Creamy Potato Soup

My stomach had a very rough few weeks. I loved the food in Nepal, but my stomach did know it was new. The 31 hours of travel home did nothing but fill me with mediocre plane food that, well, didn't want to leave. Returning to work, there was a nasty bug making the rounds that put me in bed from Friday until Sunday when I had to drag myself to the airport for another flight.

After all this, my stomach needed a little R&R. Sometimes your cravings are just what you need, which was true in this case. The only thing I thought I could eat was smooth, simple potato soup.

About 5 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cubed
4-5 cups vegetable stock, depending on how liquid your potatoes are
1 Tablespoon olive oil
salt
pepper
kale powder

Heat vegetable stock over medium heat. Add potatoes and cook until tender. Blend with an immersion blender, or in a standing blender in portions so it doesn't overflow. Add seasonings to taste. Sprinkle with kale powder when serving.

My sister made this kale powder by blending homemade kale chips until they turned into a powder. This stuff is great as a rice seasoning, in burritos, and on tops of sandwiches and soups. It's made its way into all sorts of stuff in the kitchen.  

Over-the-top GF Vegan Birthday Cake

A cloud hung over my mom's birthday this year. Her two daughters had gone vegan and one was gluten-free as well.

Am I even going to have a birthday cake this year? She cried over the phone.

Yes, don't worry, I tried to sound reassuring, but where in the world was I going to get a vegan, gluten-free birthday cake recipe that would actually taste good?!

Why, the internets of course. Where everything is true and the world is at your fingertips.

I found some great mimic recipes for momofuku's cakes and treats and tweaked them further into this awesome, totally over-the-top birthday cake. Would you believe it was gone in two days? 'Cause actually it was a day and a half.

Vanilla Cake

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 1/4 cups Bob's gluten-free flour mix
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Put liquid ingredients plus sugar in a bowl and mix well.
In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. 
Add liquid to dry and mix well.
Pour into two cake pans oiled, floured, and covered in parchment paper.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes or until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool completely before frosting. 

Cookie Crumbles


3/4 cup Bob's gluten-free flour mix
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2  teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles
1/4 cup coconut oil1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, xanthan gum, and baking powder. Add in the sugars, salt, and sprinkles and whisk to combine.  Stir the oil and vanilla extract into the flour mixture (use your hands if you find it easier), working until completely moistened and crumbs begin to form.

Transfer the crumbs the prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 20 minutes, pausing halfway through to break them up a bit.  The crumbs will become hard when cool, so avoid leaving very large chunks.  Cool completely on the baking sheet.  Crumbs can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a week, or up to a month in the refrigerator.

Caramel

The caramel was not the best part. I used almond milk, sugar and vegan butter. The consistency was good at first, but then went gritty. It was too sweet not didn't have enough of that golden caramel taste. I will keep trying for a better vegan caramel! 

Chickpea & Cashew Cream Soup

This soup, adapted from Post Punk Kitchen, revealed the wonders of cashew cream. I had no idea that this little nut could make soups and stews creamy and delicious. It's a secret weapon ingredient.  

3/4 cup cashews, soaked in water for 2 hours or overnight
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 cup rice 
3 ribs celery, thinly sliced
1 cup carrots, diced chunky
5 cups vegetable broth
1 24 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 3 cups)
4 cups chopped kale

Drain the cashews and place them in a blender with one cup of fresh water. Blend until completely smooth, scraping the sides occasionally. 

Preheat a pot over medium heat. Add onion and saute in olive oil with a pinch of salt until translucent. Add garlic, salt and pepper and saute a minute more.

Add rice, celery and carrots to the onion and then pour in the broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer, add the chickpeas, and let cook for about 15 more minutes, until rice is cooked and carrots are tender.

Add the cashew cream and kale, and simmer until kale is wilted, 3 to 5 more minutes. You may need to add water to thin the soup if it seems too thick. Let sit for about 10 minutes before serving.

Washi Tape iPhone Case

I needed to upgrade my plain, black iPhone case. I looked around and found some cute, pricey, ones and some that belong on Legally Blonde. So I decided to DIY. It's been a few weeks now and it's holding up well. And it made me happy to use all the washi tape I've been buying up because it's so cute and then stashing in a drawer until a project comes along! 

Photo a day

July 15: djembes 

July 14: lychee skin 

July 13: kitty city on the beltline, mayor piper & the honorable buckle 

July 12: new shoes on wet pavement 

July 11: asian market 

July 10: hello moon

July 9: r&r 

July 8: busted by a falling light globe 

July 7: cookeville, tn 

July 6: nashville dragon 

July 5: GA to TN 

July 4: happy independence day 

July 3: gross & good  

July 2: downtown Atlanta 

July 1: blood tests X 2 

June 30: Old Fourth Ward art festival

June 29: I love cats 

June 28 -- Atlanta sky

Black lentils and ripe plantains

I love quick meals that I can fix after work. Let's face it, if it has a lot of prep or takes a long time to cook, my stomach usually won't let me wait long enough to make it. I usually go to the gym after work, unless I have to work late, which is really too often.  Either way I walk in the door famished!

I also love ripe plantains! They are sweet, cheap, and quick, a magical trio. This dish took a total of about 20 minutes from start to finish. I used a just ripe plantain. The skin is still mostly yellow with a motley crew of black spots. I don't measure out the ingredients so add more or less depending on your taste or to increase the serving size. The below makes two servings.

Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a pan over medium heat.
Add 1/4 onion, chopped.
While the onion is cooking, chop one just ripe plantain into bite size pieces.
Add the plantain to the pan.
Let the mixture cook for a few minutes, stirring and flipping the plantain occasionally, until it starts to deepen in color and get shiny. This will take about 3-5 minutes. Reduce heat if the plantain starts browning or the oil stars smoking.
Chop half of a red bell pepper into bite size pieces and add to the pan.
Add salt, pepper, and ground ginger to taste. I added 1/2 tsp of ginger.
Let cook for another few minutes, stirring frequently, until the pepper is a little shiny. It will not be sautéed completely but will remain crisp and crunchy.
Add 1/2 cup cooked black lentils. I used Trader Joes lentils. These things are good and hassle-free.
Continue cooking until the lentils are hot.
Dish up and enjoy!

Slow Cooker Oatmeal

A big steaming bowl of oatmeal just hits the spot sometimes. I could eat oatmeal almost everyday. I usually have a box of instant oatmeal stashed in my desk at work for those days when I only have five minutes to eat and didn't bring anything.

I've seen and heard about steel cut oats for years, but this is the first time I've had them. Surprising, given my love for oatmeal. I put this in my crock pot before I went to bed, and woke up to a bowl of comfort food just waiting for me to dig in.

Slow Cooker Oatmeal 

1 cup steel cut oats
3 cups liquid (I used 1 coconut milk + 2 cups water for a creamy oatmeal. Almond, soy, etc., or all water would work well too)
salt
mix-ins (I used cinnamon, 1 tsp of gingeroot, minced, raisins, almond slivers, and then topped with chia seeds)

Put the oats, milk and/or water, salt, and any other mix-ins you want cooked in a crock pot. I put in the raisins so they would be nice and plump, ginger, almonds and cinnamon. Cook on low for three hours. I topped my with chia seeds for some extra omega 3s.

This makes about four servings. I put the leftover in a silicon muffin tin and baked on 350 degrees for 40 minutes. It's still moist, but is muffin shaped and will be great for breakfast this week.

I'm already looking forward to trying different combinations: cranberry, strawberries and cream, pumpkin in the fall, peanut butter and jelly. I'll probably end up with some pretty funky ones.