Mar 012013
 

9 Fermentation & Gluten Free Resources @ Common Sense Homesteading

I’m working my way through the different books and videos offered in the Extreme Health Library bundle, and tonight’s post is about 9 Fermentation and Gluten Free Resources.   For those who are looking for advice and recipes that will make it easier to incorporate these healing foods in their diets, these are wonderful resources.

From full menu planning (both for gluten free and allergy free menus) to troubleshooting tips and many recipes, these  books and videos offer food that is not only good for you but beautiful and filled with flavor.  There are some treats, too, like Starlene’s coconut flour donuts (shown above).  If you’re trying to ditch a soda habit, you can replace it with kefir or kombucha (fermented beverages) that will give you the fizz without loads of sugar or artificial ingredients.  I bought a package of miso recently because I *know* it’s good for me, but I’ve been scared to use it (yes, me, who ate ground up crickets).  Now with Kimi’s book, I finally have a better idea of how to make a proper miso soup.  I’m looking forward to working my way through the rest of these, too. Continue reading »

Dec 112012
 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles @ Common Sense Homesteading

These chocolate chip cookie dough truffles are made with almonds, coconut oil, honey, chocolate chips, vanilla and a dash of salt, and can be coated with chocolate or served plain.  (The first batch disappeared before I got a chance to dip them.) Once you try these tasty little cookie bites, you’ll be hooked.  Even my somewhat finicky husband loves them.  They’re a great way to get more coconut oil into your diet.  (The Tropical Traditions website has a great recipe page with dozens of recipes using coconut products.)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles Continue reading »

Oct 232012
 

Conte's Gluten Free Pasta @ Common Sense Homesteading

Recently, I was discussing with some friends how many gluten free pastas simply weren’t very good.  That same day, I found Conte’s Gluten Free Pasta on Twitter (contespasta), and went to have a look at their website (http://www.contespasta.com/).  Their heart shaped cheese ravioli were about the cutest pasta I’ve even seen, and the rest of their raviolis look equally gorgeous (check out the Conte’s ravioli page to see what I’m talking about).  On a whim, I contacted Conte’s to see if they’d be willing to host a review and giveaway, and they said yes!  It’s taken us a bit of time to work our way through the very generous sample box they sent, but I’m finally ready to roll with our review of Conte’s gluten free pasta. Continue reading »

Dec 012011
 
Coconut Macaroons Sweetened with Maple Syrup @ Common Sense Homesteading
Coconut Macaroons Sweetened with Maple Syrup

Healthier Holiday Treats :-)

Ever end up with leftover egg whites and need a good recipe for them?  Looking for a sweet treat that’s gluten free and refined sugar free?  Here’s one that my family enjoys and I hope you will, too.  It’s sweetened with maple syrup and thickened with arrowroot, and produces a light, crunchy cookie.  These take quite a while to bake, so keep that in mind before you start mixing.

Coconut Macaroons Sweetened with Maple Syrup Recipe

Adapted from the book Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.

Ingredients

4 egg whites
pinch sea salt
2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
1/2 cup maple syrup (grade B is great if you have it)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups commerical dried unsweetened coconut meat, finely cut

Directions

Line a baking sheet with butter parchment paper or reusable parchment paper. I prefer to use air bake pans for delicate cookies like this to avoid overbrowning or burning.

Beat egg whites with salt in a clean bowl until they form stiff peaks.   Don’t overmix or they will break and get runny.

Beat in the arrowroot and slowly beat in syrup and vanilla. Mixture will be smooth and glossy.

Gently fold in coconut. Remember, fold, don’t mix – you want to keep the egg whites nice and fluffy.

Drop by spoonfuls on parchment paper.  I trimmed my parchment paper to fit my standard cookie sheets, so I put some extra pieces on the edge.  This recipe will fill two pans.

Bake at 300 degrees for about 1/2 hour or until lightly browned.  Reduce oven to 200 degrees and bake another hour or so until macaroons are completely dry and crisp.  If you happen to have started baking too late at night and turn off the oven prematurely, hoping that the warm oven will be enough to finish the baking, and your cookies are tacky in the morning, you can pop them in the dehydrator to get them nice and crispy.

Let cool completely before removing from parchment paper.  Store in an airtight container.  (I like to use wide mouth mason jars.)

Do you have recipes for holiday treats that use less sugar or no refined sugar?  What about treats that are gluten free?  I’m looking for my recipes to add to my family’s baking traditions, so I’d love to hear your ideas.

This post has been added to Simple Lives Thursday at Sustainable Eats and
The Cookie Love Blog Hop at The Art of Cooking Real Food.
Jul 132011
 

It’s strawberry season in our area, and the boys and I have hit two different pick your own patches (more on that later).  For now, I’ll just share a recipe, as I’ve been a little busy this week and am behind on my posts.  (More on that later, too.  I had nearly two tons of grain in my garage on Monday.)

With all the strawberries in the house, I had a taste for strawberry shortcake, but I really wanted to try a version with almond flour.  It just seemed to me that strawberries and almonds would go well together.  I did some hunting online (I think I may have to add the Almond Flour cookbook to my wishlist), but most of the recipes I found either used a lot of sugar or artificial sweeteners.  Finally, I decided to tweak a recipe from one of my favorite gluten free bloggers – Kelly at The Spunky Coconut.  Kelly made a really pretty Strawberry Birthday cake for her daughter, so I modified her recipe a bit and teamed it up with strawberries and whipped cream.

Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcake with Almond Flour recipe

5 whisked eggs (I used 2 duck eggs and one small chicken egg)
2/3 cup yogurt (the original recipe called for applesauce, but I didn’t have any on hand)
1/8 tsp Vanilla Creme liquid stevia
1/3 cup honey
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup coconut flour, sifted
2/3 cup tapioca flour
2/3 cup Bob’s almond flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup coconut oil, liquified (grapeseed oil would probably work also)

Grease two nine inch round cake pans.  (I put parchment paper in the bottom, too, but didn’t have a problem with sticking.)  Preheat oven to 325 F.

Blend together eggs, yogurt, liquid stevia, honey and vanilla extract.  In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients until evenly mixed.  Mix together dry and wet ingredients. (Kelly just says to put everything in one bowl, but I like to premix just to make sure everything blends evenly.)

Divide batter evenly between the two pans.  Bake for about 18 minutes, until lightly browned.

Let cool for a few minutes, then flip onto wire racks to cool completely.

While the cakes are cooling, rinse and hull your strawberries.  Chop/mash them with a pastry blender or potato masherto release the juices.

Please, please do not slice your berries and then add water to them for juice.  This is not a yummy.  (Apologies to a dear family member if you read this.)  You may use the berries unsweetened, or add stevia, vanilla stevia, or other sweetener to taste.  When we had this with my in-laws, I added 8 drops liquid vanilla creme stevia to 4 cups of chopped berries (my FIL is diabetic).  For just the boys and I, I added 2 tablespoons of sugar to 4 cups of berries.  A little goes a long way.

For the whipping cream, I whipped one cup of organic heavy whipping cream, and then, for the in-laws, added about six drops of vanilla creme stevia.  For just us, I added two tablespoons powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla (my youngest is not a fan of stevia).

I sliced the cakes into wedges and served them up in bowls with strawberries and whipped cream.  Delicious!  Do refrigerate leftovers, if there are any.

This post has been added to Simple Lives Thursday , Fight Back Fridayand Hearth and Soul Blog Hop #57.