milk and set the pulp aside. You can use this in your baking, by adding it to cookie or muffin recipes!

Return milk to blender and add cinnamon, salt, maple syrup (or dates) and vanilla. Blend.

Add bananas and blend one last time until smooth.

Enjoy!

Store in an airtight glass jar in the fridge for 5-7 days.

The only thing I can take credit for is eating this. I love this recipe exactly the way it is in The Power of Food by Adam Hart. This a fantastic cookbook for anyone looking to add nutrient dense, high prana, foods to their diet. There are chapters dedicated to hemp seeds, chia,cashews, garlic, ginger, avocados… I think you get the point!!!

I like to refer to this “dessert” as a power snack which justifies me eating it for breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner..which happens!

The ingredients are superior to most granola bar or protein bar recipes, and with the hemp seeds and almond butter, this packs a punch! This recipe is not only rich in protein, but also in omega 3 thanks to the walnuts and calcium from the sesame seeds and tahini. Lastly, it’s raw and has all the enzymes for optimal digestion and assimilation!

This is a must try!

Ingredients

1/2 cup walnuts, ground

1/4 cup sesame seeds, ground

1/4 cup hemp seeds

3 Tbsp tahini

3 Tbsp honey

2 Tbs[, almond butter

1/2 tsp Himalayan crystal salt

Extra hemp seeds for sprinkling on top

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients except the topping. Line an 8 inch square baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle some hempseed overtop and place the halvah in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Cut into small squares and serve. Store your halvah in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Want chocolate halvah??? Add 2 Tbsp of Cacao!

Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing {vegan}

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This is one of my favourite, can’t go without salad dressings. It is so creamy and might just be the best caesar salad dressing I have ever had. The best part is it’s homemade, which means it doesn’t include any of those preservatives or low quality oils and refined sugars found in most store bought dressings.

Next time you are going to a party, offer to make the caesar salad. No one will disagree, since it is usually loved by all. They will have no idea that it’s vegan or made with cashews.

Cashews not only give it the thick and creamy texture, but offer you a boost of the amino acid L-trypophan which acts as a natural anti depressant!

photo from feedmephoebe.com

Creamy Cashew Caesar Salad Dressing

Ingredients

1.5 T capers, with liquid

2 cloves garlic (or try garlic scapes for a more mild flavour!)

2 T lemon juice

2 t dijon

1 T apple cider vinegar, preferable Bragg’s raw unfiltered

1 T light miso paste (made from soy beans, can be found at health food store or asian market)

1/2 cup raw, unsalted cashews, soaked for 2-3 hours

1/2 t salt

3/4 t pepper

1/4 cup water

1/2 oil

Directions

Soak cashew for up to 3 hours. Place all ingredients, except oil, in a blender and blend until smooth. Slowly begin adding oil. Add more water if required (sometimes the dressing is too thick for the blender.) Add more or less garlic based on your preferences.

Right now I am loving this dressing with fresh, soft, kale leaves, but it is just as great with mixed greens or classical romaine.

Feel free to add croutons or parmesan. I have also been making tempeh “bacon bits” which are amazing and satisfy just as much as bacon. The latter is also an option if you can get good quality.

photo from sondibruner.com

Almond Basil Pesto {for vegans & cheese lovers alike}

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Ingredients
2 cups fresh basil
⅔ cups almonds (toasted or natural)
½ cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
¼ cup water
⅓ cup nutritional yeast or parmesan cheese (optional)
a handful of spinach (optional)

Instructions
In a food processor, pulse the whole almonds and garlic cloves until all are ground well. Add basil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and olive oil and pulse together until well incorporated, but don’t over mix. Add optional Parmesan and or spinach. Taste for seasoning. Add additional olive oil if needed.

Delicious whole grain bread (it’s steamed!) {gluten-free}

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It is so important for me to know exactly what’s in my food. I have began to make as much as I can from scratch… including bread. Although I love my grandmas homemade bread recipe, I could see this being more of a staple in my kitchen. If you like to make home made bread, I suggest giving this one a try. It is made with gluten free whole grains , brown rice and rolled oats. It is not grain free, but if you like, check out my paleo bread recipe. I had never even heard about steaming bread before this recipe, but I must admit it was delicious and so moist. I’m sure you could play around with flavors adding either fresh herbs for a more savory taste, or seeds and dried fruit for a sweeter breakfast bread. I definitely recommend a bamboo basket steamer for this recipe!

Steamed Gluten Free Bread

Makes 1 loaf

1.5 cups cooked squash (or sweet potato)

1.5 cups brown rice flour (best to make your own by grinding brown rice in a vitamix)

1 cup oat flour (purchased, or again, make your own from rolled oats)

1/4 cup ground flax

3 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

2.5 t salt

2.5 t active yeast

3/4 cup warm water

2 T honey or maple syrup

1/4 cup coconut oil or olive oil for coating bread

Cube squash and boil until tender.

Meanwhile, grind brown rice and oats to make a flour.

Combine flours, flax, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

In a measuring cup, combine warm water, sugar and yeast and let is sit for 5 minutes or until it gets foamy.

Once squash is cooked, drain and pulse with honey in a food processor. Add yeast and water.

Add squash mixture to flour mixture and mix into a ball (best to use your hands here!) Oil hands to shape the bread into a big round ball.

Use a bamboo basket steamer for the next step and place over a pot of boiling water.

Place a piece of parchment paper in the bottom of the steamer and add bread dough.

*Preheat oven to 375*

Steam for 30 minutes. Remove bread from steamer, add more oil to the exterior and bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes or until the exterior gets firm.

Best enjoyed as fresh bread with a delicious soup!

Sunflower Seed Paleo Bread

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I absolutely love this bread recipe. It is quite simple to make, flourless, really tasty and so light! It is always exciting to find new bread recipes that work and actually resemble bread! I also enjoy flaxseed focaccia, or raw crackers, but I am really loving this new recipe (created by Jamie at The Blissful Kitchen.)I know that some people following paleo do avoid flaxseed but I’ll call it paleo bread since that’s what her recipe is.

I like to use it for sandwiches like a vegan BLT with marinated eggplant bacon, tomatoes, lettuce, avocado and a red pepper cashew mayo, or a sweet breakfast sammy with PB and local honey!

It would be great as toast, served with soup or for any sandwich of choice!

Paleo Bread

2 cups sunflower seeds
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
2 T coconut flour
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
5 large eggs, preferably organic and local
1 T extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil, melted
1 T honey
1 T apple cider vinegar, I like Bragg’s raw unfiltered

Preheat oven to 350.

In a food processor, pulse together sunflower seeds, coconut flour, baking soda, and salt. Add eggs, oil, honey, apple cider vinegar until well combined. Pulse in ground flax.

Prepare a loaf pan with parchment paper to prevent the bread from sticking. Place batter in loaf pan and bake for 35-40 minutes.

Let cool for 1 hour before removing from pan or slicing.

Makes 1 loaf