My Friend Starry

 

At 2:56 AM, Easter Sunday, my faithful friend of twenty years passed away. Since I was four years old, Starry was a sweet and caring presence in my life. After losing his brother one month ago, despite his own pain, Starry held onto this world to see his human friends through to regain their stability. After a happy day of helping his humans bake Easter treats, Starry died in my arms later that night, and went to join his brother as a Kitty Angel.

During life, Starry's interests included eating candy houses, chewing on plastic grocery bags, cuddling, and hanging out with his human-mom. We will miss his golden fur, his "mert"-ing meows, his loud purring, little pink tongue, and his constant comforting presence. Thank you for the life you've shared, Starry!

RIP 

Starry Crystalmew Peanut

July 13, 1984 - April 24 2011

<3

Orange Sweet Rolls: Pillsbury Style

These are one of my favorite things ever! Easy to make in advance, then pop in the oven for a special brunch. I slightly improved the dough from my cinnamon rolls, and topped with a delicious fresh orange glaze.

THE RECIPE:

The Dough:


½ c tapioca flour
½ c potato starch
¾ c arrowroot powder
¼ cup brown rice flour
1/4 c millet flour
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp guar gum
2 tsp baking powder            
1 tiny stevia-scoop stevia

3 tbs coconut oil (melted)
2 ½ tbs agave
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs                           --> combine wet ingredients; whisk in egg; add wet to dry


1/4 c almond milk    -->  add milk slowly, until it is dough consistency (a little sticky is ok.)

If dough is too sticky, dust with brown rice flour until it does not stick to your hand/spatula when touched.

--> Tape a sheet of waxed paper down onto a counter/table. Dust with brown rice flour. Place dough in the center, and use a (floured) rolling pin to roll out to ~¼ (or thinner) inch thick rectangle.


Filling:
2 tbs coconut oil (softened)
4 tbs coconut sugar
2 tbs cinnamon
2 tbs agave                        
                   ....or basically any combination of the above ingredients (leaving out the oil works fine too!)

--> Wisk together all ingredients until combined. Use a rubber spatula to spread filling over entire rectangle of dough.

Untape the waxed paper under the sheet of dough. Begin rolling dough “hot-dog style” (AKA, roll the long side, to make a thin, long roll) by lifting the waxed paper and gently coaxing the dough into a tight roll. Since the part of the roll is the tightest, starting it is the trickiest, and after that you can just left the waxed paper and let the log of dough roll on its own.

If making the dough in advance, tape the waxed paper around the log of dough, put plastic wrap around the open ends, and place in the fridge overnight. When ready to bake them, place the roll on a cutting board, and slice into ~1-inch thick rounds. Arrange them evenly spaced in an 8-inch round cake pan. Dough will expand as it cooks, so it's fine if there's extra space in the pan.

Heat oven to 350, and bake for ~30 minutes. Dough will still be soft when it comes out (don't bake until it's hard! 30 minutes max should do it). After removing from the oven, let cool in pan for ~5 minutes (ie, while you make the glaze!).

Glaze:

1 orange
1 tbs agave (preferably "light" agave)
1 tsp ghee, softened
1 tsp chia seeds (to help thicken it)
orange zest (from the rind) to taste (~1/8 tsp)
dash salt (if needed)               ----> puree in blender/food processor (Magic Bullet!)

Let glaze sit for a couple minutes to let the chia seeds work their thickening magic. Then, spread over all rolls in the pan.

Dig in and enjoy the anti-pillsbury deliciousness! (no disrespect to my guy the Doughboy)






 


          <

World's Best Carrot Cake

 Featured in cupcake / muffin form:

THE RECIPE:

(for 15 cupcakes -- for more, recipe can easily be doubled)

1/2 c coconut flour
1/4 c millet flour
1/4 c all purpose GF flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ginger                    ---> combine dry ingredients in small bowl, set aside


1/2 lb grated carrots
4 oz crushed pinapple
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 c shredded coconut
1/4 c raisins                     ---> combine, set aside


1/2 c coconut sugar
1/2 c light agave nectar
1 crack spoon powdered stevia
3 eggs
1 tsp apple cider vinegar + 1/2 c almond milk (= buttermylk)

3/8 c extra light olive oil
1 tsp vanilla                      ---> combine in mixing bowl; gradually add in wet and dry ingredients

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for ~30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Raw Chocolate Lavaberry Cakes

This is my new easy indulgence dessert-- soo good, soo fast, and really, not too guilty! It IS raw, after all....

THE RECIPE:

1/4 c raisins
1/4 c walnuts
1 tbs organic cocoa powder (okay so maybe my cocoa isn't officially raw....)
1 dash of salt (scant 1/8 tsp)
                -----> pulse all in magic bullet blender until mixture sticks around side of bowl. (I use the smallest cup for this and it works perfectly)

Transfer to plate by flipping bullet cup upside-down onto a plate. The pre-formed ring of chocolate cake should slide right out (maybe with some crumbs in the middle, too).


The filling:

strawberris/rasperries/blackberries: I've been using either 3 strawberries, or 2 strawberries and 3 blackberries.
5-7 drops liquid chocolate raspberry stevia (or normal stevia if you don't have the fancy)
                ----> puree in Bullet (same cup as chocolate was in is fine; = less cleanup), then dump into the center of the chocolate cake-ring.

Huuge Yum.

Easter Treats, Part I: Bunny Cake and Bebe Eggs

Bunny Cake!

Starry approves.

Easter Special- for the Spunky Coconut Easter round-up. Stay tuned for more as Easter draws nearer!

The traditional bunny cake made gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free. To make it look a little more authentic (aka furry), press shredded (unsweetened) coconut onto the frosted bunny.

I made this from a modified vanilla-bean cake- and marbled together the traditional yellow batter with a lavender batter dyed from pureed blackberries.

THE RECIPE:

2 cups cooked and drained white beans  ---> puree in high power blender (Vitamix)
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla
~2 tiny-stevia-spoon-scoops powdered stevia
1 tbs agave
5 egg yolks -----> add, puree well

1/4 c flour blend: (millet + garbanzo + tapioca + oat) OR coconut flour (I ran out!!)
2 tsp baking powder----> mix all dry ingredients well, then add to wet and puree again


**pour half of batter into a separate bowl. Then, add ~1/4 c blackberries to dye remainder lavender/purple.


Beat the remaining 5 egg whites until still peaks form (add cream of tartar to help maintain them). Divide egg foam into two bowls; fold one batter color into each of them.


Grease one 8-inch circular cake pan, then like bottom with waxed paper, and grease it.

Start with the color of batter that you have more of: pour a thin layer into the bottom of the pan. Then dollop large blobs of the minority color on top. Use a butter knife to swirl the colors together. Repeat layering, dolloping, and swirling until all batter is used up. Be careful not to overfill pan (leave some room for rising)- if you have extra, make a few cupcakes.


Bake for ~30 minutes at 350 C.



Preparing Bunny shape:


1. Remove cake from pan (pull of wax paper from bottom) and cut in half. Frost flat, under-side of both halves.

2. Stand up two half-circles next to each other, letting the two frosting sides stick together.

3. Cut a wedge out of the top-front to separate bunny's face and body.

4. Frost!



FROSTING:

1/2 c powdered erythritol*
2 tbs ghee, sort
2 tbs coconut oil, soft
1 tbs arrowroot powder (to add volume and cut sweetness- add more/leave out as desired)
2 strawberries, pureed almond milk (add slowly to make it the right consistency)
2 tbs powdered coconut (or flaked, or coconut flour if desired)

* Make your own powdered erythritol! Put ~1/2 c granular erythritol into the Magic Bullet small cup, and pulse for about 20 seconds with the crossblade. BAM-- powder!

To make frosting, blend all ingredients in the magic bullet.

Enjoy your bunny! Give it a face with grain-sweetened chocolate chip eyes, and a strawberry-tip nose. Whiskers can be toothpicks (if you're lazy like me), or carrot/zucchini spliters to be a bit more creative. My ears were pink index cards cut-to-shape... maybe you can come up with something better (edible) for those too!






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Feature #2: BEBE EGGS



Easter is great. Dying easter eggs is also great. Unfortunately, having 1000000 leftover hard-boiled eggs is not great. Here, I present my family's traditional solution to this epic dilemma.

(Bebe eggs? (almost "Baby" eggs). Why are they called that? I have no idea. They just are!)

Mmm, bebe eggs hot in the pan!

 Basically, Bebe eggs are mashed up, sauteed/re-fried hard boiled eggs. Also makes great fun to make these easter morning! On my childhood easter mornings, we made a tradition of playing catch with each egg- waiting until we dropped it to break it and add it to the pot (and eventually just more-or-less pegging them at each other...).

THE RECIPE:

Lots of hard-boiled eggs! ---> mash with a potato-masher (or a fork- but it will take you way longer)
Ghee
Salt
Pepper
*optional: for more savory eggs, add a bit of onion powder/garlic powder

Melt some ghee on a skillet over medium heat-- add eggs and seasonings. Cook until just-browned, stirring frequently.

Eat em all up for Easter breakfast!

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Stay tuned for more easter treats to come: OUTSIDE COOKIES, RAINBOW TRUFFLES, and ORANGE BREAKFAST ROLLS (Pillsbury style!).