Harvest Celebration Recipes!

We had so much fun at our Harvest Celebration and we also had quite a few requests for the recipes that were served that day! So, here you go – grab your favorite recipe!

A note about ingredients

Organic

One of the tenants of our mission is to care for creation and that goes even to the choice of ingredients in our food. We choose organic whenever possible. Why is that? Well, it certainly does not mean that our food is guaranteed to be completely chemical free. But it does mean that producers have at least tried to grow the food without the use of harmful chemicals. Using our dollars to buy organic food is also a way of telling the food industry that we care about how our food is treated. We care about how the land is treated. We care about farmworkers and their families and would prefer that they not have to bathe in chemicals at work every day.

Local

We also try to buy local ingredients as much as we can. Not only does this mean that our food is fresher. It also means that our food has not traveled as far and we have therefore minimized the petroleum needed to get it to our table. Of course, local is not always available. Our food system is international and many of the ingredients we know and love come from across the world. So, in that case, we try hard to purchase from companies that take great care in making sure farmers and producers are paid living wages. We look for companies who know their products and their people well and have knowledge about how the food is raised.

Have you thought about any of these issues? What other issues around food make you wonder? If you have, we would love to talk to you about them. If you haven’t, let us help you get started! Our food system is very complex and these issues and many others can make it difficult to know what to buy to take care of our families the best we can. So, talking together and learning together is always helpful. We do our best and when we learn more, we do better.

Okay, now that we’ve covered that, let’s jump into the recipes! All of these recipes were adapted from other recipes to reflect our choices in ingredients. At the end of each recipe, you will find a link to the original.

Chai Tea Shortbread

Shortbread is always delicious in our opinion. But adding Chai tea to the mix – that’s another level of deliciousness!!! Wow – these just overflow with Fall flavors. They will call you to grab your favorite hot drink, a good book and a cozy blanket. One bite and they will force you to slow down and savor. Yum.

Ingredients

Shortbread

• ½ cup butter room temperature
• 1 egg
• 1 ½ cups (scant) His Saving Grains Crushed Wheat #1
• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• 1 Storehouse Tea Chai tea bag
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom

Chai Tea Icing

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 Storehouse Tea Chai tea bag
• ½ cup boiling water
• Ground Cinnamon for dusting the cookies

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter. Add the egg and blend again.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the crushed wheat, powdered sugar, 1 T of Chai Tea (from tea bag) and spices. We crushed our tea a bit using a mortar and pestle so there wouldn’t be big pieces of tea in our cookies.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the butter in 3 batches, beating on low until blended.
4. Transfer the dough to a piece of unbleached parchment paper, cover with another piece of parchment paper and roll/shape it into an 8” x 4 ½” x ½” rectangle. Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour. 
5. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 300℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
6. Remove dough from refrigerator and slice into 16 pieces. First cut down the middle lengthwise and then cut into 8 pieces the other way.
7. Transfer cookies to baking sheet and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
8. When cookies are done, remove from oven and allow to cool on wire rack.
9. To make icing, place tea bag in measuring cup and pour ½ C boiling water over it. Allow to steep for 3 minutes then remove tea bag.
10. Add powdered sugar to small bowl and add 2 T of the brewed tea. Blend. Add more tea if icing is too thick.
11. Once cookies are completely cooled, dip one end in the icing and place on unbleached parchment paper. Dust with cinnamon if desired. Let sit until icing is set.

This recipe was adapted from onehotoven.com

Mapledoodles

Just the name alone is fun! It puts a smile on your face before you even take a bite. But oh, take that first bite and you’ll be in love! The flavors, the crunch, the chewy centers…what’s not to love? We think these will be a staple on your Fall table. It will be on ours!

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups (scant) His Saving Grains Crushed Wheat #1
• 1 t baking soda
• 1 ½ t cinnamon, divided
• ½ t Redmond Real Salt
• ¾ C butter, softened
• 1 C raw sugar
• ¼ C pure maple syrup
• 1 large egg
• 1 t Cook’s Organic Maple extract
• ½ t Cook’s Organic Vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with unbleached parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk crushed wheat, 1 t cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl, mix remaining ½ t cinnamon with ¼ C raw sugar. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, cream butter and remaining raw sugar until light and fluffy. Add maple syrup, egg and extracts. Mix on medium speed until well combined.
5. Slowly add the crushed wheat mixture to the butter mixture until fully combined.
6. Use a 2T cookie scoop to portion out dough. Roll dough in hands to form a ball and then roll in cinnamon sugar mixture until covered.
7. Place cookies on baking sheet.
8. Bake in the middle rack of oven for 12 – 14 minutes. Keep to shorter time for a chewier cookie and longer time for a crunchier cookie.
9. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 5 – 10 minutes before removing to wire rack to cook completely.

This recipe was adapted from thenovicechefblog.com

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

This bread bursts with all the Fall flavors: pumpkin, cinnamon, chocolate. And it can be used in many places on your menu. Serve it for breakfast or brunch. Use it as a light dessert after lunch. Top it with a scoop of ice cream for a cozy dessert after a meal with friends. See what we mean? It also makes a great gift! Give one to your neighbor. Drop a loaf in the workroom for your coworkers. Leave one for your mail person or UPS driver! It’s an easy recipe and it makes 2 loaves, so you’ll have one to give away and one to put on your dinner table!

Ingredients

• 3 C (scant) His Saving Grains Crushed Wheat #1
• 1 t Redmond Real Salt
• 1 t baking powder
• 1 t baking soda
• 4 t pumpkin pie spice
• 2 C canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 c raw sugar
• 1 C applesauce
• 3 eggs room temperature
• 1 T Cook’s Organic Vanilla Extract
• 1½ C semi sweet chocolate chips
• ½ C mini semi sweet chocolate chips reserve a couple tablespoons for the top of the bread if desired

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and grease two 8” x 4” loaf pans. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together crushed wheat, baking powder, baking soda and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together pumpkin, raw sugar, applesauce, eggs and vanilla.
4. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
5. Fold in chocolate chips, reserving a few tablespoons of mini chips for the top of the bread if desired.
6. Spoon half of the dough into each loaf pan and top with remaining mini chips.
7. Bake for 50 – 55 minute or until toothpick comes out clean.
8. Remove from oven and cool in pans for 5 – 10 minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

This recipe was adapted from momontimeout.com

Cheesy Ranch Snack Mix

This recipe got the most comments at our Harvest Celebration! And it will carry you all the way through the holidays. It’s just perfect for a tailgate party, Thanksgiving snacks or Christmas Eve munchies!

Ingredients

• 1 C butter, melted
• 4 T Rosebud’s Buttermilk Ranch Seasoning
• 4 T raw sugar
• 3 T Worcestershire sauce
• ⅛ t ground cayenne pepper
• 5 C toasted oats cereal (We used Kroger Simple Truth Organic)
• 3 C pretzels (We used SnackFactory Organic Original Pretzel Chips broken into smaller pieces)
• 3 C crackers (We used Kroger Simple Truth Organic Snack Crackers broken into smaller pieces)
• 3 C cheese crackers (We used Annie’s Organic Cheddar Cheese Squares)
• 2 C Annie’s Organic Cheddar Bunny Crackers (in place of goldfish)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 225 degrees and line two 9” x 13” baking pans with unbleached parchment paper. 
2. In a small bowl, combine butter, ranch seasoning, sugar, Worcestershire sauce and cayenne pepper.
3. In an oversized bowl, combine the cereal, pretzels and crackers.
4. Pour the butter mixture over the cereal mixture and stir to coat every piece.
5. Spoon half of the mixture into each baking pan.
6. Bake for an hour, stirring every 20 minutes.
7. Cool completely.

This recipe was adapted from imperialsugar.com

Sparkling Apple Juice Punch

Time for a beverage! And this is a good one. It even has a sneaky ingredient which will give you a boost of probiotics! Everyone needs that with all of the rich foods we eat during the Fall season. The secret ingredient is Hidden Pond Farm Ginger Kombucha. It’s a naturally fermented tea drink. It is what makes this punch “sparkling” with natural carbonation from the fermentation process. If you like kombucha, you will love this. If you think you don’t like kombucha, this is a good way to introduce it into your diet!

Ingredients

• 2 C organic apple juice
• 2 C organic pineapple juice
• 2 C Hidden Pond Farm Ginger Kombucha
• Cinnamon sticks
• Apple and pineapple slices for garnishing

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients in a pitcher or punch bowl and stir gently.
2. To make ahead and allow the cinnamon to infuse more, mix the juices and the cinnamon in a pitcher or mason jar and place in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, add the kombucha and fruit slices.

This recipe adapted from alwayseatdessert.com

And that’s it for our Harvest Celebration recipes! Don’t they sound good? Which one will you start with? Enjoy and Happy Fall!