Injera - Ethiopian Flatbread

I don't really know how exactly to describe this.  It's like a spongy sourdough crepe.  I guess that's the best way to explain it.  It's the national bread/carb of Ethiopia, which is the only country that eats that as their staple food, and it's awesome!
We've been to two Ethiopian restaurants so far in our adoption process, so that we can start to get to know the food that our little Josiah is accustomed to, and if you've never had Ethiopian food before, RUN and get some!  It's simple but the flavors are so complex!  It's absolutely delightful!
Of course I can't just limit our Ethiopian food to restaurants because, well, there are none locally, but also because I'm gonna be his Mama, and I need to be able to cook his comfort foods!  So of course I've begun trying to master Ethiopian food at home!  This year, while we're waiting for our newest little guy, we're going to be having a traditional Ethiopian dinner every Sunday...and I'm so excited about that!
Tonight we had some friends over (who had no idea what was on the menu) and they LOVED it!  :)  I wasn't sure I was going to like the injera this time around, but with the rest of the meal it was FABULOUS!  So worth the time and effort!
I wouldn't change a thing about any of the meal tonight!  We had Injera, Doro Wat (chicken stew), Lentil Wat (lentil stew), and Shirro Wat (a stew made out of dried bean powder, which sounds dreadful but was really really good!).

Injera

4 cups warm water (not too hot or it will kill the yeast!)
2 cups teff flour
1 3/4 cups whole wheat or all purpose flour
2 tsp yeast

***Injera takes a few days to prepare as it needs to ferment!!!***
      You can do it overnight and it's ok, but it's best if it can sit for 3 nights

Directions:
1.  Whisk all of the ingredients into a large glass or plastic bowl (NOT METAL!) until fully combined.  This will be a thin batter, not a thick dough!

2.  Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and sit on the counter for 3 full nights (don't move the bowl around!).  You want to make sure that there is lots of space between the injera mix and the plastic wrap so that it can work it's magic!

3.  After the third night, about a half hour before you are going to cook, place the fermented mixture into a blender and add about 1/4 cup warm water and blend for a minute or so.  Let rest for about 30 minutes.

4.  When ready to cook, heat a 12" skillet over medium high heat until good and hot.  Add about 1/3 cup of the injera batter to the pan and while holding the pan, turn your wrist so that it spreads out evenly over the bottom of the pan (it will be pretty thin like a crepe, not thick like a pancake!).  Put the lid on and cook for about 2-3 minutes until the edges start to curl upwards.  Remove the injera from the heat and allow to cool.

5.  Continue with the remaining injera batter.  When they are cool to the touch, roll them up and serve alongside the veggies and meat stews!

Now, I know...typically in Ethiopia they would take a very large platter and cover it with a large 20" around size piece of injera and then place the different stews all around it and everyone would share it...but we don't have a giant skillet, and so I just serve it this way :)  But, the rule is, NO FORKS!  Ethiopians don't use silverware, they use the injera as both a carb to fill their bellies and as their silverware.  You break off bite-size pieces of injera and use it to scoop up or grab little handfuls of stew.  It's SO good! 

Injera - Ethiopian Flatbread

So, this week I am getting up the courage to try it...the staple food item from Ethiopia.
I say getting up the nerve because once our son comes home, this will probably be a regular food in our household, and I want to make sure I get it right!  I want it to not just be food for him.  I want it to bring the comfort and safety that only our native comfort foods can sometimes bring.  I want it to be a piece of his history and his future.  So....here goes!
I got this recipe from here....from a woman from Guinea in west Africa.

Injera is like a spongy, sourdough crepe, that they use in Ethiopia in place of silverware.  They eat this with just about every meal, and break off pieces of it to scoop up their saucy stews with.  It's actually really tasty!  I thought it would be hard to make, but it was actually really easy!


INJERA RECIPE
Makes: 8 -10 Injera of 24cm

Ingredients:

2 cups Self rising flour

½  cup whole wheat flour

½ cup cornmeal

1 tsp active dry yeast

2 and ½ cup of water

Directions:

Note: The first step is done 2 or 3 days prior to the cooking day.

1-      In a large bowl, mix all the flours with the active dry yeast and 2 cups of water. Mix really well to form a batter. Set it for 2 days for the fermentation to take place. If you like the bread less sour 24h will be just enough.

2-      After fermenting the batter, some liquid will rise on top mix all really well.

3-      In a blender add the fermented batter and with few drops of water and whip well. The batter should be quite thin once you are done. Let it sit for another 20 min.

4-      Heat a non-stick pan or skillet until very hot do not add oil and pour ½ cup of batter in a circular motion in the pan.

5-      Bake it for 30 seconds, then reduce the heat and place the lid, bake for another 45 seconds.  When ready bubbles should appear all over the bread.

6-      Remove and place in clean cloth to let cool down for 2 minutes.

7-      When ready serve with stew (Doro Watt or any watt).

Tomato Basil Bread - just like Panera...but better! :)

• No more store bought bread...that is one of the new things I decided to start doing for my family.  I don't want to be ingesting 30+ ingredients every time I put a piece of bread in my mouth, no matter how tasty it is!  There just is no good reason for it!
• And homemade, nutritious bread is cool and all, but I do not want to just eat boring whole wheat bread all the time either.
• So today I decided to try to make Panera Bread's Tomato Basil bread.  You know the one...it has the crunchy brown sugar topping that is just SO amazingly paired with the tomato and basil flavors!  (I know, sounds totally gross, but it's super good!).  I couldn't find their actual recipe online, or an exact "copycat" recipe, but I did find a recipe for Tomato Basil Bread here that I used.
• I added the topping, omitted crushed red pepper flakes, and swapped canned san marzano diced tomatoes for the tomato paste.  Result?!  Probably the best bread I've ever made...and I have made bread many times! :)  This is definitely going to be a new staple in our family! 
• I used unbleached bread flour this time, but next time I will do half all purpose and half white whole wheat to see if we like it with the whole grain.  I figure even if I don't switch to all whole grain flour, every little bit helps...and of course, the fact that I only used 11 ingredients for this gourmet, several flavor bread is a huge plus in my book, even if it was regular old flour!
• Two notes - I didn't put brown sugar on the whole thing...just wanted to try it without too, since I hadn't made this before...AND, I served this with a vegan chili recipe that I came up with and it was such an awesome pairing - the sweetness of the brown sugar and the smokey chipotle flavor in the chili.  DEFINITELY a great combination!
• Ingredients:
• 1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast3/4 cup warm water (110 to 115 )1/4 cup fresh basil , minced (can substitute with 2 tablespoons dried)1/4 cup parmesan cheese , grated4 heaping Tbsp canned diced san marzano tomatoes1 tablespoon sugar1 tablespoon olive oil1 teaspoon salt2 1/2-2 3/4 cups bread flour
• Ingredients for Brown Sugar Struesel Topping
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
  1/4 cup flour (I probably used a little less than that)
  3 Tbsp cold butter
• 
  

Directions:

1. 1
   In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Stir in basil, Parmesan cheese, tomato paste, sugar, oil, salt, pepper flakes and 2 cups flour. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough.
2. 2
   Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
3. 3
   Punch dough down; knead for 1 minute. Shape into a round loaf. Place on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
   Make Brown Sugar Struesel - In medium bowl, mix together brown sugar and flour.  Add butter and cut with pastry blender until it's the size of small peas.
4. 4
   Top dough with brown sugar mixture and bake at 375° for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan to a wire rack to cooling rack.

Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day

The Master Recipe: Artisan Free Form Loaf.

From Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery that Revolutionizes Home Baking by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois (Thomas Dunne Books, 2007). Copyright 2007 by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.
Makes four 1 pound loaves.

Note: This recipe must be prepared in advance.

• 3 cups (720g) lukewarm water
• 1-1/2 tablespoons (4 1/2 teaspoon) granulated yeast (about 1-1/2 packets)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 3 teaspoons table salt)
• 6-1/2 cups (940g) unbleached flour, plus extra for dusting dough
• optional 200g of well fed sourdough starter
• Cornmeal for the peel (or leave on baking paper)

In a large plastic resealable container, mix yeast and salt into 3 cups lukewarm (about 100 degrees) water.(make sure you follow this step. When I  skipped it I found a ribbon of undisolved yeast). Using a large spoon, stir in flour, mixing until mixture is uniformly moist with no dry patches. Do not knead. Dough will be wet and loose enough to conform to shape of plastic container. Cover, but not with an airtight lid. (I mix mine in a bowl and then put in a lightly oiled 4.75l decor brand container).

Let dough rise at room temperature, until dough begins to flatten on top or collapse, at least 2 hours (takes an hour in Darwin) and up to 5 hours. (At this point, dough can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks; refrigerated dough is easier to work with than room-temperature dough, so the authors recommend that first-time bakers refrigerate dough overnight or at least 3 hours.)

When ready to bake, sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza peel. Place a broiler pan on bottom rack of oven. Place baking stone on middle rack and repeat oven to 450 degrees, preheating baking stone for at least 20 minutes.

Sprinkle a little flour on dough and on your hands. Pull dough up and, using a serrated knife, cut off a grapefruit-size piece (about 1 pound). Working for 30 to 60 seconds (and adding flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking to hands; most dusting flour will fall off, it’s not intended to be incorporated into dough), turn dough in hands, gently stretching surface of dough, rotating ball a quarter-turn as you go, creating a rounded top and a bunched bottom.

Place shaped dough on prepared pizza peel and let rest, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough or refrigerate it in lidded container. (Even one day’s storage improves flavor and texture of bread. Dough can also be frozen in 1-pound portions in airtight containers and defrosted overnight in refrigerator prior to baking day.) Dust dough with flour.

Using a serrated knife, slash top of dough in three parallel, ¼-inch deep cuts (or in a tic-tac-toe pattern). Slide dough onto preheated baking stone. Pour 1 cup hot tap water into broiler pan and quickly close oven door to trap steam. Bake until crust is well-browned and firm to the touch, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven to a wire rack and cool completely.

You can also pull off just enough for a bread roll or two!

Whole Wheat Bread (and rolls)

So this year, after reading Jen Hatmaker's book Seven, I have decided to spend time really researching the food we are eating and how to make our bodies as healthy as possible.  It's turning out to be a very daunting task as our government has allowed so much filth into our farming processes, that it seems like it will be virtually impossible to avoid all chemicals, etc.  :(  But, I can at least make improvements!

So, for one, I am buying strictly organic milk.  If you want to read some really gross stuff, read about why people shouldn't buy regular pasteurized milk.  Ewww.  I will NEVER again buy regular milk for my little family.  And, therefore, I am working to find the best sources of organic dairy all around (since all cheese, yogurt, ice cream, etc are made from milk...I want to buy organic!).  I thought I had found it by ordering from a local farm, what's better than fresh from the farm?  Organic, that's what.  The farm still uses lots of antibiotics and chemicals, and they only pasteurize, which is not nearly as good as the ultra pasteurized (UHT).  Pasteurization does not kill a lot of the bacteria, which is why milk is so quick to spoil.

Fruits and vegetables are another no-brainer.  There are many organic varieties available, but unfortunately, seeing as I live in a small town, there aren't a whole LOT of options.  I've found spinach, apples, peppers, tomatoes...but most of what we eat here has gotten here on a truck and so most of it is NOT organic :(  We do a garden in the summer, but I doubt that will really fill our freezer and pantry with enough for the whole year, so I will be hunting down local farmers markets this spring and summer to find a good organic source and stock up!  :)

Eggs are another one...easy peasy.  Just go to most any grocery store and find organic.

Meat however, is very hard!

I watched some documentaries on chicken slaughtering, and all I have to say is GROSS!  I don't know that I'm ready to go vegan, I like meat.  I just think that there is such a better way.  A humane way.  And, the large chicken slaughtering company I watched said that they slaughter 130 chickens per MINUTE (using machines), and that there are only 3 employees on the line.  So there is no way for them to visibly check the chickens before they are slaughtered or packaged.  Eww.  I'm not the kind of girl that worries too much about my meat seeing the light of day 24/7, but again, there needs to be a better way.  And when the chickens are confined so close together, they are pumped full of antibiotics to stay healthy.

I read a disturbing article about Tyson...who was labeling all of their chicken as "raised without antibiotics" because they argued that they pumped the actual eggs full of the medicines and did not put it into the actual chickens.  REALLY?  And to think, our government knows this is happening and they barely do anything about it!

It's just so sad, and so overwhelming when you try to learn how to feed your family in a healthy way.  I had thought I was doing a pretty good job, but now I'm not so sure.  Just because I'm not buying frozen pizza and chicken nuggets on a regular basis does not mean that my kids are getting the best nutrition possible.

SO.  Where to start?

I had already been thinking about the whole wheat bread problem.  Three months ago I had come up with a grocery list (fresh meat/seafood, fresh veggies, fresh fruit, milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, nuts, etc). All healthy things, and if it wasn't on the list, we weren't buying it.  It worked great!  Except that I purposely left off bread, in hopes that I would just make it fresh.

Well, I didn't.  So about a month after making the list, I broke down and decided that whole wheat bread would be added.  So I went to the store and searched...and searched...and searched.  I looked through SO many "whole wheat bread" labels to find three problems.

1 - almost all the "whole wheat bread" has virtually no "whole" wheat in it.  It mostly is listed in the middle of the ingredient lists.

2 - it took almost the entire bread aisle for me to find a whole wheat bread at all...let alone a whole wheat bread that didn't have High Fructose Corn Syrup listed as one of the top three ingredients!  So, even if it does have whole wheat flour as the main ingredient...it is FULL of HFCS!

3 - and lastly, have you looked at the ingredient lists?  Why on earth does it take 30 or more ingredients to make BREAD!?  Bread at home takes 5, maybe as much as 10 ingredients, but that would be a very unique, exceptional type of bread.

And then, I read Jen Hatmaker's book and she said the same thing about the 30 ingredient issue.  So I decided....I'm done.  I'm making our bread.

I can't say I'll never break down and buy bread at the grocery store again, or that I will only buy organic everything.  Heck, I can't find a lot of organic stuff right now, and with one kid in school full day, another in preschool half day, and another getting ready to start half day kindergarten next year, it will likely be another year or TWO before I have the flexibility in my schedule to drive an hour each way to get groceries.

So, here it is.  My first attempt at homemade, WHOLE WHEAT bread!  :)  And I must say, it was awesome!  Tons of flavor, moist, and fluffy!  Everything you love about white bread, but with nutrition, more flavor, and not all the garbage!  :)

I don't know how long these loaves will stay fresh on the counter, so I'll have to try to remember to pay attention to that and post it when I know!  But they were fantastic and easy!

I found the recipe at allrecipes.com...but I did make some changes based on the reviews.  And let me tell you, I don't bother making a recipe if it doesn't have many GREAT reviews.  This one had over 980 reviews and still had 5 stars!  And I got the benefit of reading about what other people substitute to make healthier (in this case agave nectar in place of honey, all whole wheat flour in place of a mix between whole wheat and regular all purpose, and less sweetness overall).

Here's the original recipe...and here is my version:

Ingredients:
3 cups warm water
2 (.25 oz each) pkgs active dry yeast
1/4 cup + 3 Tablespoons light agave nectar (I actually only filled the 1/4 cup measure about 3/4 full)
5 cups + 2-4 cups white whole wheat flour
3 Tablespoons olive oil
3/4 Tablespoon salt
2 Tablespoons olive oil or butter to coat

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix warm water, yeast, and 1/4 agave nectar. Add 5 cups white whole wheat flour, and stir to combine. Let set for 30 minutes, or until big and bubbly.
2. Mix in 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons agave nectar, and salt. Stir in 2 cups whole wheat flour. Flour a flat surface and knead with whole wheat flour until not real sticky - just pulling away from the counter, but still sticky to touch. This may take an additional 2 to 4 cups of whole wheat flour. (I just mixed in my kitchen aid mixer until no longer sticky, I added a total of about 2 1/3 cups flour total at this step).  Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough. Cover with a dishtowel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled (about an hour and a half, last half hour in the oven set to proof)
3. Punch down, and divide into 3 loaves. Place in greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans, and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch. (again, about an hour and a half, this time all in the proofer)
4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 25 to 30 minutes; do not over bake. Lightly brush the tops of loaves with 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter when done to prevent crust from getting hard. Cool completely.

Note - based on a reviewer and the fact that we only have 2 of the larger size loaf pans, we made 2 loaves and then split the rest and made into rolls.  Baked for about 15-25 minutes, just watch them.  Although ours never did get brown on top...even though the loaves got a nice golden color on top.

So there it is...our first major step towards a healthier life!  Although, sadly, today for my daughter's 5th birthday she wanted Panera bagels for breakfast...and so this lovely, NUTRITIOUS bread will have to wait until lunch!  :)

15 Minute Pepperoni Rolls

My husband is from West Virginia, where "pepperoni rolls" are actually one of the major food groups! I am from Maryland, just an hour away from where he grew up and I had never ever heard of them!

But, he got me addicted! :) There is just something so good about pepperoni wrapped in bread and baked into a yummy surprise treat!

But I never have time to make these...it involves making bread dough...and that is one thing that I WILL do, but I hate it, so I try to avoid when possible! :)

Enter Pillsbury Crescent Rolls...ready to bake, in the refrigerator section of the grocery store! I had never thought to use these until I saw it on the internet! And so, I of course grabbed a tube of dough today and made these for lunch, and served them with a side of pizza sauce...what a HUGE hit! The kids loved them! And begged to have them for dinner too!

I hate that there are so many preservatives, fat, etc in this dough, but at least they have a reduced fat version now (which I used)...will probably break down and actually make from scratch soon, but for a quick, no fuss lunch, these are perfect!

Ingredients:

1 can crescent roll dough

40 pepperoni slices

pizza sauce, if desired

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Unroll dough. Pull apart rolls. In each roll, lay out 5 pepperoni slices, and roll up. Bake for approximately 11 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.

3. Allow to cool slightly, serve with warm pizza sauce!

Asiago Bagels

This was my first ever attempt at bagels, and they were so awesome, and so easy! Will definitely be making these regularly! So long Panera Bread bagels! :)

WEMP-Free Cheddar Garlic Biscuits

Here's the WEMP-Free version of cheddar garlic biscuits!

Ingredients:

1 cup soy milk
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups wheat-free flour mixture
1 tsp xanthum gum
1 1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 Tablespoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons shortening
3 tablespoons dairy-free margarine, cold
1-2 slices yellow dairy-free cheese, diced

Topping:
3 Tablespoons dairy-free margarine
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In small bowl, combine soy milk and lemon juice. Let sit for about 5 minutes, until it forms buttermilk.
2. In large bowl, combine flour mixture, xanthum gum, baking powder, baking soda, garlic powder and salt. Cut in shortening and 3 Tablespoons dairy-free margarine. Continue cutting in with pastry blender until crumbs are pea-sized. Stir in diced soy cheese.
3. Stir in buttermilk until dough is just moist.
4. Place spoonfuls of dough onto baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes.
5. In small bowl, melt 3 Tablespoons dairy-free margarine in microwave. Stir in dried parsley flakes, garlic powder and salt.
6. When biscuits come out of the oven, brush each with melted margarine mixture.

Here's the side-by-side comparison! The ones on the white plate are the regular version, the ones on the black plate are the WEMP-Free ones!

Cheddar Garlic Biscuits

These are very similar to the ones you get at Red Lobster...only these are WAY better! We made these twice last week! I could literally make and eat them every single day, they are THAT good! And very quick to prepare!

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons shortening
6 tablespoons butter, cold, divided
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese

Topping:
3 Tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, garlic powder and salt. Cut in shortening and 3 Tablespoons butter. Continue cutting in with pastry blender until crumbs are pea-sized. Stir in grated cheese.
3. Stir in buttermilk until dough is just moist.
4. Place spoonfuls of dough onto baking sheet. Bake for 12-14 minutes.
5. In small bowl, melt 3 Tablespoons butter in microwave. Stir in dried parsley flakes, garlic powder and salt.
6. When biscuits come out of the oven, brush each with melted butter mixture.

Na'an - WEMP Free!

So this is my experiment for Na'an for Derek...It turned out great!
I also used it as a pizza crust for him because it only takes 1 hour to rise, instead of 2...that turned out great too! A little difficult to work with, but it was quick!

Ingredients:
3 cups wheat-free flour mix
2 teaspoons xanthum gum
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 tsp egg replacer
2 Tablespoons water
1/2 cup vanilla dairy-free (soy) yogurt
1/2 cup vanilla soy milk
1 Tablespoon vinegar
1-2 Tablespoons olive oil, for coating

Optional:
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl by hand), stir together the flour, xanthum gum, salt, baking powder, sugar, yeast, and baking soda. In a small bowl, mix together the egg replacer and water. Stir in dairy-free yogurt, soy milk, vinegar, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Pour the yogurt mixture into the dry ingredients and mix for about 1 minute, until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated into the wet ingredients.
2. Increase machine speed to 2 (or by hand) and knead the dough until it is smooth and shiny. Remove the bowl from the mixer, coat doughball with olive oil, and cover with a towel. Leave in a warm place to rise until the dough doubles in size, about an hour.
3. Put a baking stone or heavy baking sheet on the lowest rack of your oven. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.
4. Divide the dough into eight pieces and form into teardrop (mine were more like oval) shapes with your hands, about 6 to 8 inches across.
5. Cook two or three pieces at a time. Drop the dough onto the hot stone and shut the oven door, watching until they are just starting to turn brown in places, about 3 to 5 minutes.
6. Remove the naan and lay on a board. Serve warm with a nice curry. (The original recipe says to butter the naan with garlic butter after it comes out of the oven but I did this with the first batch and found it made the bread too greasy for my taste - we much preferred the bread soft and tender without the butter. Follow your tastes and do what you prefer!)

WEMP Free Chocolate Chip Muffins

I can't even begin to believe that I haven't made chocolate chip muffins since Derek got diagnosed with all of his food allergies...but I think I've only attempted muffins once. I had been using a cookbook that included all of his allergies, but the baked goods just weren't very good.
So, I found a basic recipe and modified it a WHOLE lot and made my own wemp-free chocolate chip muffins!
They turned out GREAT! Can't even tell they are wemp-free!!!! They were really good!


WEMP-Free Chocolate Chip Muffins
(makes 24 muffins and 2 small loaves)

1 1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp butter flavoring
1 3/4 cup sugar
5 cups wheat-free flour mix
2 tsp xanthum gum
2 tsp salt
6-7 tsp baking powder
2 cups vanilla soy milk
1/2 - 2/3 bag Enjoy Life dairy-free chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare muffin tins with shortening and wheat-free flour mixture.
2. In the bowl of a large mixer, mix together vegetable oil, vanilla, butter extract, and sugar with a paddle attachment until fully combined.
3. In another large bowl, combine wheat-free flour mixture, xanthum gum, salt, and baking powder. Whisk to thoroughly combine.
4. Add flour mixture into sugar mixture, and turn mixer on low. Once it starts to blend together, add soy milk and continue on low for about a minute.
5. Add dairy-free chocolate chips, and turn mixer on medium for 30 seconds or so until fully mixed together. Note - Dough will be very thick, like cookie dough!
6. Using a large scoop, fill each muffin tin all the way (these muffins will NOT rise like a traditional wheat/egg muffin!).
NOTE - I had enough batter to fill 24 muffin tins and then also did 2 small loaves.
7. Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until tops start to get lightly browned.
8. Leave the loaves in for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until they also become lightly browned on top.

WEMP Free Apple Fritters

Yum-o! :)

I bought some apple fritters at a nearby farm this morning, and they are SO good....but I couldn't fully enjoy them knowing my son couldn't touch them! :( So, I searched for an apple fritter recipe, made a few substitutions/additions, and they are GREAT!!!!!

It makes my heart so happy when I can do things like this for my favorite little boy in the whole world! He's worth every second!!!!

WEMP Free Apple Fritters

Ingredients:
1 cup wheat free flour mixture
1 tsp xanthum gum
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
2 Tbsp water
2-3 drops orange extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup + 2-3 Tbsp vanilla soy milk
1 cup diced apples (about 1 large apple)
canola oil
powdered sugar (for dusting)

Directions:
1. Combine flour mix, baking powder, baking soda, xanthum gum, sugar, and salt. Mix well.
2. In small bowl, combine Ener-G egg replacer with water according to package. Whisk together. Add soy milk, vanilla, and orange extract to egg replacer mixture and stir to combine.
3. Add flour mixture to milk mixture. Stir until mostly combined. Add diced apples and continue stirring until well blended.
4. In large saute pan, heat about 1 to 1 1/2 inches canola oil until very hot. (it's hot enough when you drop a tiny drop of batter in and it floats to surface).
5. Using a large scoop, drop batter into hot oil (about 2-3 Tbsp balls). Cook on each side for about 2 minutes, until deep golden brown.
6. When fully cooked, remove to a cooling rack, and sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.

WEMP Free Cinnamon Bread

Here's yet another great recipe from Kelly Rudnicki, that I turned into wheat-free as well as egg, milk, and peanut free!

I just baked it today, and so I don't know yet how well it will keep, but straight from the oven it was awesome!!!!

WEMP-Free Cinnamon Bread

Ingredients:
1/4 cup dairy-free shortening
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp water
2 cups wheat-free flour blend
1 tsp xanthum gum
1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup vanilla soy milk

Topping:
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp melted dairy-free margarine

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with dairy-free baking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the shortening and 3/4 cup sugar thoroughly, adding the water as the mixer runs. Beat until fluffy.
3. In a separate mixing bowl, mix together the remaining dry ingredients. Add the dry mixture to the shortening mixture, alternating it with the soy milk.
4. In a separate bowl, mix together the 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tsp margarine to make the topping.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the batter with the topping mixture. Bake for 45 minutes, or until an inserted cake tester comes out clean and the topping is crusty brown. Cool 10 minutes before slicing.

Blueberry Gingerbread

This is so AMAZING! Thanks to my friend Annette for passing the recipe on to me! She baked it for us yesterday and it was FABULOUS!

I actually made it WEMP-Free today, so if you are looking for that recipe, it's here!

But, here's the regular wheat, egg, milk infused version! :)

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
1 cup plus 3 Tbsp sugar
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
4 Tbsp molasses
1 cup fresh blueberries, washed, stemmed, and dried

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine flour, cinnamon, ginger, and salt; set aside.
3. Dissolve baking soda into buttermilk.
4. Cream butter and 1 cup of sugar until light and fluffy.
5. Beat in egg.
6. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk mixture, always beginning and ending with flour mixture.
7. Stir in molasses.
8. Gently fold in blueberries.
9. Spoon batter into well greased 9x9x2 baking pan.
10. Sprinkle remaining sugar on top.
11. Bake 50 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached)

WEMP Free Blueberry Gingerbread

Oh. My. Word. My friend Annette made this for our worship team yesterday and it was INCREDIBLE!!!! So I had to ask for the recipe! And, luckily, not only did she send me the recipe already, but I just happened to have fresh blueberries sitting in my fridge! YEY!

So, of course I had to make this today! And, since I wanted Derek to be able to eat it, I went ahead and made it WEMP free!

I'm so glad I'm figuring out all the secrets to cooking and baking allergen-free! It's opening up our food world so much! Although, there's still nothing like REAL cheese and there's not a real substitute for tomato sauce!...but we're managing!

If your child has allergies, please DO NOT feel overwhelmed! The wheat allergy really threw me for a loop, but after experimenting (a BIT, not even a ton!) I've been able to figure out about what I need to use for substitutions, and it's been mostly successful! Please email me if you need any help!

Without further ado...

***OK, weird note about this...the sugar on top did NOT melt into the cake...very weird! So, I broiled it for a few minutes after baking to melt the sugar. Sometimes this WEMP-Free stuff cooks so weird! Who would think that a non-wheat cake mix would not allow the sugar to melt into it?!***

WEMP-Free Blueberry Gingerbread

Ingredients:
2 cups wheat-free flour blend
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp xanthum gum
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup dairy free shortening (I use Spectrum since it's NON-Hydrogenated!)
1 1/2 tsp butter flavoring
1 cup plus 3 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
2 Tbsp soy milk or water
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup soy milk
1 Tbsp lemon juice
4 Tbsp molasses
1 cup fresh blueberries; washed, stemmed, and dried

Directions:
1. In a liquid measuring cup, pour 1 Tbsp lemon juice, and then fill to the 1 cup measure with soy milk; set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour 9x9x2 baking pan (I use Pan Grease to both flour and grease in one easy step! You can make your own or you can buy it at the cake and wedding cottage - it's wemp free!)
3. Combine flour, cinnamon, ginger, salt, xanthum gum, and baking powder; set aside.
4. Dissolve baking soda into soy milk mixture.
5. Cream shortening, butter flavoring, and 1 cup of sugar until light and fluffy.
6. In small bowl, whisk together egg replacer and water or soy milk. Beat into shortening mixture.
7. Alternately add flour mixture and soy milk/lemon juice mixture, always beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
8. Stir in molasses. Gently fold in blueberries.
9. Spoon batter into baking pan; sprinkle remaining sugar on top.
10. Bake 50 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached).


***NOTE: I ended up burning the top just a bit when I had to turn the broiler on to melt the sugar...so next time I think I'll mix a bit of water into the sugar and pour on top...that would give it the moisture it seems to need to melt. Who would think that after an HOUR in a 350 degree oven, that sugar wouldn't melt at all?!

WEMP Free "White" Bread

This recipe came from Betty Crocker's cookbook, but we just tweaked it to make it wheat free! :)
It turned out FABULOUS! Not only did Derek like it, but we all did! It was soft and slightly chewy, and just had a great flavor to it!

I had read somewhere that large loaves of wheat-free bread don't turn out as nicely on the top and that they don't rise as well, so we made two very small loaves...but will definitely try this one as a larger loaf to see how large of one we can make and it still turn out ok. Right now it's ok that his sandwiches are the size of his little hand (although on a normal day he could probably eat 3 or 4 of these size sandwiches!), but I don't think he'll like it in high school :) Although, hopefully he'll outgrow these allergies way before then!!!!

WEMP Free "White" Bread

Ingredients:
1-2 cups flour mix
1 tsp xanthum gum
1 Tbsp sugar
1/3 Tbsp salt
2 tsp dairy-free shortening
2/3 package instant yeast
3/4 cup very warm water (120-130 degrees)

Directions:
1. Mix 1 cup flour mix, sugar, salt, shortening, and yeast in large bowl. Add warm water. Beat with electric mixer on low speed 1 minute, scraping bowl frequently. Beat on medium speed 1 minute, scraping bowl frequently. Stir in enough remaining flour (up to about another cup) to made dough easy to handle. You want the dough to come together like regular wheat dough, only you want this to remain a little more moist than wheat dough. That will help to keep the bread soft and moist after baking.

2. Because wheat-free dough has no gluten, you don't need to knead it! :)

3. Grease bottoms and sides of 2 small loaf pans (these were about 2x4 or 2x5 that we made), with shortening.

4. Form dough into 2 small loaf shapes, and drop into bread pans. Cover and let rise for about an hour, until it looks like it's about 1 1/2 to 2 times larger.

5. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until loaves are slightly golden on top. Remove loaves from pan and allow to cool on wire rack.

6. Store bread in zip loc bags so that it doesn't dry out. The best way to store loaves is in the freezer for short periods of time, as without wheat they do tend to dry out a lot quicker than regular bread.

Just look at this!!!

Cheese Rolls with Buttery Parmesan Crust

So, here's another My Kitchen Cafe recipe that I have to try this week! They look amazing!!!

Ingredients:

**If you double the recipe, don't double the amount of yeast - it should stay the same as in the original recipe**

Dough:
4 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup lukewarm milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
5-6 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Filling:
8 ounces cheddar or pepperjack cheese, cut into 15 cubes

Topping:
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup Italian-flavored bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Directions:
1. For the dough, combine all the ingredients and mix and knead until you have a soft, elastic dough (don't add too much flour - the key to soft dinner rolls is a soft dough!). Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover, letting rise in a warm place for 20-30 minutes.
2. Prepare a 9X13-inch pan by lightly greasing the bottom and sides with butter or nonstick cooking spray. Deflate the dough and divide into 15 pieces. Shape the pieces of dough into rounds and punch a cube of cheese from the bottom up into the center of each piece. Pinch the dough tightly together to close the bottom. Place the rolls, pinched side down, in the prepared baking pan. Cover and let rise again for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until nearly doubled.
3. While the rolls are rising, melt the butter and stir in bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Set aside.
4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. When the rolls have risen, brush the tops with the egg yolk beaten with water. Sprinkle tops of rolls liberally with the bread crumb mixture. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until the tops of the rolls are nicely browned. Remove from the pan immediately and cool on a rack. Serve warm.

Naan

OK, so I ended up NOT making the Blitz Bread today, but that's because Chris thought I should make traditional Indian bread...and since we decided to invite our neighbors over for dinner, I thought it would be good to serve along with the Indian dish (we had chicken tikka masala).
The bread was outstanding! I used Ener-G Egg replacer for the egg, and it turned out perfect (although I was worried because it was a little browner than we'd had before, but it tasted great!!) It was light and airy, and made a pocket in the middle! YUM! And it was great with the sauce for the chicken! Best part, it was very easy!
I got this one from My Kitchen Cafe as well.

Ingredients:
14 ounces (about 2 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 egg
1/2 cup plain lowfat yogurt
1/2 cup milk

Directions:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl by hand), stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, and yeast. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, yogurt, and milk. Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and stir for about 1 minute, until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated into the wet ingredients.
2. Increase machine speed to 2 (or by hand) and knead the dough until it is smooth and shiny. Remove the bowl from the mixer and cover with a towel. Leave in a warm place to rise until the dough doubles in size, about an hour.



3. Put a baking stone or heavy baking sheet on the lowest rack of your oven. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.
4. Divide the dough into eight pieces and form into teardrop (mine were more like oval) shapes with your hands, about 6 to 8 inches across.
5. Cook two or three pieces at a time. Drop the dough onto the hot stone and shut the oven door, watching until they are just starting to turn brown in places, about 3 to 5 minutes.
6. Remove the naan and lay on a board. Serve warm with a nice curry. (The original recipe says to butter the naan with garlic butter after it comes out of the oven but I did this with the first batch and found it made the bread too greasy for my taste - we much preferred the bread soft and tender without the butter. Follow your tastes and do what you prefer!)