Tag: coconut

summer breakfast

It’s hot. Summer is hot, proven by my social media feed filled with people posting photos of their car thermometers or screenshots of their weather apps. (do you remember winter….and the ice and snow? yeah, me too.)

It’s that wake up hot,
…go to bed hot, kind of hot.

If you’re like me and you don’t like a big breakfast (and if you can remember to prepare this before bed, which I know I’m asking a lot) this is my new favorite breakfast treat.

I know, there’s a billion recipes for these online. In fact I even saw pre-made “Refrigerator Oats” at target last week.

Some call for cute mason jars or fancy spices and yogurt

But, after experimenting and testing different methods my favorite recipe is this:

OVERNIGHT OATS:

in the smallest of my Pyrex Snapware (the little orange one):

1/2 cup gluten free oats
1 Tbls shredded coconut (unsweetened)
a few blueberries
some chopped pecans
1 Tbls maple syrup (agave, or other liquid sweetener will work)
1/3 cup milk of choice (coconut works great!)

Don’t stir, just snap the lid down, refrigerate overnight and in the morning you have a cold refreshing, (gluten free, dairy free) nutritious breakfast!

Of course the options to modify this are pretty endless; I find that the combination of the crunchy (pecans) and the sweet (blueberries) with the texture (coconut) make a great balance.

Enjoy! And stay cool 😎

 

 

 

All images © 2013-2017 Jeannie M. Starks / two daisies life

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spring.

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supposedly it landed here in ohio a few weeks ago, but we’ve only had a smattering of warm days in which to get us in the mood. we’ve also now entered the rainy month(s) “april showers bring may flowers” usually means it won’t stop raining until somewhere around June 1st.

so it’s time to be thinking about what you can do to nourish yourself if you’re stuck inside a little while longer waiting for the clouds to clear.

starting the day with an organic protein drink is a good beginning:

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I make mine using Orgain Organic Protein Powder as a base (but any protein powder that you like would work, mixed with your milk of choice: almond, coconut, soy…..etc)

in a NutriBullet:

8 oz. milk of choice

1 scoop protein powder of choice

4 chunks raw coconut (about 4 ounces)

4 drops turmeric oil

1 capsule royal jelly (open cap up, dump powder into liquid)

blend on high, pour in glass and drink!

The turmeric oil helps with pain and inflammation you may have, the royal jelly is an amazing energy boost.

enjoy and happy spring!

:)

sunset. lake erie.
sunset. lake erie.

 

short (bread) weekend.

It was one of those perfect weather weekends. One not to be missed. We had the good fortune of being invited to a lovely party down by the lake, where we enjoyed the sunset with refreshing cocktails and great food.

The weekend was way too short, as I fear the summer will be, isn’t it always?

I had some coconut and a lime staring at me on Sunday, seeming to ask; “may we please marry some butter , sugar and flour?” and so they did.

Recipe:

2 1/4 cups of all-purpose gluten free flour blend
1/2 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of lime zest
1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) of cold, unsalted butter, cut into tiny bits.
1 cup of toasted, sweetened coconut

Toast the coconut: Preheat the oven to 350F.

Place the coconut onto a cookie sheet and spread it out to form an even layer. Put the coconut in the oven and bake it for about 5-7 minutes or until it just starts to turn brown, stirring as needed. Be careful. Once it changes color, it will burn fast. Remove the toasted coconut from the oven and set it aside to cool. Leave the oven at 350F.

Line an 8×8 inch square baking pan with aluminum foil. Have the edges of the foil fold over the edges slightly for easy removal.

In bowl of stand mixer, combine the sugar and lime zest. Using your fingers, work the lime zest into the sugar until it becomes moist and fragrant. Add the flour, and salt. Stir to combine. Sprinkle the cut-up butter over the dry ingredients. stir the butter into the flour mixture with the paddle attachment until barely incorporated. Don’t over beat. You want the mixture to resemble coarse, wet sand.

Pour the dough into the prepared pan and press it firmly down into an even layer. Sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the edges are gold and the top is slightly brown.
Remove from the oven and allow the bars to cool completely in the pan.

I think it’s a match made in Heaven. Enjoy.

this tropical heat calls for some coconut.

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I’ve been holed up in my cement tower (aka my 4th floor apartment, which thankfully includes all the air conditioning my little bones can handle) but there’s a rumor going around that it’s hot out. I actually verified this by stepping out onto my balcony to water the plants. Tropical is how I would describe it. Which got me craving coconut drinks…..

Alas, I whipped up some coconut cream scones instead.

They hit the spot. For the moment, anyway.

(available in my shop should you, too, have the craving)