This is a very cool thing Reebok is doing:
Boston Strong Tees from Reebok – 100% of the profits from the sale of the Boston Strong Tees will be donated to The One Fund Boston, Inc. to help the people most affected by the tragic events that occurred in Boston on April 15, 2013.
What is it with me and muffins this week?
Yesterday I had some extra time, and I also had no bread of any sort to go with our eggs for breakfast.
The only kinds of flour I had left in the pantry were brown rice and chickpea, so I did a little searching online to see if I could find something tasty.
I found this great recipe for vegan chickpea banana chocolate muffins. She had veganized a recipe from another site, and also muffinified it. (Her word- I like it!)
So I un-veganized it, but kept the muffin idea.
They turned out delicious-so moist and chocolatey. My 22 month old was gingerly walking around with one singing, “Hap-Bir-Day-To-Yew” so I’m pretty sure he thought it was a cupcake. Yep- they were pretty sweet.
The chickpea flour is great because it is high in protein, iron and folate, and is naturally gluten-free.
Banana Chocolate Chickpea Muffins
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
7 tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 bananas, mashed
2 tbsp sour cream
1+1/2 cups chickpea flour (garbanzo bean flour is the same thing)
4 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
Instructions
Every time I make oatmeal, I have a lot leftover. I usually make “Fried Mush” from Sally Fallon’s cookbook Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats
All you do is add one egg to the leftover oatmeal, and then sauté by spoonfuls in butter until the edges are crispy. We serve it with honey or maple syrup, and it makes a great mid afternoon snack.
But yesterday I wanted to do something different. I searched online for leftover oatmeal cookie or muffin recipes, but every one I found called for adding a CUP of sugar. Not really what I had in mind for a healthy snack for my kids.
So I decided to adapt one of my favorite low sugar muffin recipes to include cooked oatmeal.
Leftover Oatmeal Muffins
1 to 1.5 cups cooked oatmeal ( mine always has raisins cooked in it)
1.5 cups flour (I use a combination of whole wheat and spelt)
2 TBSPs aluminum free baking powder
1 egg lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
4 TBSPs maple syrup
1 to 2 TBSPs softened butter
1/2 cup chocolate chips
Sift the dry ingredients together, then mix everything else in. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Yields 12.
The muffins were a hit. Both boys helped me with the whole process, and there were only two left at the end of the day.
“When I turn 5 will you cry?
Because when I turn 5 I’ll be grown-up. And when I grow up I’ll be a construction worker and a band guy during the week, a detective at night, and then work at the hospital on the weekend.”
What will you do at the hospital?
“I’ll try to make all the kids there laugh by telling jokes, I’ll also do magic tricks for them. And I want to look inside bodies to see bones and stuff.”
My son. The magician-musician-comedian-surgeon-detective-construction worker.
So I followed up by telling him what I wanted to be when I grew up.
When I was little I wanted to be a teacher during the day, a waitress at night, and work at Disneyland on the weekends.
After defining a waitress and explaining what Disneyland is, he observed-
“Mom- you didn’t get to be that when you grew up. Maybe when I’m 5 and you don’t have to take care of me anymore you can.”
At first I said, “you’re right, I didn’t.” But the more I thought about it I realized I’m a waitress 24/7, am definitely teaching now, and am considering homeschooling. I am exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up- during the week.
As for Disneyland on the weekends, it’s all a matter of perspective. After that little chat with my son I have a new goal for our household. And not only on the weekends, but all the time.
Making our home the happiest place on earth.
A friend’s recent status update read “I wonder what would happen if I woke up tomorrow morning thinking….I GET to mother my little ones, instead of feeling like I have to mother them??? This is a good thought for me!”
And then I heard JJ Heller’s song “I Get To Be the One.” Which includes the lyrics:
Well hello,
Little baby.
Your eyes have never seen the sun
You should know
Little baby
That I am the lucky one
I get to be the one to hold your hand
I get to be the one.
Through birthdays and broken bones
I’ll be there to watch you grow
I get to be the one.
Perspective matters. I need to change mine on a daily basis. And since I only have a few more months before my big 5 year old strikes out on his own, I will make every moment count.
Spring is in the air, and many people use this season to detox and cleanse. This is a great idea, since we have dozens of toxins hanging around in our bodies.
These toxic chemicals most often arrive through food, so it is important to reduce consumption of the toxins in the first place.
Here are five ways to reduce toxins in your diet.
1. Go organic! The most important organically grown foods to consume are meat and dairy. Toxins are stored in fat, and when you drink milk from cows that are doused in chemicals (through food, antibiotics, growth hormone, etc) you are getting a concentrated dose of all of these. When you eat organically grown foods of all types, you dramatically reduce your exposure to cancer causing pesticides. Your health is worth the extra money these items cost.
2. Avoid artificial colors, flavors and sweeteners. Did you know that Red 40, Blue 2 and yellow 5 are all banned in Europe? Why are those colors in so many packaged foods (especially for children!) on American supermarket shelves? Aspartame is another fake ingredient in lots of our food that is banned overseas. It is linked to cancer and diabetes.
3. Use glass. BPA- a hormone disrupting chemical- is found in plastic and lines cans. When you use glass to store your food, you avoid that toxin! Some ways to do this:
4. Drink more water! Here’s a fact that should make you reach for a glass: if you are dehydrated, your body pulls water from the large intestine to use, which in turn makes you constipated. Do you really want that toxic water that has been sitting in your bowels to be recirculated into your bloodstream and around your body? I don’t. Drinking more water flushes out toxins, keeps your skin radiant, curbs hunger, combats stress and fatigue, and the list goes on. Our bodies are 65% water. Our brains are 85% water. Drink more water!
What is your favorite way to detox?