Gluten Free Waffles

 Gluten Free Waffles

Ingredients:

• 180g Rice Flour
• 60g Potato Starch
• 30g Tapioca Starch
• 1/4 Teaspoon Xantham gum
• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 2 Eggs, Separated
• 3 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil or Melted Butter
• 3/4 Cup Milk

Instructions:

1. Carefully separate the eggs, whip the egg whites to stiff peaks and set aside.
2. Sift together rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl, set aside.
3. Lightly whisk the egg yolks in a small bowl. Add the oil or butter and milk and stir together.
4. Add the wet mixture to the dry and stir to combine.
5. Stir in roughly 1.3 of the whipped egg whites, before folding in remaining egg whites carefully until there are no more large white streaks in the batter.
6. Follow manufacturers directions for cooking waffles for your waffle maker.

Enjoy!

Korean Daikon Pickles

 Korean Daikon Pickles

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Cup Water
• 1 1/2 Cup Rice Vinegar
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Kosher Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Turmeric
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 1 Daikon radish

Instructions:

1. In a medium sauce pan add the water, rice vinegar, sugar, salt and turmeric. 
2. Stir occasionally, over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil and sugar has dissolved. Turn off heat.
3. Peel and cut the Daikon into desired shapes. My husband said he prefers half moons about 1/2cm thick.
4. In a large glass container add the daikon and pour the pickle mixture over the top. Add in the bay leaves.
5. Over and let pickle for at least 2 hours before serving. 
6. Store in fridge, covered for up to 2 months.

Enjoy!

Notes:

Husband liked these pickles, said the taste is close, but not quite right. Next batch I might try with white vinegar instead of rice vinegar.

Alternate Pickle Liquid recipe to try: Same instructions

1/3 Cup Sugar

1/3 cup plus 1 tb white vinegar

1 Tablespoon Kosher salt

1 teaspoon Turmeric

3/4 Cup water

Vegan and Gluten Free Doughnuts

Doughnuts

Left, chocolate doughnuts, right vanilla sugar

 Ingredients:

• 1 Cup 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour
• 1/4 Cup Coconut Flour, or Tapioca starch
• 1/3 Cup Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Xantham Gum
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 150g Soft Tofu
• 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, blend the soft tofu and vanilla together for several minutes. 
2. In a medium bowl sift together the gluten free flour, coconut flour, sugar, xantham gum, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg.
3. Slowly pour the sifted and blended dry ingredients into the stand mixer, and mix until just combined.
4. Bring a deep fryer to a temperature between 320-350°F.
5. Shape the doughnuts as desired, I used my two ounce scoop to make doughnut holes. Fry in heated oil for roughly two minutes a side until golden.
6. Drain on paper towel for a moment.
7. Dust with vanilla sugar, cinnamon sugar or other toppings of your choice.
8. To make chocolate doughnuts, add 3-4 tablespoons cocopowder to dry ingredients and about 2 tablespoons water or milk to tofu.

Enjoy!

°

°

Lemon, Poppy Seed, and Olive Oil Loaf

Lemon, Poppy Seed, and Olive Oil Loaf

Ingredients:

Two Lemons

1 Cup Sugar

1/2 Cup Butter

4 Tablespoons + 4 Teaspoons Lemon Juice 

3 Eggs

2/3 Cup Olive Oil

1 3/4 Cup Flour

1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder 

1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda 

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

2 Tablespoons Poppy Seeds

1/2 Cup Icing Sugar 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a standard Loaf tin. 
2. Zest and juice both lemons
3. In a large bowl cream together the sugar, butter and lemon zest. 
4. Add the eggs one at a time, blending well after each egg. 
5. Cream in the olive oil and 4 Tablespoons lemon juice.
6. In a medium bowl soft together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 
7. Slowly add in the dry ingredients. 
8. Fold in poppy seeds.
9. Pour batter into prepared Loaf pan. Bake in preheated oven for 55-70 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean from the centre. Let cool in pan ten minutes before turning out into a wire rack to cool completely.
10. In a small bowl stir together icing sugar and remaining lemon juice to create a glaze. Drizzle glaze over Loaf just before serving.

Enjoy!! 

Parmesan and Herb Fries

 Parmesan and Herb Fries

Ingredients:

1 Pound potatoes 

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 Teaspoons Garlic Powder 

1 Tablespoon Rosemary leaves, dried or fresh

1/4 Cup grated Parmesan Cheese

Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F
2. Wash or peel potatoes and cut into fry or tater shapes as desired. 
3. In a large bowl add the cut potatoes, olive oil, garlic powder, Rosemary, parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper.
4. Stir or toss potatoes in the bowl to evenly coat with the seasonings. 
5. Line a large baking tray with parchment paper. 
6. Pour potatoes onto prepared tray and arrange into a single layer. 
7. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes, turn and stir fries and bake for another 20-30 mins until fries are golden brown and cooked through.
8. Leave in oven longer for crisper fries. 

Serve and enjoy. 

Rice Krispie Treats

Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients:

• 6 cups Puffed Rice Cereal (Or other Cereal)
• 4 Cups Mini Marshmallows, or roughly 45 large Marshmallows
• 2 Tablepsoons Butter
• Non-Stick Cooking Spray
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions:

1. Prepare a 9X13inch brownie pan by spraying lightly with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl measure out the marshmallows and butter, and heat for about 1 minute at a time, stirring after every minute until marshmallows are melted and not lumpy.
3. Add the Vanilla extract to the melted marshmallows, and stir well.
4. Add all the cereal to the melted marshmallows and stir to combine, being sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to mix everything well.
5. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Spray hands with non-stick cooking spray and press cereal and rice mixture firmly into pan.
6. Allow to set for an hour before cutting into squares.
7. Store cut squares in an air tight container.

Enjoy!

Quick Pickles

Quick Pickles

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Vinegar (I like Apple Cider Vinegar)
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Black Peppercorns
• 1 Tablespoon Whole Mustard Seeds

Instructions:

1. In a small pot combine all ingredients listed above, stir and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Allow pickling liquid to boil for about 5 minutes, or until all the brown sugar has dissolved.
3. Prepare desired veggies for pickling. About 2 cups of chopped or diced veggies like carrots, pepper, cucumber, radish, daikon, etc. I used 2 carrots cut into matchsticks the last time I made quick pickles, and used them in a falafel wrap.
4. Pour the hot pickling liquid over the veggies in a large bowl or jar.
5. Allow veggies to pickle for at least 15 minutes before using, or pickles can be kept in a sealed container for up to a week in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Gluten Free Pancakes

Gf Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1 Cups Gluten Free 1:1 Flour Blend
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1 Egg
• 1/4 Cup Greek Yogurt, flavored or plain
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar 
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• Milk

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl sift together one cup of the flour, sugar and baking powder. Set aside. 
2. In a small bowl whisk together the yogurt, egg and vanilla. 
3. Add the yogurt mix to the dry ingredients and stir together. 
4. If mixture is dry or very thick, add milk 1-2 tablespoons at a time, stirring well until a pour-able batter forms. 
5. Heat a skillet over medium heat, and lightly oil. 
6. Add pancake batter to pan in about 1/4 cup portions to create small pancakes. 
7. Fry pancakes until edges are just starting to firm up and small bubbles form over the surface. 
8. Flip pancake and cook am additional 1-2 minutes. 
9. Repeat with remaining batter. 

Enjoy!!

Notes:

So this recipe is designed to be able to deliver as much nutrition as possible to my son, who is a picky eating toddler with Celiac disease. So all my gluten free recipes are for him, and pass my own bar for what good baking should taste like. As mentioned, he is a picky toddler, so most of the gluten free recipes are going to be designed to try keep a small human alive, I have substituted mashed fruit like banana or avocado for the yogurt, but my own little one would eat fruit until he became that fruit, but protein is not easy, and Greek yogurt is my crutch to keep him on a balanced diet.

Speaking of Greek yogurt; My biggest problem with a lot of gluten free recipes is that they often have textural problems or sometimes grittiness which is not ideal. I've had really good luck adding a bit of Greek yogurt to a lot of gluten free baking recipes, it helps the rising agent in baking work better by adding a bit more acid to the recipe and just generally improved the final baked texture of whatever its added to. 

I might try in the future to experiment more with a wider variety of allergen free baking recipes, but until I get a feel for gluten free baking i'm just going to focus on it on its own.

Gluten Free Banana Fritters

Gluten Free Banana Fritters

Ingredients:

• 4 browning/soft Bananas
• 1/4 Cup Greek Yogurt or Sour Cream
• 2 Tablespoons Peanut Butter
• 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 Cup Quick Cooking Gluten Free Oats
• 1 1/2 Cups Gluten Free 1:1 Baking Flour
• 1 Teaspoon Xantham gum
• 1/2-1 Cup Milk

Instructions:

1. Heat a deep fryer or a pot of vegetable oil on the stove with a candy thermometer to 325
2. In a food processor or blender, blitz the rolled oats until they become a sandy powder, about 1 minute.
3. In a large bowl add the salt, powdered oats, Gluten free baking flour and xantham gum.
4. Whisk, or sift the dry ingredients together.
5. in the same food processor or blender bowl add the bananas, Greek yogurt or sour cream and peanut butter together.
6. Pulse until creamy and smooth.
7. Add the creamed banana mixture to the bowl with the dry ingredients, along with 1/2 cup of milk.
8. Stir together with a spatula or wooden spoon. Batter should be a loose dough almost. 
9. Add more milk if needed one tablespoon at a time.
10. Lower Loonie or tablespoon sized dollops of batter into the hot oil, and cook for about 5-7 minutes.
11. Start by lowering one into the oil and see how it frys before doing a large batch. My first one turned too dark too quickly, so I knew I had to reduce the oil temperature slightly. 
12. Fry until golden brown, and cooked all the way through the center. 
13. It might take a few attempts to get the size and cook time correct. Thats ok, a few mistakes before perfection is normal.
14. Lightly dust with sugar and eat as soon as possible.

Notes:

I made these and sent them into daycare with my son last week. He still wont really try any of my gluten free baking, but his peers at daycare loved them I am told. So toddler approved, and I used rolled oats and Greek yogurt to try and just bump up the nutrition in these, without taking away from the fun of a fritter in any way.

My husband and I ate all of these, after our toddler rejected them. They were great the first day, crisp shell and light doughnut middles, and then still ok the next day, but more like a normal cake doughnut.

You can also sub regular butter or coconut oil for the peanut butter if you want.

Cheeseburger Piroshki

Cheeseburger Piroshki

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 1 Cup Milk, warmed
• 1 Tablespoon Sugar
• 1 1/2 Teaspoon dry active Yeast
• 3+ Cups Flour
• 1 egg
• 1 Tablespoon soft Butter
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Egg and 1 Tablespoon water

Filling:

• 1/2 Pound Ground Beef
• 1 small Onion, finely minced
• 1 Cup Shredded Cheese
• 1 Teaspoon dry Thyme
• 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
• 1 Teaspoon dry Basil
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Warm the milk until it is warm but not hot.
2. Add the sugar and yeast and stir well. 
3. Let the yeast proof for ten minutes.
4. Mix in 2 cups of flour, one egg, 1 tablespoon butter and salt.
5. Knead in as much of the remaining flour as possible. 
6. Dough should be soft and slightly sticky, but will pull away from the edges of the bowl easily. 
7. Cover bowl with a clean, damp tea towel and let rise in a warm place for one hour. 
8. While dough rises, make the filling. 
9. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. 
10. Add the ground beef and minced onions to the pan. 
11. Scramble cook until beef is cooked through, onions are soft and beef has broken down into small bits. About 5-10 minutes.
12. Stir in the thyme, basil, onion powder, garlic powder and season with salt and pepper. 
13. Remove pan from heat and stir in shredded cheese. 
14. Once the dough has risen, transfer dough to a well floured surface 
15. Divide dough into about 16 equal pieces.
16. Work with one piece at a time and keep remaining dough covered.
17. Roll one piece into a palm size circle, spoon a generous tablespoon of filling onto the dough.
18. Roll the dough up over and around the filling and roll between your hands a few times to make a smooth ball.
19. Place the rolled prioshki on a baking rry lined with parchment. 
20. In a small bowl whisk together the egg and water, brush the egg wash over the prioshki. 
21. Repeat the rolling, filling, shaping, egg wash steps with all remaining dough. 
22. Cover and let rise for another 30 minutes. 
23. Preheat oven to 375°F.
24. Brush risen piroshkis again with egg wash right before baking. 
25. Bake piroshkis in heated oven for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. 

Enjoy! 

Gluten Free Muffins

Gluten Free Muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 Teaspoon Xantham Gum
• 1 3/4 Cups Gluten Free 1:1 Flour Blend
• 2/3 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 Egg
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• Optional up to 1 Cup Blueberries, Chocolate Chips, or whatever mix in you like for muffins. 

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Sift or stir up or if your flour blend is in a large jar like mine lightly shake the flour blend to redistribute its components more evenly. This is important for any gluten free baking. 
3. In a large bowl blend together the flour blend, xantham gum, salt, sugar, and baking powder. 
4. In a small bowl whisk together the milk, vegetable oil, milk and vanilla extract. 
5. Create a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Using a wooden spoon, mix everything together until all the flour is incorporated. If adding blueberry or chocolate stir in now. 
6. Grease or line with baking paper 12 muffin cups. 
7. Fill each muffin cup 3/4 full. I like to use an icecream scoop to aim for more evenly sized muffins. 
8. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until tops are golden and bottoms are just lightly browned. 
9. Cool on a wire rack. Then store in a sealed container. Will keep for up to 4 days. 

Enjoy! 

Notes:

I use Our Complements brand gluten free flour blend right now. 

Even if your gluten free flour blend contains xantham gum I would still add in the extra just to help create a better a better muffin texture. 

Vegetable oil like canola or sunflower or similar low taste oils is best for this recipe instead of butter, as the vegetable oils tend to be more liquid at room temperature which helps the muffins retain moisture and a better texture. Trust me I use butter literally any chance I get, so when I suggest a veg oil, it's because it really does work better. 

Gluten free doughnuts

Gluten Free Doughnuts

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 Cups Gluten Free Flour Blend (I used the 1:1 gluten free baking flour from Bulk Barn this time. 
• 1 Teaspoon salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Cream of Tarter
• 1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 2 1/2 Teaspoons Dry Active Yeast
• 1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg or Vanilla
• 1 Teaspoon Cider Vinegar
• 1 egg
• 1 Cup + 2 Tablespoons Milk (not fat free) 
• 56 grams or 4 Tablespoons Butter

Oil for frying

Instructions:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, sift together the flour, salt, cream of tarter, baking soda, sugar, yeast and nutmeg if using.
2. Attach the paddle attachment to the stand mixer.
3. Melt the butter and allow to cool slightly, warm the milk to just above room temperature.
4. In a small bowl whisk together the egg and milk. While constantly whisking, slowly pour in the melted butter and vanilla if using.
5. Turn the stand mixer on to stir, or it's lowest possible setting. While paddle is moving, slowly pour in the liquid ingredients. Once everything has come together, turn stand mixer up to a medium speed and beat for two minutes. Turn off stand mixer. Dough will be very soft.
6. Oil a large bowl or container that has a tight fitting lid. Transfer the dough to the oiled vessel. Cover and chill in fridge for at least one hour, or up to two days.
7. When ready to fry doughnuts, heat oil in either a deep fryer or in a heavy sauce pan on the stove to between 350-375°F. You will need a depth of oil of at least 2-3 inches.
8. While oil is heating, remove covered dough from fridge.
9. Try to handle the dough as little as possible to keep as much air in the dough as possible. Take about 1/4 of the dough at a time and flatten to about 1 inch thick. Use a sharp knife to divide the dough into one inch square/round pieces. Set the cut pieces on a parchment lined baking sheet and allow to rise in a warm draft free location for at least thirty minutes. Repeat until all the dough has been shaped.
10. When dough has risen and oil is hot, carefully drop the dough balls into the hot oil one at a time. Do not over crowd the oil. After about two minutes turn each doughnut over until they are evenly browned on all sides. Roughly 2-3 minutes on each side.
11. Remove cooked doughnuts to a cooling rack with paper towels underneath to catch drips as the doughnuts cool.
12. Some of my cooked doughnuts cooled with a slight white dusting appearing on them. I am not sure why, but it didn't seem to be an indication that the doughnuts were over or under cooked, and it only happened with a few in each fry batch. Maybe I didn't sift my dry ingredients well enough.
13. Doughnuts can be enjoyed plain, or are very good with a light dusting of cinnamon sugar on them.
14. Doughnuts are always best when eaten the same day, but these will keep about two days if left plain, and stored in an airtight container. I like to lightly reheat my doughnuts the next day in the microwave before dusting with sugar.

Enjoy!

Notes:

I would have never ever put a gluten free recipe here when I first started. You see I think gluten free diets are stupid nonsense for anyone who has not been diagnosed with celiac disease. I have known people with celiac my whole life and I have always respected how serious and challenging their dietary needs can be, with celiac disease it is an autoimmune disorder where gluten protein causes an immune response in the small intestine, damaging the tissues of the small bowel in the process. But since I did not have celiac, I was all gluten all the time.

However, last month my sweet baby boy was confirmed to have celiac disease. Meaning he now requires a diet that is 100% free from gluten contaminants. This has been a challenging adjustment but we are doing our best.

Prior to celiac diagnosis, my son had loved doughnut holes from our local coffee shop. Sadly those are now no longer an option for him, but I am hopeful that he will learn to like the ones I can make for him.

Hopefully I can also nail down some more user friendly gluten free recipes, because oh goodness there is current a dearth of simple usable recipes.

I plan to try experimenting with bread this week wish me luck!

Raspberry Lemonade Parfait

Raspberry Lemonade Parfait

Ingredients:

• 250ml Whipping/Heavy Cream
• 3 Egg Whites
• Pinch Salt or cream of tartar
• 1 1/3 Cup Sugar, divided
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• Zest and juice of one Lemon
• 1/4 Pint Blackberries

Instructions:

1. In a small pot combine raspberries, lemon juice and zest, and 2/3 cup sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stir until sugar is dissolved. If some sugar remains a small amount of water can be added.
2. Once boiling reduce heat to a simmer, and reduce liquid by about half. Use an immersion blender, blender or food processor to smooth out the sauce. 
3. The seeds and pulp can be strained out with a fine mesh sieve if desired. 
4. Pour finished syrup into a small bowl and set in fridge to cool. 
5. Wait until syrup is at least cooled to room temperature or cooler before continuing with recipe.
6. In a medium bowl add the heavy cream and 1/3 cup sugar. Whip together until stiff peaks for. Fold in vanilla extract. Set aside for now.
7. In a large bowl add the egg Whites and the pinch of salt or cream of tartar and whip to stiff peaks. Set aside.
8. Add the whipped cream to the egg white bowl and gently fold the cream and meringue together. Gently so as to keep as much air in the mix as possible, while still blending everything together smoothly.
9. Get a container with a lid large enough to hold the entire contents of the large bowl. Pour half the cream and meringue mixture into the container. Pour 1/2 of the raspberry syrup over the cream and meringue. Pour the remaining cream and meringue mixture into the container, followed by remaining raspberry syrup. Using a butter knife or small spoon, gently swirl all the layers together, creating ribbons of syrup through the white parfait.
10. Cover and chill at least an hour. Set parfait should be similar to ice cream in consistency.

Enjoy!

Apple Crisp Cheesecake

Apple Crisp Cheesecake

Ingredients:

Crust

• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Cup Graham Cracker or vanilla cookie crumbs
• 3/4 Cup Rolled Oats
• 1/2 Cup Melted Butter

Cheesecake Layer

• 3 Bricks Cream Cheese(8 ounces each)
• 1 Egg
• 2 Tablespoons Flour
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Cup White Sugar
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Allspice

Topping

• 2-3 Peeled and thinly sliced apples
• 1/4 Cup Rolled Oats
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Flour
• 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon
• 2 Tablespoons Melted Butter

Instructions:

1. Thoroughly grease a 9X13 inch baking dish. If desired, also coat in a thin layer of white sugar to ensure finished dessert comes out easily.
2. Allow eggs and cream cheese to stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Crust

1. To prepare crust, mix together sugar, oats, and crumbs in a large bowl. Melt the butter and drizzle over top. Mix together into a very crumbly blend. Press crumbly mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Press the crust up the sides of the baking dish slightly, and try to get the bottom thin and even.
2. Bake crust in preheated oven for 5 minutes.
3. Keep the oven on!

Cheesecake Layer

1. In a large bowl cream the cream cheese with electric beaters for about 3 minutes. 
2. Add in the egg, flour, sugar and spices. 
3. Cream until everything is blended smooth. 
4. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust and carefully spread in an even layer.

Topping

1. Arrange the thinly sliced apples over top of the cheesecake layer.
2. In a small bowl mix together the flour, oats, sugar and cinnamon. Melt the butter and drizzle over top. Blend into a crumble. Spread the crumble over top of the apple slices.
3. Bake the entire dessert uncovered for 40-50 minutes. The center of the cheesecake shouldn't feel wiggly anymore when it is cooked through.
4. Let cool for 30 minutes- an hour on a rack, then cover and chill for at least one hour to fully set the cheesecake. Keep chilled until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Maple Ginger Sugar Cookies

Maple Ginger Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 - 3 Cups Flour
• 3 Teaspoons Ground Ginger
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 Cups Butter, Room Temperature
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar
• 1 Egg
• 1/3 Cup Maple Syrup
• Extra 1/2 Cup Sugar

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a medium bowl sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
3. Cream butter for 1-3 minutes, until creamy and blends easily. Add 1/2 cup of brown sugar and blend well, add the white sugar and cream together for 3-5 minutes. Butter and sugars should be light and fluffy.
4. Cream in the egg and maple syrup.  Slowly stir in about 2 cups of the flour mixture to make a soft dough. Ad extra flour if dough is too soft, or sticky. It should be slightly softer than a chocolate chip cookie dough.
5. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place on parchment lined baking sheets. Roll each ball in the extra 1/2 cup of sugar and gently press a fork into the top of each cookie leaving length-wise tine marks on top of the cookies.
6. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until just golden, and slightly puffed. Cool cookies on baking sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer to wire cooling rack and cool completely.

Enjoy!

Fried Cake Doughnuts

Doughnuts

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 Cups Flour
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1 Teaspoon Nutmeg
• 1/2 Teaspoon Allspice
• 1 Cup Milk
• 1 Egg
• 1/4 Cup Butter, melted, and cooled slightly

Topping:

• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
• 1 Teaspoon Nutmeg

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice.
2. In a small bowl whisk together the milk and egg.
3. Create a well in the center of the flour bowl, add the milk and egg mixture and the melted butter. Mix until just combined, and there is no more dry flour unincorporated. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least one hour.
4. Preheat a deep fryer to 375°F.
5. Liberally flour a work surface. using a rubber spatula, transfer the dough to the work surface, turning the dough over to dust with flour. Keep the work surface well floured.
6. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 1 inch rounds to make round doughnuts, or use a doughnut cutter to make traditional ring doughnuts. Transfer cut doughnuts to large lightly floured tray while you finish cutting all the dough. Roll the scraps up together, knead once or twice and roll/cut again.
7. Fry doughnuts for about 2 minutes a side, until golden brown and puffy and bobbing at the surface.
8. Remove from deep fryer and transfer to a cooling rack with paper towels underneath to catch any fat. Continue to fry in batches until done.
9. Allow doughnuts to cool for several minutes, meanwhile in a small bowl sift together the sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg for the doughnut topping. Gently toss each doughnut in the sugar to coat.

Enjoy!

Baba Ganoush

Baba Ganoush
A simple Dip made from eggplant

Ingredients:

• 1 Eggplant
• 1 Lemon, Juiced, or about 2-3 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 2-3 Tablespoons Tahini
• salt
• 2-3 Cloves Garlic
• 2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley

Instructions:

1. Slice the top leaf and very bottom bit off the eggplant, then slice the remaining eggplant into 1/2inch thick rounds. Arrange the rounds on a piece of kitchen paper towels, lightly dust each side of the rounds with salt and cover with another layer of kitchen paper towels. Allow to sit 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes, heat oven to broil high. Gently blot any excess water from the eggplant rounds.
3. Broil the eggplant rounds on a thick baking sheet for 3-5 minutes, until dark, slightly charred spot start to form. Turn eggplant over and broil the other side.
4. Remove eggplant from oven and allow to cool about 10-15 minutes.
5. In a large bowl food processor with a blade attachment, add the lemon juice, Tahini, garlic cloves and parsley.
6. Peel the dark rind from the eggplant rounds, and add the flesh to the food processor bowl.
7. Pulse the mixture several times in the food processor several times until dip is creamy. Taste and adjust seasoning and salt as needed.
8. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
9. Goes great a dip with veggies, or chips, toasted pita etc. Or with falafel.

Enjoy!

Notes:

you can also roast the eggplant whole, but just cutting a few steam vents in the side, and roasting int he oven. then you need to split it and spoon out the cooked eggplant at the end. As the flesh doesn't actually come in direct contact with the heat in the oven you get a whiter looking baba at the end.

Other Places:

Great with falafel

What was cooking one year ago?

Apple pie filling

What was cooking two years ago?

Chicken Wings

Sourdough Biscuits

Sourdough Biscuits

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups flour
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 2/3 Cups Butter, cubed, and at room temperature at least 30 minutes
• 2 Cups Sourdough starter

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Cut in butter until mixture is sandy and crumbly and butter is evenly distributed. If the butter is not mixed in well enough it may seep out of the biscuits while they bake and that is no good at all.
3. Measure out the sourdough starter, it doesn't need to be exact. Fold together the flour/butter mixture with the sourdough starter until just combined .
4. Divide dough into 16 portions and shape each into a little puck like shape and place on prepared baking sheet at least 1 inch apart.
5. Let biscuits rest and rise for about 20 minutes in a warm draft free place.
6. Bake biscuits in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until bottoms are browned and tops are golden.
7. Allow to cool on wire racks for at least 5 minutes before serving. Any leftover biscuits should be allowed to cool completely and then stored in small airtight containers. If stored properly and quickly after cooling they can keep for several days.

Enjoy!

Notes:
I just love sourdough. In all forms, in all ways.

Other Places:

What was cooking one year ago?

Slow Cooker Ginger Beef

What was cooking two years ago?

Spicy Taco Mac and Cheese

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Spinach Artichoke Dip
Literally always a hit with a crowd

Ingredients:

• 1 Can Artichoke Hearts
• Roughly 3-4 Chopped Wilted Spinach
• 1/4 Cup Fresh Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 Cup Sour Cream
• 1 Cup Cream Cheese(at room temperature for 30 minutes)
• 1 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• 2-3 Cloves minced Garlic

Instructions:

1. If using fresh spinach, heat a skillet to medium heat. Chop the spinach roughly.
2. Add the spinach and about 1/4 cup of water, cover and steam the spinach until soft and wilted. Drain and excess water and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, add the Parmesan cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, mozzarella and minced garlic.
4. Drain the artichoke hearts from the liquid in the can. Roughly chop the artichoke hearts into smaller pieces. Add the diced artichoke hearts to the bowl with the other ingredients.
5. Using a large spoon stir and fold all ingredients until smooth, evenly blended and creamy.
6. You can now cover and set aside the dip until ready to serve. Or freeze in small containers to use at a later time.

To serve:

Oven

1. Pour the desired amount of dip into a small oven safe dish. Heat oven to 400°F. Bake for 30-40 minutes until hot, bubbly, and top might be slightly toasty in color.

Microwave

1. Pour desired amount of dip into a microwave safe dish, heat in microwave at normal settings 2 minutes at a time, stirring well after each round in the microwave. Once dip is hot and bubbling it is ready to serve.

Serve the dip hot with crackers, toast, pita chips, corn chips, veggies, just about anything really.
Enjoy!

Notes:
You can also cut a bowl shape into a large round loaf of bread and bake the dip inside the bread bowl to make it extra fancy. Just make sure to place the bread bowl on a baking sheet while it bakes in case some seeps out the bottom.

I often make a double batch of this dip, and portion it out into tupperware and freeze it so I always have a party snack on hand if guests drop in, and since it is tasty on everything from toast, to chips to crackers, I almost always have something in the pantry to serve it with.

Other Places:
What was cooking one year ago?

Sourdough Bread

What was cooking two years ago?

Butter Roasted Asparagus 

Overnight French Toast Bread Pudding

French Toast Bread Pudding
Ingredients:

• 1/2 Loaf day old bread
• 2-3 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 2 Tablespoons melted butter
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar or Maple Syrup
• 1-2 Teaspoons Vanilla
• Optional, 1/2 Teaspoon each of nutmeg and/or cinnamon

Instructions:

Night Before

1. Slice the bread into small cubes. In a large bowl add the bread cubes.
2. In a small bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, butter, sugar, vanilla and optional spices.
3. Pour the egg mixture over the bread cubes. Using a large spoon gently toss the bread with the eggy mixture to coat. Cover the bowl and chill over night.

Morning

1. Preheat oven to 375°F
2. Lightly mist a bread pan with cooking spray. 
3. Uncover the bowl of cubed bread and gently toss and turn the bread over. Pour the bread cubes into the prepared pan into an even layer.
4. Bake the bread pudding for about 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the top is golden brown and toasty.
5. Serve hot, with maple syrup if you like it extra sweet, or powdered sugar dusted over top.

Enjoy!

Other Places:

What was cooking one year ago?

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

What was cooking two years ago?

Brunch Skillet