Almond Cookies GF

This is such a delicious recipe. Not for those afraid of fat since it is chock full of almonds and coconut oil.

1 lb whole almonds ground to flour in the food processor
1/2 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 c. maca (can be subbed with cocoa powder or more coconut flour)
1/2 c. coconut flour
1 c. flax meal
1 c. unpacked brown sugar
6 T. coconut oil
2 medium bananas (~ 1 c. mashed)
chocolate chips/nuts

Thoroughly mix everything except oil, vanilla, and bananas. Mix oil, vanilla, and bananas together and then into the dry ingredients. Make into balls and flatten them. For chewy cookies use bigger balls and flatten them less ( 1/2 and in). For more crispy cookies use small balls and flatten them thinner (less than 3/8 in). Bake about 13 minutes at 350. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

P.S. We used this recipe and made a super yummy cookie cake on a round pizza tray and it worked great.

Tempeh Meatballs GF

I had a sudden onset craving for spaghetti tonight. When I was trying to decide what protein to use for the meal I thought, “hmm I bet a bunch of people out there in internet land have made tempeh meatballs before”. So I checked out a few recipes and then headed to the kitchen to put something together. The other day we made some millet/potato patties and used ground sunflower seeds as the protein and it worked really well to bind it together without additional flour and the patties were great, tasted just like tater tots. Anyhow, Adam suggested we try sunflower seeds in place of bread crumbs. I wasn’t sure they would turn out well for a first try but they were very yummy and the recipe was a success so, here it is.

1 c. raw sunflower seeds, ground
1 8 oz package tempeh, crumbled
2 T flax meal
6 T warm water (to mix with flax)
1 t thyme
1 1/2 t oregano
1/2 t fennel, ground
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper (or to taste)
1/2 – 1 T soy sauce (or GF alternative, we use coconut aminos) or water

Mix the flax with the warm water and let sit for about 10 minutes. Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl. Heat some oil in a pot, we used about a cm deep of safflower oil. Roll the balls in your hands and set in the pan. I used some water in my palm for every ball to keep it from sticking to my hands. Work them in the palm of your hand to make sure they stick together well and won’t fall apart in the oil. Roll them around to cook on all sides. After they are all cooked put them on a cookie sheet and bake them for 10 -12 minutes at 375.

Chickpea Avocado (Mock Tuna) Salad Sandwich (GF)

Man is this recipe good. Tuna sandwiches were one of my favorite things to eat and I found myself missing them yesterday. I looked for a recipe for mock tuna salad sandwiches and found many using chickpeas as a replacement. Great! But, they also called for mayo. We have been trying to avoid using this processed food and I came across a comment on one of the recipes that said they subbed avocado for the mayo. Awesome! So I put two and two together and this is what came out.

1 can (15oz) chickpeas (or about 1 1/2 cups cooked, if using dry)
3 small avocados
1/4 c or more minced kimchi
1/8 tsp salt
scant 1/4 c lime juice

The kimchi really gave it a lovely spicy and tangy flavor and the texture was very reminiscent of tuna salad. I was very pleased and it was really easy to make. Serve on bread (we use Silver Hills GF bread)with lettuce, tomato, or any of your favorite sandwich toppings.

Quinoa Pancakes (GF)

This is a recipe Adam has been fine tuning for a while, much to our enjoyment. Finally, we think it’s ready.

3 c. quinoa flour
1/2 c. ground flax
1 T baking powder
1/2 t baking soda

3 c soy milk
1/2 c. oil
1 T apple cider vinegar

Mix the wet and dry ingredients separate then together, making sure the liquid mixture is thoroughly integrated. Cook on a hot greased skillet like you would any other type of pancake. These have a distinct nutty flavor from the quinoa flour but personally I like it, and with a little maple syrup they taste just like wheat pancakes.

Macaroni Salad GF

I made this recipe today and everyone raved about it so much that I decided it needed to go on the blog.

12 oz package elbow macaroni (we use brown rice pasta)
1/2 large zucchini
2 big handfuls baby spinach, wilted
1/2 c. frozen green peas, thawed
1/4 c. red bell pepper
1/4 c. yellow bell pepper
3/4 c. sliced mushrooms
1/8 c. chopped dried olives (or fresh if you can find them)
1 T. chopped fresh parsley
Optional:
1 package Tempeh
Dressing:
1 c. mayo (we use vegenaise)
1 T. tahini
1 t. agave
2 t. mustard (I used Adam’s favorite horseradish mustard)
1/2 t. black pepper
1/8 t. chipotle powder

Boil the pasta drain and place in a large bowl. Add the vegetable and cover with the sauce. For the Tempeh, we used this to make it more of a full meal than a side dish, I merely seared each side with sesame oil in a hot pan then cut it into small cubes. It was almost like having chicken in the salad, gave it a nice texture.

Sunday Breakfast Biscuits

2 c Whole wheat flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp sugar
1/3 c vegetable shortening
2/3 c soy milk

Mix all the dry ingredients together, then work the shortening into the dough with your hands or a fork, fingers work best though. Add the milk and form into a ball. Roll out on a floured surface and cut into circles with a biscuit cutter. Bake at 350° for about 10-15 minutes or until nicely browned.

Blueberry Breakfast Casserole

This is a super easy recipe and tastes great for breakfast.

1 Bag frozen blueberries, thawed
1 biscuit recipe
Extra milk to make the dough pourable

You want the biscuit dough to be thinner than normal but a little thicker than pancake batter. Place the thawed blueberries in a greased 9 x 9 and pour the biscuit batter on top. Bake at 350° for an hour.

This has a high bread to fruit ratio, so if you wanted more fruit and less dough you could half the biscuit recipe and make it closer to a pancake batter to spread more thinly. Or you could use more fruit, different kinds even, and use a 9 x 13 pan, in this case also make the dough more like pancake batter and pour thinly over the top.

Squash Bisque GF

This recipe is so simple and delicious!

1 medium onion
1 medium hard winter squash
1 tbsp coconut cream concentrate
1/2 tsp salt
Fresh cilantro leaves

Take the onion and slice off the bottom so that it will still stay together, that is just enough so the roots come off but not the piece that holds it together. Slice off the top and cut it into petals (think blooming onion). Place this in the bottom of a 1 liter pot. Cut the squash into pieces about 3/4 in square. Pack these in around the sides of the onion and a little on top if you have to. There should be about and inch of space from the top of the pot. Add enough water to cover the veggies, about enough to leave 3/4 of an inch at the top of the pan. Add salt and coconut cream. Let this boil until you can easily poke into the squash with a fork. Place in a blender and puree until smooth. If you like a kick add a pinch of chipotle powder. Pour back into the pot or into a serving dish. Stir in the cilantro leaves, the hot soup will make them wilt slightly, but the flavor will be magnificent. Serve when cooled slightly.

Coconut Haystacks GF

This is such an easy recipe and they taste so great.

1 8oz bag of shredded coconut
1 9oz bag of chocolate chips
and 3/4 of a second bag of chocolate chips

Toast the coconut in the oven on a baking sheet at 350° for about 8 minutes, check it frequently as it will burn easily. Melt the chocolate chips in a pot stirring frequently so it doesn’t burn. Add the coconut to the chocolate and mix well. Pour into a 9 x 9 lined with parchment paper, refrigerate until hard, then you can cut into squares.

These would make really great holiday gifts or a nice dessert to bring to a party.

Cornbread GF

3 c yellow cornmeal
3 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 c flaxmeal
2 3/4 c Soy milk
1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 c oil
1.5 tbsp packed brown sugar (optional)

Heat oven to 350°. Set your iron skillet in the oven while it preheats. Mix wet ingredients together and dry ingredients together separately. When the oven and skillet are heated and the skillet is oiled mix the wet with the dry ingredients and add them to the pan, then bake for about 40 minutes. We added about a 1/3 c or frozen corn to ours and if we had fresh jalapenos we would have sliced some of those and added them as well.