Dairy-Free/Gluten-Free Chocolate Pudding

My household is temporarily dairy-free, so we've been trying out a variety of milk alternatives and vegan cheeses. It's been a good excuse for me to feed my husband weird foods that he otherwise wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole. Who knows, maybe he'll finally go to The Chicago Diner with me?

Anyhow, this was my attempt at making a dairy-free chocolate dessert for us to enjoy. Truth be told, my husband wasn't crazy about it ("this has the consistency of caulk" were his exact words). I ended up feeding him my back-up dessert, which was coconut milk ice cream. But I enjoyed this pudding. More for me ;)

I started by cutting up a package of soft tofu into a food processor.

Next I cut in two very ripe bananas and hit puree. After that was mixed I started to add in the good stuff: unsweetened cocoa powder and agave syrup. 

Honestly I am not sure of the amounts. I started with the cocoa powder and then added agave SLOWLY (it's very sweet) to balance out the bitter cocoa flavor. I also threw in some crunchy peanut butter for added flavor and texture. My husband thinks that I should have added either banana or peanut butter and not both, and in retrospect I think he's right. 

I chilled this for a few hours prior to serving. It would be delightful with whipped cream on top if, you know, you can eat dairy. I've seen recipes online that use avocado in place of tofu and I think that's a pretty brilliant idea to try out in the future.

Eat Your Veggies!

These days it feels like you can't turn around without seeing or hearing about "juicing." I love buying freshly-pressed juice from the food stands that pop up along Portland's boulevards. But I'm also not interested in "juicing" at home for a couple of reasons:

--juicing machines remove the pulp from juice, which effectively removes most of the fiber
--unless you save that pulp and turn it into another sort of snack, you are throwing away a LOT of food, and I hate wastefulness
--have you ever tried to clean a juicing machine? hell no.

So I've begun experimenting with making vegetable... puree (for lack of a better term) in my food processor. It's relatively quick and easy to prepare the puree and equally easy to clean the food processor afterwards. You retain all the fiber and vitamins contained in the vegetable roughage and nothing is wasted. I often use up odds and ends that are sitting in my refrigerator: droopy celery that tastes fine but has lost its crisp consistency, greens from beets/carrots/other veggies that might otherwise get tossed, or half-eaten fruit that my husband brought home in his lunchbox. I don't have a compost bin -- I live on the 25th floor of a high rise -- so this is a great way to put leftovers to good use.

I like to eat the puree by spoon out of a glass. It's remarkably filling -- much more so than simply a juice -- and always leaves me energized afterwards. Give it a try!


KALE-PEAR-GINGER PUREE
(single serving)

Cut up one Bartlett pear and 2" fresh ginger root and add to the food processor. Note that I don't bother to remove the skins; that is a matter of personal preference. The fruit and vegetable pieces do not need to be small, but you should cut them into a consistent size for ease of pureeing.

Add some liquid to the food processor or else you will end up with vegetable paste. For a single serving, I add around 1/4 cup of water plus freshly-squeezed lemon or lime juice.

Next add 4-5 pieces of kale. I really don't care for the way kale stems taste, so I use a knife to gently cut out the stem and throw it away.

I love the taste and smell of cilantro. Just grab a handful, wash it, and slice of the bottoms of the stems in one fell swoop, like so: 

Don't worry about removing the rest of the stems... they are edible, after all! Add the greens to the food processor and admire the lovely terrarium you've created. 

Hit the puree button! I let it run for 1-2 min, stop and scrape the bits down the sides of the bowl, and then puree again until done. When I stop to scrape the bowl, I also add in chia seeds (as seen below) or flax seeds. Nuts would also taste good.

Scrape the puree carefully out of the blender bowl and into a glass or bowl of your choice. I serve it room temperature, straight from the food processor, but you could also chill it prior to eating if that's your thing.

(that's Lake Michigan in the background!)


My basic puree recipe is:
-one fruit
-2-3 vegetables
-extra liquid (water/lemon/lime)
-fresh ginger
-chia or flax seeds

Beyond that, you can experiment as you wish! So far I have used apples, pears, celery, cilantro, parsley, spinach, kale, chard, and carrots. Once summer comes I plan to try out more fruits and vegetables and also experiment with herbs like mint and basil. What are you inspired to try?

Quinoa Pasta with Veal Sauce

The first time I perused the gluten-free pasta options at a grocery store, I was fairly depressed by what I saw. One box advertised "now with improved texture!!" as if to say "we know our product is crappy, but we made it marginally better!". My favorite gluten-free pasta is Ancient Grains quinoa pasta. It comes in a perky green box and I've been able to readily find it at chain grocery stores as well as, obviously, Whole Foods.

Quinoa pasta is not as bitter as plain quinoa but it is an acquired taste. And I've found that many pasta sauces straight from the jar do not mesh well with the flavor of the pasta. Something about the acidic tomatoes mixed with the quinoa just doesn't do it for my palate. When we were recently at my aunt's home in California, she served a lovely tomato sauce over quinoa pasta. I decided to hunt around for a similar recipe and decided to adapt Marcella Hazan's Simple Veal Pasta Sauce. It fits the bill nicely: flavorful, meshes well with quinoa pasta, light on tomatoes (which my husband doesn't like), and easy to make. I made a few changes to the recipe, so I've posted it below the way that I prepared it.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. quinoa pasta
• one 14.5 oz can of cut tomatoes, drained, or the equivalent amount of cut fresh tomatoes
• 3 T. butter (do not substitute if you can help it! the butter is delicious)
• 1 T. olive oil
• 1/4 c. chopped onion
• garlic
• 1/2 lb. ground veal
• sea salt & black pepper
• 1 T. dried rosemary
• 1 T. dried sage
• red wine
• 1/4 - 1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, add 2 T. butter and the olive oil at medium high. Add garlic (to taste) and the onion and cook gently until golden. 
2. Add the ground veal and brown it, using a spoon or spatula to break apart the chunks into smaller pieces.
3. Add the tomatoes, salt & pepper to taste, rosemary & sage (again, adjust the amounts to taste), and a dash of red wine. Turn the ingredients several times in the pan before turning the heat down to simmer. Cook for 15-20 minutes. Stir the contents periodically and add red wine to keep the meat from drying out. I probably added around 1/3 c. red wine in total. You can use cooking wine if you wish, but I simply added a red merlot that was already on hand. 
4. Once the sauce begins to simmer, start cooking your pasta in a separate pot. Drain and immediately mix with the sauce, while also adding the remaining tablespoon of butter and the grated cheese. Serve immediately. 

Sorry, no pictures... this was gobbled up! It makes 4 large servings. 

Vanilla Roasted Pears

I found this recipe on one of my favorite cooking blogs, Smitten Kitchen. Check it out to see the original recipe and drool over her far-superior photos. I made very few changes -- just subbed in maple sugar to make the recipe cane sugar-free, and used vanilla extract instead of vanilla beans because the grocery store was out of beans. I'd prefer to use the beans though. I used Bartlett pears but I'd love to try out other varieties as well.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. maple sugar
• 1/2 vanilla bean (I used around 2 t. of extract)
• 1 1/2 lbs. slightly-under-ripe pears, peeled if desired, halved stem to bottom and cored
• 2 T. lemon juice
• 2 T. water
• 2 T. unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Set the oven to 375 degrees. 
2. Place the sugar in a bowl. Using a knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape out the seeds into the bowl, and stir the seeds into the sugar. Or if you're using vanilla extract, add it to the sugar and stir.
3. Arrange the pears in a baking dish, cut side up. Drizzle them with lemon juice, followed by the sugar mixture. Nestle the vanilla pods among the fruit, if you're using them. Pour water into the bottom of the dish and lay small slabs of butter on each pear.
4. Roast for 30 minutes, basting occasionally with the pan juice. They smelled incredible every time I opened the oven! After 30 minutes, turn the pears over and continue roasting for another 25-30 minutes, basting several more times. The pears should be tender and caramelized. 
5. Serve warm with the buttery caramelized drippings from the pan. My husband ate his over strawberry ice cream, but I ate mine plain. Either way, these are delicious!

Processed Snack Foods

I am one of those people who becomes SUPER grumpy if I'm hungry. Years of stomach problems from being sick on gluten and potatoes means that when my stomach begins to hurt -- even if it's just a tiny bit of hunger pangs -- I immediately feel nauseous and want nothing to do with food, even though, ironically, that is what would solve my problem. My solution is to carry snacks with me when I leave the house; usually just a little baggie or wrapped bar -- something that fits nicely in my purse.

In my ideal world I would be making all my own snacks. There are lovely recipes for making your own pseudo-Lara Bars, for instance. And someday I will try those out. But let's face it, we don't always have the time or energy to deal with making our own snacks. Sometimes we need to just stride into the grocery store, pick something off the shelf, and start eating. Spend a little time browsing snack options in the gluten-free aisle and you'll quickly realize that most of them contain potato in some form, usually potato starch or xanthan gum. These are the snack foods that I've found to be both gluten-free and potato-free, as well as containing no processed cane sugar.

Lara Bars are essentially just dates and nuts. I stay away from the flavors with chocolate because they contain extra sugar. These are my favorite snack! Available at Whole Foods.

Mary's Gone Crackers are made from quinoa, sesame seeds, flax, and brown rice. They come in a variety of flavors, though I like the original flavor best. My father claims that they taste like "old Communion wafers from two Easters ago" but you can be the judge of that yourself. You can buy them at Whole Foods and Costco, and I have also discovered them at regular grocery stores as well in the gluten-free/natural foods section.

Flackers are made of flax and are considered a "raw" cracker. They also come in several flavors. I don't like them as much because the texture is pretty... flaxy, for lack of a better word. I find that I have to chew them an extra-long time before they go down. 

If you're craving something starchy but can't find either of the above crackers at the store, then I suggest heading for the rice cakes or corn chips (check the label to ensure they're gluten free). Both can be found at nearly any grocery store. 

You need a protein to go along with your crackers or flackers or whatever you want to call them. I like to buy Laughing Cow Babybel Cheese because I'm 99% sure they're full-fat (I mean, HELLO, tiny cheese wheels covered in wax!) - available at most grocery stores in the "fancy cheese" section. Or you can try freshly ground nut butters or Earth Balance peanut butter (sweetened with agave rather than sugar) at Whole Foods.

 (now why didn't I ever think to do this??)

Dried fruit and nuts are great options but many of them have added cane sugar, which I avoid. You also need to check that they aren't processed together with gluten products -- this is particularly the case with nuts. I really like the dried fruit at Traders Joes. My husband's favorite is "Just Mango," but I prefer the slab apricots. To each their own. 

If you find yourself at or near a Starbucks, you can purchase Peeled Snacks (sugar-free dried fruit) for a rather exorbitant price. 

(I somehow missed this day....)

So in summary: 

• make your own snacks if you can, since it's cheaper and healthier than processed food
• if you must be lazy like me, here are some options!

Cooking Resources Around the Web

My kitchen has cabinets!! That's real progress from yesterday. The remodel is slated to finish on Saturday and I cannot wait to get cooking again.

In the meanwhile, I've been spending time reading up on new recipes, so I thought I'd share a list of my favorite sites. This is hardly a comprehensive list of what's available around the Internet, but this is where I go most often for recipes and inspiration.

Gluten Free:

Gluten Free Girl

Gluten Free on a Shoestring

The Art of Gluten Free Baking

Lexie's Kitchen

Edible Perspective

Nourishing Meals

A Girl Defloured

Gluten Free Goddess

Primal/Paleo:

Nourish

Civilized Caveman

Everyday Paleo

Nom Nom Paleo

PaleOMG

The Clothes Make the Girl

Vegan:

Oh She Glows

Keepin' It Kind

Vegan Dad

Manifest Vegan

Have Cake Will Travel

Vegan Yum Yum

Post Punk Kitchen

And last but not least:

Mollie Katzen

Mollie is a cooking superstar who helped to bring vegetarian cooking into the mainstream

The Kitchn

general cooking blog with lots of cool recipes and information

Smitten Kitchen

wide variety of recipes with gorgeous photography

An Edible Mosaic & Love and Lemons 

food blogs that focus on overall body health but not a specific diet

Elana's Pantry

awesome! covers many different diets: gluten-free, paleo, dairy-free, nut-free, candida-free...

My Real Food Life

variety of recipes that are gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, sugar-free, soy-free
La Tartine Gourmande
includes some gluten-free recipes; beautiful photography and writing

Happy Hump Day!

Welcome to our newly-revamped blog layout. We took away the storm troopers (too visually distracting) but we had to leave a little Star Wars hanging around....