Category Archives: Projects

Almost Raw Choco-Coconut Macaroons

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I’ve been wanting to make macaroons at home ever since I was introduced to Hail Merry products – I love the simplicity of the ingredients they use.  I’ve been on the hunt for a recipe for weeks, and after many google searches and reading up about traditional macaroons, this recipe turned out perfectly.

This recipe calls for shredded coconut (unsweetened, of course), agave nectar (I had some hand that I’ve been wanting to use up – you could use maple syrup instead – and this is also the reason why I call this recipe almost raw – it all depends on your choice of sweetener and whether you consider agave to be raw or not), coconut oil and raw cacao nibs.

Here are the four ingredients before I mixed everything together.

I used a tablespoon measuring spoon to form the macaroons – a melon baller would also work great.

And here’s my stash of macaroons in my cookie jar – wonder how long they will last?!

Ingredients

Yields 30 to 35 macaroons

  • 3 cups shredded coconut, unsweetened
  • 3/4 cup raw cacao nibs (you could also use cocoa powder)
  • 3/4 cup agave nectar (or maple syrup)
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  1. Mix the shredded coconut and cacao in a large bowl.
  2. Mix the coconut oil and agave nectar until the oil is completely melted and blended.
  3. Stir the liquid ingredients into the coconut – you may need to use your hands to get it completely mixed together.
  4. Form a ball using a tablespoon measure or melon baller – you will need to pack it into the spoon tightly – if the mixture is too dry and not sticking together add a teaspoon of water at a time to increase the moisture only to the point that it will allow it all to remain intact.
  5. If you have a dehydrator, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for what setting would be best. My oven has a dehydrator setting, so I lined a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread out the macaroons evenly, leaving a few inches between each macaroon to ensure enough airflow – I left the temperature at 105F for about 12 hours. If you don’t have either option, just leave the macaroons in your oven for about 24 hours with the oven light on. You want the macaroons to be dry to touch, but a little bit of moisture left provides a bit of chewiness that I like.

Gluten-Free Breakfast Options – Miso Soup

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It has been three months since I made the drastic change of switching to a gluten-free diet. When I initially made the switch, I honestly didn’t expect to experience many changes – however, what always seemed like a few extra pounds to me actually turned out to be a lot of inflammation that seemed to go away as the weeks progressed.

So here I am, fortunate enough to not have celiac, but obviously having some sensitivity to wheat/gluten – I’m committed to sticking with this diet for at least a little while longer. One of the things I miss most though is having savoury items for breakfast – I used to have toast with cream cheese or English muffins with butter, but now, it seems like I’m always having sweeter breakfasts – yogurt with fruit and granola, oatmeal with peanut butter and bananas or a smoothie.

Thus, trying out miso soup for breakfast – it is a staple in the Japanese diet, so why not try it myself? Miso is actually a great option to have in the morning, as it is improves your digestion and metabolism for the day. When buying your miso, look for an unpasteurized, organic version to gain all of the probiotic benefits. I picked up a tub of Cold Mountain Red Miso to keep in my refrigerator from Whole Foods a few weeks ago.

This morning’s soup had mushrooms, green pepper, chives and nori (I didn’t have any wakame in the house, so I just cup up pieces of nori). It took under 10 minutes to make (and if I had prepped my veggies the evening before, it would have been even faster).

Ingredients

  • 6 small button mushrooms, chopped
  • 1/2 green bell pepper
  • pinch sea salt
  • pinch black pepper
  • 1-1/2 cups water
  • 2 tbsp chopped chives
  • 1/2 sheet nori, cut into strips
  • 1 tbsp red miso
  1. Saute the veggies, salt and pepper in a tablespoon of water, until softened.
  2. Add the water and bring to a boil.
  3. Once water is boiling, mix in chives and nori.
  4. Turn the heat off, and stir in miso – it is important to do this last to ensure that the excessive heat doesn’t break down the beneficial enzymes in the miso.

At first, I was going to pour my soup into a travel mug and take it to go, but it was a cool, fall morning, and I decided I would enjoy it more if I savoured the steamy goodness in a bowl at home – I’m glad I took the extra few minutes for myself this morning.

Avocado Chocolate Mousse

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I was looking for a nutritious dessert to pack for a whale watching excursion and decided to make an avocado chocolate mousse.  Not only is this recipe gluten-free, it can also be vegan if you opt for a sweetener other than honey.

The secret to the recipe is to have perfectly ripe avocados – that point where they have just turned soft and are bright green in colour. A slightly underripe avocado will not give you the texture you need to make this creamy delight.

Ingredients

  • 4 ripe avocados
  • 1/2 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder (I used Frontier Organic Fair Trade Cocoa Powder)
  • 2 tbsp honey – I used a local honey
  • 4 tbsp agave nectar (or more to taste)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tbsp strong brewed coffee (I opted to dissolve 2 tsp of Dandy Blend in the almond milk)
  • 1/4 cup almond milk
  • 1/4 cup melted semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
  • sliced almonds and/or shredded coconut and/or any other toppings you would enjoy
  1. Mix the honey, agave nectar, vanilla, coffee and almond milk in a glass measuring cup.
  2. Peel and seed avocados and place them in the food processor. Pulse 4 to 6 times to break down the avocado.
  3. Add in the cocoa powder and pulse a few additional times.
  4. Add the liquid mixture to the food processor – pulse a few times and add in the melted chocolate chips if using.
  5. Run the food processor on high until a creamy, mixture is formed – make sure there are no hidden avocado lumps and scrape down the mixture if necessary along the way. Taste the mousse at this point – you may need to add more agave nectar or honey to taste.
  6. Place mousse in serving dishes and sprinkle with your toppings of choice – refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

I packed our picnic mousse into small canning jars, topped them with sliced almonds and shredded coconut. As much as I was looking forward to having the mousse on the boat, seasickness got the better of me, so I’m having this yummy delight now as I type this blog post – better late than never :) .

Gluten Free and Eggless Homemade Bread

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I’ve been on the hunt for a store-bought, eggless, gluten free bread because I’ve been craving a slice of toast for weeks now (especially since my boss gave me a jar of her homemade plum jam – that jam is phenomenal!). I finally found a loaf at Whole Foods, but it was $9 for a very small loaf of bread! I like fun food finds as much as the next person, but that just seemed too steep for me. I decided it was time to pull out my bread machine and start googling like a mad woman.

Just so you know, it was just as difficult to find a recipe online – the vegan recipes I did find required so many different flours that I just didn’t want to add to my pantry at this time. I finally came across the following recipe, and the bread turned out fantastic.

Ingredients

  • 1 3/4 cup warm (110°) water
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 Tbsp honey
  • 1 3/4 cup GF all-purpose flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill GF All-Purpose Flour)
  • 3/4 cup tapioca flour (or arrowroot powder – same thing)
  • 1/2 cup brown rice flour
  • 1 Tbsp xanthan gum
  • 2 1/2 tsp rapid rise yeast
  1. Mix the all-purpose flour, tapioca flour, brown rice flour, and xanthan gum in a medium bowl until well combined. Set aside.
  2. Add the water, oil, salt, and honey to the bread machine in the order listed. Gradually add the flour mixture to the machine. Make a small well in the center of the flour (make sure no liquid pokes through) and add the yeast into the well.
  3. Set the machine for either the white or basic bread cycle (or the gluten free cycle if your machine has it) and a medium crust. Also, unless the size is preset, set the size to 2 lb.
  4. Remove the bread from the machine and let stand in the pan for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove the bread from the pan to a wire rack and allow to cool at least 30 – 45 minutes before slicing.

I’m enjoying a slice of this bread toasted with Spring Hill butter and plum jam (and a cuppa Earl Grey of course).  I’m going to have to maintain some level of control with that whole loaf of bread waiting for me…the possibilities are endless right now!

Gluten-Free Cauliflower Pizza Crust (Just more ways to pretend like you’re not really eating cauliflower)

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Yes, my gluten-free experiment continues – and no, I have not cheated (although it took everything I had to not have a piece of buttered toast for breakfast on Sunday).

I decided to try out a gluten-free pizza crust recipe I had found that was made with cauliflower (yes, cauliflower again). I don’t know if I would call this recipe a success just yet, but I think with a bit of tweaking, it could taste really good (I’ll talk about some changes I’d make at the end of my post).

Ingredients

  • 1 head of cauliflower
  • 1/2 cup of soft goat cheese, softened (if you want a vegan option, try using Tofutti Cream Cheese)
  • 1 flax egg (2 tbsp ground flax mixed with 6 tbsp water)
  • 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  1. Start by running the washed and trimmed cauliflower through your food processor – you should end up with fine pieces that look almost grain-like.
  2. In a large pot, add about 1 inch of water and bring to a boil. Add the cauliflower, lower the heat and place a lid on the pot – simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. In a clean dishcloth, strain the steamed cauliflower and allow it to cool. Once it is cool to touch, squeeze all the excess water out of the cauliflower – there will be a lot. Even when you think you’ve completely drained it, try again.
  4. In a bowl, knead the cauliflower, goat cheese, flax egg and sea salt until the mixture is all uniform – don’t even bother to do this with a spatula – get your hands dirty!
  5. Line a pan with parchment paper and pat the mix down into a crust – parchment paper is really important – don’t skip this step.
  6. Bake the crust at 400F for about 35 minutes – you may need longer if the crust still seems moist.
  7. Top with your favourite toppings and bake until the vegetables cook and cheese melts (I put it in for another 10 minutes).

Next time I try this recipe, I’m going to season the crust a lot more – it could have used a bit more flavour to mask the cauliflower taste. I might even add minced garlic and sea salt to the water when steaming the cauliflower. The huz was not a fan (but lucky for him, I had made a “regular” pizza as well). I think this deserves another shot, and it is definitely a better option than the highly processed gluten-free items available at the grocery store.

Just Another Foodie Experiment – Trying a Gluten-Free Diet

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If you are a regular reader of this blog, I’m sure you’ve figured out that I love trying out different experiments with my diet to see what works well for me.  There was my vegan experiment last year (which didn’t last), and this year, I tried eliminating soy, which has worked out well for me.

The huz has done an amazing job of getting back into shape and one of the things he did to get there was almost eliminate gluten from his diet.  I’m up for the challenge, but of course, there has to be some rules:

  1. Going gluten-free doesn’t mean I’ll be looking for easy store-bought substitutes – especially since I’m such a sucker for toast with butter for breakfast.  I have to do this by getting creative enough to not need those items in my diet.
  2. I’ll include oats in my diet – while these are generally excluded from a gluten-free diet, most references indicate that it is an issue of cross-contamination of grains that make oats not safe for those with celiac disease.
  3. My one packaged cheat item will be Pure Organics or Larabar bars (gluten-free/raw/vegan for the most part) – I’m traveling for work quite a bit these days, and I think it is a lesser evil if I have these available for a snack.
  4. I’ll allow a baked good cheat day in the event of a birthday or special occasion.
  5. I won’t create a fuss about this if I am having a meal with friends/family.

I’m fortunate enough that I don’t actually have any issues with gluten, so obviously, any accidental consumption won’t be an issue.  That being said, I’ll be watching ingredient labels like a hawk (which I’m guessing will end up with me not eating many packaged foods – not that I eat much of that in the first place).

I’m hoping this diet change will help me tip over the edge on those last 10 pounds that just won’t leave me alone.  And of course, I’m looking forward to sharing new recipes I try along the way (here’s a start with recipes I already had on the blog). Wish me luck on my 60-day challenge, which conveniently ends just before our 11th wedding anniversary!

Pizza Dough Experiments – Barley Flour

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This weekend, I decided to try mixing in some barley flour into my whole wheat pizza dough recipe (well, it’s not really my recipe, I got it from this blog).  Barley flour still contains gluten (but is lower in gluten than whole wheat flour) so obviously is not an appropriate choice for those with gluten sensitivities – but it is very high in fiber and an alternative to always using wheat.

The low gluten content makes it a good flour to mix in with other flours when baking something that needs to rise.  In my recipe, I used 2 cups of whole wheat flour and 1.5 cups of barley flour in my pizza dough.  It resulted in a very rustic looking crust that wasn’t as easy to work with, but the nutty flavour of the barley came through.  I also added a spring of minced rosemary and green garlic into the dough which made the crust much more flavorful.

I must confess, it was also a great way to use up the barley flour I have in my pantry – I’m starting to run low on whole wheat flour and this helped me with my “Make It Do” project.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups 100% whole wheat flour and approx 1/2 cup for dusting
  • 1 1/2 cups barley flour
  • 2 teaspoons of honey
  • 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon of table salt
  • 1 tablespoon of active dry yeast
  • 1 1/2 cups warm water approx 110 degrees
  • 3 tablespoons of ground flax seed (optional)
  • 1 spring fresh rosemary leaves, minced
  • 2 stalks green garlic, minced
  1. Dissolve the honey into the warm water in a medium sized bowl.
  2. Sprinkle the yeast on top of the water. Set your timer for 10 minutes (if the yeast is active, it will foam up in 10 minutes).
  3. Once the yeast is ready, mix in the oil, salt and herbs
  4. In a wide, shallow bowl, mix the flour with the ground flax. Slowly pour in the water and knead the dough into a ball.
  5. Cover the bowl with a towel, or instead, cover it with an inverted pizza pan (which is what I chose to do).
  6. Place the bowl in a warm area for a couple of hours to allow it to rise. My oven has a bread proofing setting which worked wonderfully. I’m sure you could warm up the oven to its lowest setting and then turn it off and use the residual heat to proof your dough (make sure you allow enough time for the oven to cool so it doesn’t cook the dough.
  7. Roll out your dough and place on a lightly oiled pizza pan.  Top with your favourite toppings and bake at 450F for 11 to 12 minutes.

This weekend’s pizza was topped with homemade pizza sauce, mozza, arugula, mushrooms, onions and green peppers.  I think this recipe would taste great with the crust made on a barbecue (but you’ll have to try it for yourself and let me know how it goes because we got rid of our rarely used barbecue).

Make It Do – Status Update #1

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This particular update isn’t going to be that exciting…I posted a picture of my pantry in my kickoff post and as you may have been able to tell, I’m not about to run out of grocery any time soon.

I also think I did fairly well in not buying any extras – we did have friends visiting over the weekend, and I almost managed to feed them with food I had in the house.  I used dried green lentils, potatoes, onions and garlic in the moussaka I made (but did have to go out to buy eggplants and zucchini); I had all the ingredients at home to make tzatziki (including delicious green garlic from our garden), but did have to buy some whole wheat pita; for dessert I was able to make lemon bars and cherry chocolate ice cream (I bought cream from the store, but I didn’t really have to confess that since it is an allowable item on my list).  I also had enough ingredients to make a butternut squash lasagna (using the leftover filling from the raviolis I had made – I had frozen the extra).

I feel a little bit guilty about confessing all of this to folks who were inadvertently part of my experiment this weekend.  But I think they walked away well fed :) .

I think this project will get more exciting once I start running out of things.  So far, it has been a little too easy!

Vegan Lemon Bars (Soy Free!)

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I love lemon bars.

You should love them too.

I added Meyer lemons to my CSA delivery this week – I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do with them, but I ended up making lemon bars yesterday.  My second option was to make a marmalade that a reader had posted in blog comments but I opted for the lemon bars because we had friends in town, and everybody should have the opportunity to indulge in lemon bars.

I used to have a lemon bar recipe that used tofu as the base, but I’ve made a conscious decision to eliminate soy from my life in as many areas as possible – I generally feel better when I avoid soy.  This does put a damper on a lot of vegan recipes – luckily, a dear friend reminded me of the lemon bar recipe in Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar which uses agar instead of tofu as the binder.  I’ve used agar in the past haven’t had any consistent luck with it.  This recipe called for agar flakes though – it took longer to dissolve, but it set much better than agar powder, in my opinion.

I took a few liberties with the recipe: I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all purpose flour in the crust; I made my own powdered sugar for the crust by pulsing granulated sugar in the food processor (I was out of powdered sugar and in keeping with the Make It Do spirit, I improvised).  The food processor worked perfectly fine to allow the sugar to blend into the crust, but it wasn’t fine enough to sprinkle on top.  Personally, I think the lemon bars looked fine without the sugar. I also opted for almond milk instead of soy milk.

Next time I make these lemon bars, I think I would cut back on the crust to make it thinner, or increase the quantity on the lemon mixture. Not that it will change the fact that I’m about to indulge in one right now.

Ingredients

  • 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour)
  • 2/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 1 cup nonhydrogenated margarine
  • 3 tbsp agar agar flakes
  • 1-1/3 cups water
  • 1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest (I used Meyer lemons)
  • 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp arrowroot powder (or tapioca starch)
  • 1-1/4 cups sugar
  • 1/8 tsp turmeric
  • 1/4 cup soy milk (I used almond milk to make this recipe soy-free
  1. Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease a 13×9 inch baking pan.
  2. Pulse flour, powdered sugar and cornstarch in a food processor. Add in margarine a few spoonfuls at a time and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
  3. Press the mixture into the pan – refrigerate for about 30 minutes and then bake for 40 minutes. Allow the crust to cool.
  4. In a sauce pot, soak the agar agar in the water for 15 minutes.
  5. Zest your lemons and squeeze your lemon juice. Mix the arrowroot powder into the lemon juice to dissolve.
  6. After the agar agar has soaked, turn the heat up and bring to a boil for 10 minutes (or until the agar is completely dissolved). Add the sugar and turmeric, boil until dissolved (approx 3 minutes).
  7. Lower the heat to medium and add the arrowroot powder mixture, then add the lemon zest and soy milk. Whisk constantly until the mixture thickens (about 5 minutes). It should only be bubbling lightly at this point.
  8. Pour the mixture into the crust and allow it to cool for 20 minutes. Refrigerate for 3 hours before serving.

Make it Do (in the kitchen)

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I recently came across a blog called Make It Do, where the author is planning a year of using up what she already owns and not buying anything new (with some exceptions of course). I found this so refreshing in a day and age of overconsumption and attachment to material things. It inspired me to implement this in my own life, but in the one place it would hit me the most – my kitchen.

I’m such a sucker for new food products and gadgets, and I must confess, my pantry and freezer are overflowing with items. I am sure that we could survive a pretty long time without having to purchase anything, so I’m going to give it a shot and see how long I can go without buying anything for my kitchen.

Of course, there will be exceptions so here are some ground rules:

  1. Perishables such as milk, cheese and yogurt will be allowed.
  2. Replenishing daily supplements (ie. vitamins, protein powder) are ok.
  3. If we have dinner guests or house guests, additional shopping will be allowed, but the real challenge would be to try to “Make It Do”
  4. My CSA delivery will continue every week, but I will stick to the 6 items I have signed up for every week.
  5. Produce items that are staples in our diet that aren’t available through my CSA are allowed – but I’ll keep you posted on what those items are so you keep me honest.

This will be quite easy in the beginning I’m sure as my pantry is full of legumes, beans and grains – it will get more interesting as I start to use up items. I’m sure it will be quite eye-opening to see what I actually do use on a regular basis vs what just takes up space in my pantry and freezer. I also see a lot of bread-making in my future (I bought a lot of ingredients when I got my bread machine…let’s just say I haven’t been putting a lot of it to use).

I think I already may have a breaking point – I’m almost out of my favourite Earl Grey Tea – we’ll see how long I can last with my other tea chest options.  It will be interesting to put a stop to my Amazon Prime One-Click habit!

Hmm…perhaps I should have consulted with the huz before deciding to implement this – or maybe he won’t notice? :)