GF Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are some of the best GF cookies I've ever had that did not use almond flour as a base. Sooo tasty, I'm on to making another batch after the last one went pretty quick.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Rolled oats OR Quinoa Flakes
1/2 cup organic quinoa flour
1 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour or potato starch (not potato flour)
1 cup organic light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup light olive oil ( I used a bit less)
3 tablespoons real maple syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 large organic free-range eggs or Ener-G Egg Replacer
Warm water, as needed
1 cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips

Instructions:

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours and dry ingredients.

Add in the oil, maple syrup, vanilla and eggs/egg replacer. Combine the wet and dry ingredients with a sturdy wooden spoon until you get a thick, sticky batter.

If you need to, add 1 tablespoon of warm water at a time, as needed, to achieve a (cookie style) dough that sticks together when you pinch it.

Stir in the dark chocolate chips with a wooden spoon. Cover and chill the dough for 30 to 60 minutes. (For the first batch I put it in for 10 minutes only and they still came out great).

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with an Exopat or parchment.

Roll spoonfuls of the dough between your palms and form the dough into 24 balls (slightly smaller than a golf ball). Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet and press down a bit to flatten slightly- not too much, OR you can spoon the dough out and flatten a bit with fingers. Place the pan into the center of a pre-heated oven and bake until golden and set - about 22 to 25 minutes until the edges are golden brown and the center is almost firm. The cookies will still have a little give to them while hot; as they cool they will crisp up.

Remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes; then carefully remove the cookies with a thin spatula and place them on a wire rack to continue cooling.

Lovely warm and melty. Store in a covered container for up to a day or wrap cooled cookies in recycled foil, bag and freeze for longer storage. 

Makes 24 cookies.
Adapted from Gluten-Free Goddess
Read more: http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2010/04/quinoa-chocolate-chip-cookies.html#ixzz1qLpNNVlw

Creamy Pasta with Swiss Chard and Blue Cheese

This is low-fat meal is simple and quick and something you can throw together in 15 minutes, particularly if your pasta is already cooked as mine was from last nights Carbonara ( I LOVE bacon).  The measurements are not strict in order to have success.

You will need:

1/2 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

2T grapeseed oil (or ghee, or oil alternative)

1 bunch of swiss chard or spinach washed, drained and chopped

1/2 cup of blue cheese or any strong cheese such as asiago or parmesan

1/2-1 cup of sour cream (you can add some cream, milk or alternative too if you want but not necessary)

sea salt and cracked pepper

parmesan cheese for garnish

Wash and drain your greens. Chop into pieces.

Saute onion and garlic in 2 T of grapeseed oil.  Cook till onions soften slightly.

Add swiss chard and continue to saute until they soften.  

Add hot or cold pasta to the mix and stir around flipping hot ingredients on top of pasta. Warm about 5 minutes. Stir in sour cream (and milk if using 1/4 c) then add blue cheese chunks and stir another few minutes.

Plate immediately and garnish with parmesan and salt and pepper.

Tahini Protein Power Bowl

Angela over at Oh She Glows (http://ohsheglows.com/)  is an amazing inspiration to me and I often cruise her site to get new ideas for meals to make. I often tend to us a recipe as a base and then throw in whatever ingredients I have on hand. My fridge is usually stocked with a number of things and I don't like going out often to get one or two things that are missing so I just substitute if I can and turn it into something like the recipe. Of course there are some ingredients, such as the tahini in this recipe, that you would not want to substitute.  Please note if you haven't already that I am not aiming to take glorious photos like Angela or most other bloggers for that matter. I take the photos as I go very quickly and I am happy if I have the time to post at all. Maybe some day I will have the time to take better photos :)

The spring mix from Whole Foods on Cambie, in Vancouver is totally worth it. It stays fresh for a while unlike the spring mix from Costco which goes bad in a matter of days.

  

I have an INCREDIBLE rice cooker and if you cook a lot of grains I would highly encourage you to look into the Japanese rice cookers with the fuzzy logic technology. Sounds strange but it has to do with having an intuitive nature to it that cooks whatever you throw into it with perfection. I throw in red rice, lentils, brown rice all together sometimes as I did with this recipe (on the brown rice setting) or I add quinoa and it ALWAYS cooks it to perfection. Measure, add water to the line, press button- cue starting song. Stays warm for over 12 hours! I have a Zojurushi and it is the most used appliance in my kitchen, hands down.

  

I wish I'd had the red pepper but I used swiss chard, snap peas and cherry tomatoes instead.

   Ta da!!!

Reposted from: http://ohsheglows.com/2011/05/12/lightened-up-protein-power-goddess-bowl/

Lightened Up Protein Power Goddess Bowl

Angela adapted this recipe from Protein Power Goddess Bowl, which was adapted from The Coup Cookbook.

Yield: 6 cups
Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked green lentils (yield 2 & 3/4 cups cooked)
• 1 cup uncooked speltberries (yield 2 cups cooked) OR grain of choice, like brown rice
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil, for sautéing
• 1/2 red onion (~1 & 1/3 cups), chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 large tomato, chopped
• 3 cups spinach or kale, roughly chopped (I used Lacinato kale)
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced
• 1 batch of Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing (recipe below)
• Kosher salt & black pepper, to taste
• Lemon Wedges & lemon zest, to garnish

Directions:

1. Cook lentils and speltberries (or grain of choice) according to package directions. I did this the night before to save time. Drain and set aside.

2. Prepare the Lightened Up tahini-Lemon dressing in food processor (see below for recipe).

3. In a large skillet over low-medium heat, add your olive oil and sauté the chopped onion and minced garlic for a few minutes, being careful not to burn. Now add in the chopped red pepper and tomato and sauté for another 7-8 minutes.

4. Stir in the chopped kale or spinach and sauté for another few minutes, just until tender. Stir in the full batch of tahini-Lemon dressing, the cooked & drained grains and lentils, and simmer on low for another few minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the minced parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with lemon wedges and zest. Makes 6 cups.

Once you cook your desired grains and make the dressing, you simply sauté some vegetables of your choice until tender.

Lightened Up Tahini-Lemon Dressing

Adapted from Tahini-Lemon Dressing.

Yield: Just under 1 cup of dressing

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup Tahini
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
• 1/4 cup Nutritional yeast or a bit more, to taste
• 2-4 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil, to taste
• 1 tsp kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
• 3 tbsp water, or as needed

Directions:

1. In a food processor, add all ingredients and process until smooth. Makes just under 1 cup.

I only had a half a lemon so I squeezed in a few tablespoons of lemon juice concentrate and water because I thought the lemon amount was too much any way for me and because I didn't have the lemons :). I happened to have the nutritional yeast and I think it gives it a nice nutty flavor. If you don't have it you could through in some chickpeas maybe to round out the flavour.  You can find the yeast in the bulk section. Good to give added nutritional value to meals.

Angela's lovely photos.

Yesterday, I added Lacinato Kale instead of spinach and I loved it! It’s less bitter than regular kale.

 

Mix in your grains and dressing.

 

When it’s all cooked, remove from heat and stir in the minced Parsley for another kick of fresh flavour.

Taste test… Uncontrollably!

Serve with a lemon wedge and zest and you have yourself a protein and fibre packed dinner! It’s creamy & comforting, with a tangy kick that is just irresistible.

This will definitely be my go-to version of this salad from now on. We didn’t miss the 6 tablespoons of oil at all.

Brown Rice Pancakes

I made these this morning and they were fantastic. We had them with blueberries and sliced banana and maple syrup. 

From http://www.dinnersanddreams.net/2011/03/egg-free-gluten-free-brown-rice-pancakes.html

These brown rice pancakes are egg-free, gluten-free, enriched with flax seeds and most satisfying. The batter works great for waffles too.

Simply top them with your favorite syrup and fruit, and enjoy with glass milk.

Brown Rice Pancakes Recipe

Makes 6

¾ cup milk (I used soy milk)
½ cup plain yogurt
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon agave syrup

1 cup brown rice flour
1/3 cup golden flaxseed meal
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon butter, divided into 6- (We used coconut oil instead)

Whisk together the milk, yogurt, vanilla extract and agave syrup.

Combine the flour with ground flax seeds, salt, cinnamon and baking soda. Add them to the milk-yogurt mixture and whisk well.

Heat a skillet over medium heat. Melt 1/6 of the butter on the skillet and ladle batter onto it, spreading it slightly by twirling the pan. Cook a few minutes per side. When the edges look stiff and slightly browned, it is time to turn over the pancake. Repeat until you’re used all the batter.