Lemon Almond Poppy Muffins (Whey & Yogurt)

I made too much home made yogurt so I figured I'd use some up in this recipe.

Reduced the sugar, increased the poppy seeds, added lemon to this recipe. So I was going to use whole wheat flour until I realized I didn't have any. And I was going to use coconut oil instead of the butter, but then I overfilled my yogurt/whey container and decided to try it without more liquids like coconut oil.

The texture of these is moist and almost rubbery in a good way- my husband loves gummy bears (it's a texture thing) and was raving about these. Full discolsure- they don't have cake-y crumb, but more of a bready crumb.  My guess is that the protein of the whey liquid and yogurt, along with resting the batter, is responsible.

These are not very sweet so I drizzled with lemon zest, lemon juice and powdered sugar which was perfect. I did try sprinkling with turbinado sugar but it fell into the batter so I wouldn't do that again on this batter.

The photo at top is the batter baked into mini tartlet pans (sprayed with olive oil first).

Mix:
2 C cake flour (or whole wheat pastry flour, or use all purpose flour)
1.5 tsp baking powder
0.5 tsp baking soda
0.25 tsp salt
1/4 C sugar
4 TB poppy seeds

1 tsp almond extract
zest and juice of 2 lemons
1 egg
1.5 C yogurt & whey liquid on top of the yogurt (mine was from home made plain yogurt made from whole grass fed milk)

Set the batter in the fridge to rest for 4 hours or overnight. This should help hydrate the flour.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Pour batter into greased muffin pan.  Bake for 25 minutes at 350 or until set and slightly golden.

Pull out of muffin pans, and drizzle each muffin with mixture of:
lemon juice
lemon zest
powdered sugar to taste

Flax Wraps

I am crazy about these flax wraps.  They are raw, vegan, low in calories, high in fiber and make a
delicious textured wrapper for all sorts of stuff. Use these to wrap up dehydrator sauteed vegetables, raw shredded vegetables, rice and beans, cheese or anything else you desire.  I love how easy it is to make a lunch or snack with these.  You can even use flax wraps in place of tortillas (regular or sprouted grain) for tacos.

Tools: you'll need a dehydrator and teflex sheets (whenever I've tried this kind of recipe in the oven it's a disaster).

Storage: the finished wraps last for probably a couple weeks in the fridge. I cut them into fourths and place in a ziplock bag.

Ingredient Note: use golden or regular flax meal. Remember that flax meal (ground/milled flax seeds) can go rancid so use it quickly and/or store it in the fridge.  Find it in bulk sections or at costco to avoid overpaying (I've seen a wide range of prices on flaxmeal).
The recipe can be scaled up or down. I sometimes make a double recipe to use up zucchini and to use all the trays in my dehydrator.

Zucchini Basil Wraps: 
Puree 2 cups zucchini, 1 cup water, 1 cup flaxmeal, large handful basil leaves and optional salt and garlic until homogenized.  The ratio is fairly flexible-- you want something spreadable but not too watery that it rolls off the tray (flax quickly thickens up so that's usually not a problem!)

Spread between several dehydrator trays. Pour then spread with a large spatula. You want it to be 1/8" thick so that it dries out.  I try to keep the edges a tiny bit thicker than the middle as the edges dry faster than the center (at least in my Excalibur dehydrator).

Place in the dehydrator. Dehydrate at 110- 115 F for 5-7 hours. Check a couple times to avoid overcooking (unlike dehydrated veggie chips, you want these to be pliable so don't let them dry all the way out). They are done when they are still flexible but don't have any wet mushy spots. If you have just one or two mushy spots, you can cut these out if the rest of the batch is done and you're impatient :)

When done, peel off the teflex sheets. Cut into whatever shape you desire and eat immediately or store in plastic ziplock bag in the fridge.


Variations:

• Use any vegetable you wish: I bet tomatoes, carrot, or yellow summer squash would all work well instead of the zucchini.
• Omit the basil. Add spices like salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, cumin etc
• Press small nuts into the wraps such as sesame seeds or poppy seeds before dehydrating

Sweet crepe variation: sub out the zucchini for banana and make sweet flax crepes. The texture is between a crepe and fruit leather and it makes a good breakfast or dessert depending on what you put in it. I bet peanut butter would be great to spread in a banana flax crepe for a snack.

Raw Vegan Creamy Chipotle Sauce/ Salad Dressing

This is between a sauce and salad dressing, so I have been using for both!  Works great on top of rice and beans (obviously not raw), or on dehydrator-sauteed vegetables, especially if they are seasoned in a latin fashion (oregano, cumin etc.).  Or use this in wrap sandwiches to add some flavor, salt and gooey-ness.

If you want to be fancy, this would be beautiful piped out of a ketchup bottle or pastry bag.

SAUCE:
Yield approx 1 pint of sauce

Blend until smooth:
1/2 C nuts (almond, pine nut, sunflower seed)
1/4 C lemon juice
1/4 C olive oil
1/4 C water
1 tomato (or red bell pepper)
1/4 C cilantro
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp agave
1/2 dried chipotle chile
1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste)

Refrigerate and use on veggies, salad or tacos.

Cucumbers with himalayan sea salt

Cucumbers are in season and with a couple cucumber plants producing wildly, I've got a lot on my hands!

My new favorite way to present and enjoy cucumbers is to mandolin slice them paper thin, spread on a plate and sprinkle himalayan sea salt over the top. Let it sit for 2 -3 minutes to get juicy and then enjoy.

If the skin is tough, first peel off shreds of peel with a potato peeler. Then slice. The result looks like poker chips.

Good quality salt is a perfect partner for cucumbers- you can taste the salt and the cucumber better by eating them together. This is a great snack with good mouthfeel but low calories.

Another way I'm enjoying cucumbers is to juice them with green apples. Yum!

Raw Vegan "Roasted" Tomatoes

I"m a fan of roasted tomatoes. The roasting brings out their sweetness. But tending to the oven for more than 10 minutes in the summer? Blech.

So I tried an experiment and tossed these guys in the dehydrator. Result: not quite as caramelized as oven-roasted but still very good and cravable. And the best part is I can prep this in the morning and have lunch waiting for me.

Method:
Wash and slice tomatoes (preferably roma) in half
Place on telfex sheet on dehydrator tray
Drizzle with
olive oil and sea salt
Dehydrate at 110 or 115F for at least two hours.  (I did just 2 hours today but I wonder how much better they'd be at 4 hours?)

Better than sauteed zucchini (dehydrator sauteed)

I came across a raw vegan recipe for "marinated" vegetables.  You slice the veggies about 1/8" thin, toss with a dressing and then dehydrate on teflex sheets for 2 hours at 110 F.

It doesn't sound very revolutionary until you taste it. Watery vegetables that get a bad rap for having a rubbery texture, like zucchini and eggplant, are transformed. The result is not really like "marinated" raw vegetables at all. So I'm calling it  dehydrator-sauteed vegetables.  And apparently I really like them because I've made this recipe at least 4 times in the past couple weeks!

The water is wicked away, leaving warm, slightly chewy on the edges vegetables and lots of flavor. Compare this to cooking zucchini on the grill or stove where it starts to release some but not all of the water and gets soggy and flavorless.

I reduced the original recipe's massive amount of olive oil-- I'm finding that 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1-2 tablespoons of lemon juice is just right. And you can go crazy with whatever spices you want- just make sure to add salt!

This is a great way to use up farmer's market vegetables that I don't typically eat raw (lettuce, cucumbers, carrots are easy to snack on out of the fridge; but eggplant, zucchini and mushrooms tend to languish in the fridge if I don't' feel like turning on the stove).

Easy Lunch/Dinner tip: these can sit out at room temp once prepped, so I like to cut the veggies, toss with the marinade and put in the dehydrator with a timer set to start later in the day. I use a lamp/applaiance timer which tells the dehydrator when to turn on (i.e. 2 hours prior to the meal). Then when I get home for lunch or dinner, it's ready.

INSTRUCITONS
Decide on your vegetable and marinade ingredients.

Veggie Combinations:

• Bell pepper, corn, zucchini (latin theme)
• Mushrooms, eggplant, yellow summer squash
• Eggplant & garlic
• Green beans are ok but they don't get as cooked (they taste more raw) 

Marinade:
1-2 TB lemon juice
1-2 TB of good quality olive oil
sprinkling of salt to taste
Optional Flavorings: black pepper, paprika, cumin, chipotle pepper, garlic, onion powder, finely chopped basil, oregano and/or cilantro

1. Wash vegetables.  Slice into 1/8" thick pieces (don't go paper thin unless you want it crispy)

2. Toss veggies with marinade. Make sure you get all the slices coated (sometimes zucchini likes to stick to itself).
3. Pour over teflex sheets on dehydrator trays.  I generally make enough for 1-2 people (i.e. 1 zuch and 1 corn cobb and a few mushrooms) and spread over two trays.
4. Dehydrate at 110 F for 2 hours
5. Gently scrape off the teflex sheets (I use a spoon)


Uses for dehydrator-sauteed veggies:

• wrap into a flax wrap, ezekiel tortilla for a wrap sandwich (see photo at top).  Optionally add other veggies (lettuce), pickles and or dressings, such as raw vegan chipotle cream dressing
• Top a green salad
• Garnish rice and black bean bowls
• eat warm out of the dehydrator or just as good chilled from the fridge

Sour Fermented Pickles (in half gallon jar)

I have made quick pickles before, in my mind that means they use vinegar.  Since last summer I've wanted to try fermented pickles- i.e. the old school type that used to be the only kind of pickle!

I guess in the old times people didn't use vinegar to pickle stuff, they relied on the fermentation process. Long scared by fermentation, I've been feeling more brave lately now that we successfully brew kombucha tea. So what's another crazy jar of fermenting stuff? And fermented pickles are supposed to be good for you with probiotics.

I scaled down this recipe by half and used a grape leaf instead of horseradish (another canning/pickling book mentioned grape leaves).  I didn't have any fresh dill (darn!) so I used some dry dill. However it floated up to the top so next time I want to use fresh dill that I can wedge into the bottom of the jar better.

Method:
Layer into a clean half gallon glass jar:
half gallon of pickling cukes, washed thoroughly and both ends chopped off
2 TB pickling spice
1 TB dried dill (or substitute 1-2 fresh dill seed heads)
3 cloves garlic (peeled)
optional: 2 grape or horseradish leaves (I've read this is supposed to keep them crunchy?)




















Pour filtered cool water into a quart jar. Add 2.5 to 3 TB sea salt, lid and shake to dissolve.

Pour this brine water over the cucumbers in the large jar.  Make sure the pickles are wedged into the jar so they are under the level of the brine.

Cover with a paper towel and rubber band. Label the jar with today's date. Place in cool location.












Scoop the scum off every other day- mine got loaded up wtih the dried dill. I suppose that's why fresh dill fronds are better.

At 5 days, check a pickle. The brine in my jar looked a little disconcertingly opaque, greenish algea cast. But never fear, I think that's ok!

Pull one pickle out and cut it open.  If there are still white spots (see photo) that means it needs more time. I think you want the whole pickle to look like the less opaque green spots:



At the 8 day mark, my pickles were done. The top of the jar looked a little scary (see photo at right)- I can't tell if this was mold or the intended bacterial strains? In any case, I scooped it up with a spoon and threw it out.


Then I topped off the jar with some more filtered water, put a lid on it and put it in the fridge to stop the fermentation process.


Bottom line: resulted in  really nicely flavored pickles with a good crunchy texture- not at all soggy like vinegared/cooked pickles.

Caramel Cinnamon Raisin Swirl in Banana Custard Pudding

I had milk and bananas about to go bad, so I thought why not combine all of my hubby's favorite things? Raisin, cinnamon, birds eye custard (pudding), and caramel. I started from my go to custard/pudding recipe then ad-libbed from there.

Method
Mix 1/4 C raisins with 1 TB vanilla extract, 1 TB hot water and 1 TB cinnamon. Stir and set aside.

Caramelize in a wide heavy pan until bubbling:
2 TB butter 
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 C packed brown sugar

Pour out 2/3 of hte mixture into a heat safe container and reserve for later.

Add 2 cut up ripe bananas to the pan with the remaining caramel and heat and stir until you can smell the banana.

Blend the carmelized banana mixture with 2 C whole milk.

Return the banana-milk to the saucepan. Bring to a slow simmer.

Meanwhile, beat 3 eggs with 3 TB cornstarch. (I use an electric mixer b/c you don't want clumps of eggs- they might set up when mixed with the hot milk)

Once the milk is slowly simmering, temper the egg mixture and slowly incorporate eggs into the milk while whisking/stirring to prevent clumping. Continue cooking over medium heat until the custard sets up and gets thick.

Carefully stir in the reserved caramel and the raisin mixture. You want to stir just enough to get swirls in the custard.

Pour or spoon into small canning jars or ramekins. Serve hot, or refridgerate and serve cold.

Vegan Basil Pesto

For any good  that you buy, it's a good idea to know of at least one way to use up a bunch of it.  A lot of recipes only need a little of an ingredient (buttermilk, cheese, basil) and you're left with the rest sitting in the fridge. Unless you're going to make several repeats in the same week of that one recipe, you'd be well served to use up the rest in a bulk-type recipe.  For me this week, that's basil!

I was inspired by this "frugal" recipe using sunflower seeds, which reminded me of the vegan taco "nut meat" topping that is so delicious over kale salad. I was also inspired by this skinny recipe, where the nuts are omitted and oil is reduced. Wanting something cheap and vegan, I mixed it up into this version with sunflower seeds and no cheese.  I bet you could try this with other savory herbs like parsley, maybe cilantro, thai basil...

Eat the pesto as is or store in the fridge or in the freezer.  We like pesto on open face broiled cheese sandwiches, veggies or zucchini noodles.

When done up in tiny glass jars it would make a beautiful (although not shelf stable) gift/hostess gift during the summer entertaining/picnic season.

Method
Pulse in food processor until the seeds are finely ground:
1/4 C sunflower seeds1 clove garlic
1/2 to 1 tsp lemon juice (to taste)
pinch sea salt
pinch black pepper

Now add and pulse to chop (but not totally obliterate):
1 C basil leaves
1 TB good olive oil (I'm currently in love with the Costco Toscano 2012 oil)

Scoop into container and cover with a thin layer of good olive oil.

I like to use small glass canning jars for freezing large quantities or to keep in the fridge for serving/cooking.  This time I spooned the pesto into ice cube trays to freeze. Then when frozen, pop them out and store in a ziplock bag in the freezer-- when you need a little bit of pesto you can grab just one ice cube!

Birds eye custard in mason jars

I made up more bird's eye custard using my standard recipe.  (Americans, myself included, would call this vanilla pudding but I like to use the British name for it that my husband grew up with). 

It's actually pretty quick to make and tastes so much better than any pudding cup from the store.  You just have to remember that once it gets warmed up you have to pay attention and stir, stir, stir!! But aside from a few minutes of focused attention, it is pretty fast start to finish.  And when you pack it into small mason jars with lids, it's a perfect packable dessert.