Last Chance for Hamantaschen Kit Order!

Purim is coming!
These Hamantaschen kits are a great opportunity to prepare the holiday's pastries with your kids (or by yourself!) with all the fun, the wholesome ingrdedients and without the mess, the gluten, the margarine and the overload of sugar.
Plus...while dough chills and cookies bake, the kits come with everything you need to decorate the box for a super cute mishloach manot.

Each Kit Contains:
- Dry cookie mix (premeasured, gluten free)
- Pure maple syrup (premeasured)
- Olive oil (premeasured)
- Fluted round cookie cutter
- 2 fruit-chia seed fillings
- Mini chocolate chips
- Kid-friendly decoration materials
- Baking instructions

Price: $30.00 per kit that makes about 2 dozen cookies

Please place your Hamantaschen Kit order by tomorrow night (2/13/13)

Winter Rainbows

Since she was very young, my daughter has loved colors. She could barley speak, but she could identify every hue. She was two and already knew what combination of primary colors made every secondary one. She requested her fourth birthday party to be rainbow themed, and even as she pretends now to be an 8-year-old teenager and begs me to get her pencil skirts and allow her to wear makeup, she still tries to wear as many colors as possible, even if that means complete mismatch. All her friends know rainbows are her thing, and she made her little brother memorize the right order of the color spectrum while he only wanted to play with cars.
And that's why the Eat-A-Rainbow strategy is so effective in my household, and I truly believe that it's the right way to teach our kids and ourselves how to eat right.
Of course, by eating-a-rainbow, I'm not referring to squeezing out the bottle of  Red #45 food coloring on the chicken (although, I did once accidentally served my guests blue fish after a container had fallen from the shelf onto the tilapia) or adding sprinkles.
The rainbow should be made up of plant-derived foods, that are NATURALLY pigmented.
The result is not only healthy, but fun, delicious and gorgeously looking. It's also easier to keep track of what we eat and how many more colorful fruits, veggies, etc we still need to eat to fulfill our daily rainbow quota.
For optimal health, we're supposed to eat 5 to 9 portions of produce each day, and it's easy to forget, so again, thinking of every color might help. I personally hate measuring and counting my food, so I fill my plate at least half full of a combination of plant-derived foods at every meal.
While combining different fruits, we make them even more nutritious, as the compounds in some plants synergize the compounds present in others; complementing and/or enhancing each other and interacting in different ways to help our bodies benefit more fully.
For example, the addition of foods rich in vitamin C (such as citrus, chile peppers, bell peppers, tomatoes, mango, etc) to dark leafy greens allows us to absorb the iron in the greens more effectively.
Another tip is adding oils, nuts or avocado to fruits and vegetables, as they help us use the vitamins A, D, E and K they might contain.
Besides being rich in vital nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, protein (especially legumes combined with whole grains) and good fats (avocado, nuts, seeds) and providing us with the fiber we need, produce contains other important substances.
The different colors are the natural marketing campaign plants use to attract us, and to teach us about some of the beneficial chemicals they contain. These substances are collectively known as phytochemicals or phytonutrients and there are more than 1000 of them.They  are non-nutritive plant chemicals that have protective or disease preventive properties. Phytochemicals are considered non-nutritive because they are not required by the human body for sustaining life, but they are beneficial to preserve our health (mostly in a preventive way). They are present in fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts and legumes. 

Phytonutrients can help us stay healthy in different ways, for example, most of them are ANTIOXIDANTS, which protect our cells against the oxidative damage of free radicals (from other foods, the environment, and our own metabolism), reducing the risk of developing certain types of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and other diseases; and can boost immunity to certain infections. 
Other phytochemicals have HORMONAL ACTION, for example, isoflavones, found in soy, imitate human estrogen and help to reduce menopausal symptoms and osteoporosis. Some phytonutrients STIMULATE or INTERVENE with ENZYMES and others INTERVENE WITH THE REPLICATION OF OUR DNA. For example, saponins, found in beans interfere with the replication of cell DNA, thereby preventing the multiplication of cancer cells. Capsaicin, found in hot peppers, protects DNA from carcinogens.

There are some phytochemicals with ANTIBACTERIAL EFFECT, such as allicin from garlic. Lastly, some phytonutrients can BIND PHYSICALLY to cell walls and prevent the adhesion of pathogens to human cell walls. This is the case with proanthocyanidins, which are responsible for the anti-adhesion properties of cranberries, which reduce the risk urinary tract infections and improve dental health through this mechanism. 


So, going back to the kitchen, let the color guide you when food shopping, and remember, that the deeper the color of each piece of produce, the higher level of phytochemicals. The following is a guide of some phytonutrients and their colors that is good to keep in mind to inspire your cooking. Mix and match at leisure, but always remember to vary your combinations of WHOLE PRODUCE as much as you can, to ensure you obtain the maximum benefit, not only of phytochemicals, but of all nutrients.
I love this quote published a couple of years ago in Martha Stewart Living (I know...how scientific of me!). David Jacobs, an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota said: "A tomato isn't just lycopene. An orange isn't just vitamin C. The foods we eat are living systems, with a careful balance of thousands of constituents, many of which are crucial to health. Even the balance in which they occur may be important." So...don't eat pills, eat salads and a huge variety of them!
 
Unfortunately, I don't know how to credit the great chart above, as I found it in Pinterest and it was taken from bing.com, but I hope the author gets credit for it.

And before I bid you farewell for today, let me share with you this roasted vegetable winter salad that I made. I know the cold season might be discouraging, but explore new fruits and vegetables. Have you eaten persimmons, pomelos or celeriac? Citrus, roots, dark leaves and members of the brassica family (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kohlirabi, etc) are amazing this time of the year and many just need to be roasted in olive oil and sea salt, while others are great eaten raw. You can also take advantage of the frozen produce section, and try the magic of turmeric and/or saffron in whole grains, or use some forbidden rice or multicolored beans. You might come up with something delicious, surprising and packed with nutrients.
For more info, visit:

http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/phytochemicals

http://www.phytochemicals.info/ 

WINTER RAINBOWS

Instead of giving you a recipe, let me tell you what I did, so you can use any ingredients you like. This time I used purple cauliflower, blood oranges and pomegranates, sweet potato, golden beets, fresh mint and roasted pistachios, but dare to use bok choy, red cabbage, bell peppers, artichokes, squash, corn and anything else you find that looks good.

• First of all, I made a BALSAMIC REDUCTION:

Just cook 2 cups of balsamic vinegar (don't waste money on a fancy kind, an inexpensive one works well in this case) in a medium saucepan over medium heat (you don't want it to boil, but just simmer) until the total liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup. It will take about 40 minutes. Keep an eye, but don't touch it!

Let cool.

It will thicken into a deliciously intense sweet and sour syrup. You will use only a little bit, but keep the rest covered in your fridge and use with other salads, vegetables, or as a glaze for meat or fish.

• While balsamic reduces, preheat oven to 425 F. and prep your veggies: wash, pat-dry, peel (if needed) and slice, keeping each color separate, so the colors don't combine. I use a mandoline for hard roots, but you can use a sharp knife too.

• Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Place one of the vegetables on the prepared sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Mix well and spread out all the pieces on one layer. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Bake until slightly browned. Set aside on a plate and work with the next vegetable. You can work with 2 sheets at a time.

• Plate vegetables, fruits and nuts taking advantage of their colors and shapes. Use leafy greens if you have them and drizzle all with more extra virgin olive oil and the balsamic reduction. Sprinkle with seeds or nuts for texture and enjoy!

 

Food Thoughts, Trends and Hopes for 2013

Growing up, I hated when my mother told me "I told you so," for anything she had predicted that would happen due to my conduct, and even after listening, I didn't obey. But now that I'm a wife and a mother, I have to admit, it feels so good to say it to others! So, indulge me as I look back, and forward for what I think happened, is happening and will happen this year in the world of food; healthy eating, in particular.
I know, I know! January is almost over, but I feel I'm still on time (my time, which, as people who see me dropping off my kids in school know, tends to be on the late side)!

First, let's look back so I can toot my own horn and say "I told you so."

• In 2012 chia seeds became so mainstream, that even Costco carries them now. No better marker than that. So, if you're not eating them yet...what are you waiting for? Here are some posts I wrote about the super seed, in case you missed them: click here, here, here, and here , among others. Just remember: don't eat more than 2 tablespoons chia per day. Your GI won't be so happy if you exceed that amount!

• It was an amazing year for cookbooks. Especially written by super talented bloggers that often developed and wrote the recipes, styled the food, and photographed it (or happened to be married to the photographer) all by themselves, which is pretty impressing. For a list of my favorite cookbooks, click here (notice that there are 3 pages).

• Happily, in 2012, produce became cooler than ever and is breaking through as a main component of dishes, not just a thought on the side. We might have to thank in part haute Nordic cuisine for that. I loved this story in Bon Appetit, it's worth reading.

• Luckily for people suffering from celiac disease and gluten intolerances, gluten free alternatives became more and more abundant and improved in quality. Also, some gluten free ancient grains were rescued from obscurity, such as buckwheat, millet, amaranth and others. Including quinoa, which is now ubiquitous and perhaps causing not that much happiness within the Southamerican population that initially ate it as a staple.

• In 2012 you were finally able to juice at your heart's content. Juice trucks, juice stores, mailed juice, juice experts, juice delivered...Not that I have anything against fresh produce, but I think we should be smoothing (as in blending all the plants together, without removing any pulp), not juicing, as in the juice, much of the healthy fiber content of the fruit or vegetable is taken off. Also, I think "detoxing" is the worst of this past year's fads. It just emphasizes going to extremes. You fast/juice then go crazy again eating junk. Good-Evil-Good-Evil, it just makes life very unsustainable. Why not just enjoy your juice or smoothie thinking that you're doing something good for your body without bringing up the "toxins"? You cannot live on cayenne-lime-turmeric juice alone. Sooner or later, you'll want to reach for the chocolate, and you'll feel so deprived after all the sacrifice of the juice fast, that you won't eat one piece, which would be fine, but  you'll stuff your face with all the chocolate you can find. Then you'll go back to juicing...

• 2012 was The Year of Kale, which is awesome! And...my son tried and liked baby bok choy!

• The Paleo diet became a huge trend. It's successful for some people suffering digestive disorders. However, I find life to be sad without any whole grains, so if people are healthy, I don't really see a reason to eliminate certain food groups completely, but I think the diet will keep gaining strength this year.

• Coconut has become the "pork" of the vegetarian world. Every single part of it is being used, from the shell to the water, it's quite an efficient product. Just look around and you'll find coconut oil, cream, milk, water, sugar, nectar, flour, butter, aminos. I love them all, but remember: none of those products will magically make us smart, healthy, interesting, fit, courageous nor gorgeous. It's all about the whole lifestyle.

• Alternative "milks" have become tastier, more diverse and interesting. Great news for lactose intolerants, vegans and just people wanting to try something new. There are many more options beyond soy milk. Nut milks such as cashew, almond, hazelnut and pistachio are great choices, people with allergies can have rice or oat milk, hemp, coconut (I like the canned, organic variety, that doesn't contain so many additives) and sunflower seed milks as good alternatives. Making your own is easy and you can avoid all sorts of artificial additives, but if you want convenience, make sure you read the ingredients first.

• Farm-to-Table. Is there anyone who hasn't heard the term yet?

Trends: this is what I think will be happening

• "Plant-Based Diet," is the name for the new wave of diets, prepared foods and dieting services. I LOVE it. It's what I believe in: lots of fruit, veggies, nuts and whole foods in general. Just to quote my idol, Michael Pollan, "Eat Food (as in REAL food), Not Too Much, Mostly Plants." However, it might turn into a cliche and taken to an extreme. We don't have to eat only wheat grass, nor see animal foods as the devil, we should just eat way more plants than we're used to.

• Happily, I think that the newest "in" cuisine is Israeli. Why? Not because I'm Jewish, but because with the huge success of Yotam Ottolegi and Sami Tamimi's  Jerusalem  cookbook, the great reviews and published stories about restaurants like Zahav (Philadelphia) and Zizi Limona (Brooklyn), that have strong Israeli influences, and the fact that food publications of high caliber, such as Saveur magazine (which had a write up about Tel Aviv's Levinsky Market in their famous Saveur 100 this year) are excitedly writing about the cuisine of Israel, and are even starting to recognize Israeli wines. Also, the food in Israel, by being based in the typical Middle Eastern cuisine, but being spiked with all the flavors of the international melting pot of the country, where most people have a grandmother born in Italy, France, Iran, Germany, Argentina or Panama, has become a unique mixture of flavors, colors, and cultures. Plus, did I mention is heavily based in produce? Look out for lots of recipes with dates, za'atar, mint, pomegranates (fresh and molasses), sumac and freekeh (see below). And...have you seen the huge amount of falafel and/or hummus joints opening everywhere?

• Move over coconut oil, the new "miracle" fat will now be rice bran oil.

• Move over quinoa (unless you can't eat gluten), the new "it" grain is freekeh (ancient Middle Eastern cereal made of green wheat that that's dried and then roasted). Buckwheat is also taking a place in the spotlight, so kasha lovers (and celiacs): rejoice!

• Move over kale chips, cauliflower couscous/rice is the "it" veggie dish that everyone will be making.

• Since we're at a "sugar is evil" stage, everyone is looking for alternatives beyond sweeteners. Non-calorie sweeteners are (thank G-d) pasee, so now we're in the quest for natural sweetness. My take: vanilla (real), cinnamon, dates (of course), figs and other dried fruits will become "saviors."

• Keep your eyes open for fermentation fever: fermented food products, DIY kits, fermentation technology and equipment, etc. Traditional fermented products such as yogurt, kefir, kimchi, miso, soy sauce, kombucha, sauerkraut, are still on the rise, which is definitely a good thing as they are loaded with probiotics and health benefits.

• I wrote about umami here, the word will be super popular this year. Heat and spice are also here to stay!

• Be ready to see more seaweed everywhere. Its health benefits are huge. I'll write about them soon. Also, since kale proved so successful, expect more dark leafy greens all around. I love chard wraps, I'll write about them too!

• Popcorn was big last year, expect it to be huge in 2013.

• We'll see turmeric praised a lot, and with good reason, as the spice has a really high amount of antioxidants. Start sprinkling a bit of it into everything!

• Fancy chocolates keep getting more beautiful and interesting, but isn't there too much?

• Get used to the SPE®,  squiggly logo: you'll start seeing it in food service. It stands for Sanitas Per Escam (Health Through Food), brainchild of Rouge Tomate Restaurant's founder, who's trying to turn it into a seal-of-approval that recognizes dishes as nutritionally dense ans sustainable.

• More individually portioned foods (cake pops), push-up desserts, macarons, mini cupcakes whoopee pies, sliders, spoonfuls. I'm all for that: you get the taste and the satisfaction, while you can still keep track of what you're eating.

• Without a doubt everyone is become more aware of "healthy eating." We've seen even Coca Cola giving it a shot!

• In baking, meringues are in, more than ever!

I hope that this year brings:

• No more Fro Yo please!!! The market is over saturated and there are all doing the same thing! Can someone come up with a new concept?
• More regulation regarding GMOs and clearer food labeling without health claims, nor vague promises.
• Understanding on how to eat more mindfully, without feeling that food is a sin or a toxin while trying to increase the amount and variety of produce we consume in a positive way, being excited about it. I hope we can learn that healthy and tasty can go together, and that it can be fascinating!
• Moderation: and that should include treating ourselves (just for the pleasure of it, not for emotional reasons) once in a while to something that might not be made with whole grains, or that has saturated fat or refined sugar, without feeling that we fell off the wagon and need to purge with juices, exercise or relay on more severe methods (I'm all for exercise, but for health, not for guilt). An 80% wholesome foods to a 20% "enjoy yourself" (treats that don't fall into the healthy food category) ratio is what I try to do. I loved this article that I found while Pinteresting (or pinning?), that I think articulates my thoughts really well.
• I hope the law recently approved in California about artisanal food production at home for sale elsewhere, is soon approved in the rest of the country.

After lots of writing and many links (that I hope someone reads!), I hope you like this recipe that I originally developed for www.kosherscoop.com as part of a savory oat story. We all love it in this family! It's easy, comforting and very likable.
Enjoy!

WHITE BEAN AND OAT GROATS STEW

This recipe is my family’s newest favorite dish! Since they are my captive Guinea pigs, they tend to be suspicious when I serve them a new food. I stare at them in suspense until I get their verdict. This one was a pleaser with the highest of praises: empty bowls!

I was delighted to be able to feed them such a nutritious meal (when you combine a legume –cannellini beans—and a cereal—oats—you get complete protein. And along with fiber, vitamins and minerals, this is a keeper!). Did I mention it’s prepared in the slow cooker? Unbelievable but true!

I serve it with a “toppings buffet.” The children love the freedom to choose and to be part of the process, and the adults can season theirs as boldly as they want.

Ingredients

1 pound dried cannellini beans (any white bean works)

1 cup oat groats

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving

5 garlic cloves, peeled

1 celery stalk

3 shallots, peeled

2 rosemary sprigs

2 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, or more to taste

Water, as needed

TOPPINGS:

Extra virgin olive oil

Chili flakes

Fresh rosemary, chopped

Fresh thyme, chopped

Chives, chopped

Freshly ground black pepper

Flaky sea salt

Nutritional yeast

Method

1.     Soak bean overnight. Rinse and drain.

2.     Place beans in a slow cooker insert. Add oat groats, olive oil, celery and shallots. Tie rosemary, thyme and bay leaf with kitchen twine and add into the slow cooker. Add salt and cover all with water until it’s covered by2 inches.

3.     Cover, and cook on medium (for about 6-7 hours) or on high for 3 hours.

4.     Serve in bowls and offer toppings.

Variations: If you can’t find oat groats (which are the oat kernels and are available in health food stores, you could use steel cut ones, and decrease cooking time for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Or use pearled barley. It’s also delicious. Sun dried tomatoes, roasted mushrooms, nut oils and/or grated Parmesan cheese are also great topping alternatives.

Serves 6

 

The Big Apple

As 99% percent of native Spanish speakers, I have a hard time with English vowels. In Spanish, the a sounds like a, the e like e, i like i, o like o and u like...yes, u. To pronounce those letters in Shakespeare's language, is a whole art and a big challenge, as each vowel is a combination of sounds that are pretty obvious for the trained ear, but not to the ones raised speaking Latin tongues. Piece and peace, aunt and ant, teen and tin, hair and heir, sheet and (you get it...) to us, there's no difference!!! My husband just showed me this clip from Jimmy Kimmel Live, and I can understand Guillermo clearly. I could have totally won the contest!

So, when my daughter asked me to help her with a list of words with "short a" for her homework, I went clueless. Not because I couldn't think of the examples, but because I had no idea what she was talking about! What in the world is a "short a"? Then she explained me as I looked at the words she already had filling the gaps. I understood what she needed to do, and a bit more...

"Apple," "app," and "iPad," headed her list. Yes, apple is a wholesome, natural, ancient, phytonutrient-rich fruit from the rose family, and its name starts with a short a sound, but what my daughter was referring to was the company that sells apps for the iPad and owns the ultra cool Apple stores around the Big Apple (and many other towns), where 12-year-old hipsters show you how to use the slick contraptions [designed in California and made in China that are brainchildren of genius Steve Jobs] to do anything you can think of, and that your newborn can use with confidence right as he/she is coming out of the womb.
A couple of days after my daughter turned in her homework,  we went to the Apple Store. My husband and I decided it was time to update our 4-year-old smart phones (that by now were kind of dumb phones), and it wasn't until then that I realized how much cyberspace had widened, and why I needed more bytes (or mega bytes?), and more stuff with my new gadget. With my old phone I couldn't have access to most newer apps nor social media (which by the way, if you ask me, made my life simpler), icons, photos, nor free international communication tools.  A few days passed, and I became addicted to Pintrest and a big fan of Instagram. I have a flashlight, if I feel lonely I can talk to Siri and boss her around, I order groceries and... where is this all going?????
I have no idea, but I do give it to Mr. Jobs, who could see way beyond what we, regular humans, can see, and wasn't afraid to pursue it, imagine it and reimagine it over and over, always keeping in mind aesthetics, marketability and innovation. We just saw a 1995 interview of him, and it's amazing how even then, he saw it all coming. The facebook guys weren't even born yet (OK...they were babies).
I'm not even sure if it's all good that we have almost lost direct human contact with each other, or that we have developed an addiction to tapping our phones, tablets, mini tablets, super pads, etc everywhere and always while forgetting all the civilized rules of politeness. We only look straight into each other's eyes through Skype, but the Apple legacy is--whether we like it or not--as ubiquitous as apples in the farmer's markets and produce stores at this time of the year. So, I'm just going to enjoy them all and feel inspired!

Here's a bit about how good apples are: 

Apples contain a very unique balance of phytonutrient polyphenols, especially in their skin (so don't peel them!), which can protect us against heart disease, cancer, asthma, and can help regulate blood sugar levels, and are suggested to be beneficial in the prevention of age-related problems such as Alzheimer's disease and macular degeneration of the eye.

Tip: try to always keep apple peels in a recipe, even if the instructions ask you to take them off. It makes life easier and it boosts the apples' nutritional value by A LOT!
Add apple slices for crunch and a touch of sweetness to salads, soups, savory tarts, curries, and sweet pies. I especially love them in crisps, and I never peel them!

• Apples partner fabulously with cheese (Gruyere, goat's milk, aged Parmesan, ricotta, blue, etc...)
• Worth it to buy ORGANIC apples when possible, as they are amongst the most pesticized fruits.
• They are great in slaws
• Apples are BFFs with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves, and let's not even mention all kinds of nuts (hazelnuts, pecans, walnuts, pistachios, almonds)
• Toss them with any kind of leafy green and/or roasted root vegetables
• Try a salad of leafy greens of your choice, apple slices, toasted hazelnuts, goat (or blue) cheese bits and a dressing of nut oil (or just use evoo), a drizzle of raw honey, apple cider vinegar, sea salt and fresh black pepper, and you've got a great lunch!

Here are two more recipes to get you started:

Roasted Cauliflower “Couscous” with Celery Root and Green Apples

• vegan
• free of: eggs, dairy, nuts, soy, seeds, wheat and gluten

I only came to the realization of the incredible effect of roasted Granny Smith apples after trying to make Plenty's Ultimate Winter Couscous recipe, that calls for more than 20 ingredients. I had all of them but one: dried apricots. However, I had gone to Costco that week and found organic apples, of different kinds, so I thought I'd make the substitution. People: you're in for a treat!

By shaving off the tips of the cauliflower florets

with a knife or a box grater, you get couscous out

of cauliflower.

Celery root, also known as celeriac is easy to find and has a mild and aromatic taste resembling the one of its green (and let’s face it: better looking) stems we all know as celery. It’s definitely not an attractive ingredient, so we can’t blame anyone who feels intimidated to cook with it. However, beneath its bumpy, gray surface, hides a vegetable worth of knowing. Just use your sharpest knife to cut around removing all the peel. Then, a white, crunchy, mellow surprise will await and gratify!

Ingredients:

• 1 cauliflower head, leaves removed, florets trimmed
• 1 celery root (celeriac), peeled and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (don't peel!)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 5 thyme spirgs
• Coarse sea salt (like Maldon) and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Method:

Preheat oven to 450 F.  Line a rimmed baking sheet

with parchment paper.

Break cauliflower into florets and shave the tops in

the largest hole of a box grater (or use a sharp

knife). Stop shaving once the stems don’t have any

more of the flower-looking part . Set shavings

(couscous) aside and place the cauliflower stems on

the prepared baking sheet.

Add the cut celery root and apple to the baking

sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Mix using your

clean hands to ensure all are evenly coated with the

oil.

Place thyme sprigs directly on top of vegetables,

and sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste.

Roast for 15-20 minutes, until cauliflower is golden

brown in parts and apple looks melted.

Take out of the oven and add the reserved

cauliflower couscous. Mix with a heat-proof

spatula and return to the oven for 1 more minute.

Remove from oven and serve.

Serves 4-6

APPLE BUTTER BAKED MINI DOUGHNUTS

These babies are dense, not of the airy, pillowy fried kind, but they are delicious and very easy to make. Make sure you use apple butter that lists ONLY apples and apple cider as ingredients, as you don't need any extra sugar.

They are a great gluten-free snack for a cold day!

 Ingredients

•  vegan

• free of: gluten, dairy, eggs, nuts, soy

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil (melted, and at room temperature)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the pans
• 1/4 cup coconut palm sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus 1/4 teaspoon for sprinkling
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons apple butter (see note on header of recipe)
• 2 teaspoons chia seeds, ground (in spice grinder)
• 6 tablespoons water
• 1 cup gluten-free oat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 tablespoons coconut flour
• 1 tablespoon arrowroot flour
• 1/2 cup milk (your choice: rice, almond, cashew, dairy, coconut)

Method
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Oil one mini doughnut pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together oils, coconut sugar, salt, and spices. 

Add in the apple butter, then the ground chia and water. Whisk until well incorporated.

In another bowl, whisk together (with a clean whisk) the baking powder, baking soda, and flours.

Stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with flour. 

Place batter in a large zip top bag, getting air out as much as possible. Zip it closed and cut off a small corner of the bottom of the bag (about 1/2-inch long).

Pipe batter through the hole in the bag 3/4 full on each doughnut shape in the pan.

Bake the doughnuts for 10 to 12 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into one comes out clean. 

Remove them from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes and unmold to complete cooling.

While doughnuts cool, grind 1 tablespoon coconut sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a spice grinder until very fine. Place on a strainer and dust on top of doughnuts.

Enjoy!

Makes about 12 mini doughnuts

 
DON'T KNOW WHERE TO GET A SPICE GRINDER, COCONUT PALM SUGAR OR ARROWROOT STARCH? JUST CLICK ON MY ASTORE ON THE TOP RIGHT CORNER AND YOU'LL FIND EVERYTHING THERE!

Objects and Subjects

I'm taking an amazing art class for adults at my children's school. Taught by the fabulously talented Rachel Rabhan (the upper school's art teacher and an incredible artist), the sessions are part drawing, part soul searching, and part therapy. A great (and very diverse) group of people get together once a week for an intimate, sensory, and cathartic experience. I'm not being paid to write this! I'm just fascinated and I feel privileged. Last week, Rachel asked us to bring in to class an object that is important to us. 
I brought a little elephant sculpture that belonged to my mother. It was the only object I took from her bedroom after she passed, exactly three years ago. She collected elephants with their trunks pointing upwards, for "good luck," she said. I needed to bring it home with me. During class, when explaining the meaningfulness of the elephant, it hit me how things are never important, unless they have a value added by another human being. The value, ultimately being feelings, which are intangible and amorphous, takes a physical form in the object, and that's why we cherish objects.
For the last three years, I've been saying kaddish the day before Chanukah, and the immense sadness of her passing, and the duration of her long disease invade me again. Not that there's ever a day in which I don't think about her and lament her absence, but when her Yor Tzeit comes, it becomes more intense, sharper and darker than usual. I'm relieved her pain is over, though. But I'll never recover from not having been able to say goodbye to her in person.
She always pushed forward and never surrendered, not even for a minute. So I know she would have preferred me to celebrate her than to cry for her (although I just feel like crying). So, last Friday, I made challah in her honor.
I chose the braided bread for many reasons.
1. The spiritual link that keeps Jewish women from every generation together and turns them into sacred beings.
2. Because the first time I ever realized challah could actually be baked at home and not bought at a store, was when my mother decided to bake one (and only) at home. I was about 7 years-old and when the shiny, golden, perfectly braided loaf came out of the oven, I thought my mother's capabilities were out of this world. Unfortunately, when we tried it, it tasted like beer. Something must have gone wrong with the yeast. She never attempted it again, but here's where I come, giving continuity to her initiative.
3. Because it felt good to think of her while kneading the dough and turning powder and liquid into edible glory worth a special blessing during the most important day of the week, seems like a miracle by itself.
4. Because I thought a bit out-of-the box for this recipe and imprinted it with my own personality; and she always encouraged me to be original, even if that wasn't always the safest way to go, nor greatly appreciated by me at the time.
5. Because going back to objects and people: challah is full of value, meaning and feelings. It represents Jews of every age, nationality, social status and for all generations. It's physically a gorgeous, delicious, sweet, rich bread, but most importantly, it's sacred to bake it, eat it and share it at your table with people you love.

CHALLAH A'LA IRONY OF BAKING

Ingredients

• Vegetarian (contains honey)
• Free of: eggs, dairy, nuts, soy
• Contains wheat and gluten

Just a couple of notes:

• Fresh yeast is sold refrigerated, compacted into 2 oz "cakes." Make sure it's not passed its expiration date. You can keep fresh yeast frozen for a long time. Just thaw it in the fridge the night before using.
• Use pure honey, but don't bother splurging in "raw" honey, as the challah will be baked anyways and all the raw benefits are lost with the heat.
• Yes!!! you can use warm water instead of the green tea. But green tea adds antioxidants and a bit of UMAMI taste. I use 2 tea bags for the 4 cups of water to brew the tea.
• When baking bread, ALWAYS use warm liquids, NOT hot, as you may kill the yeast (yes, it's alive) and your dough won't rise. The best way of testing the temperature (besides a thermometer, of course) is by feeling the liquid with your inner wrist, and if it feels warm and comfortable, the yeast will like it too.
• Don't add more salt than stated in the recipe, as it could also kill the yeast. But don't omit salt completely either, as besides imparting flavor, it conditions the dough.
• This recipe is EGG FREE, so you may taste the dough.
• Add and extra 1/4 to 1/2 cup honey if you love sweet challah

4 cups warm brewed green tea (105-115 F)

2 (2 oz) bars FRESH yeast

16 oz. pure honey

2 1/2 lbs white whole wheat flour (King Arthur's), plus more for flouring surface

2 1/2 lbs bread flour ("high gluten")

2 tablespoons chia seeds, ground

1 ½ tablespoon fine sea salt

1 ½ cups grape seed or rice bran oil, plus 2 tablespoons for oiling the dough

 Method

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm tea, stir 1 tablespoon honey and set aside (until tea starts sizzling with tiny air bubbles or if using water, until foam forms, about 10 min).

In a very large bowl (I mean huge), combine flours and salt. Make a well in the center.

Pour in the remaining honey, ground chia, oil and yeast mixture into well. Just don't discard the honey container, as you'll use the left over honey in the bottom for glaze.

Mix and knead until smooth. Do it with an electric mixer with the dough hook, or roll up your sleeves and enjoy using your hands. Dough should be elastic, and should spring back when poked with your finger.

Half the dough and shape into 2 large balls. Place in 2 separate bowls covering each all over (including bottom) with 1 tablespoon oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise on a warm place for 1-1 ½ hours (until it doubles its volume).

If you prefer, cover the challah dough and refrigerate before it starts rising, leaving it in the fridge overnight (as opposed to 1to 11/2 hours at room temp), then proceed with the next step

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Punch down dough and separate an olive-size piece of dough, saying the blessing, and burn the piece.

In a floured surface (I like working on a floured large piece of parchment paper to avoid sticking and for easy clean-up) shape each challah, by forming long "snakes" of dough by rolling pieces of dough against the surface or between your hands.

Use 3 "snakes" to make regular 3-strand braids (the challah looks even nicer when the center of each strand is thicker than the tips).

Or use 6 strands and working from right to left, follow an "up 2, down 1" pattern, until you've used all the strands. 

You can coil one large strand into a Rosh Hashanah-shaped challah or into small "knots" to make challah rolls.

Make little balls (size of a golf ball) and place them randomly in a baking pan, looks wonderfully complicated after baking, and you get a pull-apart challah.

*You could wrap challah dough at this point and freeze it until the day you'll be using it. Just thaw before baking.

Place challah loaves on parchment-lined rimmed baking pans and allow to rise for 30 minutes more.

Add a teaspoon or two of warm water into the glass where the honey used to be. Cover and shake it, so the water dissolves any honey in the container.

Brush loaves with honey-water mixture.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown. Or until the challah sounds hallow when tapped in the bottom.

Enjoy!

Recipe makes 4 humongous loaves, or about 8 medium ones.