Sunday, February 3, 2013

Biscuits - (strawberry shortcake!)

DROP BISCUITS!  
1 1/2 cups sourghum flour 
1 1/2 cups millet flour 
1 cup tapioca starch
1 tsp zanthum gum
2 tbs + 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 + 1/4 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt 
2 tbs your sugar
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar 
7/8 cup milk (I used rice milk, room temp)
3 tbs melted butter substitute (coconut oil works, but something 'butter flavored' tastes MUCH better) 

Add all dry ingredients to a bowl and mix, in a separate bowl, combine the "milk," vinegar, and oil. Add the wet to the dry and stir until just combined - the mixture will 'shrink' and then become fluffy/foamy (stop mixing!) 'drop' onto pan, they will bake as is, so you don't need much space between them.  Bake at 425 for 12-15 min 
 
I topped these with extra sugar to use them for strawberry shortcake - and also made coconut whipped cream for the topping- YUM.  

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Catch up (Bread, Pie, and bath products!)

I've been making a lot of stuff lately.. just didn't have time to post it all separately! 

PIE!

first - and obviously  most important - coconut whipped cream.  yum.  I added 3 tbs of raw sugar to a double batch .. super yum.  used it to top this yummy chocolate pie for Christmas dessert.






Cookie Army!


Yummy GF & V "teddy" grahams - also pretty easy :) 

Yummy Bread

I found an GF & V bread recipe that is easy and tasty. 









Homemade Coconut milk shampoo - smells yummy, but can't really eat it.  My kids' hair has been getting dry, and this solved the issue in one bath!

Sugar scrub - made this as part of Christmas Gifts, it smells yummy and works great too!
 
Homemade Lotion - loving this stuff too! (also gave some as Christmas gifts)  

So that is pretty much what I've been up to ...  probably won't be trying many new recipes for a while! getting ready for baby :)

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Gluten Free Vegan Muffin (UPDATE)

I posted this recipe a while back - I have since experimented a LOT with these muffins and they generally turn out spectacular :)  Here is the recipe again, with a couple things i've learned.. 



Apple Muffins
Wet Ingredients:
  • 1 cup almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup Coconut Oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients:
  • 1 cup  millet flour
  • 1/2 cup sorghum flour
  • 1/2 cup tapioca starch
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
  • Chocolate chip muffins

Preheat oven to 350F. 
Lightly grease a muffin tin or line it with paper liners. (note: paper liners will stick until muffins cool a bit)
In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients and make a well in the center.
Mix wet ingredients in a smaller bowl, whisk vigorously, or use a stick blender to really combine.  
Mix together until the batter is just moistened. Fold in the add in** 

Scoop out about 1/3rd cup of batter in each muffin cup. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

** add in options i've tried.. 
-- 1tsp cinnamon (added to dry ingredients) and 1 cup apples,  (cut in1/4-1/2" cubes & pieces)
-- blueberries 1/2-1 cup
-- chocolate chips 1/2-1cup 

oh, these taste much better the first day, taste better slightly warm and freeze well!  I actually prefer these to the eggy version i use to make.  

Monday, November 12, 2012

New bread recipe & Chia Seed Chocolate pudding

Today i am trying a new bread recipe!
I copy-pasted the recipe below .. we'll see how it turns out, its rising now ... It is so far so wheat like its creepy!

Wet Ingredients:
2 ½ cups warm water (105 to 110 degrees F)
2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast (1 package)
1 teaspoon maple syrup or organic cane sugar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/3 cup ground chia seeds

Dry Ingredients:
1 cup teff flour
1 cup sorghum flour
½ cup sweet rice flour
½ cup cornmeal
1 ½ teaspoons sea salt

Topping:
extra virgin olive oil
poppy seeds
sesame seeds

Place the warm water in a bowl or 4-cup liquid glass measure. Add the yeast and teaspoon of maple syrup, whisk together. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes to activate the yeast. The mixture should get foamy or bubbly. If not, dump it out and start over.

While the yeast is activating, mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

After the yeast is activated whisk in the olive oil, maple syrup, ground chia seeds, and psyllium husks into the water-yeast mixture. Let stand for 2 to 3 minutes (not any longer) to let the chia and psyllium release their gelatinous substances. Whisk again.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix together with a large wooden spoon until thick. Then knead the dough on a floured wooden board to incorporate the flour. Add more teff and sorghum flours, a little at a time, until the dough holds together and isn’t too sticky (about ¼ to ½ cup total). Don’t add too much flour, otherwise the dough will become very dense; it should still be slightly sticky. Form dough into a ball, place back into the large bowl, and cover with a damp towel. Place in a warm spot to rise. I like to place the bowl over a pot of warm water. Let dough rise for an hour or until doubled in size. Rising time will depend on the temperature of the environment around the dough.

After the dough has risen, place a pizza stone in your oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven (the one beneath the pizza stone). I usually use an 8 x 8-inch glass pan filled ¾ of the way full.


Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured wooden board. Knead the dough for about a minute. Then form into a round ball. Place on a square of parchment paper and use a sharp knife to cut a shallow “tic-tac-toe” pattern on the top. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Let rise for about 30 minutes in a warm place while the oven and stone are preheating.

Carefully lift the parchment paper with the risen loaf and place it onto the stone in the oven. Bake for about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 30 to 60 minutes before cutting into it. The bread will be very gummy hot out of the oven. The texture is perfect once cooled. It reminds me of a hearty whole wheat bread.

   
With the leftover ground chia seeds I am going to make Chia seed chocolate pudding.. usually, i'd put whole chia seeds and mix everything in the vita mix, but this time i'm going to try to use up the pre-ground seeds..  

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups coconut milk
1/2 cup chia seeds (pre-ground if you are not using a vitamix or high powered blender)
6 Tbsp cocoa
1/4-1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt 
handful of chocolate chips 
Directions
1.  Combine all ingredients in blender or food processor
2.  Mix thoroughly until ultra smooth.
3.  Pour mixture into a storage container  & store in the fridge

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Gluten Free, Vegan, Blueberry Muffins and Corn Muffins

Gluten Free Vegan Corn Muffins.. 
this recipe is good, but needs a little work.. 
  • 3/4 cup millet flour or sorghum flour
  • 1/4 cup tapioca starch
  • 1 tsp guar gum
  • 3/4 up cornmeal
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt
  • 1.5 teaspoon Ener-G Egg Replacer (in place of 1 egg)
  • 2 tablespoons Water
  • 1 cup Milk (I used homemade rice milk)
  • 1/4 cup oil (I used coconut oil)
Procedure:
Preheat oven at 400F. Grease or line muffin tin. (makes about 10 muffins)
In a large bowl combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In a blender/food processor or blend with a stick blender add Ener-G, water, milk and oil. Blend it thoroughly, for about 2-3 minutes.
Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
Fill the muffin cups 2/3rds full.
Bake for 16-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack.

GFV Blueberry muffins

Wet Ingredients:
  • 1 cup almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/4 cup Coconut Oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients:
  • 1 cup  millet flour
  • 1/2 cup sorghum flour
  • 1/2 cup tapioca starch
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1/2 cup blueberries
Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a muffin tin or line it with paper liners.
In a small bowl mix together the milk and vinegar and set aside for about 5 minutes or until it curdles.
In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients and make a well in the center.
To it add the milk mixture, applesauce, oil and vanilla extract. Mix together until the batter is just moistened. Fold in the blueberries.
Scoop out about 1/3rd cup of batter in each muffin cup. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. 
**oh and don't forget the sugar, i did - they are good, but taste like blueberry biscuits, oops. 

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Vegan Gluten Free apple pie crumb muffins..

I decided I REALLY wanted to make apple crumb cake muffins... these did not turn out looking all that great - but they taste AMAZING, so i'm willing to overlook their appearance and try to work on that later.. 

Apple Pie-Crumb Cake Muffins

For muffins:
1/2 cup sorghum flour

1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup coconut oil (melted)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup grated apple
1/2 cup chopped apple (1/4-inch pieces)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

For Topping:
1/4 cup rice flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 cup chopped pecans

In a small bowl, mix the topping ingredients, drizzling on the oil and mixing with your fingers until crumbs form. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375°F and grease twelve-muffin tin.


In a large bowl, sift all the dry muffin ingredients. Stir in the wet ingredients. Fold in the grated and chopped apple and nuts.

Fill each muffin cup two-thirds full and sprinkle the topping over each muffin.
Go easy on the topping - just a little more than a dusting and they would probably look a lot better.  Bake for 18-20 minutes. 


Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Quinoa.. (I'm finally figuring out what to do with it..)

shown here with red & black quinoa
"Mexican" Quinoa

1 cup quinoa (dry, however much that comes out to cooked)
1 jar of salsa
about 1 cup of corn
about 2 cups of black beans (drained/rinsed, 2 cans if using cans) 
a bit of salt, taco seasoning, and/or cumin to taste

cook the quinoa - 1 cup dry to 1.5 cups water, boil water, add quinoa, cook for aprox. 15 mins, fluff with fork

add other ingredients to cooked quinoa, stir  - serve on a tortilla, over chips - add sour cream or cheese if you're into that ;) (i tried it with a tiny spoonful of non-dairy sour cream and it was fabulous)

everything but the quinoa - yum
"Italian" Quinoa

1 cup black beans
1 can mushrooms
1 can diced tomatoes
4-5 cloves of garlic
1 cup onion
3 cups squash/zuchinni
1 small can tomato sauce 
oregano, basil, thyme, and salt to taste

combine ingredients and simmer in a medium pan for 20-30 mins

serve over cooked Quinoa