Blueberry-lemon quick bread — GF or not

Blueberry-lemon version.

The Fire and Earth Kitchen folks, who recently taught a cooking class at my house (read about it here), just posted a recipe for blueberry breakfast bread on their Web site. The texture looked very appealing, and even though I don't usually eat cake for breakfast, I was immediately attracted to the recipe. Please don't misunderstand me here, I'm not saying you shouldn't eat cake for breakfast, just that I usually don't. Or didn't. The fact is, I baked a pan on Tuesday, and another one today. I shared some of the Tuesday cake with Miss E, her baby brother and their mom, but there was a lot left, and now there isn't. I think I ate cake for three meals a day, along with other food of course, but my husband is out of town, so it has fallen upon me not to waste the cake. And I didn't.

The crumb. Do you see the crumb?

I made the bread again today because I was tampering with the recipe and wanted to test a small adjustment before I posted it. I didn't have enough blueberries left, so I made up the difference with 1/2 cup of cut-up strawberries, and I liked it even better than the plain blueberry. But here's the most interesting thing about the bread — it can be made gluten-free without any additions like flax eggs or xanthan gum. The texture is perfect, and the taste is excellent. I rarely, if ever, use xanthan gum anymore, but I've never tried baking a cake without something like chia or flax. In fact, I've been doubling up the flax to improve my results. So, gluten-free bakers, why did this work?

Blueberry-strawberry-lemon version. Just look at the rise! Doesn't it look good?

I'm also still obsessed with adding lemon to my baked goods, and by that I mean whole chunks of lemon, skin and all. I add it with all the wet ingredients to my Vitamix, and blend it smooth. I don't know if a regular blender would purée the lemon as well as a high speed blender, so if I were using a regular blender I'd just add the juice and zest of 1/2 lemon. I measure the liquid by putting the lemon into a measuring cup and adding enough almond (or other) milk to make one cup.

I have to admit that the original recipe is simpler — so easy in fact that I actually remembered all the ingredients. I do like my version a lot, though.

Berry-lemon quick bread
based on a recipe from Fire and Earth Kitchen for
blueberry breakfast bread
makes one 9"x9" pan

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour 
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup oat flour 

(2 cups of wheat flour can be used instead of the other flours, if you aren't baking gluten-free. I haven't tried it but F & E Kitchen says yes, and I trust them.)

• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of salt (1/4 teaspoon or less)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 small organic lemon, seeds removed, plus enough almond (or other) milk to equal 1 cup (see story) OR juice and zest from 1/2 small lemon plus enough almond milk to equal 1 cup
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/3 cup oil (I used avocado oil)
• 1.5 cups fresh blueberries or 1 cup blueberries plus 1/2 cup strawberries cut similar size to blueberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil 9"x9" pan. (I used a glass baking dish.)
2. Whisk together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. 
3. Add all wet ingredients plus the lemon, if using, to a blender jar and blend until smooth. 
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, scrapping out the blender. Mix until the dry ingredients are incorporated.
5. Add half the berries and fold in. 
6. Place the batter into the greased pan and spread the remaining berries evenly over the top. Press in gently, so they still show on top.
7. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for about 45 minutes before serving. Can be served warm or cool.

I'm making the bread again to bring to a Father's Day brunch.

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Impressing company with Ethiopian food

My husband made an entire Ethiopian dinner by himself — for company — and it was so good, and I was so into eating, that I forgot to take pictures until it had been demolished. So, while it may have impressed the company, it sure won't impress you. You'll just have to take my word for it that it was excellent and beautiful. He used Kittee's recipes from when I was a recipe tester for her upcoming Ethiopian cookbook, and injera from an Ethiopian restaurant. You'll want to buy the book as soon as it comes out. Seriously.

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Who are these tourists?

And when we're not cooking or eating? We're just a couple of Seattle tourists on a boat ride on Lake Washington. 

Eastern European cooking class — pierogi, stuffed cabbage rolls, beet tart

Last night we hosted a cooking class at our house taught by Renee and Nick of Fire and Earth Kitchen. All we had to do was clean the house and clear the kitchen counter of a few appliances, then sit back and enjoy the teaching and the food. While we were out and about earlier in the afternoon before the class started, we picked up some flowers so the table would be more welcoming and not look quite so bare. Flowers make any occasion a little more special, though I'm not sure how having two people come to your house and prepare pierogi, a beet tart and stuffed cabbage rolls — and then clean everything up — could be any more special.

The class was very informative as Renee shared so many tips and tricks for cooking more efficiently — not just concerning food, but about tools and equipment, as well. For example, she demonstrated how to keep a knife in good working order, and talked about what to look for when purchasing a food processor. She also interjected nutritional information for the ingredients she used.

Of the three dishes prepared in the class, the easiest and quickest was the beet tart. Renee made a gluten-free crust flavored with rosemary that went together perfectly, and looked just like a traditional wheat-flour pie dough. She pressed it into the pie plate, layered it with thinly sliced beets, and beet greens, and baked it in the oven. While it baked, filling the house with fragrant, hunger-inducing smells, she prepared a sunflower seed cream to serve on top. None of my photos of the gorgeous, uncut tart turned out — too dark — but I think you can get an idea from the slice, how pretty it was. I'm not a big beet fan, but I loved the tart and would definitely make it again. The crust was light and flakey, and the filling sweet and earthy.

The pierogi filling, mashed and cooling.

There were multiple steps to creating the peirogi, and they were all going on simultaniously! Potatoes were set to boiling, and as they boiled, onions were caramelized in a pan. Once the filling ingredients were mashed together, they were set aside to cool while more onions were sliced and placed in the pan to caramelize.

Pierogi, shaped and waiting to be boiled.

A dough was made, and I really enjoyed seeing how Renee rolled, cut out circles, then rolled the circles again to create the dumpling wrappers. She made it look so easy, though I suspect it takes a lot of practice to become so skillful that you can whip up vegan, gluten-free pierogi without a lot of cursing. Once the wrappers were filled and closed, they were boiled in a large pot of water, a few at a time, until they rose to the surface, and were removed to drain. Can you imagine how hard it was to concentrate on the class when the whole house smelled like caramelized onions?

After the pierogi were boiled and drained, they were pan fried to get them a little crisp, then served with a generous heap of caramelized onions, and we ate them all up. I want more.

The final dish of the night was lentil-and rice-stuffed cabbage rolls. The rice and lentils had been cooking all through the class so they were ready to get stuffed into cabbage leaves as we were finishing up our pierogi. Renee demonstrated how to prepare a cabbage for making cabbage rolls, then cooked the cabbage, made tomato sauce, and assembled a bunch of rolls. But in reality, it would have taken too long to cook them in the class, so she had prepared some in her slow cooker and brought them with her. The cabbage rolls were delicious, though different from the ones I learned to make from my mother. I've always made sweet and sour stuffed cabbage rolls, which is what my great grandmother from Russia, made. Either way, although the dish is time consuming, it's one that can be assembled ahead of time, and cooked in a slow cooker, or baked for three hours in the oven.

Renee and Nick are putting together a cookbook, and the recipes from the class are some that will be included, so I can't share them. But, on the Fire and Earth Kitchen blog (link here) there are lots of mouthwatering recipes available. Also, you can sign up to receive a new recipe each week. Most of the recipes are fast and easy to prepare, and I think you'll like what you find. You can read about my experience with some of the recipes, here.

If you live in the Seattle area and are interested in hosting a class, contact Renee (through her blog) about the possibilities.

Fabulous recipes from Fire and Earth Kitchen: roasted carrot curry noodle soup

I often come across appealing recipes that I want to make. Sometimes I bookmark them, but rarely do I ever get around to actually cooking them. Recently I discovered a Web site that was so compelling we made several of the recipes in quick succession — and loved them all. I found the site while reading Vegan Score, a blog that spotlights people and events of special interest to Seattle-area vegans. In this case, the recipes on Fire and Earth Kitchen would be a super find for anyone — but especially for vegans who love delicious food. And it's all gluten-free for those of you who must avoid gluten. But gluten-eaters won't miss a thing. Trust me.

Renee, from Fire and Earth Kitchen, is a chef, food coach and cooking class instructor in and around Seattle and Whidbey Island. And she shares recipes on her Web page. I've made four dishes so far and plan to try more of them. The first thing my husband made was roasted carrot curry noodle soup, and the taste was exceptional — fragrant and rich. He didn't use the optional noodles, and he reduced the salt to about 1/2 teaspoon, but otherwise followed the recipe to create the perfect warming soup for a winter eve.

Next he made homestyle "meaty" tomato sauce with lentils and walnuts. It was so good I couldn't believe my husband had actually made it himself. I used some of the leftovers instead of straight-up lentils to make the beet burgers I recently posted about, and I'm sure it elevated the burgers into something really special.

I made broccoli and onion pakora, which are small, oven-baked chickpea flour pancakes that were wonderful. And so easy to throw together. I couldn't stop eating them.

I'm on the Fire and Earth Kitchen email list and the last recipe I received was for waffles. I've gotten pretty good at waffle-making, and the recipe was very similar to what I've been doing, but I gave it a shot — you know, measuring and all. My waffles were excellent — tender and light — and I'll probably stick to measuring next time I whip up a batch. Maybe.

I've saved the most exciting part for last. Renee is going to teach a cooking class in my kitchen! I had a list of menus to choose from, and I hope I get my first choice, but I won't reveal it until I know for sure. The class will be Sunday, April 27, if you're in the neighborhood. More information will be available on Fire and Earth's Web page. I can't wait.

Renee is very generous with her recipes and has given me permission to share a recipe here. (Of course you can find all the ones I mentioned and more, on her Web site.) I'll give you the original that my husband made, and then tell you how I changed it to accommodate my lazy self when I made it. Mine was delicious, though my husband's was even better.

Roasted carrot curry noodle soup
Vegan & Gluten-free
Serves 6-8
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min

• 5 cups carrots, peeled
• 4-5 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 2 " ginger, peeled and sliced
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 Tbsp salt*
• 1 Tbsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 6 cups vegetable broth (about 2 cartons)
• 1 can coconut milk
• juice from 1 lemon
• 2 Tbsp coconut aminos (soy sauce substitute), or tamari
• 1 Tbsp rice vinegar (or any vinegar)
• 2 cups of bean thread or rice noodles, cooked (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lightly oil baking sheet or use parchment paper, and spread carrots, onion, ginger, and unpeeled garlic cloves onto it. Sprinkle with salt, cumin, and cayenne. Place in oven and bake for 25 minutes until carrots and onions are starting to brown.

2. In a large pot combine vegetable broth and coconut milk over medium-low heat. When veggies are soft, squeeze garlic from it's papers and add all veggies to pot along with lemon juice, coconut/aminos or tamari, and vinegar. Blend well with an immersion blender or regular blender. Add noodles if using and serve.

*We thought a tablespoon of salt sounded like too much salt for us, so we reduced it to about 1/2 teaspoon.

Although the recipe is extremely easy to prepare as written, I made a lazier version of the soup by cooking the ginger and cut-up carrots in my pressure cooker for a few minutes, and blending everything with 1/2 cup of cashews, dehydrated onion and garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in my Vitamix. I didn't use the coconut milk.It was creamy and wonderfully delicious.

Go have a look at Renee's recipes. You'll probably want to try a few.