sweet miscellany

We finally have winter weather back in Texas, at least where I am. I think the high for today is in the upper 40s as opposed to the upper 70s. Yippee! I made sure to stock up on firewood so I can enjoy this wonderful weather before the warm weather starts creeping back and stays for good.

Even though I love wintry weather, sometimes I find myself longing for spring and summer. It’s not the temperatures that I miss, but the bounty of new fruits and vegetables that will be in season. I think I have said on this blog before how much I love dewberries, but really, I love any berry. I don’t discriminate when it comes to berries, especially when they are in season, ripe, and oh so juicy!

To satisfy my berry craving last weekend, I decided to use up some dewberry and green apple jam I made in the summer and bake it into little hand pies. Sweet, tart, and thick dewberry jam is enveloped in a lemon-scented whole grain crust and then baked until just golden. They are the perfect size to fit in your hand, making them portable and oh so cute, too! These little beauties are vegan so you can enjoy them without worrying about the sticks of butter you might be eating. Oh, and don’t be frightened by the length of the recipe, it’s mostly just a lot of detailed information about how I formed the pies.

Dewberry Jam Hand Pies
notes: This recipe makes 10 hand pies using a 3 7/8 inch circle cookie cutter. Using a different size will yield a different number. I used dewberry jam because it is what I had, but any berry jam will work nicely.

1 – 8 oz. jar of dewberry jam
1 1/2 cups whole rolled oats (not instant oats)
1/2 cup spelt flour
1/4 cup barley flour
heaping 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
zest of 1 small lemon
scant 3/4 cup coconut oil, very cold (I put mine in the freezer for about 10 minutes)
3 tbsp agave or maple syrup
2 to 3 tbsp ice water

In a food processor, process the oats until they are finely ground. They should look fine like flour. Next, add the spelt flour, barley flour, salt, and lemon zest and pulse until combined. Add the cold coconut oil and pulse until the dough looks crumbly. Add the agave and then add 1 tbsp of ice water at a time, pulsing the dough until it just comes together and forms a ball. I only needed about 3 tbsp for this, but you may need slightly more. Make sure not to overmix the dough. After the dough has come together, dump it out onto a piece of plastic wrap and knead it a few times before forming it into a disc. Wrap it with the plastic and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

Once the dough has rested and chilled, remove it from the fridge. Roll it out on a sheet of parchment paper dusted generously with spelt or barley flour to about 1/16 of an inch thick. Using a 3 7/8 inch (or similar size) circle cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as you can. Transfer the first cicle of dough carefully to a lined cookie sheet. Spoon about 1 1/2 tbsp of your jam onto the circle slightly off center. You want the jam to be a bit closer to one side of the circle of dough so you can fold the other side over easily. Once you have the jam in place, dip your finger in a bit of cold water and run it around the edge of the dough. This will help it to seal. Next, gently fold over the piece of dough opposite from the side with the jam. It should now look like a half moon shape or an empanada. Using the tines of a fork, gently crimp the dough together, forming a seal. Using a small sharp knife, cut 2 small slits into the top of the dough (I made an X shape). Continue these steps for the rest of your hand pies. It’s okay if a little jam spills out of them when folding the dough over, they will just look more rustic and homemade! Once all of your hand pies are formed, place them in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes.

While your pies are chilling, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the pies in the upper 1/3 of your oven for 18-20 minutes until they are golden brown around the edges. Cool on the pan at least 15 minutes before enjoying or before moving to a rack to cool further. Enjoy!

Hello all! I have to go out of town for work for a few days so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity for a guest post! The recipe and illustrations below are from my talented brother and illustrator extraordinaire Gordon. So, without further ado, I’ll leave this post to him:

Five years ago I discovered I was lactose intolerant. Three years later, I discovered I had a gluten allergy. My first impulse was to cry in a corner and mourn the loss of all the foods I used to gorge on—there would be no more late-night/post-happy hour pizza from the corner or cookies on a coffee break. The horror!

I quickly got over that crisis and began exploring incredible food I could find at the store, delicious dishes I could order out, and recipes I could create to fill in the blanks. This is one such recipe. Everything I make generally comes from recipe basics and improvisation rooted in memories of spending time in the kitchen with my mother, grandmother and sisters. We’re a food family for sure. Naturally, I’ve had some misses along the way but that only means more experimenting. And perfecting. And eating.

As is the formula for recipes, there are precise measurements listed below. But let it be said that this is just a starting point. I like my food incredibly well-seasoned so I even go above and beyond the measurements for the seasonings you’ll see below. And sometimes I want my pancakes thinner, sometimes thicker so I add or subtract water accordingly. Just like trying on clothes until you find that outfit that makes you look like a star instead of a derelict art student, recipes should be tried on until you find the right fit. It’s essential and incredibly fun to make it your own. Unless it’s a cheesecake or French macarons, in which case, follow the recipe to a T or you’ll end up sobbing in a corner. Now, get to choppin’.

Sauteed Portobello and Peppers with Savory Guten-Free Pancakes

(serves 2 really hungry people or 4 people faking a modest appetite)

2 portobello mushroom caps, sliced (about 10 slices per cap)

1/2 medium white onion (diced, sliced…or both)

3 medium cloves of garlic (minced)

4 tblsp olive oil

1 medium red bell pepper (chopped)

1 tblsp tarragon

1 tblsp cinnamon

1/2 tblsp salt

1/2 tblsp garlic powder

touch of nutmeg

approximately 3 tblsp agave syrup

avocado, sliced

Pancakes:

slightly more than 1 cup certified gluten free rice flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

about 3/4 c water

olive oil for pan (approximately 2 tblsp)

In a large skillet, add portobello, onion, garlic and olive oil. Stir to evenly coat mushroom mixture with olive oil, then sprinkle spices on mixture and stir to evenly coat. Turn on medium heat and stir occasionally for 4-5 minutes. The mixture will appear dry. Adding a bit of water is fine but don’t add too much as the pepper will add plenty of moisture to the mix when it is added.

Add pepper and the agave to the mixture. I find it best to add the agave in concentric circles to evenly distribute it. Stir mixture occasionally for the next 7-10 minutes. If you like your pepper completely tender, cook longer. You can either prepare the pancakes while this sautes or it’s perfectly fine to briefly reheat it once the pancakes are finished (I prefer the second method, as letting it cool and then briefly reheating it seems to make the mingling of flavors more evident), that way you won’t get too distracted, burn something, throw your ruined dinner in the sink and eat crackers and some dry spinach that’s been hanging out in the fridge for 5 days because you don’t feel like going to the store for reinforcements.

To prepare the pancakes, place the gluten-free rice flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper mix in a pyrex pitcher that holds at least 2 cups. Add water bit by bit and stir until the the batter reaches about 1 1/2 cups (the flour tends to clump at the bottom so stir completely. The batter will be slightly thinner than the consistency of a smoothie.

In a crepe pan (or small, non-stick skillet), add a few drops of olive oil and place on medium-high heat. Once the pan is sufficiently heated and the oil evenly distributed, add pancake batter (a thin layer). And, like traditional pancakes, once there are a significant amount of bubbles on the surface, the pancake can be flipped (these tend to be cake-ier than pancakes and thicker than crepes).

Plate two pancakes and on the stack, spoon a generous helping of the portobello mixture, then add slices of lightly salted avocado slices on top. If you need some extra fat in your diet, I dig a tblsp of mayo with 1/4 tsp of chili powder mixed in on the side—but that’s just because I’m obsessed with condiments.

Enjoy!