Oatmeal Cookie Crust

I knew I wanted to make a vegan French silk pie this holiday season (originally, I'd intended to make it for Thanksgiving), but for various reasons, it kept not happening. I even had a pretty tasty gluten-free crust, from the freezer section, on hand for a bit (and that got used for other things too). Alas, when I finally did find the time/energy/resources to make it, I didn't want to replicate a buttery, flakey crust. That 1) didn't seem fun because 2) it's a lot of work when it's also gluten-free.

I looked online for recipes for cookie-based crusts for similar pies and saw a lot for Oreo crusts (because Oreos are chemically vegan), but that doesn't work for a gluten-free diet (not even if you get the wheat-free Newman's, if you're new to gf baking). Then, I started looking for oatmeal cookie crusts (I love oatmeal cookies). Since this was going to be a very sweet pie, I didn't want any of the super-sweet crusts I was seeing and decided to make my own, less sweet, veganized crust.

This is what I came up with instead, loosely based on a straight-up oatmeal cookie recipe. It's lightly salty and holds together pretty well.

Oatmeal Cookie Crust
1/3 cup non-dairy butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tbsp ground flax mixed with 5 tablespoons warm water*
1/4 cup applesauce
2/3 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 tsp. fine sea salt, scant
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground Ceylon cinnamon
1 cup rolled oats

In a saucepan, combine the butter and sugars, and stir until just melted and combined. Remove from heat, and add in remaining ingredients (I used a large enough saucepan, you may need to transfer these to a separate bowl), and mix thoroughly. Grease your hands or the back of a silicone spatula and press into a greased 9" x 11" baking dish, including up the sides. Bake at 350 degrees for about 9-11 minutes, or until edges just begin to brown. Remove from oven and cool completely before adding any fillings.

*This is more than you'd normally use for a flaxseed egg, but you want this dough pliable enough that you can push it throughout the pan

Sweet and Fluffy Coconut Cornbread

Confession: I grew up not eating sweet cornbread. In the south, sweet cornbread is well, a bit blasphemous. It wasn't until I left my parents' house that I got sweet cornbread on a regular basis. Does that mean that I love sweet cornbread? Hardly. Pretty frequently, I opt instead for a spicy cornbread with whole kernel corn and jalapenos.


But, today seemed like a good day for a nice, warm sweet cornbread that I could pair with a vaguely chili-like stew. A friend of mine recently attempted to make a coconut cornbread that used coconut flakes and coconut oil -- and was disappointed that the coconut flavor didn't come through very strongly. I wanted to increase the coconut flavor (you should think coconut! when you taste this) when I worked with this recipe. The trickiest part was figuring out how much liquid to use (I guess coconut flour absorbs a lot of liquid -- this definitely used more water than I expected and you should see my note below about this, in case it was my cornmeal and not my flour greedily hogging water).

This is a vegan, gluten-free recipe that gets baked in an 8 x 8 baking dish, though I imagine it would also do well if you cooked it in a cast iron skillet (and it would probably have a better crust on the skillet side!). Serve it with a hearty stew for dinner, eat it as a snack, or pour some warm milk on it and serve it as a warm cereal for breakfast -- whatever makes you happy.

Coconut Cornbread
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1 cup finely ground cornmeal
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup agave nectar
1 cup water
1/3 cup coconut, almond, or soy milk
2 tablespoons vegan buttery spread (or coconut oil)
1 tablespoon canola oil

2 flax eggs (2 tablespoons flax + 6 tablespoons warm water)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together the dry ingredients (coconut flour through salt) together in a medium-sized bowl. In a small saucepan, over low heat, mix together the agave nectar, water, milk, buttery spread, and canola oil. Once the buttery spread has just melted, add the flax eggs to the liquid mixture, and then add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir until smooth (note: you might need to add up to another 1/2 cup of water -- you want a batter that is a little thicker than cake batter).

Pour the cornbread mixture into a greased 8 x 8 pan, and bake for about 25 minutes, until it is golden brown on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Cocoa Roasted Almonds

 Flavored nuts seem incredibly popular right now. Where I last worked, we often had a spicy chili-lime almond available, as well as toffee and mocha almonds. These made a nice snack, and, frankly can be pretty addictive (at least if you're me) -- but also a bit spendy, which is a problem on a small budget.

Fortunately, they can also still be (not too bad?) good for you because nuts are packed with protein and minerals. Almonds, in particular, work well because they're already naturally a little sweet and they don't seem to scorch as easily as some other nuts (walnuts, I'm looking at you!).

I had the chance to try straight cocoa roasted almonds after a martial arts seminar -- they're a great energy boost, and the small amount of quick sugar is nice after an intense workout. But, as Chelsey (whose post inspired the particulars of my version) points out, most of the commercial brands contains modified food starch of one type or another. I share her sentiment why?? modified food starch? Why?

I still use a highly processed flour here (sweet white rice flour), but I'm going to hold that that's still better than a modified version of a starch that's already starchy. It's not the by-product of a by-product. I opted for sweet white rice flour because it's already naturally a little sweet and very glutinous, which will help the cocoa powder bind with the agave.

That's right, this uses agave. It's vegan friendly, gluten-free, and has a lower glycemic count than the same snack made with many other sweeteners. If you have the option, buy your almonds in the bulk section of your local grocer -- it's probably cheaper than buying a bag of them and depending on your particular grocery store (and the time of year) the bulk almonds are likely a little fresher.

Cocoa Roasted Almonds
1 1/2 cups raw almonds
1 1/2 tablespoons agave nectar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon sweet white rice flour (really, any flour would work)

Preheat oven to 275 degrees. In a small bowl coat the almonds with the agave nectar, stirring until the almonds are evenly coated. Set aside while you combine the cocoa powder and white rice flour in a separate small bowl. Add the almonds to the cocoa powder mixture and stir until the almonds are evenly coated. Spread the coated almonds onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment or a silpat. Roast for 25 minutes, stirring every 5-10 minutes so the chocolate doesn't scorch. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Cheap Vegan Pesto

Basil

It's summer, which means abundant basil. I've been getting huge bags of it in my CSA share pretty consistently for the past month or so, and I can't seem to use it in enough things without making pesto. Pesto makes me think of my friend Rachael, who loves to make pesto -- and often did when we cooked together, back when we were fortunate enough to still live in the same town. Pesto's not something, before I ate it with Rachael, that I would normally eat on my own. Even with the fond pesto memories I formed with her, it's still not high on my list of things to make.

That is, until I have three half-pound bags of basil in my refrigerator. Then, pesto seems a lot more appealing. Unfortunately, traditional pesto is kinda expensive to make (especially the pine nuts) and even when you make it with walnuts -- another common variation -- it's pretty expensive.

Then, you add in the cheese (or don't) -- and the cost of it (which, for high quality organic cheese, can be pretty steep). I don't like traditional pesto with parm -- the flavor of Parmesan is something I just never learned to enjoy. Plus, if I don't include it, then I can make vegan pesto, which makes me happy because I'm toying with the idea of being a household vegan -- not eating animal products at home, but not adding that to my already long-ish list of dietary needs if someone else is feeding me. If I go that route, I'd make that choice for environmental reasons -- and I'm undecided. There's a lot of processing that can go into a vegan diet (especially regarding dairy alternatives) and it might make more sense for me to just move more strictly to a "whole foods" diet so that I'm opting for as little processing of ingredients as possible.

So, for this pesto I use raw, unsalted sunflower seeds in place of pine nuts or walnuts, and nutritional yeast in place of parm. The result is pretty good. I like it with a crack of black pepper and if I were making it just for me, instead of sharing it, I'd up the amount of garlic to 3 large cloves. This recipe is fast and easy, and makes about 16 ounces of pesto -- plenty for several meals. Store it in a well-sealed container, in the refrigerator for several days.

Cheap Vegan Pesto
3 packed cups basil, rinsed and stems removed
1/2 cup sunflower seeds, raw and unsalted
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup sunflower or olive oil (you can use more, but then the pesto isn't as cheap!)
2 large cloves garlic
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
Water

Combine all ingredients, except water, in a blender or food processor. Begin blending, slowly adding water (or more oil), until the pesto blends easily and remains at a thick consistency. Refrigerate, and serve over whatever you like! (I like it over quinoa and piled on tomatoes).

Sunflower growing in a guerrilla garden

Polenta -- made from masa!

I spent the last year living on a very minimal budget. As in, after rent (which is modest and included utilities), I had slightly less than $200 for the month. Some months, because of odd jobs, I had a bit more. But this $200 needed to buy:

• Gas (occasionally; mostly I bike)
• Dog food (and her yearly vet bill) for a mid-sized dog
• Toiletries
• Food

Occasionally, I allowed myself treats. E and I, for instance, have made one of our housemate-bonding experiences a weekly trip to a fro-yo place where we sit and watch traffic violations and talk about our weeks, books, or television. Or, for example, sometimes I really just want to buy that GF Vegan cookie from the co-op that's so yummy, or to buy coffee out with a friend. Or I needed some article of clothing or pay an insurance. This year, there were also plane tickets -- one a mental break from my rough spring and the other to a funeral.

French Lentils with Marmalade over Masa Polenta

Fortunately, before this year, I had three years of grad school to practice living on a tight budget while still eating moderately well. If you're a regular follower of my blog, you've heard me talk about cooking on a budget before.

But now I'm probably moving soon and I'm trying to use up things I bought over the year. One of those: tamale masa. For a recent Sunday dinner, I made French lentils with orange marmalade and this polenta, made from masa -- all because these were things in my cupboard that I want (and need) to use before I move.

This is a soft polenta, but if you chill it over night, it gets pretty thick and I'm moderately sure you could make fried polenta cakes out of it (let me know how it works if you try it!). 

Masa Polenta

2 cups tamale masa

4 cups water

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

In a medium-sized pot or a large pan, combine the masa, water, and salt. Turn the heat on under the pan to medium and stir constantly until the masa has thickened enough that when you drag a spoon through it, it doesn't immediately run back together (with my masa, this took about 10 minutes). Adjust salt if necessary, and grind in some black pepper. Serve.

Watermelon-Basil Salad

So, as regular readers might remember, I joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) this year with the hope that, in addition to supporting the local foods movement, I would also be forced into the kitchen more to actually cook and be inventive with food, something I find hard to do when I'm only making food for myself.

Watermelon Basil Salad

To some degree this has worked -- but you've probably notice a serious lack of posts recently. That's because I've reverted back into "hm, let me just saute these veggies together that could more or less go together..." or eating raw food (which is fine, but not a particularly thrilling blog post).

Sundays are different. Sundays, I actually make real food because E and I have a couple of friends over. That inspires me to cook (or at least be slightly more creative in the kitchen). It's nice to have something that resembles a family dinner once in a while.

This past Sunday, one of our friends brought a lovely cucumber salad, and I asked our other friend who usually comes to bring a seedless watermelon so I could create a watermelon-basil salad. Cool salads sounded particularly good since we're in the middle of a hotter-than-normal period of the summer. I based this salad off the first recipes that came up on Google under "Watermelon-Basil Salad" that didn't have feta. I wanted a vegan salad.

This recipe is super flexible, so I'm not providing amounts (though I do provide estimates below the recipe if you want to start with an approximation). Some people might like basil more than others (or your particular basil might be stronger/milder). The basil I used came from my CSA and this week it was Genovese. I asked my friend to bring a seedless melon because that made my job simpler (and they're cheaper at the store this week). If you prefer (or have) seeded watermelon, use that -- just remove the seeds as much as possible in advance or give it a good stir right before serving to push any seeds that have come loose toward the bottom of the bowl.

Watermelon-Basil Salad
Seedless watermelon, cubed
Basil, chiffonaded
Salt
Ground black pepper

Place all ingredients in an appropriately sized bowl and stir well. Let rest at least 15-20 minutes and stir again before serving.

That's it! Some recipes use vegetable oil, but I don't see the point. The salt will cause the watermelon to release a lot of liquid, so you may want to opt for serving this with a slotted spoon, but that's entirely up to you. Allowing the salad to sit for 15-20 minutes provides the opportunity for flavors to mingle.

Because I told you I'd provide estimates of quantity (this could have served 6):
1/2 medium-sized seedless watermelon
1/4 cup (tightly packed) basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Eating Carrot Tops, plus (another) smoothie recipe

In my CSA box, I got carrots. I love carrots. But when you don't buy them in a pre-packaged bag, they come with greens which most people throw away. There's really no need for this. Any of you who read this moderately regularly will know how much I hate throwing things away (part of the reason I want a few chickens, eventually) if they could be composted or otherwise recycled. Since I don't have a compost heap, this means a lot of creative uses of the parts of veggies a lot of us throw away -- from bases to broths, to things like this lightly sweet recipe for...you guessed it! Another smoothie!

Carrot-top Smoothie

This is one of my favorite smoothies of late, in part because it has such a fresh flavor and because it's a brilliant, bright green. It's not particularly sweet, so if you like sweeter smoothies, add a tablespoon or so of agave, honey, or other sweetener of your choice. Personally, I think the apple juice adds enough sweetness, without adding much flavor -- unlike the vanilla soy milk, which also adds some sweetness, in addition to protein. The oats help thicken it.

Ready to try it? Yes? Carrot fronds (not the stem, that can be woody) work best for this recipe. If you're still wondering why eat carrot tops, here are just a few reasons:

• a good source of potassium, chlorophyll, and vitamin K
• brightens flavors in everything from salads to a garlicky pot of beans
• Americans throw away a ridiculous amount of food waste

Carrot-Top Smoothie
1 cup carrot fronds, lightly packed
1/4 cup frozen apple juice concentrate
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1/4 cup oats

Add all ingredients to blender and puree until smooth. Add more liquid, to reach the desired consistency, if necessary. Serve.

Marionberry-Cranberry Smoothie

One of the lovely things about the PNW is that we've got a ready supply of marionberries -- at this time of year, in the freezer section of my local grocer. I love marionberries, which are a hybrid berry developed by Oregon State University between two berries I'd never heard of (and which are already crosses of other berries). If you're not familiar with it, the link above is to Wikipedia (and if you're like me, you can get lost for ages strolling through links and learning fun facts) -- but basically it's blackberry-like in shape and taste.

This smoothie recipe was inspired by a "Oh god, I've been writing too long and it's time to go to work!" moment the other morning. As always, measurements are approximate, so adjust as you see fit. I like this smoothie because it's sweeter than the spinach-mint smoothie I posted the other day without having to add additional sugars. However, if you like your smoothies sweeter, definitely add a bit of sweetener of your choice.

Notice this smoothie contains protein powder (because I have some I'd like to use up, rather than just toss since I never use it), but I don't think that's a requirement. If you want to increase the protein, use a tablespoon or two of nut/seed butter, or a spoonful of Greek yogurt.

Marionberry-Cranberry Smoothie

This has cranberries because I always have them around (or at least 6 months+ a year -- I stocked up when they were in the grocery store -- I finally, thankfully, live in a place where they're not in the freezer section year round and then threw them in my freezer). If you don't have cranberries lying around (and why would you at this time of year??) toss in a handful of blueberries or extra marionberries. The result will be a little sweeter, and a little purpler.

Confession: I always make too much smoothie. For this recipe, I essentially filled two 16-ounce glass jars with smoothie (whew, because I wound up writing too long the next morning also. That and feeling upset by police brutality--at what point does force become brutality?--in Occupy Homes MN -- watch a video here). Anyway, I stuck the extra jar (sealed of course!) in my refrigerator and grabbed it when I headed out the door the next morning. It worked out beautifully and there was only a little bit of separation -- a problem easily solved by a quick shake.

Marionberry-Cranberry Smoothie
1/2 cup frozen cranberries
1/2 cup frozen marionberries (or fresh, if you have them)
1 large banana, frozen (and half thawed, if your don't have one of the fancy blenders)
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup almond milk, or milk of your choice
2 tablespoons vanilla protein powder, optional (I used soy)

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Serve chilled.

Oven Roasted Chickpeas

It seems like a lot of bloggers recently (the past year or two, anyway, if that really counts as recent) have written about oven-roasted chickpeas. They're a good, high protein snack, moderately cheap to make (especially if you're not buying a can of them--or if you get said can on sale), and you can flavor them a lot of different ways for different tastes. They store well for hikes or trips to the zoo, they're easy to eat with fingers (making them good for kids, or for road-trips), and they're (depending on what you put on them) mostly or very "whole" as in non-processed.

The first time I read about these was about two years ago. The first time I tried them: about 18 months ago. The first time I tried freshly made ones, with Annie, last spring. I thought she'd blogged about it -- but then I couldn't find it on her site.

The recipe below is for a savory (and very garlicky -- now there's a surprise) roasted chickpea. I started with dried chickpeas that I soaked for about 24 hours before cooking in lightly salted water. They cooked up very quickly though, about an hour and then roasted for about 40 minutes at 375 degrees--the same temperature I needed for baking brown rice. Convenient!

The chickpeas came out crispy on the outside, some a little soft on the inside, and because I live in a fairly dry environment, they didn't go soft again too quickly -- a complaint I saw others making on other blog posts.

Garlicky Oven-Roasted Chickpeas
12 ounces cooked chickpeas
1 tablespoon (or a little less) olive oil
1/4-1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (to taste)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon onion powder (to taste)
Pinch salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and then spread on a foil- or parchment-lined cookie sheet. Bake  about 40 minutes, stirring 2-3 times during the cooking process to avoid scorching.

Coconut Ice Cream in a Bag + Regular Ice Cream in a Bag

At work, later this month, we'll run a quick Make-Your-Own-Ice Cream activity. We'll do some "make ice cream in a bag," and some with liquid nitrogen. It should be pretty fantastic. Today though, I'm only going to talk about making ice cream in a bag.

The process is pretty simple -- add milk/cream, sugar, vanilla/cocoa together in a zip-close sandwich bag & seal it, put that bag in another sandwich bag & seal it, and then put those in a freezer bag (I use quart, but most website seem to suggest gallon-sized) and add ice (you'll need a fair amount) and rock salt. Seal the freezer bag and shake until you get ice cream the consistency of soft serve. It takes 7-10 minutes and gloves come in handy because your hands get cold.

Coconut Ice Cream

You'll notice the double-sandwich bagging. If you buy cheap baggies (and even if you don't) there's a good chance one of them will break. Who wants salty ice cream? Probably not many people. The double-bagging helps prevent that, though it's not fool-proof either. When I made my batch of coconut-milk ice cream, the bag definitely split (but I also added more than I'm telling you to add, which was probably part of it, since as you'll remember from science classes, things that are water-based expand when they freeze.

The difference between these, aside from the taste and lactose? The coconut milk ice cream turned out a lot...grainier...than the ice cream made from regular milk, especially after I let it get really cold in the freezer overnight. However, if you're looking for a lactose-free option, it works pretty well and tastes a lot like the commercially-made coconut-based ice creams.

This is a fun recipe to make with kids and is something that you can do on your own (at least it's a little workout before you eat your ice cream? At least you know what goes into the ice cream?) if you're just having one of those days when something cold and creamy really appeals. 

Coconut Ice Cream in a Bag

1/2 cup coconut milk (because this is what I usually buy -- vanilla would work fine too)

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon sugar

Rock Salt

Ice cubes (I used about 1/2 pound, maybe a pound of ice)

1 quart-sized freezer bag

2 zip-top sandwich bags

Pour coconut milk, vanilla, and sugar into one zip-top sandwich bag, squeeze out most (but not all) of the air, seal. Place this bag in the second zip-top sandwich bag, again squeezing out most (but not all) of the air. Place both of these bags into the freezer bag, add ice to pretty much fill the bag (you may need to add more ice after some of it melts if your coconut milk hasn't turned into ice cream) and add 2 tablespoons rock salt. Seal the freezer bag and shake the bag vigorously until the milk turns the consistency of soft serve (about 7-10 minutes; add more ice and rock salt if necessary). Remove the bag with the ice cream in it from the other two bags, cut off one corner, and squeeze into a bowl to serve.

***


Ice Cream in a Bag
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon sugar

Rock Salt

Ice cubes (I used about 1/2 pound, maybe a pound of ice)

1 quart-sized freezer bag

2 zip-top sandwich bags

Pour milk, vanilla, and sugar into one zip-top sandwich bag, squeeze out most (but not all) of the air, seal. Place this bag in the second zip-top sandwich bag, again squeezing out most (but not all) of the air. Place both of these bags into the freezer bag, add ice to pretty much fill the bag (you may need to add more ice after some of it melts if your milk hasn't turned into ice cream) and add 2 tablespoons rock salt. Seal the freezer bag and shake the bag vigorously until the milk turns the consistency of soft serve (about 7-10 minutes; add more ice and rock salt if necessary). Remove the bag with the ice cream in it from the other two bags, cut off one corner, and squeeze into a bowl to serve.

Ambercup Squash with Forbidden Rice and Cranberries

When my local growers market was still running, I bought several varieties of squash I hadn't tried before, or had only tried once or twice. I've been slowly working through the pile and recently tried my ambercup squash. I hadn't tried this type before because in my grocery stores past, it was always just in a pile of winter squash with no flavor profile descriptors to be seen. Fortunately my growers market did a much better job with describing it -- though for the life of me, I can't remember what the sign near the bin of these squash said.

Forbidden Rice

I wanted to bake my squash and stuff it and so I looked at my ingredients and saw I had some forbidden rice (a black rice) I'd purchased from my co-op around the same time I bought the squashes. I decided to boil it up, adding split red lentils and some flavorings, and then stuff the rice mixture into the baked squash.

This recipe was nice, because of the small size of the ambercup squashes I used. I could cut them in half and stick two halves in my toaster oven (I could have also used my regular oven, but I didn't actually need to make all the filled squash right away), start the rice, and take the dog on a run -- and do all this after work. After 30 minutes, the squash was quite tender, the rice was ready for lentils and cranberries, and I only had a little bit longer to wait for dinner.

I made the conscious decision to make this recipe vegan, because I know at the beginning of the year, a lot of people make promises to themselves about the eating habits they will adopt in the coming year. My regular readers know I play with vegan recipes regularly, but if you're new to the blog this is a great recipe to start with -- it's savory, filling, and doesn't use (too many) bizarre ingredients. If you don't have access to forbidden rice, you could certainly use a short grain brown rice in a very similar way. Nutritional yeast, which provides a lovely cheese-y flavor without cheese, is available at most major grocery stores now -- but certainly in the bulk section of stores that focus on whole food approaches to eating and online. And this filling could go in a number of different winter squashes, be eaten on top of salad, or (in the summer, though you might have to sub out the cranberries unless you're like me and stock up on cranberries while you can or happen to live in a place that keeps them in the freezer section of the grocery store year-round) stuffed in a large tomato.

Without Sunflower Seeds

You can use fewer cranberries, but I really like cranberries and try to eat as many as I can while the season permits, hence the wide range. They'll definitely add a tart flavor to your dish if you use way too many, but I liked the lightly tart taste they provided for this meal.

After all the hyper-indulgent food from the past month, this dish is a welcome respite, and full of flavors that still match the season without being the flavors of the season.

Roasted Ambercup Squash with Forbidden Rice and Fresh Cranberries
2 small/medium ambercup squash, cut in half with seeds removed
2/3 cup forbidden rice
2 cups water
1/4 cup split red lentils
1/2-1 cup fresh (frozen) cranberries (to taste)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon fines herbes
1/4 teaspoon salt
2-4 tablespoons nutritional yeast (to taste)
Shelled sunflower seeds, optional

Bake the squash, cut side down in a baking dish covered with a thin layer of water, for 30 minutes at 350 degrees then remove and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, combine rice and water in a small saucepan over high heat. When it boils, turn the heat to low and cover the pot. Cook 30 minutes.

After the rice has cooked for 30 minutes, increase the heat, remove the lid, and stir in the lentils, cranberries, and red pepper flakes. Cook 10 minutes and then stir in the fines herbes, salt, and nutritional yeast. Cook another 5-7 minutes to allow flavors to combine (add a small amount more water if the mixture begins to stick to the bottom of your pan -- you want it dry, but not so dry that it sticks).

Rice, lentils, cranberries, pepper flakes

Spoon the rice mixture into hollow part of the squashes and sprinkle the top with sunflower seeds, if desired.
(I like that they add a bit of extra crunch) Use salted and roasted, or raw, depending on your personal preference. Serve warm as a side dish, or a main meal.

Peanut Butter Blondies (gluten-free)

 

You'll have to trust me on this one. I've been eyeballing black bean brownie recipes for a while (I was reminded of them after reading about garbanzo bean brownies by my friend Victoria over at Easy Gluten Free). And for longer than that, I've been meaning to make a pot of beans (either black or pinto) and haven't gotten around to it--I want to start a crockpot of beans one morning and come home to it in the evening. Why haven't I? Good question. You'll know when I make them, I'm sure.

This recipe came about because I intentionally bought black beans so I could make black bean brownies. But when I got home, I discovered I hadn't bought black beans after all, but pinto beans. Sigh.

Look at the chocolate and peanuts!

Okay, I'm sure pintos would've worked just fine in brownies. They're pretty mild, after all. But black beans definitely wouldn't work in blondies and since I had a set of beans that would work, I decided to go with it. The pinto beans replace the flour in this recipe and add protein, without leaving a bean-y taste (at least if you've rinsed them well.). You'll notice in the picture, I have a carton of coconut milk--but I decided once everything was mixed together that it didn't need the couple of tablespoons of milk called for in the recipe I based this on. 

These blondies are also pretty low fat (for peanut butter blondies). I used up the last tablespoon of butter E and I made recently, mostly to get it out of my fridge, and because I wanted to up the peanut butter flavor by increasing the peanut butter from the 1/3 cup called for in the original recipe to 1/2 cup.

These blondies, when warm, practically melt in your mouth. They're super-moist, and nicely peanut buttery. The peanuts and chocolate on top add a nice bit of spunk (both presentation and flavor-wise), but if that's not your thing, then by all means leave the topping off.

Peanut Butter Blondies

1 can pinto beans, well rinsed

¾ cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons ground flax

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks, chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted peanuts, chopped

Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place the pinto beans and sugar in a food processor and process until smooth.

Blended Pinto Beans & Sugar

Transfer into a medium-sized bowl and add the baking powder, salt, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, eggs, and flax and combine well.

Combining well

Pour into a lightly greased 9” pie pan (or 8 x 8 baking dish).

Sprinkle the chopped peanuts and chocolate chips on top of the batter.

Adding Chocolate and Peanuts

Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs clinging. Cool in pan on a wire rack.

Yum!

Easy Apple Cinnamon Compote

Easy and fast, I might add. This is a compote that I also use on my Apple Cinnamon yogurt scones (post on that to follow soon). Fortunately, this also saves pretty well for a couple of days.

Making an apple cinnamon compote was inspired by having a few soft-ish apples and by my friend Holly, who brought a lovely compote to a dinner E and I hosted not long ago. Holly's compote used raisins, lemon, cloves, cinnamon, and of course apples! Plus, what tasted like a fair amount of sugar. This compote is definitely a low-sugar compote, because I wanted something to go on the scones that wouldn't overwhelm people who didn't really want a super-sweet bite.

Compotes also go well on dark green veggies, over things like pork chops (if you eat meat), and on other savory dishes, adding a little complexity to each bite. Or you can be like me and just eat it straight, or as an ice cream topping. Whatever. You taste it and decide.

I made only a small batch of this compote because I only had a few apples I wanted to use up before they went  too soft even for this, but you could easily double or triple this. If you have fresh lemons you could zest for this, lemon zest would kick it up nicely. I didn't, so I don't include that in the recipe.

Easy Apple Cinnamon Compote
2 or 3 medium apples, peeled if desired (I never desire peeling), and chopped
1 tablespoon agave nectar or honey (remember agave is vegan, honey is not)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch of salt (don't leave this out!)

Mix all the ingredients together in a small saucepan and cook, stirring often, over medium heat until the apples have juiced and the sauce has thickened again, about 20 minutes. Cook longer, stirring frequently to prevent scorching, if a thicker/drier compote is desired. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days, or serve immediately.

Homemade Horseradish

I was recently gifted horseradish. What, I wondered, does one do with horseradish root? Aside from make it into ground horseradish root, pickled with vinegar and salt. A quick internet search returned the result "not much." One can also make it into a relish with beets and onions, apparently, or turn it into an apple soup. But mostly it acts as a flavor enhancer and is used moderately sparingly. The apple soup uses 1/2 cup (pretty impressive--maybe I'd make it if I had apple juice around and let you know how it is). But generally, it isn't meant to be the main flavor.

That's not too much of a surprise. Horseradish is super-hot in the same kind of flash-in-the-mouth way of wasabi--not too much of a surprise, since they're in the same family, Brassicaceae and are used (and prepared) in moderately similar ways.

A couple of fun facts about horseradish:

• It will tarnish silver.
• 10 tablespoons fresh = 6 tablespoons dried, powdered
• The young, tender leaves of the horseradish plant are edible and can be used in salads.

When I was in my early 20s, a friend gave me horseradish from her garden--horseradish to transplant, not to eat. She advised me to put it in a large container, rather than in the ground, because apparently horseradish spreads pretty crazily (at least if allowed to go to seed). A quick google search turned up close to 140,000 results. I did this and not long after had a lovely horseradish plant. I didn't know what to do with it though and after it chocked out the lettuces I'd planted along with it, I just let it die in its container. That being said, I don't think most people will need as much horseradish as is easily produced, so if you're considering planting it, you might also consider who you want to give it to when its ready to be harvested come autumn!

Horseradish about to be pureed

I pureed the horseradish with a little water, salt, and vinegar. I'm not reposting the recipe I used, because nothing was an exact, measurable amount. But basically, these are things that every "make your own horseradish" recipe called for, a pickling amount. Because that's, in part, how you preserve horseradish root--by pickling it.

Ghost Bites (aka Muddy Buddies), a Halloween Snack

Regardless of exactly how you make it, or what you call it, chocolate-peanut butter-powdered sugar covered cereal is pretty addictive--and super quick to make. I don't think I've ever spent more than about 15 minutes from start to finish (though it does take me longer when I go the route of stove-top melting the chocolate, peanut butter, and butter). When I lived in the Midwest, I could reliably bring this to parties and people would gobble it down--and tell me their puppy chow (that's what they all seemed to call it) memories.

This snack is easy to make vegan* and gluten-free**.

I've heard it called:
Muddy Buddies ("technically" the Crispix recipe)
Puppy Chow (this is the recipe on the side of the Rice Chex box)
Kibble
White Trash (though this is made with white chocolate about as often and often has actual peanuts and sometimes mini-pretzels as well)

Ah, the joys of living all over the country and hearing colloquialisms.

In honor of Halloween, I'm dubbing it Ghost-Bites. I also took these to a movie night where we watched a scary movie and Ghost-Bites seemed a bit more in the spirit of the evening. We watched a supposed comedy, Super, which turned out to be not so much of a comedy in the laugh-out-loud or even dark humor sort of way, but a comedy in the variety of "I laugh at gratuitous violence and at the mentally ill." To keep my review short and avoid spoilers, I doubt people will see this movie and think, "Hm, I should become a superhero." At the end of the movie night, I think all seven of us felt pretty uncomfortable. E and I went home to watch a couple episodes of Coupling to help erase the images of Super.

But back to Ghost Bites (which, I was surprised, were new to several of the movie-night attendees).

If I'd thought about it early enough, I probably would have dyed my powdered sugar orange (and really, it's not too late. I have more of all the ingredients and so I might make a small batch, just to post here).

I seem to use a little less sugar than any of the recipes I've seen -- which call from anywhere between 1 bag of powdered sugar (so much waste!) to 3 cups to 1.5 cups (Chex). I use about a cup.

I tend to mix this in a paper grocery sack, because I always seem to have extra, and because it absorbs a little of the extra grease. For the same reason, I let the Ghost Bites cool on a paper grocery sack that I've cut down the sides to increase the surface area that lies flat on the counter top and let it cool several hours (preferably overnight when I don't need my kitchen counters).

A note on peanut butter: I personally like using freshly ground peanut butter, which isn't quite as smooth as some natural peanut butters, but is smooth enough. You could use chunky peanut butter, I suppose, if that's all you've got, but I would recommend a smoother version just because it makes coating the cereal a little easier.

Ghost Bites
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate (you can also use vegan chocolates if you're making a vegan version)
1/2 cup natural, unsweetened peanut butter
1/4 cup butter (or vegan margarine)
1 teaspoon vanilla
9 cups rice or corn (or a combo) Chex
1 cup powdered sugar

In a saucepan, over low heat, melt together the chocolate, peanut butter, and butter, stirring often so you don't scorch the chocolate. As an alternative, you can microwave these ingredients in a microwave safe bowl on HIGH for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for another 30 seconds, if necessary. Stir in the vanilla.

In a separate, large bowl, measure 9(ish) cups of cereal. Pour the chocolate-peanut butter mixture over the cereal and stir until the cereal is thoroughly coated.

In a large paper grocery sack, or in a sealable 2-gallon plastic food storage bag, measure your powdered sugar. Pour in the chocolate-coated cereal, close the bag, and shake until the cereal is well coated. Spread out on a cookie sheet (or another paper grocery sack slit in half) to cool. Store in an air-tight container.

*If you're making this vegan, be sure to check with your vegan and make sure you're using a vegan powdered sugar (or see if they care), vegan chocolate, and vegan margarine.

Puppy Chow

**If you're making this gluten-free, be sure to check ingredient labels. Use certified GF products.

Review: Chebe Focaccia Bread (#1)

Recently, I decided to buy Chebe, which provides a variety of gluten-free bread mixes and (apparently) frozen goods. I hadn't tried anything by this brand before, but I've been craving gluten-free bread that isn't corn tortillas. Not that there aren't other options out there--and plenty of them--but while I'm staying with friends, I'm trying to minimize the number of things I buy and leave in their refrigerator--and the size of the messes I make in their kitchen.

The Chebe mix I bought, Focaccia  bread, looked easy enough: oil, milk or milk substitute, eggs, Parmesan cheese (optional). And it was supposed to cook in 35 minutes. I didn't have eggs though, so I decided to use the standard flax seed egg replacement and hope it worked.

I made up the mix as directed except the flax seed eggs. I used almond milk, since that's what I had, and olive oil . I topped the focaccia with garlic powder. I also wound up needing almost 2x the amount of liquid recommended.

The result: very crunchy (think crunchy-crust pizza with me) on the outside and yet almost doughy on the inside. I'd give it another try though--things don't always go amazingly in my friend's oven--rather than count either of these things against the Chebe mix. The flavor was good enough and my friend Lauren (who I ate dinner with) said it was "really good," while my friend who I'm staying with walked into the kitchen and said, "Whatever you're cooking smells amazing."

In short: It didn't turn out like focaccia at all (though I do think it would make a good GF pizza crust), but before I condemn it, I'd give it another try in a more reliable oven, and possibly with eggs instead as well. If I do this, I'll update the post, or make another post with a picture of the baked focaccia. The flavor is strongly rosemary, so if you're not a fan of this herb you might not like this bread mix. Just a warning.

Tortillas with Stone Fruit, Mixed Greens, Goat Cheese, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Okay, so strictly speaking the tortillas aren't critical. But they make a nice base for this light, simple summer meal. You could certainly use flour tortillas, but since I'm avoiding gluten and rice tortillas are really kinda expensive to buy, I'm featuring this using corn tortillas. The tortillas also make great absorber of stone-fruit juices.

The stone fruits, if you're not familiar with the term, include: nectarines, peaches, and plums among others. You can also include the almond, olive, cherries, and elderberries. Probably any of these things (except maybe the almond) could work in a variation of this dish. I've had this to eat a couple of days in a row now, which may speak less to it's goodness (though I do think it's good) than to my transient state of being. I don't want to have a lot of ingredients on hand, take up much room in other people's refrigerators, or feel like I'm weighted down by food. The sun-dried tomatoes and stone-fruits in this dish would make me think of summer even if I ate this at a different time of year (and thanks to the wonders of mass transportation of veggies, I technically could eat this any time of year, but I don't think I will).

Last summer, I made a ton of oven-dried tomatoes when I had a vendor who would sell them to me cheap (a large box of "cooking" tomatoes--meaning ones that were bruised, split, or otherwise ugly--for less than $5). But I haven't lucked out in that way this summer. Instead, I've been buying my sun-dried tomatoes from an Italian foods market for an incredibly reasonable price. Needless to say, I've used fewer sun-dried tomatoes this year than in previous years. Oh, how I yearn for the day when I have a garden of my own and a bunch of tomatoes! In this dish, sun dried tomatoes add a nice earthiness and color to the top of your salad-on-a-tortilla.

This Goat is Trying to Eat my Camera Strap

Marinating the stone fruit in agave, honey, or another sweetner allows the natural juices of the fruit to be released from the cells--the technique is called macerating and if this seems unfamiliar to you, this same technique is often used with strawberries meant to top waffles, ice cream, or angel food cake. For best results, you'll want to chop your fruit moderately finely (smaller than the fruit--peaches--I show in the pictures here).

When I make this dish, I think of my friend Brenna and her boyfriend, Will. This past November, they braved a wet, Midwestern late-fall day to trek two hours west with me to visit a goat farm. We all fell in love with goat cheese that day--I liked it already, but didn't realize that as goat cheese ages, it becomes "goatier"--the quality I didn't like in some goat cheeses.

Tortillas with Stone Fruit, Mixed Greens, Goat Cheese, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
4 8-inch tortillas (I use corn, but you could use rice, flour, or another type)
4 peaches, plums or nectarines, or a combination, chopped and marinated in 2 teaspoons agave or honey for at least 10 minutes
8+ ounces mixed greens (feel free to use more, especially if you're opting out of tortillas entirely)
2 ounces soft goat cheese*
3-4 sun-dried tomatoes, cut or sliced into very thin strips
Balsamic vinegar

Place each tortilla on a plate. Spread 1/4 of the chopped fruit on each tortilla and allow to rest for 5 minutes, so that the juices begin to saturate the tortilla. (If you're not using a tortilla, you might want to place the chopped fruit on top of the salad greens).

Add 1/4 of the mixed greens on top of the fruit, on each plate, then crumble 1/2 ounce of goat cheese on top of the greens.

Arrange the sun-dried tomatoes over the greens and goat cheese, then drizzle with some balsamic vinegar, to taste. Serve.

*To make this vegan, make sure you use agave instead of honey, tortillas made without animal products (i.e. lard), and instead of soft goat cheese, leave it off entirely or mix vegan cream cheese with some fresh herbs. This last variation is what I've done twice now, using plain Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese (because I had that on hand).