Join Me for Merienda: Oat Milk!!!!

A short post tonight,

I recently made oat milk for the first time.

I don't know why it took me this long to make some since it's so economical and easy to make. 

You just need 3 basic ingredients:

*Old Fashioned Oats (not instant oats)

Filtered water

Sea salt

*Use certified Gluten Free Oats to make sure

That it is celiac friendly!

I looked up a recipe on youtube and one suggested 2 Cups of Water for every 1Cup of Oats plus a pinch of sea salt ( I like to use himalyan pink sea salt).

Place everything in a blender and let it go until most of the oats are broken down and then pour everything through a fine mesh sieve ( any of the leftover particles can be eaten as is or used in recipes( and then bottle ( I reused some old kombucha bottles that I sanitized) and store in the fridge.

I played around with the water ratio before and after the fact. It seems like you can adjust the consistency to your liking. You could also add in vanilla or a natural sweetner of your choice to suit your taste.

I also added cacao to one batch and it's great =)

If you like oatmeal; then you'll probably like oat milk.

That's it!!!!

Give it a try =)

Wishing you peace and happy cooking🌟

<3 Love,

Jessica

Happy Leap Day and Jess a Tip!

Happy Leap Day!!!

I had a fairly productive day and I had hoped to share this tip with the create tv contest for PBS, but I ran out of time and I do not do much video editing these days; so I wouldn't feel good submitting something that was subpar.

It's a simple tip that encourages waste not, want not. I definitely try to be frugal and this is one of those ways that I achieve this goal.

Everytime that I use any type of citrus I make sure to zest them first. I then mix the zest into either sugar, sea salt and sometimes oil too.

I can then use these for future recipes and the flavors are a great addition to cakes, crackers, salads etc.

I will be sharing some recipes in the future featuring this ingredient.

Mixed with organic sugar

Mixed with Himalyan Pink Sea Salt

I hope that you all had a wondeful day and that you will have an even better tomorrow.

Wishing you all

Good Health and Happy Cooking

<3 Jessica

Join Me for Merienda: End of the Year post: V,GF- Organic Kidney Bean and Beet Hummus

Well....

Yes, I need to catch up on these posts, again!

So, before 2015 is gone in my part of the world, here is a post that I promised someone that I'd write about, a few months ago. I first made this after my brother told me about a beet hummus that he had purchased at Trader Joe's and really enjoyed. I personally hadn't tried the beet hummus, but I like beets and I like hummus; so it would probably be a winner. 

After the first batch of this beet hummus that I made; I knew that it would be joining the ranks of the other hummus varieties that I make =)

I know that the deep magenta color may confuse some people (or even scare some of them), but encourage them to give it a try. Even the people who don't normally like beets may enjoy this one.

This is a super nutritious and delicious hummus and I hope that you will give it a try some day.

V, GF- Organic Kidney Bean and Beet Hummus

Ingredients:

1 Can of drained Organic Kidney Beans
About a 1/2C of steamed and peeled Beets

1 Clove of Garlic minced

1/4C Canola or any other neutral oil
1tsp of Tahini

Juice of half a Lemon

Himilayan Pink Sea salt to taste

A grind of fresh Black Pepper

On this batch, I topped it with some shelled hemp seeds and sesame seeds. Yummy!

Method:

Simply combine everything into your blending apparatus of choice (blender, nutribullet (just watch those 'max fill,' lines) food processor and blend until homogenized. It should take less than 2 minutes depending on your appliance.

You can serve it straight away or store it in an airtight container in the fridge. I would eat it within 3-5 days, but honestly it doesn't last that long in my household. Eat it with fresh cut veggies, on pita bread and crackers etc.

I wish you all a very happy new year and I hope that it will be filled with good health, wellness, love and happiness for you all. I certainly always hope for a more peaceful world and for everybody to be compassionate to one another as well as themselves.

Love,

Jessica  <3<3<3

Happy Halloween!!!!!=)

Here is a treat for all of you!

Homemade dark chocolate infused with
Peppermint, pure vanilla and filled with crunchies =)

Recipe coming soon!!!

Happy Halloween!!!
<3 Jessica

I love my dog =)

Seeley is a rescue dog, which means he was saved from a dire situation/ circumstance.
The person who rescued Seeley explained that he was left outside chained year round, sometimes with food and water, but for the most part he was just neglected. I will never understand how any person could mistreat and abuse another living being.

Seeley was under a year old when he came into my life. It had only been 3 months since I lost my previous boy Liam to bone cancer, which absolutely crushed my heart.
When they asked me if I might be able to take in Seeley; I wasn't 100 percent sure if I could, but you always have room in your heart and Seeley found his spot in mine.

I chose the name Seeley because it means a very happy person and I feel like that's what Seeley was, very happy.

On the first ride home in my car he was small enough to ride in front. He looked at me during the whole ride. At the house he met the rest of my family and then he hung out with me in the kitchen and was still getting used to his new home. I fell asleep in a chair that evening with Seeley sitting across the room, but when I woke up again he was sitting next to me. I felt like that signaled to me that he knew that this was his home and he wasn't going anywhere else.

He's an older puppy now and has those white hairs under his chin, but he's still playful and just as clever and mischievous.

Always a puppy to me

I love him for his unconditional love, the way he reminds me to slow down and enjoy the simple joys in life.

Thank you Seeley <3

=)

I love my dog =)

Seeley is a rescue dog, which means he was saved from a dire situation/ circumstance.

The person who rescued Seeley explained that he was left outside chained year round, sometimes with food and water, but for the most part he was just neglected. I will never understand how any person could mistreat and abuse another living being.

Seeley was under a year old when he came into my life. It had only been 3 months since I lost my previous boy Liam to bone cancer, which absolutely crushed my heart.
When they asked me if I might be able to take in Seeley; I wasn't 100 percent sure if I could, but you always have room in your heart and Seeley found his spot in mine.

I chose the name Seeley because it means a very happy person and I feel like that's what Seeley was, very happy.

On the first ride home in my car he was small enough to ride in front. He looked at me during the whole ride. At the house he met the rest of my family and then he hung out with me in the kitchen and was still getting used to his new home. I fell asleep in a chair that evening with Seeley sitting across the room, but when I woke up again he was sitting next to me. I felt like that signaled to me that he knew that this was his home and he wasn't going anywhere else.

He's an older puppy now and has those white hairs under his chin, but he's still playful and just as clever and mischievous.

I love him for his unconditional love, the way he reminds me to slow down and enjoy the simple joys in life.

=)

Join Me for Merienda: Malagkit na may Malunggay at Manga/ Sweet Rice Porridge infused with Malunggay (Moringa) and fresh Mango

Hello again!

I really need to stop feeling like I have to apologize for my irregular posting, but I don't think there's anything wrong with living life outside of the computer and electronic devices ;)

Anyway, here is one to tide you over for the time being. I created this dessert on a whim while preparing some other food for a family gathering that was directly after  my cousin Eileen's wedding! I made it in the wee hours of the morning when I got back from the wedding (I went ahead and made a batch of Jesscafé style Mujadara and made sure to soak the malagkit ( you should soak it overnight or at least 5 hours before using for best results). A few hours later before we had to head out, I mixed everything together and history was made ;p

I love malagkit (sweet rice), it's one of the simplest pleasures when it's freshly cooked, the texture, bite and aroma are just heavenly. It's one of those culinary chameleons that can transform into sweet or savory. In whatever shape or form, it is a gift.

I decided on this combination on a whim (like most recipes), but perhaps it was also inspired by the need to recharge from all the dancing that we did the previous night at my cousin Eileen's wedding. We burned that dancefloor down to ashes!

I'm always looking for ways to incorporate even more nutrition into my already awesome dishes and by adding in some malunggay the nutrition statistics go up exponentially. Malunggay or Moringa Oleifera is an awesome plant that grows prolifically in the Philippines as well as in many parts of Asia. One of the last times that I was visiting the Philippines, while on the way back from an open air market, my Auntie Wilma pointed out a Malunggay tree to my brother and went to get some from the branches, but ending up taking down the whole branch down by accident. She told my brother to just keep moving along, as if nothing had happened. Hehehehe.

Jesscafé Presents:

V,GF- Sweet Rice Porridge infused with 

                  Malunggay with Mango

                        A recipe dedicated to Eileen and her new husband Nick:

May your partnership together be as wonderful as the wedding and continue to strengthen and                                                prosper for many more happy years!

Here it is when I plated it at home. It is truly satisfying without being overly sweet.

Ingredients:

2 C Malagkit/Sweet Rice (Soaked for at least 5 hours and cooked*)

1/3-1/2 C Organic Coconut Sugar

1 1/2 Tb Malunggay Powder

Dash of Himalayan Pink Sea Salt

Optional- Splash of pure vanilla

For topping:

Slices of Ripe Mango

Toasted Organic Sesame Seeds

Optional -Toasted Organic Coconut

*Cook the soaked rice with 2 Tablespoons of Organic Coconut Oil and 3 cups of water using a rice cooker and select the 'Brown Rice,' setting. Check after 1 cycle and if still uncooked; select the 'Brown Rice,' setting once again. Mix the rice around and let it sit on the 'Warm,' function for another 10 minutes

Directions:

Mix in the organic coconut sugar, malunggay powder, himalayan pink sea salt, (optional vanilla if desired) into the cooked sweet rice. Mix thoroughly and taste and adjust sugar level; if desired. Remember that you are going to be pairing this with sweet, ripe and juicy mango slices; so you don't want it to be overly sweet, just sweet enough. 

Here it is as plated at the gathering. Not a very professional looking shot of it, but it did not affect its taste at all ;p

You can serve it immediately or serve it cold; it depends on your preference. 

I served it in bowls and then topped each one with a few slices of sweet, ripe mango and then sprinkled on some toasted organic sesame seeds. You may want to go ahead and top it with some toasted organic coconut as well, but I was pressed for time and sesame seeds never let me down =)

I knew that I would like this dessert because it has more than a few of my favorite ingredients in it, but to my delight, the other family and guests at the gathering enjoyed it as well. In particular, the new bride Eileen; so I told her that I would dedicate it to her and her new husband; so here we are now =)

You can change up this recipe slightly by modifying the ingredients; such as cacao powder with or without the malunggay (I personally would always keep the malunggay) and then top it with toasted black sesame or serve it with cooked split mungo beans. I want you to have fun with this recipe because it's super simple (granted the rice preparation time needs to be given its due diligence, but other than that it's a fast and easy recipe.

Well, I hope that you will give this recipe a try and share it with your friends and family. All of my food is made with and out of love =) 

Wishing you all good health and happy cooking!

Love,

Jessica