Today's Co-op Order

This month I ordered from the Oklahoma Food Cooperative...

grass-fed ribeyes
grass-fed ground beef
grass-fed beef liver
pastured chicken liver
pastured chicken leg quarters
pastured chipotle pepper sausage
pastured eggs
grass-fed raw cheddar cheese
grass-fed raw gruyere cheese
organic mint
organic sweet potatoes

And the dog food...

pastured chicken backs
pastured chicken necks
pastured chicken wings
pastured chicken livers
pastured chicken hearts

This means that my freezer is packed to capacity again. I really need another freezer!!

My sister-in law's part of the order...

grass-fed ground beef
grass-fed beef fat
pastured chicken thighs
pastured spicy chicken sausage
pastured eggs
grass-fed colby cheese
local honey
peanut butter
hard red wheat berries

This will be her last order through me as she is signing up to join the co-op! Yay!
Don't forget to check your area for a co-op; you'll probably have to dig for information, but you may be surprised at what's available! This is especially important if you don't have access to a farmers' market in the winter (or in the summer!). Support local!

Recipe: Crunchy Pecan Butter

I apologize if you're getting tired of my pecan recipes. I bought 15 pounds of local, organic pecans this season. 15 pounds. I'm using them in any way that I can. The good news is, this is really a recipe for any nut butter, so you can sub with peanuts, almonds, walnuts, whatever's your favorite!

A word on oils: I've never needed to add extra oil when I make nut butters. I've made peanut butter and almond butter in addition to pecan butter. I find that if you let the food processor run long enough, it'll do just fine. Pecans especially are very oily, so you should never need to add extra oil to that one. If you find with any other nut butter that it's just too dry and pasty, add a good oil (such as coconut) a tiny bit at a time until you get the consistency that you want.

A word on salt: Likewise, I don't usually add salt to nut butters. I just don't like it in peanut butter or almond butter. I do find that it's needed in pecan butter to bring out the flavor. In any case, you can add or omit salt as desired.

Ingredients:
4 ½ c. pecans
½ tsp. salt

Put ½ cup of pecans in a food processor. Pulse them a couple of times until they break up into small pieces. Set them aside.

Now put the remaining 4 cups of pecans in the food processor. Turn it on and let it run. First, the pecans will break up into flour, and then they will get pasty. During these stages, you may need to turn off the food processor and scrap down the sides with a spatula. It will probably stay in the pasty stage for a while, but continue to let it go and it will smooth out and turn into butter. The time varies based on the speed and power of your food processor. It took me about 25 minutes, but I did not scrape down my bowl as often as I should have because I was busy making cupcakes at the same time.

Scrape the pecan butter into a large bowl. Add the chopped pecans and salt. Stir well.

Put the crunchy pecan butter in mason jars. This batch made two half-pints which is 16 ounces. Store the jars in the fridge so the natural oils do not go rancid.

These make really cute, really simple homemade gifts. I've made several batches now and am giving them as Christmas gifts. All the jars need is a ribbon and a label!

Printable: Crunchy Pecan Butter

Nikki's Coconut Butter Giveaway! (ENDED)

Today I am really excited to introduce you to a fun new product! Nikki's Coconut Butter is a small company that makes fun flavored coconut butters. Nikki set out to create a healthy food that tastes good and makes your body feel good. She has created 6 coconut butters that are gluten-free, dairy-free, and are made with organic coconut.
- Chocolate Hazelnut Brownie
- Vanilla Cake Batter
- Midnight Mocha
- Macadamia Nut Cookie
- Cashew Crumble
- Honey Pecan Pie

I tried the Chocolate Hazelnut Brownie and Cashew Crumble. The Brownie flavor is so delicious, you can eat it right off the spoon. It literally melts on your tongue. It's kind of like eating a big spoonful of Nutella, but with more coconut and less guilt. The Cashew Crumble is just as good. It tastes equally of cashew butter and coconut. It's better on pancakes, brownies, and even toast! Coconut butter is a good source of lauric acid, which boosts immunity and kills bacteria and viruses. It also promotes healthy, glowing skin. Nikki's Coconut Butter is a great choice because no refined sugars are used!

Nikki's Coconut Butter is generously giving away a jar of coconut butter to one winner!

The product in this giveaway is provided by Nikki's Coconut Butter. Enter for your chance to win via the Rafflecopter below! Winners will be contacted by e-mail within 24 hours after the giveaway ends. If you do not respond within 48 hours, I will choose another winner. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Recipe: Peanut Butter Pecan Granola

I kind of have this thing for granola, mostly because it means I don't have to cook in the morning. I've been making this Coconut Granola, but I wanted to try something different that would use some of my surplus of pecans. Peanut butter and pecans go great together, but you can try any combination of nut butter and nuts.

Ingredients:
3 c. oats
1 c. pecans
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp. salt
¼ c. butter
½ c. peanut butter
¼ c. honey
1 tsp. vanilla

Chop the pecans into bite-size chunks.

In a large bowl, mix the oats, pecans, nutmeg, and salt. Pour it all into a generously greased 9x13" baking dish.

To a small saucepan, add the butter, peanut butter, and honey. Heat it on low just until it's all melted and combined.

Pour the vanilla over the oats and then the peanut butter mixture. Stir until all the oats have been coated.

Bake at 325° F for 30 minutes. Take the granola out at 15 minutes and stir it, then stir it again as soon as it's all done. When I have finished granola, I like to immediately pour it into a glass storage container. I've found that it helps to prevent any sticking to the bottom of the baking dish.

Serve for breakfast or as a healthy snack!

Enjoy - and let me know what other nut combinations you try!

Printable: Peanut Butter Pecan Granola

Today's Farmers' Market Finds

Today was the Holiday Celebration at the OSU-OKC Farmers' Market. It's always a lot of fun because a lot more people come out. They have door prizes, live music, and horse-drawn carriage rides. This is the horse I met. He's the most beautiful horse I've ever seen. It's been my dream forever to own a horse. I just need some land!

 

 

Today I bought...

 

baby leaf lettuce

tomatoes

bell peppers

some other kind of pepper

parsley

aloe vera plant

pastured eggs

 

I found out that the eggs I buy are not only soy-free, they are also GMO-free. I don't think I could find better eggs if I tried! Now that it's cooling down, this is the last week for peppers. I'm going to freeze some. I don't have a ton of freezer space but it'll be nice to have local, organic peppers for a little bit at least.

I'm excited about this aloe vera plant. I've never seen one up close before; it's so neat - when you touch it you can feel the gel inside. I'm glad I can keep it indoors which means my dog can't eat it!!

How to Make Coconut Milk

The things you can do with a bag of shredded unsweetened coconut! We've already made coconut butter, and now we're going to make coconut milk. You can get a can of organic coconut milk for about $2 at its cheapest. Those cans are often lined with BPA and/or the company adds other ingredients such as guar gum. Guar gum is actually pretty natural, but I never add any ingredients I don't have to. Bonus Fact: Did you know guar gum is a critical ingredient in fracking fluid?

Ingredients:
1 c. shredded unsweetened coconut
2 c. filtered water

First, heat the water. It does not need to be boiling, it just needs to be hot. Put the coconut and hot water in a food processor or blender.

Blend it until the coconut is completely pureed and it's all combined. It took about 10 minutes in my little food processor. Pour the coconut milk in a glass jar. That's it!

This batch makes about 20 ounces of coconut milk. Keep it in the refigerator for up to 5 days. Because there are no stabilizers, the fat will rise to the top. Just give the jar a shake before you use it.

This jar of homemade coconut milk cost me 62¢ to make!

Recipe: Raspberry Coconut Cakes (aka Homemade Zingers)

Now that Hostess is out of business, I've seen recipes all over Pinterest from people trying to recreate the Twinkie. Honestly, I was never a huge Twinkie fan. They're just yellow cake with cream. My favorite was always the Raspberry Zingers. Fact: Hostess Raspberry Zingers do not actually contain any raspberries. Mine do!

Ingredients for Cakes:
1 ¼ c. whole wheat flour (about ¾ c. wheat berries)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
6 TBS. butter, softened
¾ c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 TBS. milk
½ c. raspberry puree
½ c. shredded unsweetened coconut

Ingredients for Filling:
2 c. powdered sugar
½ c. butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
2 TBS. milk

To make raspberry puree, you will need about 8 ounces of raspberries. You can use fresh or frozen - if you use frozen, they need to be defrosted first. Put the raspberries in a blender or food processor and completely puree them.

To get the seeds out, pour the puree into a fine mesh strainer over a bowl. Use a spatula to press the liquid through. Sometimes this takes a little work to get it all through.

When you are done, there should be a thick paste of seeds in the strainer. Compost the seeds (you can just throw them in your yard!) and set the puree aside. Be careful with the puree and the seeds because it can be hard to clean off of some surfaces if it spills.

Now it's time to make the cakes! If you are grinding your own flour, mill the wheat berries on the pastry setting.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar using a mixer.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, and then add the vanilla and milk.

Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix carefully. Then, add in the raspberry puree. When you mix whole wheat flour with a red puree, you get purple!

Divide the batter into 16 greased cupcake liners. There are Twinkie molds you can buy if you're into that, but I have a hard time justifying kitchen accessories that only serve one purpose. Sprinkle the shredded coconut all over the tops of the cupcakes.

Bake the cupcakes in a preheated 350° F oven for 15 minutes. Take them out and let them cool completely before you add the filling.

While the cakes are cooling, go ahead and make the filling.

In a food processor, mix the powdered sugar and butter. Then, add the vanilla and milk as needed if it's too thick. You can use a hand mixer but I prefer a food processor because powdered sugar tends to fly everywhere.

Get a pastry bag with a medium size tip and put the filling into the bag. Insert the tip into the bottom of the cake and push as far up as you can go without breaking through to the top. Gently squeeze the pastry bag; it will automatically pull back as it fills and come back out of the cupcake.

Repeat with each cake. Now they are ready to eat!

This is what the inside looks like. This wasn't the best one to take a picture of; I did use more cream than this!

These are so good! They really did taste like Hostess Zingers. Except more homemade and less chemical-y.

Printable: Raspberry Coconut Cakes (aka Homemade Zingers)