Maple Almond Cookies

Nuts... my pantry is full of nuts.  Almonds mostly, that I was saving up for some cooking project that I now can't recall.  My roommate and I cleaned our pantry out and found jars of nuts, along with jars and jars of lentils and rice (which I will make into some soup; stay tuned!)  I knew I wanted to make some nutty cookie and maple was the first flavor that came to mind.  I love maple syrup, it reminds me of New England, where I grew up.  As a child I was allergic to chocolate and my mom was always trying to find other desserts I could eat, and maple sugar candy was one of them.  If you don't know, maple sugar candies are maple sugar molded into little shapes like a maple leaf or a little Pilgrim.  They have a pure sweetness to them.  So, I decided to make some maple sweetened almond cookies and they turned out to be deliciously comforting!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of gluten free flour (I used rice and chick pea flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp xanthan gum
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 Earth Balance
• 3/4 cup of maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsps of almond extract
• 1/4 cup of ground flax seed (or one large egg)
• 1/4 cup of sliced almonds
• Whole almonds to decorate the top

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients (except the almonds)
3. Mix the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients slowly until blended.
4. Mix in the sliced almonds.
5. Form small balls of dough and flatten onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
6. Press a whole almond into the top of each cookie.
7. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes (careful not to over cook or it will become too dry!)
8. Remove from the oven and enjoy a cookie with a cold glass of rice milk or almond milk!

Red Beet Quinoa

Firstly, I must apologize to all my devoted followers for not blogging recently. The truth is, I simply cannot sit inside and type on a computer when the sun is out.  The unusually good weather has been leading me to bike rides to the beach, outdoor dance parties, picnics in the park, and late night walks in the warm evening air.  I've been on the go, filling up every moment with fun and busyness.  But change is in the air now, literally.  The sun is gone, the rain is pouring and the wind is blowing, finally bringing a halt to my solar-energized schedule.  The time has come for some slow cooking and introspection.  The other night, I spent a quiet evening with myself, cooking up a warm and comforting quinoa dish colored pink with beets and beet greens.  Take your time making this, and keep this lovely quote in mind that my friend Eric shared with me:


If you want to be whole, let yourself be partial.
If you want to become straight, let yourself be crooked.
If you want to be full, let yourself be empty.
If you want to be reborn, let yourself die.
If you want to to be given everything, give up everything.

Red Beet Quinoa

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups of quinoa
• 1 bunch of beets
• 1 yellow onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar
• salt, pepper, and olive oil

Directions

1. Soak quinoa in a bowl of water for 15 minutes.  Then rinse it in a sieve several times to remove the saponin that coats the quinoa.
2. Cut the beet greens off from the beets.  Wash beet greens and then cut them into bite size pieces.
3. Boil beets with the skins on in a pot of boiling water for about 20 minutes.
4. While beets cook, chop up the onion and peel and crush the garlic.
5. Sauté the onions in a med/large pot until they are sweating.  Add the garlic. 
6. Add the beet greens and saute until they begin to soften.  
7. Add the washed quinoa into the pot and cover with water.  Add salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
8. Bring heat down to medium heat and cover pot and let simmer for about 20 minutes.
9. When beets are beginning to soften, place them in a colander and rinse with very cold water.  Then you can easily remove the skins. 
10. Chop up the beets and add them to the quinoa. Cook the beet quinoa for another 10 minutes.  
11. When quinoa is cooked (soft to bite and the little "tails" pop out) add the balsamic vinegar, and some more salt and pepper.  Enjoy! 

Debbie's Almond Truffles

Yesterday was my roommate's birthday/moving to Australia party.  We are going to miss Debbie so much!  Not only is she a great friend and roommate, but she also is a fantastic cook and lover of healthy treats.  For her party, she made the most delicious almond butter truffles.  As you might know by now, I love almond butter with a passion.  These truffles are the more sophisticated version of my late night spoonfuls of almond butter interspersed with a handful of granola or chocolate chips.  Debbie's truffles have the perfect consistency and texture, not too sticky, but not dry or crumbly.  And being the artist that she is, she decorated her truffles with adorable chocolate designs!  You have to try these delicious, healthy, and very easy to make truffles!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup almond butter
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 cup processed gluten free oats (or oat flour)

For chocolate topping:

• 1/2 cup of chocolate unsweetened (melted)
• 1 tsp oil

Directions:

1. In a food processor, blend almond butter, honey and oats together.
2. Form dough into round balls.
3. Melt chocolate in a double boiler, and add the oil.
4. Dip truffles into chocolate or "paint" on designs using a chopstick, like Debbie did!
5. Enjoy these truffles any time of the day, or night!

Colette's Ovaletts

My friend Colette and I love to cook together, eat out, and talk about food, as she also has food allergies.  She has now three times cooked for me the most delicious wheat/sugar/dairy free dish.  It's a Shanghai dish that she remembers from her childhood.  For this dish, she combines preserved mustard greens, soy beans, chicken and rice ovaletts.  These little ovaletts are made from rice flour and have a satisfying chewiness to them.  You can find them in any Korean or Asian market.  They come fresh or frozen, but we prefer the fresh kind.  This dish is salty, flavorful, comforting and very simple to make!

Colette's Ovaletts
Ingredients

• 1 lb of chicken
• 1 package of fresh rice ovalettes
• About 1 cup of soy beans (defrosted if frozen)
• 1 package of preserved mustard greens
• 1 tbs of cornstarch
• Sesame oil and canola oil
• Wheat free tamari

Directions

1. Cut chicken into bite size cubes
2. In a bowl mix together the cornstarch and the chicken cubes.  Dress with a little tamari.
3. Sautee chicken in a pan of oil (both the canola and sesame) on medium heat until cooked through, about 7 minutes.
4. Add the ovalettes and cook until soft and chewy, about 15 minutes or so.
5. Add the mustard greens and soybeans and sautee for another 5 minutes or so until the soybeans are cooked.
6. Enjoy!