FFTF (Food For Thought Friday): Coconut Oat Cookies and Asperger’s Syndrome

Ok, it’s finally over.  The whole holiday thing.  The business of hustle and bustle.  I thought it was time to get up another FFTF (Food For Though Friday).  It’s been a while.

Today’s post offers a recipe for coconut oat cookies with dark mint chocolate chunks. Can I get an ummmmmmmm? =)  Ok, this one is simple and quick and great alternative to the butter-laden, high-sugar cookies that we are all too familiar with.

• 1 cup whole oats
• 1/3 cup ground flax seed (flax flour)
• 1/3 cup dessicated coconut (unsweetened)
• 1 Tbsp melted butter
• 3 very ripe bananas
• 1-3 Tbsp agave syrup or honey ( or maple syrup -*I can’t it here =( )
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup dark mint chocolate chips or chunks (if you can’t get dark chocolate chips, you can add peppermint extract to the cookies by mixing it in with the melted butter and coconut)

Mix all of the dry ingredients.  Mash the bananas and add to the dry ingredients along with the rest of the wet ingredients.  Mix in the chocolate.

All done.  Simple eh.  You must let me know what you thought if you do decide to make them ok.

Ok, if you’ve noticed in the top right hand corner of my blog, it’s all about the 5 ‘Fs’ – Faith, Family, Fitness, Food and Fun.  Today’s FFTF topic is about Asperger’s Syndrome because my little cutie (6 almost 7 years old), Cauê has it.

Asperger’s Syndrome is on the ‘Autism Spectrum’ and is considered high-functioning autism.  As one adolescent American boy put it, it’s like he’s half autistic, half neuro-typical.  If you were to see Caue and talk with him and see him playing on his own, you’d have no idea that he has autism.  However, after getting to know him a bit and seeing the way he is in school and the way he learns – as well as his obsessions – you would start to think that there is something a little different about him.

I’m not going to share too much on the subject, but I am going to share a really awesome music video that my husband found on Youtube about it.  Please check it out and let me know what you think.  Being that we live in Brazil and my husband is Brazilian, it is in Portuguese.  I have, however, translated it for you to understand the message of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tzHqUtUaA8Asperger’s Syndrome

Translation: 10 things that a child with Asperger’s Syndrome wish you knew…

• 1. Before anything, I am a normal child!!!
• 2. I have horrible motor coordination – buttoning a shirt or tying up shoelaces is a sacrifice
• 3. I have an extraordinary ability to comprehend – I have an exceptional memory to for facts and dates. I can learn to read on my own.
• 4. I am a concrete thinker and don’t understand the abstract.
• 5. I have an extensive vocabulary – I have a pendant, repetitive and stereotyped language.
• 6. I can’t look into your eyes when I speak with you.
• 7. I believe in everything you tell me and I don’t understand irony.
• 8. I can be mistaken as a little genius.
• 9. Please help me with social interactions.
• 10. And above all else, love me unconditionally!
• And just 3 more words – Patience, Patience, Patience!

PATIENCE! Oh my goodness.  I am NOT a patient person.  But I am so thankful that God has given me Caue to raise and love and teach and ‘be patient with’.  God is developing this much needed virtue and fruit in my life through my relationship with my son.

Have you ever heard of Asperger’s Syndrome before? Do you know anybody that has it?  Tell me your experience.

FFTF – Spirit: Neediness and the infusion of peace Body: Healthy Raw Energy Balls

FFTF (Food For Thought Friday) – Spirit: Neediness and the infusion of peace, Body: Healthy Raw Chocolate Balls

As you may know by now, I absolutely love the daily devotional book, “Jesus Calling”, by Sarah Young.  Some days the words from that book just jump out of the book and into my spirit.  Today’s was like that and the following are my thoughts provoked by it.

We live in an age where independence is highly valued and neediness is despised.  However, I believe that we will only find true peace in our spirits when we surrender to the maker of all things. I have found the key to true inner peace.  My recognition of how dependent I am on Him and how needy I am of Him is the key to entering into a deeper intimacy with my creator and lover of my soul. As I come away to that secret place where only He and I sit together, He infuses His peace into my innermost being and allows me to find rest and tranquility of mind and of heart.

I am not my own.  I cannot live a life of independence – and I wouldn’t want to.  I am totally and completely needy of Him.  And I am found in Him, nestled in the palm of his hand as He shelters me and sustains me ‘whole-istically’.  And when I start to fall away from Him – when I try to do things on my own – that’s when stress enters into my life again and peace fades away.  But He love me so much.  And He remembers that I am made of dust.  And soon enough he nudges me and leads me back into His keeping again.

How about you? Do you value being independent? What do you think about this topic?  Leave a comment below and let me know.

Now…. for the yummy stuff.  Who wants healthy chocolate balls.  Oh, I do I do!

Raw Energy Balls

• 1/3 cup whole oats
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup protein powder (all whey or brown rice in vegetarian)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 Tbsp all natural peanut or almond butter
• 1 Tbsp flax seeds
• 2 Tbsp raisins

1. First grind the oats and then place mix all of the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Put in the fridge for about 30 minutes to chill.
3. Take out of the fridge and then form balls with your hands.

Makes about 12 balls, depending on how big you make them.

FFTF (Food for Thought Friday) – Gluten-free Quesadillas & “Do you have a calling?”

FFTF – Food for the body and the spirit

Happy Friday to you!  Who doesn’t love Fridays? I think almost everybody does? It’s the start of the weekend, which means it’s time to relax, have some fun, meet with friends, spend quality time with family, etc. Sooooo, why not start off the weekend with some yummy quesadillas? – but not the ones you may be used to.  Check out this gluten-free recipe.  Then check out the “Food for the Spirit” below.

serves 4

Tortillas (adapted from http://stupideasypaleo.com/2013/08/23/simple-paleo-tortillas/)

• 2 eggs and 2 egg whites
• 1 1/2 teaspoons melted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup arrowroot powder
• 2 tsp ground coconut
• Pinch of salt

Filling

• Some type of meat (shredded chicken, turkey breast, Canadian bacon, etc.)
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped tomato
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• a little olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste (optional)
• 20 spinach leaves

First make the tortillas.  Crack the eggs into a medium-size bowl and whisk.  Then add the butter, baking soda, arrowroot powder, ground coconut (or coconut flour) and pinch of salt.  Spoon an 1/8th of the recipe (about 4 Tbsp) into an 8 inch round non-stick frying pan and swirl it so that it covers the surface.  it will be very thin, as if making crepes.  Cook through on one side (about 1-2 minutes) and then flip and cook the other side (1-2 minutes). This recipe is so easy peasy and delicious.

Now for mounting the quesadillas.  But first you need to sauté your tomato and onion.  Just pour a little olive oil into a frying pan and add the tomato and onion until it is nicely sautéed.  Then take one tortilla and place the meat on first (quantity is up to you). Follow with 1/4 of the cheese, 1/4 of the sauteed tomato and onion and 5 spinach leaves.  Place another tortilla on top and put in a pre-heated oven, just until the cheese is melted.  Or, you could nuke it in the microwave.

These were so good they’ve become a staple in our household now.  Arrowroot is a great option for those that don’t want gluten in their diet.  It is very low in calories and fat free.  It also has relatively more protein than other starchy food sources such as yam, potato, cassava and plantain and is easily digestible.

For the Spirit

Do you have a calling?

Of course you do.  We all do.  We were made with a purpose.  You have a calling in life.

In the Bible – in the book of Genesis – God called Abraham to leave his country and go to a place that He was going to show him (Genesis 12).  He, essentially, was the first missionary recorded in history. Moses also had a calling – to deliver the people of Israel from the oppression they were suffering in Egypt (Exodus 3).  Then there was Gideon (Judges 6), the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 3), the small boy, David, that became King (1 Samuel 16), and the list goes on throughout the entire Bible.

Then there was Staci. Huh?! Wait! There was no ‘Staci’ in the Bible. That’s right. I was born long after it was written. God doesn’t change though.  He’s still passionate about the human race.  He still wants to create, love, impact, inspire, and be known by those he made. He still works on establishing His kingdom here on Earth.  “How does he do that though?”, you may ask. He does it through us. He does it through people. He gives us, His creation, the amazing privilege to co-create with Him. And He gives us satisfaction in fulfilling the mandate he’s given us.

On ‘wiki.answers.com’ I found this definition on ‘What it means to have a calling in life’:

“It is based on the belief that each person is placed on Earth by God to do something.  For some people it may be something great, for others it may be a small and simple thing but it is something that only that one person can do.”

I received a calling from God to go into the nations of the world and minister to the deepest needs of people, which are not always the most obvious needs. Sounds pretty heavy, doesn’t it? I received my calling in such a personal and intimate way. My experience was very supernatural.  Not all people have a strong experience like mine. However, all people receive their calling through relationship with the Almighty Himself.

So, how then can one find their calling in life? The answer is RELATIONSHIP.  You need to first have a relationship with God. And how does one come into relationship with God? Check out this site: http://odb.org/personal-relationship-with-god/.

Please leave a comment and let me know about your calling.  How did you receive your calling?  What has God called you to do?

Check out my facebook page for my newest favorite breakfast recipe, Apple Yogurt Bowl – https://www.facebook.com/godcolouredgirl