This is a great recipe for those with dairy or soy allergies and tastes so much better than anything you buy in a store. And because almonds are a high energy food this is a terrific start to anyone’s day!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups water
• 1 cup whole raw almonds
• 5-6 very fresh pitted dates
• ½ a vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon good vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon agave nectar (if needed)

Steps:

1. Soak almonds in water in a blender overnight
2. Blend on high speed until almonds are completely ground. The water will become white and frothy. Strain through a fine mesh strainer pressing on almonds to extract the excess milk. Reserve the liquid and discard the almonds.
3. Rinse your blender and pour in the reserved milk.
4. Add the dates, and scrape the beans of ½ a vanilla bean or use ½ teaspoon good vanilla extract
5. Blend until smooth and then taste. If you think the milk needs to be sweetened and a small amount (1/2 teaspoon) of agave nectar being careful not to over sweeten.

Serve this with cereal, granola, or enjoy straight out of the glass!

Prep Time 30 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 2 cups All Purpose Flour
• 1 tablespoons Granulated Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/2 teaspoon Table Salt
• 1/8 teaspoon Cardamon (optional)
• 2 cups Buttermilk
• 2 Large Eggs
• 3 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
• 1/4 cup Sour Cream

Steps:

1. Whisk together all dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. I use cardamom and cinnamon interchangeably with this recipe. Sometimes I use both! They both pack a lot of flavor so just a pinch will do.
2. Melt Butter and cool slightly
3. Whisk buttermilk into cooled butter and then whisk in the eggs and sour cream.
4. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Use a large rubber spatula and fold together until just combined. Use a minimal amount of strokes – some lumps might remain. Let stand for at least 15 minutes – this will give the sour cream and baking soda time to react.
5. Pour 1/4 cup for each pancake onto a hot oiled skillet or griddle. When bubbles start to uniformly appear it’s time to flip. These pancakes will rise nicely so let them cook for at least 2 minutes on the second side. Don’t forget to use quality (LOCAL if available) syrup. Enjoy.

Prep Time 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 cup Quaker Rolled Oats
• 1 cup Any combination of your favorite nuts (we love pecans and almonds)
• 1/2 cup Shredded Unsweetend Coconut
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon Freshly Grated Nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup Local Maple Syrup
• 1/2 cup Local Honey
• 1/2 cup Quinoa (save time and buy prewashed)
• 1/2 cup Golden Raisins
• 1 cup Your favorite dried fruit(s)
• 2 tablespoons Unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon Pure Vanilla Extract

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. In a large bowl mix together oats, coconut, nuts, quinoa, and spices
2. Combine syrup, honey, vanilla and butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat until butter is melted. NOTE: You can vary the ratio of honey and syrup you use based on taste preference. Just be sure you have 1.5 cups of sweetener.
3. Stir together the warmed syrup mixture and add to the oat & nut mixture. Stir until well coated.
4. Spread mixture on a rimmed baking sheet covered with a silpat. If you don’t have a silpat coat the baking sheet with cooking spray. Set oven timer to 7 minutes. Every 7 minutes for approximately 30 minutes remove the pan and stir. We want the mixture to be evenly cooked to a dark golden brown.
5. Once cooled combine the dried fruit to the oats. The granola can be kept refrigerated in an air tight container for up to 3 weeks. Enjoy with milk, soy milk, or plain yogurt.

3 very ripe bananas
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
¾ cup semisweet chocolate chips

For topping:
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cardamom
1/8 tsp. all spice
1/8 tsp. nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter or spray an 8-inch square pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, mash the bananas well with a fork or potato masher. Add the eggs, and stir well to combine. Add the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and vanilla, and stir to mix. Add the chocolate chips, and stir briefly. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and set aside.

In a small bowl, stir together the topping ingredients. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the batter in the pan. Optionally you can add an additional ¼ cup chocolate chips to the top.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.