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Chocolate Berry Parfaits

Hi lovely readers. Boy, am I ever glad it’s August! I sure have one heck of a month lined up!

First, this little book I am writing is almost done. The final manuscript is due at the end of this month and I couldn’t be more giddy about it! I honestly don’t think I’ve been this excited since I discovered New Kids on the Block when I was like 9 years old. For real, I am that pumped.

Also! Because I am always up for a challenge and work best under pressure (sarcasm, indeed), this month my family and I are buttoning up a big move that will be taking us 500 miles east of Ohio. Yep, we are finally making the long anticipated trek to Philadelphia; we’ll be residents by the 1st of September! That’s so soon! I can’t even express to you all how genuinely excited we are about this relocation.

If any of you Philly readers have some tips to dole out for great places to eat, shop, or just plain be… I would love to hear from you. I mean, we know the city is chock full of awesome–that’s why we’re moving there–but getting some direct recommendations from you guys would be super swell. :D

So, to keep things short, sweet, and to the point (as well as provide a little extra time for writing, shooting photos, and packing) I whipped up this simple, but friggin’ stupendous parfait. I had mine for breakfast, but I’m pretty sure this would make an even better dessert.

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Summer Pasta-less Salad

Since the weather outside has been too hot for even this heat junkie to handle — with temperatures reaching close to 100 °F — I’ve been avoiding my oven and stove-top and instead looking to water-packed raw fruits and veggies to get me through these sweltering days of summer.

This light summer salad is reminiscent of the pasta salad I used to enjoy as a wee one… except I left out the heavy pasta and replaced it with my fave go-to summer staple: zucchini “noodles”. If you don’t have a spiralizer, a vegetable peeler works great too.

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Loaded Blueberry Muffins

 

As you guys can probably tell by now, I am a huge advocate of muffin making. I bake them often, and many times I like to feature them here on the blog. This is because, in my eyes, muffins may be the world’s most perfect food.

They are simple to prepare, they taste kinda like cake, and there are endless variations to be thought up. I could probably make muffins every single day and never repeat a flavor combo even once… at least for a year or so. And I’d relish every single minute of it. ♥

You know what else I love about muffins?  My picky two year old will eat them for breakfast. She has a hard time agreeing to putting anything in her mouth that’s not a “leaf” (kale salads, raw spinach, etc.) or a cookie. Yet, every single muffin I’ve ever fed her has been happily gobbled up–mostly by her, sometimes by the dog. She’s also into sharing.

When I make muffins these days, I like to jam them full of mix-ins to balance out all those leaves. ;) These are typical blueberry muffins with a few extras–buckwheat, zucchini, and banana–added in for good measure.

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White Chocolate, Raspberry & Sage Tart

Homemade white chocolate, berries from the backyard, and fresh sage from the garden all add up to a ridiculously easy, yet sophisticated, tart.

As I was making this tart (at this point, I had only finished baking the crust) my husband kept begging me to let him try it. So, by the time the whole thing was said and done and photos had been shot, he managed to eat HALF of said tart in about 10 minutes. And he’s not even a white chocolate fanatic like moi. My son and I were equally impressed with how much he liked this recipe; but, given its delectable and slightly minty flavor from the sage, neither of us were surprised. This is a really great tart.

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Fruity Spinach Salad & Happy News!

 

It’s been a buuuuuuusy week around the Kramer household. I’ve been putting in some major overtime trying to get this cookbook wrapped up. Sleeping has been replaced with early morning recipe testing and late night writing, my refrigerator is jam-packed with WAY too much food for a family of three and a half to deal with, and there are regularly just enough dirty dishes in my sink to keep me from filling my coffee pot with water so I can function throughout the day. :\

But, despite the busyness, I am loving life right now. The weather outside has been a blissful 90 degrees (yeah, I’m a heat junkie), and my garden is in full bloom even though I haven’t been able to tend to it this year. I guess it wanted to grow so badly that it just took care of itself. Pretty rad! We have kale, scallions, chamomile, rosemary, parsley, cilantro, mint, oregano, sage, berries, roses, and even purslane! So, it’s really a great time to be cooking up a storm. Ah, yes… life is good.

And, you guys… I have good news! Well, great news! I’ve been sitting on this exciting announcement for a while until it became “official”. And now it is. I’m super happy to say that my cookbook is getting published by Fair Winds Press… one of my all time favorite publishers of beautiful reads! So with that, comes an emphatic thank you to all of you. There’s no way in heck I would have ever had this opportunity if it wasn’t for you glorious readers out there, subscribing to my culinary rants, making my recipes, and keeping me motivated. You guys are the best.

The book’ll be hitting shelves Spring of 2012, and the [tentative] title is Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats. Keep an eye out for it! Unless of course you’re a regular follower of my blog, in which case I’ll be sure to remind you. :)

My testers have been hard at work too! Check out what a few of them have been up to:

The Vegan Chickpea

Forest Raven

Tiffany’s (of Bread Without Butter) flickr photostream Check out her blog too!

And, last but not least, Tofu’s Mobile Me Gallery

They’ve been busy helping me out, and I couldn’t be more appreciative of all their hard work. ♥

With a schedule like I have these days, one thing that’s keeping me fueled up is salads. Yep… I’ve been thriving on simple, colorful, nutritious bowls of yum. They always include some of my garden bounty in ‘em, which makes me especially proud to be noshing them. They’re good for your mind and body, and they are super easy to prepare. Oh, and they require very little cleanup!

This recipe is one of my faves. It’s filling enough to count as a full meal, yet simple enough to whip up last minute before heading out the door for some summertime fun (if you happen to have some cooked brown rice on hand, which is a frequent occurrence in my refrigerator). Feel free to adjust all seasonings and ingredients to your taste! This is, after all, a salad… mix it up!

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Coconut Basil Ice Cream

If you like basil… and you like coconut, try this ice cream. Since I’m from the sticks, I very rarely get the treat of eating “gourmet” vegan ice cream.  So, I realize that this flavor may very well be played out… but this is some tasty stuff!

Yesterday I was thinking how a mango/basil sorbet would be killergood for lunch (yeah, it’s been one of those weeks), and it clicked. Basil ice cream! No frills, just pure and delicious basil-y goodness hyped up with a little coconut milk. Then I googled it and saw that a few other folks had thought of that one already. But, it’s a really good idea! Maybe even classic? I think it’s my new favorite flavor.

Or not. Nothing will replace vanilla bean in this gal’s heart… but a close second? Yeah, I’ll give it that.

This ice cream has just the right amount of oomph from the peppery and minty basil, and a dash of coconut flair to make it shine. Perfected with a drizzle of chocolate on top.

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Pineapple Walnut Muffins

I’ve been on a major muffin kick lately; during the warmer months I truly appreciate having portable and easy snacks around. Makes life just a wee bit easier. I’ve also been raiding my pantry trying to use up some of the goodies I’ve had tucked away, and today I found a can of pineapples and a ton of walnuts. Perfect for muffin makin’!

These guys are moist, spongy, and laced with the tropical tang of pineapples and the earthy crunch of walnuts.

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Orange Sesame Yuba Rolls


 

A while back I learned about yuba, or tofu skin. If you’ve never heard of it, it’s basically the film that coagulates on the top of a boiled pan of soymilk.

Hungry yet?

But here’s the thing… this stuff is really good, but in kind of a strange way.

You see, I finally tried it, and it turns out that I love this stuff. I can imagine doing so much with it. Yuba is my friend!

With that said, I can see how it might be an acquired… um, texture to get used to. Pre-fried it looks a lot like a deflated balloon. It also has sort of a funny smell when you cook it the first time through (hey, just being honest). But, other than that…it’s great! It has a peculiar chewy and crispy texture when pan fried. It can also be used in a variety of other ways: as a dumpling wrap, vegan sausage casing, or just eatin’ fresh with some simple seasoning. Just like tofu, it soaks up any and every flavor you let it. And if you buy the dried, frozen or fresh varieties, it is super easy to prepare. Like, easier than tofu. For serious!

Now are you more interested? I hope so.

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Lemon Poppyseed Waffles

I am absolutely infatuated with lemons. I mean, what’s not to love? They have the fresh fragrance of a warm summer day, and their daisy yellow hue can make just about anyone smile. Not to mention, lemons pretty much get along with any flavor. Well, almost; I guess they don’t really mesh too well with chocolate. But since chocolate is another one of my flames, I’d prefer to keep a nice distance between the two. Lest I cause any jealousy and lose affection for either (the horror!).

But back to lemons…. aren’t they just the dreamiest?

<<Sigh>>

These waffles combine the crisp flavor of lemons with the fun crunch of poppyseeds… a timeless pair that never ceases to amaze me. Oh dear lemons, is there anything you guys can’t do?

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Raspberry Pecan Tart

This humble little dessert turned out to be quite a big hit with my family. There’s just something about toasted pecans and tangy raspberry jam that make for a delectable combo. My husband likened it to an extremely delicious (and much more appealing) nutra-grain bar. Yeah, I can get behind that.

It’s easy to toss together, and even easier to eat much more than intended. This is some addictive stuff; serve with caution.

By the way, there are some incredible double milled GF flours available from Authentic Foods. I was first introduced to the ‘superfine brown rice flour’ by the wonderful Julie Hasson (accompanied by raving reviews of the stuff by miss Kittee). But you guys, guess what? The fine folks at Authentic Foods also make a superfine sorghum flour (oh yes, my dreams have come true!)… and it’s the bees knees. For serious. I have been using it in everything lately, and I really enjoyed the results when I used it in this tart. I highly recommend trying it out if you’re up for a superfine splurge. Otherwise, just stick to regular sorghum flour for this recipe–it won’t hurt anything.

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Simple Rolled Sugar Cookies

I adore Spring, and I am always so excited when the official “first day of Spring” comes around, especially after a gruelingly cold winter. Yet, I never feel like I can fully appreciate the season during the first few weeks as it’s usually still quite cold in my part of the world.

But near the beginning of May, everything is budding and blooming and full of life. It’s a wonderful time of year! This warm spring weather puts me in the bestest of moods, even if it’s raining. And, when I’m in a good mood, I like to make cookies. And then I like to cover them in pastel colors!

We munched on these sugar cookies this past weekend– I think they helped put a little “spring” in everyone’s step!

So, even though it’s slightly belated….

Happy Spring, dear readers!

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Lavender Vanilla Bean Scones

Have you ever tasted a lavender scone?

One of the fondest food memories from my childhood was my first encounter with this fragrant breakfast treat. My mother had brought a box home from work one day–a client of hers had made them for her as a gift. Luckily, she shared them with me. I had never experienced anything like them before and will never forget their wonderfully unique flavor.

I’ve yet to see any lavender scones in the bakeshops around my hometown–especially vegan and gluten free versions. Sigh.

To enjoy such a scone, I must make it myself. But, please don’t get me wrong; I am not complaining. Baking these things in my own oven is pretty much the best type of aroma-therapy a girl can ask for. ♥

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Besan Fries

Besan flour–otherwise known as chickpea flour, gram flour or garbanzo bean flour–has become a coveted staple in my household. Almost every single day I make a quick meal using this versatile flour. Somehow, though, I missed the buzz about chickpea fries that seemed to be happening a couple of years ago… from folks like Mark Bittman, Martha Stewart, and even Oprah. Where have I been? I’m not sure either, but I promise I am never going back to that isolated place. Not after getting a taste of these crispy gems.

I admit, I’m not big on fried foods… really much at all. I have to eat fried stuff in extreme moderation because it jives badly with all the nutritious stuff (like raw veggies!) that my belly loves the most. But, if I ever have the craving for a few greasy french fries… I’ll probably reach for my bag of besan rather than my basket of potatoes.

These guys brings back memories of restaurant fries from my childhood: flavorful and crunchy with no need for dipping sauce. However, they do pair nicely with a blend of spicy mustard, a little Vegenaise and chili garlic sauce. Very nicely.

They are slightly more involved than your average fry, though. First you have to cook the batter and let it chill in the fridge until it firms up, almost like polenta. But after that, it’s smooth sailing. That is, if you’re not terrified of hot grease. In which case, it may be a tad more difficult for ya.

It’s great to make the batter and have it chilling in the fridge the night before so that you’ll have them ready to fry up the next day.

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