Inside HBC

Cinnamon and Cardamom Scones

These scones are nice on a chilly morning with a cup of tea. The yogurt chips are a sweet surprise, but they would be equally delicious without them if you are trying to cut down on sugars. Enjoy!

• 1 cup GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1 cup rolled oats (generous) (sweet)
• 6 TBS chilled salted butter, cut into squares (sweet)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon (pungent, bitter)
• 1/2 tsp cardamom (pungent, bitter, sour)
• 1 TBS grated orange rind (bitter, sour)
• 1/2 cup white yogurt chips (sweet)
• 1 beaten egg (sweet)
• 1/3 cup cream, buttermilk or soy milk (sweet)
• About 1/8 cup oat flour for kneading (sweet)

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Mix the GWF baking mix and oats in a large bowl.  Cut in 6 TBS butter (an electric mixer makes it easy, but a fork works fine as well).  The lumps should be about pea-sized. Add dried spices.
3. Combine the milk and the beaten egg, and then add to the flour mixture along with the yogurt chips.  Mix until combined.
4. Turn out onto a floured board and knead gently until the dough is a bit stiff, but not crumbly.  Cut dough into 4 sections and form into 4 balls.  Cut those into 4 pieces, and retain shape (a little wedge).  Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
5. Transfer to a cooling rack, but do enjoy them warm with a dab of butter or Greek yogurt.  Yummy!

GWF Baking Mix is available at the Heavenly Bodies Clinic and through our online store.

Sage Muffins… instead of bread stuffing

If you are having trouble with gluten, but can’t bear the thought of NOT eating the herb-filled stuffing at your holiday dinners, I have an idea for you: make these muffins! GWF Baking Mix is wheat-free, gluten-free, sugar-free but makes the most delicious breads, muffins, cookies, and cakes. Promise!

• 2 eggs (sweet)
• 1 cup chicken broth (sweet)
• 4 TBS butter, melted & cooled (sweet)
• 2 TBS olive oil (sweet)
• 1 cup chopped onion (pungent, sweet)
• 1 cup chopped celery (salty, bitter)
• 1 TBS fresh thyme leaves (bitter, pungent)
• 1 TBS fresh sage, chopped (bitter, pungent)
• 2 cups of baking mix (sweet, salty)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Saute onions and celery in 2 TBS olive oil until soft, approximately 8 minutes. Stir in chopped sage and thyme and let sit to cool.
3. Beat eggs gently in large bowl. Add chicken broth and cooled onion mixture. While stirring, slowly add melted butter. Mix well.
4. Add baking mix, stirring just until combined.
5. Fill lightly oiled loaf pan (smaller size is better) or mini loaf pans.  Place in oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the center of a muffin springs back when touched lightly.
6. Cool in tins for 5 minutes, then remove to cooling rack.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Muffins

Chocolate decadence. Chocolate overdose. Chocolate chocolate. This recipe is my new favorite. I made it yesterday as muffins, but you could also bake it like a cake in a 9 x 9 pan. I topped mine with fresh whipped cream, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries and served it for dessert. It could have been serve all by itself, and I think the crowd still would have cheered. Yum yum yum.

• 2 cups of baking mix (sweet, salty)
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder (bitter)
• 2 TBS stevia powder (sweet)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (sweet)
• 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips (bitter, sweet)
• 1 cup yogurt (sweet, sour)
• 1/2 to 1 cup cream (or soy milk, half and half, or water) (sweet)
• 2 eggs (sweet)
• 1/4 cup of oil (sweet)
• 2 tsp vanilla (sweet)

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Set aside.
3. Gently beat eggs in a medium bowl. Add yogurt, oil, vanilla and 1/2 cup of cream and combine.
4. Add to dry ingredients and mix. Add more milk if it seems too thick (it shouldn’t be runny like most cake mixes, but it should flow).
5. Fill lightly oiled or papered cupcake tins with batter.  Place in oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the center of a muffin springs back when touched lightly.
6. Cool in tins for 5 minutes, then remove to cooling rack.
7. Enjoy with whipped cream sweetened with a few drops of stevia and vanilla.

GWF Baking Mix is available at the Heavenly Bodies Clinic and through our online store.

Blueberry Lavender Scones

• 1 cup GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1 cup rolled oats (generous) (sweet)
• 6 TBS chilled salted butter, cut into squares (sweet)
• 1 beaten egg (sweet)
• 1/3 cup cream, buttermilk or soy milk (sweet)
• 3/4 cup dried blueberris (sweet, sour)
• 1 TBS edible lavender flowers (pungent, bitter)
• About 1/8 cup oat flour for kneading (sweet)
• Greek yogurt (optional) (sour)

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Mix the GWF baking mix and oats in a large bowl.  Cut in 6 TBS butter (an electric mixer makes it easy, but a fork works fine as well).  The lumps should be about pea-sized.
3. Combine the milk and the beaten egg, and then add to the flour mixture along with the blueberries and lavender flowers.  Mix until combined.
4. Turn out onto a floured board and knead gently until the dough is a bit stiff, but not crumbly.  Cut dough into 4 sections and form into 4 balls.  Cut those into 4 pieces, and retain shape (a little wedge).  Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
5. Transfer to a cooling rack, but do enjoy them warm with a dab of butter or Greek yogurt.  Yummy!

GWF Baking Mix is available at the Heavenly Bodies Clinic and through our online store.

Blueberry Muffins

My Grandmother had several blueberry bushes in her backyard, along with mulberries, rhubarb, strawberries, and a huge vegetable garden with corn, beans, lettuce, tomatoes, carrots and everything else you can imagine. When we would visit, she would send us out with big bowls and tell us to fill them up. My favorite was the blueberries. Grandma would make blueberry pancakes, muffins and pies and we would go home with blue lips and a belly full of goodness.

• 2 cups of baking mix (sweet, salty)
• 2 eggs (sweet)
• 1 cup plain yogurt (sour)
• 1/2 cup melted butter, cooled; or light oil (sweet)
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (sour)
• Whipping Cream (optional) (sweet)

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Beat egg gently in large bowl. Add yogurt and combine. While stirring, slowly add melted butter. Mix well.
2. Add 2 cups of baking mix, stirring just until combined. Fold in berries.
3. Fill lightly oiled or papered cupcake tins with batter.  Place in oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the center of a muffin springs back when touched lightly.
4. Cool in tins for 5 minutes, then remove to cooling rack.
5. If desired, serve with whipped cream, sweetened with stevia and/or vanilla.

Flatbread with Leeks, Capers, and Asiago Cheese

In the springtime, add leafy greens, onions, leeks, and other early vegetables to your meals. Looking at Food as Medicine in Traditional Chinese Medicine (and maybe just by common sense?) eating seasonal foods is the way to go! The foods that arrive in the spring, tender green vegetables and herbs, provide energy as directly from the sun as possible and support us as we become more active and the days get longer.

Here’s an easy recipe for flatbread that can be adjusted to use your favorite seasonal toppings all year long.

• 2 cups GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup olive oil (sweet)
• 1 medium leek, white and light green parts, cut into long thin strips (pungent)
• 3 oz cheese, shredded or cut into 1/4 cubes (sour, salty)
• 2 TBS capers (salty)
• Freshly ground pepper (bitter)
• Olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Place 2 cups of GWF Baking Mix in a large bowl and add water and oil.  Mix well.
3. Press dough onto a lightly oiled baking sheet to about 1/4 in thick.  Drizzle about 1 tsp olive oil over top of dough and spread leeks evenly over the top. Generously spread cheese and capers over the leeks.  Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper, and drizzle again with olive oil.
4. Bake in oven for 25 minutes.  Remove, slice and enjoy!

Irish Soda Bread

Saint Patrick’s Day always included Irish Soda bread when I was growing up. Sometimes my sister even made it green with a few drops of food coloring.  Here’s an adaptation that even the greenest leprechaun in your house will love, and it will love him right back with plenty of protein but without the sugar and wheat flour.

• 1 cup *GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1 cup rolled oats (sweet)
• 6 TBS chilled salted butter, cut into squares (sweet)
• 1 beaten egg (sweet)
• 1/3 cup cream, buttermilk or soy milk (sweet)
• 1/2 cup dried currants (sweet)
• 1 TBS caraway seeds (bitter, pungent)
• About 1/8 cup oat flour for kneading

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Mix the GWF baking mix and oats in a large bowl.  Cut in 6 TBS butter (an electric mixer makes it easy, but a fork or fingers work fine as well).  The lumps should be about pea-sized.
3. Combine the milk and the beaten egg, and then add to the flour mixture along with the dried currants and caraway seeds.  Mix only until combined.
4. Turn out onto a floured board and knead gently until the dough is a bit stiff, but not crumbly.  Cut dough into 4 sections and form into 4 balls.  Cut those into 4 pieces, and retain shape (a little wedge).  Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for approximately 20 – 25 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

*GWF baking mix is available at the Heavenly Bodies Clinic, and our online store!

Baking with GWF Baking Mix

Gillian’s World Famous Baking Mix is so easy to use–just like any other baking mix you may have used in the past–except it doesn’t have any wheat or sugar in it.  And it full of protein, and tastes pretty awesome in savory and sweet recipes.  And we’ve tested lots of recipes.

I just put some scones in the oven (there are some recipes on this blog, and also in our recipe book available in the clinic).  I made blueberry/banana and cranberry/orange; just a couple of these little biscuits are perfect for breakfast with some hot tea or coffee.  The protein content is so magnificent that they will keep you satisfied much longer than if you had just about anything else in the same quantity.  You just have to try them.

I’m bringing several different baked goodies to the clinic this Saturday for taste testing–these very scones, cookies and double dark chocolate biscotti.

I hope you can come see us in the clinic soon!

“I heart U” Chocolate Chunk and Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

According to TCM food energetics, the Bitter flavor drains and counters dampness, and benefits the heart.  We have your heart in mind as we get ready for Valentine’s Day!  If homemade is your style, try this recipe.

• 8 TBS of butter, room temperature (sweet)
• 1/2 cup GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1 1/2 cups of oats (sweet)
• 1 large egg, slightly beaten (sweet)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (sweet)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (sweet, bitter)
• 3 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, chopped (bitter)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, mix butter, egg, vanilla.
3. Incorporate GWF baking mix and oats; stir in walnuts and chocolate.
4. Drop by spoonfuls onto a lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake for 12-15 minute until the tops are golden.

Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Christmas Cookies

Cookies, cookies, cookies!  They are everywhere this time of year.  Get it together, WLCers, you know you can’t eat just any old cookie.  Here’s a recipe for a batch that you’ll love, and they won’t kill your weight loss plan.  In moderation, of course.

• 1 package of cream cheese, room temperature (sour, sweet)
• 2 sticks of butter (1 cup), room temperature (sweet)
• 2 TBS stevia powder (sweet)
• 2 large eggs (sweet)
• 2 cups of GWF Baking Mix (sweet, salty)
• 1 package of as-dark-as-you-can-get-em chocolate chips (bitter, sweet)
• 2 tsp grated orange zest (bitter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  With an electric mixer, beat together butter, cheese, & stevia powder until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time and beat on high until well mixed.  Add chips and orange rind and stir until just mixed.
2. Drop teaspoons of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet about 1 inch apart and bake for 12-14 minutes, or until golden brown and firm to touch.
3. Transfer to a cooling rack.  Can be stored for 1 week in an air tight container in the refrigerator.

Really, the hardest part of the holiday office parties are the baked goods: the cakes, cookies, candies that remind us of Grandma’s house.  If you bring a few of these with you, eat the privately if you want to, you will be able to resist the rest!

You can get GWF Baking Mix at the Heavenly Bodies Clinic or by ordering online.