Archives for May 2015

Dairy Free Indian Pudding

May 27, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Indian Pudding

My little corner of Nevada has been experiencing quite a few rain showers lately, the benefit of a little El Nino off the Pacific coast. It’s been so delightful to hear the sound of water in our rain gutters, and the musical tapping of drops against the window. Hunkering down in the house with a hot beverage needed one more item to make the days marvelously complete – pudding!

Indian Pudding was probably Hasty Pudding back in Britain, but the early immigrants didn’t quite have all the necessary ingredients. Corn flour was easily attainable so wheat flour was replaced and Indian Pudding was born. My version revises the recipe again to a non-dairy version. Enjoy!

1/4 cup Coconut Spread (found near the butter in health food stores)
4 cups plain unsweetened Almond Milk
1 1/2 tablespoons Cornstarch
3/4 cup medium coarse Cornmeal (I found mine in the bulk food bins at Whole Foods)
1/3 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Molasses
1 1/2 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/2 tsp Salt
2 Egg Yolks
non-dairy Whipped Topping (we used a coconut brand)

Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F and prepare an 8x8x8 pan with either some of your coconut spread or cooking spray making sure to coat all the inner sides of the pan.

While it’s heating melt the coconut spread in a medium stock pot over medium high heat. Coconut spread won’t brown exactly like butter, but if you watch close, when it really starts bubbling it will take on a slightly tan coloration. So after about 5 mins when that tan color appears, add the almond milk and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to medium and slowly add in the cornmeal stirring constantly. Make sure the cornmeal doesn’t lump up but is evenly distributed. In order for this recipe to set up remove about a 1/4 cup of this hot mixture and stir your cornstarch in stirring well. Return this 1/4 cup mixture to the hot almond milk making sure no lumps are formed. Let this simmer while the rest of the pudding is prepared.

In a large bowl combine the sugar, molasses, pumpkin pie spice and egg yolks. With a strong whisk stir this mixture until smooth. The molasses will prove quite stubborn during this process but whip it into submission – you can do it!

Now it’s time to incorporate the two parts of the pudding but to insure we don’t make scrambled eggs begin by slowly adding about a cup of the hot mixture into the bowl. Stir constantly while you do this. Then add a 2nd cup, again slowly stirring constantly. Once fully mixed in pour the mixture in the bowl into the hot mixture on the stove – again slowly, stirring constantly. Allow this to come back up to a simmer.

Pour the hot cornmeal mixture into your prepared pan and bake for about an hour and a half. Check the doneness by gently nudging the pan. The pudding should move only slightly. When ready remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack till about room temperature then place in the refridgerator for a couple hours. Serve with whipped topping. So yummy!

Pork Cherry Stir Fry

May 20, 2015 by Dan Leave a Comment

Pork Cherry Stir Fry

Ever had one of those nights when you had no idea what you wanted for dinner? Well, after a long day at work, tonight was one of those nights. So we wandered through the grocery store looking for what looked fresh and sounded appealing. We arrived back in our kitchen with bing cherries, roma tomatoes, an English cucumber, pork, and appetites waiting to be sated.

What you’ll need:

2 pounds Pork Loin or thick cut Pork Chops
1 cup pitted Cherries
3 Roma Tomatoes
1 large Cucumber
1/2 cup Soy Sauce
1/2 cup dry Sherry
1/4 cup Teriyaki Sauce
fresh Mint

Slice the pork into thing strips. Into a large bowl mix the soy sauce and sherry then add the pork making sure to cover it well with the marinade, and let sit for half an hour to an hour. While you’re waiting for the pork to bathe in the marinade, seed your tomatoes and cucumber and cut both into bite sized pieces.

Heat a large skillet and some oil (I used olive oil) over medium high heat. Drain your meat and then place it in the hot skillet. Stir until cooked through. Add the cherries, reduce the heat to medium, cover and let cook 5 to 10 minutes or until the cherries get soft. If the pan is dry, add some of your marinade to the pan, you want a little bit of juice so the cherries will steam.

Once the cherries are soft, add the cucumber and tomato. Stir until the tomato and cucumber are hot. Don’t over cook. Add 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce and stir to coat everything evenly.

Serve over rice or noodles and top with a little fresh chopped mint. Enjoy!

Non-dairy Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

May 15, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Chicken Soup

Our Spring weather has been decidedly cold, wet and snowy lately – the perfect time to try a non-dairy version of an old favorite so everyone in the house could enjoy it!

This recipe takes a little extra time, making it on a weekend is best, but it has made wonderful meals I could take to work or reheat in the microwave when I didn’t feel like cooking again.

Ingredients

1 Idaho Potato
1 Quart Organic Chicken Broth
6 Organic Chicken Thighs*
1 Celery Stalk sliced
10 Baby Carrots sliced
1 Shallot finely diced
1 Cup wild rice mix
1/2 Tsp dried Savory
1/2 Tsp dried Thyme
1 tsp salt
2 Cups Almond Milk (plain, unsweetened)
Optional: Cilantro garnish

* I chose organic meat (and bone in) chicken thighs so I could get the most bang for my buck – “bone broth”. You might have memories of a beloved auntie or grandmother that always cooked soup with bones added in, I do, and the health benefits FAR exceed the time it takes to use and dispose of them.

Into a large cooking pot add the broth, celery, carrots, shallot, savory, thyme and salt and turn heat to medium high. On a cutting board I removed the chicken meat from the bone and diced into bite size pieces – add everything to the pot. Don’t worry about any remaining meat on the bones. Bones are added right into the pot with the chicken and during the cooking process will either cook off the bones or your can easily remove the meat with a spoon. Bring the pot to a boil then reduce to a simmer.

About 45 mins or an hour before you intend to eat, peel and dice your potato and add to a small pot with just enough water to cover the potatoes. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil then reduce to medium (or just enough so it doesn’t boil over). As the water boils off, keep adding a bit more so the potato is always covered, and until the potato pieces are tender. Remove from heat and in the same little pot (don’t pour off the water) mash the potato well and add into your chicken soup.

At the same time you put your potato to boil add the cup of wild rice mix to your chicken soup. As the potato cooks, so will the rice and they will get done at approximately the same time. After the potato is added to the soup pour two cups of almond milk into the soup and increase the heat to medium. Once the soup is back to a gentle boil, reduce heat and serve.

This recipe is non dairy but you can easily add a pat of butter to your bowl if you need that “mouth feel” and aren’t allergic.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

May 6, 2015 by Dan Leave a Comment

Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies

Have you ever experienced a cheesecake craving? The kind where you just want to sit with it in your lap and eat the whole thing while you watch some perfectly wretched B movie? Okay, maybe that’s just me then, but today’s recipe is a cheesecake cookie that not only satisfies in its petite serving but is also fun to share.

Ingredients

1 cup fresh Blueberries
3/4 cup Water
1 1/2 cups all purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 cup mild, soft, white Goat Cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup Butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 large Egg
1 to 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar

In a small sauce pan, combine 1 cup fresh blueberries, 3/4 cup water and 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat, stirring periodically, until the berries split and then the mixture reduces by half. Strain. This should yield between 1/2 and 2/3 cup of blueberry syrup. Let cool.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a bowl combine 1 cup all purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon baking powder and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Sift together to combine and remove any lumps.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine the butter and goat cheese. Beat until combined and smooth. Add the sugar and beat until smooth and fluffy. Add the vanilla and egg and beat until well combined. Add the dry ingredients, a bit at a time on low speed, beat until combined.

Take one cup of your batter and put in a small bowl. Add 1/2 cup of the blueberry syrup (be sure to retain 2 to 3 tablespoons of the syrup for your frosting) and 1/2 cup flour. Beat by hand until combined. Pour the batter back into your mixing bowl and gently fold together with the remaining batter to give swirls. Don’t overmix – you want it to be “swirly”.

Using a small ice cream scoop , drop onto a parchment lined cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the bottom edges are golden grown. Do not over bake. Remove from oven and let cool for a couple of minutes then place on a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature.

Make your frosting by combining your reserved blueberry juice and powdered sugar. Start by adding 1 cup of powdered sugar to the syrup, whisk together. If the frosting is too runny, add more powdered sugar a little at a time until you get a consistency that you can drizzle over the cookies.

Drizzle the frosting over the cookies and serve. These would be good with coffee, milk or tea. Watching a B movie is optional.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.