Lovely Summer Meal

Inspired by the Warm Spring Rolls recipe in Kim Barnouin's cookbook, I created these spring rolls for dinner last night. I really was planning on using the recipe in the book, but after cutting out some things and adding others, this is what I ended up with. I thought spring rolls would end up being a time consuming task, but with only serving 2 it really was pretty easy.

As a bonus, the vegan version is gluten free!

Saute one small head of cabbage, a package of baby bella mushrooms chopped, diced onion, and carrots cut into matchsticks. Saute them with a some water and add some freshly grated ginger, garlic powder, and red pepper flakes to taste.

For Matt's spring rolls I used Nasoya Egg Roll Wraps. These contain eggs, so are not vegan.

They were pretty easy to work with, just add some filling and roll up according to the back of the package.

For the vegan ones, I used rice paper wraps. These are sold in any Asian market as well as the world food section of grocery stores. They are packaged dried, so they will need to be softened up before the filling is added.

Put some water on a plate and then gently press a single wrap into the water on both sides. You don't need to do this for long as it softens up quick and will continue to soften out of the water as well.

Add some filling and wrap it up, making sure to tuck in the sides.

Usually spring rolls made with rice paper wraps are served cold, but with some experimentation, I discovered another lovely way to eat them. Rub some olive oil on each

spring roll, front, back, and sides. You could use a brush, or just dip a finger or two in some olive oil and rub it on that way. Place on a baking sheet and back for about 10 minutes at 400 degrees F. Check on them from time to time to make sure that the wraps do not get too crispy. They should be pliable and able to easily eat.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce. Matt made a lovely peanut sauce to go with our spring rolls. Just mix some peanut butter with enough water to thin it down in a saucepan and season to your liking with soy sauce, fresh ginger, and red pepper flakes.

Delicious! I am looking forward to trying more filling ideas.

Gluten Free Scones

Scones are a treat that I bake often. I choose them over muffins or cookies. Matt asks for them every other week. We love them. Lately, I have cut most wheat out of my diet (I have had some soy sauce here and there). So I've been relying on spelt flour for a lot of my baking and have also been trying to incorporate more gluten free recipes.

So, last night when Matt asked me to bake scones, I decided to bake two kinds and try one gluten free. The results were pretty great. I was really impressed. This is the recipe I used, and below is how I adapted it. I am also trying to lower the amount of sugar I eat, so I substituted some ground shredded coconut to replace the sugar bulk. I really liked the result, but you can tell that there are coconut shreds in the scone when you are chewing. If you don't like coconut and are not opposed to the sugar, try it that way.

Low Sugar, Gluten Free, Chocolate Chip Scones

1 cup sweet white sorghum flour

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/4 cup tapioca starch

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, ground even finer in a

coffee grinder or food processor

1 Tbs baking powder

few shakes of sea salt

1/2 to 1 teas cinnamon (depending on your preference)

1/3 cup unrefined coconut oil

1 cup of almond milk mixed with 1 teas apple cider vinegar

1 teas vanilla extract

1/4 teas almond extract

1/2 cup chocolate chips

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a measuring cup combine milk and apple cider vinegar and let set a couple minutes. Meanwhile, cut in the coconut oil and combine until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in the chocolate chips. Add the vanilla and almond extracts to the milk mixture and pour into the dry mix and combine, adding more milk if needed. The dough should be able to stick together when shaping it in your hands. Shape the dough into a ball and transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment. Flatten and shape the dough into a disc about an inch thick. Pour a tiny bit of almond milk on top of the shaped dough and brush it across the surface. Sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for about 12 minutes at 450 degrees F.

Baking Binge

A baking binge is something I know all to well, and love just a bit to much. To me a baking binge is when in the course of 4 days or more, I can't help but pull out my mixing bowls and whip up something amazing each day. It can get quite addicting - the fun of stirring together the ingredients, and the anticipation of the taste of something delightfully sweet. Here is an example in pictures. This all happened about a month ago.

Sunday: Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes from the cookbook The Joy of Vegan Baking.

These cupcakes were great and simple. Just a basic chocolate cake recipe and a cream cheese frosting that was tucked inside the cupcake. Next time you make cupcakes, let them cool all the way, take a knife and cut out a hole in the center (not the whole way thru), and dollop some frosting inside. Top it off with the piece that was cut out. It makes for an amazing frosting to cupcake ratio if the hole is deep enough and wide enough. Frosting with every bite is always acceptable!

Monday: Chocolate Chip Scones from the same delightful cookbook as above.

These are some of the best scones I have ever had. light and fluffy with just the right amount of sweetness. Sometimes I add a lot of cinnamon to the batter, and sometimes I just dust the tops with cinnamon sugar. These are especially good warm from the oven when the chocolate is still melty. Enjoy with a cup of coffee or Cafix (my choice of coffee substitutes).

Tuesday: Grape Pie - not pictured. I made this for a carry-in at work. It was sugar free, and kind of like thickened welches grape juice between a flaky crust. Definitely different, and not my favorite.

Wednesday: Gluten free Banana Bread from the cookbook Babycakes.

This banana bread has become a recurrence in my kitchen over the past few weeks. So good and sugar free too.
Here are some of the ingredients I used for the bread. Almond Breeze - my favorite almond milk, coconut oil, and Bob's Red Mill Gluten free All Purpose - which made for great results. The sweetener used was made from the sap of the coconut tree - amazing.

This bread is great warmed up in the oven an slathered with a bit of Earth balance Buttery Spread. Yum.

There you have it, a baking binge. I think I am due for another one in the not to distant future.