Coconut Fudge (a.k.a. Brain Fudge)

1 cup (scant) coconut oil 
3/4 cup peanutbutter or almond butter
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup honey or agave nectar or sugar
dash of salt (optional- last time I forget the salt and it tasted fine)


Make sure coconut oil is liquid when you measure it since that will affect your measurement. Melt all ingredients in saucepan.   If you use sugar, you may end up with a grainy texture if the sugar is not fully dissolved.  Since I use honey or agave nectar, I just get the mixture warm enough to melt the ingredients so they can be well mixed. The original recipe used 1 tsp. stevia instead of sugar which I have not tried yet.  Given the fact that the conversion between stevia and sugar is 1 tsp. to 1 cup, my version is actually less sweet than the stevia version.
Allow to cool partially but still pourable.  Pour into candy molds or into a container with a flat bottom (mixture should be between 1/4 and 1/2 inch deep).  Place in fridge to solidify, and then into freezer to store. Mixture may be very runny so it can be difficult to move the containers when still warm.  

This fudge is better eaten frozen than from the fridge. If you have trouble getting the fudge out of the pan, lay the pan on a warm towel for just a few minutes and then try popping the entire amount out onto a plate and then you can break into bites and then store in the freezer.  This will make it much easier to just grab a bite out of the freezer.


Note: This is one method we use to get more coconut oil in our diet.  It isn't going to taste as fabulous as a traditional fudge however it is tasty enough that we feel like we are still getting a treat and the ingredients are healthy.  We use peanut butter because my kids do not like it with almond butter however that would be my preference to make it healthier. We have noticed some benefits in eating coconut oil for adhd and executive function issues.   We found this connection by accident when reading an article on alzheimer's and coconut oil so we decided to try adding it to our diets to see if it helped with other brain issues like executive function.  Disclaimer:  I'm not a doctor. I'm a mom who figured out what works for my family.  You may or may not see similar benefits.

This is the article that prompted me to try coconut oil.  https://www.bulletproofexec.com/podcast-transcript-13-how-to-upgrade-your-brain-with-coconut-oil-ketones/

Homemade Pudding

My mom mentioned the other day that her mom used to make cornstarch pudding so I decided to try it.  Wow!  It is great and I know exactly what is in it so I feel better about eating it.  Surprisingly, vanilla pudding does not need to be yellow - that is just the artificial coloring added to the store bought pudding.  It's amazing what we take for granted when we buy pre-made mixes.  I used a recipe from allrecipes.com however I changed it as I made it.  Here is my recipe:

Flour Girl's Pudding Recipe

2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
1 /2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. butter

Mix all dry ingredients in a stainless steel saucepan (including cinnamon if you want).  Add the milk and whisk until dry ingredients are dissolved.  It is very important that you dissolve cornstarch into cold liquid. If you heat the milk first, you get lumpy pudding. Heat and stir until mixture is thickened but not boiling.  To test thickness, dip a metal spoon into the pudding and if it sticks nicely and doesn't slide off, it's done.  Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla extract.  I always use real butter.  Pour into serving bowls.  Enjoy warm or chilled.

Next time I will try adding some cocoa to the dry ingredients to make chocolate pudding.  If you try adding anything dry like cocoa, make sure you add it at the beginning or it won't mix in well later.  If you make this, I'd love to hear what variations you do.

For everyone looking for a bargain, making the pudding mix from scratch costs about 20 cents (not counting the cost of the milk).

Eating on the Go

One of my challenges as my kids are getting more involved in activities is that we are in the car more. The temptation is to stop somewhere to eat if we get hungry but being a frugal mom who is minimizing processed food, that makes no sense at all to me. So before we go anywhere, I always make sure we have water and some homemade bread and fruit and we are good to go. For a treat, I put Nutella on the bread - that tastes so much better than anything I could get in a drive-through. My goal is to always have enough food in the car so I won't ever feel like I need to stop and buy something that I don't really want to eat. I have always done this so my kids don't even know the drive-through is an option. If we will be gone during meal time, I pack the entire meal. For quick snacks, I used to do fruit snacks for the kids and granola bars for me but we've replaced that with real fruit and real bread. At some point, I will start making granola bars. No one seems to miss the junky food.

Peanut Butter Play Dough

This is a fun twist on play dough - you can eat it and it tastes great! I have been craving cookie dough lately but because of the egg scare recently, I have stopped eating it. The temptation to lick the beaters is unbelievable. This playdough is a great substitute. I store mine in the fridge and it really does taste better when you make it fresh but it is fine for a few weeks when stored in the fridge. I haven't tried to alter the recipe yet but wouldn't it be fun to add chocolate chips?

SMOOTH PEANUT BUTTER PLAY DOUGH

Ingredients:
2 cups smooth peanut butter
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups dried milk
2/3 cups honey

Directions: Mix all ingredients until thoroughly combined. Storage: When not using, MUST be stored in an airtight container.

Recipe from: http://www.squidoo.com/EdiblePlayDough#module12772397