Blueberry Dark Chocolate Granola

We usually have fruit for breakfast since it's quick and healthy, but this week we wanted to try something new. We wanted something that was still quick and healthy, but more filling with a little extra sweetness. So, we decided on granola. We had it with a little milk in the morning, but it is so tasty that we found ourselves snacking on it all day. You will too.

granola recipe


ingredients:

2 cups of organic rolled oats
1 cup of organic unsweetened coconut flakes
2 ounces of your choice of dark chocolate, roughly chopped (we tried Scharffen Berger)
1 cup of organic blueberries
2 tablespoons of organic extra virgin coconut oil
2 tablespoons of organic honey
Seeds from half of organic vanilla bean
Pinch of sea salt

recipe:

i. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
ii. In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, coconut flakes and sea salt.
iii. In a smaller bowl, combine vanilla bean, coconut oil and honey, then pour into the dry ingredients and stir until ingredients are completely mixed.
iv. Fold in the blueberries, then place in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, stirring every five minutes or so to keep granola from sticking together too much. Bake until browned.
v. Let cool, then stir in dark chocolate and serve.

serves four


FIN

Baked Polenta with Veggies and Marinara

We wanted to try something new, something that would be a more traditional Italian dish that you wouldn't normally find at Italian restaurants. This is what we made, and it ended up being one of our favorite meals so far.

polenta recipe

ingredients:

1 3/4 cups of organic polenta cornmeal

6 cups of water

3 tablespoons of organic extra virgin olive oil, plus more for cooking veggies

1 organic zucchini, sliced

1 organic Yukon Gold potato, sliced

1 large organic tomato, diced

1 small organic yellow onion, peeled and diced

2 cloves of organic garlic

Sea salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

recipe:

i. In a large saucepan, bring 6 cups of water to a boil, then stir in the polenta and sea salt. Turn on low heat and add olive oil, then let simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often.

ii. Spoon polenta evenly into a large baking pan and refrigerate until it has cooled.

iii. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

iv. Place tomato, onion and garlic in a baking pan, then drizzle with olive oil and bake until tomatoes have slightly shrunken and onion has browned.

v. Put tomatoes, onion and garlic into a food processor and combine until they form a sauce. Salt and pepper to your liking.

vi. From here, pour the sauce into a small saucepan and add your preferred seasonings and spices (our marinara is a secret) then bring to a boil, turn heat to low, cover and let simmer until you are ready to pour over polenta.

vii. Take polenta out of refrigerator, then place potato and zucchini in the same baking pan in which you cooked the tomato and onion, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place both the veggies and polenta in 375 degree oven and cook for 30 minutes, or until vegetables are soft in the middle but still hold their texture and polenta is thoroughly heated.

viii. Cut polenta into squares, then top with veggies and marinara and serve.

makes 6 servings

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