DANIELLE AT HOME

Danielle

Blueberry Oat Muffins

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Whole wheats and oat muffins, bursting with juicy blueberries.

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Every weekend I try to make muffins or banana bread. Some sort of baked good that can be grabbed on our way to work in the morning. Or thrown in my purse for a mid morning snack. Bonus points if it’s tasty enough to enjoy as dessert. Anything that keeps me away from a chocolate bar is key to keep my waist line from growing!

Blueberry muffins are one of my favourite kinds of muffins. I like that they are fresh and light while still providing the comfort of a baked good. I personally am not a fan of the baker style muffin. To me those are truly a dessert. They are more like cake than muffin and you will rarely find me baking them. If a baked good is going to be part of my regular diet as part of a meal pr snack I have a few requirements:

  • Mostly whole wheat or whole grain
  • Low in sugar
  • Healthy fat source
  • Delicious!
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These muffins fit my rules. They contain whole wheat flour, rolled oats, honey, cinnamon, apple sauce, coconut oil and blueberries! Lots of filling healthy ingredients to fuel your day.

We’ve enjoyed these so much I’m going to me making another batch on Sunday!

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Blueberry Oat Muffins

Yields: 14 Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1/2 cup All Purpose Flour
  • 1 1/2 cup Rolled Oats
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 cup Brown Sugar, loosely packed
  • 1/3 cup Honey
  • 1/3 cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce
  • 1/3 cup Coconut Oil, melted
  • 1 cup Milk (Cows milk, nut milk, oat milk – your favourite!)
  • 1 tsp Vanilla
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 cup Blueberries (fresh or frozen, do not defrost frozen)
  • Optional: Rolled Oats and Turbinado Sugar, for topping

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare your muffin tins with cupcake liners or grease with oil or non stick spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, oats, salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda. Once ingredients are evenly distributed, set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together brown sugar, honey, apple sauce, coconut oil, milk, vanilla and egg. Whisk until smooth. Pour dry ingredients into the wet. Fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Add blueberries, fold into batter.

Pour batter into the prepared muffin tins. Fill each tin 3/4 of the way full. Do not over fill.  Sprinkle tops of muffins with rolled oats and turbinado sugar if desired. Bake muffins for 20-30 minutes. Muffins are done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator for about a week. These muffins also freeze and defrost well.

Winter Grain Salad with Glory Dressing

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Simple delicious whole food ingredients smothered is the best dressing ever invented.

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Happy Saturday guys! I’m popping on here today to share a staple salad and a dressing that can be used to make just about anything taste delicious! This recipe is actually adapted from a recipe my husband got from an old roommate. Many years ago my husband, then boyfriend made us glory bowls for dinner. It was one of the first dinners he ever cooked for me. At this time I was still living at home and honestly hadn’t cooked much, he was the better cook back then. I watched him prep the ingredients, cook rice, grill chicken and make the most amazing dressing. I was so impressed! Since then his recipe for glory dressing has evolved and the scrape of paper the recipe was written on is scribbled with notes and splattered with soy sauce. Isn’t that a sign of a well loved recipe? I think so.

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The best thing about the recipe I’m sharing today is how customizable it is. Today I’m sharing a simple but hardy salad full of whole grains and delicious vegetables. I’ve added grilled chicken, crispy tofu, sliced steak and soft boiled eggs to this salad to round out the meal. You can also switch up the vegetables, add cucumber and pickled red onion, or ad roasted cauliflower and sweet potatoes. The world is your oyster. This is really just a jumping off point for your own creativity!

Now the dressing, it’s made up of olive oil, tahini, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, garlic and sesame oil. I recommend making this dressing in a blender or a magic bullet. You can make it by hand, but I like the magic bullet because it emulsifies the oil and makes the dressing super creamy. Also you can skip the step of chopping garlic, because lets be honest chopping garlic is the worst!

Once the dressing is made pick your favourite grain and veggies toppings, assemble and smother with dressing. You won’t regret it!

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Winter Grain Salad with Glory Dressing

Yields: 2 cups dressing & 4 salad bowls

Salads:

  • 3 cups Brown Rice, cooked
  • 4 Cups Spring Mix
  • 2 Carrots, raw grated
  • 4 Beets, cooked sliced
  • Optional: chicken, steak, crispy tofu, soft boiled egg

Dressing:

  • 3 tablespoons Tahini
  • 1/2 cup Soy Sauce
  • 1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1/4 cup Water
  • 2 Garlic Cloves
  • 1 cup Olive Oil
  • 1 teaspoon Sesame Oil

Directions:

Add dressing ingredients to a blender, blend until smooth and emulsified.

Place a bed or rice into bowls or on plates, top with spring mix, sliced beets, grated carrots and optional protein toppings. Drizzle dressing over the salad. Serve immediately.

Dressing keeps up to week in your refrigerator.

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Winter Grain Salad with Glory Dressing - YUM!
Winter Grain Salad with Glory Dressing - YUM!

Vegan Cookie Dough Energy Balls

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The post Christmas sugar crash is totally real. I find it takes at least a month for me to get used to not having dessert and treats every day. Why do we do that to ourselves? I don’t know, but it will never stop. So as we clean up our diets a bit after the holidays I need a little something to get me through my sugar cravings.

These energy balls do just the trick. They have enough sweetness to give you that fix, but not enough to give you a sugar crash. Plus they are full of rolled oats, fibre, and healthy fats. They are the perfect dessert or mid day snack. And they are actually really filling.

These tiny balls contain rolled oats, ground flax, peanut butter, unsweetened coconut flakes and mini chocolate chips!

I also love using real maple syrup as the sweetener and binder for this recipe. I love that it is an al natural sweetener and it makes these energy balls truly vegan unlike using honey (here’s some info on veganism and honey). Also because it is more liquid than honey you can use a little less. Anytime I can cut back on sugar in a recipe I will do it.

This recipe also requires that you use natural peanut butter. To get the energy balls to bind you require the runny texture of natural peanut butter. Also we want to control the sweetness of the energy balls. Conventional peanut butter is loaded with chemicals, low quality fats and tons of sugar. And honestly if you taste them side by side conventional peanut butter doesn’t even taste like peanuts.

Packing all these whole foods into a portable delicious snack is perfect for curing your sweet tooth.

Vegan Cookie Dough Energy Balls

Yields: 20 Energy Balls

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
  • 1/4 cup Real Maple Syrup
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1 cup Rolled Oats
  • 2/3 cup Unsweetened Coconut Flakes
  • 1/2 cup Ground Flaxseed
  • 4 tbsp Mini Chocolate Chips

 

Directions:

In a medium bowl combine peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla extract until smooth. Add oats, coconut flakes, flaxseed and chocolate chips. Mix until combined.

Cover and place in the fridge to chill for an hour. Roll dough into 1 inch balls. Serve immediately or store in the fridge for up to a week.

Adapted from Cooking Classy.

Vegan Cookie Dough Energy Balls
Vegan Cookie Dough Energy Balls

Superfood Smoothie

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Disclosure: This post contains some affiliate links (marked with an *). As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I only share products that I love! Thank you for your support.

Happy New Year! This is my first post of 2019 and I’m so excited to continue bringing you all new recipes in 2019! 2018 was a huge year for me personally and professionally. A huge part of that was taking a leap of faith and starting this blog. I’m so proud of myself for committing to this blog and I cant wait to bring you more content this year.

So with that said lets get into the first post of 2019! Today I’m sharing my go to smoothie recipe. After the holidays I always want to clean up my diet a bit and get back to my normal routine of eating. I love smoothies! They are such a great breakfast option since you can pack so much heathy goodness into glass. Since I work full time smoothies are always in our breakfast rotation.

As much as I love smoothies I do take issue with a lot of smoothie recipes. Many of them are super high in sugar. In my opinion a smoothie should be sweet and delicious but not spike your blood sugar. It should have protein, fibre and a healthy fat to keep you full until lunch. And it absolutely should have greens. I try to get some greens in at every meal, but it doesn’t always happen. So knowing I will get at least one serving in before 10 am makes me super happy.

Todays smoothie is packed full or nutrients and superfoods. A breakfast full of iron, calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, fibre and antioxidants. From some very delicious ingredients.

It’s a great way to start your day and you year. So cheers to a happy, and healthy year ahead!

Superfood Smoothie

Yields: 2 servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup Frozen Mixed Berry Blend (my favourite includes blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and cherries)
  • 1/2 Banana, frozen
  • 1 cup Spinach, packed
  • 1 tablespoon Natural Almond Butter
  • 1 tablespoon Flax Seed, ground
  • 2 scoops Protein Powder, vanilla or natural (whey or plant based, whatever is your favourite)
  • 1 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
  • Optional: 1 Medjool Date, pitted (if you like your smoothies extra sweet)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in the blender. Blend until completely smooth. Add water to thin if needed. Serve in tall glasses or to go cups.

Disclosure: This post contains some affiliate links (marked with an *). As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I only share products that I love! Thank you for your support.

Grapefruit and Ginger Champagne Cocktail

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Hi everyone! I’m back to blogging after a little Christmas break. It was so nice to get out of the kitchen and visit with all our family for a few days. It was hectic and I’ll admit I’m still exhausted from travelling but it was well worth it. We had a really great Christmas. I hope you all did too.

Now we’re all in this awkward stage between Christmas and New Years where like isn’t totally normal yet and chocolate and sweets are a main food group. I went back to work the day after boxing day and I will admit that really messes with my post Christmas coma I typically enter into. But it’s almost the weekend and then before we know it it will be New Year’s Eve.

New Years Eve is my jam, but I’m very particular in how I spend it. I’ve been on trips to Mexico, snowboarding, parties, game night and fancy dinners. But the only way we spend our New Years now is at home. We decorate the house, dress down in brand new comfy sweats eat fabulous food and drinking the best cocktails and wines. We play games, watch movies. And our strangest but favourite tradition is eating homemade cinnamon buns and drinking champagne while watching the ball drop at midnight. Then we stay up until 2 am chatting about our hopes, dreams and goals for the next year. It is one of the best nights of the year!

In the past I’ve cooked an elaborate dinner for New Years, but this year I am working, so we are doing appetizers only. I’m planning a charcuteries platter, baked brie, various homemade dips with the best bread in town and all of the homemade puff pastry appetizers in my freezer (yum!). I will be making fresh homemade cinnamon buns for midnight so I thought that keeping it simple with our savoury options was the right choice.

I’m also saving myself time so that I can make some delicious champagne cocktails. The recipe I’m sharing today has been a staple at our New Years Eve celebration for a few years now and I just cant get enough. I think it’s great to leave cranberry and pomegranate behind after Christmas and celebrate the brighter flavours of the season like citrus. Such as grapefruit. I love the colour a ruby red grapefruit gives this cocktail and the addition of ginger ale helps to sweeten things up and give another dimension of flavour. This is perfect for a small party where you have time to make your guests drinks. It is super fun and festive for New Years. I hope you enjoy it.

Grapefruit and Ginger Champagne Cocktail

Yields: 1 cocktail

Ingredients

  • 1 ounce Vodka
  • 1 ounce Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice (blood orange is great too!)
  • 2 ounces Ginger Ale
  • Champagnes
  • Mint Leaves

Directions:

In a champagne flute combine vodka and grapefruit juice. Add ginger ale, then top with champagne. Garnish with mint leaves.

Adapted from Half Baked Harvest.

Brown Butter Shortbread with Maple Glaze

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Today’s post is the very last Christmas cookie recipe I will be sharing for 2018. How did this month go so fast? I cant believe Christmas is in just a few days. If you still haven’t checked out week one through three of this series click here, here and here.

Today’s recipe is a variation on shortbread cookies. I know people think they are dry and tasteless, so I’ve added brown butter and brown sugar for a deeper flavour. I also added a delicious maple glaze to make then ever more flavourful.

These cookies are great because you probably already have all the ingredients in your pantry. These are also a slice and bake cookie so there isn’t any rolling and cutting out shapes to do. Slice and bake cookies are so simple to make.

So if you’re up for some more Christmas baking give these or any of the other recipes in this series a try. This is my last recipe post before Christmas, so I hope you have enjoyed all the festive holiday content over the past few months as much as I’ve enjoyed sharing it. Merry Christmas!

Brown Butter Shortbread with Maple Glaze

Yields: 24 cookies

Ingredients:

  • 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter
  • 2/3 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 2/3 Cup White Sugar
  • 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 1 Cup Confectioners sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Real Maple Syrup
  • 1 Tablespoon Half and Half
  • Optional: Raw Turbinado Sugar

Directions:

Melt butter over medium heat in a light coloured skillet. Swirl the pan occasionally. Cook until butter browns and has a nutty aroma, 2-3 minutes. pour butter into a bowl and place in the fridge to solidify for about 30 minutes. The brown butter should have a similar texture to softened butter.

Whisk flour and salt together set aside.

In a stand mixer beat the cooled brown butter on high until creamy and smooth. Add white sugar, brown sugar and vanilla, cream until smooth. Add dry ingredients to the mixer and beat on low until just combined.

Form dough into two 8 inch logs. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350°F, line baking sheets with parchment and set aside.

Roll the logs of dough in turbinado sugar and slice each log into 12 equal sized pieces. Place cookies on lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake cookies for 12-14 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

In a small bowl combine confectioner sugar, maple syrup and half and half. Drizzle glaze over cooled cookies. Place in the fridge to set.

Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction.

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