Cherry Vanilla Muffins With Pecan Streusel
Makes 9-11 muffins

1 1/2 cups frozen cherries
1⁄3 cup flax meal (ground flaxseeds)
1 cup non-dairy milk
1⁄3 cup sugar
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour (or more whole wheat)
1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
1⁄4 cup canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (or more vanilla)

Streusel topping:
1⁄3 cup pecans
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 margarine (preferably Earth Balance)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Coat a muffin pan with cooking spray.
2. Pulse cherries in a food processor until coarsely chopped.
3. In a small bowl, add the milk, flax meal, sugar, oil, vanilla, and almond extract. Combine well. Add the cherries and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, combine flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the wet mixture and combine with a rubber spatula just until the dry ingredients are moistened.
5. Pulse the pecans, brown sugar, and margarine in the food processor to make the streusel. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan and top the muffins with the streusel. Bake until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 26-28 minutes. Let cool for about 5 minutes in the pan before moving to a cooling rack.

For some extra cherry goodness, I'm in love with the Snow Geisha tea from Teavana. It is a loose leaf white tea that smells like cherry lollipops (it has a light cherry flavor when brewed). Awesome.

Here are a few of my recent favorite Costco finds:

• Organic spinach
• Organic apples
• truRoots organic products- beans, lentils, rice, quinoa
  
• Hannah organic hummus, single serving packs
• Hadley pitted dates
• Farro (a hearty Italian grain)
• Garofalo organic whole wheat spaghetti
• Organic Sunmaid raisins
• Organic applesauce
• Organic soymilk
• Nature's Path organic Ancient Grains cereal
• Ecover automatic dishwasher tablets
• Kirkland enviromentally friendly liquid dish soap
• Real maple syrup
• Veggie Patch falafel chickpea balls (for quick lunches)
• Marcona almonds- yummy salty/crunchy snack!

Do you shop in bulk or at a warehouse store? If so, what's on your shopping list?

1 small green cabbage (Savoy works well), thinly sliced
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1 large potato, chopped (leave the peel on for extra fiber and iron)
1 cup French green lentils (I used truRoots sprouted green lentils which I found at Costco), rinsed
1/2 cup brown rice or other hearty grain (I used truRoots germinated Gaba rice from Costco), uncooked and rinsed  
1 cube of Rapunzel vegetable bouillon with sea salt and herbs (optional)
6-8 cups of water
Salt and black pepper to taste

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Add the onion and potato and cook for a few minutes. Add the cabbage, water, bouillon cube (or 1 tsp sea salt), lentils, and rice. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let simmer until the lentils and rice are fully cooked*. Taste for salt and season with pepper.