| Wednesday, November 28, 2012 |
| Variation On A Theme or Flatbread Addiction Continued... |
Let me preface this post with being bummed that I can't load pictures due to using up my google space. I now have to fix that, but in the mean time...
Wednesday! People, it's hump day! If we get over today, the rest is all down hill from here! Things have been busy around here. I can't complain though. It's all good crazy. Tony's first issue of Batman was published and he's working on more as we speak! He's on crunch time, so you know that means crazy time hits our house. No worries, we are good under pressure! It's all about the teamwork here!
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. There was a slight issue that almost caused our company not to make it to our house, but they made it Thanksgiving morning and we had an amazing visit! I spent so much time in the kitchen (which I love!) and when I wasn't in the kitchen, we were watching Christmas movies and chatting it up...and the girls painted their nails! I never get girl time so this was so much fun!
I pulled the camera out once for a slice of pie the day after Thanksgiving. I kind of regret not taking pictures of the kids more, but the weather was so amazing that they were all over the place. I'm glad they are old enough to do there own thing and really enjoy time with each other. That's really what the holidays are all about anyway.
Let's just say that I'm really embracing all that is instagram (I'm at stshasteen) these days due to the craziness! I'm addicted and will go ahead and apologize for my new addiction. Speaking of addictions...do you remember my flatbread addiction (here here here)? Well, I've been playing with my recipe again. The recipe is really forgiving and the possibilities are endless...just ask Heather. I will use this as my protein source a lot of nights so I played with the recipe to incorporate a higher amount of protein to suite my needs. Seriously, the taste and texture of bread loaded with protein and fiber! Yes please! The bread really is fluffy on the inside while nice and crispy on the outside. Perfect for a flatbread sandwich! I will load pictures to my Facebook page since I can't do it here...I need to figure that out, but for now. I will share my newest version of flatbread!
Chickpea Quinoa Oat Flatbread
1/4 cup chickpea flour
1/4 cup quinoa flour (you can use more chickpea flour, but the quinoa flour is really nice here)
1/4 cup quick oats (or oat flour or ground whole oats)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup egg whites
1/4 cup carbonated water (key to fluffiness)
1 TBSP apple cider vinegar (a must, it adds more fluffiness)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Spray a 9x5 bread pan with olive oil.
Combine the dry ingredients and then add the wet. Stir to combine. Pour the batter into prepared pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
***I used Bob's Red Mill for all the flours
How was your Thanksgiving? Any new favorite recipes from this year?
I'm sharing this on this weeks Allergy-Free Wednesday and next week's Slightly Indulgent Tuesday.
Labels: about me, breads, gluten free, quick breads |
posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 5:30 AM  |
|
|
|
| Friday, November 16, 2012 |
| Friday Food Fodder |
Before I get too far into this post, while I was going through my recipes, planning feasts, I got to thinking that I need to state how incredibly thankful I am for being able to enjoy amazing food and make wonderful memories with my family this year during the holiday season. I normally blog about food, health, fitness and everyday life in a very lighthearted way. I definitely don't want to be a downer, but my thoughts kept going to the same place this time...there are so many out there that are less fortunate than I am and I feel the best way to pay respect to those people is to take am moment and really appreciate where I am and not take for granted one day that I have here with my amazing men. I feel incredibly fortunate this holiday season and I am so incredibly happy to be surrounded by so many wonderful people and that includes all of you ;)! I hope you all are as lucky as I am to spend your Thanksgiving surrounded by good food, friends and family.
So, with Thanksgiving just around the corner, and a house full of faces to feed, my brain is spinning with the excitement of being in the kitchen and letting everything else go! My sister-in-law, brother-in-law, 2 nephews and niece will be here on Tuesday night! With 4 boys between the ages of 11-14, I don't know if I will ever have enough food to fill them all up! Here are some of the things we are looking at having. Tony and I really need to get the menu under control, but I thought I would share some our favorites that we are considering. Let the feasting begin!
Turkey is definitely happening, but for me, the real highlight is the dressing and gravy!
Kahlua and Almond Milk
Mini Apple Pies
Sausage Balls! (I now make these with chickpea flour, Bob's of course)
Unfortunately, we will not be spending Thanksgiving with my mother-in-law or father-in law this year. They are with Tony's brother's family, but they will be missed by this side. Christmas is just around the corner though, so we will be getting together soon!
So, on the food front, what's your favorite thing to eat during the holiday season? I have to have pumpkin pie and dressing. I really don't need anything else.
I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! If you're traveling or have loved ones traveling, my thoughts are with you all for safe arrivals!Labels: bars, beans, breads, breakfast, burgers, cakes, cookies, gluten free, holidays, main course, muffins, pie, quick bread, side dishes, soup, vegetables |
| posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 5:30 AM |
|
|
|
| Monday, November 12, 2012 |
| Gluten and Dairy Free Apple Date Bread! |
Wow, the past week really flew by! In all honesty, it was kind of a rough week and instead of writing about it and bringing everyone down with my mood (you're welcome Paige ;)), I decided to focus on the good and spend time with my guys. I know some of you know already through facebook, but my grandmother had a heart attack a week ago from last Friday. This is not the first time for her and quite frankly, it scared the heck out of me. This woman is one of my all time favorite people in the world. So, understandably, until I knew what was going on and how she was doing, my brain was on her. Things are going well with her now and she is on the road to recovery after having a stent put in. Now if I can just convince her not to scare me like that again! The reality of how precious life is can really make you humble...
On top of worrying, I picked up a couple of new clients this week too, so I was doing a lot more work than usual. That was actually a good thing for me mentally too. It kept my brain occupied on things other than worrying. I LOVE working with people to achieve their health and fitness goals! It's so motivating to see people excited about a new healthy path! This definitely helped put a positive spin to my week.
Since last week was crazy busy, I actually did not spend too much time in the kitchen. Most of our meals circled around cleaning out the freezer...
Heather's eggplant mushroom burgers (sadly are gone and I need to make more!) These were from the second batch I made and hid the last of them from the boys. Shhh, don't tell. I let them have some, but I wanted some quick meals for me too!
or quick egg stir fries
or flatbread (also the post with me and my granny!) with salads! Yeah, there's always time to make flatbread in this house...total addiction!
All of these really made for perfect busy week meals!
I do have a recipe I want to share though. Seriously, I made this right after we went apple picking and am just now finding the time to type up the details! This recipe has actually been one that I've been thinking about since last March! I made a gluten free Irish Soda Bread, that I realize now I never shared (oops), and we all absolutely loved it. Even our guests that came over for dinner (the gluten loving kind) couldn't believe the soda bread was gluten free. I will share that one soon too, but for now, I'm sharing this Apple Date Bread.
This recipe is low in sugar, gluten free, dairy free and so incredibly easy to put together. Perfect for your holiday festivities with family and friends!
This apple date bread is a cross between an apple danish and an apple fritter! YUM!
The outside is nice and crispy while the inside is soft and doughy. The glaze is "knock your socks off" good! I've never done the melted butter with the powder sugar glaze before, but I wanted something a little different. This came out so silky and was a perfect compliment to texture of the bread.
Apple Date Bread
makes a 2 lb 11oz loaf
1 1/2 cup brown rice flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1 1/2 cup gluten free all purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp xanthan gum
4 TBSP Smart Balance Light, Coconut Oil or your choice of dairy free butter, cold and cut into pieces
3/4 cup egg whites
3/4 cup almond milk (I used unsweetened, but sweetened would be good too)
2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
Apple Filling
13.5 oz apple, about 2 medium, cut into quarters
10 dates, soaked 1 hour in hot water
15 drops vanilla stevia
Glaze
3/4 cup powder sugar
1 TBSP Smart Balance Light or butter substitute of your choice, melted
1 TBSP almond milk
In a large bowl, mix the brown rice flour, all purpose flour, baking powder and xanthan gum together until fully combined. Next cut the butter into the flour mixture with a fork to evenly distribute throughout the mixture. Then add the egg whites, almond milk and apple cider vinegar to the flour mixture. Stir to combine. The dough will come together and form a ball. Allow the dough to rest while you work on the apple filling.
In a food processor, add the apple chunks, dates and stevia. Chop until the mixture looks like a chunky applesauce.
Flatten the dough out in the bowl you have it resting in. Add 1/3 of the apple mixture to the top of the dough. Fold over one side to cover it up. Now add another 1/3 of the apple mixture to the top of the dough. Fold over another side to cover that up. Add the last of the apple filling to the top of that and then fold over the last part. It doesn't have to be perfect and the apple mixture will seep out a bit, but it's a rustic looking bread, so don't worry about it. Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, move the bread around just a bit to swirl in the apple mixture a bit more, just don't stir it.
unbaked
On a parchment lined baking sheet, pour the dough out and form into an oblong loaf. Make sure you have some apples showing all over the place. The dough is really easy to work with, so shape it to your liking. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on the outside. Its a firm loaf on the outside and sounds hollow when you tap it.
naked
Allow loaf to cool on a wire rack. Glaze while slightly warm.
glazed
To make the glaze, combine the powder sugar, butter and almond milk, stir until a thick glaze forms. Drizzle over the apple date loaf and enjoy!
swirls of goodness
I'm sharing this on Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Allergy-Free Wednesdays this week.Labels: breads, breakfast, gluten free, holidays, quick bread |
| posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 11:36 AM |
|
|
|
| Friday, November 2, 2012 |
| Artichoke Falafel Stuffed Peppers and Mushrooms |
It's that time of year again...PARTY TIME!
With all the football gatherings, holiday parties and, well, all the other social gatherings coming up, we all need some ideas for what to make. Cara at Cara's Cravings has put together a Clean Eating Cocktail Party with a great line up of bloggers for the month of November to help you with your party planning.
I don't know about you, but while I love to indulge this time of year, it's also nice to find a good balance of healthy options at these social gatherings.
Happy Friday!
Labels: gluten free, holidays, side dishes, vegetables |
| posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 8:29 AM |
|
|
|
|
|
Name:
Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen
Home: Atlanta, GA, United States
About Me: Lactose Challenged
See my complete profile
|
Previous Post |
|
| Archives |
|
|
| Links |
|
|
| Blogs I Like |
|
|
|
|
|
