Embarking on Baking!

As you can probably discern from my recipe page, I'm not haven't been much of a baker lately. Without using pre-packaged mixes, GF baking has been a bit of an enigma for me. I dont like to use a lot of random ingredients that are usually found in the mixes, and the mixes that are legit are pretty pricey. Lately, though, I've been cultivating my culinary side.......

I made these grain-free Lemon-Blueberry Muffins today.... I wish you could smell my kitchen right now. These muffins are awesome. I love the lemon-blueberry combo and they turned out super moist- I'm giving credit to the blueberries!

The muffin craze didn't end there. One mix that I do like is Breads From Anna, but they don't sell them anywhere around here. I usually stock up at Whole Foods when I'm visiting my parents. I realized that I had a Cranberry Muffin Mix in the back of my cupboard. They turned out good, but I popped them all in the freezer for our upcoming camping trip before I took any pictures. I'll let you know how they taste after they're thawed!

Oh, but I didn't stop at just muffins. I also made these grain-free Chocolate Almond Joy Bars. I used Enjoy Life brand chocolate chips, making them soy and dairy-free too! They turned out more cake-like than bar-like, but one thing I can say for sure.... I'll be making them again soon!

I wish I could promise that this will be the last cheesy grin you will see, but that would be a lie.

See the long hair? I have a pretty solid pattern of cutting my hair short, then growing it out, then cutting it short, then growing it out. Case in point...

Hair cut, with bangs...

He loves getting his picture taken, can't you tell?

Any favorite grain-free baking recipes to share?

WIAW: Spicy Black Bean Burgers and Cilantro-Lime Cabbage Slaw

What a beautiful sunrise to wake up to! I feel so blessed to be two blocks from this amazing view!

  

Its Wednesday, and you know what that means...

Thanks Jenn!

My day started out amazing all around. My husband made coffee before he left for work, so I came downstairs to a cuppa java (not pictured).

If you've been following along, you may have read that things had been getting pretty stressful for me. Things have completely calmed down and I'm enjoying summer, fresh lilacs blooming next to our deck, and those beautiful sunrises!

After my cup of coffee, I visited with a friend and her new baby. We shared Leanne's Strawberry-Cinnamon Shortcake Sandwiches. I made the coconut cream, but cheated on the strawberry filling. I just marinated fresh strawberries in a little bit of sweetener, lemon juice, and a touch of balsamic vinegar. My picture didn't turn out as pretty as hers, but they tasted amazing. A++. 

In the afternoon, I made some fridge-pickles. These are patiently sitting in the back of my fridge. Keep your fingers crossed, this was my first time making them!

 I seem to have been on a roll with Leanne's recipes. I made a HUGE batch of her Vegan Sour Cream and Chive Kale Chips. I used a leek instead of the chives because thats what I had, and I just skipped her version of "bacon" all together. Oh my gosh. This took my love of kale chips to a whole new level. I ate them all in one sitting. That's two large batches of kale. For lunch. 

For dinner we had Spicy Black Bean Burgers, topped with freshly sprouted clover seed, avocado, and Cilantro-Lime Cabbage Slaw on Un-Muffins.

The un-muffins weren't really working for me as a sandwich bun, but my husband gave it a thumbs up. I ended up eating mine open faced, with just one half of the un-muffin. I think I'll need to work on coming up with something a little less dense for next time.

 Spicy Black Bean Burgers:

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 bell pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, peeled

1 egg

1 tbsp chili powder

1tbsp cumin

1 teas hot sauce

1/2 cup almond flour**

In medium bowl, mash beans with fork (or hands) until thick and pasty and most beans are mostly mashed. In food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic (careful not to over-process, you want it to still be kinda chunky). Add to the beans. In small bowl, stir together egg, cumin, chili powder and hot sauce. Stir egg mixture into beans. Mix in almond flour until mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four parts, forming burgers with your hands. 

Grill or cook burgers (375 degrees for 8-10 minutes on each side).

These burgers hold together better if they are frozen first. No need to thaw before cooking.

**almond flour can easily be substituted for any type GF flour or GF bread crumbs. You may need to alter the amount slightly until you get a consistency that is sticky and will hold together to form patties.

Cilantro-Lime Cabbage Slaw:

1/2 head red cabbage, chopped

2 carrots, shredded

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro

1 heaping tbsp tahini

2 tbsp mayo or veganaise

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp lime juice

Combine chopped cabbage and shredded carrots in a bowl. In food processor or blender, combine jalapeno, cilantro, tahini, mayo, vinegar, and lime juice. Add contents of blender to cabbage/carrot. Best if marinated for 2 hours, serve chilled. 

I topped my burger with red clover seeds that I had just sprouted, avocado, and the cabbage slaw and had a little more on the side. Such a good combination!

These recipes were included in Slightly Indulgent Tuesday.

The Un-McMuffin.

Hello friends!

When it comes to breakfast, I'll take savory over sweet any day. (Okay, most days...have you seen Alaina's pancake concoctions? Those are worth making exceptions for!) Eggs, fruit and veggie smoothies, sweet potato hash... these are more my style than sugary treats first thing in the morning. Lately, my breakfast has been looking something like this:

A couple weeks ago, my friend Dr. Christine from Health is Simple passed along a recipe for gluten free English muffins. I played around with it a little and came up with my own version.

When it comes to gluten free breads, things can get a little complicated. Some recipes call for 5 or more different kinds of flours, or completely obnoxious ingredients (can you say xanthan gum? um, what and why?). For the longest time, this really scared me away from making GF bread in my kitchen. Personally, I don't like to buy a bunch of random flours that I probably wont use much of anyway, and I only want to use whole-food ingredients (as opposed to something that was created in a science experiment). This recipe covers all the pre-reqs for GF baking in my kitchen..... oh, and perhaps I should mention that there isn't even any baking involved! :)

Gluten Free English un-Muffin. 

1/2 cup almond flour
1.5 cups tapioca flour
1/4 tsp sea salt 

1/4 cup nut milk

1 egg.

Directions:

Combine flours and salt. In a seperate bowl, lightly whisk milk and egg. Slowly blend milk/egg mixture into flour mixture. 

 Form into 3 inch rounds. Its helpful to keep your hands wet, this will prevent the dough from sticking to your hands. (Will make 3-5 rounds, depending on size). Cook in skillet with oil - turn once. They're done when each side is slightly browned. Let cool and carefully cut in half lengthwise.

If you are not going to be using all of the muffins right away, its easier if you cut them just after cooking and then re-heat (toast) just before serving. 

So far I've used these un-muffins for breakfast sandwiches, as a vehicle to transport home-made jam into my mouth, and slathered with maple-cinnamon almond butter. Oh, the possibilities!

I hope there is sunshine and summertime where you are!