Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Fun in the Kitchen

I have not blogged a lot about food here on this blog, but I do a lot of that over at my other blog Your Green Baby. We are a vegetarian family, avoiding dairy, gluten, refined sugar and processed soy. Instead we choose to eat vegetables, fruit, gluten free grains, lentils, beans, fermented soy, eggs and natural sugars – maple syrup, coconut sugar and a little bit of honey.  We don’t do this because we have allergies or sensitivities, we do it because we feel better when we eat this way, physically, mentally and spiritually. 
I do a lot of recipe creation for my other blog, mostly family meal ideas, as well as recipes for feeding your baby and toddler.  What I don’t do is a lot of baking recipes. I am not a big baker, most likely because as a family we just don’t eat a lot of baked goods.  Call us crazy, but when I bake cookies, there are always a few left in the cookie jar that go stale. I know, that just is not right, but it’s true.
So, when I want to bake, I turn to one of my favourite gluten free, vegan baking blogs She Let Them Eat Cake, who also happens to be sharing this space with me this month as a sponsor.

Last week, Reece and I were busy doing some batch baking. One of the recipes we make monthly and have ready in the freezer for quick snacks at home or one go are Maggie’s quinoa banana muffins. I have been making these for almost two years now and we love them.
When I was writing my book, Maggie was gracious enough to let me share it in the recipe section and many a mom has emailed to let me know how much their toddlers like them. To me, this makes the recipe a real winner.

Maggie's wonderful recipe in my book.

Mixing the dry ingredients.

Griding the flaxseeds, one of his favourite things to do.

Mixing the wet ingredients.

Mashing a banana.

Adding the chocolate chips - I have to mix quickly after this or he will eat them all :)

Ready to go in the oven.

Twelve minutes later...yum!

Afternoon snack for two.

What have you been baking in your kitchen lately?

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23 comments:

  1. Reece is so cute sitting on the bench baking! And what a great recipe, thanks for sharing it - I know my lad will enjoy it :-)

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    1. Awe, thanks, he loves it!

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    2. By the way, I'd love for you to share your baking post at my baking with kids linky :-) http://happywhimsicalhearts.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/happy-lil-s-are-baking-10.html

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  2. Those look really yummy! I've been experimenting with alternative grains and grain free baking lately. I've been on a coconut flour trip recently. Yummy! I made these coconut flour cupcakes. They turned out really ugly but so so delicious!

    What a great sponsor. She has some tasty recipes!

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    1. Thanks KC, they are really yummy!!! Coconut flour is awesome, I have used it quite a bit, mostly for muffins and bagels. Works great!

      And yes, take some time to check out Maggie's site, lots of great recipes.

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  3. I try not to bake because I do the bad baking....tons of chocolate, sugar, etc. because I so enjoy it. It's the best form of avoidance :)

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    1. Yes, I agree, avoiding baking in that instance is a good idea :)

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  4. Thanks Kim! A lovely write-up about my blog and baking with your boy :)

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  5. These look delicious, I will be trying them this week. We are also gluten/wheat free (I am Celiac) and refined sugar free. Baking and cooking in our house is one of the main activities every single day. I really can't think of a more useful, purposeful, and enjoyable activity to do with children.

    Happy baking.

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    1. You will love Maggie's blog, she has some amazing recipes. We cook everyday, three meals a day, but baking usually one to two times per week. Either way Reece loves being in the kitchen, which makes this mama really happy.

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  6. Those look so yummy! And such a great activity to share!

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  7. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I love having little helpers in the kitchen!! My mom just finished making a chef hat for my youngest to wear.... he is into cooking/baking more than my older boy. He likes cracking the eggs and stirring the best. Some of my favorite memories are from spending time in the kitchen with my elders.

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    1. Oh a chef hat would be so much fun, my little man would love that. I love my little kitchen helper, can't imagine cooking without him :)

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  8. what a great post! hey I've been meaning to ask you about Brown Rice Syrup. Some of your recipes from your green baby (which I love!!! and think I've cooked almost every 'family meal' on there!! -- by the way our little Avi loved the carrot soup!) call for it.. but in the news is the arsenic levels found in BRS... thoughts??? In the meantime we are using coconut syrup.

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    1. Glad you are enjoying the recipes over at Your Green Baby. Reece asks for carrot soup at least once a week :) And thanks for bringing that to my attention, I had no idea! I will have to look into it a little more. Will keep you posted.

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    2. sounds good. I've been trying to read up on this information starting here: http://www.lundberg.com/Info/Arsenic.aspx We buy Lundberg's Organic Brown Rice Syrup all the time so I decided to start with them. They have a ton of links to articles and research studies.
      best, Jules

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    3. Yes, that was my first stop, we use that brand too! Still not totally sure what we will do. I don't use it often, once a month maybe. Hopefully they will find a solution soon. I may give the coconut syrup a try.

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  9. These photos of Reece are so..... cute.

    Have a lovely weekend Kim.

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