Friday, January 30, 2015

Something sweet to eat during an elimination diet



If you fnd yourself in the throes of an elimination diet and pretty much can't eat anything, this is the perfect thing to put a smile back on  your face for a moment or two.  (Until you realize that what you really want is a croissant, of course, but you can't bloody have one of those.)  It is rather unfortunate though that I only discovered this recipe on day 23 of my no gluten, no dairy, no eggs, no soy, no booze diet -- which is technically the last day before I start reintroducing.  But who cares, these things are wonderful, and I intend to keep making them even if I'm not actually allergic to everything under the sun. (Please, God, don't let me be allergic to everything under the sun!)

These are a fabulous alternative to those nasty Lara bars I sometimes buy in a fit of desperation, too.  These have texture, these have ingredients you can actually see and recognize, and these are not just an emulsified sticky mess. Instead they are more like a healthy, protein-packed oatmeal cookie that really fills you up. That being said, they are not the sort of thing to eat as you wander around the house, or maybe while driving.  They are crumbly sons a bitches and you will leave a trail in your wake. So grab a napkin. Or a plate. Or a platter. Depending on the size of the bar that you've just broken off. Or just do as I do, stand in the kitchen and scarf down the lot.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

My Beloved Gluten-Free/Vegan Bread, For Your Perusal

Here we are. Both a recipe and a masterwork, I'd say. No?

And the only reason I am putting it here, is because I keep misplacing the blasted thing and that would be rather sad indeed, don't you think?  Afterall, it took me a whole year of tweaking, and trying, and experimenting, and going into debt for ridiculous and bizarre flours.  So I should have something to show for it in the end, yes? Yes.

Anyway, that's a story for another day.
garbanzo flour -- 192 grams
potato starch -- 128 grams
sorghum flour -- 64 grams
millet flour -- 64 grams
arrowroot -- 64 grams
ground chia seeds -- 43 grams, could do 64 grams without major debacle
golden flax meal -- 32 grams
xanthan gum -- 2 teaspoons, roughly 10 grams
salt -- 2 teaspoons, minus a tiny pinch to appease the sensitive
instant yeast -- 7 grams/quarter ounce

Everything, except chia seeds, salt, and yeast, are Bob's Red Mill. Yeast is RedStar because that one claims to have won a major award or something. Salt is Saltworks because that's what a Romanian named Adelina kept going on and on about.

2 cups water
3 tablespoons agave, sometimes honey
2 tablespoons oil, grapeseed, olive, or whatever floats your boat
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar