Accidentally Eggless

I literally woke up thinking about peanut butter french toast this morning. It's as if it came to me in a dream, and I knew as soon as my eyes popped open that I was making a beeline to the kitchen. I could taste what I was about to create... that crunchy outer layer filled with gooey, delicious peanut butter, dunked in a blueberry sauce. I started the water for my coffee and began gathering the necessary ingredients. I grabbed the bread, the peanut butter, some cinnamon, and a bottle of vanilla. All I needed now was an egg, one little egg... that I didn't have! Oh no, now what?! I pushed the plunger on my french press and poured myself a cup of coffee. I took stock of the items on my counter and began to formulate a plan. I certainly wasn't going to give up just because we were out of eggs. What I managed to come up with was quite scrumptious, if I do say so myself. I started by layering peanut butter between two pieces of whole grain bread. Then I coated each side of the sandwich in a batter made of almond milk, coconut oil, whole wheat flour, chickpea flour, and a little sugar and spice to round it out. I toasted both sides in a skillet and cut the sandwich into sticks. For the sauce, I whipped together a few spoonfuls of blueberry syrup and vanilla yogurt and got to dunking! Mmmm, mmmm. Who needs eggs, anyway?!

Batter for french toast:

1/2 C almond milk

2 Tbsp whole wheat flour

2 Tbsp chickpea flour

1 Tbsp maple syrup

1 Tbsp coconut oil

1 Tbsp ground almonds

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

pinch of nutmeg

Mix all ingredients together to form batter, thoroughly coat each piece of bread and cook on medium heat until golden brown on each side

Blueberry Yogurt Sauce:

equal parts blueberry syrup and vanilla yogurt

Salty Sunday

My latest culinary obsession is flavored salts. Simple to make and fun to use, they really pack a tasty punch. The recipe is as easy as pulsing coarse salt in a food processor with anything from szechuan pepper to dried rosemary. Over the past week, I have made several delicious varieties but the flavor du jour was lime salt. After all, it was St. Paddy's Day weekend so something green was in order. Equal parts lime zest and Celtic grey sea salt created the perfect companion to crispy sweet potato chips. Using a peeler, I sliced the potato paper thin. A quick flash in hot canola oil was all they needed to crisp up. Laid out on a paper towel, they received their sparse sprinkling of lime salt (a little bit goes a long way). The crunchy texture and powerful flavor was just enough to drown out my inner voice whispering "time to do your taxes... time to do your taxes".

Cornbread Junkie

I'm pretty sure I have an addiction to cornbread. Sweet versions, savory versions, scratch recipes, boxed mixes... they're all good in my book. With my taste buds teased by my recent Florida vacation, today I was in the mood for a citrus twist. I made a fresh cup of coffee and started my hunt around the kitchen. A pint of blueberries, 2 limes, and a donut pan caught my eye. I added 1/4 cup of sugar, the zest and juice of 1/2 a lime, and about 1/4 cup of fresh blueberries to my standard boxed cornbread mix. I carefully spooned the batter into a greased donut pan and placed it in a 400 degree oven for about 12 minutes. While the donuts were baking to perfection and creating an intoxicating aroma, I whipped up a quick blueberry syrup. The zest and juice of 1 lime, 3 tablespoons of sugar, and a handful of blueberries simmered down in a nonstick skillet until the berries were warm and the sugar was dissolved. Pressed through a sieve, this mixture created a sweet nectar that I added to real maple syrup to yield one delectable dipping sauce for my cornbread donuts. Perhaps one day I'll seek help for this addiction.... on second thought, I'll just wait for the intervention.

5 Minute Fritter

Today I was in the mood for a little gluttony, a little soul comforting goodness that would cure me of my winter blues. This 5 minute fritter fit the bill. I peeled, cored and sliced one small fuji apple, yielding 4 perfect rings. A quick dip in a light batter and into the oil they dropped. Almost as quickly as they went in, they began to turn a gorgeous golden brown. A minute or two on each side was all they required to achieve that crispy fried exterior. The batter puffed like a pillow surrounding the apple and the fruit inside was warm and juicy. The taste was somewhere between a donut and an apple dumpling, two of my childhood favorites. With each bite, that warm feeling of nostalgia poured over me. Topped with a dusting of powdered sugar, these sinful little devils were the perfect dose of guilty pleasure I was looking for. Oh, sweet sweet joy!

Fritter Batter:

1/2 C flour

1/2 C almond milk

2 TBSP sugar

1 TBSP butter - melted

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 egg

In a mixing bowl, beat egg. Mix in milk and butter. Add sugar, baking powder, salt, and flour and stir to create batter. Peel, core and slice apple into rings. Dip each apple ring into batter and then drop into hot canola oil. Fry until golden brown on each side... about 2 minutes each side. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.

My Baking Confession...

I would love to say that I bake everything from scratch, but that is not even remotely true. Scratch baking intimidates me. I am a person who likes to "wing it" in the kitchen and that does not fly in the world of edible chemistry. Baking requires discipline. Measuring is important, recipes are important, exact temperatures are important. If something is off by even half a teaspoon, the whole thing could flop. I personally can not succeed within those parameters, therefore, I cheat. When I get the urge to bake, I bust out the store bought pie crusts, the puff pastry sheets, or a boxed cake mix and improvise from there. At least I know my limitations. My favorite example of how to church up a cheap store bought item is this twist on Jiffy cornbread. With a few simple additions, the inexpensive boxed mix is transformed into a spicy, delicious treat. Imagine this tasty little number snuggled up next to a steaming bowl of chili on a cold winter's day. We can't all be professional chefs, but we all gotta eat.

Spicy Cheddar Corn Muffins:

1 box Jiffy corn muffin mix

1 egg

1/3 C half and half (box calls for milk, I used half and half)

1/4 C diced red pepper

1/4 C diced poblano pepper

1/2 C grated sharp cheddar

1/2 C white sweet corn

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Mix contents of box with 1 egg and the half and half. Add in all the peppers, corn, pepper flakes and cheese and mix thoroughly. Scoop into greased muffin tins and bake for 15 minutes.

Finding Brussels....

What a long, strange, culinary trip it's been. Two years ago, I absolutely hated tomatoes. Now, they are a staple of my diet and each year my garden is packed with several varieties. Today marks another unexpected milestone as I officially apologize to the brussel sprout. I have always labeled them as foul little creatures that I would never enjoy. Well, guess who's eating their words... yep, it's me. Come to find out, they are actually quite tasty and definitely deserve a second chance if you have previously written them off of your menu. My favorite recipe, so far, is a quick saute with maple syrup, olive oil, and red pepper flakes served over sweet potato mash and finished with crispy fried onions. This combo creates a perfect balance between sweet and salty with just a hint of heat. I can't imagine what's around the next culinary corner, I can only assume it is more humble pie. That's right... I'm lookin' at you, red beets.

Sweet Potato Mash (serves 2)

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed

1/4 C almond milk

Boil sweet potato until fork tender. Drain potatoes. Using hand blender, whip potatoes with almond milk until smooth... adjust milk quantity to achieve desired consistency.

Brussel Sprouts (serves 2)

2 dozen brussel sprouts, washed and sliced in half

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp maple syrup

2 Tbsp orange juice

1/2 tsp red pepper flake

1/2 tsp salt

Toss sprouts in a bowl with 1 Tbsp of oil, 2 Tbsp maple syrup, and 2 Tbsp o.j. to coat. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in nonstick skillet on medium. Toss sprouts into warm skillet with salt and red pepper flake and cover for 5 to 6 minutes until the brussel sprouts have a crispy golden color, stirring once or twice.

Crispy Fried Onions (serves 2)

1 small yellow onion, sliced

3/4 C flour

1 Tsp salt

1 Tsp pepper

2 Tbsp canola oil

pinch salt

Mix flour with 1 tsp each of salt and pepper and toss in onions to coat. Heat 2 Tbsp canola oil in stainless steel skillet over medium high heat. Drop in coated onions and let brown. Drain on paper towel and sprinkle with a pinch of salt.

"Pulled" Squash and Apple Slaw

Today's recipe was lovingly created for a dear friend and recent convert to the vegetarian lifestyle. In casual conversation, she mentioned that the thing she misses most about eating meat is barbecue sauce. Sure, she could easily slather it on vegetables or pour it over pasta but I wanted to give her something she could really sink her teeth into, something composed with layers of flavor. The first thing that came to mind was a barbecue sandwich (a nostalgic nod to a particular late night in Seaside when we rode our bikes to get pulled pork and cheese grits). I used roasted spaghetti squash as the vehicle for the sauce and an apple coleslaw to dress the sandwich. Toasted slider buns housed the tangy mixture and added an extra level of crunch. The apple slaw was vinegar based and packed full of flavor from the addition of green onions, red pepper flakes, and dijon mustard. Sweet and crunchy, and wonderfully sloppy, this sandwich did not disappoint. Now, can someone get me some cheese grits?.....

"Pulled" Squash:

1 spaghetti squash

1/2 C water

bbq sauce

Slice squash in half, lengthwise, and place in a shallow baking pan filled with 1/2 C water. Cover with foil and place in 425 degree oven for 35 minutes or until soft. Using a fork, scrape the inside of the squash into a bowl and coat with bbq sauce.

*Apple Slaw:

1 head of green cabbage

1 TBSP salt

3 tart apples

3 scallions

1/2 C cider vinegar

4 TBSP olive oil

1/2 C raw sugar

1 TBSP dijon mustard

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Remove core from cabbage. Shred cabbage into a colander and sprinkle with salt, let sit for 1 hour. Rinse and dry cabbage. Slice apples and scallions and toss together in a bowl with cabbage. In a sauce pan, combine vinegar, oil, mustard, pepper flakes, and sugar and whisk until incorporated. Pour warm liquid over cabbage mixture. Toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

*original slaw recipe found here, tweaked to use olive oil and less of it, as well as more red pepper flake, more scallion, and more apple.

Green Tomato Soup

Friday morning I woke up to find that the previous night's storm had not only blown off a few shingles, it had also trashed the remaining plants in my garden. It was officially time to prepare the beds for a long winter's nap. I pulled the wind blown stakes out of the ground and sorted them for storage. I trimmed the last of the oregano, thinned out the rainbow chard, and loaded the composter full of fresh garden shrapnel. Snuggled between a thick patch of arugula and a meandering cucumber vine, I found several rogue tomato plants, hiding their unripened fruit. Recipe research ensued. I found everything from fried green tomatoes to green tomato cake, but one idea kept coming to mind - green tomato soup. I read a few recipes to gather the basics and then I hit the kitchen. The result was a deliciously sweet and spicy soup topped with crunchy parmesan croutons (a subtle nod to the grilled cheese, if you will). It was the perfect remedy for my fall garden blues. Had it not been for the damaging storm, I would have missed these little green beauties and subsequently missed out on green tomato goodness. I guess everything does happen for a reason...

Green Tomato Soup

4 C chopped green tomatoes

3 fuji apples, peeled and chopped

1 small yellow onion

1 jalapeno - DESEEDED

1 yellow bell pepper

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp red pepper flake

1/4 tsp cumin

almond milk

Warm olive oil in a saucepan and add garlic and onion. Saute on medium heat until onions are soft, taking care not to burn garlic. Add tomatoes, apples, bell pepper, and jalapeno. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, and red pepper flake, adjust to taste. Cover with half water, half almond milk and simmer until apples are soft. Puree mixture and run through a sieve to remove large pieces. Take the pieces left in the sieve and return them to the food processor. Pulse again until smooth. Add half of that mixture back into the strained soup. Simmer. Using a slurry of almond milk and whole wheat flour, thicken the soup to desired consistency. Top with croutons and parmesan cheese...broil to melt cheese.

Sweet Gnocchi Lullaby

As a stylist, I spend countless hours perusing blogs, magazines, and any other eye candy I can get my hands on in order to feed the creative machine. Today, as I drank my coffee and sought inspiration, I stumbled upon a recipe for butternut gnocchi on bonappetit.com. The recipe sounded good but I wanted something different than the brown butter sauce they were suggesting. Unsure if I was actually going to follow through with this recipe plan, I headed out to the store to see what I could find. I decided to pick up a variety of fall ingredients which included honeycrisp apples, fresh sage, and a butternut squash. With the intermittent rain and a dreary gray sky, it was the perfect day to get caught up in a culinary escapade so I began my gnocchi production. After rolling and cutting these delicate little pillows, I tossed them in a pot of salted, boiling water and waited for them to pop up to the top. After being scooped out of the water, they landed on a lined baking sheet where they awaited their second act. Opting to forgo the original bon appetit brown butter sauce, I began formulating my own plan to accompany the sweet squash. While the gnocchi sat patiently on the parchment, I chopped a fresh honeycrisp apple and a small red onion that I then sauteed in a skillet with some butter that had been steeping with garlic and sage. Once the onion and apple had softened, in went the gnocchi. A few minutes later the gnocchi had a crispy golden shell. They were sufficiently coated in the sweet and savory mixture and were ready to be devoured. I happily obliged, which lead to the need for a nap. Wake me when it's spring again....

Peachy Keen

There's nothing like a sweet, juicy peach on a lazy summer afternoon. If it's not dripping down your face as you devour it, start over. Wonderful as a ripe peach may be, the perfect sidecar is a healthy dose of fresh ginger. Throw in some cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom and an ideal flavor combination is created. Using a muffin tin, I enclosed this tasty mixture in a flaky pie crust and created individual peach pastries... curing the long standing problem of a deflated slice of pie that has unfortunately lost it's filling to a previous cut. No one should have to endure an imbalanced crust to filling ratio! Buttery and sweet with a hint of spice, these tiny treats were gone almost as quickly as they were created...ephemeral like the days of summer.

Summer Satisfaction

Oh the spoils of summer... fresh juicy tomatoes, tender zucchini, and rows of spicy arugula abound. It's a short lived treat here in Michigan, so I am savoring every second of it. Call me crazy, but I am not interested in canning or saving these tasty little morsels for the dreary winter months, despite the abundance. Indulging now in the backyard harvest serves to build my anticipation over the winter. I need that proverbial carrot. That being said, I do grow more than I can eat and as a way of dealing with the overflow, I share. Not only does this feed my friends, it feeds my soul and nothing is more satisfying than that.

Zucchini Tomato Stack

Slice 1 zucchini and 1 tomato. Brush zucchini slices with oil (I used roasted garlic oil) and roast on a baking sheet about 5-7 minutes at 450 degrees. Sprinkle tomato slices with sea salt and layer with roasted zucchini in a stack on top of vidalia onion dressing. Finish with fresh arugula leaves.

Sweet Corn Granita

From carefully selecting each ear to shucking, prepping and consuming it, the entire process of eating sweet corn is a sentimental experience for me. It immediately transports me to the summers of my childhood. I can easily imagine the precise sound of the husk as it's torn away from the cob and recollect the feeling of the silky threads clinging to my fingers as I shucked ear after ear. Despite this undying passion, a steaming ear of corn has not sounded the least bit appetizing this summer due to the "hotter than Hades" temperatures we've been experiencing. To satisfy my corn craving while refreshing my wilted disposition, I decided to make a sweet corn granita, layered with vanilla pudding. Imagine the sweetness of summer corn, laced with cinnamon, orange, and vanilla. Mmm mmm mmm....... delightful. Creamy pudding plus sweet icy goodness equals one happy blogger.

Granita:

3 ears of corn, steamed

1/3 C brown sugar simple syrup*

3 Tbsp almond milk

1/4 tsp vanilla

1/8 tsp cinnamon

prepared vanilla pudding

orange zest

*Brown sugar simple syrup:

Mix 1/2 C brown sugar with 1 C water and simmer until sugar is thoroughly dissolved. Cool before using.

After steaming the corn, cut all kernels off the cob and pulse in food processor. Place the pureed kernels in a sieve over a bowl and press through with a spatula to separate out the solids. 3 ears of corn should yield about 1 C of smooth corn puree. (This is a tedious but worthwhile step.) Combine simple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon and almond milk with the smooth corn puree and pour into a chilled glass container and place in freezer. Scrape the mixture every 20 minutes with a fork until there is no more liquid in the granita. Spoon granita over vanilla pudding and top with orange zest. Enjoy!

Stop and Eat the Couscous

The past two weeks have slipped by in a blur of travel, work, travel, work. I am only just now catching up with my life outside of the office. Somewhere between Boston and Seattle, I concocted this quirky little salad, which was a happy accident of what I could find in the kitchen. (My pantry has been neglected, along with my blog.) The melange of couscous, cherry tomatoes, black beans, green onions, cucumbers, and pineapple, was quite tasty and extremely refreshing. Packed in a mason jar, it traveled beautifully to the beach. I sat quietly and enjoyed my strange medley as I caught my breath and soaked up the solitude... if only for a minute. It's good to be home.

Delicately Indulgent

I have been anxiously awaiting a harvest in my garden. After a slow start, things are now ramping up and the mesclun lettuce has finally arrived. A wonderful mix of spicy and bitter, these greens are a salad lover's dream. Their crisp texture and bright flavor make them amazing on their own, but today I embellished them by filling individual leaves with a mixture of crumbled goat cheese and tangy currant jam. The combination of crisp, cold lettuce with the sweet and savory filling was absolutely indulgent. Who knew a delicate little lettuce could be so naughty?

Bananas for Ice Cream

I love ice cream. I also like fitting into my clothes. Since large amounts of heavy cream and sugar have an adverse effect on my waistline, I began a search for a healthier alternative that would satiate my ice cream desires. I tried several different faux ice creams but they all were icy and lacked that creamy texture I was craving. Then I stumbled across a vegan ice cream recipe that involved 2 ingredients - frozen bananas and almond milk. I was intrigued but skeptical. No ice cream machine needed. No sugar needed. How on earth this was going to be good? To my surprise, it was simply delicious. It was as easy as slicing bananas, freezing them on a cookie sheet, and then pulsing them in the food processor with a splash of almond milk. Granted, you have to like the taste of banana, but with a little creativity the flavor can be adjusted to suit your taste buds. My favorite addition was a swirl of whipped peanut butter. The possibilities are endless... go bananas!

Inspiration in Aisle 9

Ok, I must be a dork... or perhaps I have just lived in a small town too long because the opening of a new grocery store had me tickled pink. During my reconnaissance mission, I meandered through the produce section and perused the aisles. The "international" section is where I spotted a bottle of orange blossom water. I had absolutely no idea what to do with it but I couldn't resist buying it. I knew that hauntingly sweet aroma was going to add a new twist to my culinary bag of tricks. The gears began to grind. Weening myself off a 2 week bender of bad eating, I avoided the urge to make cookies or cakes and opted, instead, for a light salad. I started with fresh strawberries, shaved carrot, and chopped romaine hearts and macerated the salad in the juice of 1 navel orange and 1/4 tsp of orange blossom water. Fifteen minutes in the fridge was all it took for these humble ingredients to incorporate into a sweet summer treat. Welcome back, inspiration... I missed you.

Grazie, Miss Grassia

A dear friend has taken up residence in my guest room for the next few weeks and decided to kick off her stay by cooking me a delicious dinner. If there is one rarity in my world, it's having dinner cooked for me. This unexpected change of pace was nothing short of amazing. She tolerated my constant attacks with the camera and accommodated my ridiculous requests like "slow down the cheese grating", and "bring that bowl over to the window". The salad was crisp and flavorful with interesting tidbits like cherries and almonds, the garlic bread was a cheesy delight, and the main course was an absolute show stopper. A baked spaghetti squash was scraped into pasta-like shreds and topped with her father's homemade gravy. (I was told that "gravy" is the true Italian name for spaghetti sauce...she would know, she's a Grassia.) A true friend and a true treat... what more could a girl ask for??

A Spoonful of Tradition

I was taught how to make chicken corn soup by my husband's grandmother. That being said, this recipe is dear to my heart. It's a classic Pennsylvania Dutch recipe with as many adaptations as there are people who make it. Variations can include dumplings, vegetables, or particular cuts of chicken. Despite the many versions, one standard ingredient classifies this recipe as authentic - hard boiled eggs. Before you turn your nose up, try it. I was skeptical at first, but the egg yolks actually melt into the soup and create a wonderfully creamy broth. It's a humble dish that is seasoned only with salt and cracked pepper but each bite is pure love. Every Easter I make this soup in the tradition of my in-laws. They, too, are dishing up the same meal, six hundred miles from Michigan, connecting us through the power of food. Happy Easter!

Soup for Two:

4 bone-in chicken thighs

4 large red potatoes

1 can creamed corn

1 can sweet corn

3 hard boiled eggs - chopped

Salt

Pepper

Place chicken thighs in a stock pot and cover with water. Boil until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Remove chicken and set aside to cool. Continue boiling water. Peel and cube the potatoes and place into the water. Once potatoes are fork tender, add in the corn and chopped eggs. Remove bone and skin from chicken and shred the meat. Add meat to soup and simmer all together for 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Be The Phoenix

Let me be honest. Today's recipe started out as a tangerine curd pocket pie in a cornmeal crust but since the curd ended up as a scrambled mess, I thought it best to proceed with plan B - a savory chard pocket pie. I tested the crust and found that it was a success in taste, but the texture was too "cookie-like" to create a pocket. Shot down again, but not one to be defeated, I pressed on. The open-faced crust was a delicious component worth exploring, so I sauteed red onion, swiss chard, garlic and cider vinegar and perched the punchy mixture on top. Blanketed in fresh mozzarella and baked until golden brown, it turned out to be a delightful snack. It was a far cry from the sweet pastry I set out to make, but sometimes you crash and burn. Rising from the ashes... that's what it's really about.

Almond Apple Spread

Peanut butter on toast is a nostalgic snack for me. When I eat it, my mind is instantly transported back in time... (insert dreamy flashback music here) Mom is in the kitchen fixing lunches for the day, Dad is getting ready for work, and my brother and I are fighting for time in the bathroom. As I meander down the stairs and head for the door, mom hands me 2 pieces of peanut butter toast, lovingly nestled in a paper towel. As a nod to this simple childhood memory, I decided to make a nutty snack of my own. I started by roasting blanched almonds with a pinch of salt. In a skillet, I simmered shredded red apple with a hint of maple syrup and a healthy dose of cinnamon. Once the almonds were toasty and the apples were soft, into the Cuisinart they went. After a drizzle of oil and a few minutes of pulsing, a wonderfully sweet spread emerged. Slathered on a piece of warm toast, this updated throwback was everything I had hoped for. To be fair, though, nothing is as good as the memory.