Blueberry and Coconut Coffeecake

Dec 072011
 
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I have been away for a while. I have had some writer’s block.  NOT sure why, by the way. Maybe I have been just feeling quiet. Okay, my friends just spit out their coffee because I am never quiet. Thanks for your patience, all the same. So finally after three different versions of making this cake I have finally found the one worth posting.  Like all the baking posts I do, this one is a n0-brainer, because I am a horrible baker. It is also vegan because my son can not have eggs and dairy, but non-vegans do not be scared off.  I served it to many a carnivore, who repel at the mere mention of the word… vegan, and they loved it. I have based it on a depression era recipe that did not use the hard to obtain eggs and dairy.

One thing about this recipe that rocks is that is super moist and it freezes great. I love that I can make something up, freeze it, and then pull out a piece when needed.  That friend stopped by to have a cup of coffee or when you have that morning when you just want something a little sweet.

Preheat oven at 350F

Grease or spray with cooking spray a 8 or 9 inch spring-form pan. Notice that mine is glass bottomed. Love that about my spring-form pan. It goes on any tray and doesn’t look bad. Now, back to baking…

Toss about 1 1/2 cups of blueberries in flour (This prevents the blueberries from bleeding blue throughout the entire cake). I used the frozen wild berries from Costco. Thawed out.

In a bowl:

1 1/2 cup AP flour
heaping 1/2 cup sugar
1 T. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 t. lemon extract
1 T. vinegar
6 T. coconut oil (melted in microwave)
1 cup coconut milk or juice

Mix all the ingredients together, then fold in the blueberries. Pour mixture into the pan. Make a some few dents throughout the top of the batter.

Then mix up 6 0z cream cheese (vegans: use the vegan cream cheese like tofutti), few tablespoons of coconut milk or juice and 1/4 cup sugar together. Pour all over the top of blueberry coconut batter.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes. You want it firm to the touch. Cool, if you can stand to wait. I never can.

I plan on making this ahead and it will be something we will eat Christmas morning while opening presents.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

 

Raspberry and Goat Cheese Pancakes

Jul 122011
 
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There is something always so special about a raspberry. They feel like such a treat to me even though we have our own bushes and eat them often. They are so perfect just on their own, but this is how I show off my beloved raspberry. Start with a sweet pancake, add the tang of goat cheese. Throw in some lemon and thyme. Fold in the egg whites. Finish with raspberries. You have a pancake that needs no syrup. This is the pancakes you make for that romantic breakfast for that person you want to stay for dinner. Well, I guess I have the perfect breakfast recipe ready, if I ever need it.

Serves 4
  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 4  eggs, separated
  • 1 cup softened goat cheese
  • 3/4 cups milk
  • 2  lemons, juiced and zested
  • 1 pint red raspberries
  • 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, leaves only
  • butter, for cooking pancakes

 

1. Sift all dry ingredients together in a bowl.

2. Separate eggs in separate bowls.

3. In the bowl with egg yolks, add goat cheese, milk, lemon juice and zest, and 1 T. fresh thyme leaves. Whisk together until smooth.

4. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix well, forming batter.

5. Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Fold into pancake batter.

6. Melt butter on preheated griddle. Ladle or spoon batter on griddle to desired size of pancake. Place 3 or 4 raspberries on each pancake. When you see some bubbles raising and bursting, you will know to flip it gently. Cook until underside is golden.

7. Place pancake stack on plate. Top with more raspberries and some thyme leaves. Sprinkle with a little powdered sugar.

8. Serve immediately or place in a warm oven until ready to serve.

 

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

 

 

It starts with the corn pancake.

Jun 092011
 
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Breakfast usually poses a problem for me. Try making an interesting breakfast when your son is allergic to dairy, nuts, and eggs? I am definitely not the type of mother that acts like a short order cook and cooks different items for each person’s tastes. You get what is served. I also want my son to have fond memories of that amazing breakfast that I lovingly prepared for him. Oh, the pressure that we put on ourselves as mothers. Geez.  I think I found the recipe that makes us both very happy, though.

Corn pancake with bacon and warm sorghum drizzled on top. It was a big success for us both. I added a poached egg on top of mine. I prepped this plate for Gabe and went to find my camera before I let him eat. What I did not notice is the little bit taken by Gabe out of the top corn pancake until I was downloading my pictures on my computer. We both got a big laugh out of that one. Oops.

I first came across sorghum syrup at the Amish farmer’s booth at the summer market. It looks like molasses, but I had never heard of it before, so I asked the farmer to describe it to me. He said that it is not as sweet as syrup and has the earthiness that molasses does. He always eats straight out the jar on biscuits. It is juice extracted from sorghum cane, then cooked down to make a syrup. He said that they only harvest it during a short time of the year. I would highly recommend it. If you see it sold, snatch it up. It has a long shelf life.

I made a variation of my vegan pancake for this corn pancake. I am not one for trying to stitch ingredients to create something that “taste exactly” like the original dish. Vegan chili or burgers with the fake meat stuff just doesn’t cut it, but this pancake recipe works. I never even mention that they are vegan when I serve them. Everyone just enjoys and my son is just part of the crowd.

1  cup AP flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 cup fresh kernal corn

3 T. sugar

1 T. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

3 t. Egg Replacer (I get this powder at Whole Foods)

1 1/2 cup soy or rice milk

1/2 t. vanilla ( if your soy has vanilla flavor, omit)

Mix dry ingredients first and then whisk in liquids. You are now ready for your griddle. I use vegan butter to prep my pan for the batter.

By the way… I always cook my bacon at 375F in the oven and I always put a little vinegar in the water that I poach eggs in. I heat my sorghum syrup in the microwave.

This has now become one of my favorite breakfasts. I added a squirt of sriracha to the side of my plate for some heat. One bite hits all your senses. That is my kind of eating.  I loved every bite and wanted more.

Gabriel has asked for it again this coming weekend. Really, this is why I cook. Gabriel can not have a pancake when we go out to restaurants. I can’t go out and have a corn pancake with bacon, egg and sorghum on it anywhere else. This is part of what makes our home special and safe for my son.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

Day 2:Biscuits & sausage with creamy poblano gravy

May 192011
 
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It’s Day 2:  Now what am I going to do with my turkey sausage? It’s morning now and I am having a few friends over for breakfast after we drop the kids off at school. I am serving it up on my back porch that is filled with the morning  sun. Mornings are hectic, but biscuits and gravy are surprisingly was easy to whip up.

I pulled  out the second portioned out ball of turkey sausage and  added 1 t. sage and 2 gloves of garlic finely chopped.  Blended it into sausage and then divided into four patties. I start heating them up in a sauté pan over medium heat.

 

I had roasted my poblano’s the day before over my gas burner, afterwards throwing them into a paper bag to steam up, so I can remove the skin easily and clean out the seeds.  I usually cut the peppers into strips. If you have not  roasted the pepper, do it now while the sausage is cooking.

Then I start whipping up some quick drop biscuits . Their name is truly appropriate.  I hate to roll out biscuits, so this recipe is perfect. No rolling. I ground a little black pepper on top to compliment the gravy and sausage.

My sausage is cooked and draining on paper towel, my biscuits are baking,  I am now going to make my gravy or white sauce. Now if I had grown up in the south, I would never dream of serving up a gravy for biscuits that was made in the same pan that I had cooked the sausage in because it makes the gravy tan in color.

A true southern gravy is white and milky. Well, I am a mid-westerner and a busy mother that is cooking for busy mothers, so I am not going to worry about the color of my gravy. I am just going to care about how it tastes. Hell,  I am just going to use the same pan that I cooked the sausage in. Now if I was making biscuits and gravy for… let’s say.. hotty Texan chef Bryan Caswell in the morning, I would whip out a clean pan to make the gravy. Tee hee. Just saying…

Turn the heat to medium under the sausage pan and add a couple tablespoons of oil or butter to the pan, scraping all the pan drippings from the bottom of the pan.

After it melts, add 1/4 cup of flour and stir. Give it time to cook the flour, then add 3 cups of milk (or rice milk). Whisk together and let thicken as the milk heats up. Season with salt, pepper, and a touch of nutmeg. Taste and adjust seasonings as it thickens.

This will make plenty, so I take a little under 2 cups of it and reserve it for tomorrow. There are so many ways to use this white sauce aka gravy. Whenever I make it, I try to make extra to use the next day in another recipe. I will be using it in the lasagna tomorrow, but you can use it in macaroni and cheese or lots of other recipes.

Now, I add the slices of poblano peppers to the remaining white sauce. Add as much as you would like in the gravy. I will use the leftover peppers in tacos, eggs, etc.

Let’s assemble breakfast. Coffee is strong and bold and on the table. Cut biscuit in half, place turkey sausage patty on the biscuit bottom. Cover with gravy. You could sprinkle with some sliced scallions if desired. Put on lid of the biscuit on top and serve.

Man, oh man, did we have a good time eating and chatting the morning away. Everyone had a great time and the breakfast made everyone feel right at home. I am so blessed to have such great friends. Cooking for my friends is just one way I can show them how much I appreciate them.

The purpose of doing three days of different recipes with the same main ingredient is to help you start thinking about how to create ways that you can help yourself save time and money when you are preparing your meals.

Hope that you will be stopping by for a meal at my table sometime.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home Brined Corn Beef

Mar 012011
 
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If you would of said to me not so long ago, “You should make your own corn beef.” I would of thought you were crazy. That just seemed like too much, but then I got seduced into it by Mrs. Wheelbarrow and The YummyMummy. Those clever ladies started a blog contest called “Charcutepalooza” . Doesn’t the name alone make you want to participate? Foodies are always up for a party or celebration. You have a new challenge very month  from the bible of cured meats, Charcuterie, by Micheal Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn, over a course of a year and the best recipes made from the cured meats from a participating blogger gets a trip to Italy.

Now you would think that would get me to sign up. No. I thought that it is a huge commitment. Gabriel has so many sports, home work, whine, whine, plus I didn’t think that I had the money for buying a good piece of meat and f#%&! it up. Which I knew I was capable of. It would of made  me sick to waste a good piece of meat, so I decided not to sign up.

Then I find out over 200 blogger signed up. What? That is crazy. These people are all nuts. It has gone viral. OMG, I am now feeling left out. One thing a foodie hates is to miss the party! I told myself that my reasons are still sound for not joining, but now I should push myself a bit.

So, the biggest news about brining beef is that it is super easy. Shockingly easy. I have to say the taste was great. My corn beef was tender and had a great depth of flavor. I made this corn beef for about $4.95 a lb. By the way, Katz famous deli in NYC sells their corn beef online for $19.95 a lb. I know that they have been doing it a long time, but I can not believe that corn beef is that much better then mine. Maybe they think everyone wants to reenact the famous Katz deli scene with Meg Ryan in “Harry met Sally”.

This is my interpetation of the recipe from Charcuterie read over the phone to me from my brother, who lives in LA and uses the book religiously. So it is basically how I heard it. I have since ordered the book. You all just need to buy the book.

Recipe:

7 lb. Brisket (can vary in size)
1 gallon water
1 cup kosher salt
1 oz. pink salt (curing salt. Not Himalayan pink salt)
3 garlic cloves
2 T. pickling spice

Pickling Spice:

2 T. black peppercorns
2 T. mustard seeds
2T. coriander seeds
2 T. hot pepper flakes
2 T. allspice berries
2 T. whole cloves
1 T. ground mace
1 T. ground ginger
2 small cinnamon sticks
24 bay leaves, crumbled

Place the water into a large 6 to 8 quart stockpot along with salt, sugar, pink salt and half of the pickling spice. Place brisket into water make sure that is submerged. I put a plate on the top of the meat to make sure it is submerged. Place in the refrigerator for 5 days. Check daily to make sure the beef is completely submerged and stir the brine.

After 5 days, remove from the brine and rinse well under cool water. Place the brisket into a pot just large enough to cover with water by 1-inch. Place the remaining pickling spice. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and gently simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until the meat is fork tender. Remove from the pot and thinly slice across the grain.

 Now for what I was waiting for… a sandwich. I love, love, love sandwiches. A reuben is one of my favorites. I love corn beef on pumpernickel or rye. I need lots of swiss cheese. I take sauerkraut and rinse it really well and saute’ it in some fresh cabbage, then place that on the sandwich. Finally press it as I grill it. Like a panini. When it is hot and melty goodness I serve it with mustard & homemade thousand island dressing.  Some bites I put a little mustard on, then other I use thousand island. OMG. Now I want to re-enact the Meg Ryan scene in Katz Deli. You will be so glad that you made your own corn beef.

But wait there is more….

Homemade cornbeef hash. Man, this is good. I always make extra baked potatoes when I bake them because they can be used in so many different ways. This is one of  them. I cut up one big baked potato into small pieces. Throw in a handful of green onions and lots of garlic. Cut up a slice of corn beef into small pieces. Mix it all together. Place in heated saute’ pan with olive oil and butter melted in it. Keep over medium heat until browned. Season with salt and pepper. I like a few squeezes of Sriracha as well.

My son devoured this up with berry smoothie for our Sunday breakfast. I had mine with an egg and cup of coffee. It was fabulous.

In the end, just push yourself a little out of your comfort zone and make something that you have never made before. Even if it is not perfect, you learned from it and you will do better next time. I seem to be relearning that lesson over and over.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

Polenta… with some mouthwatering toppings.

Jan 242011
 
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I didn’t know about  polenta during my midwest upbringing.  I had heard of cornmeal. We made cornbread. We used cornmeal as a breading on fish, but polenta entered my life when I was in my late 20′s. I had gone to a high end Italian restaurant and they served me a warm, creamy, cheesy polenta on a plate with a beautifully seared veal chop on top. Wow. I had never had such a delight. I wanted to know everything about polenta. I knew corn was involved and for years that is all I knew. Now I know polenta is simply cornmeal. If it has the word “polenta” on the package, it will be priced a lot higher.

So for all things Italian I go to my dear friend, Anna Romeo Fiore. If you have not quessed by her name, she is Italian. First generation here in this country. Her parents were born in Salerno, Italy. I loved and still love my friendship with Anna for all the laughter, loving spirit and warmth she gives me as a friend. When I first met her, I had never had an Italian friend. Anna had never had a WASP friend from the midwest. We were just fasinated by each other’s cultures. We grew up a little over 200 miles from each other, but it could of been a ocean that separated us.

Now back to polenta…I told Anna’s mother, Theresa,  about my first polenta experience and she laughed. “How much they charge you for that? It is nothing but peasant food. You got robbed.” What? She went on to explain to me that when they did not have eggs for pasta, they would make a pot of polenta along with the ragu. She had a oblong board that she would put in the middle of the table and pour the steaming polenta down on the full length of the board and then pour the ragu over the top. Everyone would  have their own paddle and scoop the filling, tasty mix onto their own plates.

These days the way I make polenta is to make up a batch during the day and let it cool in a pan in the fridge. We then cut a slice to heat up and top with something delightful. One of my favorites is a great recipe by Arielleclementine for Food52. She taught me to put carmelized onions, feta cheese (she used goat, but I always have feta), and drizzled it with honey. You can not believe how addicting all these salty sweet flavors are to me. I will even make this for breakfast for myself. Start out with polenta you have on hand and then throw on various toppings. From Italian meat sauce to sauteed veggies, they all taste great on top of the polenta.

Polenta:

  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup polenta aka cornmeal
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • Bring the water, milk, and salt to a boil. Slowly whisk in the polenta. Turn heat to low, and continue whisking for 5 minutes, or until polenta is smooth and creamy. Spread the polenta in a 9×9 baking dish or loaf pan, and set aside to cool. It can be refrigerated for about 5 days.
  • Note: I also like to add some herbs (thyme is one of my favorites), stir in a couple of knobs of butter to smooth it out as you are pulling the polenta off the stove.

    • Different toppings:

    • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
    • 1 tablespoon butter
    • 1 yellow onion, halved and sliced in 1/4″ slices
    • 2 ounces feta or goat cheese, crumbled
    • honey, to drizzle
  • While the polenta is setting up, add the butter and olive oil to a heavy-bottomed skillet set to medium-low heat. Add the sliced onions and a sprinkle of kosher salt, cook, stirring occasionally until soft, golden, and caramelized- about 20-25 minutes.
  • Pour 1 tablespoon olive oil into another skillet, set over medium heat. Cut squares or slices of  the polenta and place in the heated skillet. Cook until slightly browned and crusty on one side, about 2 minutes, then flip and cook the other sides another two minutes.
  • To assemble the polenta cakes, place on a plate, add one tablespoon of caramelized onions to each cake, top each with about a teaspoon of crumbled goat cheese, and drizzle with honey.

    • Mushroom topping: I love making this for Meatless Mondays

    • 1 T. olive oil
    • 1 T. butter
    • 1 heaping cup sliced mushrooms (variety of whatever you have)
    • 1/2 cup thinnly sliced onions
    • 2 gloves garlic, finely chopped
    • fresh thyme, a few sprigs
    • 1/4 cup white wine
    • 2 T. creme

    * Heat up oil and butter in a saute’ pan over medium heat.
    * Place onions and mushrooms in pan until softened, then  add thyme, wine and garlic and simmer until wine has been absorbed.
    * Add creme, stir and taste.
    * Add salt and pepper to your taste.

    When I assemble this one I usually grate parmesan cheese on the top with a microplane. For my son with allergies or your vegan friends I replace milk with rice milk , butter with Earth Balance.

    In the end, polenta can be used to fill those holes in your food repertoire. This peasant food has come a long way, but it is still easy and cost effective.
    Oh, I want some with feta, carmelized onions and honey right now. I told you I craved this stuff.

    Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

    Quick Drop Biscuits

    Dec 202010
     
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    Biscuits always have a place at the table. Everyone loves them, but people hardly ever have them. I wholeheartedly believe if people knew how fast and easy it was to make a drop biscuit, no one would ever buy that stuff in a can. The canned biscuit has this  metallic aftertaste to it that I can not bear as well.

    They go with a variety of different food. I will serve biscuits for breakfast with sausage and gravy or eggs. I will serve biscuits at lunch with a brothy soup. I have served biscuits for afternoon tea with homemade preserves. I serve biscuits for dinner with any homey meat dish or summer salad.

    Every time I place the biscuits on the table, I get the same reaction.” Ohhhh, homemade biscuits.” It sets the tone for the rest of the meal.  With my son’s allergy to dairy and eggs, I have switched it up a bit with vegan shortening and rice milk and no one is the wiser.  I will also make them with whole wheat pastry flour.

    Gabriel loves them so much that one time when they were being passed around the table, he took three on his plate. We all laughed as I told him he had to put two of them back. He said, “But they will eat them all.”


    Quick Drop Biscuits (Variation from Joy of Cooking)

    Makes about 12

    Preheat  oven 450F

    1 3/4 cup sifted all purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
    1/2 t. salt
    1 T. double acting baking powder
    6 T. chilled butter or shortening
    1 cup milk / rice or soy milk

    1. Sift flour, salt and baking powder together in a large bowl.
    2. Cut butter or shortening into dry ingredients until the consistency of cornmeal.
    3. Add milk and stir in gently. Only about 10 turns.
    4. Drop biscuits on ungreased baking sheet.
    5. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

    Variety in biscuits:  I have added roasted garlic and chives to the flour mixture before the milk is added. I have also added blue and cheddar cheese. Both are delicious.

    Vegan shortening: I prefer Earth Balance sticks. It is a cholesterol-free shortening that works well in baking. I have used in pie dough as well.

    Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

    Summer Peaches and Apricots

    Aug 052010
     

    My son and I have a beautiful peaceful habit on Sunday mornings. When we wake up we break the fast by gobbling down whatever seasonal fruit we have on hand. I make the important first cup of coffee and heat up Gabriel’s apple juice with lemon slice. I read the newspaper and Gabriel watches the TV he has been long denied all week.

    An hour or two later, we have our second course of the morning. It usually consists of eggs, bacon, and crispy bread. Sometimes its pancakes or a frittata. This tides us over until the late afternoon when I make our Sunday dinner, hopefully with more of the tribe around our table as well.

    On this particular morning I had apricots and peaches on hand. I have grilled fruit before, but never for breakfast. I had always made it for a dessert, but heck, why not? When I announced that I was going to grill the peaches and then cover them with warm honey. I received a big hooray. Gabriel has several food allergies (dairy being one of them), but it does not stop me from slathering my grilled fruit with greek yogurt, then the warm honey. Amazingly simply, but huge flavor. It was great way to start the day.

    Grilling stone fruit is a no brainer. Whether it is plum, peaches, or apricots.

    1. I just heat up my grill pan with just a little butter over medium high heat.
    2. Place flat side down for just only 2-3 minutes.
    3. Zap honey in the micro for about 30 seconds just to get it warmed up

    Serve with greek yogurt for a touch of tangy cream and slather with warm honey on top. You will lick your plate. I have also put blue cheese on the top of the fruit with honey on top and it taste amazing. It makes a great first course as well as a dessert, depending on your mood.

    This bowl of fruit was demolished in about 5 minutes on that sunny Sunday morning. We have nectarines for next week.

    Feta Souffle with Blood Orange and Mint Hollandaise with Salmon Caviar

    Mar 042010
     

    Food 52 is a food community blog that has come to mean inexplicable things to me over the few months that I have been traipsing through it. Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs started the blog with the idea that home cooks are practical and inventive, which lead to great recipes. Both are successful cookbook authors themselves and you might recognize Amanda from her cameo in “Julie and Julia”.

    Every week, they post a challenge to the food community by category. (Ex. Best baked pasta dish, etc.) Lots of recipes are entered and then two finalists are chosen and the community votes on the winner. The winner will get their recipe published in their cookbook at the end of the 52 weeks. Thus, the name of the blog. Meanwhile, there are all these fabulous cooks spending time cooking for their families and serving fresh, unprocessed food.

    I am so inspired by the fabulous cooks that I have met in this community. The exchange of ideas is thrilling, but what really is exciting is the way each recipe tells a story about the interesting family that contributes to this venue. I say, family, not cook of the family, because it seems like whole families have become involved in the process. I know that Gabriel, my almost 6 year old, is my big inspiration and hopes I win with every recipe that I enter. True cooking is a family affair.

    So, this weeks challenge was a little different. Amanda and Merrill asked us to create a recipe using feta cheese, blood oranges, and mint. It came with instructions to think outside the box. Well, I decided that I would just see if something came to me and I was not going to spend much time brooding over it.

    I literally was swimming my laps at the community pool, when the souffle idea hit me and Feta Souffle with Blood Orange and Mint Hollandaise topped with Salmon Caviar was born. I really had no idea how it would taste when I was finished, but in the end, I was quite pleased.

    I love souffles. Not as hard as one would think to make. They are eye-catching with a rich flavor with a moist, tender consistency. My Gramma Beuker would make a souffle for my mother and her best friend, Carol, when they would come home for lunch during the school week. I was always so impressed with that idea.

    The hollandaise sauce looks like it will taste sweet, but it is rich and subtle with the mint hitting you at the last taste. Frankly, the caviar really makes it that much better. This recipe serves four for lunch or six for a first course. It would be perfect before a fish course. Okay, I say four for lunch or should I really say two for a hearty lunch. My friend, Richard, and I sat down to eat and before we knew it, it was all gone. We were scrapping the sides of the souffle dish to get the very last morsel.

    Well, I hope you try a souffle. I will keep entering recipes and hey, perhaps mine might actually be picked as a finalist. I will definitely let you know if it does.

    Pancakes from your pantry.

    Jul 092009
     

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    I love pancakes, but how many times do you wake up on that Sunday morning and realize that you are missing that one fresh ingredient that is needed for those much loved pancakes.

    I started experimenting with vegan recipes because my son has severe food allergies and can not have most baked goods. I just wouldn’t settle. I wanted that perfect pancake that I could serve to my son and everyone else. It would be a success if no one knew that it was vegan. I found it.

    Now do not get me wrong. I am an unapologetic carnivore, but you will see quite a few vegan recipes. First, it fits many of my sons dietary restrictions. Second, it is better for the enviroment  that we eat less meat. Third, it is healthier for us. Drats!

    Vegan Pancakes

    1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

    3 T. sugar (I usually use beet juice sugar. Much lower glycemic level)

    1 T. baking powder

    1/4 t. salt

    1/8t. nutmeg

    3 t. Egg Replacer (I get this powder at Whole Foods)

    1 1/2 cup soy milk

    1/2 t. vanilla ( if your soy has vanilla flavor, omit)

    Mix dry ingredients first and then whisk in liquids. You are now ready for your griddle. I usually use soy butter and pure maple syrup. And your berries, bananas… whatever you want added before the first flip.

    I also use this recipe for waffles. I make extra and freeze them to pop in the toaster for a mid week breakfast.