Gluten-free Baking...a work in progress

The whole gluten-free baking 'trend' is just that...a trend. While approximately 1% of the population suffer horribly from celiac disease, and another larger group of folks have some degree of wheat sensitivity, the majority of us can go on enjoying wheat based cereals and baked goods. A lot of people are thinking that gluten-free is healthier and in fact for most of us, it is not. Someone was just mentioning the Globe recently ran an article about just this... Having said all of that and knowing that the trend will fade away as by definition they do, I have decided to experiment with gluten-free flours, revising some of my favourite recipes so that I can taste for myself, be comfortable baking for friends who have this concern and chatting with others.

This banana bread recipe is from the Vegan cookbook (Veganomicon), so it has no eggs. It did however have 1/2 cup sugar and regular all-purpose flour. What follows is my version.....**foodie and baking enthusiasts beware** read note at the bottom before you use this version :)

3 very ripe bananas
1/4 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1/4 cup canola oil (I used omega oil which is a combo of flaxseed, grape and olive oil)
1/4 cup agave syrup
2 Tbsp molasses
1 cup brown rice flour
1 cup sweet rice flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease the pans(s) -I made 3 small loaves; can use a 9 X 5 loaf or muffins

In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas really well and add the applesauce, molasses, oil, agave whisk briskly and well.
Mix together the dry ingredients and then fold them into the wet bowl. (chocolate chips and walnuts would have been a great addition at this time, just fold them in)
Put it into your prepared pans, pop in the oven and time, depending on the pan size (about 20 minutes for small pans, 40-50 minutes for one large pan).

The loaf was good, **note that it actually did taste pretty good the first day, but when I had a piece of what came from the freezer a couple of days later, I have to say that in my opinion it was in fact pretty HORRIBLE...the rice flour made it taste a bit 'chalky' and very dry....stay tuned for hopefully better success with gluten-free baking...I will try a version with eggs and perhaps change only the flour....hmmm

Heavenly soup

One of my favourite things about winter is that home-made hot soup is just so delicious. For me, it warms my heart and soul as well as my body, especially if it tastes as good as this one!!! This recipe is from "Veganomigon-the ultimate vegan cookbook", but don't let that title scare you away if you are an omnivore. As others have said and I agree, what is most important is that you enjoy your food...for me, I suppose that it is equally important that it be as healthy as possible, but for sure taste is number one!!

I prepared the veggies before heating the stock-pot and in general find that it's a good idea. The authors of the cookbook suggest that the easiest way to peel an acorn squash is to first cut it in half, then into pieces (I cut along the indented lines) and then peel the smaller strips...and it worked beautifully.

2 Tbsp peanut oil
1 large onion, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/4 inch slices
2 tsp minced ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
2 acorn squashes, seeded, peeled, cut into 1/4 inch chunks
2 firm Bartlett pears, peeled, seeded, sliced not too thin (I didn't peel)
4 cups vegetable stock
1 can or 1.5 cups home-cooked adzuki beans, drained and rinsed (yum!)
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Mushrooms: 4 oz (1.5 cups) fresh shitakes (I used portabello and they were yum and less $)
2 tsp peanut oil
1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp soy sauce

Saute onions and pepper until just starting to brown (about 10 min) on med heat. Add ginger, garlic, saute 1 more minute. (the aroma is exqusite!) Stir often and add salt, five-spice, squash, pear, cook for another minute and then add stock. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to simmer about 20 minutes, until squash is tender. Puree about 1/2 the soup, put it all back into the pot with the beans and lime juice.
Meanwhile, for about the last 5-10 minutes of the simmering, saute the mushrooms in a frying pan in the oils until soft, about 7 minutes and add the soya sauce.

Ladel the soup into bowls, add the mushrooms on top and take a trip to heaven with these flavours...

kale and beyond

I am certain that I am not alone with the 'empty fridge dilemna'...yep, time to go shopping, but what to buy? At times maybe you have a recipe in mind and can just gather the ingredients and viola, your tummy will be fed for a week (that is, if you like left-overs and actually make a large enough amount for it to last). This week was not really one of 'those' weeks for me. This week, I went shopping with an empty fridge, three items on the list, one of them kale, since I had thought about making a kale soup recipe....other than that, I bought tofu and yogurt and onions and oh yes some milk.

I did make the soup and added tofu to the recipe for added protein. It was a simple, yet hearty and delicious soup, with onions, garlic, veg broth, one carrot (I had a couple left) a couple of potatoes and about 3 cups of kale, chopped finely. That's it, that's the recipe...and it was good.

Since bunches of kale are pretty large, I had only used about half for the soup and I didn't want it to go bad...(it was also the only fresh green veggie in the house), so as I had taken some pizza dough out of the freezer, I decided to make another yummy pizza similar to the one I blogged about maybe 3 weeks ago...Mediterranean style...except that this time I put on about a 1 1/2 cups of chopped kale and also tofu....it too was great!...so yes, you can put kale on pizza and you might even surprise a few non veggie eaters lol.

Lastly, with some kale and tofu still left, I threw together some pasta sauce together with the rest of the tomatoes, some onion, herbs, garlic....and this will be dinner for tomorrow (the rest of the week will be leftover 'everything')

Gotta love that kale! .....next week I am thinking about brussel sprouts because I just read a recipe for getting rid of that bitter taste :)

cruciferous veggies...rhymes with coniferous?

Today I am going to tell you a story. A few years ago when riding the subway in Toronto at a time when it was not at all crowded, I happened to be in the same car as an older woman who perhaps lived on the street and at least was obviously quite poor. She was opening what appeared to be someone's tossed take-away lunch styrofoam container and was immediately grinning ear to ear when she discovered most of a large broccoli stem. "Oh, she exclaimed, it's a tree, a beautiful tree!" I smiled to myself, as I too had often thought of this amazing vegetable as a miniature tree. She was a joy to watch (as discretely as possible of course, as I did not want her to feel uncomfortable) as she relished each little bite of broccoli. When I later told my children about the woman I had seen eating a tree, they too could relate and smiled.

Broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts are all part of what is called the cruciferous family, which made me think of coniferous, which made me think of trees and which in turn made me think of the story I just shared with you!.....cruciferous veggies are especially good for us. Not only do the green ones have chlorophyll which provides a nourishing and healing effect on humans this family has been found to have extra anticancer effects...so enjoy all the more!!

Last night I made a quick recipe that a friend had shared, with chopped onions, then chopped sweet potatoes and ginger, tumeric, garam masala,cumin, then cauliflower in small pieces, a bit of water so it doesn't burn, cook until done the way you like it....a bit of coconut milk would have been great I think...at any rate it was delicious and very good for my body!!

....sorry I was rushed and hungry and did not take a pic :)

sorting through the information

I have always lived by the belief that if I have a question or don't understand something, the chances are pretty much 100% that I am not the only one. As I am striving to develop my own healthier cooking and eating habits I am delving into the immensity of present day knowledge of what happens in our bodies with what we put into our mouths. It is heavy stuff and I do not want to be a walking digest of antioxidants and types of saturated fatty acid chains. However I do want to understand the basic pros and cons of eating various foods and additives and to incorporate this knowledge into how I cook and what I eat.

In this vein I subscribe to a daily email which provides recipes for healthy food and information about nutrition. I found today's information especially interesting about why it is best not to heat extra virgin olive oil. I had heard this before, but hadn't yet investigated. The bottom line (what I really want to know) is that heat damages virgin olive oil. Easy peasy...for those of you who are interested in the more detailed information, I have taken it from the World's Healthiest food info site....www.whfoods.org ....and I quote...

"In general, monounsaturated fat increases the stability of a vegetable oil in comparison to polyunsaturated fat. This increased stability is related to the chemical structure of monounsaturated fat. MUFAs have fewer "reactive spots" than PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids) and it is more difficult for oxygen radicals to interact with these kinds of fat. However, despite this lower reactivity, olive oil and other vegetable oils containing a high amount of MUFAs (like canola oil) still have relatively low smoke points and cannot withstand a large amount of heat. Unless these high-MUFA oils have been refined or conditioned in a way that increases their smoke point, they typically cannot withstand heats of much greater than 200-250˚F (93-121˚C) without incurring damage (the temperature of stove-top frying is 375-525˚F, or 191-274˚C). So even though the high-MUFA composition of extra virgin olive oil increases its chemical stability, it does not protect this wonderful oil from most stovetop or oven cooking temperatures.

It is worth noting in this discussion of MUFAs that the oleic acid found in olive oil has been the subject of expanding research interest when it comes to insulin resistance, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Recent studies have made it clear that oleic acid can directly alter the activity of certain cancer genes and appears to have anti-cancer effects that may be part of the Mediterranean diet's health benefits. This primary MUFA in extra virgin olive oil may also help to lower a person's risk of insulin resistance as well as favorably altering some of the blood fat patterns that can be associated with risk of cardiovascular disease.

Yet, to get these benefits it's important to enjoy extra virgin olive oil when its MUFAs are best protected, which means at heats below 250˚F (121˚C).

Heat damages extra virgin olive oil"

end of story....have a great day everyone! To Life, Learning and Love

Pizza and Wine...recipe for a splendid winter day

With company expected on the weekend I decided to make homemade pizza, something that would enhance a great bottle of local Prince Edward County white wine. I made enough whole wheat and spelt flour crust for 3 pizzas topped with both mozzarella and provolone cheese, olives, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, a bit of onion, capers and artichoke hearts. It was absolutely delicious! ...and not just because of the wine....although that was wonderful also. We topped the crust with half of the grated cheese, then the other toppings and finished off with more cheese. Voila! As an aside, I only used 1/3 of the dough. After the first rising I put the other 2 balls in the freezer for another time. Just thaw it and spread it out on the pizza pan, top with your favourite toppings (no tomato sauce required) and another easy, delicious dinner or afternoon delight is ready for the wine.