October » 2011 » Living Lou

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins

It’s been far too long since I’ve talked about muffins. These whole wheat pumpkin muffins popped into my mind on Sunday. I had picked up a can of pumpkin puree at the store and was in the mood for some fall baking; I’d already made Pumpkin Pancakes and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread so naturally, muffins came to mind. Now, these muffins aren’t your regular muffins, they are loaded with chocolate chips, pecans and topped with a cinnamon pecan streusel, all while remaining healthy. They are made with whole wheat flour and with no added butter or oil to the actual muffin (there is butter in the streusel topping).

These muffins make the perfect treat to bake over this last October weekend and the perfect snack as we transition into November and prepare ourselves for duh, duh, duh… The Holidays. Whether it’s Thanksgiving, or preparations for Christmas or Hannukkah, November and December are often two of the busiest months of the year. So if I were a doctor, I would prescribe you all to make some whole wheat pumpkin muffins, and munch on them while relaxing, whether it be watching a favourite movie or reading a book. Enjoy these last autumn days doing some fall baking and playing in the leaves with your kids and taking them trick-or-treating.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins (makes 8-10 medium sized muffins)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla

Streusel Topping (makes 1/2-3/4 cup)

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

*Streusel Topping may be frozen.

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line or grease a muffin tin.

In a large bowl whisk together all dry ingredients including spices and pecans and chocolate chips.

In another bowl, whisk pumpkin puree, honey, eggs and vanilla.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir together. At first, it may seem as though there are not enough wet ingredients, but stir and it will distribute evenly.

Scoop into lined or greased muffin tins, top with streusel topping and bake for 18-20 minutes.

I hope you enjoy these whole wheat pumpkin muffins and this last week of October!

- Lou

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

I don’t know about you, but I tend to have one too many mornings where I can’t find anything to eat for breakfast, maybe I’ll grab an apple or a piece of toast on my way out the door, but this is not a healthy breakfast. Do you really think I can go for hours on one piece of toast with a pat of almond butter? Nope, I can’t, and I don’t think that anyone can. Do you all have trouble with breakfast? I find that it’s my hardest meal, while I love lazy weekend breakfasts of Pancakes, Waffles and eggs, rushed weekday breakfasts leave me with no inspiration and an empty stomach.

The morning I made this Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal was a pretty busy morning, I had a midterm exam that afternoon and I needed something that would tide me over and allow me to concentrate and study until lunch. Not only was this breakfast satisfying and filling, but it tasted so damn good that I made it again the next day and the day after. It’s easy because you toss all of the ingredients in a microwave safe bowl and nuke it for a couple of minutes. The apple chunks soften a little bit, but they add a nice crunch to the oatmeal. I tried this oatmeal in a variety of ways and it can be made using cow’s milk or a dairy alternative such as soy milk for an easy vegan breakfast.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal (serves 1)*

Ingredients

1/3 cup quick cooking oats
1/4 cup chopped apple (with peel)
1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
6 tbsp milk (almond, soy or regular milk)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Maple syrup for serving

Directions

Combine all ingredients except the maple syrup in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high heat for 2:30-3 minutes. Stir and drizzle with maple syrup before serving.

* recipe can easily be doubled, tripled or quadrupled just increase the cooking time.

Hope this breakfast finds a place in your morning routine!

- Lou

Olive Hummus

It’s that time again, time for The Secret Recipe Club – I have to say that participating in this exciting recipe exchange has been so great. It has introduced me to so many new blogs and has given me two of my favourite staple side dishes, Garlic Parmesan Orzo and Mexican Rice – both are so good! For this month’s recipe I’m finally veering away from side dishes and going for a healthy snack or appetizer.

For this month, I was assigned the blog My Emu is Emo written by Eilonwy. This blog is right up my alley, focusing equally on cooking and music, and experiencing them together. Seriously, I live for cooking and music. Eilonwy is very knowledgeable about both and I have to say that as someone who is always on the hunt for new music, I’ve found myself checking out new bands based on the reviews on My Emu is Emo -thanks Eilonwy! She has fabulous taste in music and I have to admit that I felt my heart patter a bit when I was reading about how she believes that Blondie’s cover of David Bowie’s “Heroes” has nothing on the original. As much as I love Debbie Harry, I completely agree with Eilonwy. Seriously, does anyone have anything on Bowie?

When I stumbled upon her recipe for Hummus I immediately knew that was what I was going to make. Up until recently, I’ve never really had too much trouble finding healthy snacks, but these days it’s been tough. Nothing is catching my interest and all I’m craving is chips. Seriously? I don’t even like chips. So, I decided to give homemade hummus a shot and put a little bit of a Living Lou spin on the recipe by adding in some olives.

Olive Hummus

Ingredients
1 Can of chickpeas drained and rinsed
1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives
3 tbsp tahini
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1 clove garlic
1/8 cayenne
1/8 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
4-5 tbsp water

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and pulse, check for consistency and add more water as needed.

I have to say, that finding a healthy snack won’t be too hard with this Olive Hummus in the fridge!

- Lou

Thyme Chicken Drumsticks

Chicken is something that can become boring over time, it’s such a staple food in most households that it just never seems to be something special. Well ladies and gentlemen, let me present you Thyme Chicken Drumsticks. I’m like all of you, always on the hunt for new chicken recipes, I can’t even begin to tell you the amount of times I’ve looked through Martha Stewart’s 100 Chicken Recipes, it’s too embarrassing.

Now, here’s where I think a lot of people go wrong, myself included, please stop always buying the boneless, skinless chicken breasts. They are in no way, shape or form the best way to enjoy chicken. It’s like going to the movies and deciding between seeing the newest 5 star reviewed drama and the half star rom-com. Ok, I’ll admit that I’ve chosen the half star rom-com before, but it’s never better than the drama. Sometimes go for the chicken breasts, but 9 times out of ten go for chicken legs, or chicken wings or chicken thighs. Unless you’re planning on making Shredded Chicken Tacos, in that case run for the chicken breasts, it’s worth it.

These drumsticks have a slight crunchy skin and the meat just falls off the bone. They are so extremely easy to make that you won’t believe how good they taste. These are definitely a new staple in my house.

Thyme Chicken Drumsticks (makes 10 drumsticks)

Ingredients

10 chicken legs
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tbsp olive oil

Directions

Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

Combine spices and thyme in a small boil.

Rinse and pat dry chicken and place in a ziploc plastic bag. Add half of the spice mixture. Shake bag around to coat chicken. Add the remaining spice mixture and shake around again to evenly coat. Add the olive oil, shaking one last time to evenly coat chicken with oil.

Place on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 20 minutes before flipping chicken over and cooking the other side for 18-20 minutes.

These chicken drumsticks are so delicious you’ll be making them weekly.

Have a nice weekend,

Lou

Baked Salmon Cakes

I really love salmon, it’s definitely one of my favourite things to eat, so it’s pretty surprising that I’ve never tried a salmon cake. I’ve always just been a fan of the classic, baked salmon. The one that melts in your mouth, and is flavored with whatever your mind can imagine. However, I get bored easily, so I’m always trying to find new ways to eat my favourite things.

I was watching The Food Network one morning, and on the show I was watching they were making salmon cakes, they looked so easy, affordable and tasty. Something that could be flavored however you wanted, maybe I would make some spicy salmon cakes packed with hot sauce and hot peppers and chili powder, or I would make savory salmon cakes with bacon and cheese, or maybe I would go with these salmon cakes, a more basic and perfect way to get into salmon cakes. I’ve created a flavor combination that just works, the capers and Dijon add a nice, salty and tangy addition to the sweet and healthy sweet potato, the hot sauce adds a little bit of a kick and the panko creates a nice crunchy crust without frying. These are healthy, easy and delicious, perfect for a weeknight meal.

Baked Salmon Cakes (makes 8 salmon cakes)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and boiled
1 green onion, sliced
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
zest of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 egg, whisked
1/4 +2/3 cup of panko bread crumbs
3/4 tsp hot sauce
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp paprika
1 tbsp chopped capers
2 6 oz (180g) cans of wild salmon
olive oil for pan

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook peeled sweet potato until just fork tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine green onion, parsley, lemon zest, mayonnaise, egg, 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs, hot sauce, Dijon mustard, paprika, chopped capers and canned salmon in a large bowl. Once sweet potato is cooked, add to bowl and mash the mixture together.

Form the mixture into 8 patties using your hands, then bread patties in the remaining 2/3 cup of panko. And place on a greased baking sheet. Spray one side of the patties with cooking spray.

Bake for 5-7 minutes in the oven, before flipping patties over and cooking for another 5 minutes. Finally, turn on the broiler and broil patties for 2 minutes – this helps to get them nice and crunchy.

I hope you enjoy these salmon cakes, they are one of my favourite things right now, I served mine with lots of hot sauce and some Spicy Broccoli.

- Lou