Recipes and Flow

It has been so pleasant taking this journey through snack time at our house! I've enjoyed putting down on paper exactly what it is that I do, and more importantly, why. I know that I would have appreciated fresh ideas when I was struggling a year ago, so maybe this will get your wheels turning about creating a List of your own, or simply tweaking an existing List to better serve you!

I think it's important for us to remember that each of our homes and circumstances are different- many struggle with allergies to gluten and other foods, or face financial strain. And buying all organic all the time is just not possible for most; even having a vegetable garden can be difficult depending on where you live. So we mama's need to do the best we can with what we have- for example, our cupboards still hold a stash of goldfish to pop in a container for worship, there is refined sugar in our cookies, and, thanks to WIC, cold cereal boxes sit on the breakfast shelf to be sprinkled on top of our granola.

But when it comes to snack time, I love ensuring that my children always have yummy food available, and that when it comes to snacks, I know exactly what ingredients with which they were made. The children don't recognize the fact that I wake very early and spend hours on this weekly project, but when I drop a warm, homemade muffin into their hands after breakfast, they smile and say, "Thank you, Mama!" And it does my heart good.

(To clarify something from my last post, I rise at 5:30 on Baking Day- if my baking is taking longer, then things are probably still in the oven and clean up is most likely occurring while breakfast is prepared... ideally was the key word!)

Okay, on to Baking Day! Or, more accurately, Baking Morning.

So, first of all I begin the Crackers!

I bake my own crackers for two reasons: One reason being that we eat a lot of them, and it helps us to slow a little when we know how much work goes into their preparation. The second reason being that we eat a lot of them, so I like to know EXACTLY what goes into them! I have made this recipe exactly the way it was written, and then I've also tweaked it half a dozen times in other ways. Here are the ingredients for the way I enjoy making them right now:

• 1 1/2 cups millet flour (I buy the millet whole at my local WINCO and just grind it as needed, because I also grind it fresh for Gideon's cereal and use it whole in our baked oatmeal and the muffins on The List.)

• 2 cups brown rice flour

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1 cup water with 2 tablespoons white vinegar

(I have found that the combination of these flours make it the most "crackery"- but you can use many combinations with a satisfying result.)

This soaks covered overnight and then all I have to do on Baking Day is knead it with one teaspoon of sea salt and one and a half teaspoons of baking powder, divide it into fourths, roll it out on a countertop dusted with lots of white flour, cut with my pizza cutter into squarish shapes, prick with a fork and bake. While the first batch bakes I roll, cut, and prick the rest so they slide into the oven in tandem. These crackers are the favorite snack during school hours- we slice little squares of cheese and make *sandwiches*- a delicious little protein boost!

Next I begin the protein bars, since they need time to refrigerate in between steps. Originally almond bars found here, but they are so forgiving- you can use many different substitutions! Here is my tweak:

• 2 cups raw almonds

• 1/2 cup flax meal

• 1/2 cup golden raisins

• 1/2 cup shredded coconut

• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup butter, melted

• 1 1/2 tbsp. raw honey

• 2 tsp. vanilla

• 2 oz. dark chocolate, melted

Place first six ingredients in blender and pulse till mixed (again, I grind my almonds the night before because of the noise- these six ingredients together are not nearly as loud!)
Mix melted butter, honey and vanilla together in a bowl and add to pulsing ingredients in blender until they pull away from the sides of the blender a bit, making a coarse paste.
Press into an 8x8 glass baking dish and chill for one hour. Pour melted chocolate over the top and spread thinly. Refrigerate again until chocolate hardens, then cut into bars.
Store in refrigerator- for as long as you can; Daddy enjoys taking them to work for a snack, and Mama enjoys one mid-afternoon for an energy boost!

Now I am free to mix the muffins!

The only changes I make are to replace 1/2 cup of the whole wheat flour with flax meal, use milk instead of buttermilk, and we love to add craisins and fresh peeled and diced apples. These are so buttery and indulgent-tasting, but good for you! Sometimes I double the recipe and freeze half, so Baking Day the next week is a bit lighter.

After preparing the muffin batter, I fill the tins and set them aside and begin mixing the peanut butter bites.

Peanut Butter Bites (or Flax Balls)

These must be stocked at all times. Mama needs them even more than the children, for those Sunday mornings when I haven't time for breakfast, and all the other days that meals slip my mind. These little bites mix together very quickly, and they are last on my list so that if I'm still baking when they rise, my children can help with the rolling- so much fun!

And once the crackers are finished baking, I slip the muffin tins in the oven and begin clean-up. A busy, tiring, beautiful start to a day.

It's worth it!

I apologize for the length of this post, so I'll save one more treasure for tomorrow... Tea Time.

'Til then, dear reader!