Set the Table 2018 | Raspberry + Blueberry Coconut Crumble with Wild Orange

Have a Berry Happy 4th of July!! This recipe is Abbie approved which means I just hit a GRAND FREAKIN SLAM in the kitchen today!

Raspberry + Blueberry Coconut Crumble with Wild Orange (gluten free)

Made with Prairie Wind Family Farm CSA Summer fruit share from Mick Klug Farm

2 (1/2 pint containers) organic raspberries

2 (1 pint containers) organic blueberries

1/3 c coconut sugar

1 Tbsp arrowroot powder

1/2 lemon juiced

1/2 tsp sea salt

3 drops wild orange essential oil

GF Streusel Topping

1/2 c gf flour blend (I used Pamela's GF Baking and Pancake Mix)

1/2 c coconut sugar

1/4 c gf rolled oats

1 tsp ground cinnamon

freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 stick (1/4 c) cold organic grass fed butter or cold coconut oil

pinch of sea salt

Optional: While still warm, garnish with dark chocolate mini chips and Leider's local pee pollen (found at the Libertyville Farmer's Market) + Full Fat Organic Vanilla Bean Ice cream.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, gently mix up berries, sugar, arrowroot, freshly squeezed lemon juice, sea salt and wild orange essential oil until well combined. Pour into square baking pan or pie plate. Use a rubber spatula to get all juices into the berry mixture. In another mixing bowl, add the dry streusel ingredients. With a pastry cutter or fork (precut the butter into small chunks), cut in the cold butter or coconut oil into the dry mix until you get a uniform, small bread crumb-like consistency. Pour the streusel topping onto the berries and bake for 30 minutes. The fruit should be bubbling up on the sides. Garnish with chocolate chips and bee pollen for a festive presentation and extra flavor pop! Abbie says, "The more vanilla ice cream, the better!"

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• Each #SettheTable2018 post features a delicious family table recipe(s) to inspire your meal planning for the week.  
• #CatchmyGrit on Instagram to follow the fun, the food and the family table reactions (good and bad) leading up to each weekend post. C'est la vie, I selfy-ishly light it UP in pics, videos and Instastories to keep truckin! 
• New to this series? Revisit my favorite #SettheTable2017 recipe links here. Cheers to another year of sharing my crazy food adventures with Pure Barre Kildeer! 

Enjoy my recipe play by play!

Keep practicing in the kitchen - It all starts at hOMe plate!

To the Mullies we go... 

xoxoL

ps

My Top 11 #SettheTable2018 Topics:

1. A Scientist Explores the Mysteries of the Gut Brain Connection
2. Will the Gut-Brain Connection Revolutionize Wellness?
3. Come to the table - Join Slow Food USA!
4. Stay on top of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Campaign.
5. Robyn O'Brien: Why Our Food Is Making Us Sick.
6. Kimbal Musk Wants to Reengineer the American Stomach | Why Food is the New Internet. 
7. What is Organic Pasture Raised Chicken Good for?
8. Shop with EWG "Clean Fifteen + Dirty Dozen" produce guidelines. Why? New research suggests pesticides/herbicides are linked to antibiotic resistance. Protect your gut microbiome + mycobiome.
9. Avoid artificial colors and preservatives to keep your "second brain" happy + healthy.
10. Why, When and How to Eat Wheat.
11. Why do Some People do well as Vegans and Vegetarians (Clues from the Magical World of Genetics).

Set the Table 2017 | Week 15

Happy Easter Eve! I am posting a day early and I sure hope you are enjoying this gorgeous day. It's going to be 81 today on the Diamond!!! 

Tommy's Sweet Potato Gnocchi

Remembering this 2014 version with Tommy here

Guinness Stew recipe here (Vegetarian or vegan? Make it with BEETS + VEGE STOCK!)

2 lbs organic sweet potatoes (wrap in parchment paper and place in a lidded, medium sized dutch oven. Bake for 1 hour at 375 degrees or until fork tender. Let cool slightly)

1 egg

2 heaping tablespoons of whole fat vanilla yogurt (A buying "mistake" gone right!)

3/4 tsp nutmeg (eyeballed)

1.5 tsp sea salt (two good pinches)

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Mix thoroughly

2 1/4-1/2 cups organic spelt flour (wheat flour or gluten free flour blend)

Add flour about 1/2 -3/4 cup at a time and mix until you get a workable dough (if you are using a gf blend you may need between 3 and 4 cups). Flour the surface of your cutting board and roll into logs, cut into squares, rectangles... roll into balls... go to town with your play dough self.

Cook 2-4 minutes in boiling, salted water. When the gnocchi floats to the top they are done. Use a slotted spoon to take out of the cooking water.

Dress in melted organic butter, a sprinkling of coconut sugar and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Coconut Whipped Cream & Organic Fruit Salad
Coconut whipped cream tutorial here.

1 mango
1 pint strawberries
1 pint blueberries
1 pint green grapes
3 mandarine oranges
3 apples
1 banana
1 can organic whole fat coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tablespoons maple syrup (or organic sugar/powdered sugar)

The night before refrigerate the can of coconut milk. Turn upside down and open the bottom of the can. Pour liquid out (you can reserve for smoothies). Put coconut solids into a chilled bowl (I throw my metal bowl and mixing whisks into the freezer for 10 minutes or so). Add the vanilla and maple syrup and beat on high speed with an electric mixer.  Add more sweetener to taste if needed. Dice up all fruit and pour the whipped cream over the top.  Mix and serve.

If you are wanting to prepare ahead of time, do not slice up the banana until you are ready to serve (so they don't brown). Keep the whipped cream separate from the cut fruit and keep everything chilling in the fridge until you're ready to go.  Be creative and use whatever fruit you want!

I can't wait to cook with Mom and gather the entire family together tomorrow! I'll be sure to post some pics and videos of what we prepare on my insta... then to "phone jail" you go... 

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• Each #SettheTable2017 post begins with a featured recipe(s) + upcoming week's game plan followed by a picture diary of last week's chaos. Warning: C'est la vie, I selfy-ishly light it UP in pics and videos to keep truckin.
• #CatchmyGrit on my Instagram throughout the week to capture the fun, the food and the family table reactions (good and bad).
• New to this series? Here's the STORY behind my #SettheTable2017 food adventures with Pure Barre Kildeer.

*Note: The first underlined/linked recipe name corresponds to one of two chefs:
1. Jamie Oliver online recipe or to his Ultimate Recipes App (J)
2. Sarah Britton - My New Roots Blog or Naturally Nourished or RecipeApp (S)
Both of their apps help me to stay organized (their grocery list features are rad); However, IF I am unable to find a recipe/cooking technique online, I have linked to a similar recipe for those not using the apps. Here is a handy conversion link for any of J's online euro measurements (*Both apps use USA measurements).

• Super Shellfish Sheet Tray - Bake with Couscous (J app) (using raw celeriac pulsed in a food processor for couscous)

• Taco Tuesday (I have posted plenty of taco recipes... picking one from the last 14 weeks...)

• Surf 'n' Turf Gumbo (J online) (Using the leftovers from the tray bake!)

• Sprouted Chickpea Hummus (S online) (Never sprouted before... gonna be my first try!)

*"Why We Need To Be Weirdos To Be Healthy" (My goal: 80% weird. Daily reality = 20-100%)

*How to Cook With Oils.
*Buy Antibiotic Free and Know the Source of Your Family's Meat.
*The EWG "Clean Fifteen + Dirty Dozen produce guidelines helps you save money + reduce the pesticides and herbicides (Antibiotics harmful to our gut microbiome + mycobiome) at home. 
*Avoid artificial colors and preservatives to keep your gut-brain happy + healthy.
*Why, When and How to Eat Wheat. 
*50 Years Ago, the Sugar Industry Quietly Paid Scientists to Point Blame at Fat.



Wrap it UP with last week's family table action:

I guess I was busy last week... I only cooked one night with Tommy and boy was it fun!

Onwards and upwards, let's begin again in week 15.

To the Mullies we go...

xoxoL

Bring Life Closer for the Holidays

Dear Terri,

I think this might be my most favorite ambassador smash to date! We miss you and your family dearly & I feel more connected than ever to you this holiday season (even though we are oceans apart)!

Merry Christmas to you and yours - Your Dutch "Hangop" yogurt recipe is DELICIOUS! I will never forget making it with the Prairie Farm Corps last Summer for the first time!

Enjoy this lovely Christmas Ambassador Smash video - It was crazy fun to put together!

Someday, we'll ride bikes side by side and go to your market together just like we went to mine last July. I simply cannot wait to greet your dear friends and experience your part of the world. Until then, let's keep bringing life closer, one recipe at a time!

Much love and Christmas cheers! To the mullies we GO.........

xoxoL

mango pops

make me: dairy free mango pops

2 organic mangos + 1 can whole coconut milk + the 5 strawberries left in the fridge + 1/2 c of frozen raspberries forgotten in the freezer + a few swirls of coconut nectar (maple syrup or honey will do too!)

blend it until smooth and creamy.

fill your fun pop molds and freeze.

happy breakfast bonus this morning!  the kids give them super high and wide thumbs UP.  

Xoxo

ps

blue and green pops = ikea

rocket pops = pier one

posicle bags = thank you christina!!!

slumber party approved - beanie brownies

slumber parties.

remember yours?  i remembered lots of mine this weekend...

happy birthday my sweetheart.  you are the mullies... thank you for finally.falling.asleep.

abbie's beanie brownies (gluten and dairy free)
adapted from here & discovered on pinterest

15 oz can organic black beans
3 organic, pastured eggs
3 T sunflower oil or melted coconut oil
3/4 c coconut palm sugar (or any sugar)
1/2 raw cacao powder (or unsweetened cocoa powder)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder (aluminum free)
a pinch of sea salt
1/2 c mini semi-sweet chocolate chips divided (enjoy life brand)

preheat oven to 350 degrees.
lightly coat 8x8 pan with coconut oil on a paper towel.
rinse and drain beans and blend until smooth in a food processor.
dump all ingredients into the bowl except 1/4 cup of the chips and blend until smooth.
pour batter into pan and sprinkle the rest of the chips over the surface.
bake 30-35 minutes or until toothpick come out clean from the middle.
cool & slice.

girlie girl goodie bags: 
abbie's beanie brownie recipe handwritten on this free printable
personal paper fashion creations
a variety of gorgeous scrapbooking paper = neverendingart

xoxo

a very kolachki merry christmas

i can feel my grandma millie smiling down at me.  i made her famous kolachki yesterday and surprisingly rocked it. i have been horsing around with jamie oliver's 15 days of xmas instagram contest: #jamieschristmashp.  yesterday's challenge was to make mince pies... so i made mince pie::kolachki's... errrrrrrrrr close enough, right?:)

i altered her recipe to be gluten free and casein/lactose free.  we have not completely banned dairy, we simply limit it as mac was highly allergic to milk as a baby and everyone feels better with just little bits here and there.  we're getting along fabulously with plain sheep's yogurt, ghee and sheep/goat's milk cheese.  i do keep some high quality, grass fed butter in the house for certain things that just.need.real.butter.  why more ghee than butter in the mullies?  i personally like ghee for it's higher smoking point and lack of casein and lactose.

my mom and dad stopped in this morning and tried my kolachki.  i knew i nailed it when my mom wanted seconds and my dad sighed, put his head down and said,

"oh lindsey, these taste just like my mom's".  sniff sniff.

this recipe was tweaked thanks to the help of peter & kelli bronski's kolachki recipe.  i was super nervous about combining the dairy free cream cheese & ghee in this sacred prezell family recipe.  i am so glad i got some gumption and went for it!  heck, if it wasn't for this instagram contest, i probably wouldn't have even made them.  thanks j-dog, contests always help me put my game-face on - it must be the jock in me:)

oh grandma, i miss you and grandpa so much.  i haven't attempted these darlings since she taught me how to make them with her in 1999.  i do hope to make you proud - the mullies kitchen was built in honor of you both and the 40+ years you lived here before us on.the.lake.

mullie & millie's apricot kolachki

1 c organic ghee (it's already soft since you can leave it in your pantry)
8 oz of daiya brand plain cream cheese style spread
2.5 c (313 g) gf flour blend
2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
organic powdered sugar
apricot preserves (i also remember her making these with raspberry, cream cheese and poppyseed fillings)

preheat oven to 350 degrees.  cream the ghee and cream cheese spread together in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.  in a separate bowl, mix the flour, xanthan gum and salt.  add the flour mixture gradually to the butter/cheese mixture. wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour to firm up.  generously dust your surface with powdered sugar and roll out to your desired thickness (i put plastic wrap over the top so the dough doesn't stick to the rolling pin).  i used a small juice glass to make circles and then cut out triangles for the tops.  be creative and make them look fancy pancy!  bake for 15 minutes or until the edges start to brown ever so slightly.

i like to eat mine with a lovely latte.  how will you eat yours?

merry merry christmas to you my dear mullie reader!!!

may rudolf's shiny nose find his way into your cozy home - now you have a very special cookie to leave him & santa baby:)

now i'm off to a most "fashionable" ugly xmas sweater party...  thanks for letting me borrow your sweet "jumper" jenn!!

xoxo

zucchini saves labor day - cookies - salad - lasagna - oh my

that's it, i'm sold.

zucchinis are totes.

i made three recipes over the weekend with these bad boys.

first came the cookies - and i made em TWICE.

second came the salad instagram inspo from my northern wisconsin neighbor and fellow food amabassador, the lovely Thippi Flickenstein.

third came the metamorphosis of her salad into my lasagna.  i love transformers.

there is nothing better than stretching some fresh produce, saving some bucks and your meal planning sanity.  i hope you think these recipes are the cat's banana hammock too.

gf oats.  but i didn't have enough!!!!

so how about some quinoa flakes?  can you believe they make this stuff into flakes and flour!?  you can get either in bulk at whole foods.

my sugar sugars.

dough deliciousness.

three thumbs to the SKY!!!!!  mac is really playing it cool.

you must check out the original recipe and see what i did to it.  i didn't plan on changing it.  but when i went to collect my ingredients, i simply did not have enough so i improvised and swapped out a few more... oh yea, my kitchen=art class.

totes zucchini cookies
adapted from two peas in their pod's zucchini cookies

2 c gf flour blend
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
whisk up together in a bowl until combined.

8 T coconut oil (softened like room temp butter)
1 c coconut palm sugar
1/2 c organic sugar
cream together with a stand or hand held mixer.

2 lg pastured and organic eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 c shredded organic zucchini
add above ingredients into creamed sugar and coconut oil.

1/2 c gf old fashioned oats
1/2 c unsweetened coconut flakes
1/2 c quinoa flour or flakes
dump the flour blend/soda/sea salt and the above ingredients into the bowl and mix until well combined.

3/4 c mini chocolate chips (enjoy life brand)
yea, don't forget these:)

preheat oven to 350 degrees (i used my convection setting).  Bake for 8 min.  if you use normal oven setting, prob 12 minutes... just check it before you wreck it.

so then came this sweet facebook post from Thippi and i whipped up her little dream boat on labor day.

Thippi's cucumber OR zucchini salad

2-3 lg organic cucumbers or zucchinis sliced, halved or quartered
1 pint garden cherry tomatoes halved
3 T fresh basil roughly chopped
3 T fresh mint roughly chopped (thanks becky for sharing your garden with me!!!)
3 T fresh parsley (i didn't have any)
1/2 c capers (oh just add as much as you want)
1/4-1/2 red onion thinly sliced (ditto)
1/2 c each evoo & balsamic vinegar (i think... i honestly just eyeballed it so you can do that too!!)
s&p to taste

mix it all up.  dunzo.

and then when you have leftovers... chop it up all nice and fine and make some lasagna!!

freshly chopped organic spinach.

blurred spinach lines.

here is the lasagna recipe inspo from ohsheglows.com.

before you get all crazy on me and freak out, i too would have slapped you across the face if you told me to make a lasagna without cheese.  so here's the dealio: i still top mine off with some really great italian imported sheep's cheese called cacio de roma (it acts just like mozzarella) and perhaps a little romano, maybe manchego... oh yes please.  goat and sheep's cheeses are the only dairy we have in the house nowadays and we use as little as possible... kinda like sugar:)

do i miss all the cheese in my life?  i truly love it so.  and here are the reasons we aren't a big cheesy family anymore:

#1 i do not miss my zits.
#2 abbie prefers a cheese free and cow's milk free environment.
#3 mac has an intolerance to cow's milk (he is fine with goat and sheep).
#4 tommy loves the cheese we buy.
#5 this rabbit hole i like to read about on the milk debate.  oye.

poor chris.  he still loves my "old" lasagna and really misses it.  he says this one gets sort of close... thumbs up and sideways from my four love bugs.  my mother and father-in-law came over and shared this dish with us too!  mary is a big fan of zucchini (yes!) and larry i love you for eating it and it was a big complement when you said, "it's not bad lindsey!"  i loves you for eating my new all veggie and gluten free creation.

so there you go.  if you have a reason to knock out or limit the cheese in your life, this is a way to go.

or, simply use your own tried and true recipe and add in the zucchini and spinach.  here is the lasagna recipe that i used to make.

no matter what lasagna floats your boat, go get your apron ON!!  it's your from scratch lasagna creation, and you make it the way YOU WANT:)  i hope i gave you some inspiring ideas!

...sorry i forgot to take a picture of the finished creation.  this place just gets too busy sometimes:)

ps

i couldn't resist.  my green smoothie looked like our lake:)  so gross but sooo good.

and you MUST bookmark this handy definitions list compiled by kidsorganics.com.  i sure did.

annoyed by hearing "gluten free" yet?  HA!  here's mark sisson's take on the gluten free trend.  

hangin onto summer's last breaths.  cheers babycakies.

xoxo