Hi friends!  Late post today – Cullen and I have been out and about, and had a long doctor’s appointment this afternoon.  Since I knew we’d be at the appointment for a while, we took advantage of a glorious sunny afternoon and took a long stroll by the water to get some fresh air and sunshine. 

Believe it or not, I actually made a big return to the kitchen tonight too!  I am working on putting together some yummy Thanksgiving recipes, so be on the lookout for those soon.  In the meantime, I have two other recipes to share with you – courtesy of my good friend Ashley from the Edible Perspective. 

Ashley is a crazy talented photographer and cook, as well as one of my favorite bloggers and friends.  Thank you for sharing your food and talents, Ashley!

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Hello there Daily Garnish readers!! My name is Ashley, and I blog over at The Edible Perspective. I was thrilled when Emily asked me to guest post for her blog. Emily has been such an inspiration in the kitchen for me and is one of my very dear friends. I couldn’t be more excited to share a little snippet of my creations with all of you today. If this post is up, it probably means Emily is now a mommy! I know she + Casey will be outstanding parents, and I couldn’t be more excited for them.

For today’s post, I wanted to share 2 new recipes. They are the perfect make-ahead breakfasts, with the option to freeze and have on hand whenever you like. Kid + adult approved! After recently going gluten free, for health reasons, I discovered the GF grain buckwheat. While one might assume buckwheat contains wheat, it is actually gluten free. Below is buckwheat, in it’s raw, groat form. It’s a crunchy grain, that you can actually eat raw, add to granola, cook as porridge, or grind into flour and use for baking.

You are able to buy buckwheat flour, but the one experience I had was not the best. It tasted like dirt. Literally. [Arrowhead Mills brand] So, instead, I grind raw buckwheat groats, in small batches in my blender. [A blender, spice grinder, or coffee grinder will work much better than a food processor.] I blend the groats until they turn into a fine powder. Then, I store the leftover flour in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 weeks. While shopping for raw buckwheat groats, you may come across Kasha or Toasted Buckwheat. While this is the same grain, it has an extremely strong, toasted/burnt flavor. I do not recommend it for these breakfast bake recipes. The toasted groats have a brown-red tint to them, while the raw are a pale yellow-green.

Version 1 of each recipe, smelled + looked tasty, but the flavors and textures were off.

I adjusted a few ingredients for version 2. Much better. I started creating buckwheat bakes sometime last winter, and now they are my most popular recipes. I typically make a 1-person serving in the oven or microwave and have dozens of different recipes. Instead of making these as a single serving, I changed them up a bit to fit in 6 muffin tins. One is perfect for a snack, and three make a filling + nutritious breakfast.

The first variety: Cocoa Peanut Butter

A rich cocoa flavor, with a hint of sweetness, and a gooey peanut butter filling.

Cocoa Peanut Butter Muffins [yields 6] gluten free

• 1/2c + 2T raw buckwheat flour [ground from raw groats]
• 2T raw buckwheat groats
• 1/4c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2c unsweetened almond milk
• 2.5T unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2T peanut butter
• 2T peanut butter [for the filling]
• 1T brown rice syrup [maple syrup or honey]
• 1 egg
• 1/2t baking powder
• 1/4t baking soda
• 1/4t salt
• 1t vanilla

1. Preheat your oven to 350* and grease 6 muffin tins or line with muffin papers.
2. Mix the flour, groats, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt, until combined.
3. Whisk together the egg, applesauce, milk, brown rice syrup, vanilla and only 2T of the peanut butter.
4. Add wet to dry and stir until just combined. Be careful not to over-stir as it will make the texture gummy.
5. Pour the batter evenly in the 6 molds, and dollop about 1t peanut butter into the center of each muffin.
6. Bake for 25-30min, until the tops have cracked + set. Test with a toothpick to the side of the peanut butter.
7. Let cool for a few minutes + eat!

*You can substitute 1 sm/med banana, mashed until creamy, instead of applesauce. *Raw buckwheat groats, are most commonly found in the bulk section of your natural food store, or packaged in the gluten free section.

To freeze: Let these fully cool, then wrap tightly in saran, then foil, and then in a freezer bag with the air squeezed out. Thaw in the fridge the night before you want to eat them, and reheat in the morning or chow down straight out of the fridge!

Nutritionally dense and quite delectable. [nutrition data calculated using caloriecount.com, for 3 muffins and all ingredients above]

Breakfast is served.

But if you’re still hungry for more, here’s recipe #TWO!

I wanted to create something a little spiced for fall. And I wanted this version to be gluten free and vegan.

Spiced Buckwheat Muffins [yields 6] gluten free + vegan

• 1/2c + 2T raw buckwheat flour [ground from raw groats]
• 2T raw buckwheat groats
• 1 sm/med banana
• 1/2c unsweetened almond milk
• 1T ground flax meal
• 1T molasses
• 3/4t cinnamon
• 1/8t nutmeg
• pinch of clove + allspice
• 1/2t baking powder
• 1/4t baking soda
• 1/4t salt
• 1t vanilla

1. Preheat your oven to 350* and grease 6 muffin tins or line with muffin papers.
2. Mix the flour, groats, flax, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, allspice, baking powder, baking soda and salt, until combined.
3. Mash the banana until creamy, in a bowl.
4. Whisk the milk, molasses, and vanilla with the banana.
5. Add wet to dry and stir until just combined. Be careful not to over-stir as it will make the texture gummy.
6. Pour the batter evenly in the 6 molds.
7. Bake for 27-32min, until the tops have cracked + set. Test with a toothpick, which should be moist, but not bone dry.
8. Let cool for a few minutes + eat!

*The banana flavor is faint, but if preferred, sub 1/4c unsweetened applesauce instead. *Raw buckwheat groats, are most commonly found in the bulk section of your natural food store, or packaged in the gluten free section.

Slightly sweet. Full of spice. And slathered with the nut butter of your choice, you just can’t go wrong.

Behind the scenes mess!

A big thanks to Emily, for having me on her blog today. I hope motherhood is treating you well!!