Butternut Squash and Apple Parfait

I have a thing for squash and apples. I roast them together all the time. It is a combination that I never get sick of. I go savory mostly but once in a while I’ll go the slightly sweeter route. This is one of those times. And I also opted to make it seem fancier then my average eating situation (eating with fingers of baking sheet) and added a few steps, and made parfaits out of them. (Parfaits are fancy right?) The result is amazing and maybe even more delicious then ever before. That’s saying something.

Basically what these parfaits consists of is layers of creamy pureed roasted butternut squash and slightly chunky cinnamon applesauce topped with oats and walnuts. That might not sound fancy or even that spectacular but you know when you underestimate something but once you experience it you are very much surprised by how fantastic it really is? Well if you are doubting me then that is what will happen here because this parfait situation even surprised me at how much I loved it.

So if you are in need of a breakfast, lunch, snack, or dessert that will satisfy all of your hunger needs then you should most definitely try this out. It is simple and easy to make, super healthy, can be made ahead or time, and looks cute. (Did I just call a parfait cute? Yes, yes I did.) And again, super freaking delicious of course.

Now to the parfaits!

The stuff. Butternut squash, a couple of big apples, old fashion oats, walnuts, maple syrup, cinnamon, and almond milk.

For the squash you need to roast it so do that. Place on a baking sheet and roast until tender. Once cooked transfer to a blender or jar (if using stick blender) , add in milk or water and blend until smooth. Add in maple to taste.

For apples. Core and chop apples into small pieces and place into a pot with water. Cook on medium heat until apples completely break down. Then either transfer to a blender or use as stick blender and blend until slightly smooth but still a bit chunky. Stir in some cinnamon.

And toast up the oats and walnuts, in the oven, just for 5-8 minutes.

Now assemble. You can do this while the stuff is still warm or wait until it is cold. Delicious either way.

So basically all you do is layer a bit of the squash and then apple a few times in a bowl or jar then top with toasted oats and walnuts. Simple as that.

Ans then you eat it. Or wait and eat it later. Or do what I did and assemble a few jars for the week but then eat all of them in one day. I couldn't stop myself. It was just too freaking good.

-C

---

Butternut Squash and Apple parfait

makes 2-3 parfaits

• 3 cups cubed butternut squash

• 2 large apples (I used Macs)

• 1/2-3/4 cups plant milk (or water)

• 1-2 teaspoons maple syrup (optional)

• 1-2 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/2 cup old fashion oats

• 1/4 cup walnut pieces

• 1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 425.

Place cubed squash on a lined baking sheet and stick into hot oven and roast until fork tender.

While squash is roasting grab apples, cut and remove core and seeds, chop into smaller pieces and place into a pot with enough water to submerge the apple. Place on medium heat, stirring every few minutes, and cook until the apple starts to break down. If the water evaporates, add in more. When apples are soft and falling apart remove from heat and let cool a few minutes then either transfer to a blender or using a stick blender, blend until less chunky, but not completely smooth. You could also just smash it use with a fork. Add in a teaspoon or so of cinnamon and mix.

Once squash is roasted , remove from a pan and place either in a blender, or a jar or bowl if using a hand blender, add in 1/2 cup milk or water, and blend until smooth. If it seems really thick still, add in more liquid. Also add in maple to taste.

While oven is still hot, place oats and walnuts on baking sheet and place in oven for 5-8 minutes or unit walnuts and oats are toasted.

To assemble parfaits grab a bowl or jar and layer in a bit of squash then apple a few times. Top with some toasted oats and walnuts and sprinkle with more cinnamon and drizzle more maple if you want.

Eat warm or cold. Store left overs in fridge for up to a week.

Coffee Oat Frappuccino

This stupid freaking hot humid heat, it makes me hate everything (of at least very strongly dislike). I don’t know how to deal but I am trying. One thing I am doing is to just eat and drink everything cold.

Now I am not typically a cold coffee drinker (I love ice coffee but find that whenever I drink it I can’t pace myself and if is gone in like 2 seconds. I need more time, like at least 2 minute with my coffee. So I always go hot. What I should do is drink a hot and and iced at the same time but that is just crazy talk. And I have done that.), but this coffee thing I made is making me want to drink all the coffee frozen. It’s coffee which is my life blood, creamy but not like thick and gross, and cold, which right now is a life necessity. A real damn treat especially when just looking outside makes me want to smack the sun. Shit do I hate this nasty weather but what I don’t hate is this coffee, in fact I am obsessed with It and it’s all I want to eat/drink for the rest of the heatwave.

Now to the cold coffee oat frappuccino!

The stuff. Strong brewed cold coffee, oats, ice, and a couple really soft sticky dates.

Start with the oats in the blender ans blend until a flour consistency. Add in the dates (use whatever sweetener you want) and half the ice and half the coffee. Blend until frothy. Add in the rest of coffee and ice and blend for like 30 more seconds.

Its now blended and icy and delicious and you can drink it now but. If you can do it, stick the whole blender in the freezer or pour the frap into a cup and stick in freezer for an hour or so because it can get even icy-er.

Pull the blender out (or pour slightly more frozen frap back into blender) and blend for another 30 seconds. It is now super icy deliciousness.

Pour into glasses and drink. It’s to only thing you need to drink/eat for the rest of the summer.

-C

---

Coffee Oat Frappuccino

makes 1

• 12 oz of brewed coffee (cold or even frozen)

• 12-14 normal sized ice cubes

• 1/3 cup old fashion oats

• Sweetener of choice like 2-3 soft dates , a couple teaspoon of maple syrup, or sugar

Place oats into blender and blend until flour consistency. Add in sweetener or dates and like half the coffee and half the ice cubes. Blend until mixed. Add the rest of coffee and ice and blend until completely incorporated.

Now either drink it as is (which is delicious) or for an even more icy consistency, place the blender (or pour the frap into a large cup) into the freezer for an hour of so. Then take it back out and and blend until a smooth frozen treat.

And then drink that right away.

Peach Granola

Granola is a weakness of mine, well good granola is. I don’t really call most stuff of the stuff you can buy at the store really granola, it is more like sugary candy crap that is marketed to be good for you when it really is not. That shit is gross and that’s my truth.

Real granola, or the kind I make, is the basic bitch of granola. All it is is oats, a spice or two, salt, and a pureed up fruit (or veggies). Sometimes I will add a seed or nut at the end, or maybe even a little coconut or some other dried fruit. There is no added sweetener added, no added oils, just straight up oats and fruit.. And it’s clumpy and crunchy, and all sorts of frantastic. It really is what every granola should strive to be.

The last batch I made was peach because, if you didn’t know, it is peach season. Plus peach granola is delicious. That is fact. (unless you don’t like peaches).

Now to the granola!

The stuff. Old fashion oats, a couple of ripe peaches, cinnamon, salt, and a little water.

Cut peaches in half, remove pits, and cut into chunks.

Place peach chunks into blender and blend until smooth.

Mix the cinnamon and salt with the oats.

Pour the peach puree into the oats.

Mix until evenly incorporated and a little clumpy. If the oats are all moist but not creating any clumps, add a few tablespoons water until there is some clumping going on.

Dump mixture onto a baking sheet, You can line it, but I don’t bother.

Pop into preheated oven to bake for about 25 minutes then remove from oven and toss around. Stick it back into oven for 25 more minutes or so. After 45-50 minutes of being in the oven, turn oven off and just let granola cool in oven. It’s key to crispy granola.

Cooled off and all crispy and clumpy. Granola at it’s finest.

Into a jar to save some for later to eat however you want.

Me, I like handfuls straight into my mouth, chased by a little oat milk. Hehe!

-C

---

Peach Granola

makes 2 1/2 cups

• 2 peaches

• 2 1/2 cups old fashion oats

• a few tablespoons of water (if needed)

• 1-2 tablespoons cinnamon

• pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375

Cut peaches in half, remove pits, and cut into a few chunks. Place chunks into a blender and blend until smooth.

Place oats into a big bowl and mix in the salt and cinnamon then dump in the peach puree. Mix until completely incorporated and a little clumpy. IF there are no clumps, add a few tablespoons water and mix. Dump mixture onto a baking sheet and evenly distribute. Place baking granola into oven to bake.

Bake for 25 minutes, remove the granola and toss around with a spatula, then place back into oven and bake for another 25-30 minutes. After being in the oven for a total of 45-50ish minutes, turn oven off but keep granola in oven to cool. This is key to a good crispy granola.

After cooling off in oven, remove and eat. Place what is not eaten in an airtight container. Eat within a week or so.

Watermelon Iced Green Tea

I love watermelon, I mean, who doesn't, but i don't often buy them for myself for one main reason. They are so freaking big and once you cut open a melon, the rest of what is not eaten needs to be refrigerated which would be fine but I have a very tiny fridge and sticking a watermelon in there takes up about half the space. And sure, I could maybe eat a whole melon all to may face in one sitting, but then I would explode. And yes, I know you can buy smaller wedges of melon at the store, but I refuse. Those wedges just seem gross and expensive and wrong to me.  When I buy watermelon I take my chances and buy the whole thing and just eat the crap out of it until I make room for other food in the fridge.

It has been so hot out (too hot) and I really just needed a watermelon, so I bought a watermelon (the biggest one I could find because of course). I waited for a day until the fridge was near empty and cut the beast up. Half went into the fridge right away (I had just eaten the last of the greens to make room) and the other half, well only a 1/4 was eaten. I could have kept going and eaten the rest or I figured I would just make a nice tea drink with the rest. And that what I did and that's this drink I show you here. Smooth, bright, and earthy iced green tea with fresh sweet watermelon, it's all summertime up in you mouth. And pureeing up watermelon into a liquid definitely takes up way less space in the fridge. I am a genius.

The stuff. Some watermelon, a few green tea bags, a lime( or a lemon), a spring or two of mint, and some water.

Start off with making the tea. Hot water to tea bags, steep for 5 or so minutes then remove bags. Stick tea in fridge to cool.

Now for the watermelon. Remove the rind from the fruit , and cut it up into chunks. Toss in a few mint leaves and.....

Pureeit.

So you have cooled tea, pureed watermelon and the juice of a lime.

Pour it all together and mix it all up.

And there you have it. Fresh watermelon green ice tea, ready for your drinking.

All you need now are glasses full of ice and little wedges of melon.

All the summertime, all the watermelon.

Hope you are all staying cool.

-C

---

Watermelon Iced Green Tea

make 6 1/2 cups

• 4 green tea bags
• 4 cups water
• 1/4 of a watermelon (about 2 1/2 cups liquid watermelon)
• 1 lime (lemon works too)
• a few sprigs of mint (optional)

Bring water to an almost boil (I let my tea pot whistle, turn it off and sit for a minute or two) and pour hot water over tea bags. Let steep for about 5 minutes, then remove bags and refrigerate tea until cold.

When the tea has cooled, take you melon, remove the rind, and puree the fruit along with the mint, with a blending device of you choice. Squeeze in the juice of the lime and give it all a good stir.

Pour tea over ice, garnish with a sprig of mint and a slice of watermelon if you want some fancy.

Carrot Ginger Orange Popsicles

Not only is it the first week of summer, it's also popsicle week! Billy over at the sweet ass blog Wit and Vinegar hosts a little (actually quite large) bloggers party that share all sorts of fun and fantastic popsicle recipes and presents that list to the world. There are popsicle flavors up the wazoo...Pretty stinkin cool right.

So my contribution to the world of popsicle eaters is one of my all time favorites (maybe the absolute best one yet).. Carrot Ginger Orange.

For those who know me, this flavor combination should come as no surprise. Carrots are my thing. I eat them all day, every day. Sure I eat a shit ton of other stuff, but always carrots. Carrots are in my breakfast,lunch, and dinner. If I need a snack, I grab a carrot. There is just something so satisfying not to mention so easy about carrots. Eaten alone, with mustard or hummus, or dipped in peanut butter of cinnamon..Carrots can do just about anything. I mean I eat so many carrots that no shit, my skin is a slight tint of orange (seriously for reals. Something about an abundance of carotene) Crazy I know, but what can I say. I really like carrots.         (that's what I say when people ask me why I am glowing orange)

So naturally the carrot made it's way into my popscile mold. And now it's for real. Carrots really can do anything.

Another win for carrots everywhere.

And popsicles.. Just in time for that hot as shit weekend we are about to have.

GO POPSICLES CO!

The stuff. Carrots, an orange, some fresh ginger, and some water. Simple simple and no, I didn't forget the sweetener... these pops have no need (although if you want, go ahead and add a smidge or splash of something sweet)

Start by chopping up the carrots and sticking them into a pot with some water. Not a lot, just enough that it almost cover the carrots, and stick that pot onto the stove, cover and cook on medium heat until tender. Make sure to check that the water doesn't completely evaporate or you will have burnt carrots which taste just fine, but not as a sweet popsicle

While the carrots are tenderizing, zest the orange then juice it and grate up some fresh ginger.

Once the carrots are fork tender, dump in the juice, the zest, and the ginger. Stick pot back on heat for just a few more minutes to meld the flavor together.

Dump the contents of the pot into the blender and blend blend blend until smooth.

Grab your mold and pour blended mixture into it.. Because the mixture is thick, you don't have to wait to stick the sticks in so go ahead and do that now.

And into the freezer they go!

Frozen and ready to go.

Serious popsicle goodness right there.

Happy Popsicle Week. Go ahead and make them all!

-C

---

Carrot Ginger Orange Popsicles

Makes about four or five 3.5 oz popsicles

• 3 medium sized carrots
• 1 orange (zest and juice)
• 1-2 teaspoons fresh ginger
• water

Note. I did not use and sweetener and did not miss it but if you really think you need it, add a little bit of honey or sugar. But really, they are sweet enough so maybe give them a chance without it.

Start by chopping the carrots up into coins and stick them into a pot with enough water to just about cover the carrots. Stick on stove on medium heat and place a lid on the pot. Cook carrots until tender.

While that's happening, zest and juice orange and grate up the fresh ginger. (I used 1 teaspoon of ginger at first, but after I blended it, I decided that I wanted a little more so I added another teaspoon)  Once the carrots are soft, dump in all the juice, zest and ginger. keep on heat for a few more minutes to let the flavors all meld together.

 And now dump the pot of carrot goods into the blender and blend the crap out of it until smooth. (add in a splash or two of water if needed. Taste your puree and if you want more ginger, add it it.( can also decide now if you want any sweetener..

Now pour the mixture into you popsicle molds and follow the mold directions on how to use it (add popsicle sticks and stick it in the freezer)

Freeze until frozen.

Remove from freezer and let sit until pops slip from mold.

Eat until gone.

Make more popsicle.