Nourishing Flourishing

Hello! It’s a beautiful day here in Boulder, Colorado — the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the squirrels are peaking into our window, and… people are stumbling home wrapped in nothing but a blanket. It’s the day after St. Patrick’s, so you better believe our university town is pretty hungover this morning. Thankfully, I’m only nursing a reaction to all the Benadryl I had to take yesterday — Spring is lovely, but a bit of a transition, immunologically, for some of us!

I must say that Sunday is, now, without a doubt, my favorite day.  While they used to be a source of great anxiety, I feel like I’ve finally grown up a little, and now I look forward to Sunday mornings with joy. At last I’ve realized that a necessary component of “success” in my endeavors, is to set boundaries for myself, and to commit to making time for rejuvenation. Because Sundays were such a stressful time for me in the past, I chose to implement them as a day devoid of all pressure; I do only what I want to do on Sundays, insofar as it is possible.

Today, I wanted to drink strong coffee (usually a once-a-week treat for me), make a special breakfast, and linger over it with my favorite person.

So that’s precisely what I did.

And I was so utterly delighted (and shocked!) with this recipe — which I’ve been playing with for months, and only today wrote down the measurements for — that I just had to share it with you. Forgive me if the photos aren’t the best — I was so eager to post the recipe that I shot this stack on my porch as soon as they were off the griddle! It is wonderfully simple, and my husband (who is a gluten-eat) devoured two batches… Two batches!

Gluten-Free Almond Flour Pancakes
These pancakes taste just like those of my childhood, but without all the dryness that would compel me to drown them in syrup. They are perfectly moist, tender, and just sweet enough to tantalize. Delicious even without maple syrup, they would work beautifully as a quick rolled-up PB and J. Top with succulent fruit, and savor spring’s arrival! Reawaken those mornings of your youth — but be sure to serve with a more adult side of strong coffee for maximum pleasure. (That sounded like a prophylactic commercial. Sorry.)

Ingredients:
~1 TB extra virgin olive oil for pan (you can’t taste it, don’t worry!)
2 C. blanched almond flour  (make your own, or buy it here in bulk, like I do)
1/4 C. arrowroot powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 whole eggs + 2 egg whites
1/4 C. agave nectar (you can decrease this by 1 TB if you like)
1/2 C. unsweetened almond milk
dash of vanilla extract

Recipe:
1) Heat oil in a small cast iron skillet over medium.
2) Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3) Mix wet ingredients in a small bowl; whisk eggs thoroughly.
4) Add wet ingredients to dry. If you want to thin it out a tad more, add another small splash of milk.
5) In ~2-3 tablespoon size scoops, pour the batter into the skillet one pancake at a time. Using a fork, spread evenly to a thin layer.
6) Keep a close eye on the bottom of the cake — you will likely need to turn it down a notch over the course of cooking the pancakes, because almond flour burns easily. Once bubbles start opening on the top of the batter, very, very carefully (supporting the pancake completely with a spatula), flip the pancake. When browned on both sides, set aside on a plate. (It may take a couple tries to get the method down, but they’ll be delicious even if malformed.: )
7) Repeat until all the batter is gone.

Top with pure maple syrup, and, if you like, fresh, organic strawberries. My husband liked a few of his slathered with a little natural peanut butter as well. They keep quite well in the refrigerator, just be sure to keep them well-covered.

Over breakfast, we chatted (amongst other things) about how reading fiction changes us (which was rooted in this interesting piece). This semester, I have achieved my goal of reading for fun again — not academic purposes — and it is a beautiful revival! I can’t seem to put my reading down at night, and I have even been walking home from classes and the gym with novel in hand (well, my novel on my Kindle in my hand, but you know what I mean). There’s so much to be learned about a good and flourishing life in works of imagination!

I’m now going to return to my novel, and pretend that I don’t have any midterms this week. Just for today. Ah, grad school — it’s one big delusion after another… I also hope to catch up on comments, which I seem to be perpetually behind on — alas. Know that I love reading them. I hope you can take some time today for a healthy and delicious treat (like pancakes!) and/or a good chapter of a novel. Nourish yourself!

What is your Sunday ritual?

Are you reading anything for fun?

Yep.

I went there.

I so went there.

We are all probably wanting relief right now, yes? Dog days indeed. Truth be told, if I would have had tequila on hand, I probably would have thrown it in there too. Margarita ice cream? Shoot. It’s 100 flippin’ degrees out — don’t mind if I do!

Remember how I said in my last post that I worked in a local ice cream shop in high school? Yeahhh… about that. Lime ice cream (not with bright green, fake lime flavoring — real lime zest and juice) was how I gained a few extra pounds that summer… But seriously, can you blame me?! This version is a healthy, vegan take on that indulgence. It’s just three simple, delicious, whole-food ingredients. What else could possibly be more refreshing than cold, creamy, lime on these last sweltering days of summer when you feel like you’ve been trapped in the armpit of Hades? It has just enough tart and zing to perk your tastebuds and your mood. (That was way cheesier than I meant it to be. Forgive me.)

Plus, once you share the three magical ingredients, it will make everyone around you start singing and dancing to this song in the kitchen (at least…if you’re a member of my family, apparently):

It’s okay if you drop your spoon (perhaps in a garden as you take photos…ahem), or are simply in a hurry — just get that ice cream in your mouth, friend.

You know you want to go there too. So do it. Go there. And don’t look back.

Ingredients:
2 cans coconut milk
1/2 C agave or honey
2 fresh limes

Recipe:

1) Zest limes.
2) Mix coconut milk, sweetener, zest, and juice of both limes in a large bowl. Taste, and adjust sweetness if desired.
3) Process according to instructions included with ice cream maker.

Um… Do you see those flecks of green? That is deliciousness, otherwise known as lime zest. If you can eat graham crackers (or know how to make a GF version), this would be an a-m-a-z-i-n-g Key Lime pie substitute. I’m drooling on my keyboard so… This just got awkward.

How are you staying cool?

We made two different kinds of vegan ice cream this weekend.

I know. We might have a problem. But hear me out!

Please see the following list for really good justifications reasons:

1) When were visiting my parents for a few days this weekend, I knew I wanted to get as much use out of this limited-time nectar-of-the-gods-making appliance (–> that we don’t have) as I could while we had the chance. (We are grad students, on a grad student budget — did I mention that 8000 times already?).
2) It is like the 5th circle of Hades hot outside right now.
3) The maker was my grandma’s, and holds some special memories in it’s adorable wooden frame.
4) The last time I made ice cream was with my grandma and this maker. It was a simple coconut milk base sweetened with agave, but G-Funk couldn’t get over how awesome it was that we used no dairy or refined sugar. She was crazy about such a neat new treat, one that I could take part in no less! (She was devastated that I couldn’t eat like most people.)
5) You know what? Coconut milk ice cream tastes better to me than dairy ever did. And I do what I please.

Psst: that is indeed a Trader Joe’s can from one of my ridiculous cross-country pilgrimages.

So… I used to not like mango. Seriously. But when I was in high school, I worked at a local ice cream shop (now out of business, God rest its soul) and while I didn’t get a discount, I did get the freedom to eat as much I wanted while on the clock. Anyway, one of the unique flavors was mango, and I was so convinced it would make me gag I didn’t even try it for months. Then one day, my life changed. Enter Mango. Hence, this classy, healthy, vegan, dairy-free, super-simple-with-no-nasty-high-fructose-corn-syrup-and-who-knows-what-else-flavoring version! It’s not even sweetened with refined sugar. Whaaa?

Bam! Deliciousness.

Ingredients:
1 16 oz can coconut milk (I used TJ’s light, but ten bucks says a the full-fat stuff has better flavor)
1 fresh mango (about 1 1/2 cups cubed; you could probably sub frozen mango chunks)
1/3 C honey, agave, or equivalent other sweetener

Recipe:
1) In food processor or blender, puree mango with sweetener until as smooth as possible.
2) Add coconut milk to puree and blend.
3) Follow directions on ice cream maker, then freeze.

You could easily adjust the sweetener based on how ripe your mango is – perhaps you’ll need more, perhaps less. The joy is that you can taste your mix before dumping it into the ice cream maker.

Actually… who am I kidding? The joy is in eating this stuff!

And licking the beater…

This is my shame/surprise face as I give proof of my ghetto-fabulousness over the sink.

After being found, enjoy properly, with garnish:

I took these photos as it was raining outside my folks’ house. ‘Twas a challenge with all that cloud cover and dripping! Nevertheless, the recipe needed to be shared. Immediately. So. Yeah. Borrow an ice cream maker if you don’t have one, or check out thrift stores. We saw about 90 in the Florida Goodwill when we were down there in July!

Even my (extremely picky and super-tasting) dad enjoyed a bowl…

= Winning.

I had to laugh when I saw how many other bloggers had the same thought this week — ice cream! Must be August, eh? If you are looking for more tropical vegan ice cream ideas, check out Elana Amsterdam’s recent post on a vegan Pina Colada ice cream. It looks so refreshing! She also has a list of links for other bloggers who are sharing this same brain for cold, sweet, dairy-free yummology

What flavor are you craving? (We have one more to share!)

So, Heather (of Heather Eats Almond Butter) recently linked to me because she is trying out the “no-’poo” method I wrote about here and here months ago. I had no idea so many people were interested in this — whoa! To summarize (though I highly recommend checking out the second post, in particular, which answers many FAQs), the “No [sham]Poo” method uses a mixture of baking soda and water to cleanse your hair. Then, a mixture of apple cider vinegar and water is used as a conditioner. I have been meaning to post an update for a few weeks (as I mentioned in my 7 Links post), but am just now getting around to it. You can read about HEAB’s experience thus far here, and Stephen [of neverhomemaker] here. This little article (featured on NPR) explains some of the reasons why people are avoiding shampoo. And now, I’m going to write the next chapter of my own story…

Where I left off last time was this being my new favorite. I had found my groove after a transition period, washed my hair a little less than usual, and was generally really pleased to not be dumping unnecessary manufactured chemicals (many being known carcinogens) onto my body and down the drain. (Not to mention that I was saving some serious cash. [P.S. Why do we use the phrase "not to mention" when we obviously always follow it by mentioning the thing we are supposedly not mentioning...?]) But something was going on that I kept dismissing… it seemed like it was just in my head. But it wasn’t. It was on my head.

(Yes, sorry… I am indeed warming my bum over a fire
whilst drinking coffee out of a Klean Kanteen cap. You know how classy I am.)

After searching through some forums, my suspicions seemed tentatively confirmed; I found out that I was not the only one wondering if my hair was turning a bit lighter, and maybe even a tad chestnut, after using this method for a few months. While the vast majority of individuals no ‘poo-ing it thought the rest of us were taking crazy pills, we were a small but sane bunch. Now, just to be totally clear: I am not 100%, convinced that the baking soda method was the culprit for my hair tone changing. In fact, every summer (including ones before I started this no ‘poo jazz), my hair gets natural highlights from the sun like whoa, and stylists often think I dye it to achieve such results (I have never colored my hair). I didn’t start noticing the lightening until months after I started using the baking soda, and I wonder if I was getting overzealous with how much I applied. I have only read about a few other people experiencing this lightening, so don’t let this freak you out. It could work beautifully for you! I just wanted to be transparent and keep you in the loop since so many were curious. Currently, I’m trying to find my new shampoo substitute; I gravitate towards Dr. Bronner’s because of it’s simple and healthy ingredients.

So. Here’s the thing: you should not disregard the method simply because of my (very uncertain) experience… Give it a shot! I still believe this is a great method for most people, and I will always swear by the ACV conditioner — nothing has made my hair healthier, ever. If you try nothing else, try the ACV and water as a conditioner. If you notice something that bothers you after 6 weeks (yes, remember, you need to give it a good transition window), drop the baking soda like it’s hot and move on to Dr. Bronner’s. No worries. But if you don’t find any troublesome side effects, why the heck not? It will cost you about 50 cents a month to do this, and be better for the environment than 99.9% of conventional products.

I’ll keep you posted on my final routine — whether or not I return to the baking soda method : )

Ok. Enough of this. Epic recipes coming your way this week. Get your excited face on, and your tea hot. You heard me.

What “eco-friendly” and healthy/healthiER personal products do you use? Is this something you have tried or want to try?

Have I scared you off?!?

I’ve never been a huge fan of Green Goddess Dressing. This shocks me, as well, seeing as I love green so much my blood is probably closer to an emerald tinge… (Random nerd question: Did you ever watch Star Trek: The Next Generation? Ok, please don’t stop reading my blog just because I’m weird like this. Anyway, Vulcans have green blood! I can relate. That is all.) For some reason, when I whipped this up, it worked for me, despite my not being keen on most GG varieties. It is tangy, herby, and reminds me a lot of ranch dressing, but without all the…gross stuff. Heh. Plus, it looks quite delicious atop all this colorful bounty our garden can’t stop generating!

If you are harvesting an abundance of herbs from your garden, you can easily substitute fresh basil and/or oregano. In fact, I think perhaps this dressing would really pop with an even more vibrant flavor if you did so! Just use the conversion of 1 tablespoon fresh herb for each teaspoon dried herb. Voila! You’re a fancy cook who uses fresh garden herbs. Don’t you feel classy?

Ingredients:
1 small avocado (~1/2-3/4 C diced…these are hard to measure precisely!)
1/2-3/4 C water (start with 1/2 C, add more if thinner consistency desired)
1/4 C chopped fresh parsely
1 Tb fresh lemon juice
1 t apple cider vinegar
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1 t garlic powder
1/2 t salt (warning: this might be a bit much for non-salt lovers like myself)

Recipe:
1) Add all ingredients except for herbs to a food processor.
2) Process briefly until things have combined, but aren’t perfectly smooth.
3) Add remaining ingredients (herbs). Process until smooth.

We store ours in a small glass mason jar, but it never lasts more than two days, the way we eat! : ) The citric acid from the lemon should keep things tasting nice and fresh for at least a couple days. If you prefer your GG dressing sweetener, simply add a few drops stevia.

P.S. – A trick for keeping your herbs fresh? Place them in a mason jar with just enough water to reach the tips. Keep in the fridge, towards the front (the back gets too cold and could freeze ‘em). Just make sure to trim off the leaves that would be submerged, or they’ll get goopy! If you’re worried it will get too chilly, just place a plastic bag over the top.

This is excellent tossed with a lettuce salad, or used as a healthier ranch dip! I served my first version of this with the Cucumber Lettuce Wraps at a party, and caught one rather reserved, professorly man uncharacteristically and quite enthusiastically maneuver himself across the table to grab the whole jar. He ate at least half of it by himself! Love those moments. I’ve since tweaked this recipe a bit, so hopefully it will send him running, not just awkwardly jogging and reaching, next time…

What kind of salad dressings are your favorite?

I grew up mostly on vinaigrettes, and we never had ranch, so it makes me yack when I even smell it! Never been a ranch fan. Our all-time favorite is the Honey Mustard Poppyseed, but here are more ideas: Apple Cider Vinaigrette, Asian Peanut Salad Dressing + Sauce, Summer Grilling Marinade (<– great on salads or as a marinade), and Zesty Italian Dressing.

If you have a garden, or know anyone who does, then you probably know what I mean when I talk about “zucchini monsters” and “squash bats.” Bats as in the baseball variety, not the animal. As in… “My summer squash is out of control and taking over my garden and growing to the size of baseball bats before I can even get to it!” Yep. That’s what’s happening ’round here. We are frantically harvesting summer squash and passing it off to just about anyone who will take it. We have a tiny plot, but we still had seven chock-full grocery bags last week. We keep showing up at all our friends’ doors with bags and bundles of the yellow gourds. Every day. Sometimes twice a day, if we’re feeling frisky. Our friends hate us. They are probably preparing to hold a No More Summer Squash protest at our little community garden plot tomorrow.

Good thing it’s completely — and I do mean completely — covered with squash plant tentacles, ready to intimidate and/or devour anyone who gets too close to all those little yellow babies it can’t stop popping out.

Anyway, as a result of this total domination of our garden, we’ve had to stretch our creative muscles. Hence, this deliciously gluten-free, vegan, high protein, and healthy spin on potato latkes. I considered spicing ‘em up more, but frankly they taste like an explosive collision of Awesome and Garden Vegetables. So. They didn’t need it. The pancakes (for lack of a better term) are crisp on the outside, and succulent on the inside. Yes, I just used “succulent” to reference vegetables. These are quite versatile, and would be perfect for a meal anytime of day! Especially if, you know…you have 100 lbs of summer squash to eat through in one week.

Keep a look out for more posts on cooking seasonally, and especially what to do with all those oppressively high-yielding crops.

Ingredients:
2 C grated summer squash (I used yellow, but you could try zucchini —  if zucchini, I’d add an extra Tb or two of chickpea flour and squeeze out all the excess moisture you can!)
1/4 C grated carrots
1/4 C chopped/chiffonaded fresh spinach
1/4 C diced red onion
1/2 C chickpea (garbanzo) flour (you may need a dash more)
1/2 t salt
1/2 t oregano
pepper to taste
dash of cayenne (if desired)
2 Tb extra virgin olive oil

Recipe:
1) After squash is grated, wring out excess water (you can press it through a cauldron, or pat it with paper towels, etc.) — don’t omit this, or they might turn out too soggy.
2) Mix all vegetables and spices in a medium sized bowl.
3) Mix in chickpea flour. Allow chickpea flour to absorb the vegetables’ moisture for about 5 minutes.
4) Heat ~1-2 Tb oil in a large frying pan or skillet over medium heat.
5) Drop squash mix by rounded (table)spoon into skillet, flattening and shaping with spoon.
6) After roughly 1-2 minutes, use a spatula to carefully flip each pancake.
7) Once both sides are browned, remove, add more oil if needed, and repeat until all the batter is gone.

The BFF Manfriend and our good buddy Dan came home from their lunch not too long after I made these. And so ended the existence of the squash pancakes. Also, so began the story of my husband asking me to make these for dinner every night this week.

Somehow, I think we’ll be able to swing that.

(The recipe, not the squash bat… [<-- that one was for you, Dad.])

Featured in Slightly Indulgent Tuesday at Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free.

Do you have a garden? A CSA?

An overly “generous” neighbor who can’t stop bringing you yellow squash? (I knocked and knocked — where were you?! P.S. I have more squash!)

What abundance of seasonal produce is taking over your kitchen?

Ok. I am still a blogger in progress… I learn things from trial and error. Case in point: I now know that I should have spread some ketchup on the top of this to make it “pop” more in the pictures. It looks bland, it looks boring, it looks…like meatloaf. But I assure you, this loaf is not only cheap to make, healthy to eat, packed with protein, and unphotogenic — it’s also really, really tasty. I had my worries when I served it to my friends Matt and Megan; I had finally actually measured what I put into this dish, and written a real recipe down. I worry that meals don’t turn out as well when I have to use tablespoons to calculate instead of handfuls and pinches. But Matt and Megan ended up asking for the recipe to make an appearance on the blog! I figure, if Matt was comfortable saying, “This is my new favorite food! Something Loaf! What did you call it?” it can’t be that bad. This is a very tame recipe, too, so it’s a decent way to introduce lentils to someone not very well acquainted with them. I’d like to do more potent variations — strong Italian flavors, and so on. Mmm. So on.

Also… Meat Loaf is my ALL TIME favorite 80s/90s rocker. My friends and family totally know what I mean when I casually talk about “The Loaf.” In high school, I once jammed out in my little red Saturn to his best song ever (see below) with my friend Haley. As we sat parked in her driveway, Sonic Limeaides in the cupholders (forgive me), at the height of the ballad, I grabbed my car lighter and proceeded to wave it around like a “real” lighter. You know, just like you would at a concert? Yeah. One limeaide too many, apparently, because my thumb slipped… The burns didn’t go away until late college. ( = I had a circle on my fingerprint for years.) True fan devotion.

There is a fine line between “ironically” liking something (the 80s, for instance), and actually liking something. Meat Loaf was once in the blurry overlap of these categories for me. Now, I think I’ve discovered that I legitimately enjoy the doofus. He’s lovable, in a stray cat kind of way, you know? A really, really large, odd, stray cat. That likes to dress up in costumes. Bonus: I do the best rendition of “I Would Do Anything for Love” (the 12 minute version) that you will ever see. Seriously. I have witnesses.

Back to the Non-Meat Loaf… I honestly don’t remember where I first learned about the concept of a lentil loaf, so I’m not sure who to credit for initially inspiring the idea! I’ve been making these types of loaves for a year or so, and this week when I did a search to try and find out where I encountered it back then, I found that there are a myriad of similar recipes out there. That did not make sorting through them easy, and I still don’t know who the catalyst was for me. But I did find Angela at Oh She Glows’ lentil loaf recipe in the process, and Angela’s version looks wonderful, with accents of apple, raisin, and walnut. I would definitely recommend checking out her unique take on this dish if you’re looking for something a little different. Also, she used the blending method with success as well, so trust us — it works : )

Ingredients:
1/4 C flax meal
1/2 C water
1-2 Tb extra virgin olive oil
1 C shredded carrot (I used a cheese grater…classy)
1 small onion (I always use red)
2-3 cloves garlic
1 Tb oregano
1 Tb (heaping) cumin
2 C cooked lentils (I used French; they were on sale)
1/2 C almond flour
salt
pepper

Recipe:
1) With a fork, whisk together flax and water in a bowl and set aside.
2) Dice onions and garlic.
3) In a large pan, saute onions and shredded carrots in olive oil over medium heat. (I sprinkle salt on mine to get them to sweat out moisture.)
4) Add garlic after a few minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning.
5) Remove from heat after onions become translucent. Add lentils and almond flour.
6) Place 80-90% of the mixture in a food processor or blender until it is more processed than not. (See below for pictures.) Place back in pan or a large bowl.
7) Salt (and pepper) generously, and add flax “egg” mix to lentil mix.
8 ) Press into two loaf pans (mine are the strange size of 7 1/2 x 3 1/2 x 2 1/4, but you can use bigger or smaller ones — the baking time will vary, however), and place in a 375* oven.
9) Check on the loaf periodically, but they will most likely take at least 45 minutes. It’s done when you tap on the top and it’s stiff, and sides are browned. Let them cool before slicing!

Some tips: I tend to put some parchment or foil into my pans before I make this (mainly because my pans are kind of…”used”). It makes taking the loaf out a cinch, so I remove it after a few minutes of cooling to speed up the process. Here is the texture I achieved when I processed the lentil mix (go a tad smoother than this, though — I liked it better that way when I re-tested):

Here’s the contrast of how the processed lentil mixture looks next to the whole mixture.

You can omit this step, but it will most likely be crumbly if you do. Just a head’s up!

We love to have these loaves on hand during the school year, especially, because they make a portable, fast lunch, and a quick, easy dinner if made ahead of time on a lazy Sunday afternoon. We douse ours in agave ketchup, mustard, and hot sauce. It sounds juvenile, but really it’s just delicious ; )

Have you tried lentil loaf before?

(more…)

When I used to go out for sushi on a semi-normal basis, my favorite part wasn’t necessarily the sushi… It was the complementary salad that some of the restaurants I frequented would offer. More specifically, it was the ridiculously delicious peanut dressing that was dolloped on the lettuce leaves. However… the whole “mayo” and “high fructose corny syrup” and “preservative” thang was sort of a turn-off.

Do you want to know something funny? I love lettuce — I will eat it like an apple right off the head, I will chomp on leaves like a rabbit, I will eat a salad without any dressing at all. And I’ll like it. I am not a dressing person… But I also know that I am a freak little different than most people. And since I want to serve healthy food to the people I love, I realize that I’m a lot more persuasive when I serve my veggies with a little somethin’ somethin’ to drench them in. I’m no fool, folks — I am fully cognizant that my friend Joshua comes over to our place to eat solely for the honey mustard poppyseed dressing. Hey, I’m just glad he’s eating a fresh vegetable… those bachelors like to get a little reliant on smoothies and breakfast burritos, from what I hear… (<3 you Joshua!)

When a lovely reader named Brenda asked if I could please post some more dressings (apparently she, too, is hooked on the honey mustard poppyseed), and preferably ones that don’t require a blender, I was more than delighted to oblige. So, here is the first in hopefully a string of successful vegetable-disguising-or-complementing-depending-on-your-perspective dressings! I served an unfortunately water-ed down version of this with the cucumber-wrapped salads (apparently I have sushi on the brain lately, eh?), along with another dressing yet to be published. I tweaked this by eliminating the added water altogether and voila! Perfection. It’s now gone after just one sitting between the Husband and myself. Yes, we like to eat.

The best part? You probably already have all the ingredients, and it takes about 2 minutes total to get everything together, poured, and whipped up. Win!

Ingredients:
1/4 C peanut butter
2 Tb agave
1.5 Tb lemon or lime juice (fresh)
1 Tb apple cider vinegar
2 tsp gluten-free tamari (you can sub soy sauce if you eat gluten)

Recipe(ish):
1) Mix all ingredients in a bowl or small glass mason jar. Cover and store in the fridge.

Wow. One step. That’s pretty easy, yes? Not to mention it is crazy healthy! This dressing has a protein punch thanks to the peanut butter, which I don’t think any other variety of salad dressing can boast. It’s also versatile; it would be delicious as a sauce to toss with stir-fry, or pour over whole grains like millet or brown rice (my BFF Manfriend will be coating his pasta with this from now on), or in a number of other delicious scenarios. (Personally, I’ll be eating the salad I just made for these photos. It’s 8am, but I don’t care. It’s awesome. So. Yeah.)

Go nuts with the possibilities! (No pun intended; peanuts are legumes, not nuts…hehe.)

In other news, this weekend, I will be staying up in the mountains with my mom’s side of the family. We get the chance to celebrate my grandma (I called her G-Funk, and yes, she was adorable and loved it) and her life, which ended early this spring. Even though I am saying my final goodbye to one of my best friends (I mean that sincerely), and it will feel strange to be savoring all the things she loved without her, I am so thankful that we get to be together in one of her favorite places, and enjoy nature just as she would have.

What are you doing this weekend?

Have you ever tried the awesomesauce that sushi places serve on salads?

Ok, so. About this… I had to practice a lot of self-restraint to not blurt out what I had made all over Twitter and Facebook. Instead, I teased. I talked about riding my bike to various grocery stores 5 times in 95*+ heat. I talked about my 4 failed attempts. I talked about standing in front of my stove for hours with no air conditioning in the middle of summer. I talked about letting some frustrations slip out of my mouth as I paid for yet another jar of vanilla beans. And I taunted that I had hit the vegan, gluten-free jackpot of deliciousness with the final success batch. After all that dramatic build-up, you can see what I was so dedicated to making…

When I saw Mama Pea’s take on a vegan version of Starbucks’ Petite Vanilla Scones last week, I was excited. I had been contemplating making a gluten-free version for months — literally, months. Somehow I had gotten wind of this Starbucks scone craze, and then ran across it via a random link to The Pioneer Woman’s blog. The wheels were churning. If you take a look at that version, you might notice why I would need to use some creativity; cream, wheat, and butter aren’t so much included in my diet. I was totally overwhelmed. What would they be made out of?! But then I saw Mama Pea’s genius “health-ified” upgrade — and a vegan one at that! No more excuses. No more missing out on tasty treats. It was time to vegan-ify my scone recipe, and make a gluten-free alternative to these adorable little scones. At last — gluten-free eaters, rejoice! You can partake in the deliciousness. Huzzah!

P.S. My recipe looks way more complicated than it is — trust me.

Ingredients:
3 Tb water + 1 Tb ground flax seed
2 1/2 C blanched almond flour (make your own and save)
2 Tb arrowroot powder
2 Tb coconut flour
3/4 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1/4 C agave nectar
1/2 Tb vanilla extract
1 t fresh lemon juice
1 vanilla bean pod

Recipe:
1) Mix water and flax together with a fork and set aside for 10 minutes (ideally, you can put everything else together during this time).
2) Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3) Mix agave, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and vanilla bean pod scrapings (click here for tutorial).
4) Add agave mixture to dry ingredients. Stir, and add flax egg.
5) Stir until combined. I like to actually use my hands to mix gently and thoroughly.
6) Flatten into a rectangle on a parchment-lined baking sheet. It won’t rise much in the oven, so keep that in mind, thickness-wise. My dough was around 1/2″-3/4″, I would guess.
7) Cut four even lines into dough with a sharp knife,. (Example)
8 ) Cut three more even lines in the opposite direction. (Example)
9) Cut each small rectangle/square in half on the diagonal for a total of 24 mini scone triangles.
10) Arrange carefully on the baking sheet so that they are spread evenly. Pop in a 350* oven for about 10-12 minutes — until the edges and tops are lightly browned. Let cool.

Vanilla Bean Glaze

Ingredients:
1 C powdered sugar (corn-free for some of us!)
2 Tb unsweetened almond milk (I used vanilla for added flair)
2 vanilla bean pod

Recipe:
1) Add almond milk to powdered sugar. It will seem to dry at first, but just trust and keep stirring with a fork until smooth.
2) Scrape the vanilla bean pod and stir into glaze mixture.

You can certainly halve the glaze recipe and just lightly lace your scones with a slight drizzle of frosting. I just included the whole recipe in case you are crazy about the glaze…y. I avoid refined-type sugar as much as possible (my body doesn’t do well with it), but I’m still working on a mild-tasting, sugar-free alternative. If you can’t eat this small amount of powdered sugar, don’t fret! Simply mix the vanilla bean scrapings with agave or honey and drizzle immediately before serving (it will eventually soak into the scone and make it soft). Still delicious — just different : )

So. Do they look worth the teasing? Perhaps not after you look at Mama Pea and The Pioneer Woman’s beautiful photography. I admit it, I don’t have a DSLR, or — what really counts – mad skillz. BUT if you taste these, do come back and let me know what you think. I’m guessing somewhere in between “vanilla sugar cookie” and “what a rainbow would taste like if it exploded with joy in my mouth.”

Oh yeah — and speaking of exploding (good transition, Katie)… If you want to make a fun 4th of July brunch spread, how about this banner of delicious, patriotic themed scones?! Thanks to Kelly of The Spunky Coconut for hosting another great Our Spunky Holiday Gluten-Free Carnival!

Red (ish)

White…

And blue:

Any other fun ideas you’d like to see adapted?

I’m not the first person to make an avocado-based vegan “ice cream” or frozen pudding. I realize this! (And if you or someone you know about has a fantastic vegan ice cream/mousse recipe, please leave a link in the comments for others to enjoy; I’m honestly not even sure where I first encountered the idea years ago, as it’s become so ubiquitous!) But, the interesting twist is that I hadn’t intended to make this in the first place; it was the byproduct of a failed attempt to create something else. Hopefully later this week I can show you a (not-failed) finished product of my original goal… This is still smooth, sweet, and totally delectable. In the meantime, here is a happy accident; similar to ice cream, this creamy treat is perfect for the dog days of summer.

Or, you know…whenever you want chocolate.

Ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
1/4 C + 1 Tb cocoa powder
1/4 C agave nectar
1 t vanilla extract
4 Tb unsweetened almond milk (I used vanilla)

Recipe:
1) Throw all ingredients into a blender or food processor and mix until smooth, scraping down sides as needed.
2) Pour/spoon into glass container and place, covered, in freezer for about 5-8 hours. (I used a champagne flute for added classiness…or because it’s what would fit in my overstuffed freezer.)
3) Remove when it is fully frozen (which admittedly, takes a while), and devour!

Now, as with pretty much all my recipes and methods, you can adjust this pretty easily. One avocado might be smaller or larger than another, so if you want to gradually add the agave as you make it, certainly do so. You all know that I am a proud supporter of “tasting along the way,” yes? Yes. And if you haven’t played with this green fruit outside of guacamole, and are wondering what is wrong with me…. Try it. You can’t taste it. At all. Fo rizzy.

Healthy-sneaky win!

Have you tried avocados in dessert before?

Featured in Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays at Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free.