Simple Pleasures: Cranberry Scones

January 1, 2015PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, lesson, nut/peanut free, reduced refined sugar Leave a comment

“May your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions.”

When my husband and I married, one of my two newly minted degrees was in Psychology, and having gotten married in late December, our first New Year’s celebration came upon us pretty quickly. Being a wise 22, I decided we could do resolutions “better”. So, I made up a three page chart which would assess how our year had been physically, emotionally, mentally, psychologically, and spiritually, stating that we’d then make goals under these categories for our new year, both individually and for us as a newly married couple.

It’s a testament to my husband’s sainthood that he humored my insanity, not only that evening, but over the course of the year as I continued to drag out the bedraggled sheets to assess how we were doing.

When our second New Year’s came around, my husband very gently asked me whether we should assess the successfulness of my better resolution experiment before we embarked on another year of it; and of course, what we discovered is that we hadn’t done any better with our resolutions than we had any other time in our lives.

What it had done, though, was to make us more conscious of the fact that a better life is all about those daily decisions, not the one time a year ones; and for those of us trying to be healthy and take care of our allergies and be in better shape and wanting to love better, it’s what we do each day that makes the difference, not what we simply say we want to do on January 1.

So, for today’s post, I’m sharing another simple pleasure recipe for scones. In the past, I wouldn’t make scones because normal versions use a lot of butter and cream, and they took too much time and required more effort than I liked to expend. Over time, though, I realized that there were ways to make them healthier and that I could make drop scones instead which took much less time and effort. These cranberry ones don’t take much time to make, and you get lots of good health benefits from the cranberries, protein and fiber, which is one way you can improve your health today on your first day of 2015.

Gluten and Dairy Free Cranberry Scones

Ingredients:

12 oz bag fresh cranberries (I actually keep them frozen in my fridge so I can just pull one out when I need it)

1/4 cup unsweetened orange juice

2 tbsp Agave

1/3 cup vegan butter

2/3 cup flax milk mixed with 2 tsp lemon juice (You can use another type of milk if you prefer)

1 cup vegan ricotta

1 tbsp coconut sugar

1/4 cup safflower oil

2 tbsp Agave

3/4 cup sorghum flour

3/4 cup garbanzo bean flour

2 cup Gluten free brown rice blend (I use Authentic Foods)

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger

2 tbsp coconut sugar

Baking Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. In your food processor, chop up your fresh or frozen cranberries with the orange juice and agave. Set aside.

3. Measure out the vegan butter and put it into the freezer while you are assembling the rest of the ingredients.

4. Mix the flax milk with the lemon juice and let is sit for a minute while you mix the ricotta with the coconut sugar.

5. Add the milk mixture to the ricotta mixture, along with the safflower oil and agave. Set aside.

6. Mix together the sorghum, garbanzo bean, and gluten free flour blend with the salt, cinnamon, ginger, and coconut sugar.

7. Take your butter out of the freezer and cut in the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until the flour mixture is a bit crumbly.

8. Gently stir in the cranberries so they are coated with the dry ingredients.

9. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Quickly mix the batter up just until the dry ingredients are moist.

10. Drop the batter by 1/4 cup onto the lined cookie sheets, and bake for about 20 minutes. The scones will be puffed and golden. You may eat them immediately while warm or cool the scones on a wire cooling rack for later eating.

NOTE: Your cooking time may vary, depending on your measuring cup. I usually use a deep cup so it takes 20 minutes, but once I used a shallower cup and the scones took less time, so be sure to gauge accordingly. Basically you want your scones to be puffed and airy and cooked through.

Creative Cooking: Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

November 24, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, informational, nut/peanut free, reduced refined sugar, soy free Leave a comment

“Can we make something chocolate?”

My few weeks have been beyond crazy. On top of our usual busyness of school, work, and activities, we’ve continued to deal with my oldest’s recovery from being hit by a car, we’ve grieved the death of a friend’s daughter, we’ve agonized over a loved one being in the hospital in an induced coma, and we added rehearsals for my son to be in “It’s A Wonderful Life” and auditions for a play I’m directing.

So, it’s now just a few days before Thanksgiving, and I’m finally turning my attention to the menu for that day and returning to this blog which I have ignored for these past three weeks. When I asked my children what we should have my middle child responded with the question: “Can we make something chocolate?”

Now, two of my three children are well-rounded dessert lovers. When presented with choices, they may choose a slice of apple pie or a piece of zucchini cake or a ginger cookie or a slice of pumpkin cheesecake. My middle child, however, when given options to choose from, will opt for the chocolate cream pie or the chocolate fudge cake or the double chocolate cookie or the chocolate cheesecake.

So, I wasn’t surprised when she asked if we could make something chocolatey. She always does, and I always suggest that we stick to the traditional pies for Thanksgiving and make something chocolate for another time. I surprised myself yesterday, though, by actually contemplating the idea of making chocolate cupcakes.

Why? Three reasons: One, I just had a really, really long week and the thought of something comforting like chocolate cupcakes was enticing; two, with the death of my friend’s daughter at such a young age (20’s) and my own daughter being alive after being hit by a car, I’m realizing that life’s too short to NOT have chocolate, no matter the season; and three, we just watched my son’s performance in “It’s A Wonderful Life” where I was reminded that it’s all really about family and friends and time together and not the menu.

So, if you need assistance in revamping your holiday menu to fit allergy or health needs, please read my posts from last year (Nov and Dec 2013) where you’ll learn all sorts of lessons for how to do so; but for this Thanksgiving, I’m offering a creative addition to the Thanksgiving menu: Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes which are gluten, dairy, nut, soy, peanut, and egg free. Enjoy and have a most Happy Thanksgiving!

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups gluten free flour (I used Authentic Foods Multi-Blend)

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

1 cup Enjoy Life allergen free mini chocolate chips

1/2 cup Hershey’s dark unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup oil (I used safflower)

1 cup Agave

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups water

2 tbsp vinegar (I used raspberry but apple cider or white will do)

Polaner’s Raspberry All-Fruit

Baking Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 24 muffin cups with cupcake liners.

2. Whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and cocoa powder. Add the chocolate chips and set aside.

3. Whisk together the oil, agave, vanilla, and water.

4. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet, adding the vinegar.

5. Divide half of the batter evenly among the muffin cups. I usually put about 1 1/2 tbsp of batter into each.

6. Carefully put one teaspoon of raspberry all fruit into the center of the batter.

7. Evenly distribute the remaining batter among the muffin tins, carefully putting the batter over the raspberry all fruit. Again, this is usually about another 1 1/2 tbsp.

8. Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 15 to 20 minutes.

9. Cool in the muffin tins on a wire rack for about five minutes before removing them from the tins and completely cooling them on a wire rack.

10. For a festive touch, put the cupcake into a bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or nondairy frozen dessert next to it with a raspberry and mint leaf on top.

Cooking Techniques: Allergy Friendly Pie Crusts

October 13, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, Holidays, informational, lesson, nut/peanut free, reduced refined sugar, soy free Leave a comment

“Yay! Thanksgiving in October!”

My ninth grade daughter is taking French this year for the first time, and the high school she is at hosts an exchange program with another high school in France. We were asked to host a French student for two weeks, and one of the suggestions for entertainment was to have a Thanksgiving meal with them, since that would be a different experience for them.

We were happy to oblige, as you can tell by my son’s response above.

As we prepared, we explained to our French student that no matter what people say about the Turkey and the side dishes and the rolls, that Thanksgiving really is all about the pies: apple pie, pumpkin pie, mincemeat pie, cranberry pie, pecan pie, sweet potato pie, pear pie, buttermilk pie, and every possible variation of these pies which exist.

For folks with food allergies, though, pies can be tricky. May people struggle with pie-making in general, even when you’re able to use white flour, butter, and salt. The thought of trying to make a pie crust with substitutions is something a lot of folks simply just don’t want to consider.

The good news, though, is that making a gluten, dairy, soy, salt free pie crust is actually easier than making a traditional pie crust. You just need to know a few things, and you’ll be on your way to a great Thanksgiving dessert buffet!

Tips for Allergy Friendly Pie Crusts:

1. It’s just a simple swap: Because pie crusts don’t need to rise the way breads and cakes do, you can simply substitute your favorite gluten free flour for the all purpose flour. No need to make up any special flour blends at all. If you want a flakier, crispier, closer to traditional pie crust, opt for flours like brown rice or sorghum. If you want a more substantive crust with flavor, protein and fiber, try garbanzo bean or gluten free oat flour. If you have a gluten free flour blend sitting around in your closet, you can by all means use, too.

2. Cold is best all the way around: All pie crust recipes call for cold butter or shortening, cold ice water, and to put the made crust in the fridge for a little while. Why? Because warm pie crust dough sticks and won’t roll very well. Warm pie crust dough makes for a denser, less flaky crust.

What I find works wonderfully is to stick your measured butter and/or shortening into the freezer for five 10 minutes or so before using, to put ice cubes into your water, and to put your prepared pie crust dough into the fridge for a minimum of thirty minutes, an hour at the most.

3. “Fat” substitutions work: I use soy free vegan butter and shortening in my pie crusts all the time without any difference. So you can simply use what works for you without worry. It’s a straight one to one substitution ratio. What you should know, though, is that the allergy friendly versions tend to be softer than regular butter and shortening so sometimes I freeze them a little longer more like 10 to 15 minutes.

4. Work around and with the rolling: When it comes to pie crusts, the rolling out of the dough is what usually causes issues for people. I’ve learned a couple of things:

One, you don’t have to roll the bottom crust. I shape my dough into a slightly flattened disk (about an inch high) which I cool in the fridge for my 30-60 minutes, and then I simply use my fingers to push the dough outward from the center to the edges. It takes less than five minutes and actually makes for a more even crust.

Two, when I do have to roll the crust for the top part of a pie, I’ve found that putting the dough between two pieces of wax paper which I’ve also lightly greased is the best approach. The dough rolls easily, doesn’t stick, and comes off when I go to put it on top of the pie.

5. Be creative with the flavoring: Salt is the go-to for pie crusts, but it doesn’t have to be. If you’re making an apple pie, add some cardamom to complement the cinnamon in the pie. If you’re making a pumpkin pie, add grated orange peel as a contrast to the pumpkin. If you’re making a sweet potato pie, add grated nutmeg to intensify the sweet potato taste. You simply add the spices to the dry ingredients of the pie dough before cutting in the fat.

6. Know the effects of the process: Another issue people often have problems with is making their dough too dry or too wet. It’s important to understand the dynamics of the different ways you process the dough:

If you use a food processor which is what many recipes say to do nowadays, the dynamics of the food processing blade means the water is incorporated quickly and efficiently. If you have cut the fat in yourself with a hand pastry blender of two knives and are adding the water by stirring the dough with a fork, the water will drain into different parts of your dough more quickly than you can stir it. As a result you will often need more water for hand processing than when using a food processor.

Also, a food processor will draw the dough naturally into a ball which makes it easy for you to see that you have enough water. When you stir the dough by hand, the dough will usually not form a ball unless you’ve added too much water.

So, a tip: If a recipe calls for a certain tbsp amount of ice water for use in a food processor, it will normally mean you’ll need about two tablespoons more for hand stirring, so if my dough looks dry after the amount specified, I will go ahead and add two more tablespoons, and then even if it looks dry still, I will push the dough together with my hands to form two disks. If the dough will stick together, it’s fine, if there are dry pieces falling off, I simply wet my hands with the ice water and incorporate those dry pieces into the disks.

Struesel Pear Cranberry Pie

(This recipe makes two pies)

Ingredients:

Pie crust, prepare enough for two bottoms only

1 cup agave

1/4 cup water

one 12 oz package of fresh cranberries (be sure to check for stems)

8 pears, washed, cored and sliced into 12-16 slices each

3 tbsp cornstarch

3 tbsp water

2 cups gluten free whole oats

1/2 cup sorghum flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/2 cup vegan soy free butter*

Baking Instructions:

1. Prepare your favorite pie crust recipe. If you don’t have one, Bob’s Red Mill pie crust mix works very well. Would recommend adding some spices to jazz it up a bit, though. Line the bottoms of two 9.5 inch pie pans with the crusts.

2. Mix agave with water and put into a stove top pan large enough to hold all the pears.

3. Add the cranberries and bring to a boil. Cook for a minute or two until the cranberries begin to pop.

4. When the majority of cranberries have popped, add the pears, stirring to coat with the cranberries. Cook for 3-5 minutes until pears have softened.

5. Mix the cornstarch with the water, and making a well in the center of the pear mixtures, slowly add the cornstarch, stirring continually. Mix the cornstarch syrup thoroughly with the pear-cranberry mixture, cooking for a minute or two to make sure the syrup has thickened.

6. Evenly divide the pear-cranberry mixture between the two pie crusts.

7. In a food processor, add the oats, sorghum flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and butter. Process until the mixture is a nice crumbly topping.

8. Evenly distribute the topping over both pies to completely cover them.

9. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 40-45 minutes until the pie is bubbling and the streusel is golden brown.

10. Cool completely before serving.

* This makes for a savory topping which contrasts with the sweetness of the pear-cranberry mixture. If you happen to like your toppings sweet, you should add a tbsp or two of Agave with the butter.

Autumn Appetites: Apples

September 29, 2014PajamaLiving informational Leave a comment

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

For many folks autumn in New England is all about the beautiful colors and the opportunities for leaf-peeping. For me, I adore that it’s apple season. Orchards abound with every type of apple you can imagine, and you can pick them right of the trees by your very self.

My favorite is a variety called, Honey Crisp, which is just as it sounds – crisp and sweet. For someone like myself who doesn’t use refined sugar, these apples are wonderful for making pies and cakes and cookies and for sauteing slices to put on top of pancakes, waffles and ice cream (or rather nondairy frozen dessert, in my case!).

The thing about apples, though, is that most of the fiber and nutrients which are healthy for you are in the skin which people peel and throw out. So, I like to make recipes which require using washed, unpeeled apples which will mean that me and my family will receive the many benefits one can receive from eating apples.

Some suggestions for whole apple eating:

1. Make baked apples: Wash and core your apples and put them whole into a baking pan. Melt a little bit of vegan butter and mix it with a little bit of natural sweetener like agave or coconut sugar and spices like cinnamon or cardamom or ginger or nutmeg or allspice or orange peel or a combination and sprinkle the mixture over the apples. Pour some hot water into the bottom of the pan and cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for half an hour, remove the foil, and bake the apples until they are fork-soft.

I usually can bake about 15 to 18 apples in a 9 x 13 pan, depending on the size of the apples, and I mix 2 tbsp of vegan butter with 2 tbsp of agave and 3 tsp of mixed spices. To top the apples after they’ve cooked, I saute gluten free whole grain oats on the stove top with spices and butter and agave. (2 cups oats mixed with 4 tbsp melted vegan butter, 1/4 cup agave, and 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, and 1/2 tsp ground coriander.)

2. Make apple cake: A lovely cake I recently developed using all that extra sorghum flour I have is: Mix 2 c sorghum flour with 1/2 c garbanzo bean flour, 1 c gluten free flour blend, 2 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp nutmeg, and 1/4 c coconut sugar.

In a separate bowl, mix 2 1/2 cup grated apples (keeping the peels on but draining the shredded apples in a colander for 5 minutes before adding the other wet ingredients) with 2/3 cup safflower oil, 2/3 cup milk mixed with 2 tsp lemon juice, 3/4 cup agave, and 3/4 cup liquid egg whites.

Mix the dry ingredients into the wet, quickly and thoroughly. Bake in a parchment paper lined 9 x 13 or 11 x 14 pan (depending on how high you want the cake) for 30 to 40 minutes until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Baking time may vary depending on the type and size of pan.

3. Make apple crisp or apple pie with the peels on the apple: I have recipes for both on the site already. Both say to peel the apples because that is how we make them for company, but for home we keep the peels on and the crisp and pies are just as tasty and actually more filling.

4. Saute the apples: Wash, core and slice apples with the peels on. Put into a pan and saute over medium low heat with a couple of teaspoons of agave mixed with an equal amount of water and cinnamon and nutmeg. Usually within five minutes or so, the apples are fork tender and delicious for topping pancakes or waffles or cake or ice cream.

5. Make quick and easy homemade applesauce: Cut up an apple with the peels on and put into a microwave safe bowl. Add spices of your choice and microwave until the apples are soft enough to chop up and mash (usually just a couple of minutes in my microwave). Mash up with a fork or in your food processor. Cool and enjoy.

6. Make an apple sweetened squash or carrot soup: Roast chopped butternut squash and/or carrots with cut up apples with the peels on. Be sure that everything is cut to the same size so they roast equally. When the vegetables and apples are soft, cool them for a few minutes and then puree with a hand blender or processor, adding fat free, low sodium broth of your choice and seasonings like thyme or rosemary or onions or black pepper to add extra flavor. Warm the soup to the temperature you’d like, and enjoy.

7. Add unpeeled chopped apples to salads: Put apple slices into your green leaf salad for added flavor. Add finely chopped apples to your tuna fish or chicken salad for some crunch and texture.

8. Eat the apples as are: I like to slice the apples and eat them with little dabs of peanut butter on them. When my children need a snack after school, they will eat apples whole, enjoying the sensation of biting into a sweet, crisp apple. Sometimes on a cold day, I core an apple and microwave it to soften it a bit and eat the apple warm which is soothing and tasty.

Recipe Experiment: Sorghum Quick Bread

September 18, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, informational, lesson, nut/peanut free, reduced refined sugar, soy free Leave a comment

“Well, can’t you make some healthy junk food for me to have as a snack?”

If my son was growing up in what the surveys say is a typical American home, he’d be a junk food junkie. Given the choice, cookies, ice cream, cake, chocolate, candy, would always win. As it is, though, he was born into our family so he is more of a junkie wannabe, constantly nagging me for all those things and resigning himself to a banana when the answer is, “No.”

The other day, though, he had a particularly rough day, and he really wanted something sweet but a banana wasn’t cutting it. (Yes, he must be my son, since he’s already learned that food can sometimes provide solace in the face of difficult days! No, I do not approve of folks “feeding” their problems, but face it, sometimes you just need some comfort food!)

One look at his little sad face, and I caved. Since I still have all that sorghum flour I mentioned in the sorghum pancake post, I decided I’d try experimenting. Maybe I could make a quick bread which would be a good healthy snack but provide that little sweet solace my son craved.

Since sorghum flour is so high in fiber, it seemed it would make a great base for a banana bread where ripe bananas would help to cut down on the need for sugar and the fiber in the sorghum flour would counter any spike in blood sugar levels from all the fructose. I didn’t want the bread to be too heavy, though, so I mixed a bit of brown rice flour, and then, because you know how much I like that protein-full garbanzo bean flour, I added that, too.

Because I wanted to steer clear of egg, dairy, and soy allergies, I used ground flaxseed and flax milk, using lemon to make a “buttermilk” and adding vinegar at the end to help the eggless, gluten free breads to rise.

I had wanted to use a little bit of safflower oil, but since the cupboards were bare of that, I opted for a coconut oil and used some coconut sugar, figuring any residual coconut taste would complement the bananas. To add other flavor, I decided this would be a spice bread and incorporated some cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cardamom. Then because this was supposed to be “medicinal” bread, I added mini Enjoy Life chocolate chips, and the results were two loaves of delicious, healthy snacking bread.

My son was happy that he got to eat a “healthy junky snack”, and I was happy that I was able to bring a smile to his face without compromising my principles surrounding junk food.

Sorghum Banana Quick Bread

Ingredients:

2 tbsp golden ground flaxseed mixed with 6 tbsp of water

1/2 cup flax milk* mixed with 1/2 tbsp lemon juice

2 cups mashed very ripe bananas

1/2 cup melted coconut oil**

1/4 cup Agave

2 cups sorghum flour

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour***

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp sea salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp allspice

1 1/2 cups Enjoy Life allergen free mini chocolate chips****

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar*****

Baking Instructions:

1. Line two 9 x 5 loaf pans with parchment paper so there are wings hanging over the sides of the pan for lifting the bread out, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix together the flaxseed and water and let it sit for five minutes to thicken.

3. Mix together the milk and lemon juice and let that sit for five minutes to thicken.

4. Mix together the flaxseed mixture, the milk mixture, the mashed bananas, coconut oil and agave. Set aside.

5. Whisk together the sorghum, brown rice and garbanzo bean flours with the coconut sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.

6. Add the chocolate chips to the dry mixture, and then add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients with the apple cider vinegar. Mix quickly and well.

7. Evenly divide the batter between the two loaf pans.

8. Bake for 40 minutes until the bread is golden brown and a toothpick in the center comes out mostly clean.

9. Cool the bread for 10 minutes in the pan. Then remove the bread, using the parchment paper wings to a wire cooling rack. Cool another ten minutes, and then carefully slide the loaves off the parchment paper onto the wire rack.

10. Cool completely, slice and enjoy. Or eat it while it’s still warm, if you can’t wait!

* You can use any other type of milk, too.

** Try it with safflower oil or vegan melted butter instead of coconut oil if you have a tree nut allergy.

*** If you have a legume allergy, just double the brown rice flour or opt for another type altogether.

**** If you want to mix it up, omit the chocolate chips and try using chopped dried plums or apricots or dates instead.

*****If you don’t have apple cider vinegar, white distilled is fine.

Final Note: If you don’t want to use all those spices, don’t. Feel free to omit any of them or experiment with your own flavors.

Menu Suggestion: Stuffed Flounder

August 8, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, informational, lesson, nut/peanut free Leave a comment

“We’d like to take you on a whale watch.”

Some friends of ours wanted to thank us for having been there for them over the years and suggested treating us to a whale watch, something the children had always said they wanted to do but which we’d never had.

The day was beautiful, and as we began the journey towards the open seas, the children had a great time watching the waves, feeling the wind, and chatting with our friends. Slowly, however, we began to realize that our children suffer from seasickness, and within an hour of the trip, the children were… well, let’s just say, their symptoms weren’t the pleasant kind.

While my daughters were old enough to fend for themselves, I ended up being caretaker for my son, holding him, watching his face, helping him to rinse his mouth, and the like. By the time it was clear there really wasn’t much else left to come out of him, he was just plain exhausted, and he fell into a deep sleep.

Just after he fell asleep is, of course, when we finally reached the deepest waters and amazingly enough there were three beautiful whales to be seen for a very long time. Unfortunately, I couldn’t rouse my sleeping son to see it. After his miserable experience, he wanted nothing to do with the whales and just kept pushing me away, insisting he’d rather sleep. In the end he missed what would probably have been one of the best experiences of his life.

Sometimes I feel people behave similarly when it comes to the idea of eating fish. They had a bad experience once or they ate some which didn’t taste to their liking or they don’t like the look and smell of fish in general, and they write off all fish and end up missing food which is not only very healthy for them but which can be incredibly tasty.

Recently we wanted to make a special meal for dinner, and I chose to make flounder. Flounder is one of those fishes you’ll often find on a restaurant menu because it’s very mild tasting. As a rule my children actually prefer salmon over most white fish, but I like to use flounder (or sole, as it’s sometimes called, too) when I want to make a nice stuffed dish for a special occasion.

What’s nice about flounder is that is has all the health benefits of fish while also being low in mercury which they’re always telling you to be wary of eating too much of. For stuffing purposes, it’s a nice fish because they’re thin and layer and roll well.

By now, if you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that I’m a firm believer in making things as easy as possible. So, this post is about how to make a quick and easy stuffed flounder. There is no rolling of fish, no trying to hold the rolled fish and stuffing while trying to roll it in bread crumbs, too. This is my version of what is actually a very nice company dish, which you can adapt to your own tastes.

Tips for Stuffed Flounder:

1. The flounder: The two big debates you’ll always hear are “wild versus farmed” and “fresh versus frozen”. Generally speaking, people say that wild fish doesn’t have the types of chemicals you’ll find in farmed fish. Personally, I think you’re going to find both bad and good in anything you eat these days, from fruit and veggies covered in pesticides to milk produced from cows given growth hormones. Be wise about moderating what you, wash all your produce, and recognize that sometimes the good health benefits outweigh the possibility of ingesting something not as good. Fortunately, flounder isn’t as greatly farmed as salmon, so most flounder found in the stores are usually wild anyway.

As for fresh versus frozen, people make a big deal about frozen fish being second rate. I personally have never found anything to complain about. Frozen fish is cheaper and ready when you want to use it instead of having to eat it on its freshness timetable. The tip is to make sure that after you defrost it, you rinse the fillets and pat them completely dry. If you choose to purchase fresh flounder at a fish market or at the grocery store, make sure they’re fillets (unless you like skinning and boning a whole fish yourself, in which case, go for it) which are a nice white color, not graying, and which don’t smell – fresh flounder really doesn’t smell all that fishy.

2. The stuffing: You can use almost anything you want to stuff flounder. People will use bread crumbs, stuffing, rice, vegetables, even meat. I personally prefer to use vegetables, and the recipe I will be sharing uses frozen greens mixed with other sauteed vegetables.

So, you can choose spinach, kale, collards, turnip greens, your choice. For my recipe, it is important to use thawed frozen versions of these as opposed to fresh because you need the moisture from the frozen varieties for making the creamy sauce for the vegetable stuffing.

For other vegetables, any possible combination exists. My personal favorites are spinach and mushrooms or kale and zucchini and squash or collards and carrots, but you can use whatever foods you like best.

3. The topping: When you’re making a stuffed flounder, you can leave it bare or you can cover it. I prefer to cover the flounder because it helps to keep the flounder from drying out too much. Many recipes will call for either coating it in breadcrumbs or making a sauce to pour over it. I prefer to use a light breadcrumb topping because I’m not actually rolling the flounder to stuff it.

For a breadcrumb topping, I use a nice gluten free high fiber bread which I pulse into tiny breadcrumb pieces, but you can always use a gluten free packaged bread crumb mixture, too. The key is to not use as much as most recipes call for and to use a nice olive oil instead of butter and to mix it with lovely herbs for a great taste.

4. The preparation: Most stuffed flounder recipes tell you to individually roll the flounder around the stuffing, and it is true that those little rolled pieces of fish look quite pretty when you put them onto your company’s plate. The problem I find, though, is that it’s not always easy to roll the fish around the stuffing and to get it to stay rolled, and when you go to eat it, it’s actually quite a mess because the fish will fall apart and then you’re eating the fish and stuffing separately anyway.

So, what I do is to put a layer of fish on the bottom of a pan, put my stuffing on top of those fillets, and then cover the stuffing with a second layer of fillets. This way, you have fish on both sides of your stuffing without the hassle of rolling, and when you eat it, the tastes of the fish and the stuffing meld together in your mouth. In addition, when the fish is topped with bread crumbs, the final presentation is quite pretty and easy to serve.

Stuffed Flounder

(Recipe for a company crowd, can cut in half for a family)

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp minced onions

16 oz sliced mushrooms or sliced zucchini and squash or sliced carrots

10 to 16 oz thawed frozen spinach or kale or collards: Do NOT squeeze out any of the liquid.

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp dried crushed thyme

8 oz tofu cream cheese

14 thin flounder fillets

1 cup gluten free high fiber bread crumbs

1 to 2 tsp olive oil

2 tsp Italian herb blend

Cooking Instructions:

1. Lightly grease an 11 x 15 pan and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large sauteing pan, mix the olive oil with the garlic and onions and cook for about a minute over meduim low heat until fragrant.

3. Add the mushrooms or zucchini and squash or carrots and saute for 3 to 5 minutes until the vegetables are softer and beginning to cook through.

4. Add the spinach or kale or collards along with the pepper, oregano and thyme and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until most but not all of the liquid has begun to evaporate.

5. Put the tofu cream cheese into the center of the vegetable mixture and continue to stir and mix the cream cheese into the vegetables over medium low heat until its completely melted and incorporated into the mixture. This usually takes about 2 to 4 minutes.

6. Layer seven flounder fillets on the bottom of the baking pan. Cover each fillet with the vegetable mixture. Cover the vegetable stuffing with the last seven fillets, and flatten the layered fish so it completely fills your pan and is even.

7. In the same pan you used for making the vegetable stuffing, mix the bread crumbs with just enough olive oil to moisten them and with the herb blend. Saute for a minute.

8. Evenly divide the bread crumbs over the top of the stuffed fillets and pat the crumbs down so they stick to the top of the fish.

9. Bake for about 20 minutes. The topping will be golden brown, the fish a nice white, and there will be some bubbling from the stuffed vegetable mixture.

If your oven runs hot, check it at 15 minutes. You don’t want to overcook the fish. If by some chance you do, overcook it a little bit, cover the pan with foil and let it sit, covered, until you’re about to serve it. This will restore some of the moisture to the fish.

10. Serve the stuffed fish with a nice salad of mixed greens and herbs and enjoy!

Menu Suggestion: Trifles

June 24, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, nut/peanut free Leave a comment

Don’t trifle with me!

My daughter was slated to bring a dessert to her Youth Group dinner, but the dinner fell during one of our craziest weeks — the end of the school year. As such we were hurriedly baking two allergy friendly cakes the night before the event, knowing that the next day would be chock full of other events before the dinner.

Everything seemed to be on schedule until we tried to cut the cake in the morning. We must have done something wrong because the cake simply fell apart. Seeing the meltdown coming, I quickly spoke. “No worries. We’ll make trifle.”

If you are not familiar with trifles, they are truly a godsend. They are a mixture of something cakey with something fruity (or not) with something creamy. As such you can make them quickly with just about anything you have on hand, which is absolutely wonderful if your cake doesn’t work out the way you planned and you’re suddenly in need of a quick fix. Also, it’s a very lovely dessert. If you have a nice round clear glass bowl, the layers are truly pretty to view. Often people will tell me that they don’t want to be the first ones to scoop out the dessert because it’ll mess up how pretty it looks. Finally, you can adjust the recipe to fit any allergy or dietary restrictions you may have.

Making Trifles:

1. The base: The foundation for trifles is always something cakey but that can be just about anything – cake, brownie, muffins, scones, etc…. So if you suddenly need a dessert in a hurry, you can use any leftover item you might have in the house or in our case a cake that didn’t come out well. The cake or muffin or brownie or scone can be crumbled or cut into small bite size pieces.

2. The fruit: The delightful aspect of a trifle is what you decide to layer between the cakey part. It can be any type of fruit, cut into bite size pieces, but it can also be something not-fruity like chocolate chips or coconut flakes. It also can be fruit pureed into a sauce instead of whole pieces. When our cake fell apart, I only had frozen strawberries on hand, so I pureed them in my food processor and carefully poured the pureed strawberries over the chocolate cake pieces.

3. The creamy sauce: The final layer to a trifle is usually something creamy or saucy like pudding or whipped cream or yogurt. You can use just about anything you can imagine actually. For our disastrous cake, I didn’t have anything on hand for making a pudding or whipped cream and neither did I have yogurt in the house (we were planning on going away for a week, and we had basically been eating out the fridge), but I did have some Tofutti cream cheese. So, I whipped the cream cheese in my mixer with a little bit of Agave and some soy milk until it was a pourable, creamy texture. It tasted so good!

On another note: You will also find trifles which use alcohol to flavor the cake — some bourbon or sherry or other such beverage. If that floats your boat, go for it! As well, a tiramisu which is a popular dessert with lady fingers and coffee and coffee liquor is basically just a trifle which layers the lady fingers with the liquor and coffee and whipped cream, so if you’ve ever eaten tiramisu at a restaurant, you’ve had a trifle.

4. The assembling process: Once you’ve decided what you want to layer, the layering itself is fairly simple. Put a little bit of your creamy sauce on the bottom, layer cake pieces, layer your fruit, and finally end with your sauce. Repeat until you reach the top of your container. So, I put some of the tofu cream cheese sauce on the bottom, then some of my allergy friendly chocolate cake (dairy, nut, gluten, peanut, sugar, soy free), some of the strawberry puree, and then more of the cream cheese sauce. I was able to make three layers in my clear, glass bowl.

5. The top: How you want to finish the top layer of your trifle is up to you. For our trifle that day I crumbled the remaining pieces of cake on top because the cream cheese sauce didn’t seem the prettiest way to end. For some I make up a whipped cream out of coconut cream which I dollop on top. For others, I generously sprinkle cut pieces of fruit. For many I like to put little allergy friendly chocolate curls or chips. Your imagination is the only limit.

6. Final Tips: Your trifle should be refrigerated until you’re ready to serve it. This will help all the wonderful flavors to meld into one another and allow the cake to soften. When you serve a trifle, it’s best to use a large spoon which you can scoop down to the bottom of the bowl and upward with. Then when you put it into the bowl for someone, you can reveal all the wonderful layers.

Menu Suggestion: Tetrazzini

May 19, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, nut/peanut free, soy free, Uncategorized Leave a comment

What about a dinner suggestion?

I opened up my email the other day and found a note, thanking me because this young mother had found my blog and used the advice I had given my friend to make quiche for brunch for her in-laws, and it was apparently a success for her as well. Now, however, she wanted to know if I had any good suggestions for a dinner entree to serve to company which could easily accommodate food allergy restrictions.

Within in two seconds, I had the perfect suggestion: Tetrazzini.

If you’re not familiar with tetrazzini, it’s a pasta dish which incorporates protein and vegetables into the pasta with a creamy white sauce. With the exception of mushrooms which every recipe you’ll find seems to have, everything else is pretty much up to your imagination and available food staples.

For a company dish, it’s perfect because you can assemble the dish ahead of time and then just pop it into the oven. It’s filling so you can simply add a salad to accompany it, and it’s pretty when it comes out of the oven. For folks with allergies, it’s highly adaptable.

Some thoughts on Tetrazzini:

1. The pasta: Almost every recipe you’ll find online has too large a pasta to protein/vegetable ratio. For your health and for good eating, I recommend cutting the pasta by half for any recipe. When I make the dish for company in a large 9 x 13 pan I cut the 16 oz of pasta to 8 ounces. Your ratio of protein and vegetables to pasta will be healthier but it’s also tastier in my opinion.

Also the usual pasta used is a long noodle like spaghetti. I like to use small shells because they capture the sauce in their crevices well and are easily spoonable and mix well with any meats and vegetables you add. Ancient Harvest has a gluten free quinoa small shells which taste really good and have a wonderful texture.

2. The meats and vegetables: You can use just about anything in tetrazzini. The most popular meats are turkey and chicken. For company, if there are no seafood allergies, I like to use cooked frozen shrimp. It’s easy and it makes the dish special. The nice thing about tetrazzini is that it’s a great dish for using up your leftovers, so feel free to be creative with whatever you have on hand. You can even use firm tofu. You should cut the tofu into small squares and saute them on all sides first, though, before adding them to the dish.

The same goes for the vegetables. As I mentioned above, a key ingredient in most tetrazzini recipes is mushrooms, but you can leave them out if you don’t like fungi. I happen to adore mushrooms, so I usually use mushrooms and asparagus or broccoli because I like the flavor and color combination. Again, whatever leftover vegetables will work. I’ve often just chopped up leftover zucchini, squash, peppers, etc… and thrown them in with good results. The key is to make sure your vegetables are bite-size.

3. The sauce: The sauce for tetrazzini is just a basic white sauce, so for folks with food allergies, it’s easily adaptable. While many recipes will call for butter, you can substitute olive oil or use a vegan allergy friendly butter. I prefer the taste of olive oil and the added health benefits. For the milk, I’ve found just that other “milks” work just as well, though I tend to use either flax or soy milk myself. For the flour, just about any type will work. I’ve used garbanzo bean, sorghum, gluten free oat, and brown rice flour with success.

Many recipes call for you to just use a cream based soup like cream of celery or broccoli or chicken. You can always go this route as well. It’s certainly easier than making your own white sauce and if you don’t have to worry about sodium or allergies, the taste doesn’t suffer in any way.

4. The seasoning: Most tetrazzini recipes just call for salt and black pepper. I usually omit salt and add thyme, oregano, and paprika. I also use garlic and onions for flavoring.

5. The topping: Many tetrazzini recipes call for a topping but the topping varies. Some say just to put cheese on top, usually parmesan. Others use a nutty topping with almonds combined with the cheese. Some call for bread crumbs. Some just tell you to top with chopped green onions. It’s really up to your tastes and preferences. There’s a lot of vegan parmesan-style cheese these days. I like to lightly saute gluten free bread crumbs in a little bit of olive oil with herbs and mix in the vegan parmesan with the crumbs with some garlic and evenly spread that on top of the tetrazzini because it then gives a little crunch to the dish plus it makes the casserole look pretty.

Shrimp Tetrazzini

Ingredients:

8 oz Ancient Harvest Quinoa small shells

2 tsp olive oil

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

one bunch asparagus, cut into bite size pieces

1 tbsp minced onions

1 tsp mince garlic

2 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp sweet white sorghum flour

2 cups flax or soy milk

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves

1/2 tsp paprika

16 oz thawed frozen cooked shrimp, tails removed

1 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup gluten free bread crumbs

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 cup vegan parmesan

Cooking Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2.Thaw shrimp and remove tails. Set aside.

3. Prepare the shells as directed on the packaging. Drain and rinse well with cold water. Set aside.

4. In a pan saute mushrooms over medium-low heat with 2 tsp olive oil for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5. Add the chopped asparagus with 2 tbsp water, the minced onion, and the garlic. Saute for another 4 minutes and remove from heat.

6. In a pan heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Whisk in the sorghum flour and cook, stirring for a minute. Slowly add the “milk”, whisking continually until the flour is fully mixed into the milk. Cook until the sauce has thickened, stirring continually, about five minutes.

7. Add the pasta, mushrooms and asparagus mixture, and shrimp to the sauce and blend well.

8. Pour the casserole into a 9 x 13 pan.

9. Saute the bread crumbs with the olive oil and oregano for a minute or two. Mix in the paremsan and evenly spread the bread crumb mixture over the tetrazzini.

10. Bake the casserole for about 20-30 minutes until the dish is warmed through and the sauce is bubbling.

Recipe Makeover: Wacky Cupcakes

May 7, 2014PajamaLiving dairy free, egg free, gluten free, lesson, nut/peanut free, reduced refined sugar, soy free, Uncategorized Leave a comment

“It’s just not wacky enough.”

The saying is that “necessity is the mother of invention”, and certainly for families in the Depression and World War eras, lack of rations led to the creation of what we know as wacky or Depression cake. These are cakes made without eggs and milk which were scarce, and today many people with egg and dairy allergies have turned to them gratefully for countless number of birthday and family parties.

The email I received yesterday, though, made me laugh because it said, “Unfortunately, the recipe just isn’t wacky enough for my family.” This particular person also needed the cake to be gluten and sugar free in addition to egg and dairy free.

And I’m finding that to be a common problem among folks who send me emails. The world has come a long way: grocery stores, online sites and even restaurants carry gluten free products, nut free foods, dairy free items, and sugar free versions of just about everything. Unfortunately, for the person who is allergic to more than one of these, it can still be difficult to find foods which meet all the needed “free” criteria.

So, this morning, I took a gander at reworking the two recipes sent to me. I had signed up to bring some allergy friendly desserts to the Teacher Appreciation luncheon my children’s elementary and middle schools were hosting, so I decided I’d use the recipes to make cupcakes.

The first recipe sent was for a plain wacky cake calling for 3 cups of all purpose flour, 2 cups of sugar, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp vinegar, 2 tsp vanilla, 3/4 cup vegetable oil, and 2 cups of water.

The second recipe was for a chocolate wacky cake calling for 3 cups of all purpose flour, 2 cups of sugar, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 3/4 cup vegetable oil, 2 tsp vanilla, 2 tbsp vinegar, and 2 cups cold water.

For both recipes, it just called for mixing everything together.

The Makeovers:

1. The flour: Since it needed to be gluten free, I had to decide which type of flour blend to use. Since the recipe is already compensating for the loss of eggs with the use of vinegar and baking soda, I was concerned about the batter’s ability to rise. As such, I decided that Bob’s Red Mill Biscuit and Baking Gluten Free Mix which is a blend of garbanzo bean flour, rice flour, cornstarch, xanthan gum, and baking powder would be best.

Why? Because 1) the mix of rice and garbanzo bean flour would allow for the higher fiber and protein without being too heavy; 2) the mix already has the xanthan gum in it which means one less item to mix in myself; and 3) the extra baking powder would help to compensate for the lack of leavening ingredients.

Folks who can have gluten could always use a white whole wheat or red whole wheat to boost the nutrients and fiber in the recipe.

2. The sugar: I decide that I would opt for two different sugar substitutes. For the chocolate wacky cake, I used coconut sugar because I wanted to try a dry substitute and because I thought the brown sugar flavor of the coconut sugar would complement the chocolate flavor better. I used a one for one substitute.

For the plain wacky cake, I opted for Agave, wanting to experiment with a liquid substitute. Also, I had decided I’d turn the cake into a chocolate chip spice cupcake which I felt the Agave would complement better. For the Agave, though, I used half the amount of called for sugar, and added 1/2 cup to the amount of flour needed to counter the extra liquid.

3. The oil: Because I prefer healthier plant oils, I chose to swap the vegetable oil with other types. For the chocolate cake, I used a blend of olive, grapeseed and canola oil which would lend a fruity undertone to the chocolate flavor. For the vanilla cake, I chose to use safflower oil to lend some flavor without overpowering it to the vanilla.

4. The vinegar: Since the recipe didn’t specify, I was presuming they were calling for regular distilled white vinegar. Since I prefer to always add a little “something”, I decided to use a raspberry vinegar for the chocolate cake and an apple cider vinegar for the vanilla cake.

5. The additions: I chose to keep the baking soda, salt and vanilla the same for each recipe, but I added cinnamon and nutmeg to the vanilla cake to make it more a vanilla spice cake, and I swapped the regular unsweetened cocoa powder for Hershey’s Special Dark unsweetened cocoa powder to lend a deeper chocolate flavor.

I also decided to throw in chocolate chips to help give the cakes more structure. For the chocolate cake, I added a package of Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips. For the vanilla cake, though, I wanted more of the taste to exude from the batter so I put a package of Enjoy Life mega chunks into my food processor and ground them to tiny pieces which I incorporated throughout the batter.

6. The assembling: The original recipes called for simply mixing everything up. Since I wanted to make sure the batter would fully incorporate all the necessary ingredients for adding structure and leavening, I opted to do the cake batter in steps. First, I mixed all the dry ingredients minus the chocolate chips/pieces together. Then I used a spoon to incorporate the chocolate chips/pieces into the dry ingredients. Then I mixed all the wet ingredients minus the vinegar together. Finally, I added the liquid mixture to the dry mixture, adding the vinegar last and mixing until everything was well-blended. By doing this, I ensured that the effects of the vinegar would last through putting the batter into the muffin tins and into the oven.

7. The cooking: Since I needed to bake for the luncheon and because I wanted to see quickly if the structure of the batter would hold up, I opted to make cupcakes instead. I lined 24 muffin cups per each recipe with muffin liners and scooped batter into each cup all the way to the top of the muffin liner, being careful to simply scoop the batter in without squashing it down. Then I baked the cupcakes for 20 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven, turning them halfway through the cooking time.

Upon removing them, I left them in the muffin tins for about 15 minutes before removing them. This allowed the cupcakes to begin their cooling inside the tins which allows the structure of the cupcake to gain stability before being removed. After the 15 minutes, I removed the cupcakes to wire cooling racks to cool completely.

8. The new recipes:

For the chocolate wacky cupcakes, the new recipe was: Mix 3 cups Bob’s Red Mill Biscuit and Baking Gluten Free flour with 2 cups coconut sugar, 1/2 cup Hershey’s Special Dark Unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 tsp salt, and 2 tsp baking soda. Then add one 10 oz package of Enjoy Life chocolate chips. Set aside. Mix 3/4 cup healthy blend oil (olive, grapeseed, canola mix) with 2 tsp vanilla, and 2 cups cold water. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture with 2 tbsp raspberry vinegar. Blend well. Gently scoop mounds of the batter into 24 lined muffin cups, filling to the top. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time. Cool in tins for 15 minutes. Remove to wire cooling racks.

For the vanilla spice wacky cupcakes, the new recipe was: Mix 3 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Biscuit and Baking Gluten Free flour with 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, and 2 tsp baking soda. Food process one one 10 oz package of Enjoy Life chocolate mega chunks into tiny pieces and add to the dry mixture. Set aside. Mix 3/4 cup safflower oil with 1 cup Agave, 2 tsp vanilla, and 2 cups cold water. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture with 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar. Blend well. Gently scoop mounds of the batter into 24 lined muffin cups, filling to the top. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, turning halfway through cooking time. Cool in tins for 15 minutes. Remove to wire cooling racks.

Cooking Techniques: Roasting Vegetables

April 15, 2014PajamaLiving informational, lesson Leave a comment

“Tell me, honestly, do you think it can be done?”

Three weeks ago my middle school daughter’s principal called. The director for her play had quit suddenly with no notice, after having done very little in the first place to ready the students and the production for their performance which was just over two weeks away.

He wanted to know if I thought it would be possible for the students to actually pull together an entire production in two weeks and whether I would be willing to step up to be the director who would attempt and achieve such a feat.

Having run a summer theater program where essentially that is what we did – pull together a production in about two weeks worth of time – I told him that the kids and parents could definitely do it and that I’d be happy to help.

There’s a difference, though, between directing a production which you’ve planned from the start where you put into place ahead of time the variables which you know you need to and what I just did in these past couple of weeks – which was essentially scramble like a mad person to discover what needed to be done and having it done as quickly as possible with the few options I had available.

Sometimes mealtime can have the same feel. Certain days you’re able to plan ahead and create an extraordinary meal with items you were able to purchase from the grocery store ahead of time. Other days you find yourself scrambling, wondering what you have available and how you can pull something nutritious and tasty together in a short period of time.

That’s where roasting vegetables becomes a literal godsend. You can quickly roast most any vegetable you have on hand, whether fresh or frozen, and make a nice meal for your family on those days like the ones I’ve recently had where you’re literally figuring out dinner with less than thirty minutes to serve it.

The first advantage of roasting vegetables as a dinner meal is that you’re serving something healthy to your family because vegetables contain good nutrients you need. Secondly, roasting intensifies and brings out the flavor in vegetables which make them tastier. Thirdly, roasting quickly cooks vegetables through, better than cooking them stovetop or grilling. Fourthly, you can use small amounts of good, healthy fats like olive oil to roast the vegetables. Fifthly, once you have the tasty roasted vegetables you can easily add beans or leftover meats to it for a more filling, yet quick, meal.

Some Tips for Roasting Vegetables:

1. High heat is better: Temperatures of 450, 475 and 500 degrees are best for roasting. I always roast at 500 degrees. The high heat reduces the opportunity for your vegetables to “steam”, and it caramelizes the outer “skin” of your vegetables, bring out the flavors and sealing in the tasty “juices”.

2. A clean oven is necessary: Because you’re cooking at high temperatures, your oven must be clean. A dirty oven will smoke and set off your smoke detector and add an unpleasant odor to your kitchen. If you have a self-cleaning oven, use the feature. If you don’t, it really doesn’t take that long to use a little hot water and soap and a scouring pad to get off any grime and crusted on pieces which might burn.

3. Rack positioning is key: Roasting your vegetables in the center of the oven will cook more evenly. Putting the pan on the top rack usually browns the food more. Putting the pan near the bottom rack gives the food more of a sauteing effect. Depending on what you’re going for, you should be sure to place your rack before preheating your oven.

4. Pan size and type are important: You always want to roast your vegetables in a single layer without them being on top of each other, so your pan should be large enough to fit all the vegetables your are roasting. You don’t, however, want a lot empty space around your vegetable pieces because this will cause burning, so your pan should also be just right for the amount of vegetables you want to roast.

The type of pan you use is important, too. You want a pan that can withstand high temperatures and which won’t cause your vegetables to stick to it. If possible, you should invest in a basic roasting pan which will serve you well.

5. The type of vegetable matters: If you are cooking a variety of vegetables, you should always cook root vegetables like carrots first, because they take longer to roast. Vegetables like zucchini take less time, so you will need to plan accordingly. You’d start the carrots first and roast them so they’re halfway done, and then add the zucchini, so the two vegetables will finish together.

6. Size also matters: You always want to roast the same type of vegetables of the same width and length, because if your vegetables are different sizes, they won’t cook evenly. If your vegetables are different textures, however, such as peppers and green beans, you want the area of the peppers to match that of your green beans, which may mean cutting your peppers into large squarish chunks as opposed to cutting them into slices which match the length and width of the green beans.

Also, if you’re in a hurry, this is obvious, but the smaller your pieces, the more quickly they’ll roast. I usually chop my vegetables so that I can have fully cooked roasted vegetables anywhere between 10 to 20 minutes.

7. Turning the vegetables is helpful: If you don’t want your vegetables to burn on one side, you should be sure to toss or turn the vegetables as you roast them. I usually toss the vegetables every five to 10 minutes, depending on the vegetable (root vegetables need the longer time).

8. Plant oils are better: One, oils like olive oil, have good fats, but cooking-wise, animal fats like butter or bacon drippings will brown your vegetables much more quickly than you want when you’re shooting for even cooking. As well, you can more easily very lightly coat the vegetables with a smaller amount of a plant oil than you can with animal fats.

9. Season wisely: I don’t like to use salt unless I have to. Many folks argue that you need salt to bring out the flavor. I have found that seasoning in certain ways is just as flavorful. For one, you can use flavored olive oil like a roasted garlic olive oil or a rosemary olive oil to coat your vegetables. Two, you can add freshly chopped herbs just after roasting. Three you can creatively flavor your vegetables – mix a little balsamic vinegar with a tiny bit of maple syrup; stir curry powder into your olive oil; make a lemony vinaigrette; make a sauce of your choosing – the options are endless.

10. Enjoy the roasted vegetables alone or as a larger meal: Once your vegetables are roasted, you can eat them as a meal in and of themselves or you can use them to create an entree. For example, tonight in less than thirty minutes, I roasted butternut squash, carrots and Brussel sprouts in the oven while I sauteed some onions in olive oil stovetop. I added curry powder and fat free, low sodium chicken broth, and when it had come to a boil, I added a can of no salt added chickpeas and let it simmer for about five minutes. By then the vegetables were roasted, and I threw them into the chickpea curry mixture, and dinner was done.

Cooking Techniques: Corn Beef and Cabbage

March 17, 2014PajamaLiving informational, lesson Leave a comment

“But shouldn’t we be wearing orange? And we’re not even Irish anyway!”

When your daughter is on the autism spectrum and everything always has to be precise and make sense, it’s not always easy on the parent. My oldest was five when she learned that in Ireland, Protestants wear orange on St. Patty’s day, so she wanted to know why everyone in the U.S., whether you’re Protestant, Catholic, Buddhist, etc… wore green. She also wanted to know why we as a family would wear anything at all, given that Irish is one of the few ethnic backgrounds missing from our family heritage.

Even as bright as my daughter was at that time, trying to get her to understand the idea of a social construct evolving over time so that today basically everyone becomes Irish on St. Patty’s day, whether you are or aren’t and that wearing green is just something you do was not very easy! And to this day, she still insists on wearing orange on St. Patty’s day and explaining to people why they shouldn’t be wearing green. Fortunately, most folks extend her a lot of grace because of the autism. *grin*

This morning, however, I actually felt a kinship with my daughter when I received an emailed question about making boiled corn beef and cabbage. I was quick to point out that in Ireland folks don’t actually eat corn beef and cabbage on St. Patty’s day, that it’s something that somehow evolved as a tradition in the U.S. I also wanted her to know that folks used to boil all their meats in Ireland because of poor refrigeration and sanitation conditions. Folks wanted to make sure they wouldn’t get sick from their food, so they overcooked it.

I wouldn’t be surprised if folks are now wondering about me! Which I guess just goes to show that my daughter doesn’t fall from her mother’s tree after all!

At any rate, I started thinking about corn beef and cabbage and thought I might as well post about it on St. Patty’s Day, though I do apologize that this post most likely is not in time for today’s holiday meal.

I actually love corn beef and cabbage at any time of the year. I don’t, however, ever, ever boil corn beef and cabbage.

Boiling corn beef and cabbage just makes for a greasy, unpalatable entree in my opinion. I know some may disagree with me, but boiling cabbage turns it into an ugly shade of green which no one should ever see on their food plate, and boiling the corn beef releases the fat into the cooking liquid which is quick to congeal when cooling. Definitely not my idea for ideal presentation of food! In addition the vegetables you add to corn beef and cabbage like carrots, turnips and potatoes lose much of their valuable nutrients when you boil them.

So what should you do then? Slow cook it in the oven is my advice.

Several Tips to keep in mind:

1. The pan: You want a nice large heat proof pan with a high cover. If you don’t have a cover, you can use aluminum foil, but you should double fold it and make it into more a tent shape than flat over the pan. This will allow for more space for your vegetables and cabbage as well as allowing the heat to circulate at the food cooks in the oven.

2. The corn beef: I find that a thin cut corn beef is better than a thick cut. It’s usually more symmetrical in width which allows for more even cooking. Also, because it’s thinner and flatter, though, longer, it cooks more quickly than a fatter, rounder cut.

As a rule, unless you’re single or just a couple with no children, a four pound cut of meat is best. As corn beef cooks it actually shrinks down in size considerably and by the time it’s fork tender for eating, it’s about half its original size. A 4 pound brisket is enough for dinner for our family of five with some leftovers for lunch the next day.

Also, you should always try to cut away as much of the fat as you can. One, it helps to reduce the fat and grease. Two, it means that the spices and herbs you use to season the meat will actually reach the meat and not just rest on the fat.

As well, if you have a rack that fits into your pan, you should insert it and put the meat onto the rack. It allows the heat to circulate under the meat for more even cooking and also helps to reduce any grease from sticking to the bottom of the meat.

Finally, you should season your corn beef. Most come with a seasoning packet that usually is a mixture of chopped bay leaves and mustard corns. I like to take those and add garlic, onion powder, black pepper and oregano. Then I add the smallest amount of olive oil to make a barely moist paste which I rub all over the corn beef. After I stick whole cloves into the corn beef.

3. The cabbage: Don’t just use green cabbage. I like to mix both purple/red cabbage with the green to get a melding of flavors and colors.

Also, most recipes call for simply cutting the cabbage into quarters. I find that this makes for tougher cabbage. I cut them into 16 wedges and find that this makes for a more fork tender cut of cabbage.

You don’t want to add the cabbage at the beginning. It doesn’t take as long as the meat to cook so add it more like a third or half way into the cooking.

When you add the cabbage, put the wedges carefully around the meat so the wedges stay together.

4. The vegetables: Be creative. We have added potatoes, carrots, turnips, butternut squash, beets, etc…. My kids favorites continue to be the traditional potatoes and carrots, but even with those I vary them. Nowadays you can get a variety of colored potatoes and carrots in white, red, purple, orange, pink.

What’s important to keep in mind is that with this dish, you really should stick with root vegetables. For the length of time that you need to cook the meat, vegetables which are quick cooking really don’t work well. If you do choose to use vegetables like zucchini or broccoli or mushrooms, don’t add them until the last 15 to 20 minutes of cooking time.

Another thing to keep in mind is your size. All the vegetables should be the same size for even cooking. I like to cut everything about 1 1/2 inches in length and width. I find it cooks well in the time allowed.

Also, be sure to season your vegetables before adding them to the meat pan. If you just add the vegetables as is, they will be bland. I like to use a mixture of herbs and garlic and black pepper. I don’t ever add salt because the corn beef is salty, and you want your vegetables to complement the salty meat.

Finally, like the cabbage, the vegetables don’t need as long as the meat to cook. You should add them about 1/3 to halfway through the cooking time.

5. Cooking: As I mentioned, the method I think is best for cooking corn beef and cabbage is slow roasting them in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees while prepare the corn beef.

First, wash the corn beef with cold water and pat it dry. This helps to remove some of the excess salt on the outside of the corn beef. Remove as much fat as you can and season the corn beef with a herb paste. Place the corn beef on the rack in your pan and stick the whole cloves in.

Then, add some liquid because I find that adding some liquid to the pan helps to make for a moister piece of meat. I actually make a mixture that’s about a quarter to a half cup of honey with about one cup of water that I pour over the meat. Later when the meat is done, I turn that into a gravy/sauce by making a rue of olive oil and a gluten free flour or mixing cornstarch with water to thicken the liquid.

Cover the pan with the lid and allow the corn beef to begin cooking for about an hour. You should always begin cooking the corn beef first and add the vegetables and cabbage later. The meat takes much longer to cook and you don’t want to overcook the vegetables. Also, if you begin cooking the meat, it releases some of the grease and fat which you can remove before adding your cabbage and vegetables.

As a rule, I cook the meat for about one to one and a half hours first before adding the vegetables and cabbage and cooking for another two to one and a half hours. During that hour or so, I peel, chop, and season my vegetables and cabbage.

After about an hour, remove the corn beef and strain all the grease and fat out of my liquid, being careful to do so over a bowl so you can keep the liquid for the rest of the cooking. If I need to so do, I also wash away any grease that’s accumulated on the rack, too.

Then return the rack to the pan and replace the corn beef on top of the rack. Carefully place the vegetables around the corn beef. You should be sure to put things like potatoes and carrots first on the bottom because they often need more heat to cook. Then place the cabbage wedges on top of the vegetables around the corn beef.

Pour the saved liquid over the cabbage, vegetables and meat, and cook for another two hours or so with the lid on. When your corn beef is done, it should be fork tender. The same with your vegetables.

When the corn beef, cabbage and vegetables are done, I remove them to another pan and thicken the liquid. You can do this by making a rue of olive oil and flour that you slowly add the liquid to. Or you can mix cornstarch with water and add that to the warm liquid. Either way you need to heat the liquid on the stove top, stirring frequently until it thickens.

Then pour the sauce over the corn beef and cabbage and serve.

Cooking Techniques: Roasting Meats and Chicken

March 5, 2014PajamaLiving informational Leave a comment

“There was this little black bowl sitting on my plate.”

As unique as every family is, families are similar where story-telling is concerned. All families have those stories which they tell over and over again about some member of the family or something that happened which gets passed down from parent to child to grandchild. Some stories are sentimental, meant to be remembered for as a truth. Others are funny and told to elicit laughter time and time again. All become a part of what makes your particular family special.

In our family, my parents love to tell the tale of my mom’s first time cooking my dad a steak. Being Korean and only eating kalbi (kind of like Korean ribs) and bulgogi (think cooked stir fry size beef strips) on special occasions, my mom hadn’t cooked a steak before. Since Korean meat is always cooked until it was well-done, that’s exactly what my mom did. She cooked that steak until it was so well-done it curled up on itself, and when she served it to my dad, as he puts it, “There was a little black bowl sitting on my plate.”

Since my dad actually likes his meat rare, only love could have made him eat that steak. I, however, would have been just fine eating it, because I’m not much of a meat person in general and when I do eat it, I like it to be as my husband and dad call it “shoe leather” texture.

Just like people have different preferences for eating meat, people have different ways of cooking it. The most traditionally agreed up method for the most flavor, though, tends to be roasting, and for this post we will look at roasting both meat and poultry since the methods are similar. I will focus on the questions people have recently asked me.

Questions about Roasting Meat and Poultry:

1. Does my roast or chicken need come to room temperature first? The answer is, “No.” One, unless it’s a hot day, it’ll take a long time for your meat or chicken to come to room temperature, and if it is a hot day, leaving the meat or chicken out will increase your risk of bacterial growth. Two, better folks than I who run test kitchens all the time have run experiments, cooking both a room temp piece of meat and one straight from the fridge, with no difference. In the end, though, folks are going to do what they want, and I know many people who would never dare to roast a piece of meat or a turkey without letting it sit out for at least half an hour first. To date, they are all alive and well and enjoying their meat and poultry, so in the end, it’s your prerogative.

2. Should I season before or after? If you were to google this question, you’d find a variety of conflicting answers. What I’ve found in my years of cooking is that you should really do both. Seasoning rubbed onto the roast or chicken before it’s cooking helps to imbue the meat or chicken with flavor, but adding some fresh herbs or spices before serving adds a little spark to the flavors which become a bit stale from cooking in the oven for so long.

The corollary question which folks have asked is about salting meat or chicken. Some folks swear by the brining method of salting a day or two ahead of time. Others say to salt just before cooking. I personally stay away from salt use at all and allow people to salt their meat or chicken on their own when it’s on their plates. For people who want to use salt, though, the answer is that it depends on your taste preference and the type of meat you are cooking. Test kitchen cooks have determined that salting or brining poultry ahead of time really does make for a tastier chicken or turkey. For meats, though, with the exception of lamb, pork and beef don’t receive any benefit from salting ahead of time and often actually makes for a drier piece of meat.

3. What is the best way to season my meat or poultry? Again, you’ll find differing opinions, and in reality, most methods will give you a nice tasting chicken or roast beef. What I have found to be the most flavorful, though, is to make a nice dry rub of seasonings – usually herbs like thyme, oregano, marjoram, basil, rosemary, etc… mixed with black pepper and ground onion and/or garlic powder – and to mix it with just enough olive oil to make a paste and then rub it completely over the roast or chicken.

For a roast beef, I increase the flavor by cutting little slits into the meat and inserting slivers of garlic and/or onion into the slits. This adds flavor inside the meat instead of just outside.

For chicken, I loosen the skin away from the breast and legs and rub the seasoning rub inside the skin as well directly on top of the breast and legs, and I put onions, garlic, and herbs inside the cavity of the chicken. This way you get flavor all around and not just on the skin of the chicken.

A corollary question folks have asked is about butter verse oil: I always use olive oil. One, for folks with dairy allergies, it removes that worry. Two, it’s a healthier oil. Three, you can make a nice rub with it using less than what you’d need for butter.

Having said that, test kitchens have found that using butter can help to keep a chicken moist without the need for basting because it melts as it cooks and seals in the liquids. So, if you don’t have any health or allergy issues keeping you from using butter and like the taste of it, go for it.

4. What type of pan should I use to roast my meat or chicken? The best pan to use for roasting is one that can withstand high and lengthy heat and which just fits your roast or chicken. You don’t want to have a lot of space around what you’re cooking.

People differ on whether you should use a rack or not. I’m a rack person. I have found that if I put my roast on a flat rack and my poultry on a v-rack that the bottoms of the meat and chicken cook more evenly. I do find that I need to grease the racks, though, to make sure the roast or chicken doesn’t stick.

5. What is the best method for roasting meat or poultry? Okay, this is where it gets tricky. The consensus is that there isn’t any consensus. Well-known chefs and test kitchen cooks all differ. Some say you should cook at low heat to keep the meat or poultry from drying out and to keep it moist. Some say you should cook it at a high temperature to cook it more quickly which will prevent it from drying out and will keep it moist. Others say you should do a combination of both.

The fact is that all methods work. It really comes down to the type of texture and flavor you’re looking for. Slow roasting meat or chicken at 275 degrees for several hours gives you a more evenly cooked through piece of meat or chicken with a softer, more falling apart texture. This is a good method is you’re cooking larger, more uneven, tougher cuts of meat or a more mature bird.

Cooking the meat or chicken at 350 degrees for 20 minutes per pound for poultry and pork or 15 to 30 minutes per pound for beef, depending on how rare to well done you like it, gives you a nice flavorful piece of meat or chicken without having to do too much work. This is a good method if you don’t particularly want a crispy outside.

Cooking the meat or poultry at a high temperature of 450 degrees for 45 minutes will cook your roast or chicken quickly and give it it a nice crispy exterior. This method is particularly nice if you don’t have a lot of time.

Finally, the method which I like best is that you cook your roast or poultry at a high heat of 450, 475 or 500 degrees first and then lower the heat for the rest of the cooking time. If cooking at 450 degrees, you’ll cook your chicken for 35 minutes or your roast for about 15 minutes and then you’ll lower the temperature to 350 degrees. For a roast, cook the meat 12 to 18 minutes per pound, depending on how rare or well done you like. For poultry, cook for about 8-10 minutes per pound until the chicken is done.

Just an FYI about internal temperatures for poultry and meat: If you want your roast or poultry to be at the correct temperature for eating, you cook them in the oven to a temperature that’s about five to ten degrees lower than the temperature you want because even when you take the meat or chicken out of the oven, it will continue to cook.

6. Should I baste my roast or poultry? That’s really up to you. Basting does help to keep roasting meat and poultry from drying out, but there are pros and cons. On the pro side by basting you ensure that your roast or chicken won’t dry out, it adds to the juices you’ll have for making a nice gravy in the end, and it prevents anything from burning on the bottom of your pan. On the con side, every time you open the oven to baste, you’re letting heat escape which might mess with your cooking, and by keeping the exterior of the meat or poultry moist, it won’t crisp up. As well, basting then requires you to do more because you have to baste every fifteen minutes or so.

I personally add liquid to the bottom of my roasting pan, beef or chicken broth, at the beginning and then halfway through cooking. The broth slowly evaporates as the roast or poultry cooks, allowing some moisture to accumulate in the oven and preventing the roast or chicken from drying out without me having to continually baste. Then just before I’m ready to take the roast or chicken out of the oven, I turn the heat back up to 500 degrees for a couple of minutes to re-crisp the exterior of the meat or poultry.

7. Is there anything special I should do to my roast or poultry before putting it into the oven? That depends on you really. I usually try to cut off some of the fat from my roasts. While it’s true that the fat adds flavor, too much of it isn’t good, so I remove as much as I can and rely on my seasonings for flavor instead.

For chicken, there are differing thoughts. Some folks say you absolutely must truss up the bird by tying the legs together. Others say that allowing the legs to be free helps them to cook more evenly and quickly in time with the breast portion. I’ve done both and haven’t found too much of a difference.

The other part of the bird folks worry about is the wings. Because they’re so small the tips can burn. If you’re cooking with any of the high heat methods, you’re definitely better off turning the tips of the wings underneath the bird so they won’t burn. If you’re slow roasting with the very low heat, I’ve not noticed much of an issue.

8. Should I turn my roast or chicken while it’s cooking? The fact is that rotating your chicken or roast will ensure more even cooking. It allows heat to reach all sides of your meat or poultry and it allows the juices to run from one side to the other. That’s why those spit roasted pigs and grocery store rotisserie chickens taste so good. So, if you are inclined to put in the effort, cooking your chicken breast side down and then flipping it is fine. Turning your roast so all sides face the top at some point in the cooking is fine. The effort will be worth it, but not necessarily so much so that you’ll want to put in the effort.

9. How do I know when my roast or chicken is done? The best method is to invest in a meat thermometer. Poultry should be at an internal temperature of 165 when you insert the thermometer into the breast near the bone. When it’s done the juices should be running clear not tinged with pink, and the legs should be easy to pull away from the breast.

Roasts vary depending on how you like your meat cooked. Most meats are said to be rare when they’re about 120 to 125 degrees in temperature and the temperature goes up by five to ten degree increments for medium rare, medium, medium well and well-done which is about 160 degrees.

10. Should my meat or poultry sit after it’s come out of the oven before serving? The answer to this is an unqualified, “Yes.” One, it is true that the liquid which has been drawn out to the surface of the roast or chicken while it was cooking will resettle to the center of the meat or chicken as it cools which makes for a moister dish. Two, your roast or poultry will still be finishing cooking, so you want to make sure it does and gets to the proper temperature. If you didn’t pull your roast or chicken out of the oven a little early and let it get to the temperature you wanted for eating, well, then your dish will be overcooked by the time you serve it. So, in that case you may want to start cutting immediately, but remember that it’ll be a bit dryer then.

Pajama Living

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Cooking Techniques: Roasting Meats and Chicken

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