Brownies- Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Sugar-free

We have a friend visiting that is dairy free and chocolate free. So I decided to try these brownies before she arrived. I turned to Elishia's Kitchen again for this recipe!

Ingredients:

dry:
1 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour mix*
1 Cup carob powder
1 Tablespoons baking powder
1 Tablespoons ground flax seeds (or sold as flax seed meal)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum*
1/2 teaspoon salt

liquid:
3/4 Cup almond milk
6 Pitted dates, medjool preferred
2/3 Cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 Cup apple sauce
9 Drops stevia*
1/4 Cup maple syrup (agave would work too)
2 Tablespoon vanilla flavor, or use vanilla extract - just 1 Tbsp*

2 Eggs
1 Cup pecans, chopped

silky carob topping (optional) recipe below

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 
2. Lightly grease a muffin tin for a cupcake version or a 7x13” pan. You may choose a smaller pan if you want them thicker, just increase cooking time. 
3. In a large mixing bowl combine all of the dry ingredients together and mix well. Carob tends to clump up a bit - I like there to be some little bits (pea sized or smaller) of it in the finished product - so break up any large pieces with a whisk, otherwise just leave it alone. Set aside. 
4. Place the dates and almond milk in a blender and blend until the dates are pulverized. Add the rest of the liquid ingredients, except the eggs, and blend until combined. 
5. In a separate bowl whip the eggs together until there are air bubbles on top, and set aside. 
6. Add the blender contents and the eggs to the dry ingredients and mix well using a whisk until thoroughly combined. Gently stir in the pecans. 
7. Scrape all of the dough from the bowl into your baking pan and place in the oven. 
8. The muffin shape will take about 25 minutes to cook, and 35 minutes for the regular brownie pan. Rotate them in the oven half way through, and begin checking them 5 minutes before the stated done time. Poke with a toothpick, and remove them from the oven when the toothpick is still a bit damp on the end, but not raw. If you cook it longer, its fine, it will just be more like a cake and less like a brownie. If you like it more raw, its up to you! 
9. Allow them to cool somewhat before eating.  
10. Store in a tightly sealed container for up to three days or wrap tightly and freeze for up to one month. 

Silky Carob topping: 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp carob powder, 1/4 cup coconut oil, 1/4 cup agave, 1 Tablespoon vanilla flavor. Simmer, stirring til it bubbles. Remove from heat and let sit a few minutes. Spread on warm brownies with a spatula or pastry brush. This sauce would also be great on some almond or coconut ice cream (recipe coming soon!). enjoy!

optional:

1. Substitute 2 Tbsp of the flour with mesquite flour for a more chocolatey taste. 
2. If a bit of dairy isn’t an issue for you then you may add 1/2 cup of unsweetened carob chips along with the wet ingredients. 

Ingredient notes:

Bob’s Red Mill Gluten free all purpose flour mix: This mix is genius and if you are planning to do any gluten free baking or cooking I recommend that you pick up a bag.

Xanthan gum: This is the glue of gluten free baking. Without it your recipe will fall apart. It is a thickener and emulsifier. You may notice that a bag of it costs about $8 but each recipe only calls for a teaspoon or less and it has an infinite shelf life, so i’d get some and keep it around.

Stevia: Most people agree that the flavor of stevia is kind of gross. The only one I’ve found that’s not is the Vanilla Creme from Sweet Leaf. This is my go-to sweetener now and the way I use it is by combining it with other sweeteners to dramatically boost the level of sweetness without any taste. My husband in particular HATES the flavor of stevia! So I developed this combining method and even he cannot detect the stevia.  (don't tell him!)

Vanilla Flavor: I use the Vanilla Flavor from Frontier and it is a superior alcohol free product. It also has a great flavor that I love.

 **Jill's notes- We made them in a pan instead of a muffin tin. They were a bit crumbly. We didn't make the frosting. I thought they did a nice job for satisfying a chocolate craving without the chocolate. I gave one to a fitness trainer- she loved them.
Picture is from Elishia's Kitchen.

Sesame Noodles

Cold sesame noodles are a great dish to make in the summer. It is also a great camping dish. Just make the noodles and sauce before hand- put them in one container. Then put raw veggies cut into small pieces into a second container. Mix them when you are ready to eat. This recipe came from Epicurious.

yield: Serves 4 to 6

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar or white-wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar or granulated sugar, or to taste
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon Oriental sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 pound linguine or lo mein noodles
• chopped scallion and cucumber strips for garnish

Preparation

In a saucepan combine the soy sauce, the vinegar, the red pepper flakes, the brown sugar, the peanut butter, the oil, the ginger, and the broth, simmer the mixture, stirring, until it is thickened and smooth, and let it cool slightly. In a kettle of boiling salted water cook the noodles until they are al dente, drain them in a colander, and rinse them under cold water. Drain the noodles well, transfer them to a bowl, and toss them with the sauce. Serve the noodles at room temperature and garnish them with the scallion and the cucumber.

**I thought the peanut sauce was OK. I've had better. I used rice noodles. I lightly steamed broccoli and carrots. I put peanuts on top along with scallions. The dish was served slightly warmed.

Stir-fry Hoisin Sauce

Just as quiche is a staple at my house, filled with various ingredients, so do I consider stir-frys. The ingredients change with the seasons. Last night I started with big pieces of onion, then added diced carrots, sliced cabbage, leftover brown rice, and finished with tot soi.

I simmered the whole stir-fry in a hoisin based sauce and served it with peanuts on top.

 Hoisin Sauce

3 T hoisin sauce
2/3 C water
3 T rice vinegar
3 T tamari (wheat-free soy sauce)
1 T cornstarch

Mix the ingredients together and let it simmer for 3-4 minutes till it thickens.

This sauce comes from the Broccoli-Tofu Stir-Fry recipe from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home. If you want a great vegetarian cookbook, this is one of them. Fast, easy recipes with everyday ingredients.

**Hoisin is a sweet sauce- so be prepared. It was a bit sweet for me, but my husband loved it.

Spinach and Carrot Quiche

Quiche is a staple at my house. I use different ingredients each time I make it.

3 carrots, sliced and steamed for a few minutes
1/2 yellow onion, chopped and sauteed in coconut oil
3 good handfuls of spinach, washed and thrown onto the onions
4 eggs
Milk
Monterrey Jack
Cook at 365 for 40 minutes.

Here is a picture of the greens and onions.

Here is a picture of the quiche once it cooked.

Sunflower Seed Casserole

I have been meaning to try this recipe for some time, you can find it on Cooks Recipes. I am looking for a loaf that will taste nice as leftovers in a sandwich.

2 cups sunflower seeds
2 cups cashews
3/4 cup water
1 cup onion, finely chopped
1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped
5 cups cooked brown rice
2-1/2 teaspoon vegetarian broth powder
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt to taste

1. Finely grind the sunflower seeds in a food processor. Place them in a large bowl.
2. Blend together cashews and water in the food processor until smooth.
3. Combine all ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Place in a greased 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan. Bake at 325°F (160°C), covered, for 45 minutes. Remove cover and continue baking an additional 45 minutes.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

* I'll be putting this into a loaf pan.  

Going into the oven..

**Great loaf-not dry at all. I doubled the garlic powder. I didn't have the cashews, so I used 2/3 C soaked Brazil nuts and 1 1/3 C soaked almonds. I ended up putting it back in the oven because the middle was still mushy (the end was ok). It seemed like it needed a bit more salt, but since I steamed the broccoli with celtic sea salt, it seemed to balance it out. Next time, I'll add some herbs into the mix.

Chicken, Apple, Arugula, and Goat Cheese Salad

Looking for a way to use up the last of the arugula and an apple...realizing that I had a log of goat cheese in the cheese drawer... Google search can be a wonderful thing. This recipe can be found on the Simply Recipes site.

• Olive oil
• 1 large shallot, peeled and sliced
• 1 1/2 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
• Salt
• 1 tart green apple, thinly sliced
• Baby arugula leaves - enough for a salad for four
• 1/4 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup goat cheese - broken up into little pieces
• Lemon juice
• Salt and pepper

Method

1 Heat frying pan to medium heat. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and lightly sauté the shallot slices until translucent. Remove from pan. Add another tablespoon of olive oil and cook the chicken breast pieces, stirring occasionally, until just cooked through - 5 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle some salt on the chicken while you are cooking it. Remove from pan and chill.
2 When chicken has cooled, toss together in a serving bowl the shallots, chicken, sliced green apple, arugula, walnuts and goat cheese. Dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
Serves four.

**Delicious salad. I used a red wine vinaigrette, no shallot, and no chicken. I used a braeburn apple.

Mac n Cheese- Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free

Wow- Elishia's kitchen has been an amazing place for recipes. I have a friend coming to visit who is dairy-free, so I wanted to have a nice dish for her. So I turned to Elishia's blog, once again, for some help. Here is her recipe for Mac n Cheese- gluten-free and dairy-free.

Cooking time: 20 minutes, not including making the almond milk

serves: 3-4

Ingredients:

3/4 pkg Tinkyada brand fusilli brown rice pasta, you could also use elbows or penne, but I prefer fusilli for this recipe

Sauce:

2 tablespoons ghee (olive or grape seed oil will work too)

1/2 of a small yellow onion, finely diced

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons Quinoa flour

1 cup thick homemade almond milk  (recipe follows)

1 pinch of nutmeg

1 pinch of dried thyme, crush it between your fingers as you add it

1/8 teaspoon turmeric, or a good pinch

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon of a quality sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Boil pasta according to instructions on package. Don’t over cook it! Drain, rinse briefly and toss with one tablespoon of olive or grapeseed oil. You’ll want to use the pasta while it’s still hot, so to time it out so that you’ll have the sauce ready you’ll want to start the sauce just after adding the pasta to the water.
2. To make the sauce: In a saucepan gently warm the ghee and add the onion, cook over medium heat until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and keep cooking 2 more minutes
3. Add the quinoa flour and stir continuously with a wooden spoon for 3-4 minutes, until the color darkens just slightly.
4. Begin adding the almond milk about 1/4 cup at a time, each time stir until it is thoroughly combined. As the sauce thins, begin to use a whisk to incorporate the almond milk. Once it’s all been added then whisk it for a minute over medium heat to make sure that no lumps remain.
5. Add the nutmeg, thyme, turmeric, nutritional yeast and salt. Continue to cook for a few minutes, until the sauce bubbles and begins to thicken. Taste and adjust the seasonings if necessary.
6. In a large bowl toss together the pasta and the sauce. Grind a little fresh pepper on top and serve immediately. Although the rest of what I made was eaten out of the fridge cold (not mentioning names), and got rave reviews that way too.

Kitchen notes: Recipe easily doubles. Just don’t double the salt, turmeric or nutmeg, add the amount called for here and add more to your taste. Add the turmeric in tiny pinches till the color is appealing. If you have extra sauce it can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. To re-heat put a 1/4 cup of water or almond milk in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add in the cold sauce a few spoonfuls at a time, whisk to combine. Keep over medium low heat, whisking frequently, until heated through and serve immediately.

Almond milk: Soak one cup of almonds overnight. Drain and place in a blender with 3 cups of water. Blend 2 minutes on high speed. Strain through a mesh strainer or a cheesecloth. Squeeze out as much of the milk as you can. You can re-use the leftover almond pulp to make a 2nd batch of almond milk if you like, but it will not be thick enough for this recipe, so keep them separate.

CHEF’S NOTE: Buy yourself a nut milk straining bag. This $5 item is available at most health food stores and on amazon.  It makes an already easy process about 10 times easier and you’ll be able to get way more almond milk from the pulp. You can use a kitchen strainer and push the almond milk through with the back of a spoon or use cheesecloth.

PS. Several people have already asked me if you can use the almond milk from the box and get the same result. Sorry, the answer is no. That almond milk is very thin and will not produce a creamy sauce. You’re skipping the cheese for goodness sake – you will have to add in elbow grease instead.

*I used spelt instead of quinoa flour. I made the almond milk in a Soyabella. (Great investment if you are prone to making your own soy or raw nut milks). I used the whole package of pasta and increased the nut milk a bit.

**Great dish. We needed a bit more salt to bring out the flavors. Everyone gave it a thumbs up. I can't wait to see what my friend thinks!