Cashew Red Pepper Cream

This is the delicious cream sauce that tops the Quinoa Cakes

Here again is the original recipe & following is how we made it.

• 3/4 c. cashews
• 1 (sm) roasted red bell pepper, from a jar
• 1/3 cup water (or less)
• 1/2 small clove of garlic
• 1/8 (very small amount) cup red onion
• 1/2 T lemon juice
• pinch of salt, add more to taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend on High for about 30 seconds, or until everything is well blended and smooth. Make sure to have the cover on tightly as this splatters when blending (don't ask me how I know).
 
You should have a smooth creamy-pink cream sauce when you are done. We found a half batch perfect for the two of us (that's what I have listed above). We then made a second half batch for our leftovers and we (accidentally) left out the onion, which was a nice omission.  So, I would recommend making a full batch with half the onion (or less).

Leftovers would make a great chip or veggie dip.

Quinoa Cakes

The flavors of restaurant meals are usually spectacular. Sometimes I wish my meals made at home could be just as fun and flavorful. Something different, but tested so I'm not wading through many ok or bad meals to find that one amazing meal. Well, let me sift out this gem for you!  Last night we feasted on deliciousness and now you can too! And it gets better, this recipe is gluten-free, vegetarian and I'm trying to think of how it could become dairy-free.

Quinoa Cakes topped with Cashew Red Pepper Cream

mmm...I just had leftovers for lunch. Not quite as delicious, not as popping of flavors as last night, but still an exceptional leftover.  They reminded us something like a mix between latkes and falafel, mostly in the style of the meal: a fried patty with cream topping.

Here is where I got the recipe from. I will write how I modified the recipe.

• 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
• 4 large eggs, beaten
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 large scoop (a little less than 1/4 c.) basil pesto
• 1/4 c. finely minced red onion (less than 1/2 the onion)
• 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese (we didn't have fresh, but used the dry stuff in the bottle)
• 1 1/2 cloves garlic, minced
• Olive oil for pan frying

It should be a bit sticky so it holds together when fried

Mix all together and place on a med-hot pan (with oil) in about 1/4 c. amount. I spooned it onto the pan then used the back of a spoon to flatten into a patty. [I tried to make a patty with my hands and much of it stuck to my hands = bad idea.] Let the first side brown up before flipping. It should be a couple minutes at least on each side. We liked the patties thinner so they got crispy, but then found we preferred them cooked at a lower temp so the onions cooked more.  Play with the temp and thickness to get the results that you like. Or I suppose you could also pre-cook your onions & garlic.

Top with Cashew Roasted Red Pepper Cream sauce (recipe in next post) & enjoy hot! We talked about how good they were all evening, wishing we were hungry enough for a second dinner.  I wonder what we will have for dinner tonight :)

Banana Pancakes

These couldn't be simpler!

1 banana
2 eggs
Optional additions: cinnamon & vanilla  (a dash of each)

Place everything in the blender at the same time. An immersion blender works well also.

Blend in the blender until smooth and frothy (the eggs get bubbly)

Pour onto a greased hot griddle. Flip and cook both sides until brown. (They are bubbly when you first pour them onto the griddle- so the trick of watching for bubbles with normal pancakes does not work with these.)

I pour straight from my blender

If the pancakes fall apart when you flip them, just move the broken part close to the rest of the pancake and nudge it together. Eggs have an uncanny ability to re-connect with themselves.

Serve with peanut butter or normal pancaking toppings. This morning we topped them with peanut butter, ground flax and pecans. Normally I would also add coconut, but we were out.

I have had success with doubling the recipe, but not tripling.
Enjoy!

One handed cooking & Thanksgiving Rolls

In writing the title "One Handed Cooking," I think of the saying "single-handedly" which is quite the opposite of how I feel most days. It's not that the tasks I'm trying to do in the kitchen are intended for only one hand, but rather that my left hand is usually holding the most precious cargo! My sweet Elle girl is my side-kick now.

Here is a picture that an auntie snapped of us at Thanksgiving...working in the kitchen together. She naps and I work. We make a good team.

Elle helps Mommy

Speaking of Thanksgiving, I tried a new roll recipe that is worth posting. I would make them again in a heart-beat. Here is a link to the recipe. I hope you try them and enjoy them! The day before we left for Thanksgiving, Elle slept in, and I made two different batches of rolls, and apple crisp and washed all my dishes!! I was so thankful for her long nap that morning!

Happy baking!

Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Oil Free, No Added Sugar...lets see, what else is amazing about these muffins? They have only a few ingredients and one batch fit between both my muffin tins (so I didn't have to do a second batch and wait for the pans to cool in between batches).

On a whim I tried these and I'm so glad that I did. They are "healthy" tasting, so if you want them a little sweeter just add a 1/4-1/2 c. of brown sugar (or any sweetener of your choice).

3 Bananas, mashed - very ripe
1 cup Vanilla Almond Milk
2 eggs
3 cups Oats
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon vanilla (I added a bit extra)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/4 cup walnuts chopped (optional)
1/8- 1/4 cup shredded coconut (optional)
1/4 cup chocolate chips or blueberries (optional)

375* F for 20 minutes in a greased muffin tin.



Enjoy!  They are very good with peanut butter. Mmmm.. I think I might go have another.

Cliantro-Lime Rice

Do you ever crave Chipotle?....but live hours away from one!!

Quite by accident I recently made a version of cilantro-lime rice that tasted satisfyingly like Chipotle's. One of the reasons, Denver & I assumed, was that the meal was nothing like Chipotle and I wasn't even trying to replicate the flavors. I have found that a "faint likeness" to something can satisfy a mental flavor/craving easier than when flavors are actually close and in the runnings to be like the real thing...but still off.

We were having a meal of fajitas and I didn't want to use tortillas, so instead, I planned on serving the meal over brown rice. Denver heard about the rice and asked for cilantro-lime rice. I prepared one cup of Trader Joe's Basmati Brown Rice according to package directions. After cooking (but careful to not overcook) I added fresh squeezed lime juice from 1 & 1/2 -2 limes and a good clump of cilantro finely chopped (probably about 1/8 c. when chopped, or about 20 stems  - very loose estimation!). This was the most flavorful rice and the most like Chipotle's we have had.

We loved the rice and fajita meal. The next day we used the leftover rice with black beans (instead of the fajita mixture) for a "nacho" (cheesy chip) topping. It was delicious! Layer chips and cheese (pepper jack) then rice and beans and top with a little more cheese! Microwave for a minute and enjoy the deliciousness!  The beans tasted amazingly (and surprisingly) like chicken. Even Denver with his non-pregnant taste buds said so. It was seriously SO Good! 

A new house and a new kitchen

There are many "news" in our lives that we are both looking forward to and currently living. We moved to a house - we love it!  The back yard has blackberries and raspberries!

Down the road there are chokecherries and blueberries. Needless to say, we are taking advantage of all this available fruit and it has been a productive harvest.

Our freezer is packed with jams ready for winter indulgences & reminders of summer. Come over and have a bowl of ice cream with chokecherry syrup on it, I think you will agree its delicious.

Chokecherry Syrup

Boil your washed and stemmed berries in a couple inches of water (I think one recipe recommended 1 cup of water for every 3-4 cups of whole berries).  I let them simmer on the stove for hours just to be sure they were good and soft. You can mash them through the colander them immediately or let them cool (which is what I did so I wasn't working with boiling liquid). Toss the large seeds and skins, saving only the juice and any pulp that comes out. Measure and return liquid to a cooking pot. I used less sugar than it called for and we found the tartness a perfect complement for ice cream :)
4 cups chokecherry juice
3 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (I wonder what almond extract would taste like??)
1/2 - 1 t cinnamon 
1-2 T pectin (low sugar version)

Stir over low heat uncovered until it thickens slightly (or to whatever consistency you desire). More pectin, sugar and cooking time will result in a thicker more jam-like substance. I think you might need to add 1-2 T. Lemon Juice for it to properly thicken. Let cool again (if it is syrup) and pour into a freezer container  (or you could can the syrup/jam while it is still hot). Enjoy months later over ice cream or hot baked oatmeal. We have also used this syrup in our crepes - delicious when paired with the tangy crepe cream sauce & fresh fruit! 

So with a new house comes a new kitchen. I tried to get a good picture of it the other night and they all turned out blurry, so I will post a blurry picture because that's all I have.

Other new things - our daughter is just about here. Monday we passed our 39 week mark. This means she could come any day or in another 3 weeks :)

 

We are excited to meet her and see who she looks like and become a family of three.
I think there may be some other "new" things, but that's what I can think of off the top of my head. Enjoying life and my new kitchen, Sarah