Welcome! This is a way for me to share about my experiences as they relate to myself, family, health, compassionate cooking, baking and yoga. Enjoy!

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Getting Educated Together!


Continuing with my "share the education of healing"… Dr. Dean Ornish discusses how studies show diseases/disorders such as, cardiovascular disease, impotence, prostate cancer and others are strongly affected by the choices of what we eat and how we live. Remember, this is only 16 minutes, but if you are short on time, listen while getting ready, although this one has some pretty funny graphics.
*As a side note, he recommends fish oil for omega 3. This talk was done several years ago, so we now have more plant-based options for increasing our omega 3's. We use Ovega 3 or Vegetarian DHA by Spectrum.

Saturday, June 20, 2015

Crepe Style Pancakes


I have been wanting crepe's lately and have been making raw banana crepes, which are amazing, but I was really wanting the cooked, warm style too.  My issue is that I just did not feel like waiting, making one crepe at a time for a family of five.  What to do, what to do…(imagine me drumming my fingers on the counter,  looking up at the ceiling as I think here).  I know! I will experiment with a pancake recipe, making them light, yet flat and crispy like a crepe.  This way, I can make six at a time on my stove top, cast-iron skillet.

So, rolling up my sleeves (actually it's summer, so I already have short sleeves, but you know what I mean), I head to the kitchen and start throwing things together.  The best recipes are the ones that use only one bowl, so that was my starting point.  I am a big proponent of practicing Mise en Place (you know we've been learning French for the past year, so how convenient to be able to use it with my other passion, which is cooking in case you didn't know).  Mise en Place simply means to "put everything in it's place", so in cooking/baking terms, this would mean to gather all the ingredients needed prior to beginning the recipe.  This allows things to flow so much better and makes even lengthy recipes seem manageable.  I always practice this, no matter how simple or complicated a recipe is.  This also avoids any instances of realizing you do not have a specific item needed in the middle of your preparation.

Okay, so I did not want fluffy pancakes, this would mean no baking powder.  However, I did not want a runny mess either.  The trick was to use something that would allow for the batter to spread and create that nice light, airy, texture.  What I came up with was a combination of things that gave it the consistency needed, while allowing the mixture to stick together.  After all, they are also gluten-free and vegan, which means no egg, animal diary, or gluten protein to allow for the binding, so things holding together is always a concern in the GF/vegan world.  As you've learned through previous posts, I never use xanthan gum or guar gum.  They are NOT needed as long as you use other binders (such as ground flax meal, whole or ground chia seeds, or Ener-G).  As you can see, I like challenging myself.  Cooking and baking for a GF, vegan family, who also has some members with corn, soy and nut allergies, keeps me on my toes.  That's right people, this recipe is GF, corn free, dairy free, egg free, soy free and nut free (I do use coconut milk, which is not truly a nut, but a seed.  If you have an allergy to coconut try using Rice Milk, Flax Milk, Oat Milk or Hemp Milk and let me know how it turns out).

My creation began with a few staples, Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour, Himalayan pink salt and ground flax meal.  From there, it was a true guessing game.  End result?  I won the game because these babies are amazing!  Test the recipe out for yourselves and be sure to let me know what you think!

Crepe Style Pancakes
Serves 24 small pancakes or 12 large

Ingredients:
2 c. GF Flour
1/4 c. Tapioca Flour
1/4 c. Ground Flax Meal
1 Tbsp. Cream of Tartar
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 c. Turbinado Sugar
1/4 tsp. Himalayan Pink Salt
1/4 tsp. Ground Ginger*
1/4 tsp. Ground Cardamom*
1/4 tsp. Ground Allspice*
1/8 tsp. Ground Clove*
1 tsp. Ground Vanilla Bean (or 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract)
1 can Coconut Milk (NOT light)
1/2 c. Mashed banana (which is about 1 medium banana)
3/4 c. Filtered Water
1-2 c. Blueberries, fresh or frozen** (optional)

Directions:
1.  Heat stove-top skillet over medium high heat to get it nice and hot.  While warming, begin putting recipe together.  I like using the double burner skillet because I can make 6 small crepes at once.
2.  In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients and whisk to mix well.
3.  In a small bowl mash banana, and banana and remaining wet ingredients to dry mix.  Combine well, since it's GF you do not have to worry about over mixing.
4.  Turn skillet down to medium.  Lightly spray skillet with olive oil or coconut oil (this will help give it that crispness).
5.  For small crepes use 1/4 cup measuring cup, large crepes use 1/2 cup, pour onto prepared skillet and cook 2 minutes per side or until golden brown on each (see note if using frozen berries for recommended cook time).

*If you do not want to use four different spices, replace ginger, cardamom, allspice and clove with 2 tsp. ground cinnamon.
**If using frozen berries you will need a longer cook time.  I used four minutes per side and they were perfect.  Allow to cool for a minute before serving to make sure all the batter has set.

You can top with any add on's: coconut whipped cream, cashew cream, additional berries, nuts, seeds, syrup, cacao nibs, chocolate chips, etc.,  or you can put a filling down the center and roll it up just like a traditional crepe.  Either way, these are delicious!







Jamie Oliver - TED Talk on Obesity and Food

Over the next week I will be sharing information to raise awareness of how important food and food education is to our quality of life as individuals, a community, a nation and a world. Hopefully you will find the 15-20 minutes that each well-known speaker offers. If you truly do not feel you have time, try playing them while getting ready in the morning or while driving in the car (listen only, no watching if driving wink emoticon ). By the way, Jamie Oliver is not vegan, he just cares about people. Our children, and their children, need us to do the right thing and put our, and their, health first. Eating healthy can be done on a budget and it doesn't mean you have to give up having fun foods once in awhile. It's about learning and teaching our children better options.