Recipes — The Greenbacks Gal

Inspiring Autumn Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins & Gift Basket Giveaway

October 10, 2011 By Andrea Green

UPDATE: THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

It’s a week of Inspiring Autumn Giveaways full of crafts, recipes and giveaways! Your hostesses:

* TODAY – I’m hostessing with my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and a giveaway for a Gift Basket Giveaway full of FREE products! Make sure to keep reading to get the recipe and to enter!

* Tuesday – Jessica from Jessica’s Coupons has a tutorial for a Fall Yarn Ball Wreath and a giveaway for a $20 Hobby Lobby Gift Card!

* Wednesday – Lauren from I am that Lady has a recipe for Easy and Delicious Autumn Apple Crisp and a gvieaway for a pie plate PLUS a $50 Abe’s Market Gift Card!

* Thursday – Stephanie from Sand and Starfish will feature Simple Fall Bunting Tutorials and a giveaway where the winner will get to choose from one of the buntings!

* Friday – Alecia of Savings and Stewardship will share with us her famous Pear Pie and will be hosting a giveaway for a $25 Williams-Sonoma Gift Card!

Do you ever cook with flaxseed? Flaxseed is a great source of essential fatty acids. And for those of you who might be here looking for a Meatless Monday post – get this: flaxseed is a great substitute for eggs in recipes! Know someone who’s a vegan? Just replace the egg in a recipe with 2 tablespoons flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons water. Let the mixture sit for a bit, then use it in place of one large egg!

I’m guessing you’ve already realized this recipe has flaxseed. These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins are really dense with most of the sweetness coming from the chocolate. Made with white whole wheat flour, flaxseed meal and agave nectar – you can feel really good about these as a wholesome breakfast!

Not only do I want to give you a recipe for using flaxseed – I’m going to give away a Gift Basket that includes flaxseed so you can start cooking with it yourself! But first the recipe:

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS makes 1 dozen

INGREDIENTS

OAT TOPPING
1/2 C rolled oats
1 T cinnamon
2 T agave nectar

MUFFINS
1 C whole wheat white flour
1 C oat flour (I make my oat flour by pulverizing oats in the food processor)
3 T milled flaxseed
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pumpkin pie spice
1/2 t cinnamon
2 1/2 t baking powder
2 T melted butter
1/4 C agave nectar
1 egg
1 C milk
1 C pumpkin puree
3/4 c chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.

Combine topping mixture in a small bowl and set aside. Line 12 muffin tins with liners.

Combine white whole wheat flour and next 6 ingredients in a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix the remaining ingredients except the chocolate chips. Mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients. Lightly mix in the chocolate chips. Scoop into the prepared muffin tin. Lightly press muffin topping onto each muffin.

Bake for approximately 15 minutes. Muffins are done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Now for the Gift Basket Giveaway!

I’m giving away a gift basket full of healthy products! The gift basket includes:

One package Royal Harvest Pure Flax Meal
One bottle Royal Harvest Flax Oil
One bottle Royal Harvest Chocolate Flax Oil (great in smoothies!)
One coupon for a FREE gardein product of your choice
Two coupons for FREE 4-pack of enLiven yogurt
One book of Holiday Appetizers (try the marinated cheese – oh heaven!)To enter the giveaway:1. To enter, just leave me a comment and tell me if you cook with flaxseed
2. To get a second entry, Subscribe to The Greenbacks Gal to get daily updates right in your inbox!
3. To get a third entry, “Like” the Greenbacks Gal Facebook page. Leave a second, separate comment to let me know you did.
4. To get a fourth entry, Follow the Greenbacks Gal on Twitter. Leave a separate comment to let me know you did.
**If you are reading this in email, please visit The Greenbacks Gal to be able to leave a comment**
This giveaway will close at 10 PM EST on Monday October 19. Entrants must be 18 years old and located in the US only. The winners will be chosen at random and announced here on the Greenbacks Gal and notified via email. If any of the winners does not respond within 48 hours, a new winner will be randomly chosen.Disclaimer: This giveaway was sponsored by Gardein, Royal Harvest and EnLiven Yogurt, but none of those companies are a sponsor, administrator, or involved in any other way with this giveaway. All opinions expressed in the post are my own.

Homeschooling Freebies: Art Supplies

September 8, 2011 By Kelli Leave a Comment

For those of you who homeschool, today my friend Kelli from 3 Boys and a Dog Deals is guest posting on ways to be green when homeschooling!

Everyone tries really hard to be a little greener, but have you taken steps within your homeschool to shrink your footprint? Here are some great ideas to help your homeschool be a bit better for the environment and easier on your wallet!

The following ideas will help you begin looking around your house for homeschooling freebies to cut the cost of your art supplies and reduce the amount of waste you are feeding to Mother Earth!

Homemade Art Supply Recipes:

Bath crayons - Grate a bar of soap until you have about 1 cup. Mix with 1 cup of hot water until the gratings are melted and you have a stiff dough. Mix in a few drops of food coloring for color. Press the dough into molds (you can use candy or soap molds from a craft store) and allow to harden.

Bubble mix - Mix together 6 cups of water, 2 cups of liquid dishwashing soap, and 3/4 cup corn syrup. Allow to sit for a couple of hours before using to blow bubbles!

Fingerpaint - In a small saucepan, mix together 1/4 cup cornflour and 2 cups of water. Add food coloring to get to desired color. Boil until mixture thickens, then allow to cool. Pour into lidded containers to store.

Playdough – Combine 2 cups of flour, 1/2 cup of salt, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, and a cup of boiling water until you get a playdough consistency. Store in a ziplock bag when not in use. You can add a few drops of food coloring for color, or a packet of Kool-aid for color and scent!

Watercolor paint - Simply mix together 3 tablespoons corn starch, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons corn syrup, 3 tablespoons baking soda, and 3 tablespoons white vinegar. Pour into separate containers with lids for use & storage. Mix in a few drops of food coloring into each container to make different colors.

Have fun during your next art lesson with your handmade homeschooling freebies!

Kelli gives you hints and tips on how you can save money homeschooling and homemaking! At Deals_3BD she posts coupon/ad matchups, the best homeschooling deals, printable coupons, and kid friendly recipes.

Recipe: Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

September 22, 2010 By Andrea Green 5 Comments

Our family tradition is to have pancakes every Saturday. We LOVE pancakes. HOWEVER. I do have one problem with them. If they are the white flour traditional kind, I find I am always hungry an hour later. They just don’t fill me up for very long. I need a whole grain breakfast to keep me full.

Enter our favorite Whole Wheat Pancake mix. Full of whole grains that fill you up! It’s an inexpensive, ultra nutritious pancake mix that will last in your fridge or freezer for months! Can I get a Woo Hoo?

Recipe: Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

Ingredients

3 1/2 C Oats
1 T Cinnamon
4 C Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 C Sugar
3 T Baking Powder
1 T Salt
1 T Baking Soda
3/4 C Canola Oil

Instructions

For the Pancake Mix:

Grind pats and cinnamon in food processor or blender until flour-like consistency.
Transfer oats and cinnamon mixture to a large mixing bowl. Whisk in flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda.
Stir in canola oil until all ingredients are moist. Mix should clump together when lightly squeezed.
Pack in airtight container and store in fridge or freezer for months.

To Make the Pancakes:

Combine 1 cup mix with 1 cup Buttermilk*, 1 teaspoon Vanilla, and 1 egg. Let rest for 15 minutes before cooking on a lightly greased, hot griddle.
*You can substitute 1/2 C milk combined with 1/2 C plain yogurt for the buttermilk.

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If you are keeping the mix in the freezer, I suggest writing the cooking instructions on the label. Then you will know just what to do when it comes time to make the pancakes!

Stuffed Tomatoes

August 24, 2010 By Andrea Green 8 Comments

With tomatoes in season, you really have to try this recipe! I served it as a side to flank steak, but this could be a vegetarian meal in itself! Vegan? Leave out the dairy and it will be just as good.

Stuffed Tomatoes

4 Large Tomatoes

Kosher Salt

1/3 Diced Onion

1/2 Jalapeno, seeded and diced

2 t Garlic

2 t Canola Oil

1 can Organic Vegetarian Black Beans

1/2 t Kosher Salt

1/2 t Ground Cumin

1/4 C Chopped Cilantro

3/4 C Cooked Brown Rice

3/4 C Shredded Monterey Jack

Sour Cream

Cut off the top 1/4 inch of the tomatoes. Using a spoon, scoop out the insides, leaving a solid outer shell. Sprinkle insides of tomatoes with salt and let stand while you make the rest of the recipe.

Heat oil in pan. Cook onion and jalapeno until soft. Add garlic, beans, cumin, and rice. Heat through.

Off heat, add chopped cilantro and cheese. Divide filling and stuff into each tomato. Top with a dollop of sour cream and serve while still hot.

Inspiring Autumn Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins & Gift Basket Giveaway

Homeschooling Freebies: Art Supplies

Homemade Art Supply Recipes:

Recipe: Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

Stuffed Tomatoes

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