weekend granola, vegan style

image via girlontheles

Ingredients

• 4 cups rolled oats (not quick)
• 1.5 cup raw almonds
• .5 cup raw sunflower seeds
• .75 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
• 2 Tbsp each flax & sesame seeds (grind to get full nutritive value from flax)
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon
• .5 cup melted coconut oil
• .25 cup agave syrup (or honey)
• .25 cup brown sugar
• .25 cup leftover wassail
• dried fruit you love (my beloved combo is blueberries & figs)

Prep

• In large bowl, combine the oats through to the cinnamon. Add in the remaining ingredients & stir until evenly combined. 
• Spread granola evenly onto 2 large baking sheets, glass pans or stoneware & bake in a 300F oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. 
• Cool, add dried fruit & store in a tightly lidded container.

grapefruit + ginger wassail

 Ingredients

• 2 quarts apple cider or unfiltered apple juice 
• .5 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 2 cups grapefruit juice
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• juice of 2 in piece ginger root
• 3 sticks cinnamon 
• 2 Tbsp mulling spices (cloves, ginger root, allspice, citrus rind, etc) in tea diffuser or cheesecloth

Preparation

Warm in thick walled pot or slow cooker for 1 hr to combine flavors; can be frozen.

kosher split-pea soup

Sometimes I wish we celebrated Hanukkah. Menorahs are lovely, blue & silver is so wintry, & latkes make a savory balance for any holiday brunch (Clinches historically eat blintzes, very sweet & crying out for something salty to pair). So in rebellion against Christmas ham, here's a pig-free dish for supper one chilly night!

Ingredients

• 2 cups split peas
• 3 carrots, chopped super thin
• pearled barley
• 1 onion, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, pressed
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1 cup chopped kale
• 5 cups veg broth & 5 cups water
• 1/2 tsp fine-grain sea salt or 1/8 cup soy sauce
• 2-3 bay leaves
• juice of 1/2 lemon (reserve the zest)

Preparation

• Add olive oil to a big pot over med-high heat. Stir in onions, garlic & salt until the onions soften, just a minute or two. Add the broth, water, split peas, carrots, barley & bay leaves. Bring to a boil, dial down the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the peas are cooked through (but still a touch al dente).
• Using a large cup or mug ladle half of the soup into a bowl and set aside. Using a hand blender (or regular blender) puree the soup that is still remaining in the pot. Stir the reserved (still chunky) soup back into the puree - you should have a soup that is nicely textured. If you need to thin the soup out with more water (or stock) do so a bit at a time. Stir in the lemon juice, kale & heat through. Taste. If the soup needs more salt, add more a bit at a time (or add soy sauce) until the flavor of the soup really pops.
• Ladle into bowls or cups, and serve each drizzled with olive oil and topped with a good pinch of smoked paprika and a touch of lemon zest.

simple creamy hummus

ingredients, by msyphoto.

Evidently the texture trick is to add more olive oil than the recipe indicates & use an immersion blender. I'm excited about the massive quantity now resting in our fridge.

Ingredients

• 4 cups garbanzo beans, canned/drained or made from dried beans
• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh is best)
• 1 1/4 tsp salt if beans were dry/unsalted, otherwise 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 large or 2 small garlic cloves, minced
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp water, or enough for desired consistency
• 1/2 Tbsp lemon pepper (not pictured)

Preparation

• Place all in a mixing bowl & use an immersion blender until it resembles a rough puree.
• Continue blending, adding extra oil slowly until your desired creaminess is achieved.
• Adjust salt and water to taste, depending on what you intend to dip into the hummus.

key lime-cream pie

via Sugar Pixie

Inspired by Golubka, we're trying some raw food dessert recipes around here!


Lime Cream

• 1 cup coconut cream
• juice and zest of 1 1/2 limes (or lemons)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup light agave nectar

Combine all the ingredients in a blender (preferably high speed) until smooth. Before serving, chill in the refrigerator until the mixture thickens.

Almond Crust

• 2 cups almond flour OR 2 cups whole almonds, finely ground
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup coconut oil

In a bowl, mix all the ingredients thoroughly. 3 inch tart shells with removable bottoms work best for this. If yours don't have a removable base, line the shells with plastic wrap and evenly distribute the almond mixture by pushing it into shape. Chill in the refrigerator for 30-40 minutes (the coconut oil will harden and keep the crusts together). After making sure that the crusts have hardened, carefully remove them from the tart shells. Keep refrigerated or frozen.

Miniature Tart Assembly
Assemble right before serving. Otherwise, keep the shells, cream, and berries separate to avoid a soggy crust. Spoon the lime cream into the crust and arrange the fresh blackberries on top in any way you prefer. Garnish with lime zest.

cardamon ice cream

via Sassy Radish

Inspired by this recipe from Golubka, we figured out that we can make this with no ice cream maker! (My hatred for kitchen clutter keeps me from that & a breadmaker.) Homemade ice cream is so easy to make with just a freezer & some patience. That's the hard part.


Cardamon Ice Cream

• 2 cups coconut cream
• 1 cup coconut water
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1 cup cashews, pistachios or almonds
• 9 dates
• 8-10 cardamom pods - crushed, green shell discarded
• 2 vanilla beans - both seeds and pods

In a high speed blender, combine all the ingredients until smooth. Stick in the freezer & stir when you think about it a couple of times a day (I aim for 3).

the basics: sun tea

via abbytrysagain.typepad.com

• Grab a large glass jar that is clean & has a lid that fits.
• Fill it with water & 5-6 Luzianne tea bag (decaf for me) + 1 herbal or fruity tea bag
• Leave the closed jar to rest on a window sill or on the porch.
• Pull jar indoors when the color of the tea indicates your desired strength of flavor.
• Sweeten to your liking (I sometimes brew dried stevia leaves with the tea).
• Store in fridge & serve over ice. 

Note: After an usually dry summer, it's finally rainy today. Sun tea can work without direct sunlight; it just takes more time to darken.
 

clean it out: gazpacho

So.many.carbs!
After a week filled with bagel breakfasts & potato side dishes, my innards are begging for fresh, raw edibles: salsa, pesto, smoothies, bruschetta, sushi, unsalted nuts & seeds, gazpacho, dried fruit, gallons of water with cucumber or lime.


Until I unpack the camera, this will have to suffice.

My idea of gazpacho is zesty in flavor, creamy in texture, chilly in temperature & containing enough red ingredients to prevent the puree from looking like someone just blew their biscuits.


Ingredients ( for 10 servings)

• 3 ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups cold water
• 1.5 large cucumbers, peeled, coarsely chopped
• 1.5 large onions (red or vidalia are milder), peeled, coarsely chopped
• 1.5 red bell peppers, coarsely chopped
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 6 T tomato paste
• 3 T Sherry wine vinegar or red wine vinegar
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped

Preparation

Puree first 10 ingredients in blender in batches. Optionally strain soup through sieve, pressing on solids with back of spoon. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill until cold. (Can be made 1 day ahead.) Ladle soup into bowls. Serve, passing bowls of extra onion, cucumber, tomato and bell pepper separately. Also lovely topped with fresh cilantro or peach salsa!

sweet & spicy salsa

Very satisfying atop (leftover) steak fajitas, quesadillas or eaten with a spoon.

Ingredients 

• 3 heirloom tomatoes
• 3 leeks
• 3 sweet peppers
• 1 peach
• juice of 1 lime
• firm squeeze Sriracha (chili based hot sauce)
• handful of cherries (added after tasting made my lips burn)

Preparation

• chop or dice ingredients (depending on how chunky you prefer), mix well
• if you like it soupy, throw half in the blender & stir in the chunky half before serving

juicing for joint pain

Last night was the first volleyball game I've played since getting pregnant with Elijah, so a year & a half. It was fun, but I've never been this achy before especially in my knees (sports injuries from high school). I've taken GCM for years, which is very helpful to take the edge off. Over July 4th weekend I was given our first juicer, from Mama Dompe! We were discussing homeopathic ways of dealing with joint pain, which I am experiencing more now than ever before. From time to time, I will post recipes that seem to treat symptoms most effectively. For joints, this is a fav:

  

Joint Pain Relief Juice – Omega 3 Greens

2 cups of spinach or broccoli florets
2 cups of parsley
2 inch slice of ginger root
1 apple or 1/4 pineapple
handful of blueberries

Wash all produce thoroughly. Remove apple stem or slice pineapple in half, then quarters, then eighths. Juice the green vegetables and ginger first followed by the apple/pineapple/berries, this will help flush the green juice out through the juicer. Broccoli, kale and parsley are all good plant sources of omega 3 and also contain vitamin C. These greens can be bitter so the fruit helps to sweeten things and add more vitamin C.

vidalia onion greens pesto

Inspired by Sarah Britton's Totally Wild Leek Pesto, I jumped at the sight of Vidalias with their stems still attached. This pesto topped a salt-rubbed & grilled steak, cooked rare & savored very slowly... partly because we still haven't invested in steak knives & partly because the pesto is a bit spicy but perfect with well-aged beef. What do you top with pesto?

Vidalia Onion Greens Pesto
Ingredients:

• 5-8 cloves garlic, roasted
• 3 Vidalia onions (use just the leaves for a sweeter pesto)
• ½ cup pecans, lightly toasted (cashews or pine nuts also may work)
• 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Preparation:
1. Roast garlic cloves in foil on 350 for 10 min (toaster oven does just fine). Lightly toast pecans in a dry pan until they are just starting to turn golden on one side. Remove from heat.
2.  Wash the onion greens well by submerging them in a large bowl of water and swishing them around. Drain and spin dry. In batches, blend greens with roasted garlic in a food processor. Mixture will be very moist.

3. Crush toasted pecans to the size you prefer; I used a coffee grinder to chop them very finely. Add pecan crumble to the onion greens & stir; drizzle in the olive oil until a desired consistency is reached. If you like your pesto a little smoother and creamier, add more oil. Taste to adjust seasoning.
4. Serve. Can be stored in the fridge for 4 days (but it loses nutritional potency with every passing day) or in freezer for 4 months.

Yields: about 1 pound of pesto!

pesto with roasted garlic & almonds

My fingertips are stained green, & our kitchen smells like a freshly mowed lawn of basil. Is this what World Cup season smells like in Genoa? This rendition of pesto calls for what I had on hand. We ate it over Farfalle with sage sausage & a white wine from Cupcake Vineyards. [Also, the garlic is roasted because my nursing babe gets gassy when I indulge in raw garlic.]  Pesto can be stored refrigerated for 3-4 days or frozen for 3-4 months. Makes about 1 cup, or enough for about a pound of dried pasta.

Ingredients

• 5-8 cloves garlic, roasted
• 2 cups packed basil leaves, turns into 3/4 cup when chopped
• 1/3 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan or Romano
• salt and pepper -- to taste

Preparation

• Roast garlic cloves in foil on 350 for 10 min (toaster oven does just fine). Place the almonds in a food processor and pulse to break into pieces. With a mortar & pestle, crush garlic & almonds together.
• Add basil to mortar & pestle to crush before combining with garlic/nut mixture. Stir in the parmesan, salt and pepper and adjust ingredients to your taste.
• Pour in the olive oil and crush gently until the mixture comes together and is smooth but still has some texture.
• Add a tablespoon or so of water to lighten up the pesto a bit if you like.