Grain Free Dried Cherry Walnut Espresso Bars

These bars (and numerous variations thereof) have been floating around my house for what seems like eons and I am so excited to finally share them with you! I baked numerous batches on the BBQ this summer (my oven heats up my house like crazy, even if the air is on, so I avoid it like the plague during the hottest times) and I knew the flavour was bang on. But the BBQ tends to bake on the hot side, even turned to low, and they were coming out dry. Worth the effort… but drier than I wanted them to be. Now that the cooler weather is here, and my oven is back to being a productive member of my household, I was able to bake these bars at a more appropriate temperature, and I can finally share the yumminess with you all!

Luckily the multiple test batches allowed me to play with the dried fruit/nut combo, and this is the one that we all like the best (although the cranberry/ pecan were a close runner up!) The espresso accents the chocolate, and compliments the bitter and sweet of the dried cherries and walnuts. I have used both our espresso machine and a French press to brew the espresso.   Strong coffee would be an OK substitute, but if you choose to leave it out altogether, be sure to add in another ½ cup liquid to the batter.

Grain Free Dried Cherry Walnut Espresso Bars

6 tbsp ground espresso beans

1 cup boiling water

----------

1 cup almond flour

1/3 cup coconut flour

¼ cup arrowroot flour

½ cup cocoa powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla powder (or extract)

2/3 cup coconut sugar

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

½ cup softened coconut oil

½ cup kefir (sub yogurt or sour cream if desired)

Add ins:

1 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans)

1 cup dried cherries (or cranberries)

Preheat oven to 375F

Line a 9X13 glass baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.

In a French press, place ground espresso beans and boiling water. Set aside.

Measure all other ingredients (EXCEPT for the espresso and the add ins) into a large mixing bowl. Mix well with an immersion blender, scraping down the sides as needed.

At this point, pour your espresso from your French press into a half cup measure. Discard the rest. (or enjoy it yourself if you are so inclined!)

Mix into the batter with the immersion blender until well combined.

Stir in your add ins and mix well with a spatula. 

Scrape evenly into the parchment lined pan, smooth the top and bake in preheated oven for 27-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out moist but clean. Try not to over bake.

Using the edges of the parchment, lift the cooked bars from the glass pan and set them  on a wire rack. Cool, cut and store as desired. (We wrap them and store in the freezer for quick grab and go snacks)

Chop walnuts carefully with  knife if they are large pieces

Grain Free Apple Nutmeg Custard Cake

With autumn upon us here in our corner of Ontario, it is only fitting that my first post of the season would showcase the delightful fall apple.

As much as I love the alluring pairing of apples and cinnamon, I was going for something different here, using freshly grated nutmeg as the showcased spice. It lends a warming flavor that marries beautifully with the custardy texture of this cake. I always keep a few nutmegs in a jar with my spices, and use my kitchen rasp to grate them. Fresh nutmeg has a stronger flavor and aroma than its pre-ground counterpart, and with the help of the rasp, just as convenient. Kept in an airtight container, it will store indefinitely, giving you aromatic fresh nutmeg in a few quick slides on a rasp.  

This cake bakes up moist and lovely, and is the perfect dessert for your thanksgiving feast or any cool fall evening where a slice of comfort is in order. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a warm cup of chai J

Grain Free Apple Nutmeg Custard Cake

7 cups peeled and sliced apples (mine were not large, I used 9 altogether, a combo of Sunrise and Galas…but any cooking apple would do)

Softened Butter for greasing pan

4 eggs

¼ cup coconut flour

½ cup almond flour

¼ cup arrowroot

1/3 cup coconut sugar

½ cup milk or alternative of choice

¼ cup softened coconut oil

1 ½ tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp Apple cider vinegar

½ tsp vanilla powder (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

¾ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Grease a 9” spring-form pan and fill with peeled and sliced apples. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Measure all other ingredients into a medium mixing bowl and mix well with an immersion blender. Scrape sides as necessary to incorporate all ingredients. Batter should be just a tiny bit thinner than a pancake batter.

Pour batter evenly over prepared apples in pan. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until cake feels firm to the touch in the center and it is nice and evenly browned.

Remove from oven, run a knife around the edge and release the spring-form outer pan. Let cool on wire rack until room temperature. Serve as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. 

Mini Grain Free Apple Cobbler

I whipped these delicious little yummies together for dessert tonight, and I am quite pleased with how they turned out. A bit more like a cobbler than the mini-pies I was originally aiming for, the results were still scrumptious, and worthy of a share.  They are gluten and grain free, and could be dairy free as well if you sub out the butter for an equal amount of coconut oil. Serve with a scoop of your favourite vanilla ice cream and they are the perfect serving of comfort in a dish.

Mini Grain Free Apple Cobblers

Filling:

6 apples, peeled, cored and sliced  (I used Gala’s)

2 Tbsp Coconut sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

_______

Batter:

2 eggs

1/3 cup coconut sugar

½ cup almond flour (JK Gourmet brand is nice and fine)

2 tbsp coconut flour

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

¼ cup butter, softened (or sub coconut oil to keep dairy free!)

Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375F

Toss apple slices with the first amounts of coconut sugar and cinnamon. Fill 8 ramekins (mine hold 2/3 of a cup when right full) Set aside.

Measure all batter ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl until you have a nice smooth batter. 

Divide evenly between the 8 ramekins, and smooth with a spatula.

Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until apples are nicely softened. The batter should be firm to the touch and starting to brown around the edges.

Serve warm, with a scoop of good quality vanilla ice cream if desired.

Grain Free Blueberry Orange Coconut Muffins

I don’t do a lot of baking with almond flour anymore; coconut flour has definitely become my grain free flour of choice lately. Although it is a little more finicky to work with, I think for baked goods, the health benefits of coconut flour outweigh those of almond flour. It is also a more frugal flour than almond flour, because you use very little of it as opposed to most almond flour recipes. That being said, almond flour is really lovely to work with, and I still do use it for some things on occasion.

 I was given a bag of sprouted almond meal to play with recently, (thanks Janet!) and have made a few tasty batches of muffins with it so far. These Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins got rave reviews from my co-workers, as did the recipe that I am sharing with you now. Almond meal is a wee bit coarser than the almond flour I usually use, and it does make a difference in the texture of your finished product.  I do, however, really like that this flour is sprouted. Nuts contain something called enzyme inhibitors that can make nuts hard on your digestive system. Soaking/sprouting them reduces these inhibitors, making them easier to digest.  Nut flours are also quite high calorically, so treats made with them should be just that…treats. Great for every once in a while, but not all the time, especially if you are watching your waistline!

There is only one picture of these pretty little muffins. I forgot to take pictures before bringing them into work with me. I did make some co-workers very happy though!

Grain Free Blueberry Orange Coconut Muffins

1 cup sprouted almond meal

2 Tbsp arrowroot starch

½ cup coconut flour

¾ tsp baking soda

½ tsp sea salt

¼ cup coconut sugar

3 eggs

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2/3 cup kefir

Juice of 1 orange

Zest of 1 orange (organic!!!)

1 Tbsp coconut oil

---------

½ cup shredded coconut

½ cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Preheat oven to 375F

Measure all ingredients except coconut and blueberries into an 8 cup mixing bowl. Blend well with an immersion blender, taking care to scrape down the sides if needed to fully incorporate all of the ingredients.

Fold in the shredded coconut and blueberries until nicely distributed.

Spoon batter evenly into 12 paper lined or greased muffin tins. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of one comes out clean.

Remove from tin and cool on a wire rack. Store leftovers in a covered container in the fridge for 2-3 days or up to 6 months in the freezer.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins :)

Grain Free PBJ Bars

I created these bars on the weekend when I decided to try a new flavour of the grab-and-go-type bars that have become a staple in our freezer. I intended to make a chocolate and brazil nut combination, but someone found my stash of brazil nuts in the fridge, and that combination quickly went out the window. So while cupboard/fridge surfing for inspiration, I found a lonely jar of crunchy peanut butter.  (my guys all like the smooth kind, and I inadvertently came home with a jar of crunchy not too long ago, and there it has sat ever since…I had to take pity on it and use it!) The jar of raspberry jam sitting beside it completed the inspiration, and these babies were born. Grain free protein packed goodness  that is now stored in my freezer for a tasty on the go treat ( I roughly calculated the protein of each bar to be about 8 grams). I am sure you could swap the peanut butter for any other nut butter you wish if peanut allergies are an issue.

Grain Free PBJ Bars

½ cup almond flour

½ cup coconut flour

2 tbsp chick pea flour

¾ tsp baking soda

¾ tsp Himalayan or Celtic sea salt 

1/3 cup coconut sugar

½ cup natural organic peanut butter (mine was chunky)

4 eggs, preferably pastured

2/3 cup plain yogurt (I used a full fat one)

1 tsp vanilla

-----------------------

½ cup raspberry jam, preferably fruit juice sweetened  (or flavour of choice)

Preheat oven to 375F and grease a 8x8 glass baking pan with St. Francis Coconut Oil Butter Ghee Cooking Spray or butter, or line with parchment paper. Set aside.

Place all ingredients EXCEPT the raspberry jam into a medium to large mixing bowl, and blend well with an immersion blender until well combined, scraping down the sides if necessary.

Scrape batter into prepared  pan. Drop the reserved jam by teaspoon-full’s evenly across the top of the batter, and run a knife thru the batter and jam in a zigzag pattern to swirl the jam into the top of the batter.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool in pan before cutting.

I cut mine in half diagonally, turn the pan ¼ turn and then cut again 6 times evenly, creating 12 rectangular bars.

At this point you can store the bars in a container in the fridge for a few days, or , as we do, wrap in parchment or plastic wrap individually and store in the freezer for a quick snack or lunch box treat. 

Grain Free Coconut Chocolate Chip Blondie Bars

Very tasty grab and go bar that stores well in the freezer. Great for lunchboxes, trail rides, or mid afternoon snack attacks.

Grain Free Coconut Chocolate Chip Blondie  Bars

1 cup almond flour

¼  cup coconut flour

¼ cup chickpea flour

¼ cup hemp protein powder or hemp flour

3 Tbsp ground Chia flax mix

1/3  cup honey

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

3 eggs

1/3 cup sunflower seed butter (or nut butter of choice)

1 cup plain kefir or yogurt

1/3 cup coconut oil

2 tsp vanilla

ADD INS: (optional but YUMMY!)

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup shredded coconut
***See alternate add ins below

Preheat oven to 375F

Place all ingredients except the add ins in a large mixing bowl and mix well with a immersion blender, scraping sides of the bowl as necessary.

Let batter stand for 5 minutes to thicken up, and then stir in the coconut and chocolate chips until evenly distributed.

Scrape into well greased 9x13 pan and smooth out with a wooden spoon or spatula.

Bake in preheated oven for 33-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.

Let cool in pan and cut into desired shape. We cut ours in to 16 long “bars”, dividing the pan in half  first lengthwise down the middle, and then cutting into 8 even sections width wise. Wrap individually as desired and store in fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer for longer storage.

***These are also great with 1 cup chopped dates, 1 cup shredded coconut and the zest of an organic orange in place of the other add ins :)

Grain Free Gingerbread Apple Muffins

First of all, as much as these look like chocolate muffins, they aren't  (even if my hubbie thinks they taste like chocolate, which I still don’t understand, but we will move on!) I intended to make banana muffins this afternoon, but ended up making a banana oat chocolate chip bar to go in the freezer for my boys with the bananas instead. Being as the muffins were supposed to be for tomorrows Breakie, I still needed to come up with a recipe.   Being a bit cool today, a nice spicy gingerbread sounded yummy. I think they will go perfectly with a grapefruit and a nice cup of green tea in the morning. I used my kitchen rasp to finely grate both the ginger and the nutmeg. If you don’t have a rasp, or the fresh ginger and nutmeg, substitute the dried spices. I peeled my apple, even though it was organic it still had a waxy feel to it, but it is not generally necessary. 

Grain Free Gingerbread Apple Muffins

1 ½ cups almond flour

¼  cup coconut flour

¾ tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

Pinch of allspice

¼ cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup coconut oil

3 eggs

¼ cup molasses

1 tsp grated fresh ginger (or ½ tsp dried)

Pinch of Grated whole nutmeg (or scant 1/8 tsp dried)

¼ cup kefir or yogurt

1 cup grated organic

granny smith apple

Mix all ingredients  except grated apple together in a large mixing bowl with a stick blender until well combined. Mix in grated apple and combine well.

Scoop evenly into 12 lined muffin tins.

Bake for  20 min, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let stand in muffin tin for 5 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Enjoy!

Grain Free Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Cookies

I was going to save this recipe for a possible grain free cooking class, but it is so darn good I couldn't wait to share! Toasting the quinoa flakes helps to loose the bitter flavour some associate with quinoa. I have used untoasted as well, and you can skip this step if you like, but the toasted version really is better! 

Soaking the raisins in the hot water and vanilla is a trick I learned years ago. It hydrates the raisins and makes them much more pleasant for "raisin haters"! Again, you can skip this step if you like, but it does add to the cookie!

Grain Free Cinnamon Raisin Walnut Cookies

½ cup raisins

½ cup boiling water

2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup quinoa flakes

½ cup softened unsalted butter

½ cup coconut sugar

1 cup  almond flour

½ tsp baking soda

2 Tbsp coconut flour

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp salt (omit if your butter is salted)

½ tsp vanilla powder (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

2 Tbsp of the raisin soaking water

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat your oven to 350F

In a cast iron pan, toast the quinoa flakes over medium heat, stirring constantly until the flakes become fragrant, and are just starting to turn a slight golden colour. This will only take a few minutes, and they will burn quite easily, so you will need to pay attention! Remove to a plate to cool.

In a heat proof measuring cup or bowl, soak the raisins in the boiling water and the first amount of vanilla for 15 minutes. You will need to save some of the soaking liquid, for the cookies, so don’t drain it too soon!

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and the coconut sugar until really well combined. Add the rest of your dry  ingredients, and mix well, adding  the 2 Tbsp of the raisin soaking water as well. Drain and discard the rest of the liquid from the raisins, and then stir them into the cookie dough with the walnuts.

Scoop out onto parchment lined pan in about 1 tbsp spoonfuls. Mine made approx 18 2-bite cookies.

Bake for 12 -13 minutes  or until edges are just starting to brown for a chewy cookie, leave in up to an extra 2 minutes for a crispier cookie, but watch closely for the last 2 minutes  as they will burn quickly.

Let cool  on the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a coloring rack. They will be slightly crumbly, but will set up when cool.

Raisin-less batch for Mac, who says
they ruin the cookie :(

Raisin batch for everyone else!

I find these cookies are best the day they are made. Store in the fridge for best results after the first day. I like to freeze the rest in serving sized baggies for an easy snack on the run.

Grain Free Cauliflower Pizza Dough

I have made many attempts at grain free pizza. And they all, while being pretty tasty, failed in the pizza–like crust department. The grain free ones were too dry, the cauliflower ones too wet.  We had yet to have one that could be picked up and eaten out of hand. Until now! I ate two slices with no fork!! This worked spectacularly. Although it is not highly reminiscent of the yeasty risen wheat dough that causes me so much belly-grief, it is the best grain free pizza dough I have tried to date.  I look forward to making it again! (and again...and again...)

Grain Free Cauliflower Pizza Dough

1 small-medium head org. cauliflower

1 generous tbsp coconut oil

1 ½ cups almond flour

2 Tbsp arrowroot flour

1 egg

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

4 tbsp ground Chia seeds

2 cloves minced garlic

1 tsp Herbamare

Raw Dough

Preheat oven to 425F, using a large pizza stone in the oven if you have one.

Cut cauliflower into chunks and process in your food processor until very fine. (alternatively grate on a box grater into fine crumbs)

Heat coconut oil in large pan, and sauté the processed cauliflower  over medium high heat for 6-7 minutes. (this helps to pre cook the cauliflower without adding water like steaming would)

Set aside to cool slightly.

When cool, mix in the rest of the ingredients and knead with hands until it is very well combined. 

On a large piece of parchment paper, spread “dough” into a large circle (or pizza shape of your choice!) approximately 1cm thick.

Transfer dough on parchment to a pizza peel or to a large sheet pan, and bake in preheated oven for 15 -20 minutes or until the crust is starting to brown nicely.

Cooked Dough

Top with toppings of choice**, and bake for another 8-10 minutes or until the toppings are heated thru and the cheese is melted nicely. We used an organic pizza sauce from Eden, thinly sliced mushrooms, an organic beef pepperoni, and a combo of raw milk mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.

Let cool slightly before indulging!

**go easy on any toppings that are “wet”,  as they will make your crust less crisp.

Grain Free Banana Muffins

Somehow when transferring my recipes over from my recipe page on Facebook, this one was missed! Jim recently requested them, so I had to hunt down the recipe. Apparently it has been too long since I have made them! I have updated this recipe a bit from the one posted over there, taking out one egg, and increasing the oven temperature but decreasing the cooking time.
We don’t like overly sweet muffins, feel free to increase the honey or coconut nectar to ½ a cup if you feel like a sweeter muffin.
I think my favourite part of working with grain free "flours" is the mixing. With regular flours, you have to be careful not to over mix, for fear of releasing the gluten in the flour,(this results in a tough muffin.) With the grain free "flours" this is not an issue, just the opposite in fact. They need the extra mixing to ensure the flours and eggs are thoroughly combined.

Grain Free Banana Muffins 
1 c. almond flour (JK Gourmet is my fav, it is nice and fine)
6 Tbsp. coconut flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
½ c of milk, kefir or yogurt
¼  c coconut oil, melted
¼ cup honey or coconut nectar
2 bananas, very ripe!
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
Optional ingredients:
1 cup chopped walnuts
OR
1 cup chocolate chips (I like the Enjoy Life brand)

Preheat oven to 375F, and prepare your muffin tin either by greasing or using non-bleached paper liners.
Put all ingredients except walnuts/chocolate chips in a large mixing bowl, combine thoroughly with immersion blender. (I am sure you could put everything into a blender and whiz till well combined, or whisk VERY vigorously if you don’t have an immersion blender)
Add walnuts or chocolate chips and stir to combine. (you can even use both, I bet it would be tasty! If you do, I would use ½ cup of each)
Scoop into muffin tin lined with papers (or greased) about 2/3 full. (Should fill 12)

Bake in preheated oven for  20-25 minutes on the center rack.
Let cool in pan for 5 min before removing from pan to a cooling rack.

Grain Free Pear and Walnut Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Some days, I just need to bake. Today was one of those days. I had a bunch of sour cream that needed to be used up, so I made a batch of sour cream muffins (and apparently they were good…they are all gone!!)  and this Grain Free Coffee Cake. I checked out a bunch of recipes, but none had the combination that I wanted, so this is what I came up with. Definitely a keeper! We tend to like things with not a lot of “sweet” in them, so feel free to adjust the coconut sugar/honey if you like a bit sweeter of a coffee cake. I also included a Rhubarb/Pecan version at the bottom of the page that I made for Mother's Day last year (alas, there are no pictures of it though).

Grain Free Pear and Walnut Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Coffee Cake:

3 eggs

½ cup honey

2 tsp Vanilla

¼ cup coconut oil, melted

¾ cup sour cream

2 cups almond flour/meal

1/3 cup coconut flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

Topping:

2 pears, cored and chopped (any kind would do, mine were D’anjou)

½ cup chopped walnuts

¼ cup coconut sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F

Grease a 10” spring form pan, line bottom with parchment, and grease the parchment too. (I used butter to grease) Set aside.

Mix all of the coffee cake ingredients together in a large mixing bowl with a hand blender until very well incorporated. You want a nice smooth batter. Let it hang out for a few minutes while you put together the topping.

Topping:

Mix the chopped pears ( I didn't peel mine, if using a thicker skinned pear like Bosc, you may want to peel) with the walnuts, coconut sugar and cinnamon.

Scoop the batter  into the prepared pan, smoothing out a bit. Top with the pear/walnut mixture, pushing down into the dough slightly.

Bake in preheated oven for 55 min to an hour, or until set in the middle. Let Cool slightly in pan before removing outer ring, finish cooling on wire cooling rack before slicing.

Rhubarb version:

½ cup org. cane sugar

6 large stalks rhubarb, halved lengthwise and chopped

1 tsp cinnamon

½ cup chopped pecans

Grain Free Zucchini Coconut Muffins

 Another muffin variation, fitting to the season. If you grow zucchinis, you are well aware of this phenomenon: gargantuan zucchinis that appear in your garden virtually overnight. The tiny little zucchinis that you spy one day take on epic proportions while you sleep. You become the zucchini fairy of your neighborhood  gracing your neighbours front porches with your excess zucchini, and run before they can tell you “NO MORE!”
Experience has FINALLY taught me to only grow 2 plants, and to keep an eagle eye on them daily. When they are nice and tiny,(like the yellow one) they make an awesome salad when sliced paper thin with a mandolin  and marinated with a bit of sea salt. They also make tasty zucchini chips in the dehydrator, with lime and chili powder…yum! The ones that escape notice, and become Godzilla sized, are better used in a recipe like this. 



Grain Free Zucchini Coconut Muffins

1 c. almond flour/meal
6 Tbsp. coconut flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
½ c of milk
¼  c coconut oil, melted
1/3 cup coconut sugar
5 eggs
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
½ tsp ginger
1 cup shredded zucchini, squeezed to get rid of some moisture
½ cup coconut flakes plus 1 tbsp

Put all ingredients except zucchini and coconut in a large mixing bowl, combine thoroughly with immersion blender. (I am sure you could put everything into a blender and whiz till well combined)
Add zucchini and first amount of coconut,  and stir to combine
Scoop into muffin tin lined with papers (or greased) about 2/3 full. (Should fill 12)
Sprinkle second amount of coconut flakes on to muffin tops.
Bake at 350 degrees for  25-27 minutes.
Let cool in pan for 5 min before removing to cooling rack.

Grain-Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Grain-Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Fall+pumpkin+chocolate chunks= muffins! Enough said!

Makes approx. 18 muffins

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cups  blanched almond flour

4 tbsp coconut flour 

 1 ½  tsp  baking soda

 1/2 tsp  sea salt

1/3 cup sour cream or yogurt

 1 cup  pumpkin puree

4 eggs

 1/4 c coconut oil

 1/2 c maple syrup

 1 cup chocolate chips (I used enjoy life chocolate chunks!)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with liners or grease well with butter.

Add all ingredients to large bowl, EXCEPT CHOCOLATE CHIPS. Blend with immersion blender until nice and smooth. Stir in chocolate chips and scoop batter into prepared pans, about ¾ full. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool and serve!

Grain Free Zucchini Pancakes

This recipe was invented today for a quick lunch to take to Jim at work. He has a toaster oven that is awesome for reheating things like this, which eliminates the need for a microwave (yay!) I came across a similar recipe on Pinterest a few nights ago, and, still  having an excess of zucchini in the garden, I THOUGHT I had pinned it to come back to. But, alas, when I went back for it, it was lost in cyberspace :(   So, being short on time, I threw together my own version, and they worked out very well.

I served these with butter and maple syrup, but after eating them, I can see them being delicious with some Parmesan cheese sprinkled on the raw side before flipping,  and a chutney/salsa type of topping.  Or skip the cheese, and top with a chunky homemade apple sauce, or some apple butter….Oh the possibilities!!


Grain Free Zucchini Pancakes

6 eggs, preferably pastured

¾ cup almond flour

1/3 cup coconut flour

½ tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

2/3 cup kefir or yogurt

2  8-inch (ish) zucchinis, grated or shredded (I used one yellow and one green)

Butter or coconut oil for greasing pan


Measure all ingredients  EXCEPT for grated Zucchini and butter  into a mixing bowl. Whiz with a stick blender (or in your blender jar) until very well combined. Add zucchini and mix well. Set aside to thicken up and heat up your pan/griddle to medium. (I use my large cast iron griddle across 2 burners of my gas stove…works great!)
When griddle is hot, add enough butter to grease well, and scoop batter onto hot pan using about ¼-1/3 cup at a time, depending on the size you want your pancakes.
Let cook till they just start to dry out around the edges, and flip to cook the other side. I find these a bit more finicky to flip than wheat based pancakes, you may need to cook them for a bit longer than you think necessary. Just keep an eye on your pan temperature so they don't start to burn.
Serve warm with toppings of choice!

Grain Free Molasses Spice Ginger Cookies

Since starting to eat grain free, I have been on the search for a grain free cookie that even somewhat resembles a grain based cookie. Having had so much success with other grain free baking, cookies have left me somewhat disappointed. This blog came up on a Pinterest search, so I decided to give cookies another go. Pretty glad I did!! It is the most “cookie-like” grain free cookie I have baked to date! I added a bunch more spices, as I was craving a somewhat “spicier” cookie. The original recipe can be found here: http://detoxinista.com/2012/10/grain-free-ginger-cookies/.

I am looking forward to experimenting with this recipe!!

Grain Free Molasses Spice Ginger Cookies

1½ cups almond flour

2 Tbsp coconut oil, softened

¼ cup organic maple syrup

1 Tbsp blackstrap molasses

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger (kitchen rasp is AWESOME for this)

¾ tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp cloves

1/8 tsp allspice

¼ tsp fresh grated nutmeg (using rasp again!)

⅛ Tsp fine sea salt

¼ tsp baking soda

OPTIONAL:

2 Tbsp coconut sugar to roll cookies in

Mix all ingredients together well (except optional coconut sugar) and place dough in fridge to firm up.

Roll into balls and flatten with bottom of glass or fork to desired thickness, mine were about 1 cm thick.

OPTIONAL STEP: roll balls in coconut sugar before flattening, it does make them easier to flatten!

Bake in 350F oven for 10-12 minutes for soft cookies, increase cooking time if you want a crispier cookie, but be careful not to over bake, almond flour burns easily. (Mine were in the oven for approx 14 minutes; they are still somewhat soft on the inside)

Cool on pan for 5 minutes, and remove to a cooling rack until fully cooled.

Grain Free Pancakes

We like this version of pancakes way better than my old wheat based recipe, and the leftovers are very versatile. We use them cold in our lunches as kind of a sandwich with various toppings, jams and nut butters, cream cheese and cinnamon, cucumbers and sun butter (sounds so very strange, but it really is so VERY good!) Or you can just pop them in the toaster and have them like a typical pancake, smothered in pure maple syrup and butter!

Just be warned, if you do use the sunflower flour, your pancakes will be a vibrant green the next day, due to the high chlorophyll content of the sunflower flour. It does not alter the taste at all, but you may get some strange looks while you eat your green pancakes!

Grain Free Pancakes

6 Tbsp coconut flour, packed

4 Tbsp Almond flour

4 Tbsp sunflower flour, packed (or use the equal amount almond flour in place of this)

2 tsp baking soda

8 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

4 Tbsp milk or kefir – or more if needed to achieve consistency

4 Tbsp butter, melted – or coconut oil

1 Tbsp tsp honey

1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

Method:

They should still be slightly wet on the tops before flipping,
but starting to get dry around the edges, like this.

Using mixer, beat all ingredients until well combined. Let stand 3-4 minutes to let the coconut flour thicken up. Add more if the batter is too thin, it should be the same consistency of regular pancake batter, not to thin, not too thick.

Ladle batter on to  350 degree pre-heated greased griddle. They do not bubble quite like regular pancakes, but let them cook well on the first side so they will flip easily. They should still be slightly wet on the tops before flipping. 

Flip carefully, cook for a minute or two on the second side, remove to your plate and enjoy!

Serve hot with your favourite pancake toppings!

Grain Free Sour Cream Drop Biscuits

Both Jim and I have eliminated most grains from our diet lately, and for the most part, have really not missed them. But, sometimes you just want a biscuit to dip in your chili. I have made a few attempts to make a biscuit from almond flour and coconut flour, but have not achieved the right taste/texture combination until today! These biscuits are light, nicely textured for a grain free biscuit, and the perfect accompaniment to a nice steaming bowl of chili or stew.

Grain Free Sour Cream Drop Biscuits

1 ½ cup blanched almond flour

4 tbsp coconut flour

3 tbsp arrowroot flour

 1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp baking soda

2/3 cup  sour cream

2 eggs

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Beat with a wooden spoon for a few minutes until very well combined. Let stand for 5 minutes for the batter to firm up. It should be able to hold its shape when dropped on the pan.

Drop scoops of the batter/dough onto a parchment lined pan, mine made 7 biscuits.

Bake at 450F for 11-14 minutes, or until nicely browned and set .

Variations:

variation: Add a heaping tsp of your favourite jam on top of the biscuits before putting them into the oven...voila! The perfect grain free jam scone!

Variation #2: to the batter, add 1 clove minced garlic, and 1 generous tsp dried oregano, mix as directed. Before baking, top the biscuits with grated cheese, I used about 3/4 cup of Monterrey Jack . Bake as directed.