how-crunchy-can-you-get granola
November 20, 2010
I started making this granola years ago. I’m not sure how I came up with the ingredients but they work. A number of granola aficionados have asked me for the recipe so I figure that’s a pretty good sign. I stopped eating it for awhile – I suppose because I got really into the dulse for breakfast – but Bekah got me back into it again. Topped with a little soy yogurt and berries, how can you go wrong?
6 cups oatmeal
1 cup wheatgerm
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup sesame seeds
1 cup flax seeds
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup safflower oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp sea salt
Mix dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Bring wet mixture to a rolling boil on the stove. Toss wet ingredients into dry. Spread on 2 cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.
french toast with coconut milk and banana
October 7, 2010
The kids in our house love French Toast. It’s an almost daily routine – throw some cinnamon bread on the griddle for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, you name it. One weekend I decided to try this vegan version to test the limits of their adoration for this comfort food. Full disclosure: they didn’t love it. But we did! They had a hard time switching gears to the banana and coconut milk but for us it was a lovely indulgence on a Saturday morning.
1 banana
1 cup coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
1/4 tsp salt
1 loaf of good french-toast-making bread
Place all ingredients (except bread) into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a large shallow bowl and set aside.
Slice bread into 8 thick slices. Heat a griddle or pan and brush with oil. Submerge bread slices in the batter, lift out with a pair of tongs and place on the hot pan. Cook until golden brown, flip and cook on the reverse side. Serve immediately with your favourite topping.
Adapted from Rebar Cookbook.
dulse with olive oil and toast
June 5, 2010
I was in Montreal on a business trip and stayed with a dear colleague. He’s a bit of a gourmand so when he served me dulse with olive oil and toast for breakfast I was shocked. “We’re eating what for breakfast?” He promised I would become addicted, and addicted I am. We have it every morning, almost without fail. And the odd morning when we can’t have it, we miss it terribly. Andrew confessed one morning upon waking that he was actually excited about getting up so he could eat dulse. We’ve converted a number of people. Maybe we can convert you too?
package of dulse, preferably from Atlantic Mariculture (We’ve done the research – it’s the best!)
really good olive oil (We use Silver Leaf but are always looking to try others since there are so many incredible olive oils out there)
multi-grain bread
Cut up the dulse in the bottom of a bowl. Drizzle with good quality olive oil. Toast some nice multi-grain bread and cut it up on top. Eat. Become addicted.
cornbread
April 3, 2010
My dear friend Pamela gave me a gift the other day wrapped in a beautiful pink ribbon. And for no other reason than because it was Friday and we were having lunch. How wonderful is that! The present? A cookbook to add to my growing collection. But not just any cookbook – vegan, (mostly) gluten-free, and (mostly) sugar-free recipes from New York’s BabyCakes Bakery! I’m not gluten or sugar adverse but who cares? The recipes look awesome!! And one thing I particularly appreciate is that they don’t just use substitutions like fake eggs and vegan margarine. They approach baking in a whole new way.
I haven’t yet experimented with vegan baking, being so into discovering all the savory dishes for lunches and dinners and snacks. But now armed with some new inspiration I’m on it. My first project? Corn bread to accompany Easter dinner tonight. I tried it out this afternoon just to be sure and it’s fantastic! Moist, flavourful, and nice to look at. Thanks Pamela!!!
2/3 cup rice milk
1 tbsps apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose baking flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup corn flour
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup coconut oil, plus more for the pan (remember to melt the oil before measuring and for ease of mixing)
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/3 cup homemade applesauce or store-bought unsweetened applesauce
2 tsps pure vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 325. Lightly grease a 7 x 4 x 3-inch loaf pan with oil.
Pour the rice milk and apple cider vinegar into a small bowl, but do not stir; set aside to develop into “buttermilk.” In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, corn flour, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt. Add the oil, agave nectar, applesauce, and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Stir the batter until well combined. Pour in the “buttermilk.” Mix gently until the ingredients are fully incorporated and a slightly grainy batter is formed.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the corn bread on the centre rack for 32 minutes, rotating the pan 180 degrees after 20 minutes. The finished corn bread will bounce back slightly when pressed, and a toothpick inserted in the centre will come out clean.
Let the corn bread stand in the pan for 20 minutes, then gently run a knife around the edge of the bread. Cover the top of the pan with a cutting board, and invert the loaf onto the board. Carefully lift the pan away and re-invert the corn bread onto another cutting board. Either cut and serve warm, or wait until completely cool before storing. Cover the uncut corn bread with plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
v:gourmet 