Saturday, October 19, 2013

Whole Wheat Bread (via Loreli Adkins)
Turn oven to 200 degrees, then turn off when preheated. Then start bread.
 Mix together:
3 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. gluten
1 1/4 T yeast (or 1 rounded T.)

Then add:
2 1/2 c. hot water straight from the tap

Mix 1 minute in the mixer; let rest 10 minutes, then add:

1 1/4 t. lemon juice
2 t. salt
1/3 c honey or 1/2 c sugar (might need a tad more flour if using honey)
1/3 c oil
2 c. whole wheat flour

Mix 6-10 minutes in mixer, then put in pans and let rise in the warm oven until almost doubled (about 20 min... it will rise quite a lot during baking). Turn oven to 350 (don't take bread out of oven) and bake about 35 minutes.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

CAJUN CORNBREAD CASSEROLE

1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 small onion, diced
2 celery stalks, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 T. Cajun Seasoning (I used 1/2 T. Chile powder would work too.)
1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
1 c. cornmeal
1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
3/4 c milk
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce

Drain tomato juices into a skillet and add enough water to cover the bottom with a thin layer. Saute onion, celery, garlic, and bell pepper over high heat until onion is translucent, bell pepper is tender, and all water has evaporated., about 4 minutes. Turn off heat and mix in 1-2 T Cajun Seasoning, tomatoes, and kidney beans, stirring to combine, and set aside.
Corn bread: In a small mixing bowl, whisk cornmeal, baking powder, salt and addition Cajun Seasoning, if desired. Stir in milk and applesauce. It should be thick, but spreadable, and not dry. Pour bean mixture into a casserole dish and top with cornbread mixture. Bake at 400 degrees about 30 minutes, or until the cornbread is golden, cracked, and firm to the touch. Let set out for 15 minutes before serving.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

White Bean Gravy (From Everyday Happy Herbivore)

This is a healthy alternative to regular gravy. I tried it on mashed potatoes and we really liked it. You can also use it for biscuits and gravy. The author likes it so well she says she often eats it as a soup. If you don't have all the seasoning ingredients, just jazz it up the way you like.

1 15-oz can navy beans, (or any other kind of white bean) drained and rinsed
1/4 c vegetable broth
2 T nutritional yeast
1/2  t. onion powder
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/4 t Cajun Seasoning
1/8 t. black pepper

Combine everything in blender and puree until silky smooth, adding more broth as necessary to achieve the desired consistency. You don't want to thin it out too much: it should be creamy and gravy-thick. Warm over low heat. (I always cook up a big batch of white beans from scratch, then freeze them in portions. Much better than canned beans, and much cheaper too!)

Here's a similar recipe from "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bitman

CHICKPEA FONDU

3 cups cooked chickpeas with 3-4 cups of their liquid
2 cloves garlic
3 T extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
3 T lemon juice

Puree all ingredients in blender until very smooth. Add more cooking liquid, broth, or water until the consistency is like a smooth dip or thick soup. Heat mixture over medium heat. Use for dipping such foods as cherry tomatoes, broccoli or cauliflower florets, slices of cucumber, bell pepper, cubes of cooked potato, etc. This fondu won't harden like cheese fondu. Hummus is also a nutritious dip for veggies.

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