Soaked Granola Bar

pre-soaked-oats-granola

Use homemade pre-soaked oats — or the fabulous Touch’O Honey pre-soaked oats from JoshEWEa’s Garden — to offer a breakfast of yummy choices for everyone! Let each family member top pre-soaked oats with their toppings of choice: crispy nuts, shredded coconut, assorted fresh and/or dried fruit, raw honey, and/or raw milk. This homemade (and easy) granola bar offers an excellent alternative to today’s highly processed, extruded breakfast cereals.

Pan-Fried Parsnips

close up butter fried parsnips

Don’t assume you don’t like parsnips. That is, unless you’ve already had them like this — pan-fried, browned and caramelized in butter. Super good and super easy. Beth, with whom we shared a garden last summer, gave me this recipe and a taste-test of her prized leftovers. They were fantastic, so I couldn’t wait to try it myself. And the whole family loved these!

Easy Almond Cookies

almond-cookies

Although my family is not grain-free, I often make these cookies. They’re chewy and delicious, but I especially like that there’s no waiting on soaking or souring. The cookie base is blanched almond flour, which gives a fabulously moist, chewy texture. We’ve taken these to church too many times to count, and we always get compliments on how yummy they are.

Homemade, Real Food Macaroni and Cheese

mac-cheese

About two weeks ago, my 11-year old son Mikah asked, “Mom, what’s mac and cheese?” 11 years old and he doesn’t know about mac and cheese? That’s part good and part bad. The good — he doesn’t know about the K-word mac and cheese. The bad? He didn’t know about homemade, real food macaroni cheese, which is a thousand times better. I knew what I must do. Macaroni and cheese was going back on the menu — real food style.

Nachos, from Scratch. Oh, Yeah.

nachos

My friend Jami loves nachos. She’s eaten them all her life, especially the take-out kind. As a stay-at-home mom eating real foods, she figured she had to find a way to keep eating them — at home and healthy. So she did. We made them together this week — and you get to see it on video. Plus, print instructions included in this post.

Fresh Cheddar Cheese Curds

cheddar

Want to make cheddar cheese, but don’t have a cheese press or a cheese cave? Maybe the thought of pressing cheese or aging cheese just sounds too complicated and you’re not ready for it. I’ve got an idea for you. Make fresh cheddar cheese curds.

Real Food Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

choc-cake

This frosting is to-die-for. You do the math: Real butter + real cream + real mineral-rich, tasty unrefined sugar = really super good frosting. I advise caution. You won’t be able to stop licking your fingers, the bowl, the cake and anything this frosting touches.

Homemade, Real Food Hot Chocolate

hot-chocolate

This time of year, many are looking for treats made from real, whole foods. Thus, I give you our homemade hot chocolate. This winter, Haniya’s been making this just about every day. There’s no turning down the steaming cups she hands out!

Chocolate Mousse Cake (Grain-Free)

chocolate-mousse-cake

This was my birthday cake. Twice. On Wednesday, my friend Brenna and her family surprised me with it. It was so good that I called Brenna yesterday morning — my birthday morning, the day I turned 37 (just when did I begin to approach 40? I feel like I should be edging toward 30). I asked her for the recipe so I could make it again for myself. “It was so good and I want more of it.” That about sums it up.