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Wednesday, May 28, 2014

I'm Back

Finally, I have a chance to breathe and get back to doing what I love (and miss)- cooking.

I know I haven't blogged in a really long time, I'm not sure where to start, other then after coming back from camp last summer, then starting a very crazy fall semester where I had class all day then got a job at a gym where I worked all night, I really didn't have much time to eat let alone cook or have a life or sleep or do much of anything. Then this semester came around and I got a new job as a nanny that one would think would give me a little more time to enjoy stuff but no, I was working all day had class most nights/evening, not leaving me much with the energy to cook or create anything. I did make a few things here and there for a birthday, for Valentine's Day, just random stuff, with the plan of making a blog posting for them, just never had the chance too.

But now I find myself at a crossroads of sorts, still a "nanny" but I have no real placements so I wait for an on call job that just don't seem to come, so I am on the hunt for a new job. That leaves me with long boring days to fill with food and other things I love/miss doing. But for some reason, even with the weather getting nicer, even with school no longer hanging over my head, assignments, all that fun stuff, I find myself unmotivated to do much of anything. Sad, yes, I'm still getting up super early and working out in the AM with my momma (we are talking 6am people, so I have some motivation still) its just as the days keep going I don't want to deal with stuff, like for instance with my DTR (if you didn't know I was, now was cause I lost it, a dietetic technician registered, meaning I sat for like 2 hours to take an exam to get the credentials that really ultimately never helped me with anything. I applied to jobs to use them, never got any because I didn't have experience, you know all that stuff, so here I am like 5 years after taking that exam and then you have to pay each year to keep them, something I had a hard time doing because as you can see I am frequently "between" jobs. So I go to handle this whole DTR thing only to realize I lost the credentials and the only way to get them back is to retake the exam- not happening it was 5 years ago and the classes I have been taking now won't help with it- or pay money to apply for an appeal to say I have finical hardships with paying- seems sort of backwards hun.

My last few days in a nut shell. So lets get to some happy things like food. I'm going to post all the fun pictures of stuff I did make and hopefully make a few blog entries to give the recipes of those items, and I do have a few recipes to give you today. Like how about some ice cream. Oh yea!! I finally put my ice cream maker to good use, other then just sitting in a box looking all pretty and such, it actually works haha.

With Memorial Day just passing we (my family, and by family I mean my parents, brothers, and fiance {oh yes you read correctly, fiance =] some one got engaged and I'm not gunna point any fingers, well maybe just show you one haha with a gorgeous ring on it} and a few friends) had a small BBQ where my dad actually made hamburgers, in all of my life I never ever can recall of him doing this. Sad I don't eat that stuff any more. Nope I made a yummy salad. And when I say yummy I mean it was banging. Like I have this new obsession with fennel. I am in love (don't tell my fiance) with it. Raw or roasted, like roasted it ten times better, but either way it is delicious. That was in the yummy salad, along with orange segments, and roasted chick peas with a homemade orange and olive oil dressing. With some of the best olive oil I have ever had in my life. It is fresh pressed extra virgin olive oil from Eatly in the city, it smells like tomato vines and tastes so fruity, so I call it the fruity oil =] me being me. Here is the said salad with some corn on the cob, my favorite summer time thing.

Vindaloo spice mix roasted chick peas

double fruity dressing (oj and oj zest and fruity oil)

And now for the ice cream. I have been getting back into watching Food Network and Cooking Channel and there keeps being ice cream cookie sandwiches on stuff, so I wanted to make some for myself and I did just that. We all know I have a deep deep passionate love for cinnamon, so of course that was the ice cream flavor and I made some gluten free chocolate cookies that remind me of chocolate wafer cookies that my dad use to make cheesecake crusts from when I was little.

Cinnamon Coconut Ice Cream

2 13.5 oz cans of coconut milk
1/4 teaspoon of vanilla powder (or 1/2 teaspoon of extract)
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup of maple syrup



Mix everything together and them let it chill in the fridge. (And you know what, you could add some rum to this and it could be a vegan horchata.)

For my ice cream maker I had to set the bowl part in the freezer and I did this over night, as well as my ice cream mix.

Place the ice cream mix in the ice cream maker and use according to the directions, mine took only like 30 minutes to be nice and creamy and ice creamy.

Chocolate Cookies

1 banana, mashed
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup coconut oil, soft liquid like
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup oat flour, I made myself
1/4 cup cashew meal
1/4 cup cacao powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Mix the flaxseed meal and water to gel up.

Add to the banana along with the coconut oil.

Mix in the dry ingredients.

You can just make drop cookies but since I want these for sandwich purposes I flattened them down.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, I wanted them to be a bit crispier so I left them in for the 20 minutes, but for softer cookies bake for the 15 minutes.

Assembly time!!

The two of them together tasted really good. Yum Yum!!

Food porn up next!!  HAHAHA
Valentine's Day dinner- eggplant pesto roll ups with sundried tomato bean balls and balsamic drizzle

Homemade vegan gummy bears- cherry juice concentrate, water, agar agar

Pumpkin flat bread with my favorite almond cheese with roasted beets and beet greens

Pomegranate seeds with roasted veg and avocado and parsley salad

hot sauce and balsamic baked tofu

lemon pepper and tamari baked tofu

orange poppy seed donuts with coconut butter 

cinnamon raisin caraway seed flat bread with almond cheese and vindaloo roasted carrots

then topped with parsley (actually I added more after the pic)

Vegan carrot cake with coconut butter frosting

vegan carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

vegan carrot cake with vanilla buttercream frosting (for the Mr's bday)

Whole Foods had these I needed them

then roasted them

vegan scones for momma's day- cranberry walnut

Pineapple coconut bread- had tons of left over pineapple


did I mention I added walnuts to it cause I did

then topped it with cinnamon cashew apple butter mix
corn on the cob season!! with strawberry, avocado, and almond cheese salad

pretty carrots!! from good ole' Trader Joe's- organic too!!


Monday, January 20, 2014

Pears, Apples, and Bananas

Before my semester starts up tomorrow I wanted to get a blog posting in. If you couldn't get it from the title my recipes (yes there is more than one) have to do with pears, apples, and bananas.

Up first is a gluten free pear spice bread. It came out pretty darn good with out having xanthum gum on hand.

Gluten Free Spice Pear Bread


2 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup millet flour
1/4 cup arrowroot
1 tablespoon baking power
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, allspice, ground caraway seeds, and salt
1/8 teaspoon cloves and cardamon
1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
1 tablespoon water
4-5 really ripe pears
1/4 cup golden flax seeds (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease a loaf pan (I spray mine with coconut oil spray).

Combine the ground flaxseeds and water.

Mash the pears.


Add in the spices and the flax "egg".

Add in the flour, oats, arrowroot, and baking powder and soda. (If adding flax seeds, add them too.)


Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until golden brown and firm to touch and when a tooth pick inserted comes out clean. Also rotate pan half way through baking time.

That was recipe number one, here is number two: I still had one last pear left (it wasn't really ripe when I made the bread and saved it just in case I wanted to eat it, that never happened, so baking it was the only option.). I also had a super ripe banana on hand (well to tell you the truth I have about 15 or so frozen super ripe bananas, but this one was still out and ready for use). Add the same spice combo and instead of gluten free I used whole wheat white flour and you get:

Spiced Banana Pear Donuts

1 ripe medium pear
1 ripe medium banana
1/4 cup arrowroot
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
same spice mix as above recipe (allspice, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and cardamon)
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray the donut pan with coconut oil spray.

Mash the pear and banana together. Add in the spices and flaxseed meal.

Mix in the flours and baking powder.

Put in a zippy bag and cut off a corner to pipe into the pan.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
little owl mug photo bombing


Frost with coconut manna (coconut butter) or a nut butter of choice or I mixed maple almond butter with apple butter and cinnamon.

I also topped them with some pomegranate seeds.

And last but not least, the third recipe is using apples and bananas.

Apple Banana Cake

2 ripe bananas
1/4 teaspoon vindaloo spice blend
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 small almost ready to be tossed cause they were softish apples, cut into chunks
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup arrowroot
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup water

Preheat the oven 350 degrees and spray a 8x8 pan or loaf pan with coconut oil spray.

Mash the bananas (could use 3 then omit water or use less water). Add in the flaxseed meal and spice and salt.

Combine the dry ingredients.

Add in the apples, toss, then add in the mashed bananas, and water. You may need to add more water if necessary.

Pour into the pan and bake 30 to 35 minutes. (I did 30 minutes 15 minutes then turned the pan.)

Yes I know I didn't add any sugar to these recipes but you are more than welcome to to make them sweeter. Just reduce liquids in recipes (if there is any) or add a liquid sweetener and add some more flour.

I pretty much like to top all my baked goods with a nut butter apple butter cinnamon combo. I absolutely love it, so my baked goods do too.

Well until next time all!! <3