Whole Wheat Zucchini Chocolate Cupcakes

My last zucchini harvest before our first frost left my wheels turnin ... could I turn them into a satisying cupcake that would quench my chocolate craving?

Every year I engage high ambitions of turning the monolithic zucchini in my garden into cute little cupcakes the way my great-aunt Joan has done every year of my life that I can remember.

But this time I'm talking a cupcake I can feel good about - instead of dump truck loads of vegetable oil and white sugar and flour, I'm thinking organic whole wheat flour and unrefined sugar, heart-healthy coconut oil, boosted with dark chocolate and lots of zucchini phyto-nutrition!

Thanks to my partners in crime - my great-aunt Joan's recipe, Harvest Share Organics and OhSheGlows.com, I have succeeded!!

Just in time for November's fall flavors - Whole Wheat Zucchini Chocolate Cupcakes with Vegan Cinnamon Frosting.  Y.U.M.

The Cast of Characters:

1 c. almond milk (not shown)

1 T. apple cider vinegar (not shown)

1 T. vanilla (not shown)

3/4 c. Harvest Share Organics raw cane sugar

1/4 c. coconut oil

2 c. grated, raw zucchini

1 tsp. vanilla

2 - 2 1/2 c. Harvest Share Organics whole wheat flour

                or whole wheat/spelt flour blend

1/3 c. + 2 T.cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. baking powder

The Script:

Grate the zucchini.  I use my regular old cheese grater.  I wish I had something fancy that would make it faster and spare my fingers ... but it'll do for now!

Mix the wet ingredients with the zucchini.

And mix the dry ingredients together.

Now mix them both together!

If the mixture seems particularly runny, you may need to add a smidge more flour.

I had to play with it in my adaptation of the recipe, and I'm sorry, but honestly I can't remember exactly how much I used!

Somewhere between two and three cups ... smile.

Pour into muffin tins and bake at 350 for 26-28 minutes, or until the cupcake springs back lightly from your touch.

Let cool for 5-10 minutes, then remove from muffin tins and cool completely.

This is where it starts getting really satisfying.

Now you must go to http://ohsheglows.com/2011/06/09/vegan-whole-wheat-chocolate-cupcakes-with-spiced-buttercream/

Scroll a little over halfway down to find the awesomest complement to these zucchini chocolate cupcakes ever! ... Cinnamon spiced buttercream!!

I think this photo just absolutely says TA-DAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!

(Please ignore the open dishwasher in the background.)

Marvelous.

Oh, in case you're wondering, I added a little cocoa back into some of the buttercream.

Yes.  Zucchini Chocolate Cupcakes with Cinnamon Chocolate Buttercream Icing!

There are some things in life to which words absolutely cannot do justice.

Pizza Pizza

Some days nothing satisfies like pizza - gooey, cheesy, packed with flavor, pick-it-up-and-eat-it-with-your-hands pizza!

These days I enjoy my own homemade pizza.  I never feel gross or queasy afterward, as I do with most bought or delivered pizzas.

THAT, my friends, is because nothing goes into my pizzas but simple, whole food ingredients.

Not to mention that I've started using whole spelt flour for the crust instead of regular wheat flour.  Why?  Spelt is an ancient grain and unlike wheat, is rarely used in our American food system.  As a result, most of our digestive systems tolerate spelt way better than they do the over-used wheat now found in just about everything packaged, canned and processed that we eat.  So, in an effort to give my digestive system a break, I rotate spelt products into our diet frequently ... spelt crackers, spelt bread, and homemade spelt pizza crust.  Spelt has a slightly sweet, nutty flavor and is higher in protein than wheat.  It can be easily substituted for whole wheat flour in most recipes.  It lends a crisp 'tooth' to my pizza crust, as well as a lovely toast-y color. 

Ah, back to the pizza.  To top off all the goodness of spelt, summertime provides me an endless array of pizza toppings.

Today I thought I'd make a simple margherita pizza.  You know, tomatoes and basil and mozzarella. Tomatoes from my garden and basil from my potted herb garden.  YUM.

But then I remembered the plethora of zucchini in my garden.

And the mass of leafy spinach I bought at the farmers' market yesterday, because the hot weather and grasshoppers did mine in long ago!

And all of a sudden, I have a beautiful vegetable pizza in mind ... chock full of fresh homegrown or locally grown veggies.  CAN YOU BEAT IT??!!

Thanks to Harvest Share Organics, I also have organic, whole spelt flour in my pantry.  Other than that, it's pretty much all grown off my back step.  I can't tell you the satisfaction that gives me.  I'm sure I was a farmer in my past life.

Enjoy!

Easy Pizza Crust

1 pkg. yeast (or 2 1/2 tsp.)

1 c. warm water

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

2 T. vegetable oil

2 1/2 c. organic spelt flour (whole is best)

Dissolve the yeast in warm water.  Let sit a few minutes.

Stir in oil, sugar and salt.

Stir in flour and mix into a soft dough ball.

Let rest for 15 minutes.  In this time you can prep your veggies or other pizza toppings (capicola, prosciutto, sausage anyone?) 

 I forgot to take a photo of my beautiful greens - spinach and basil.  I roughly chopped them.

Here's the basil before it got chopped.  Does anything smell better than fresh basil???

And a photo of my all-time favorite way to bake a pizza - my pizza rock!

After the dough has rested for 15 minutes, roll it out on your pizza rock or pizza pan.  Prick it all over with a fork.

Now toss it in your 425 degree oven for 6-8 minutes so it just begins to bake.  This will help keep your toppings from making the crust too soggy.

Pull it out after a few minutes - and now the fun begins.  How would YOU like to top YOUR homemade spelt pizza crust?

I brushed olive oil and minced garlic on first.  Then I layered on the tomato and zucchini slices.

(Fresh Veggie Warning:  The water in these just-picked veggies will make your pizza quite 'juicy'.  I think it's worth it!)

That I topped with the spinach.

OMGoodness!!!  The COLORS!!  This is one of my favorite reasons to cook with fresh fruits and vegetables.  What a feast for the eyes.

And finally .... the cheese.  I had an organic shredded mozzarella from Whole Foods on hand.  But feel free to get creative.  My fresh Parmigiano Reggiano was down to the rind (don't worry, it got tossed in a split pea soup) or I definitely would have grated it all over as well!

Put this back in the oven for 10-15 minutes.  The basil we'll put on once it's out of the oven.  Otherwise, it tends to crisp and burn and all we really want is wilted basil anyway.

Mmmmm.  Toss the chopped basil on top and it will immediately 'wilt'. 

Let cool, slice, and ... call your friends ... ?  Not too sure about this last idea, half of my pizza managed to disappear and I'm the only person in my house today.

So let's just say it's all yours!!  One more quick, easy, fabulously flavorful way to use Harvest Share's organic products!

Peace, Love and Power Bars

The recipe for this protein bar is adapted from The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook by Tosca Reno.  It incorporates multiple grains, the protein powder of your choice, and can easily be adapted to be gluten-free.

With 5 grams of fiber and 15 grams of protein, it's sure to be sustaining through your mid-afternoon slump, as well as nourishing for your beautiful body.

To prep for this recipe, you'll need to make Yogurt Cheese.  This is simple, accomplished by draining plain yogurt for a few hours.  This was my first try at yogurt cheese and I was surprised, in more ways than one, with the results. 

Suspend a strainer over a bowl and line with 3-4 layers of cheesecloth (found in the canning section of large grocery stores or hardware stores.)

Pour yogurt carefully into the strainer.  I used a 32 oz. carton of plain yogurt. 

Let sit in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.

Here's what surprised me:  the next morning, a full CUP of liquid had drained off of my 4 cups of yogurt!!

The pleasant surprise, though, was the thick, cream-cheese-like consistency of my yogurt!

Clean Power Bars (No additives, preservatives, synthetic protein or artificial flavorings found in most store-bought protein bars!)

The Dry Ingredients (from left to right):

Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Sea Salt, Rice Protein Powder, Sucanat, Rolled Oats, Flax Seed, Oat Bran, Spelt Flour, and Wheat Germ!

Absolutely chock-full of whole grain nutrition, these bars are!  What I love is how many of these grains and seeds I can get in organic form from Harvest Share!

Now, a word about some of these dry ingredients.  You can easily eliminate the wheat germ, use quinoa or kamut flour instead of spelt, and use gluten-free oats for a completely gluten-free version of this treat.  Your favorite whey or soy protein powder can be used instead of the rice powder as well.  Organic honey or agave nectar can be substituted for the Sucanat.

The Wet Ingredients:

Yogurt Cheese, Coconut Oil (or healthy oil of your choice), Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Chocolate Chips and Vanilla

The Directions:

Mix dry ingredients:

1 c. protein powder

1/2 c. spelt or quinoa flour

2 c. rolled oats

1/2 c. oat bran

1/2 c. ground flax seed

1 ts. sea salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 c. Sucanat or agave nectar

Stir in 1 cup dark chocolate pieces or bittersweet chocolate chips.

Please, please, please don't forget the chocolate pieces.  If you do, I might cry.

Mix wet ingredients:

2 c. yogurt cheese

1/4 c. coconut oil

2 tsp. olive oil

1 tsp. vanilla

Now pour the yogurt cheese mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well.

Clean, well-oiled bare hands work best for mixing this thick, sticky mixture!

Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray.  Press mixture evenly into the pan.

It looks suspiciously like a chocolate chip cookie bar I used to make in my teenage years.

I bet it won't make me feel like those bars did though!

Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Let cool.  Cut into 20 or 24 bars.  Line a baking sheet with waxed paper and bake the bars for 15 minutes more.

Ta-DAAAAH!! What an accomplishment!  Homemade, healthful protein bars for all-week snacking!

I can almost promise you that you won't need your 3pm cup of coffee with one of these dollies stowed in your desk drawer.

Salud!

Wheat Bran Samples

This is for all you lucky people who were at Fusion Massage in Ft. Collins on Saturday, July 23 for their Grand Opening celebration. If you picked up a goodie bag, you found a free sample of Organic Wheat Bran and you might be asking,"What is this stuff?" Short answer, "It's fiber. It's good for you. Eat it." Not good enough? OK, there's a longer explanation below. You can add wheat bran to baked goods, sprinkle it on hot or cold cereal or add it to a fruit smoothie. 

Here's a very basic grain tutorial, with a focus on wheat. All grains break down to 3 basic parts, outside wrap or hull (bran), inside of grain (endosperm) and the reproductive part that "germinates" to grow a new plant (germ). When you eat a 'whole grain', you're eating all 3 of these parts. When you eat 'refined' flour, you're eating only the endosperm, the meaty inside of the grain, which has been dried and ground into a fine powder. In the refining process, the bran and germ are separated from the endosperm. That's where 'wheat bran' and 'wheat germ' come from. Wheat bran is best known for it's fiber and wheat germ for it's concentrated nutrition. When you want to increase the fiber in your diet, bran is the go to source for that. Other grains provide bran as a fiber source with oat bran being the most widely used in the US. Now that we've made the case for fiber, you should know that wheat bran is full of nutrients, as well. Nearly 35% of the protein and nearly 60% of the iron in a gram of whole wheat, is in the bran. That's it for the long answer, I refer you back to the short one.

We, at Harvest Share Organics, wish you good health through good nutrition. Enjoy whatever foods you decide to add this Organic Wheat Bran to (sic). If you want an idea, check out our Pumpkin Banana Bran and Oats Muffins recipe. And come back here for more recipes and ideas. We add them on a regular basis. 

One of my favorite go to sources for this type of information is digplanet. It's a great website if you want more information about grains and/or nutrition.  

Pumpkin Banana Bran and Oats Muffins

Here's one delicious way to use that wheat bran. Bran is one of those foods that are oh so good for you but pretty hard to eat all by itself. It's waaay better to mix it in (let's be real, disguise it) with some better tasting foods. This recipe is from Oh She Glows, adapted using organic ingredients from our Harvest Share Organics store.

Pumpkin Banana Bran & Oats Muffins

Ingredients

1 banana

1 c. cooked (or canned) pumpkin

1 egg

1/2 c. raw sugar

1/3 c. butter (melted)

1 t. baking soda

1/2 c. regular rolled oats

1/2 c. wheat bran

1/2 c. spelt flour (or your favorite flour)

Cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice

Dark chocolate chips (optional)

Chopped walnuts (optional)

Instructions

Mash banana and mix in pumpkin, raw sugar and egg. Add melted butter. In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet mixture. Do not over mix. Divide batter equally into 12 muffin tins that have been oiled or lined with paper muffin cups. Bake for 22 minutes @ 350 degrees.

105 calories and nearly 3 grams of fiber per muffin!  Enjoy!!

Barley Tabbouleh with Shrimp

HarvestShare offers a vast array of organic whole grains that most of us may have only had on occasion in a fine dining establishment.  With that in mind, I'd like to showcase another one of them:  barley.  Barley is a glutenous grain and it is that gluten content that gives it a chewy, pastalike consistency.  The whole grain is 10-15% protein and represents the B vitamins, magnesium, iron and potassium well. 

Tabbouleh is a traditional Middle Eastern salad using bulgur, parsley, mint, tomatoes and spring onions.  I've substituted the grain and the greens in this salad to suit my pantry:

and my garden:

 . 

Barley/Kale Tabbouleh:

Rinse barley, then cook in a 3-to-1 ratio of water to barley.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 50 minutes.

Mix in chopped tomatoes, green onions, and finely chopped kale.

Dressing made easy:

Top with 1/4 c. lemon juice and 2 T. olive oil.  Finish with a grind each of sea salt and peppercorns.

And finally, for protein and a complete meal, top with shrimp sauteed in butter and garlic!

Banana Oat Breakfast Cake

This is another fave of mine from Oh She Glows, adapted using organic ingredients from Harvest Share.  OhSheGlows is my current go-to queen of vegan baked yumminess.  When I want that just-right after dinner sweet treat or afternoon chocolate fix, I can so far count on her to provide me with a healthful alternative to white, preservative-filled, nutrient-deficient traditional baked goods and snacks.  This hearty breakfast cake draws on the whole grain nuttiness & B vitamins of oats, the phytonutrients of ripe bananas and applesauce, and antioxidant-rich dark chocolate to provide a hearty, sweet-tooth-satisfying snack, breakfast, or dessert!  I highly recommend a large shmear of all-natural peanut butter over the top when it's warm out of the oven!

The riper the better on the bananas!

Banana Oat Breakfast Cake

• 2 c. Harvest Share organic oats, processed into a flour
• 1/2 c. Harvest Share organic oats (not processed)
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8th tsp nutmeg
• 2 T. Harvest Share organic raw sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 2 T. coconut oil, melted
• 2 medium very ripe bananas, peeled
• 1/3 c. applesauce (or individual serving cup)
• 1/4 c. almond milk
• 1 tsp pure vanilla
• 1/2 c. dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. Harvest Share organic walnuts, chopped

The Vita-Mix is super handy for processing oats into flour, but a regular blender should work too.

Dry ingredients ... and summertime flowers, woohoo!!

Mix dry ingredients.

Wet ingredients ... I am so in love with coconut oil.  And almond milk.  Not necessarily together, but as individual parts of whole goodness!

Mix wet ingredients.

Yay for black bananas!!

Peel 'em.

And mash 'em into your wet ingredients.

And stir 'em gud.  (Sorry, West Texas self kicked in there for a moment.)

Now plop the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.

The Goodies!

Fold the goodies into the mixture.

Do NOT forget this step!

Now scrape into your favorite 8-9" cake or pie pan, lightly greased.

And bake at 350 for 35 minutes! 

Mmmm, yes.

I know you want to dig in and try the pb shmear, but please ...

Let it cool and set for just about 10 minutes.

It'll still be warm enough to melt the peanut butter, I promise.

I just love finished product shots!

Okay, now slice carefully ...

Dip a knife into the peanut butter jar and scoop out a large slather ...

and spread carefully over the top of your cake.

And PLEASE, sit d-o-w-n ... with a glass of cold milk (almond milk will do!)

And slowly, savorly (yes, it's a word here), have your cake and eat it too.

It's the only right way to really enjoy good food.

What is Organic? #1 - Definition

Welcome to our blog series! 

What is Organic?

#1 – Definition

For most of us, when we hear the word ‘organic’ we think ‘expensive’. Or we think ‘fad’. Or the more cynical among us think ‘just another marketing ploy’.  So I want to begin our series of blog posts by defining the word. Organic simply means this:  foods produced in a way that every ingredient has been grown without the use of pesticides, herbicides or chemical based fertilizers; do not contain genetically modified organisms (GMO); and are not processed, handled or packaged using irradiation, industrial solvents or chemical food additives.

When we read this, we’re amazed that there is food on the grocery shelves that DON’T meet these standards. This should be the mainstream practice of food production, period. We believe that organic foods are best for us because they retain the nutrients designed by nature and don’t include additives that are unnatural at best and harmful at worst.

The thing we want our readers to get is this: If the food you buy does NOT say ‘organic’, assume that it’s not.  Assume that it has possibly been grown using GMO’d seeds in depleted soil that has been enhanced with chemicals, sprayed with herbicides and pesticides that are poisonous to humans, then possibly irradiated to extend shelf life and mixed with additives to enhance flavor and color. (We’ll cover each of these issues in future posts.)And we haven’t even addressed food packaging yet. You get the picture.  Today, in America, the majority of food available is not organic and food that IS organic will be identified as such. The food production industry is currently in transition and there are guidelines set out by the US Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program governing what can be labeled organic. These are the foods that are the best choice for promoting healthy living.

Food producers who choose the organic route are going against the established agricultural system. (Another future topic.) All organic food products and processes must be inspected along the way by an accredited inspection agency.  Organic growing practices are less convenient and more labor intensive, therefore they have been abandoned for more ‘cost effective’ ways of growing and producing food.

With this series of blog posts, we want to present you with information to help you choose foods that will genuinely nourish you and those you feed. Right now, you must search out those foods. There are grocers dedicated to organic foods and that makes it easier to find them but not everything sold in a natural or whole food store is organic. Just beware of the ‘all natural’ label. (We’ll write more about this later.)

Next time we’ll give you tips for making label reading easier and how to tell that it’s actually organic.

Spring Quinoa Salad

Today, May 1st, is hopefully the harbinger of spring here in Colorado!  In honor of the changing seasons, warmer weather and lighter fare, I'm thrilled to share with you another marvelously tasty, simple,  and nutritious recipe!  It is husband-and-father-in-law-approved, which is saying something given their fried and meat-loving standards.

First, what is quinoa?

Thought of as a grain, quinoa is actually a seed related to beets, Swiss chard, and spinach.

Check out how tiny it is compared to grains of rice or pinto beans.

It has a yummy, whole grain-y, nutty flavor that can take the place of couscous or orzo pasta in salads and side dishes.

The cool thing about quinoa is its protein value!  Unlike any other 'grain', it has a nice balance of all 9 essential amino acids.

The other cool thing is it cooks quickly (15-20 minutes in a 2:1 ratio of water to quinoa).

And it's now soo conveniently available to you (ORGANIC, no less!) with a click of your mouse from Harvest Share Organics!!

I am so happy about that.

Bring 1/2 c. quinoa to a boil in 1 c. water.  Then cover, reduce to a simmer, and cook 15-20 minutes, or until the water is absorbed.

Finely chop the following vegetables: 2 plum tomatoes (seeded), 1/3 c. red onion and spinach leaves (1 c. or so). (Don't be misled by my picture!  Spinach inadvertently got left out of the picture, but you've GOT to have the spinach!)

Peel and dice 2 avocados.

When the quinoa's done, drain it and toss it with the finely chopped veggies, 2 T. lemon juice, and sea salt to taste.

Top with diced avocado and feta cheese.

YUM!! 

It would be complete as a meal in itself, given quinoa's protein content.  But you could add a nice piece of fish if you like.

I did.  For my meat lovers.

Organic Certification

Woo hoo!  We are now a Certified Organic company!  We received our certification yesterday at 9:03am.  That means the inspection process with the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) is complete.

What does this mean to you?  It means that each of our products has been certified to be organic all the way from the source.  We also comply with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Organics Program (NOP) which means that our entire processing system is inspected. The inspection process looks at all of our products, labeling, record keeping, packaging and packaging facility. All of these systems are audited to insure that everyone who handles the products, from grower to seller, are compliant with the National Organic Program.

Watch for our series , “What is Organic”, that will be coming soon.

Until we meet again here, be well.