Paleo Granola

Granola is a lovely treat breakfast in our house.

I make a batch once a week and the kids love it.  Its also a great snack for after school activities or long car trips!

Nourish Paleo Granola

• 1 cup of cashews
• 1 cup of sunflower seeds
• 1 cup of almond
• 1 cup of pumpkin seeds
• 2 tablespoons of chia seeds

1. Soak all nuts and seeds (except chia, do this separately) in a bowl of water overnight with 1 teaspoon of salt to neutralise the phytic acid and activate.
2.  Drain and pat dry (Chia drain as best you can and add wet to other nuts and seeds)
3. Place on sheets in dehydrator at 40 degrees for 12 hours or place in roasting pan with  2 table spoons of coconut oil and bake at 40 degrees for approx 2 hours or until nuts and seeds are crunchy (every oven is different!)
4. Once nuts and seeds are dry you can serve them as is or mix in 1 tablespoon of honey and serve.

Serve with any of these options

• almond milk
• blended berries
• raw organic yogurt
• coconut yogurt
• banana and berry blend (1/2 a banana and 1 handful of berries blended)
• dried fruit

The great thing about this dish is that it can easily be nut free or add or exclude any nut/seed that suits your tastes.   I usually double the recipe!

If your little one finds the nuts and seeds too bulky give them a quick pulse in the blender to break them down to a more agreeable size!

This sounds recipes sounds labour intensive but its not once you have done it a few times and the taste is certainly worth it!!!

from

Abby

x x x 

Coconut Bread

This lovely recipe is both gluten and grain free, making it a fantastic substitute for standard processed bread. Our bodies treat processed grains in same way as they do sugar.  Processed grains elevate blood sugar levels,  causing our biggest fat storing hormone insulin,  to be released.   So if your trying to loose weight, improve your digestion and get clear youthful skin,  then this is a wonderful bread alternative for you.

The coconut contains good fats to nourish the immune system, gut, hair and skin.   The eggs are an excellent source of iron and b vitamins and  the sea salt provides essential minerals so our cells can communicate optimally.

Ingredients

– 300 g jar of coconut butter (I recommend the ceres organics brand available from health food stores)

– 5 organic eggs

– 1/4 of a cup of coconut oil

– 1/2 a teaspoon of sea salt

– 1 teaspoon of aluminium free baking soda

Method

– Empty entire jar of coconut butter into a mixing bowl

– Add eggs, melted coconut oil, baking soda and sea salt

– Beat all ingredients together till no lumps remain and mixture is smooth

– Pour mixture into a lined cake tin

– Cook at 180 degrees celsius for 20-30mins or until knife comes out clean

– Allow to cool and slice as desired

– Keeps well in fridge

Add one tablespoon of honey and  1 teaspoon of cinnamon to make a sweet coconut bread option.

This recipe is adapted from “Heal Your Gut” recipe book by Hilary Boynton http://shop.gapsaustralia.com.au/the-heal-your-gut-cookbook-nutrient-dense-recipes-for-intestinal-health-using-the-gaps-diet/

Raw Lemon Slice

Most sweet treats are sugar laden and contain refined grains, both of which leave us with next to no nutrition and a sugar low.

When we provide our body with a sweet treat that is actually full of wonderful real whole food nutrients we feel satisfied and content.

This lemon slice is a lovely healthy sweet treat to satisfy sweet cravings and provide  your body with essential nutrients to work optimally.

The good fat from the coconut provides satiety and nourishment to your brain.  The lemons aid digestion and support balance in the blood to achieve excellent energy levels.  The raw honey is full of antioxidants and enzymes to support our immune system for keeping us well over winter.

Base

3 cups of preservative free desiccated coconut

1 cup of pitted dates (soaked in hot water for 5 mins to soften)

1 tablespoon or organic vanilla paste

Topping

Juice from 4 lemons

1 tablespoon of raw honey

1 teaspoon of lemon zest

3 cups of preservative free desiccated coconut

1/4 cup of coconut oil (gently warm in pot if solid)

Make base first, blend all ingredients till well combined and sticky.  Press into a lined slice tin.  Put slice base in freezer to cool whilst you make the topping.

Place all topping ingredients in blender, blend till smooth.  Spread topping over base, pressing down with fingers until  even and smooth.  Sprinkle either with lemon zest or coconut.

Slice with a knife whilst in tin then refrigerate until hard and set.

Enjoy with a herbal tea or Kombucha

Gorgeous green smoothie (nut free)

This green smoothie is wonderful for those that are sensitive to nuts or want to find a way to get beautiful pumpkin seeds into your diet.

Pumpkin seeds are full of zinc so they’re amazing for our skin, immune system and our tolerance levels (yip this smoothie will make you and your kids happier!!)

Kale packs a wonderful antioxidant punch containing the cancer fighting sulforaphane, so is wonderful for prevention of disease and boosting immunity.   Its also a great green to have in smoothies as it has minimal taste so doesn’t take away from the sweetness of the banana and dates.

• 1 cup of pumpkin seeds (soaked overnight)
• 2 frozen bananas
• 4 organic dates
• 2 handfuls of kale
• 4 cups of water
• Blend and serve
• Makes 4

Tip: For getting your kids to drink smoothies, get them to help you make it and enthuse how delicious it is.  Add a straw to drink from and they won’t look back

Enjoy

x xx

Easy crunchy linseed crackers

I love this recipe which literally has 3 ingredients and requires minimal effort!

Replacing refined grain crackers with activated seed crackers will enhance your health significantly.

LINSEED SNAPS

• 1/4 cup of golden linseeds
• 1/4 cup of brown linseeds (if you only have one type of linseeds just go for 1/2 a cup of the one variety)
• Soak in glass jar in water overnight with 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar mixed in to awaken the seeds, activate their nutrients and neutralise the physic acid and enzyme inhibitors.
• In the morning tip off any remaining soaking water
• Mix the two seeds types together
• Add 1 teaspoon of sea salt
• On a lined baking tray spread salted seed mixture over the baking paper to a 1 cm thin depth.
• Cook at 45 degree’s for 4 hours to keep raw
• If in a hurray cook at 100 degree’s for 1 hour or until crispy
• When hard and crispy break into cracker pieces
• Store in airtight container.

Seeds are like the broom that sweeps the gut, cleaning out any debris lurking in there.

Seeds are also amazingly nutrient dense, holding all the nutrients required to grow a plant.  When we eat activated seeds these provide an excellent source of fuel to boost immunity and feed our healthy gut bacteria.

Enjoy 

x x x

Nut Caramel Slice

TOP AND BASE CHOCOLATE

130g cacao butter melted on low heat (to keep raw)

1/3 cup cacao powder

1 tablespoon of honey

Blend together pour half into a lined dish and place this base in the freezer to set.  Keep other half aside for topping (keep melted by placing the bowl its in in warm water)

CARAMEL CENTRE

1 cup of dates (soaked in hot water for 5 mins)

1/2 cup of peanut butter or almond butter (or seed butter if wanting nut free)

1 tablespoon of honey

1/2 teaspoon of natural vanilla paste

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

Blend till caramelised

Pour caramel layer over set base

Add 1 1/2 cups of brazil nuts soaked overnight (also great with almonds/macadamias or seeds if nut free) roughly chopped sprinkling over caramel layer

Pour remaining melted chocolate over caramel and nuts and place in fridge or freezer to set.

Preparation time 20-25mins

Freezer friendly

Enjoy

from

Abby

x x x

Cacao Coconut Bliss Balls

With only 3 ingredients these bliss balls are an easy chocy treat.

INGREDIENTS

– 1 cup of dates (soak in hot water for 5 mins before blending if you don’t have a high-speed blender)

– 3 cups of desiccated coconut

– 2 tablespoons of raw cacao powder

METHOD

– Put all ingredients into blender and blend till sticky

– If you don’t have a high-speed blender ensure to soak your dates (as above) and add 1/4 cup of liquid coconut oil

– Roll into mixture into balls, rolling in extra desiccated coconut as a coating

– refrigerate to harden.  They keep well in fridge or freezer and are a perfect chocolate replacement.