Sandra

Recipe: Homemade Vanilla Frappes w/homemade chocolate syrup

February 17, 2011 by Sandra 2 Comments

I’ve been blogging the last few weeks about how I can not get over a serious homemade frappe addiction, so, I thought I’d share with you just how I make them and encourage you to make them as well. I’ve also discovered a delicious chocolate syrup recipe in my raw foods cookbook that is perfect when drizzled on top of frappes. Only I’ve slightly adjusted the recipe to include less raw cacao powder because the original recipe calls for way too much.

To make the frappes, I use a Mr. Coffee Frappe Maker. Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Water

3 Tablespoons Coffee Grounds

2 Cups of Ice (or fill to “max ice” line)

1/4 Cup of Organic Milk (you can also use almond milk)

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

2.5 Tablespoons of Raw Sugar

Directions:

Lift the lid on the top of the frappe maker, add water and coffee grounds in there respective compartments (there a small compartment in the front for a coffee filter and coffee grounds and then you pour the water into the compartment behind the coffee grounds). In the actual frappe cup, remove lid and, in this order, add ice, milk, vanilla extract, and sugar. Replace lid and secure the frappe cup in place. Push the “Power” button and then immediately after that push the “Frappe” button. Wait for the frappe maker to brew coffee and blend frappe. It takes about 3 minutes. Enjoy!

You can also enjoy homemade frappes WITHOUT a frappe maker if you have a coffee maker and a blender.

Simply add the ice, milk, vanilla extract, and sugar into a blender. After you’ve added these ingredients and before starting the blender, add 1/2 freshly brewed coffee. Then blend until smooth and enjoy!

Frappes are also delicious with whipped cream and chocolate syrup on top. I have yet to make a raw whipped cream. It’s one of those things I’m making plans to try, but I have made raw chocolate syrup which is a nice accompaniment to the frappe when drizzled on top or even mixed in.

Raw Chocolate Syrup:

3/4 Cup Cacao Powder (This is not cocoa powder but looks very similar. You can find it at Whole Foods or online. You may even find it in the organic section of your local grocery store.)

1 Cup of Agave Nectar (Looks like honey, and you can find it at a Super Target or your local grocery store in the baking aisle.)

1 Cup of melted Coconut Oil (just melt the coconut oil in the microwave and you’re good, you can also find this at the your local grocery store or even Target)

1/2 Cup Water

Directions:

Add cacao powder and agave nectar to a food processor and pulse until smooth. Then slowly add the coconut oil while pulsing. After that, add the water and pulse. Enjoy!

This chocolate syrup goes well with anything you’d regularly use chocolate syrup in.

And there you have it guys. It’s the treat I enjoy regularly and still manage to lose weight. 😉

This post is linked to Thrifty Thursday because making homemade frappes is a real money saver. It’s also linked to Ultimate Recipe Swap to share the frappe love.

By the way, for those who need a visual, agave nectar looks like this:

Web 2.0 Class Assignment (Review of 3 Blogs)

February 17, 2011 by Sandra Leave a Comment

I’m currently sitting in class, and I have to post 3 links to blogs related to mine (topic-wise) and discuss two things that I like about each blog and what I think could be improved. For the record, I love and visit all of these blogs regularly.

Here are the three blogs I chose:

Hope in Laodicea:

Pros:

:: Very well-written
:: Thought provoking content

Cons:

:: I’m not fond of the brown background color (it’s the designer in me)
:: The navigation could be expanded a bit to include a couple more topics

Other Such Happenings:

Pros:

:: The author is genuine and funny
:: Includes beautiful pictures in posts

Cons:

:: The header is a little big (again it’s the designer in me)
:: Sometimes the blog is not updated for days (I can relate.)

Trusting His Perfect Plan:

Pros:

:: Updated regularly
:: The author is genuine and writes well

Cons:

:: I’m not a fan of backgrounds that extend into the post area of a blog (once again it’s the designer in me)
:: The sidebar could be arranged a little differently (perhaps moving the subscribe box further up)

Week 5 Weight Loss Update

February 14, 2011 by Sandra 1 Comment

Well, it seems like it’s been more than 5 weeks since our family started on the path to healthy eating. But it hasn’t. Overall, everyone is doing wonderfully with the diet changes, even the kids. Although, they have lamented the fact that we don’t buy pepperoni pizza anymore. Pepperoni has nitrates (which have been known to cause cancer) in it which we are trying to avoid. They do realize that we are making changes in our diet in order to be healthy, and their attitude along the way has been positive overall.

Time for the update! This week I weighed in at 219.5 lbs. That means I lost one pound since last week, and I’m still well on my way to losing 50 lbs. this year. I was just telling my mom last night that I’ve lost 9 pounds so far, and this is the first time in ages that I’ve tried to lose weight and actually lost weight consistently every week since I started. It’s normally a roller coaster of going down a pound and then up a pound and then back down in order to finally keep that pound off.

I think at 219.5 lbs., I’m almost at the lowest weight that I’ve been at since giving birth to our fourth child, who is almost 2 years old in a couple of weeks. I think my actual lowest weight since having David is 218.5 lbs. We’ll see if I can get there for next week’s update!

I a finally noticing a change the the way my clothes fit….just a little bit better, and my face looks a little less round. I feel great overall, and I haven’t been starving myself in any way shape or form. I’ve been cooking (or should I say “cooking” because you really don’t cook when you make things raw…there’s a lot of food processor, blender, and dehydrating action going on instead) quite a bit this past week trying new recipes, and when I’m in the kitchen cooking, I’m eating. A lot.

Most of the raw foods recipes that I’ve tried have been delicious, but there are a couple that I know I won’t be making again. They’re the ones that just turned out okay, and I had to eat mostly by myself.

I’m hoping to share a few recipes with you this week that turned out deliciously!

Oh, and one last thing. I haven’t been able to kick the homemade frappe habit. I confessed to my mom that I had a frappe everyday last week, but only because I reasoned with myself that they’re really not that bad. I’ve “healthified” them. Okay….there’s coffee grounds, water (1/2 cup), lots of ice (nothing bad there…), almond milk (1/4 cup and in place of regular or even Organic milk), a little vanilla extract and about 2.5 tablespoons of raw sugar. See…not that bad. Right? I call these my vanilla frappes. 😉

Frugal Friday: Healthy, Delicious, & Frugal Baked Potatoes

February 11, 2011 by Sandra 1 Comment

Since we’ve changed our eating habits to eating more raw foods (fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds), and eating far less animal products (chicken, pork, and beef), I’ve had to come up with new ways to continue making dinner delicious and enjoyable. One simple and easy way I’ve done this is to introduce the kids to baked potatoes with coconut oil on them instead of butter. Wow! These are so good. The coconut oil melts quickly on the potatoes and makes them moist and delicious instead of dry like you’d have if you were simply eating a baked potato without butter or coconut oil.

These are so good that even my very picky children eat them and ask for more. No one even misses the butter. The coconut oil is that good, and it’s so much better for you. It even helps in assisting you to lose weight faster! That’s my kind of oil!

I can’t say it’s only because we’ve been using coconut oil, it’s rather because of the total overall changes that we’ve been making in our diet, but our family has collectively lost about 20 pounds in the last month. And I think switching to coconut oil had a little something to do with it.

We use it beyond baked potatoes, but since this post is about using it with our baked potatoes, I’ll get back to the point. Here are the ingredients I use to make baked potatoes.

Ingredients:

Celtic Sea Salt (sea salt is much better for you than the regular table salt we’re used to)

Pepper

1 tsp. Coconut Oil

Potato

To make these quickly:

Simply wash the potato and then poke holes in it with a fork. Then cook the potato in the microwave for 3-4 minutes depending on the size of the potato (a little longer for larger potatoes, a little less for smaller potatoes). After about 3-4 minutes, turn the potato over and microwave another 4 minutes. Let the potato rest after it’s finished cooking because it will be very hot. Cut the potato open. Add the coconut oil, salt, and pepper. Enjoy!

Potato right after coconut oil is added

The Coconut Oil Melts Quickly

As you can see from the pictures, the coconut oil melts right away on the warm potato, and a little goes a long way. And if you want to cook more than one potato in the microwave at the same time, you can do this with no problem. The amount of time it takes to cook more than one potato is relatively the same.

A quick note if you are not used to using coconut oil, or have never purchased it before (like I hadn’t until about 5 weeks ago). You can find it in most grocery stores, even at Walmart or Target. Look for it in the aisle where you’d find baking items. If you can’t locate it, ask a store employee, and they will likely be able to point you in the right direction.

Overall, this is a quick, simple, easy, delicious, and frugal way to lunch, dinner, and even breakfast in our home.

Oh, and one last thing. Did you know that pototoes have a very high satiety index? That means two medium sized baked potatoes will make you feel fuller and more satisfied longer than many other foods.

Do you use coconut oil? I’d love to hear some of the ways you incorporate it into your meals!

For more Frugal Friday tips and ideas, please visit Life as Mom.

Sandra

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