Lighter and Fluffier

A Saturday morning! I found one....

Pancakes. You know you want them. My man of 10,000 miles away mentioned he wanted some last night via Skype, and I thought it sounded like a pretty great idea. So here they are. Grain free, and I actually got them fluffy this time around! I borrowed the recipe from nourishingdays, a really lovely blog you should read HERE.

Coconut Flour Pancakes

• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup coconut milk or 3/4 cup cream + 1/4 cup whole milk (best) or 3/4 cup whole milk yogurt + 1/4 cup whole milk (good)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• coconut oil or butter for frying

Directions

1. Preheat griddle over medium-low heat. In a small bowl beat eggs until frothy, about two minutes. Mix in milk, vanilla, and honey.
2. In a medium-sized bowl combine coconut flour, baking soda, and sea salt and whisk together. Stir 3/4 of wet mixture into dry until coconut flour is incorporated. Allow to sit for 3-5 minutes.
3. At this stage your batter should be thick, almost like brownie batter. If it is still fairly thick and dry add the rest of the wet mixture.
4. Melt the coconut oil in the hot pan and fry pancakes about 2 minutes each side. I ate mine with butter and honey.

This post has been lighter and fluffier than my recent ones, which I'm sure some of you are glad about. It's ok to admit it, my brain was starting to hurt too. Sometimes God teaching us something is weighty words, and revelations.... other times its pancakes. 

Grapefruit and Rosemary Chicken

Grapefruit and Rosemary Chicken 

4 bone-in, split chicken breasts
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon olive oil
1 shallot, minced
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup grapefruit juice
grapefruit segments [optional]
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon rosemary, minced
1 tablespoon coconut butter
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 450. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12 inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook until deep golden, about 5 minutes.

Transfer the chicken, skin side up to a plate.

Pour off all the fat in the skillet except for 1 tablespoon and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add the shallot and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, grapefruit juice, and any accumulated chicken juice and simmer until reduced to 1/2 cup, 4-6 minutes. Stir in grapefruit segments [if using] and 1 tablespoon of honey and simmer for 30 seconds. Off the heat, stir in rosemary and butter and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the chicken and remaining juices to the pan and simmer until chicken is tender.  Spoon sauce over the chicken and serve. 

Happily Stuck

Saturday's are supposed to be quiet, still, and happy. But they are even better when you wake up and there's snow coating them. In Kentucky people think the world might end in the event of three inches, but I know they are secretly dazzled by it just as I am. Why is it so exciting to be stuck somewhere when it snows? Like there is a community around you just waiting to band together as soon as snow tragedy strikes. This might be in my imagination. No matter, my band of brothers just happened to be eggs, and almond flour, and ginger this morning, and we weathered the storm together, coming out on the other side with biscuits, and jam. Because I have loved ones in the midst of the "Makers Diet" I made these grainless, dairyless, and sugarless. Surprise. 

Grape and Ginger Jam (adapted from lovefoodeat)

5 cups of cleaned grapes

1/2 cup raw honey

2 inch piece of fresh ginger

Clean and wash your grapes well. Combine the grapes, crushed ginger and sugar in a saucepan and slowly bring it to a boil till the sugar completely dissolves. Reduce the flame and let it simmer for 8 to 10 minutes til the fruits start to disintegrate. Turn off the flame and let the mixture cool down a little.
Sieve the mixture to get rid of all the seeds and the skin. Press as much of the pulp of the fruits as possible with the back of your spoon to get all the juices of of the fruit.
Place the thick fruit juice/pulp back on the stove and let it simmer slowly. I simmered mine for more than 30 minutes to get to the desired consistency. You can stop when you think your jam is thick enough. Remember it’ll thicken further as it cools.
Store it in an airtight bottle.

Simple Biscuits (grain free)- Adapted from realsustinance

2 packed cups Blanched Almond Flour
1/2 Cup Arrowroot starch
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2-3/4 Tsp Baking Soda 
1/2 Cup Coconut Butter 
2 Large Eggs
3/4 Tsp Lemon Juice. 

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl combine the Almond Flour, Starch, Salt and Baking Soda.. Cut the coconut butter into the flour until it is about the size of a pea. In a separate small bowl whisk together the eggs and lemon juice. Pour mixture in with the flour and mix just briefly and gently until the dough comes together. It will feel a little wet. 

Dust a sheet of parchment, or your counter with additional starch. Gently pat the dough into a round and cut into 6-8 biscuits using a biscuit cutter or the top of a round glass. Use as much starch as needed to prevent sticking. Bake for 18 minutes.

P.S. These are especially lovely with coffee and frosted windows.

*Embarrassing disclaimer: due to the fact that I was on the phone with a friend when these came out of the oven I did something I'm not sure I'm proud of. I couldn't balance the knife and biscuit properly while holding the phone, so after pondering it for a very short second, I dove my hand into the jam and proceeded to spread it on my biscuit with my fingers like a small bear. or any other animal you would now like to insert here.

Marshmallows and Wrapping

I had a ball with this one...

 

 

Honey Vanilla Marshmallows

 

Ingredients:

- 3 Tbs unflavored gelatin

- 2 Cups raw honey

- 1 vanilla bean split, with the seeds scraped out

- 1/4 tsp sea salt

- Warm water

- Lots of arrowroot powder

 

Prepare a 9x13 pan by rubbing with some coconut oil and sprinkling with arrowroot powder. Then line it with parchment paper and some more arrowroot on top of that. These will be sticky!

 

 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup of warm water and let it dissolve. Meanwhile in a saucepan on the stove, combine the honey, vanilla pod and seeds, and sea salt. Stir until the honey is completely dissolved. Once that happens, bring the mixture to a boil, and simmer until the syrup reaches 240 on a candy thermometer. Turn on the mixer on to break up the gelatin, and here's the tricky part... begin to pour the sugar syrup into the bowl of the mixer while its on in a very small, slow, and steady stream. Continue this until you have poured all the syrup, the process should take all of 5 minutes if you are doing it right. Slow, remember. Bump the speed up to high, and beat the mixture until light and fluffy and looks like marshmallow cream. Should take 10-12 minutes.

At this point work quickly before the cream sets. Pour it into your prepared pan, sprinkle with another layer of arrowroot powder, and cover with more parchment paper. Let is sit at room temp for at least 3 hours to over night.

 

 



 

When you cut them up, do it on a greased cutting board and knife and toss with more arrowroot once they are finished. If you want them sweeter, them you can dust them in powdered sugar, cocoa, or anything your heart desires!

Next I hit the fabrics, twine, tape and brown paper to create little masterpieces. (I wrapped presents.)

 



 

I found some lovely old tins at my favorite antique shop Serendipity and packaged up the marshmallows. A perfect evening spent.

 



Merry Christmas!



Cold Nights and Berry Shortbreads

Still on the detox. This is a little something I made up to satisfy my ever present sweet tooth on a cold and cozy night. I also drew in the frost on the window, lit a candle, and wrapped presents.

Berry Shortbreads

Crust:

-1 cup of almond flour

-1/4 cup of coconut flour

-1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

-1/4 cup almond butter

-3 Tbs coconut oil 

Mix together everything but the oil briefly. Add the oil until the dough comes together. Shape into little cups and place on a greased cookie sheet. 

Filling: 

- 1/4 cup blueberries

-1/4 cup raspberries

-1/4 cup pitted dark cherries

-1 Tbs coconut milk

-1 tsp vanilla 

-1 tsp cinnamon

- 1/4 cup chopped or whole pecans

Simmer the fruit and coconut milk in a small saucepan until soft and saucy. Smash the fruit the rest of the way into a kind of chutney. It will boil down most of the way on it's own. Add the pecans, vanilla, and cinnamon. Spoon a little generously into each cup, and bake at 350 for 15 min. 

Keep in mind, these contain no sugar, so if you are ok with sweetening it up a bit in addition to natural sugars then throw in some honey to the fruit filling. 

Eat 10 Of These Please

Once again, I am sharing a recipe I stole from againstallgrain. It's so worth it. These are by far the best grain-free cookies I have ever had! I have now made them three times in a row.

They aren't crumbly or dry like most grainless cookies. chewey. Soft. Perfect.

Click here for the recipe

And then eat 10 of them please... I did.

Thanksgiving post to come! 

I. Ate. Bread.

So I found this blog called againstallgrain... it is rocking my world. 

I made this recipe using mostly cashew butter and some coconut flour. I was a bit skeptical, until I bit into my first piece of bread in lord only knows how long and the world stood still. I became an animal, stuffing down numerous pieces of bread dressed in jam and homemade butter. Crumbs everywhere. 

It was a glorious experience. 

Click here for the recipe

.

And Then I Put Fall In A Pan...

Autumn Bars

Crust:

-1 Cup Almond Flour

- 1 Cup Oats

1/4 Cup Toasted Wheat Germ

- 1 Tbs Ground Flax Seed

- 1/2 Cup Date Sugar

- 1 Cup Shredded, Unsweetened Coconut

- 1 Tbs Cinnamon 

- 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

- 1 tsp Sea Salt

- 1 Stick of Butter

- 1/4 Cup Apple Cider

To make the crust, combine all the dry ingredients and mix well. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly. Drizzle in the apple cider until the dough comes together but not sticky. (you may not have to use all of the cider). Pat into the bottom of a greased cookie sheet, and set aside. Reserve 1/2 Cup of the mixture to sprinkle on top. 

For the filling: 

Cut up Three large apples and simmer until slightly tender in about 3 Tbs. of apple cider. they should still be slightly crisp.

In another bowl with an electric mixer,cream 

- 1 8oz package of cream cheese 

- 1/2 cup Purred Pumpkin

- 1 tsp Vanilla  

- 1 Tbs Pumpkin Pie Spice

- 1 tsp Sea Salt

- 1/4 Cup Pure Maple Syrup

- 1/4 Cup Milk

-1/4 Cup Unsweetened Applesauce

- 4 Eggs

1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

When Mixture is smooth, pour into prepared crust. Layer the sliced and sauteed apples over top, and sprinkle with the reserved crust mixture. Dice a handful of dried apricots and sprinkle over top as well. 

Bake the Bars at 350 for 25 minutes and cool. They are all the good things about fall in one pan, which is why they should make you very happy. 

H A P P Y  F A L L !