Thursday, March 12, 2009

Cornbread for two

I love cornbread! Even before this gluten-free trial, I have always loved cornbread. It can be sweet or salty, with fresh corn or without. And as you may know, it makes the BEST pizza crust imaginable.

To make enough just for two, use this recipe and your 6" cast iron skillet.

No need to preheat the skillet. Just preheat your oven to 400 degrees and gather your ingredients. (NOTE: You can also substitute 1/2 cup whole wheat flour in place of the tapioca and bean flours.)

INGREDIENTS
1/2 c cornmeal
1/4 c tapioca flour
1/4 c bean flour
1 t flax meal
2 T raw cane sugar
1 t chili powder
1/2 t salt
2 T water
1 T oil
1/2 c soy milk
1/4 c fresh or frozen corn

Mix all ingredients together except the frozen corn. The batter should be quite sticky. Then you'll add the corn. Mix thoroughly. Spray your cast iron skillet with a little oil and pour in your batter. It's a perfect fit for the 6" cast iron skillet.

Cook 20-22 minutes. Watch the top of the corn bread so it doesn't burn.

You'll love it!

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Raw chocolate strawberry pie

This was actually the easiest pie I've ever made! You'll need a food processor for the pie crust and a blender will make the pie filling amazingly smooth.

Gather your ingredients and spray the inside of your springform pan lightly with olive oil.

Crust ingredients:
1 T vanilla
1.5 c raw pecans
1/2 c raw almonds
14 dates

Blend all of the crust ingredients in the food processor until the nuts and dates are mostly ground and easily stick together when you squeeze them. You should be able to easily press this into your springform pie pan.



Pie filling:
2 c cashews, soaked
1/4 c sunflower seeds, soaked
1/2 c raw sugar (up to 1 c sugar if you prefer sweeter pies)
4-5 T raw cocoa
7 T water
5 dates
1 T vanilla

If you use a food processor, it'll take longer to blend but it works. If you have a blender, throw all of the ingredients together and blend until smooth and creamy! The pie filling will be thick, not runny.

Smooth over the pie crust you just made. You can place it in the freezer for 1/2 hour, then remove from the springform pan and place in the fridge.



Chocolate sauce:
3 T maple syrup
1 T raw cocoa

MIX WELL and store extra sauce in fridge.

I don't like to put fudge sauce or fruit on top of the pie until it's sliced and on a plate. That way your pie stays firm and your fruit stays fresh!



So, when you're ready to eat, slice a few strawberries (or bananas!) onto the plate and drizzle some homemade chocolate sauce right on top! It's delicious!



Monday, March 9, 2009

My version of the Cafe Rio salad

We were discussing what we missed about Salt Lake City and though there are only a few things.. the restaurants are definitely what we miss most! (Second would be the amazing city-wide bicycle lanes!)

Cafe Rio doesn't offer many vegan options but their regular Rio Salad was simply fantastic. They make the best cilantro-lime vinaigrette! I don't know exactly how they do it (but it probably involves a lot more oil than I want to put in my homemade dressing.) So, here is a lower-fat but still yummy version of that amazing dressing.

Dressing:

1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2 T olive oil
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 t celtic sea salt
dash of apple cider vinegar
dash of raw agave nectar
optional: T or a few of water

BLEND thoroughly. This makes enough for 2 large salads.



For the salad (this amount is for one person):

1 head of romaine lettuce, washed and sliced
1 roma tomato
1/2 avocado
1/4 - 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup cooked black beans
Fresh sprouts

Layer rice, beans and veggies on your plate. Pour on some dressing and enjoy! Squeeze an extra lime on top, if you're like me and you just can't get enough.



If you're like my husband and you prefer at least one fried side dish at every meal, it's easy to make your own fried corn strips (just like cafe rio!) and chips, if you want those, too. Just slice your corn tortillas and fry in oil. That's it! Top with salt and lime juice.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Simple, satisfying spring rolls

Spring roll wrappers
Sliced or julienned veggies: green leaf or romaine lettuce, carrots, cucumber, cabbage
Nuts
Sprouts
Optional: tofu

As soon as you have your ingredients ready, spring rolls take only a few minutes to make.. and they're delicious!

All you'll need is a place to put your completed spring rolls, something to wrap your spring rolls on and a shallow, large bowl to wet and soften the spring rolls.

Before you begin, fill the bowl with water and set aside.

With your ingredients ready, you're going to remove one spring roll wrapper from its package and place in the skillet full of slightly-warm water. Move it around so you get every piece of the wrapper wet, even the ends. After about 5-8 seconds place the wrapper on the plate with one corner facing toward you. Now you're ready to fill the wrapper.



Place a few veggies, sprouts and nuts about 2" from the tip of the wrapper facing you. When you've placed enough filling on the wrapper, you're ready to wrap!





To begin, roll the first corner in:



Now you'll want to pull in both sides:





Just roll it up!





Voila!

Wet rice paper sticks to everything.. so be sure you put the wrapper on the edge of the plate, so that air can flow around the spring roll. You want it to dry out a little before you eat it.

Continue this process until you've made as many rolls as you want! Serve with a side of peanut, tamari or soy sauce.



I love these!

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Starry fruit salad

Do you want to bring healthy dishes to your family potlucks ... but you're tired of the same old fruit salad everyone seems to bring?

Then be creative! Try using star fruit. They're inexpensive and easy to find.



The only thing you have to know is to slice on the edges of the fruit. Then, slice off the ends, too.



Now, slice down the fruit making each piece about 1/4 of an inch thick. Remove any seeds before adding to the salad. I like to save the star fruit until last, so they show on top!



Star fruit is great with grapefruits.. so peel and slice your grapefruits, removing any skin. (This will make them less bitter.) Squeeze the excess juice left on the rind directly onto the salad!

I also sliced oranges and added dark cherries (and any of their juice.)

Remember to use all fresh fruits.. not the canned and sugared variety. Your guests will love it!

Millet breakfast - YUM!

This is the easiest, yummiest warm breakfast you can make.

For two people:

1/2 cup millet
1 1/4 cup water
Fresh or frozen strawberries, raspberries or your favorite fruit
Optional: 1 t agave nectar or maple syrup

Bring water to a boil, then turn down to simmer. Cook for 15 minutes covered.

Now, stir and add your frozen fruit - lots of strawberries and raspberries are my favorite! Cook another 5 minutes with no lid. Stir occasionally and until desired consistency. I prefer it with just a little extra juice still in the pot.



Add agave nectar or maple syrup on top, if you prefer your breakfasts extra sweet. I think the fruit sweetens the millet just enough!

If you're tired of mushy oatmeal, try millet! It's very much like Irish Oatmeal (steel cut) - but ideal for anyone gluten-intolerant. Though trust me.. it's fantastic whether you're gluten-sensitive or not.

YUM!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Best corn pizza crust

If you've never had pizza on a corn crust, you're really missing out. It makes pizza taste infinitely better. We've tried frozen, store-bought (health food store) corn bread crusts and they're amazing. But we don't like to drive all the way to Fayetteville, AR.. the closest large health food store, so we've been trying out corn bread recipes as crusts. Granted, ours haven't been as crispy as the store bought ones, but they're still fantastic - and a lot less fattening than the store bought versions, of course.



Tonight's recipe uses a 9" cast iron skillet.

Ingredients:
DRY
3/4 c corn meal
1/4 c bean flour
1/2 t baking soda
1 t raw sugar
about 1/4 cup frozen or fresh corn
2 sun dried tomatoes, chopped
WET
1 t olive oil
1/2 T flax meal mixed with 1.5 T water (to create 1/2 an egg)
1/2-3/4 c soymilk

DIRECTIONS
Place about 1 T margarine or olive oil in skillet. Now, preheat oven and cast iron skillet to 350 degrees.

Mix all dry ingredients together. Mix. Now add flax-egg, oil and milk. Stir a few times. You want this to be chunky from the corn but also a pretty thin batter that you can pour. So add more or less milk as desired.

Take your heated skillet out of the oven and pour your pizza crust into it. Cook 10 minutes and remove from oven.

Now place sauce, toppings and vegan cheese on the crust. Spray lightly with olive oil and return to oven.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.



Remove from oven, cool a few minutes and slice. Serves 2-3 happy people!



I LOVE my pizza covered in hot red peppers. Enjoy with a great salad!