New year, new gut health. The year is fresh, the holidays are behind us, and there are so many delicious, easy, and sneakily healthy, recipes to try! Over the last 15 years, there’s been a great deal of research done about the bacteria found in your gut. We know, now, that these bacteria play a BIG role in your overall health. The type of food you eat massively influences the type of bacteria that can live in your gut. In addition to influencing digestive woes and inflammation, cutting edge cancer researchers are now beginning to find explanations for why some cancer drugs don’t always work – and it’s all linked back to the bacteria in your gut!
The prebiotic fiber found in Flourish flour supports the healthy bacteria that are found naturally in your gut, which are vital for overall well being! Our great tasting, high fiber all purpose flour is uniquely beneficial for digestive health. The overwhelming majority of Americans only consume 50% of the recommended daily amount of fiber. So as we begin the year anew, here are three tasty recipes to make it easier than ever to whip up easy, healthy meals and make beneficial food choices that the whole family can enjoy.
Wheat, Rosemary, Caramelized Onion Bread
Wonderfully soft and chewy, these wheat, rosemary, caramelized onion mini bread loaves smell divine, providing a rustic charm that tastes best served with warm butter and pleasant company. Fair warning, this is a very sticky dough, so do not fret when your hands turn into sticky mitts – you’re on the right track! As this is a from-scratch bread recipe, you’ll want to make sure you factor in time for proving AND baking, to let your dough properly rise, so if you’re in a hurry, watch your time. As always, fresh is better, so to truly fill your kitchen with the most satisfying, woody, evergreen scent possible, make sure you’re using fresh rosemary, not dried, if you can. Once your sticky dough balls are all risen and portioned in the oven, you’ll hit them each with a big pat of butter halfway through baking to infuse each bite with that added buttery sweetness that’ll keep guests coming back for more. After a few minutes of resting out of the oven, they’ll be ready to serve: soft, wonderfully textured, and full of rich, savory flavor.
These delicious, thick and fluffy oatmeal banana pancakes are loaded with protein and fiber to power up your breakfast, lunch, or dinner! These better-for-you pancakes will not leave you hungry in an hour, as is the case with so many traditional pancake recipes. Using soft, ripe bananas is key to this recipe since that’s where maximum sweetness comes from. If you’ve got some brown-spotted bananas, you’ll be in good shape. As for the health benefits of these pancakes, you’re looking at multiple sources of fiber from multiple ingredients: the oatmeal, bananas and Flourish all purpose flour are all loaded with gut healthy fiber to help modulate blood sugar levels and support digestive health. And loaded with over 13g of protein (before adding a dollop of creamy peanut butter on top!), you won’t be reaching for snacks filled with empty calories in between meals. Most importantly, these pancakes taste like pancakes. We’ve all tried a healthy version of one of our favorite dishes and it just didn’t taste as good as the real thing. Have no fear, friends! These pancakes are so delicious AND stack a bunch of healthy benefits into one tasty breakfast fave.
Soup’s on! This versatile vegetable dumpling soup is perfect for cold winter evenings where you can wrap your hands around a warm bowl of steaming soup, inhaling the smells of the aromatic herbs, spices and veggies all stewed together for a hearty meal. The dumpling dough comes together quickly and the timing works out so that while one ingredient is cooking on the stove, the next batch of ingredients is getting chopped on the cutting board. If you time it just right, you can even clean in between steps! The main veggies in this version are carrots and potatoes, but this recipe leaves lots of room for creativity for adding other veg: chickpeas, tomatoes, green onions, peas, celery – the sky’s the limit! The dumplings only have to simmer for about 10 minutes at the end of the cooking process, and then you’ll be ready to serve up bowl after bowl of this filling veggie dumpling soup
After you try one of these recipes, be sure to tag us @flourish_flour on Instagram, @flourishflourmilling on Facebook, and @flourish_flour on TikTok!
All our best in the new year,
Your Flourish Flour Fam