Mini Spelt Flour Pumpkin Spice Donuts

 

 It's the first day of fall!  I like fall, not winter so much, but pumpkin and apple everything is exciting!  My kids and I have been talking about the pumpkin patch and that got me thinking about all the pumpkin goodies.  I wanted to make something we could all enjoy that was delicious and processed free.  Why not pumpkin spice donunts?  These have no refined sugar or flour, but are just as good as any other pumpkin treat you will have this season.  I made them in my mini donut maker (thanks mom!), but you could do this in the oven with a regular size donut pan.  I'll warn you ahead of time - these are addicting.  You'll want it to be fall all the time!

 

1 3/4 cups whole spelt flour (I like sprouted spelt flour best)

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp.nutmeg

1/2 tsp.allspice

1/8 tsp.ground cloves

2 tsp.baking powder

1/2 tsp.salt

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup sucanat or coconut palm sugar

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1 large egg

1 tsp.vanilla extract

 

For the cinnamon sugar topping:

2 Tbsp. cinnamon

2/3 cup coconut palm sugar

4 Tbsp. melted butter

 

In a large bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, baking powder and salt.  In a separate bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, milk, sucanat, coconut oil, egg and vanilla.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and combine using a rubber spatula just until moist. Scoop this into a gallon size zip-top bag and cut the bottom corner to create a piping bag.

 

When the mini donut maker is heated, pipe the batter in a circle inside each donut shape.  Close the lid and wait until they are cooked through.  Place on a sheet of paper towels to cool completely.  Dip each donut top in the melted butter and then into the cinnamon-sugar mixture. The batter is not overly sweet for this very reason.  Now, devour!  I'm not going to lie, these are fabulous with some homemade apple cider!  You could also enjoy these while sitting on your back porch cuddled up with a blanket watching the fall leaves - just saying.

 

Healthy Store-Bought Dressing

 

I like a homemade salad dressing, but let's be serious - who always has time for that?!  Or all the ingredient on hand.  Let me tell you about my go-to salad dressing.  This is my favorite because I can pronounce every ingredient and they are foods I would put in my body anyway.  It's Bragg's brand healthy vinaigrette.  I put this on every kind of salad I make.  It pairs really well with savory or sweet salads and the best part is I didn't have to make it from scratch.  This makes having a big salad everyday super easy.  Here's what's in it: organic apple cider vinegar, organic extra virgin olive oil, purified water, organic honey, organic garlic, liquid aminos, organic onion, organic black pepper and natural xanthan gum. 

 

 

I have been up and down the salad dressing section of my local grocery stores and never found a good alternative that is processed free.  Well, look no further.  Here are three other kinds that boast an ingredient list just as good as the healthy vinaigrette.  Now you can get berry, Hawaiian, and ginger sesame dressings without having to make them yourself all the time.  This also gets bonus points for being available in almost every grocery store, just look in the health food section.  Talk about clean and easy!

Almond Horchata

 

I think I've mentioned that we are currently living back east for a while.  There is good food to be found here, but not really when it comes to Mexican food.  Coming from the southwest, we could always find fantastic Mexican food, but it's not the same here.  The other day I was in the mood for a horchata.  If you don't know what that is, it's a rice based drink with cinnamon.  It is sweet which means it contains sugar, so I thought I'd tackle a processed free version.  In doing some research, I found that it takes hours if not days to make a traditional horchata!  I think because I'm a mom of three, days to do anything is just not part of our lifestyle right now.  So, I started to think what it is I like about the drink in the first place.  I like the creamy base, the flavor of the cinnamon, and the slightly gritty texture of the freshly ground cinnamon on top.  Here is what I already had in my house that could duplicate all of these qualities.  Hence, the quick and easy almond horchata was born!

 

One serving:

1 cup unsweetened organic almond milk

5 to 6 drops liquid cinnamon stevia (Sweetleaf brand)

cinnamon for garnish

 

Stir cinnamon stevia into the almond milk, sprinkle the top with cinnamon and voila!  Creamy, cinnamon goodness.  Now, I will admit that if you are a horchata connoisseur, this is not for you, but a refined sugar-free, quick fix - this is it!!  Even if you like a traditional horchata, this is a nice spin-off in flavors to change it up.  See what you think.  You can also customizes this to your tastes and add more or less cinnamon stevia.  If you can't find cinnamon stevia, you can order it online or just use regular stevia and add a lot of cinnamon.  The cinnamon stevia will give you the best flavor though.

 

Apple Cake

My sister's birthdays are two days apart, so when they celebrate with a birthday dinner, this has always been their requested birthday cake for as long as I can remember.  It's hearty, rustic, and full of deliciousness.  I asked for their permission to attempt to make this completely processed free before their last birthday to see if it would measure up.  Boy, did it!  I don't think we'll ever go back to the original.  Here is my take on a family favorite:

1 cup melted coconut oil
2 cups coconut palm sugar
2 eggs
3 cups sprouted whole wheat or whole spelt flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups finely diced or grated apples
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9X13 pan with additional coconut oil or butter and set aside.  In a large mixing bowl combine all the ingredients.  Bake for 30-35 minutes.  Cool and cut like brownies.

I like to use mini chips or cut up chocolate bars for this recipe.  We have also tried it with different nuts like pecans and it's just as amazing.  We have never put a frosting on this, however we often serve it with a dollop of homemade whipped cream - make it clean!  Who knows, this may just be your next birthday cake!