gluten-free sandwich bread

I'm fresh off a long weekend to my favorite Washington getaway, friends.  That would be the beautiful, Lummi Island.  The sun was shining, the BBQ blazing, and the booze flowing freely.  It was so nice to step out of the hustle for a few days.

One of the many edible delights that came with me on this trip was a loaf of gluten-free sandwich bread.  The picture that may pop immediately into the head is a small, dense, lump of something that seems like part of a retaining wall.  As if Home Depot had a bakery department.  Just slather some mortar on there and call it a meal.

No, this isn't like that bread.  Small and dense aren't in the vocab on this one.  Between my island weekend and my coworkers, I've had more 'whoa that's gluten-free?!'s than I know what to do with.  My sweetheart gets giddy every time she takes a bite and tells me how it's the best (oh, and she's welcome to eat gluten any old time she pleases).

So, if gluten is a no-no for you (intolerant, Celiac disease, yaddah, yaddah) and you yearn for the glory days of PB & J, grilled cheese, and tuna salad, you must bake this bread.

grilled cilantro & pistachio pesto shrimp skewers over sauteed kale

You know what I love?  What absolutely delights me in the most unimportant, trivial sort of way, but a way that is completely satisfying in its insignificance? 

I love when I'm waiting in line at the grocery checkout and I spy a thick, glossy food magazine, pick it up and flip through it for two minutes, decide in the millisecond before the cashier totals my order that I simply must own it, and take it home to discover that I'd like to try all of the recipes inside, thanks in part to the incredible photographs accompanying each and every dish contained therein.

That is what I love.

The ultimate impulse buy.

why baking is a science

My world has been a flurry of new activity as of late.  I am now the proud parent of an associate's degree.  It was like two and half years of hard labor, but I finally popped that baby out.  Unlike most parent's, though, this birth has led to an increase in personal freedom.  

Since stepping away from academia, I've started two new jobs and am slowly (painfully) becoming acquainted with the fifty hour work week.  So, yeah, all that new-found personal freedom I was just bragging about?  It doesn't actually exist.  But the hard-core schedule is only temporary, since my status as "garden store girl" with one of Seattle's amazing nurseries is only seasonal.  The discount on plants rocks my world, though.  

This rather abrupt change in focus from brains to brawn may explain my latest (and far from greatest) baking endeavor.  Yes, I'm speaking of the cinnamon rolls you see pictured here.  Don't they look delicious, all spiraled around that shadowy filling of butter and cinnamon goodness; gooey cream cheese frosting dripping over doughy edges?  

Don't let their good looks fool you.

apple crisp and my sugar addiction

First off, I gotta say I'm giddy from the wonderfulness of making the Foodbuzz Top 9 with my huevos rancheros recipe.  So cool.

Second, I must tell you about what's been on my mind.  Don't let the photo of tasty dessert fool you.

Lately, I've been having an internal conversation with myself about my sugar consumption.  I know, sounds like a real downer, doesn't it?  But, an idea has been taking shape in my noggin to enter into a period of self-inflicted self-deprivation.  I want to say adios to the refined sweets.

At least for a little while.

I feel about sugar the way I once felt about cigarettes (which I actually did quit).  "I know that this substance I'm consuming is harmful to my body, but OH MY GOD does it go great with a whisky sour."  Only in this case, the substance in question goes good with just about everything.   Even my toothpaste.

It's all about moderation, though, right?  Exercising self-control? Well, anti-moderation slogans like, "I want a dessert buffet," having been tumbling from my lips as of late.  A dessert-only potluck was suggested (by me, of course) in honor of my coming graduation.  I guess moderation isn't my forte.  I'm more of an all-or-nothing kind of gal.

gluten-free coconut dark chocolate banana bread: the recipe

Apparently, some of you have been dying from the anticipation of this post.  I can't say I blame you, really.  I mean, come on.  Who in their right mind wouldn't be a little anxious to bake something with a title as conspicuously delicious as this one?

Nobody I know.

I've already described to you the inspiration for this recipe.  You can read all about it here, if you haven't already.  The idea was to provide a little teaser while I labored on an even better recipe than the one I'd put together for round one.  Well, time got away from me, as it tends to, and then I failed a batch (edible, but texturally disappointing).  Anyway, it's taken me a little bit longer than expected to get the recipe up to par with my vision of the perfectly moist, fruity, nutty, chocolaty loaf of (drum roll, please)...

Gluten-free Grain-free Coconut Dark Chocolate Banana Bread!

(hold for applause)

Well, here it is, folks.  And yes, the formula for success is included at no extra charge.  

white bean dip with chimichurri

I apologize for the unexplained hiatus.  School and the job hunt have been a bit overwhelming these last two weeks, not to mention the 2 baking recipes that I bombed last Monday.  I was so excited to have a long weekend to "celebrate" President's Day and bake something tasty.  Or, not so tasty, as it turned out.  Thinkin' 'bout Lincoln... and burnt coconut macaroons.  Sigh... oh well.

I'm working on letting things go.

Since then I've been back in the kitchen, working to redeem myself from the President's Day Disaster (it'll live on in infamy, I'm sure).  The other night I made a flat-leaf parsley pesto sauce to smear on top of the chicken we were having for dinner.  I put garlic and olive oil and a little Parmesan in the blender with half a bunch of leaves and pureed.  It was quite tasty, and added some flair to the meal.  Then the following day, we were watching Anthony Bourdain galavant around Uruguay, gorging himself on BBQ'd animal parts, and the condiment of choice on every single table was a sauce by the name of chimichurri.

gluten-free banana bread 1.0

It's dense and gooey.  It's full of dark chocolate, walnuts and creamy coconut milk.  It's gluten and grain free.  It's Gluten-free Coconut Dark Chocolate Banana Bread.  Ohhhhh yeeessssssss!

This is a picture of attempt #1.  Not bad, huh?

I don't even know how the idea for banana bread got into my head, but once it did, the light bulb went on and just kept getting brighter and brighter. Wait a second!  I take that back.  I do know where the idea came from. The Flying Apron.

technology fails me; butternut squash gratin does not

Are you familiar with the term Luddite?  Apparently, it originated with some angry British folks around the time of the industrial revolution who were bent-out-of-shape about certain technological advancements that allowed unskilled laborers to do work that had previously required people with specific expertise.  Today the word is used to describe anyone who has a burr up their butt about the technology of the day.  You won't see a Luddite anywhere near an Apple store on the release date of a new i-(insert name of device here) or scoping the newest smartphone apps online.  You may, however, see one attempting to figure out how to text message on their flip phone from 1999.

I tend to be one of those people. 

One device that I do find life difficult to live without, though, is my computer.  Obviously I have a decent relationship with that one gadget, or these words would not be finding their way to your eyes at this moment.  For 5 years now, Mad Sweeney (yes, I named my PC after a fictional, alcoholic leprechaun) has been my keeper of secrets, my jukebox, my photo album, and my gateway to the universe of the interweb.  This last one nearly brought on his demise.

Homemade Nut & Seed Crackers and A Brand New Year

Happy 2011, all.  It's that time of year again.  That time when people are attempting to conjure up whatever momentum they lost around mid-March last year and focus it on starting anew.  The ball drops, the booze and the cookies run out, and people tell themselves that they're going to lose those pounds, quit that habit, take up that hobby or make themselves over in this way or that.

While I'm all for self-transformation, I think that it's more lasting and successful when approached as a consistent effort, completely separate from the calendar.  I think that the word "resolution" has become a synonym for the word "failure".  So in order to avoid the epic fail, I want to suggest a new word.  One without the excess baggage of cliche or the burden of defeat.  That word is intention.  Say it with me now.... inteentioonnn...

Chard Potato Cakes with Poached Eggs & Spicy Italian Sausage: A Holiday Breakfast

Home for the holidays for me translates into "home with time to make slammin' breakfasts".  The latter has so much more significance, so much more meaning.  Wouldn't you agree?  

Breakfast is like this much coveted yet incredibly neglected art form for me.  I'm aware of  its status as a marker of health, and I even make sure to include some oatmeal or yogurt or fruit in my morning routine most of the time, but I would hardly say that I give my comrade, Breakfast, the attention and regard that it truly deserves. 

That is why holidays and vacation time are so so sweet.  I spent a couple of hours making that meal you see pictured.  Ain't gonna happen on a school day, friends.

Merry Christmas

The sun has set this Christmas day, and I type this as we've reached a lull in the action of our day.  I'm drinking tea, and Dan is napping on the couch.  Not that there's really been too much action.  Wedecided that this year we'd spend a quiet day, just the two of us, free from the strains of company and a dinner deadline.  No time schedules today.  No planning around anyone else but us.  Sound selfish?  Good.  That's what we were going for.

It's been a good Christmas so far.  We ate a killer breakfast that included potato cakes and poached eggs.  Expect more on that later.  After we'd digested a bit and talked on the phone to our families in their parts of the country, we went for a walk.  Someone ordered sunshine today, and the weather gods relented, giving us clear skies as the short afternoon turned to dusk.  We sojourned to our community garden to pick rosemary and sage for our dinner tonight.  Then we pseudo-hiked through Ravenna Park, the wooded ravine near our apartment with trails cutting through amongst giant trees and ferns and other greenery that almost lets you feel like you're walking in the woods.  The sun and the park turned into a great prize in the Cracker Jack box of our day.

Potato Leek Soup

It's snowing today.  The flakes are coming down like it's actually winter (anyone else in denial?), and an inch or so of white fluff has accumulated on tree branches and overpasses and windshields.  Here in Seattle, snow days are pretty big deals.  For one thing, it's rare for the stuff to even fall, let alone actually stick to the ground, so when it does happen, people get giddy over the novelty.  Some set to work building sculptures and ice forts, sledders hit the hills (or the streets) with everything from plastic, drug-store sleds to Lazy-Boy recliners, and some even cross-country ski to the grocery store.

Ginger Pear Upside Down Cake

This is the third post in a series focused on ginger, its health benefits, and the versatility of the root in recipes. I would love to hear your favorite uses for ginger, so please feel free to comment or email if you have something you'd like to share. If you missed the first two posts in this series, just click on the links below:
Ginger, Lemon & Honey: Tea for the Season
Carrot Ginger Soup

---

Now that the time has changed, my body has shifted to a different schedule.  I'm all yawns and heavy eyelids by about 9:30 at night, and I can't stay under the covers any later than 8 am, even on the weekend.  This schedule suits me, though.  Getting up early and taking my time, having some tea, and gazing at the now-orange leaves of the tree outside my window as I think and type and relax with just me.  I can see myself working from home some day and absolutely loving it.

For now I guess I'll settle for the Saturday morning blogging session.  Today's post is very exciting for me for two reasons.  The first is that I get to share more of what I've learned about ginger.  Now that I've read that line, I realize that I'm much more interested in the second reason.  I will be sharing with you a recipe of my own devising that happens to be baked, gluten-free, and a serious party in your mouth.  

Carrot Ginger Soup

This is the second post in a series focused on ginger, its health benefits, and the versatility of the root in recipes. I would love to hear your favorite uses for ginger, so please feel free to comment or email if you have something you'd like to share.  
If you missed the first post in this series, just click on the link below.
Ginger, Lemon & Honey: Tea for the Season

---

Ahhuhhhhh. That's how I spell a sigh.  It's my thank-you-god-it's-finally-Friday sigh, and I'm oh-so-glad to be breathing it.  Chemistry exam weeks are always a little on the horrendously stressful side, but I've made it through, and I'm just a few hours away from a glass of red and my PJ's.  But we're not here to talk about my school schedule, we're here to throw down and get the lowdown on some Zingiber officinale.  Ginger.

I've been doing some research this week (during that time when I'm procrastinating on the quantum mechanical model) to learn some new and exciting things about ginger.  In my last post, I discussed the use of ginger for coughs and colds, but this herbal root has a few more tricks up its sleeve.  It turns out that the most common and most studied medicinal use of ginger is in the treatment of nausea.

Salmon Salad Sandwich

Another week is about to begin, and I find myself contemplating lunch.  It's the most difficult meal of the day for me, because at noontime, Monday through Friday, I don't have the luxury of my home kitchen for meal making.

Unfortunately, my school's cafeteria is a scary place for anyone who wants to consume healthy-ish food, and an outright nightmare for a person who is gluten-intolerant and wants to eat healthy food, minus the '-ish'.

That means I have to plan ahead. I'm not always the best planner, either, which means that, occasionally, my lunch consists of a barely-ripe banana and a little bag of over-salted mixed nuts.  I'm more than slightly embarrassed by that revelation, but sometimes I'm preoccupied and don't bother whipping up a respectable meal ahead of time.  A little bit of foresight really does go a long way.

Fresh Rolls

Vacation is over.  The Grind has been revisited and will continue to be the mode of living through mid-December.  If I'm lucky, I'll be able to share recipes and ideas here once a week or so, and if I'm even luckier, my transcript will be overloaded with 4.0's.  Wouldn't that be grand.

The first week back to classes and work was a doozy.  It borders on madness in the hallways between classes as students attempt to navigate their way to the next session of powerpoint and lecture.  My two classes on campus are geographically as far from one another as they can be on our little campus, and I have just ten minutes to rush down four flights of stairs, power-walk to the building next door, and book-it up another four flights to get to my second class.  A bathroom pit stop is out of the question.  The door to class #2 is locked promptly at 11 am.  Be there, or be square.

With the onslaught of my school schedule comes the necessity for quick, easy meals.  Lunches must be packed and dinners must be relatively hurried affairs.  No more 3 hour sagas of meal prep in the evenings for awhile, so I've been busting out my repertoire of simple, healthy (gotta keep that immune system up, what with flu-season rapidly approaching) recipes. Fresh rolls (sometimes called 'summer rolls') have become my new favorite thing.  I guess I'm reluctant to give up on summertime.  I want to savor the last of the lettuce, cucumber, and warm-weather herbs while I can. 

Heirloom Tomato Bruschetta

The other night my boyfriend, Dan, and I watched the movie Julie and Julia.  It's a really charming film based on the book with the same title.  The story is a true one about a woman turning 30 and searching for something meaningful to do with her life.  She started a blog where she documented the year she spent cooking her way through Julia Childs' cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

The blogger's story is mirrored throughout the movie by that of Julia Childs. It focuses on her time in Paris where she learned to cook and started writing the book that changed the world.  If you haven't seen it, I suggest that you drop whatever it is that you're doing and find a copy this instant.  Even Dan loved it.

There's a scene in the film where Julie Powell (the main character) is talking with her husband about the idea of blogging, which Julie is sure she can do but is struggling to think of a worthy focus.  At the start of this conversation, she's in the kitchen spreading melted butter on thick slices of crusty bread, frying them, and then loading them up with diced tomatoes.  As she's working her way closer and closer to the idea of food blogging, Julie's husband begins to eat.  He's stuffing the buttery, tomatoey bread into his mouth and groaning in pleasure.  He keeps repeating, "Oh, this is good", over and over, like a flavor-induced mantra.

Pasta Primavera

I'm on vacation right now.  No classrooms or textbooks, no homework, and for eleven whole days, no desk job...  It's startling how much calmer and more relaxed I become when scholastic pressure is removed from the equation.  I'm practically a different person.  My boyfriend loves it (and tells me so quite often).

There are less than a week's worth of boxes left to X off on my calendar before the one that announces, "School Starts".   Monday is the day that I load up my backpack once again and begin yet another three month stint of lectures and labs and paper writing.  My emotions are a mixture of dismay and excitement.  It's back to the grind now, but the good news is that after this quarter I'll have all of the credits I need to graduate! Yay, excitement!  Oh, but I'll only be receiving my AA degree. That bachelor's is still a considerable distance away.  Sigh.... dismay...

Gluten-Free at Parties: Tips for Eating Well Socially

I had the opportunity this past weekend to be the lone gluten-free guest at two different parties.  Not only were they back-to-back events that left zero time for an in-between meal, but both parties were total carb-fests.  See that table full of bread, crackers and pastries?  That was party #1. Did I go hungry that day?  Did I watch enviously as my friends ate croissants and cupcakes and fettucine alfredo?  Nope. Sure didn't.  I wasn't stuck grazing baby carrots from the veggie platter, either.

So, how did I cope with this day choc-full-o festivities and glutenous foods?  I went prepared.

Bourbon Peaches 'n Cream

Peaches, peaches, peaches! They may, in fact, be my favorite fruit.  They've been making their way into my smoothies, onto my dessert plates, and into my mouth with striking regularity this summer. My little farmers market must have at least a dozen vendors selling these fuzzy, juice bombs.

I love the luscious explosion that forces me to eat peaches over the sink.

When I started buying peaches from Billy's Gardens this season, my mind began working on ways to take the perfection of a lone peach and make it even better.  Peaches...  and, oh, I don't know. How about some cream? (cue Beck)

Well, I'd already mastered the art of whipping cream, so now it was just a matter of adding peaches.  Or so I thought.  Then I came across a recipe called Boozy Peaches.  This recipe is super-duper special because it calls for my most favorite of all liquors to be whipped into the cream.