.Recipe of the week.

This recipe is perfect for my life right now. Amelia needs to gain a little weight but I am not the type of mom to do that with junk food and empty calories. What's a mom to do? Well, I've upped her intake of healthy fats {avocado is a daily thing instead of weekly now}. One of the single best sources of omega-3s, iron, protein, etc is walnut. Walnuts are a health powerhouse and just exactly perfect for my tot. That being said, she's still too young to eat whole raw walnuts on her own {what with only having 6 teeth and all}. Walnut butter is clearly the way to go but can be tricky to find {unlike almond butter which is also much healthier than peanut butter but tends to be quite pricey}. Here is the simple and healthy recipe that I've come up with...

Amelia's Walnut Butter

Ingredients:

2 cups of raw walnuts {organic if ya got 'em}

Oil {I use flax seed oil for the added omega-3s but olive or avocado oils are equally good choices}

Agave nectar {this is super easy to find in the grocery stores that I go to. However if you cant find it honey would be a good substitute}

Directions:

1. toast the walnuts in a 200 degree oven for about 5 minutes to bring out their flavor.

2. In a food processor blend the walnuts. Add the oil as needed through the feed tube until to get a butter consistency {think Adams natural stir-in peanut butter}.

3. Add agave {or honey} through the feed tub until the butter is sweet enough for you taste.

That's it. Store in an airtight container in the fridge {nut oil can go rancid quite easily so make sure that you store in the fridge not the cupboard}. Amelia likes hers on toasted Ezekiel bread, mixed with yogurt, in her cereals, or just all on it's own. Enjoy