EASY Gluten Free Pear Tart

This is a delicious and simple gluten free pear tart. I adapted this recipe from the one found here, and was really surprised at how quick and easy it was to prepare. I will be making pear tarts more often!

Easy gluten free, yeast free pear tart

I used butter in this recipe, but I think you could substitute organic vegetable shortening to make it vegan. By the way, I have noticed that Spectrum Organics now has a butter flavor vegetable shortening, although I have not tried it. If you try it, please let me know how it worked for you.

Gluten Free Rustic Pear Tart
Makes one 9" tart

Ingredients

For the crust
3/4 cup gluten free flour mix
1 chia egg (1Tbsp chia mixed with 3Tbsp water, let sit about 5 minutes)
2 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons organic unsalted butter
3/4 teaspoon sea salt

For the filling
2 large or 3 medium pears, slightly underripe
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)
Cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling

Method

Cream the butter, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Beat in the chia egg and gradually add the flour until dough comes together in a ball. Place the ball of dough in baking dish, and press it into shape with your fingers.

Refrigerate dough while you prepare filling.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Core pears and slice into thin strips. I used a mandoline, but using a knife is fine. I was going for a more rustic (and simple) tart, so I did not peel the pears.

Toss pears with 1 tablespoon sugar, lemon juice, and tapioca starch. Arrange pears in a fan-like array on the chilled dough. Keep layering pears until you run out of pears. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and sugar to taste.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until edges of dough are just lightly golden brown. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Yum!

Raw Vegan Seaweed Soup

Wow!

Raw vegan creamy seaweed soup

I really, really liked this soup.

I was a little skeptical, but it was fantastic. Not to mention fast and easy!

I got this recipe out of a raw vegan cookbook... somewhere. Unfortunately, I did not write down which cookbook, and I regret that I cannot give proper credit! If anyone knows where this came from, please let me know and I will cite appropriately.

Seaweed is very high in iron, calcium, and other minerals. Seaweed also has strong anti-inflammatory compounds, as well as antiviral and anticoagulant properties. For more information on the health benefits of different types of seaweed, click here and here.

Raw Vegan Seaweed Soup
Serves 2-4

Ingredients
1 ounce wakame
5 cups filtered water
1 cup raw pine nuts
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon sea salt

Soak the seaweed in the water in a large bowl for 10 to 15 minutes. Using a strainer, strain the seaweed over another bowl. Measure 3 cups of the seaweed water and discard the rest (or use it on your plants).

In a high speed blender, combine the 3 cups of seaweed water with the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Using a ladle, remove any foam that rises to the top. Ladle into serving bowls and garnish with some of the soaked seaweed.

Red White & Blue Rice Krispy Treats

Here is a fun, healthy, patriotic treat that only takes about 5 minutes to make. Enjoy!

Allergy Friendly Red White and Blue Rice Krispy treats

Gluten free and vegan. No corn, soy, or dairy.

Ingredients

1/3 cup brown rice syrup
1/3 cup nut butter of choice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla powder OR 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups puffed rice cereal
1/3 cup dried blueberries
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Method
In a large pot, heat brown rice syrup, nut butter, and vanilla over med-low heat until melted.
Stir in puffed rice, cranberries, and blueberries
Spread evenly in a 9x9 or similar pan, and let cool.
Cut into squares and enjoy!

Great for snacks or breakfast.

You can use any puffed rice cereal that works for you, just double check to make sure it meets your allergy needs. I use Arrowhead Mills brand, it looks like this:

Note that this kind of puffed rice is not as crisp as a Rice Krispy type cereal. For that texture, I have used Erewhon brand, it looks like this: 

Brown rice syrup comes in a jar in the sweetener/baking aisle and looks like this:

Also note that you can find a variety of puffed grains, such as millet, quinoa, and corn in the cereal aisle. Play around, and mix and match various grains for your taste or allergy preferences. For example, here is a link to puffed millet treats I made for Halloween.

Have fun! Happy 4th of July.

Health benefits of: Blueberries, Cranberries

Homemade Vegetable Bouillon

My first batch of Homemade Bouillon

Vegetable broth is one of those ingredients that has stumped me for a while. I never realized how many recipes call for vegetable (or chicken) broth. I searched for about a year, but no matter which brand I looked at, there was always something in the ingredients that I was sensitive to.

But I also noticed something else. Even if I didn't have food sensitivities.... there are some products that I don't think I'd want to consume.

For example, take a look at the ingredients in a major brand of bouillon:

Ingredients: with Other Natural Flavors Ingredients: Salt, Sugar, Flavor (Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Salt), Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Contains 2% or less of Silicon Dioxide (Anticaking Agent), Fat Flavor (Partially Hydrogenated Corn Oil, Flavoring), Natural Flavor (Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Salt, Sugar, Whey Powder [from Milk], Lactic Acid), Spice, Onion Powder, Dehydrated Cooked Beef, Caramel Color, Dried Beef Stock, Disodium Inosinate and Disodium Guanylate, Autolyzed Yeast, Flavoring. No MSG Added (Contains Naturally Occurring Glutamates).

Food allergies and sensitivities aside... yuck! That is not even food- those are laboratory ingredients designed to taste like food.

In contrast, here are the ingredients in a top organic brand:

Ingredients
Vegetables* and Concentrated Vegetables* (Carrots*, Celery*, Onion*, Tomato*), Salt, Soy Sauce* (Water, Soybean*, Salt, Alcohol*), Cane Sugar*, Maltodextrin*, Natural Flavor, Potato Starch*, Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Dried Onion*, Dried Garlic*, and Spice*. *Certified Organic by QAI

At least it is real food : ) But- as those of you with gluten or other sensitivities know- these ingredients still present an allergy/health issue- "natural flavor" could be anything. The catch-all "natural flavor" is so frustrating. It could be derived from corn, or soy, or wheat-- you simply do not know.

Even if the "natural flavor" turned out to be safe for me, I avoid corn, soy, potato, and yeast, due to allergies and sensitivities. So, even the organic brand does not work for me.

Of course, there are other brands, but I've found that they all contain very similar ingredients. Same goes for broth that comes in a box or can. In recipes, I would just use water instead of broth, but there was definitely flavor lacking in the final product.

One day, I came across this recipe for DIY Bouillon on 101 Cookbooks. This recipe is so easy, much healthier than store-bought, is made entirely from whole food (organic, if you choose) ingredients, and you can customize ingredients to your own needs or preferences.

I made a batch a while back, and it lasted forever. I used it in everything- in every recipe that called for broth (finally!), as extra flavor when making soup, in the rice cooker when making rice or quinoa, basically anything that could use some seasoning. I just love it. It is now a staple in my kitchen.

This time, I made half a batch, and adjusted the ingredients based on seasonal availability, and the fact that I am now tolerating more foods (yay!) I am posting with the ingredients I used, but click on the link above for the full/original version on 101 Cookbooks.

Homemade Vegetable Bouillon (Gluten free, Yeast free, Nightshade free, Vegan)
Equipment needed: Food processor
Makes about 1 1/2 cups (one quart, and one pint mason jar)

Ingredients
2 1/2 ounces leeks, slice into rings and wash well
3 1/2 ounces fennel bulb, roughly chopped
4 ounces carrot, scrubbed and roughly chopped
1 stalk celery
1 3/4 ounces shallots
2 small-ish garlic cloves
4.5 ounces fine grain sea salt
3/4 ounce parsley
1 ounce cilantro

Method
Add vegetables to food processor, and pulse a few times to mix. Scrape down sides of food processor, if necessary. Add remaining ingredients, and process until well combined. You will wind up with a loose paste.

Spoon into jars, and keep in freezer until needed. Because of all the salt, it barely solidifies, so it is easy to scoop out when you need it.

As the original recipe suggests, I typically use about 1 tsp of this bouillon per 1 cup liquid; although sometimes I use a little more. It is totally up to you- feel free to adjust amounts (and ingredients) to your preference.

This recipe is linked to Made From Scratch Mondays on Living With Food Allergies and Celiac Disease. Be sure to check their page for more gluten free recipe ideas.

Pomegranate Lentil Soup

Brrrrr! Cold outside = make soup!

Here is a recipe I originally found on theKitchn. It is warm, tasty, full of iron, protein, & fiber. I used spinach instead of chard, only because that's what I had on hand. I didn't put the pretty pomegranate arils on top, either, because I didn't have any. But I think that punch of red would be very pretty on top of the soup. Especially in the heart shaped bowl :)

This recipe contains no gluten, corn, dairy, soy, or nightshades.

Pomegranate Lentil Soup 
Serves 6

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups diced onion
1/2 cup diced carrot
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 1/2 cups brown lentils, picked over and rinsed
1 1/2 cups finely chopped chard (I used fresh spinach, but any dark leafy green would work)
6 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice* (I've found Costco has the best price on pomegranate juice, but Target is a close second, especially when on sale)
1 large pomegranate, de-seeded (I've noticed in the produce section of some groceries, you can now buy a small container of pomegranate arils already out of the pomegranate)
*If making it from scratch, you will need about 3-4 pomegranates to make 1 1/2 cups of juice.

Method
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and carrot and sauté until onion is translucent.
Add cumin and coriander and sauté for another minute.
Add lentils, chard, water, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.
Stir in pomegranate juice and simmer for another 5 minutes.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve, ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.

Click here to see nutritional information and health benefits of: Lentils, Pomegranate, more on Pomegranate, Chard, Spinach, and other Green Leafy vegetables

This recipe is linked to Made From Scratch Mondays on Allergies and Celiac- check it out for more gluten free and allergy-friendly recipes.

Raw Vegan Valentine Cookies

This recipe was inspired by a great recipe on Veggie Wedgie- check it out here. I love Veggie Wedgie! This recipe is also linked to Wellness Weekends and Allergy Friendly Friday, be sure to check each of those pages for more gluten free, allergy-friendly recipes. If you are gluten free and vegan, and you do not know of Cybele Pascal, get thee to her page now. If you are gluten free and sugar free, be sure to visit Diet, Dessert and Dogs for amazing sweet and savory recipes... and dogs. Food and dogs...what more could you possibly want in a blog? (Woof, woof, nothing, says Bailey from the Healing Kitchen. Wag, wag)

But first, read the yummy recipe below. Trust me, you want to make these cookies!

I think these are the best cookies I've ever made. Ever. Even way back when I could eat butter, eggs, flour, and Crisco (shudder). Seriously, these are as good or better than any raw,vegan, cooked, or traditional cookie I've ever tasted. Bonus: these are much easier to make than baked cookies! Bonus bonus: they are super healthy! (links to health info at bottom of recipe) 

This recipe has no gluten, wheat, sugar, corn, dairy, egg, soy, or nightshades/potato.

These cookies are mostly raw. To make them truly raw, you could use raw oat groats, and make a raw jam for the filling. I was lazy and used gluten free rolled oats and lingonberry jam I had in the fridge. 

Raw Vegan Valentine's Day Cookies

Makes approximately 30 sandwich cookies

Special equipment: Vitamix or food processor, Dehydrator (optional)

Ingredients

3/4 cup raw almonds

3/4 cup raw hazelnuts

1 cup gluten free oats

1/3 cup agave nectar

1 Tbsp coconut oil

pinch vanilla powder(ground vanilla bean)

pinch himalayan salt

few teaspoons of water, if needed

Method

One at a time, grind the almonds, hazelnuts, and oats into flour. I did this in the "dry" container for the Vitamix. You can probably do this in a food processor, or perhaps a coffee or nut grinder. You want a fine flour, not just finely chopped nuts. You could also use nut pulp left over from making nut milk (keep it in the freezer until you need it), or purchase nut flour (but nut flour is really expensive).

Whisk nut and oat flours, vanilla powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl. Add the agave nectar and coconut oil, and knead with your hands until well combined and you have a dough that sticks together when you press it between your fingers. If dough is too dry and crumbly, add some water, one teaspoon at a time. Knead, and add more water if necessary. I did not need any water this time, but sometimes I do. Be careful not to add too much water, or you'll wind up with a sticky mess.

Roll out the dough on parchment paper or silpat. Using your favorite cookie cutter, cut dough into shapes. Carefully transfer to dehydrator tray lined with teflexx sheet or parchment paper. Dehydrate at 145 degrees F for one hour, then 115 degrees F for as long as you like to get the consistency you desire. I dehydrated for about 6 hours... but a few cookies may have disappeared from the trays in that time... had to taste, you know... 

Add jam to cookies, and assemble.

You can eat these as soon as you cut them, or dehydrate first. It is up to you! 

They are very good for breakfast. They are also very good frozen. Mmmm.

Click on the following links for more information on the health benefits of almonds, hazelnuts, another page on hazelnuts, nuts in general, oats, lingonberry, another page on lingonberry, and coconut oil. Click here for more information about the health benefits of raw & living food.

Gluten Free Vegan Mini Pot Pie Casseroles

Hello everyone! I know, long time no post. I have so many things I want to post about... but today I want to share with you my first ever attempt at making a vegetable pot pie. Ever. I've never made pot pie before... not gluten free, vegan, or any other way (unless frozen dinners count?)

This recipe was a series of experiments. The whole reason I made a pot pie was because I wanted to try a gluten free pie crust that works for my specific food allergies. One day I may get around to writing a separate post about the pie crust, but that is a story for another day :)

I've never made a gluten-free pie crust before. So that was challenge #1.

I've also never made a pot pie before. That was challenge #2.

Since I've never made a pot pie, I didn't really know what goes into a traditional pot pie- but after reading oodles of recipes, I learned that it typically includes butter, and a lot of cream. I wanted a dairy-free pot pie filling, so that was challenge #3.

I'm happy to report that after lots of reading, planning, chopping, cooking & experimenting, the result was a successful gluten-free, allergy-friendly recipe that included NO dairy, corn, or soy. It tastes great, contains TONS of veggies, and without the high fat dairy and cream, I think it is healthier than the "traditional" version.

I chose to make four mini-pies instead of one large pie, because I planned to freeze individual portions for reheating later. But you could certainly make this dish as one large casserole. Note: the pie crust in the photos IS gluten free, but was NOT vegan. The rest of the pot pie is vegan. To make the entire recipe vegan, simply use a vegan shortening in the pie crust.

This recipe is linked to Cybele Pascal's Allergy Friendly Friday <-- follow the link for more allergy-friendly recipes and ideas.

OK, here is the step-by-step:

Gluten Free Vegan Mini Pot Pies (no gluten, dairy, soy, egg, corn or potato)
Makes 4-5 mini casseroles, or one large casserole
Prep time: 30 minutes
Bake time: 50 minutes

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium head of fennel, finely chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 stalks celery, chopped (about 1 cup)
2 cups baby onions, blanched and peeled
3-4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
Baby Bella mushrooms, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
Sea salt and black pepper to season
1/4 cup gluten free flour mix
1 cup allergy-friendly vegetable broth
1 cup rice milk
1 cup frozen baby green peas
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh chives
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Gluten free pie crust (use your favorite, or recipe below)
Approximately 1/3 cup rice milk plus 1 teaspoon agave- to brush the tops of the crusts for browning
Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper- for tops of crusts

Method
Prep: Blanch and peel the baby onions.
Chop all of the veggies. Chop. Chop. Chop. It is a lot of veggies :)

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F and put rack in the middle.

Heat olive oil over medium heat in large pan (I used a large cast iron pan). When it is hot, add fennel, celery, onions, and carrots, and cook until softened, and onions are translucent, about 2-4 minutes.

Add mushrooms, season well with sea salt and freshly ground pepper, and stir to coat. Cook, stirring rarely, until mushrooms have let off water and are shrunken, about 5-7 minutes.

Sprinkle flour over vegetables, stir to coat, and cook about 1-2 minutes. Carefully add vegetable broth and rice milk, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat, add peas, fresh herbs, and vinegar, and stir to coat. Season well with sea salt and fresh ground pepper (yes, season again. I know it seems like a lot of salt and pepper, but trust me, it is ok).

Ladle filling into mini-casseroles (or one large casserole).

Can I digress for just a moment to show you these adorable mini casserole dishes...???

Too cute, right??? I love the idea that once you get to the bottom, SURPRISE, you get a cheerful message : )

OK, roll out pie dough and trim to fit the top of your casserole (I just used the lid as a guide):

Place dough over the top of the dish. Tip: brush the top sides of dish (where the crust will hang over) with olive oil to prevent the dough from sticking.

Brush tops with rice milk/agave mixture. Sprinkle with flaked sea salt and fresh ground pepper, and cut slits in the top to vent.

Place mini-pies on baking sheet, and bake in center of oven at 375 degrees F for 45-50 minutes, or until top is golden brown and filling is bubbling hot. These are about halfway done (I was really impatient and kept checking to see if they were going to turn out ok :)

And finally... Ta-da!

Yummmmmmm!

Easy Gluten Free Pie Crust
Makes one 9 inch pie crust
This pie crust can be made up to 3 days in advance and kept in the refrigerator until ready to use

Ingredients
1/2 cup non-dairy, non-soy shortening (such as Spectrum Organic Shortening)
2-4 tablespoons cold water
5 oz (about 1 1/4 cups) gluten free flour mix
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon guar gum

Method
Cut shortening into 1/2 inch pieces and place it in the freezer for 15-30 minutes.

Chill some water with ice cubes while preparing the dry ingredients.

Combine the flour, salt, sugar, and guar gum in bowl of food processor and mix until combined.

Add the shortening and pulse 6-10 times, or until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with some pea size pieces of flour-covered shortening. Do not over mix!!!

With processor running (I use the "dough" setting, with the "S" blade), add ice water 1 tablespoon at a time until the mixture just barely starts to clump together. You want just enough water so that when you pinch the dough, it holds together. Do not add more water than necessary. Do not over process.

Remove the dough from the food processor and shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour, or up to 3 days.

When ready to roll the dough, place a piece of parchment paper on the counter, and sprinkle with gluten free flour. Place dough on parchment, and sprinkle the top of the dough with flour before rolling. Roll dough to desired size and shape (a cool rolling pin helps, I actually stick mine in the freezer first). Tip: if you are making several small pie crusts, divide the dough, and roll out one section at a time, keeping remaining sections in the refrigerator until you need them.

Lift the entire piece of parchment from the counter, flip and carefully center dough over the casserole, lay dough on top of filling/dish, and carefully peel away parchment paper. Voila!

Raw Vegan Cranberry Apple Cheesecake

Our Thanksgiving dessert was delicious:

I started with a recipe I found online. That recipe didn't turn out the way I'd hoped, but I was able to rescue it by making some adjustments.

I made too many changes in the middle of creating this cheesecake to feel comfortable posting a recipe yet, since I would only be guessing what I added and in what amounts. 

I can tell you the basics:

Crust: Almonds and dates

Filling: Cheesecake with just a hint of cinnamon, nutmeg, & cloves

Topping: Cinnamon, apples, cranberries, almond crumble 

Yum! 

Just writing about it makes me want to go eat one of the slices still in the freezer.

I don't have step-by-step photos of the dessert-making process, but I'll describe it, and post photos of the finished product. Warning: you may be hungry by the end of this post ; )

The week before, I dehydrated the (organic) cranberries: 

Aren't they beautiful? It was super easy, too. Just note: cranberry juice stains EVERYTHING it touches. Such as your cutting board, the dehydrator tray, a ceramic knife, your clothes if you are not wearing an apron... 

The cheesecake crust is simply almonds and dates processed in the food processor until crumbly. Reserve about 1/3 cup of the crust mixture for the topping, then press the remaining crust mixture into a 9" springform pan 

The filling is super simple. Most raw cheesecake recipes start with soaked cashews as a base. I followed the recipe I'd found online, but I was not happy with the taste or texture. A note here: a Vitamix really does make a huge difference. The original recipe suggested processing in a food processor, and I tried that. The mixture just does not get smooth enough. No matter how long I processed, it still had little pieces of cashew in it. Not good.

So, I put the mixture in the Vitamix, added a little filtered water, gave it a 20-second whirl, and it turned out perfectly smooth and creamy, as a cheesecake filling should be! Mmmm.

The taste was still not right, however. So I added some ingredients, added some more cashews, and played around with the flavor until it resembled a fall-spiced cheesecake. Yum!

Next step: pour the cheesecake batter into the springform pan, tap to remove any air bubbles, cover, and put in the freezer to firm up.

While the cheesecake was chilling, I peeled and cored 3 Honeycrisp apples. I sliced the apples super-thin with the mandoline, and dehydrated about 2 hours. 

After 2 hours, the apples were warm and soft, not fully dehydrated (which would have made them crispy or chewy). I tossed with agave and cinnamon, and quickly realized we would need more apples to cover the top of the cheesecake (I think that's because I used a 9" pan, while the original recipe used a 6" pan). So, I repeated with 2 more Honeycrisp apples. Then tossed all of the semi-dehydrated apples with about 2/3 cup of the dried cranberries, agave, cinnamon, and the reserved crust mixture, and voila! Cranberry-apple topping. Yum. Just place mixture on top of the cheesecake. When ready to serve, remove the springform.

Can you believe that this is a healthy, living food? It is gluten-free, dairy-free, and sugar free- but so sinfully rich, you would never know it.

(You know, I usually want pecan pie for Thanksgiving, but I just realized, I didn't even miss it!)

Here are some links to the health benefits of:

Cashew

Almond

Vanilla

Cinnamon

Cloves

Nutmeg

Apple

Cranberry