Classic Vanilla Cupcakes

Sometimes you need to throw all your ideals out the window for the sake of someone's happiness - which is why I'm making classic Vanilla Cupcakes this morning. 

After a disastrous attempt at gluten free mint chocolate cupcakes last night I decided to just go the simple route and whip up an old favorite for a co-worker's birthday.  Just because I gave-up wheat doesn't mean everyone else has to.


 

Classic Vanilla Cupcakes

Dry:

•  1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup sugar 

Wet:

• 2/3 cup coconut oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Buttercream Frosting

• 1 cup butter (at room temperature)
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 F and line a muffin tray with fun paper cups.  Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then mix together.  Fill liners to 3/4 full and bake for 15 minutes or until just slightly golden.  Cool cupcakes then ice with buttercream frosting.  Leave one as a surprise on someone's desk!

Homemade Fruit & Nut Bars

I woke up to an unpleasant surprise this morning - my cupboards were infested with Argentine Ants!  Ah, the joys of living in the woods.  I tore everything off the shelves in an attempt to find the source of their interest.  Ah ha!  The dates.  I opened the box outside and rescued a few handfuls of dates.  The rest were crawling with teeny black pests so I threw them into the compost.

Back inside, I rinsed the remaining dates with hot water.  I figured I should make something with them, but what?  I thought back to the no-bake vegan, raw chocolate cakes I made a few months ago.  The bulk of the dessert was made by blending walnuts into a flour and adding dates for sweetness.

The "dough" reminded me of these awesome "Pure" bars I like so much, so I tweaked my old cake recipe a bit to get homemade fruit & nut bars.

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 1/2 cups dates 
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup dried cherries
• 1/2 cup dried blueberries

Mix the walnuts, cashews and sunflower seeds in a blender until you get a chunky powder.  Pour powder into a mixing bowl.  Next, mix the dates in the blender until smooth.  Add date paste to nut flour and mix with your hands.  Add the pumpkin seeds, cherries and blueberries and mix until it forms a dough.  Press dough into a wax paper-lined glass dish.  Stick it in the fridge overnight and cut into squares in the morning.  Enjoy for a quick breakfast or snack!

Supremely Green!

Like avocado?  Met too.  I'm also a huge fan of the health benefits.  They're full of good fats, they have tons of fiber (10g per serving - 40% of the daily recommended value!), 3g of protein, and are bursting with vitamin E. They're low in cholesterol and contain the very useful antioxidant glutathione, which has been shown to prevent prevent certain types of cancer, heart disease, and slows the aging process (see abstract).

I took an Ethiopian approach today and turned avocado into a sweet drinkable treat.  I used Hass Avocados but with over 40 species to choose from, you can use your imagination. Combined with apple, kale, and walnuts they make a scrumptious smoothie that will fill you up and energize you for hours!


The Supreme Green Smoothie

• 1 ripe avocado
• 1 green apple
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup kale juice
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 4 tbsp honey

Juice the apple and kale and add it to the blender with everything else.  If it's too thick you can add more coconut milk or just a little water.

Enjoy!

"Je Suis une Pizza..."

"...avec du fromage!  Beaucoup de sauce!  Des tomates!" 

Did anyone take french immersion growing up?  Well I did, and we sang that song all the time.  Random, but I thought of it because I made my very own gluten free pesto pizza tonight.  I also made (for the first time) my very own pesto sauce base using fresh basil. 

Want to make one too?  Here's how!

What you'll need:

For crust

• 1 bag of Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix (comes with yeast packet)
• 1 cup almond milk or water
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 3 tablespoons of oil (coconut, olive, avocado...)
• 2 tsp sea salt

For pesto

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves (packed down)
• 3/4 cup oil (avocado or olive)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• salt and pepper to taste
• Blender or food processor

Toppings

• 1 cup mushrooms
• 1 cup fresh spinach
• Oil for sauteing
• Splash of balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup shredded cheese (I used the sharp cheddar that was left over in my fridge...)

Step 1 - Crust



Heat 1/2 cup of almond milk in a small sauce pan over low heat until it is just warm to the touch (not scalding!).  Pour into a bowl, add honey and yeast.  Let the yeast mix get a little frothy.



While your yeast is rising, dump entire contents of Bob's Red Mill gluten free flour into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle salt in with the flour and mix lightly.



Add the yeast and the rest of the almond milk to your flour and salt.  Knead that dough until your elbows and fingers hurt (about 7 minutes)!





Place your dough in a warm place, cover for 1/2 hour and allow it to rise. (Makes one large pizza or two small pizzas)

Step 2 - Pesto


Gather your basil leaves until you have 2 cups of squished-down leaves.  Rinse and toss basil, press your garlic and toss everything into a blender or food processor.  Add your pine nuts and all the oil.  Blend until smooth. (Makes about 1 cup)



Now check on your pizza dough.  It might be a little firm (mine was) but that's okay!  Roll in out into a circle or whatever shape you desire.  Coat with pesto sauce.



Step 3 - Toppings


Preheat oven to 400 F.  Rinse and slice your mushrooms and chop your spinach. 



Sautee your mushrooms in a little coconut oil and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.  Once mushrooms are cooked add the spinach and sautee for 2 more minutes, until spinach is cooked.



Arrange toppings, sprinkle with cheese and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and edges of crust are golden.



Voila!  Gluten-free pesto pizza.  Bon appetit!

Leftovers.

It was a long day, and while not particularly grueling, I was about ready to pass out when I got off work at 5.  I didn't want to cook.  I didn't want to clean up after cooking.  Sound familiar?  Here's an idea: leftovers.  I made awesome cream of broccoli soup the other night, so paired that with Persian cucumber salad and Trader Joe's falafels with eggplant dressing.  The soup you might recognize from last night's dinner.  The falafels I heated up on an iron skillet for a five minutes, and the cucumber salad took a grand total of three minutes to make.  I was eating by five thirty whilst enjoying a cheesy Bollywood film.  Quick, easy, and darn good for you.

 

Cream of Broccoli Soup... with a Twist!

It's dairy and animal-bi-product free, and soup-er good for you!  Cream of broccoli soup made with... cashews?  Yes!  A big shout out to Joy the Baker for this hearty, healthful and heart-warming recipe.  This soup is ri-goshdarn-diculously good!  Not to mention easy to make.

What you'll need:

• 1 medium onion
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 1/2 cups raw, unsalted cashews
• 1 large head of broccoli
• cumin
• nutmeg
• pepper
• sea salt 
• 1 small lemon
• 3 cups water

First, soak your cashews in water for an hour. 



Grab your onion and 5 cloves of garlic.  Chop the onion and fry until clear in 2 tablespoons of coconut oil - about 5 minutes.  Press your garlic and add it to the onions.  Fry for one more minute.  Add nutmeg, cumin, sea salt, and black pepper to the onion and garlic.  Turn off the heat.



Chop your broccoli into little bite-sized florets.  Steam until bright green, but don't let the water turn green!  Add your broccoli to the onion-garlic mixture and toss it around over low heat for 1 minute.



Divide the broccoli mixture into two.  Scoop one half into a blender and add 1 1/2 cups water.  Blend until smooth.  Pour into a soup pot.  Repeat with the rest of the mixture.  Add 2 tablespoons of fresh-squeezed lemon juice and heat your soup until steaming.  Serve with bread (I used 2 gluten-free whole grain slices) drizzled with avocado oil and balsamic vinegar.



Enjoy!

"Banango" is my new favorite word

I woke up at 5 AM for a round of point count surveys along the western edge of Starr Ranch Sanctuary.  I enjoyed a steaming cup of cherry bancha green tea in the dark quiet of the morning, but couldn't bring myself to eat anything so early in the day. 

By 6:20 AM my field partner and I had hiked a few miles to our first site and recorded some great birds - California Gnatcatchers, Cactus Wrens, California Thrashers, Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Anna's Hummingbirds, California Quails, and a Roadrunner.  We finished up by 7:30 and headed back to ranch headquarters.

By 8 o'clock my stomach was screaming for food.  I needed something quick, satisfying, and delicious.  This smoothie has it all - vitamins, minerals, protein, good fats, and it's absolutely decadent! 

Tropical Banango Smoothie

• 1 ripe mango
• 2 bananas
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1/2 cup cashews

Blend. Gulp.  Carry on with your day!

Rise n' Shine!

I don't know about you, but my breakfast was bangin' this morning!  Rolled oats, blueberries, flax seeds and a little maple syrup.  And to drink - a very berry smoothie!  This meal is incredibly satisfying, super nutritious, and a snap to make.  Only a handful of ingredients make it something you can whip up a few mornings a week - and it'll keep you going until lunch-time.


Blueberry Oatmeal:

• 1/2 cup thick-cut rolled oats
• a handful of dried, frozen or fresh blueberries
• 1/4 cup flax seeds
• 1 cup water
• 1 tbsp pure maple syrup

Throw everything except the maple syrup into a pot and bring to a boil.  Turn down the heat and allow to simmer until oats are soft.  Remove from heat and let stand for 3-5 minutes.  Scoop into your favorite bowl and top with maple syrup.


Very Berry Smoothie:

• 1 cup frozen raspberries
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1 cup fresh strawberries
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 tbsp lemon juice

Throw all above into blender and liquefy on high until completely mixed.

Enjoy the day!