Recipes
Best Ever Carob Frosting
Comments (0) | Saturday, February 4, 2012
Over the last few years I have been baking with carob more and more. While carob should not be expected to taste like chocolate, it does a good job replacing chocolate in things like cookies, cakes and drinks. The pictures at the end of this post show cookies the kids and I frosted with this recipe. The recipe for the cookies are stevia sweetened "sugar" cookies from nourishingmeals.com.
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| Carob powder is made only from the dried and roasted pod. |
In the following carob frosting recipe, you will notice that I use three different sweeteners: coconut sugar, coconut nectar, and liquid vanilla stevia. They all sweeten but they each play other parts as well. The coconut sugar helps build body and gives consistency to the frosting. The coconut nectar adds a nice glossy look to the finished product. The liquid stevia is the powerhouse sweetener in the recipe.
Feel free to add or subtract the sweeteners or their amounts. For me, the formula I arrived at here gives just the right flavor and sweetness. Let me know what you think!
Best Ever Carob Frosting
Ingredients:
- 1/4 C. Coconut Sugar
- 2 T. Carob Powder
- 2 T. Earth Balance Soy Free Margarine
- 1/4 C. Coconut or Almond Milk
- 1 T. Coconut Nectar
- 1/4 C. Arrowroot
- 1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 16 drops Vanilla Creme Liquid Stevia
Directions:
- Mix first five ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Keep the mixture at a low boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool completely.
- Mix in arrowroot, vanilla and liquid stevia.
- Use to frost cookies, cupcakes, or a cake.
- Store leftovers (if there are any) in the fridge. It should keep for about a week.
Makes approximately 3/4 cup.
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| Cooled frosting before adding arrowroot, vanilla and stevia |
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| The finished product |
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| Carob frosting on cookies (Cookie recipe from nourishingmeals.com) |
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| The kids had a great time helping to frost hammers and trains |
Dairy Free, Cheesy Notatoes
Comments (0) | Sunday, January 22, 2012
It
is a never ending challenge to incorporate enough vegetables into our daily
diet (and just to get kids to eat them). This recipe, however, is an easy and delicious way to incorporate cauliflower,
a healthy and highly nutritious vegetable.
Although using cauliflower to make Notatoes (or Fauxtatoes) is nothing
new, this recipe has garnered the most raves from my in-house test team. While this dish probably cannot be passed off for actual mashed potatoes, it has a rich flavor and creamy texture that goes great with anything regular mashed potatoes would.
Ingredients:
- 1 Large Head Cauliflower
- Enough Water to steam cauliflower
- 1 tsp. Crushed Garlic (optional)
- ¼ C Soy Free Vegannaise
- ¼ tsp. Salt
- ½ C Shredded Daiya, Cheddar Cheese flavor
- Pepper to taste
Directions:
- Steam cauliflower in a large pot until tender, then drain water and remove steamer basket.
- Put cauliflower in a blender together with garlic, Vegannaise and salt. Blend until creamy.
- Add blended mixture back to pot over a low to medium heat.
- Add cheese to the mixture and stir occasionally until cheese is melted.
- Serve by itself or with your favorite meal.
Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken
Comments (0) | Monday, January 16, 2012
This is a great slow cooker chicken recipe that I find myself making every couple of weeks. It is simple and very easy to make but it tastes great.
Ingredients:
6-8 Skinless Chicken Thighs
1/2 Cup Gluten Free Soy Sauce or Braggs Liquid Aminos (For lower sodium use 1/3 cup soy sauce plus enough water to equal 1/2 cup)
1 Tbsp Coconut Sugar
2 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
2 Tbsp Fresh (or 1/2 tsp Ground) Ginger
Directions:
-Wash and dry chicken thighs and place them in the slow cooker.
-Mix together soy sauce, sugar, ginger and garlic and pour mixture over chicken
-Cover and cook on high setting for one hour
-Switch to low setting and cook for an additional 6-7 hours
-Serve over rice and use sauce from slow cooker for additional seasoning
Homemade Carob Chips
Comments (4) | Friday, January 6, 2012
These carob chips taste incredible. My husband is not the biggest fan of carob but I caught him eating them out of the container the other night. I have used these in cookies and other baked goods as well as over non-dairy ice cream. This is my favorite carob chip recipe. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 C. Shortening (I use Spectrum Organic Non-hydrogenated
Vegetable Shortening)
1 C. Carob, sifted
½ t. Stevia Powder
2 t. Vanilla
Directions:
- Line an 8 inch by 8 inch baking dish with parchment paper.
- Using a double boiler or a glass bowl placed over simmering water inside a small sauce pan, melt shortening, carob and stevia powder while stirring constantly.
- Once above ingredients are combined, remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Pour mixture into lined baking dish.
- Freeze until solid.
- Remove from freezer and cut or break into small pieces.
- Store chips in freezer.
Hawaiian Style Chicken Meatballs
Comments (0) | Friday, December 30, 2011
It is unknown to me just how many variations of meatballs there
are in the world but it has to be a large number. Most of us are familiar with
Swedish or Italian meatballs but they are also made in various countries from the
Middle East to Scandinavia. Here is a recipe for Hawaiian style meatballs that
is simple but flavorful. It is easily extended by adding vegetables like
carrots or peppers and sautéing them after the meatballs have been cooked.
Meatball Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs Ground Chicken
½ C. Gluten Free Bread Crumbs
½ C. Canned Coconut Milk
1 t. Sea Salt
½ t. Pepper
½ t. Ginger
½ t. Crushed Garlic
3 T. Safflower Oil (Or another high-heat oil like Grapeseed)
Sauce Ingredients:
1 20oz. Can Pineapple Chunks
¼ C. Arrowroot
2 T. Gluten Free Soy Sauce (For soy-free you could try
Coconut Aminos)
1 T. Coconut Sugar
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Combine the ground chicken,
breadcrumbs, milk, salt, pepper, ginger and garlic. Mix well.
- Shape the above mixture into
balls approximately 1 ½ - 2 inches in diameter.
- In a large cast iron or other
oven safe skillet, heat the oil over a medium high heat and brown the meatballs
all around.
- After the meatballs have
browned, drain off the oil.
- Begin preparing the sauce by
draining the can of pineapple chunks. Reserve the juice in a liquid measuring
cup. Add water until you have one cup of liquid.
- Add the Arrowroot, soy sauce
and sugar to the juice/water mixture and mix thoroughly with a fork or whisk.
- Pour the juice mixture into a
sauce pan and stir constantly over a medium high heat until the sauce thickens.
- Pour the sauce over the
meatballs in the skillet.
- Put the skillet in the
preheated oven and cook, uncovered for 25 minutes
-Serve over white or brown rice.
Homemade Chicken Apple Sausage
Comments (0) | Wednesday, December 28, 2011
I love how easy making sausage is. It is really just a
matter of mixing together a few ingredients, forming the sausage and cooking.
However, you can get a variety of flavors and textures by altering the
ingredients even a little bit. In this recipe, for example, I started by using
Gala apples. These gave the finished product more sweetness. In the version
below, I have substituted Granny Smith apples which are often on the tart side.
The change in flavor is subtle but seems to bring out the sage a little more
than the Galas. I enjoyed the Granny Smiths so much I decided to make them a
permanent part of my recipe. If you make this recipe with a different apple variety,
leave a comment and let me know how it turns out.
1 lb Ground Chicken
1 Medium Granny Smith Apple (or other variety)
1 T. Sage
1 ½ t. Salt
½ t. Black Pepper
½ T. Coconut Nectar (substitute honey or molasses if you do not
have coconut nectar)
Directions:
-Peel and shred the apple
-In a medium bowl, add all ingredients.
-Mix well until all ingredients are dispersed and combined (hands
work best for this job).
-Cover tightly and refrigerate for 5-8 hours.
-Form into patties ½ - ¾ inches thick.
-Cook in a large skillet over a medium heat about 5-8
minutes per side or until done.
Tip:
-If you do not like the idea of plunging your bare hand into
a bowl full of raw meat, invest in a box of food handling gloves.
Gluten Free – Whole Grain Waffles
Comments (0) | Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Waffles are a happy food. Their texture is playful and it
can be fun to let your topping of choice settle into each little dimple. The
following recipe is a wholesome variation with a great flavor. It tends to make
a more crisp waffle right out of the iron. If you want a richer, moister waffle,
you can add 3-6 tablespoons of margarine or coconut oil. Let me know how this
works for you.
1 C. Buckwheat Flour
1 ½ C. Sorghum
½ C. Millet
¾ C. Tapioca
1 T. Baking Powder
1 t. Baking Soda
½ t. Salt
2-4 t. Cinnamon
3 T. Ground Flax
Wet Ingredients:
9 T. Water
3 C. Coconut or Almond Milk (Any other non-dairy milk will
work as well)
Directions:
-Add the water to a microwave safe measuring cup or bowl and
warm. To this, add the flax and let sit for ten minutes to gel.
-In a large mixing bowl combine the buckwheat flour, sorghum, millet, tapioca, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
-After the flax mixture has thickened, add the milk and mix well.
-Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until combined.
-Use your favorite method to evenly distribute the batter onto a preheated waffle iron and cook.
-Top with Earth Balance spread or other margarine, coconut oil, berries, applesauce, honey, maple syrup or other favorite waffle topping.
-Enjoy!
Stevia Sweetened Blueberry Muffins
Comments (0) | Monday, December 19, 2011
This is a dependable favorite for my entire family. These
flavorful muffins are Stevia sweetened, sugar free, gluten free, corn free and
egg free. My husband enjoys eating one in the morning for breakfast and the
kids have them as a healthy snack after school. The blueberries add a lot of
moisture and make the muffins dense and filling.
Ingredients:
2 T Ground
Flax
6 T Water
3 ½ C Gluten Free Flour Blend
½ t Baking
Soda
1 t Salt
½ C Oil
(I use Safflower)
1/3 - 1/2 t Stevia
Powder (to taste)
1/3 C + 4 T Unsweetened
Apple Sauce
2 t Vanilla
2/3 C Coconut
or Almond Milk
2 C Frozen
Blueberries
Directions:
• Preheat oven to 400° F• Lightly oil a muffin tin or use unbleached paper or silicone liners.
• Heat water in a glass measuring cup or small bowl until
warm. Add ground flax and stir. Allow to sit and thicken for approximately
10 minutes.
• Whisk gluten free flour blend, baking soda, baking powder
and salt in a medium bowl.
• In a large bowl, add the oil, stevia and apple sauce and mix.
To this, add the flax mixture, vanilla and milk.
• Mix thoroughly.
• Add dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until combined.
• Add dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until combined.
• Fold in blueberries.
• Fill muffin cups and bake 15 minutes.
• Check with a
toothpick. If necessary, bake an additional 2-5 minutes
• Makes approximately 18 muffins.
These muffins can be stored in a Ziploc bag and frozen if
you are not going to eat them right away. I find they are best eaten warmed.
Corn Free Baking Powder
Comments (0) | Saturday, December 17, 2011
All of my recipes are corn free. Unfortunately, where I live,
finding an ingredient like baking powder that does not have corn starch in it
is nearly impossible. So I took to the internet and my cookbooks to find the best
homemade alternative. Most sources agree that you can easily make your own using
the following formula:
1 Part Baking Soda
2 Parts Cream of Tartar
2 Parts Starch (Tapioca or Arrowroot)
I have been using this version for some time now and have
great results every time (OK, the recipes don’t always work but the leavening
does). Some do-it-yourselfers will use potato starch but my cooking is free of
nightshades like potato. Therefore, my starches are kept to Tapioca and
Arrowroot. I use both and find they work equally well, although the tapioca is
often cheaper. You might even omit the starch entirely if you will be using the
powder immediately and not storing it. Let me know if you have a different
formulation and how it works for you.
Gluten Free Flour Blend
Comments (0) | Thursday, December 15, 2011
Everyone seems to have their own favorite flour blend. After experimenting with a lot of different combinations I settled on the following mix. This has turned into a staple for my baking and it works well in a variety of recipes.
Ingredients:
1½ C Arrowroot
1½ C Sorghum Flour
1 C Tapioca Flour
½ C Almond Flour
Directions:
Measure all ingredients into a medium bowl. Whisk until combined. Store unused flour in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator. I prefer to use a large glass jar as it seals out air and other food smells best.
Hi, I'm Sarah
Comments (0) | Wednesday, December 14, 2011
I started Sarah's Recipe List as a place to share my favorite
recipes. Ever since I was very young I have had a lot of problems with food
sensitivities and allergies. Over the years I have learned what makes me feel
good and what makes me feel like I have rocks in my stomach. I have cut out a
lot of common "normal" foods from my diet but that does not stop me
from cooking great food that my family and I love to eat. In fact, I have been
opened up to some amazing foods and ingredients that I probably never would
have known about if I still ate like the majority of Americans. Here is a list
of the foods and ingredients you are not likely to find in my recipes:
Dairy
Casein
Chocolate
Potato (or any nightshades like tomato, peppers
and eggplant)
Corn
Soy
Eggs
Refined sugar
Artificial food coloring and dyes
Yeast
Shellfish
Peanuts
Gluten
Oats
Feel free to use these recipes and adjust them to fit your own
diet. If there is one thing I have learned over the years it is that everyone
is different in what they eat. Please feel free to leave comments on any
post.