Friday, July 22, 2011

Gazpacho


Another fridge cleaning meal. Gazpacho is a favorite of mine in the summer it is cold soup and is a great way to clean out the veggies that don't cook up well.

5-6 tomatoes
1 cucumber
1-2 pepper (bell, poblano, jalapeno what ever you have or like)
1/2 onion
1 Tbs cilantro or basil or parsley
1 cup vegetable juice
1 Tbs vinegar
salt pepper or dried spices to taste

Put all the veggies in a blender and give it enough pulses to break everything down to little bits. Pour into bowl and add remaining ingredients stir and cover. Place in fridge for a few hours or overnight to allow flavors to meld and serve cold. I like to garnish with some chopped avocado.

Chicken Fried Rice


Fried rice is a dish I make to clean out my fridge so my measurements are not exact. This is a versatile dish that can utilize many different vegetables and meats.

3 cups chopped vegetables (I used carrots, onion, bell peppers, and zucchini)
2 cloves garlic
1 inch piece ginger (peeled and grated)
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs olive oil
4 cups cooked rice
2 cups diced cooked chicken
4 eggs (scrambled, yes I cook my eggs separate so they don't get lost in the rice)
1/4 San J GF Tamari sauce or your favorite soy sauce
1 small can peas
black pepper to taste
2 Tbs rice wine vinegar

Saute the chopped vegetables, garlic, and ginger in olive oil and butter over medium heat for about 10 mins until cooked down and soft. Add rice and chicken and cook until every thing is thoroughly mixed and hot. Now add tamari, vinegar and black pepper and cook for 5 mins. Last is to add eggs and peas and allow to heat through.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Spiced Peach Cupcakes with Fresh Whipped Honey Cream

Spiced Peach Cupcakes
1 cup diced peaches packed
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp allspice, ginger, and nutmeg
1/4 cup butter
1 egg
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup Baking Flour Blend
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp xathan gum
1/4 tsp salt

In a small pot combine peaches and spices. Cook over med heat for about 5 mins until peaches are soft and then remove from heat and stir in butter. Keep stirring until butter is completely melted in to peach mixture and allow to cool completely.

After peaches have cooled preheat oven to 350* and line 12 cupcake pan spots. Beat egg and sugar together until smooth and pale yellow then slowly add peaches. Combine all remaining ingredients in a sperate bowl and stir together then slowly add to peach mixture. Fill cupcake liner 3/4 full and bake for 20 mins or until tooth pick comes out clean.



Whipped Honey Cream

2 tbs honey
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbs powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine ingredients in a chilled mixing bowl and beat on high speed until fluffy and stiff peaks but don not over beat or you will have butter not whipped cream.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Lemonaide Cupcakes


1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cup baking flour blend
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 xathan gum

Preheat oven to 350* and line 12 cupcake cups. Beat eggs and sugar until smooth, then add oil and lemon juice. In separate bowl combine remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Slowly add flour mixture to egg mixture scraping sides as needed. Fill cups 3/4 full and bake for 20 mins or until tooth pick inserted comes out clean.

Chocolate cupcakes


1 cup Sugar
1/4 cup butter softened
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla balsamic vinegar (if not available use 1 tsp vanilla extract and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar)
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cup baking flour blend
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp xathan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup Ghirardelli ground chocolate

Preheat oven to 350* and line 12 cupcake cups. Beat sugar and butter in mixer until smooth, then add eggs 1 at a time. Next add the milk. in separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, xathan gum, and chocolate. Stir briefly with a whisk to mix thoroughly. Add flour slowly to egg mixture scraping sides as needed. After flour is thoroughly mixed add vanilla vinegar. Fill cups 3/4's full and bake for 20 mins.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

sausage stuffed mushrooms


i think this would be a great recipe to highlight food made with real ingredients and not a lot of processed food. On that note the sausage i use is organic free range and made fresh everyday. For more recipes using real ingredients check out Real Food Weekly


1/2 pound Italian style chicken sausage (casing removed)
1/2 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 egg
16 oz fresh mushrooms (make sure the are a good size to stuff)

Saute onion and garlic in non stick pan till soften then add sausage and cook till done and crumbled. Allow mixture to cool thoroughly and give a quick pulse in food possessor to make sure everything is nice even consistency. Add cheese and egg and mix thoroughly.

Preheat oven to 350*. Remove stems from mushrooms and wipe the caps to remove dirt. Generously stuff the caps and arrange in a single layer on baking sheet. Loosely tent pan with tin foil and bake for 20 mins. Remove foil and bake until filling is set and golden brown

Saturday, June 18, 2011

flour blend for baking


i find this blend gives me a very nice texture for baked goods


6 cups brown rice flour
4 cups white rice flour
2 cups tapioca starch

mix very well

Thanks to Jill's comment I think I need to clarify I do use xanthan gum in my baking I don't put it in my blend because I have found I don't get an even product over multiple batches which is important if I am baking for someone else. I usually add about 1/2 a teaspoon to 1 1/2 cups of flour. Sorry for the confusion.