The Good Goodies

Back in the 70's when I was born, my parents were what I like to call "Catholic Hippies"...that is they were into the "good" stuff that hippies did (breastfeeding, natural child-birth, organic gardening, whole foods, recycling) and of course none of the bad stuff (like drugs and "free love").  Anyway, when I got married, my mom passed onto me a book entitled "The Good Goodies" written by Stan and Floss Dworkin and published in 1974.  The book is a cookbook of sorts, and the premise is making "goodies"  that are good for you, the idea being that the goodies themselves are nutritious and part of a balanced diet....not just an empty-calorie add-on. 

 

But, the way we see it, if a candy can be made as healthy as any other wholesome food, then the candy IS food, not just something extra you tack on with a feeling of guilt, but a wholesome, natural, satisfying food. (pg. 37).

That's the way I see it too!

Of course, some nutritional ideas have changed since 1974 when this book was published., now we know that saturated fat isn't the devil  however the book still has some excellent recipes.

Therefore, part of real food eating quest is to making everything as nutritious as possible, even the "goodies". 

In my house, we LOVE cookies. absolutely love cookies, adore cookies.  My very picky fairy-princess will  eat anything if I call it a cookie and throw chocolate chips in it...and destructo-boy loves them too!  Of course, the real cookie fan is the Pater Familas, so we usually have some sort of "good, goody" in our house.

Here are a few of my favorite recipes: However, before we start just a few notes on baking cookies.  

1) Cookies continue to bake after being taken out of the oven, therefore to get perfect cookies you really need to take them out a minute or two before they are done, check them frequently, and always set the timer for the shortest time given in a recipie (or even a minute or two before)
2) There is nothing worse than cookies that get too brown on the bottom. To avoid this, you really need to use a LIGHT-colored cookie sheet.   I oftentimes line my cookie sheets with alumninum foil before baking. It may not be the thriftiest solution, but it does prevent the bottoms from getting too dark.  Since we bake cookies so much, I'm considering investing in a new cookie sheets, but haven't made the plunge yet.

Peanut-Butter Oatmeal Cookies (yield: 30 cookies)
3 eggs

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup natural (no sugar added) peanut butter

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup honey

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups  oats

1 cup white-whole wheat  flour

1 cup nonfat dry milk powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

Directions

1.In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites and brown sugar. Beat in peanut butter, applesauce, honey and vanilla. Combine the oats, flour, milk powder and baking soda; gradually add to peanut butter mixture, beating until combined.

2.Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 in. apart onto baking sheets coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.
 
Gluten-Free Banana Brownies (yield: 16 brownies)

1/4 cup butter

2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

2 large eggs

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 small ripe banana, mashed

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup coconut flour

Directions

1.Preheat an oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8 inch square pan.

2.Melt butter in sauce pan over medium-low heat. Remove from heat, add chips, and stir until melted. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

3.Lightly beat the egg in a medium bowl. Stir in the brown sugar, banana, vanilla, and salt. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the banana mixture, and stir until well combined. Add the flour, stirring just until incorporated. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

4.Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with moist crumbs, about 30 minutes. Don't over bake. Remove, and cool pan on wire rack before cutting.
 
Pumpkin-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies (yield: 30 cookies)

2 cups white-whole wheat flour

1 1/3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup  pumpkin or squach or mashed sweet potato

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease baking sheets.

2.Combine flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. Beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract; mix well. Add flour mixture; mix well. Stir in nuts and raisins. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets.

3.Bake for 14 to 16 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and set in centers. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely
 
Coconut Cookies  (yield: 60 cookies)

1 cup coconut oil

1 cup  sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups white-whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsweetened flaked coconut

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1.Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

2.In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; gradually stir into the creamed mixture. Stir in the coconut, rolled oats, pecans and gumdrops. Roll the dough into walnut sized balls. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Gently flatten cookies using a fork dipped in flour.

3.Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chewy Granola Bars

4 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 cup  flour (can use whole-wheat, coconut flour, brown rice flour, etc.)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup butter, softened

1 cup honey

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 cups add-ins (nuts, dried fruits, chocolate chips, shredded coconut, etc)
DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Lightly grease one 9x13 inch pan.

In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, baking soda, vanilla, butter or margarine, honey and brown sugar. Stir in the 2 cups assorted chocolate chips, raisins, nuts etc.

Press down HARD into prepared pan!! Really press these down!!! Press hard....that keeps them from falling apart and crumbling and helps them stay together better. Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into bars. Let bars cool completely in pan before removing or serving.


Hope you enjoy some of these Good Goodies!!!

Real Recipes with Real Food

In my last blog post I talked about miserly mom tip #2....never buy anything you can make yourself.  

I have recently been practicing that tip and discovered that home-made food, while being cheaper and healthier is far, far tastier than store-bought food.  

To begin with, I've started making all my own bread.  This is regular whole-wheat bread.  The Social-Butterfly is gluten-free so in the future I post about gluten-free breads!

Ingredients


3 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast

1/3 cup honey

5 cups whole wheat flour  (I find that using white-whole wheat provides a lighter, airier loaf that rises better.  Using all whole-wheat makes a denser loaf. The picture above was baked using typical whole-wheat flour.  I generally prefer to use white-whole wheat when I can find it on sale).

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1/3 cup honey

1 tablespoon salt

3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

1.In a large bowl, mix warm water, yeast, and 1/3 cup honey. Add 5 cups white bread flour, and stir to combine. Let set for 30 minutes, or until big and bubbly.

2.Mix in 3 tablespoons melted butter, 1/3 cup honey, and salt. Stir in 2 cups whole wheat flour. Flour a flat surface and knead with whole wheat flour until not real sticky - just pulling away from the counter, but still sticky to touch. This may take an additional 2 to 4 cups of whole wheat flour. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough. Cover with a dishtowel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled.

3.Punch down, and divide into 2 loaves. Place in greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans, and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch.

4.Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes; do not overbake. Lightly brush the tops of loaves with 1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine when done to prevent crust from getting hard. Cool completely
 
** Estimated Cost Comparision:
 
In my area, a loaf of "good, quality" whole-wheat bread...the "natural" kind without ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup runs between 3.79-4.19/loaf.
 
Home-made bread:
 
flour:  10 cups is approximately 2 1/2 lbs.  I can get 5 lbs for 3.55 for 5 lbs...so approximately: $1.76
honey:  2/3 cup honey is approximately. $1.68
butter:  6 tablepsoons is approximately 0.62
salt:  negligible cost
yeast:  approximately 0.23
 
Total:  4.29 for TWO loaves.   These loaves can be cut into around 16 slices...so a bit smaller than store-bought loaf....but still cheaper and healthier and definitely tastier! 
 
It seems like a lot of work, but it really isn't.  Most of the time is rising time, and once you get the hang of making your own bread, it's pretty easy to mix it up in the morning and then just let it rise.
 
My next foray into making my own food was homemade tortillas.  They are SO much yummier than the store ones. They aren't as pretty (well as least mine aren't...they are never perfect circles...always kinda odd-shaped)..but making them is actually pretty fun and relaxing.   The torillas cook really fast, so once you get the hang of it, it moves along quite nicely.  Here they are pictured in a chicken enchillada recipe.
 
 

Home-made Flour Tortillas

Ingredients

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons shortening (still looking for a healthier substitute....if anyone has any)

1 1/2 cups water

Directions

1.Whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Mix in the shortening with your fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Add the water and mix until the dough comes together; place on a lightly floured surface and knead a few minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.

2.Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Use a well-floured rolling pin to roll a dough ball into a thin, round tortilla. Place into the hot skillet, and cook until bubbly and golden; flip and continue cooking until golden on the other side. Place the cooked tortilla in a tortilla warmer; continue rolling and cooking the remaining dough.
 
**Approximate Price Compasion: 
 
Store-bought tortillas:  approximately $7.95/24
 
Home-made version:
 
Flour:  approximately  $0.71
Shortening: complete guess here...maybe $.10
Baking powder:  again..compete guess..perhaps $.10
 
Total:  $0.91 for 16 tortillas.  Wow...what a great saving!!

 

 

 

These are absolutely delicious!!!!  Absolutely!!!  We had a few left-over so I ate them with just lettuce and spinach rolled-up inside.  Just plain lettuce and spinach....no cheese, no mayo, no mustard.  It was surprisingly good!!    I've also made them with white-whole wheat flour before and they are still super good.

 

 

Both the bread and the tortillas can be made in larger batches and frozen....making the work involved really not much at all. I generally make two batches of bread at a time (so 4 loaves) and freeze them.....just pulling a loaf out when we need one.

 

It does take a little bit of organizing and advance planning, but the great thing is, the more you do it, the easier it becomes!

 

Stay tuned for more real-food recipe's in the future!

 

***When possible, in my price comparisons I use prices from items I find on http://www.amazon.com/.