Use-It-Up Quiche

 

I saw this recipe in Real Simple, in an article about reducing food waste. You can therefore use up whatever ingredients you have on hand, or those you prefer; mine were mostly bacon and baby kale, along with Gruyère cheese. I served it with a carrot chickpea salad.

1 Tbsp. finely shredded hard cheese (such as parmesan or pecorino, which are lactose-free)
1 9-in. frozen deep-dish pie shell, thawed according to package directions
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup chopped onion
2 cups chopped raw and/or cooked vegetables (such as cooked broccoli and raw kale or spinach)
½ tsp. kosher salt, divided
¼ to ½ cup chopped leftover cooked meat or seafood (such as chicken, bacon, shrimp, salmon, steak, or sausage) (optional)
5 large eggs
½ cup lactose-free milk (dairy or unsweetened plain nondairy)
½ cup lactose-free shredded cheese (such as cheddar, Gruyère, Monterey Jack, mozzarella, etc.)
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 °F with a rack in lower third position. Sprinkle hard cheese over bottom of pie shell.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium. Add onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add vegetables; cook, stirring occasionally, until raw vegetables are wilted, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in ¼ teaspoon salt and (if desired) meat or seafood.

While vegetables cook, whisk eggs, milk, shredded cheese, pepper, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and (if desired) nutmeg in a medium bowl.

Arrange cooked vegetable mixture over hard cheese in pie shell. Pour egg mixture over vegetables.

Place pie shell on a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake until set and top is slightly golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Soboro Donburi

Soboro is a Japanese dish of ground meat cooked in soy sauce, dashi, and sake; donburi is meat and vegetables served over rice. This Food & Wine version is made with ground beef and peas. It is easy to make and, most remarkably in our household, got a rare 4 thumbs up! I discovered that my kids are particularly fond of pickled ginger (the kind typically served with sushi), so much so that I could almost use it as a bribe to get them to try something new. This dish is a winner! The amounts below make 4 servings – don’t hesitate to double them.

1 lb. 90% lean ground beef
1/3 cup sake
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup dashi (or water)
1 ½ Tbsp. granulated sugar
½ cup frozen English peas, thawed
1 Tbsp. grated peeled fresh ginger
5 cups hot cooked rice
2 Tbsp. beni shoga (Japanese pickled ginger)

Stir together ground beef, sake, soy sauce, dashi, and sugar in a small Dutch oven or medium-size, heavy saucepan. Cook over medium-high, stirring often to break up large lumps of beef, 5 minutes. Stir in peas and ginger; cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid is mostly evaporated and beef is no longer pink but is still moist, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Divide rice evenly among 4 large bowls. Spoon ½ cup beef mixture over each. Garnish with pickled ginger.

Spaghetti Squash Pizza Nests

 

I tried these spaghetti squash pizza nests as an experiment, in which the crust is both a) low-carb and b) a vegetable. I don’t like them as much as regular pizzas, but the kids did eat them without complaint, so there’s that! I made the pizza nests in a silicone muffin pan because I didn’t want them to stick, but of course the crusts would have been crisper in the metal pan. Pick your poison.

1 medium spaghetti squash, halved
1 Tbsp. olive oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup lactose-free grated parmesan
1 tsp. garlic powder
nonstick cooking spray
2 cups pizza sauce (I used less)
1 ½ cups lactose-free shredded mozzarella
½ cup mini pepperoni (I could only find regular sized)
1 Tbsp. parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 400 °F and line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper.

Drizzle cut side of spaghetti squash with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place cut side down on baking sheet and bake until tender, 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size of your squash. Reduce heat to 375 °F when finished baking.

Let cool for 10 minutes before using a fork to shred the squash into spaghetti pieces. Place into a bowl and combine with parmesan and garlic powder. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer ¼ cup squash to each hole of a greased muffin pan, pressing down on bottoms and side to create cups. Place in the oven to bake, 15 minutes.

Spoon pizza sauce into each cup, top with mozzarella and mini pepperonis. Bake again, 8-10 more minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Top with parsley and serve.

Black Rice Bowls

 

Since I had black rice on hand (from making black rice coconut pudding, I figured I would make the Weelicious black rice bowls. Note that this made a lot of rice, some of which I froze for future use, so I would cook less next time.

1 ½ cups black rice, rinsed (see note above)
¼ cup low sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp. minced ginger
2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1 lb. firm tofu, cubed
3 Tbsp. tahini, peanut or almond butter
4 Tbsp. coconut milk
1 tsp. red curry paste
1 Tbsp. lime juice
2 tsp. low sodium soy sauce
2 tsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. vegetable or canola oil
2 cups fresh baby spinach
2-3 carrots, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, peeled and sliced
1 cup sprouts (daikon, radish, or sunflower)
toasted sesame seeds for topping (optional)

Place the black rice, 3 cups of water, and a pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook 25-30 minutes.

In a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, ginger, and sesame oil. Add the cubed tofu, toss to coat, and set aside to marinate.

In a small saucepan, combine the tahini, coconut milk, curry paste, lime juice, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly. If you prefer a thinner sauce, add more coconut milk. (I would actually add a bit of water to this, as my sauce was too thick.)

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the tofu in a single layer and cook until slightly crispy on all sides. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate.

Place a handful of spinach in each bowl, add a scoop of black rice, tofu, and drizzle with tahini sauce.

Top with carrots, cucumbers, sprouts, and peanuts.

Orange Saffron Cake

This gluten-free orange saffron cake was created by Aran Goyoaga, of Cannelle & Vanille. I made it as instructed, though I only needed 1 orange, and it should be noted that you can make a lactose-free dairy version instead of strictly vegan as is written. This is a time when I have to say that my gut feeling was right – do NOT attempt to halve this cake lengthwise! It is very crumbly, and you are better off leaving it in one piece and topping it with some of the cream. That’s what I’ll write in the instructions below.

For the cake
1 cup/140g brown rice flour
1 cup/100g almond flour
¾ tsp fine sea salt
1 Tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
3 Tbsp./18g ground flaxseed + 6 Tbsp./60g hot water (allow to sit for 10 mins)
½ cup/110g warm oat milk
⅛ tsp. saffron threads
¾ cup/150g blond sugar
2 Tbsp. finely grated orange zest (zest from 2 oranges), plus more for garnishing
3 Tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
1 Tbsp. orange-flower water (optional, but I highly recommend it)
½ cup/110g extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup/35g sliced almonds
powdered sugar for dusting

For the cream
⅓ cup/60g vegan butter (softened to room temperature)
1 tub (200g) vegan cream cheese, such as Violife (out of the fridge for an hour)
⅓ cup/40g icing sugar, sifted
2 tsp. vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean (halved lengthways and seeds scraped out)

Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Generously oil the inside of an 8-inch cake pan (I used a springform pan) and line the bottom with baking paper.

In a small bowl, combine the brown rice flour, almond flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

In a large bowl, put the flaxseed with water and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

Combine the milk and saffron in a small pan and warm over low heat for 2 minutes. Do not boil. Remove from heat and steep for 5 minutes, then add to the flaxseed mixture.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and orange zest. Rub the mixture between your fingers so the zest releases its natural oils and becomes fragrant. Whisk into the flaxseed mixture along with the orange juice, orange-flower water (if using), and olive oil; whisk until smooth. Add the dry ingredients to the mixture and whisk until well incorporated.

Pour into the prepared pan and sprinkle the sliced almonds over the batter.

Bake for 40 – 45 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely in the pan; 3 – 4 hours is ideal.

Meanwhile, to make the cream, beat the butter with a hand mixer until soft. Add the cream cheese and beat again until well mixed (don’t overmix.) Sift icing sugar over the mixture and add the vanilla extract – beat again. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use – 2 hours is ideal.

Spread the cream over the cake. Sprinkle with orange zest and dust the cake with powdered sugar.

Anything-You-Have Curry Soup

This versatile recipe is from Pinch of Yum. The recipe below is as it is written on the site, but you can change it up based on what you have on hand. Use another root vegetable or even eggplant instead of potatoes, for example. Suggestions for topping include green onions, cilantro, basil, red or green cabbage, asparagus, baby kale, carrots, zucchini shreds, bell peppers, mushrooms, spinach, broccoli, snap peas, and bean sprouts. I added some quick-pickled red onions and avocado. Honestly, it’s like halfway between a soup and a salad, and it’s great!

1 Tbsp. oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 knob of ginger, peeled and grated
1–2 Tbsp. red curry paste
1–2 Tbsp. turmeric
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. sugar
12 baby yukon potatoes
2 14-oz cans coconut milk (light is fine)
3 cups vegetable broth
24 oz extra-firm tofu
anything you have for fresh veggie toppings! (see above)

Press the tofu to get a maximum of moisture out of it.

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger, and stir fry for a few minutes until fragrant. Don’t let the garlic burn or brown. Add the curry paste, turmeric, salt, and sugar. Stir fry for another few minutes. Add the potatoes, coconut milk, and broth. Simmer until the potatoes are soft.

Allow to cool slightly (I can never wait very long…), then transfer to a blender and purée until smooth and silky. The soup should be rich and thick so that it coats the back of a spoon. Add in more water or broth to thin out the soup as needed.

Pat the tofu dry and cut it into cubes. In the same pot, heat a little more oil and add the tofu, stir frying until light golden brown. Pour in a small amount of the puréed soup – it will sizzle and pop, and it will also give the tofu the most wonderful color and caramelized exterior. Remove from heat with the tofu is deep golden brown and crispy.

To serve, top each serving of soup with fresh veggie toppings and crispy caramelized tofu and enjoy your luscious salad-meets-soup combo.

Quiches au bacon en courge spaghetti

 

J’ai adapté cette recette de Ricardo pour la faire au four. Ça fait changement des quiches habituelles, mais je pense qu’on préfère quand même ces dernières…

1 courge spaghetti de 1 kg (2,2 lb) (sans fissures, idéalement)
1 c. à soupe d’huile d’olive
sel et poivre, au goût
6 œufs
½ tasse de crème sans lactose
2 c. à soupe de persil haché
3 tranches de bacon, coupées en lanières de 1 cm (½ po) et cuites

Préchauffer le four à 425 °F. Recouvrir une plaque à cuisson de papier d’aluminium.

Couper la courge en deux sur la longueur. À l’aide d’une cuillère, retirer les graines et les filaments. Badigeonner l’intérieur de l’huile. Saler et poivrer. Placer chaque moitié de courge sur la plaque, côté coupé vers le bas, et faire cuire au four 15 minutes. Les retourner côté coupé vers le haut et faire cuire 10 minutes de plus. Retirer les courges du four et baisser la température à 400 °F.

Entre-temps, dans un bol, fouetter les œufs avec la crème et le persil. Saler et poivrer.

Une fois les courges assez refroidies pour être manipulées, gratter la chair à l’aide d’une fourchette pour l’effilocher sans toutefois perforer la peau. Verser le mélange d’œufs à l’intérieur. Répartir les lanières de bacon sur le dessus (je les ai mélangées un peu).

En procédant délicatement pour ne pas les renverser, remettre les courges au four pour environ 30 minutes ou jusqu’à ce que le mélange d’œufs gonfle et soit ferme jusqu’au centre. Laisser reposer 5 minutes sur une assiette. Couper les demi-courges en deux. Accompagner d’une salade verte, si désiré.

Coconut Black Rice Pudding

 

I finally got around to making this coconut black rice pudding! I could not find Thai black rice (which is variegated so that not all the grains are black); I used Chinese black rice. This was delicious! You could serve it with mango, but just the coconut here is nice. If you want, you can reserve a bit of the coconut cream from the top of the can to top the rice pudding. Anyway, this was not the kids’ favorite, but I thought this was delicious!

2 to 2 ½ cups water
1 cup Thai black rice
1 cup light or full-fat coconut milk
¼ cup unsweetened coconut flakes (I omitted them and used shredded coconut instead)
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
½ tsp. salt

In a medium saucepan, mix 2 cups water, rice and coconut milk, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes or until rice is tender, stirring occasionally. During the last 10 minutes of cooking, make sure to keep a close eye, adding extra water, ¼ cup at a time, if the rice gets too dry.

Meanwhile, toast the coconut. Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Place the coconut on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes or until golden-brown, stirring once during baking.

When the rice is tender, add the sugar and salt. Simmer for a couple more minutes, or until pudding is desired texture. (Add a little more water for a looser pudding; let cook several more minutes for a drier pudding.) Taste and adjust seasoning. Spoon into individual bowls, top with toasted coconut flakes, and serve.

Lemon Garlic Parmesan Chicken Tenders

This recipe for lemon garlic parmesan chicken tenders is different from others in that it calls for the chicken to be marinated in the flavored egg mixture before it is breaded. This step is optional, but it enhances the flavors of the lemon and garlic. We really liked this chicken, and will be making the sauce again for sure! (Also, please don’t mind the sad, sad canned vegetables on the side. I was trying something, and will never be buying those again, because they are just worse than not eating anything. Frozen is the way to go if you want a shortcut!)

For the chicken
1 large egg
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. lemon juice or juice of ½ a lemon
1 Tbsp. freshly chopped parsley
2 tsp. minced garlic
¾ tsp. salt, to season
¼ tsp. cracked pepper
28 oz chicken tenders
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
½ cup regular breadcrumbs (or garlic, herb or Italian seasoned for extra flavor)
1 tsp. mild paprika (or sweet, smoky, spicy)
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. onion powder
¼ cup freshly grated lactose-free parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 °F. Lightly grease a baking sheet (I recommend lining it with parchment paper or tin foil first). Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, oil, lemon juice, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper.

Dip chicken tenders into egg mixture and let sit for 5 minutes while preparing crumb mixture. (If you have time to allow it to marinate in the fridge for 30-60 minutes, it’ll be even better!)

In another bowl, combine both breadcrumbs, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and parmesan cheese.

Dredge the egg coated chicken in the breadcrumb/parmesan mixture, lightly pressing to evenly coat. Arrange tenders on the baking sheet and lightly spray with cooking oil spray.

Bake for 10 minutes. Flip and bake for a further 5-10 minutes or until cooked through. (Broil in the last 2-3 minutes for a golden crispy crumb!)

For the honey-mustard sauce
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup Dijon mustard
¼ cup of honey

Mix well.

Mi-cuit chocolat sésame

Voici une recette de Coup de Pouce. Ils appelaient ça des « fondants mi-cuits », ce que je trouve redondant, et c’était une recette à faire cuire dans une friteuse à air. Bon, je n’ai pas de friteuse à air, et aucune intention de m’en procurer une pour l’instant, alors j’ai adapté pour la cuisson au four, et c’est ce que j’écris ci-dessous. J’ai bien aimé ce dessert, même si c’était un peu dur à démouler – on pourrait aussi les servir à même les ramequins, comme sur la dernière photo.

½ tasse de beurre sans lactose non salé (+ un peu pour graisser les moules)
¼ tasse de graines de sésame rôties
1 tasse de chocolat noir (j’en avais 8 oz), grossièrement haché
1/3 tasse de sucre
1 c. à table de farine
1 c. à thé de cacao
1 c. à thé de poudre de café soluble (de type Nescafé)
¼ c. à thé de sel
2 œufs
2 jaunes d'œufs
2 c. à table de tahini
1 pincée de sel de mer croquant, pour garnir

Préchauffer le four à 375 °F. Graisser 4 ramequins de 3 po (7,5 cm) de diamètre. Parsemer 1 c. à soupe de graines de sésame dans chaque ramequin et répartir de façon égale.

Dans un bol allant au micro-ondes, faire fondre le beurre et le chocolat 30 secondes à la fois, en mélangeant entre chaque fois, jusqu’à ce que le tout soit complètement liquide, soit environ 2 minutes. (Je préfère utiliser un bain-marie.) Ajouter le sucre, la farine, le cacao, le café et le sel. Bien mélanger, puis ajouter les œufs et les jaunes d’œufs. Fouetter jusqu’à consistance homogène. Incorporer le tahini dans le mélange délicatement, à l’aide d’une spatule. Remplir chaque ramequin au ¾, puis placer sur une plaque à cuisson.

Faire cuire au four environ 20 minutes, ou jusqu’à ce que le mélange soit pris mais encore un peu humide.

Servir le ramequin directement dans une petite assiette ou retourner le ramequin pour le démouler, laissant ainsi apparaît sa croûte de sésame. Garnir d’une pincée de sel de mer et servir.

Apricot Millet Muffins

 

I saw this recipe for apricot millet muffins on Weelicious and was intrigued. I knew that my kids wouldn’t go for dried apricots, and I didn’t want another banana-based muffin, but I had millet in the pantry and it seemed like the apricot was calling me name, so I decided to adapt the recipe and replace some of the banana with apricot purée. I toasted the millet for a shorter time, and after I poured 6 muffins in the tin, I added mini chocolate chips to the rest of the batter for the other 9 muffins. They’re good either way, but obviously my kids prefer them with chocolate! I found the plain ones to be a bit bland once they were no longer warm, so I served them with apricot jam. The millet in here basically gives the muffins a little crunch; it’s a nice addition, but these would still be good muffins without the millet. The recipe below is my version.

½ cup millet
1 ¾ cup white whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. kosher salt
¼ cup lactose-free butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 (15-oz) can of apricot halves
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk substitute (lactose-free milk with 1 Tbsp. lemon juice)
½ cup mini chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 °F. Grease a muffin tin (you might need more than one – I got a total of 15 muffins).

Place millet on a baking sheet and toast for 5-6 minutes. Remove and toss the millet to make sure it is toasted evenly and toast an additional 2 minutes. Set aside and cool.

In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the toasted millet.

In a separate bowl or standing mixer, beat the butter and sugar until combined, about 1 minute. Add the egg and beat for another minute.

Drain the apricot halves, then purée them in a blender or food processor.

To the bowl with the butter mixture, add the apricot purée, mashed banana, vanilla extract, and buttermilk and beat until combined.

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix in the mini chocolate chips, if using, until just combined.

Fill muffin pan with batter. Bake for 20 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).

Cool muffins for 5 minutes in their tins, remove and continue to cool.

Stuffed Pasta Shells with Bolognese and Ricotta

 I wanted to make a dish with the comforting combo of meat + pasta. I tried one-skillet Greek meatballs with lemon butter orzo, and surprisingly, I was the only one to like them!

Eventually I remembered that I had bookmarked an issue of Molly Wizenberg’s newsletter (specifically, Marcella 4evr) with a recipe for stuffed pasta shells, and this was just what I needed! It’s based on Marcella Hazan’s Bolognese sauce and Craig Claiborne’s ricotta stuffing, assembled by Sam Sifton and adapted by Molly Wizenberg. Now it’s on this blog – teamwork!

The recipe is a bit involved in that I had to make a double-batch of lactose-free ricotta, then use it to make the stuffing, while also making the Bolognese meat sauce. However, you can assemble this dish in advance and just pop it in the oven before dinner, so that’s definitely a plus! I will be making this again. (I’ve also included a picture of the jumbo shells I found – they are labelled “jumbo” but somehow are much smaller than what I remembered as jumbo? Anyway, this size was fine.)


For the Bolognese meat sauce
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 Tbsp. lactose-free butter
½ cup onion, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
½ cup carrot, chopped
¾ lb. ground beef chuck (see prefatory note)
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 cup lactose-free whole milk
whole nutmeg (or grated)
1 cup dry white wine
1 ½ cups canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, cut up, with their juices
1 ¼ to 1 ½ lb. pasta
freshly grated parmesan cheese, for serving

Put the oil, butter, and chopped onion in the pot; turn the heat on to medium. Cook and stir the onion until it has become translucent, then add the chopped celery and carrot. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring the vegetables to coat them well.

Add the ground beef, a large pinch of salt, and a few grindings of pepper. Crumble the meat with a fork, stir well, and cook until the beef has lost its raw, red color.

Add the milk and let it simmer gently, stirring frequently, until it has bubbled away completely. Add a tiny grating — about 1/8 teaspoon — of nutmeg and stir.

Add the wine, let it simmer until it has evaporated, then add the tomatoes; stir thoroughly to coat all ingredients well.

When the tomatoes begin to bubble, turn the heat down so that the sauce cooks at the laziest of simmers, with just an intermittent bubble breaking through to the surface.

Cook, uncovered, for 3 hours or more, stirring from time to time. While the sauce is cooking, you are likely to find that it begins to dry out and the fat separates from the meat. To keep it from sticking, continue the cooking, adding ½ cup of water whenever necessary. At the end, however, no water at all must be left and the fat must separate from the sauce. Taste and correct for salt.


For the ricotta stuffing
2 cups (1 lb.) lactose-free ricotta cheese (see link above)
½ cup finely diced lactose-free mozzarella cheese
1 pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
¼ cup finely chopped prosciutto (I omitted it)
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp. finely chopped parsley
¼ cup finely grated lactose-free parmesan
1 generous pinch of salt

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and use to stuff pasta.


For the stuffed pasta
1 (12-oz) box of jumbo pasta shells
lactose-free parmesan or grana padano

Preheat the oven to 350 °F.

Boil the jumbo shells according to the package instructions, but cook them a minute or so less than the recommended time. Drain them into a colander and run cold water over until the shells are cool enough to handle.

Scoop cheese stuffing into a piping bag fitted with plain piping tip that’s wide enough for the diced mozzarella to squeeze through. Pipe the cheese stuffing into the shells. As you stuff the shells, arrange them in a single layer in a 9x13-inch baking dish. Top with the Bolognese sauce, dolloping it over and between shells. (It is normal for Hazan’s Bolognese to have a dry-ish texture; it’s not a recipe that winds up “juicy” or pourable.) Sprinkle with parmesan or grana padano if you want to, though I usually do that after baking. (You could also top with some lactose-free shredded mozzarella, if you want.) Cover the dish tightly with foil.

Bake until the whole thing is heated through and the cheese stuffing is gooey – about 45 minutes to 1 hour. If you put cheese on top before baking, you might want to broil it a bit for color after you take off the foil. If you didn’t put cheese on top before baking, put it on now.

Serve hot or warm.

Vegan Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

 

This recipe is from America’s Test Kitchen. I was in the mood for chocolate cupcakes, and also I really wanted to try out these edible gold stars I bought on a whim. We really liked these! The only caveat was that the cupcakes were a bit crumbly, so we could not do that trick where you twist off the bottom to place it on top of the frosting and make a cupcake sandwich. And oddly enough, it’s not something we typically do, but somehow this frosting seemed to call for it! Note that the frosting needs to be made ahead of time.

For the chocolate cupcakes
1 1/3 cups (189 g) all-purpose flour
1 cup (198 g) organic sugar
¾ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup water
½ cup (43 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 oz (28 g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
¼ cup coconut oil
¾ tsp. vanilla extract
¼ cup aquafaba (I used more, I think a whole can’s worth)
1 tsp. cream of tartar

For the chocolate frosting
2 (14-oz) cans coconut milk, refrigerated
10 oz semisweet chocolate chips
1 pinch salt


For the chocolate cupcakes 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 400 °F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.

Microwave water, cocoa, chocolate, oil, and vanilla in second bowl at 50% power, whisking occasionally, until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes; set aside to cool slightly. (I did this in a double boiler.)

Meanwhile, using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk, whip aquafaba and cream of tartar on high speed until stiff foam that clings to whisk forms, 3 to 9 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, stir chocolate mixture into flour mixture until batter is thoroughly combined and smooth (batter will be thick). Stir one-third of whipped aquafaba into batter to lighten, then gently fold in remaining aquafaba until no white streaks remain.

Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake until tops are set and spring back when pressed lightly, 16 to 20 minutes, rotating muffin tin halfway through baking.

Let cupcakes cool in muffin tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour.


For the chocolate frosting 

Open cold cans of coconut milk. Skim the cream layer from each can and measure out ¾ cup of the cream. (Any remaining cream, along with the rest of the liquid, are not needed for this recipe. You can save them for smoothies – I like freezing this in an ice cube tray. Otherwise, discard it.)

Microwave coconut cream, chocolate chips, and salt in a bowl at 50% power, whisking occasionally, until melted and smooth, 2 to 4 minutes (I like doing this in a double boiler). Transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer; place plastic wrap directly against surface of chocolate mixture and refrigerate until cooled completely and texture resembles cream cheese, about 3 hours, stirring halfway through chilling. (If the mixture has chilled for longer and is very stiff, let stand at room temperature until softened but still cool.)

Using stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip at high speed until fluffy, mousse-like soft peaks form, 2 to 4 minutes, scrapping down halfway through whipping.

Spread or pipe frosting evenly over cupcakes and serve.

Soupe au poulet et arachides de chez Olive + Gourmando

 

J’ai l’impression qu’il m’a fallu une éternité pour faire cette recette de soupe au poulet et aux arachides de chez Olive + Gourmando (surnommée la soupe préférée d’Ali), mais mieux vaut tard que jamais! C’est un peu compliqué dans le sens où il faut préparer les garnitures en plus de la soupe, mais ça vaut la peine. C’était vraiment délicieux!

Pour la soupe
¼ de tasse d’huile de coco
8 gousses d’ail, hachées
5 oignons jaunes, coupés en dés
1 c. à thé de coriandre moulue
2 petits piments thaïs ou piments oiseaux, émincés finement (je les ai omis)
5 grosses patates douces ou 800 g (environ 5 tasses) de courge butternut, pelées et coupées en dés
4 branches de céleri, coupées en petits dés
1 boîte de 398 ml de tomates entières, écrasées à la main
1 L (4 tasses) de bouillon de poulet maison ou du commerce
1 ½ c. à thé de sel
½ tasse de beurre d’arachides naturel crémeux
75 g (½ tasse) d’arachides salées, hachées
350 g (environ 2 tasses) de poulet rôti ou grillé, effiloché
1 morceau de 5 cm (2 po) de gingembre frais, râpé finement
jus de ½ lime

Pour les garnitures suggérées
salsa concombre + arachides (voir plus bas)
feuilles de coriandre fraîche
yogourt nature sans lactose
zeste de lime, râpé

Dans une grande casserole, à feu moyen, chauffer l’huile. Ajouter l’ail et les oignons et cuire environ 5 minutes ou jusqu’à ce qu’ils soient translucides.

Ajouter la coriandre et les piments. Cuire encore 1 minute, en remuant à l’aide d’une cuillère de bois, afin de permettre aux parfums de se développer. Ajouter les patates douces, le céleri, les tomates, le bouillon et le sel.

Porter à ébullition. Réduire à feu moyen-doux et laisser mijoter à découvert 20 minutes ou jusqu’à ce que les légumes soient tendres. Prélever 2 tasses de soupe de la casserole.

Au mélangeur ou au pied-mélangeur, broyer la soupe prélevée avec le beurre d’arachides en purée.

Verser la purée dans la casserole. Ajouter les arachides, le poulet et le gingembre. Rectifier l’assaisonnement. Retirer du feu et ajouter le jus de lime juste avant de servir. Répartir la soupe dans des bols et garnir, au choix.


Pour la salsa concombre + arachides (donne environ 1 1/3 de tasse)
110 g (2/3 de tasse) de concombre, pelé et coupé en brunoise
60 g (½ tasse) d’arachides salées, concassées finement
3 c. à soupe d’huile d’olive
2 c. à soupe d’oignon rouge, émincé
2 c. à soupe de graines de sésame, rôties
½ c. à thé de graines de cumin, rôties
zeste de 2 limes, râpé
fleur de sel et poivre du moulin

Dans un petit bol, mélanger tous les ingrédients. Saler et poivrer. Transvider la salsa dans un contenant hermétique et réfrigérer jusqu’au moment de l’utiliser.

S'mores Cakey Black Bean Brownies

 

I made these s’mores cakey black bean brownies from Weelicious because I wanted a change from regular brownies. These contain black beans for extra protein and fiber, but the topping makes them really decadent!

15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 large eggs
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup white whole wheat flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 pinch kosher salt
¾ cup chocolate chips, divided
4 graham crackers, chopped
1 cup mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Line an 8”x8” baking dish with parchment paper and grease it. Set aside.

Place the beans, eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar in a food processor and purée for 1 minute.

Add the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and salt and pulse to combine.

Stir ½ cup of the chocolate chips into the batter and pour into the prepared pan. Top with the remaining ¼ cup chocolate chips, graham crackers, and marshmallows.

Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Once the brownies have cooled, use the parchment paper to remove them from the pan and cut them into even squares.

Egg Toasts

I recently had a client who scheduled her sessions mid-day, so that I had to eat a light meal in the late morning and then a snack in the afternoon. What became the perfect solution for me was egg toasts. The basic premise is that you get a thick slice of bread, press down on the crumb while leaving the crust as a rim, then crack an egg in there, top with cheese, and bake until the egg is set.

I really liked the Weelicious version, called smash toast breakfast boats, which have you add avocado and tomato to the cavity with the egg. There was also a simpler version on Tasty, cheesy egg toast. From there, I just used whatever cheese I had on hand – goat cheese, feta, sharp cheddar… Simple and very versatile!

Both recipes are below.

Smash Toast Breakfast Boat
1 slice sandwich bread (the thicker the better)
1 slice tomato
2 slices avocado
3 Tbsp. lactose-free mozzarella cheese
1 large egg
kosher or maldon salt

Preheat oven or toaster oven to 375 °F.

Use fingers to flatten the center of the bread and press out towards the crust to create a boat. Toast bread in the oven for 4 minutes or in a toaster until lightly golden.

Place bread on a baking sheet and layer slices of tomato and avocado in the toast boat and top with mozzarella.

Whisk egg in a bowl with 1 teaspoon water. Pour egg slowly over cheese and bake for 12-14 minutes or until eggs are set and crusts are golden.

Cheesy Egg Toast
1 slice bread (ideally, thickly sliced)
½ Tbsp. lactose-free butter
1 large egg
3 Tbsp. shredded lactose-free cheese
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven or a toaster oven to 400°F.

With a spoon, press down on the center of the bread to form a pocket. Spread the butter around the edges of the bread, then crack the egg into the pocket.

Sprinkle the cheese around the egg, then season with salt and pepper.

Bake the toast for 10–15 minutes, depending on how runny you like the yolk. Serve immediately.

Biscuits beurre d'arachides et miso aux morceaux de chocolat

 

Cette recette vient du livre Loounie Cuisine 2 de Caroline Huard. Je l’ai faite au printemps dernier, en ajoutant un peu de sel dans la pâte, et tout le monde a beaucoup aimé! J’ai obtenu un total de 11 biscuits.

2 œufs de graines (soit 2 c. à soupe de graines de lin moulues + 6 c. à soupe d’eau tiède)
150 g (1 ½ tasse) de flocons d’avoine à l’ancienne
½ c. à thé de poudre à pâte
½ c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude
1 pincée de sel cachère
¼ tasse de sucre granulé
½ tasse de beurre d’arachides naturel
2 c. à soupe d’huile de coco désodorisée
1 c. à soupe de pâte de miso pâle
1 c. à thé d’extrait de vanille
75 g (½ tasse) de morceaux, pastilles, ou pépites de chocolat noir
flocons de sel

Préparer les œufs de graines et les laisser gélifier. Réserver.

Dans le contenant d’un robot culinaire, mettre les flocons d’avoine. Broyer jusqu’à l’obtention d’une texture de farine grossière.

Ajouter la poudre à pâte, le bicarbonate de soude et le sel dans le contenant du mélangeur, actionner quelques fois, puis réserver.

Dans un petit chaudron, à feu moyen-doux, mettre le sucre et brasser pour l’étaler au fond. Lorsque le sucre commence à caraméliser sur les côtés, utiliser une spatule pour mélanger en ramenant le caramel au centre. Continuer à chauffer en mélangeant jusqu’à ce que le sucre soit tout fondu.

Dans le chaudron, ajouter le beurre d’arachides, l’huile de coco, la pâte de miso et la vanille

Chauffer environ 2 minutes ou jusqu’à ce que la préparation soit assez homogène. Ajouter les œufs de graines.

Verser le tout dans le contenant du robot culinaire. Broyer jusqu’à l’obtention d’une texture de pâte assez collante.

Ajouter la moitié des morceaux de chocolat dans le contenant du robot. En procédant par pulsations (5 ou 6), broyer le tout jusqu’à ce que le chocolat soit haché en petits morceaux et bien réparti dans la pâte. Il fondra partiellement, ce qui est souhaitable.

Réfrigérer la pâte de 10 à 15 minutes.

Préchauffer le four à 350 °F. Tapisser une plaque de cuisson de papier parchemin ou d’un silpat.
v En utilisant une balance au besoin (j’ai plutôt pris ma cuillère à biscuits), séparer la pâte en 12 parts égales (environ 40 g chacune). Façonner en boulettes et déposer sur la plaque. Écraser chaque boulette pour former des biscuits d’environ 1 cm ( ½ po) d’épaisseur.

Ajouter le reste du chocolat sur les biscuits en l’enfonçant légèrement. Parsemer de flocons de sel.

Cuire au four de 15 à 17 minutes (10 minutes dans mon cas!) ou jusqu’à ce que les biscuits soient légèrement dorés.

Laisser reposer au moins 10 minutes avant de déguster.

Chicken Pot Pie Cornbread Muffins

 

Here’s a chicken pot pie cornbread muffin recipe that you can make for your kids’ school lunches this fall. I modified it a bit by increasing the amount of filling per muffin, and that’s definitely what I recommend, even though I don’t have precise measurements. These muffins freeze well, too! (In case you are curious, the dessert in the lunchbox photo is chocolate graham crackers with mini marshmallows.)

For the cornbread
1 ½ cups cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
kosher salt
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
1 large egg
1 ½ cups well-shaken buttermilk (lactose-free milk with a splash of vinegar)

For the filling (you’ll need to increase these amounts)
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 large carrot, cut into chunks
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
¾ cup chicken stock or low-sodium broth
½ cup shredded rotisserie chicken


For the cornbread
In a bowl, stir together the cornmeal, flour, ¾ teaspoon salt, baking powder and baking soda. Whisk the egg and buttermilk into the cornmeal mixture. Fill 12 (½-cup) greased muffin tins about 2/3 full with the cornbread batter. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

For the filling
In a large cast-iron or heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium high heat until hot, then stir in the onion, garlic, carrots, ¼ teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook, until incorporated, about 2 minutes. Pour in the stock and bring to a boil, then stir in the chicken. Season the filling with salt and pepper to taste. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of the filling over each batter-filled muffin tin.

Bake the muffins until golden around the edges, about 25 minutes.