Archive for April, 2010

Sprouted Lemon Pound Cake

Our lemon tree is full at the moment so I wanted to try a lemony dessert. I Found a passion fruit pound cake in David Lebovitz’s new cookbook, Ready for Dessert and changed the recipe to include lemons, sprouted whole wheat flour and sucanat. It turned out great!

Cake

1 ½ cups sprouted organic whole wheat flour

1 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. Celtic sea salt

¾ cup (6 ounces) organic pastured butter

1 cup sucanat, or rapadura or organic sugar

Grated zest of 2 organic lemons

3 large organic eggs, at room tempurature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Glaze

½ cup fresh organic lemon juice

1/3 cup organic powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°.  Butter the bottom and side of a 9-inch loaf pan, dust it with flour, and tap out any excess. Line the bottom with a rectangle of parchment paper.

To make the cake, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a bowl by hand), beat together the butter, 1 cup sucanat and the lemon zest on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat together the eggs and vanilla. With the mixer running, slowly add the egg mixture into the butter mixture, stopping the mixer and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until the eggs are completely incorporated. The mixture may look curdled, which is normal.

Using a rubber spatula, stir the flour mixture into the butter-sucanat mixture by hand until just combined. Don’t overmix. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 45 mintutes (if you use un-sprouted flour it’ll take about an hour).  Let cool about 15 minutes.

While the cake is cooking, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, very gently stir together the lemon juice and powdered sugar. Reserve  1-2 tsps. of the powdered sugar to sprinkle over the top.

Loosen the cake from the loaf pan by running a knife around the sides of the cake. Invert the warm cake out of the pan, peel off the parchment paper, and turn it right side up onto a plate.

Using a wooden skewer, pierce the top of the cake all the way through to the bottom about 50 times. Slowly spoon the glaze over the top of the cake, it will absorb into the cake.  Then you can dust the top with the remainder of the powdered sugar.

Serve the slice cake as is or with a compote of fresh berries, or whipped cream.

Enjoy!

Read more great, Fight Back Friday posts here: http://www.foodrenegade.com/fight-back-friday-april-30th/

Read more great, Pennywise Platter Thursday here: http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2010/04/pennywise-platter-thursday-429.html

Read more great, Real Food Wednesday posts here: http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2010/04/real-food-wednesday-42810.html

David’s new cookbook is fantastic. You can buy it here:

Trail Mix Two Ways

We have three boys in high school and none of them eat as nutrient dense diet as we would like. I’ve been trying to come up with some ideas for snacks they will take on the run so I decided to mix up a big batch of trail mix. I had bags of nuts and jars of soaked (and then dried) nuts in the cupboard so I mixed up a batch. It included (all organic, of course :):  Pecans, Walnuts, Hazelnuts, Almonds, Sunflower Seeds, Raisins, Dried Apricots, Mango and Cranberries. You can of course use what you like and have on hand.

Then I decided to use some of the trail mix to make a batch of fruit and nut bark.  It’s really easy.

Fruit and nut bark

Ingredients:

1 – 12 oz bag Organic Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1 to 1 ½ cups trail mix

1 sheet pan, covered with a layer of parchment paper

Directions:

Melt chocolate.  You get do this in a double boiler or in the microwave, either way takes only a few minutes.  If you melt it in the microwave use a glass bowl.  You can also use a glass bowl over a pot of simmering water but be very careful that you don’t get any water in your bowl, even a drop and the chocolate will be ruined.

Mix the trail mix into the melted chocolate and then pour the mixture onto the parchment paper covered pan. Using a spatula spread the chocolate/trail mix mixture out until it’s an even flat layer.

Put the pan into the refrigerator for a half hour or so until the bark is completely cooled.  Then break the bark into bite sized pieces and store the bark in a closed container in the refrigerator.  It was a big hit, and so easy to make.

Read more great, Fight Back Friday posts here: http://www.foodrenegade.com/fight-back-friday-april-23rd

Read more great, Pennywise Platter Thursday posts here: http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2010/04/pennywise-platter-thursday-422.html

Read more great, Real Food Wednesday posts here: http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2010/04/real-food-wednesday-42110.html

Sourdough Rye Bread

I grew up eating rye bread, although it was never as good as this recipe.  This is from Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz – link below.  It’s an amazing book about everything fermented, from Sauerkraut and veggies to beer, wine, yogurt and more.  I made my sourdough starter from the recipe in the book and then I made this bread.  I’m making it for the third time this week – I’ve been making one batch a week –  and we are not tiring of it yet.  It’s a wonderful whole grain rye bread and I grind the rye berries the day I make the bread so it’s extra fresh.   It takes two days to make and there’s no kneading.

Ingredients, for 2 loaves:

2 large or 4 small organic onions

2 tablespoons organic olive oil

2 cups sourdough starter

3 cups pure water

1 tablespoon organic whole caraway seeds

8 cups rye flour

1 teaspoon celtic sea salt

Directions:

Chop onions and sauté in olive oil over medium low heat until nicely browned and carmelized, about 20 – 30 minutes.  Cool

Mix a sponge:  Combine the browned onions, sourdough starter, caraway seeds and 4 cups of rye flour in a large glass or ceramic bowl.  Stir well. Cover and leave to ferment in a warm place (I keep it on the kitchen counter), for 8 to 24 hours until it is good and bubbly.  You can stir occasionally but I always forget to stir and it turns out great.

After your 8-24 hour ferment add the salt and the other 4 cups of rye flour.  Add the rye flour a little at a time, until the dough becomes so thick that you cannot effectively stir it with a spoon.  Cover with a moist towel and leave to ferment and rise for 8-12 hours, until it’s bulk has increased noticeable.

Form into loaves:  Rye dough is sticky and nowhere as cohesive and self-contained as wheat dough.  Wetting your hands will make rye dough easier to handle and form. Form loaves with your wet hands and place them in lightly oiled pans; alternatively spoon dough into loaf pans, then smooth the top with your wet hands. Leave loaves for another hour or two, until they rise noticeably.

Preheat over to 350° and bake.  Check loaves after 1 ½ hours. It will probably take 2 hours or even longer, but check earlier. Test doneness by removing a loaf from it’s pan and tapping the bottom. When it’s done it will sound hollow. If it’s not done, return it to the oven quickly and continue baking.

Cool bread on racks.  Most yeasted breads we buy or make are best eaten fresh and dry out quickly. A major advantage of sourdough rye bread is that it retains its moisture and gets better with age, for several weeks (no kidding). The crust can become hard and dry, but slice through it with a sharp serrated knife to find soft, moist, delicious, sour bread. Dense breads like this are best in thin slices, with organic pastured butter.  Enjoy!

Read more great Fight Back Friday posts here: http://www.foodrenegade.com/fight-back-friday-april-16th/

Read more great Pennywise Platter Thursday posts here: http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2010/04/pennywise-platter-thursday-415.html

Read more great, Real Food Wednesday posts here: http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2010/04/real-food-wednesday-41410.html

Sandor’s book is wonderful and you can buy it at Amazon, link below.

Amish Bread Pudding

Amish Bread pudding

This is a very easy, basic recipe.  I’ve used everything from organic challah raisin bread to whole wheat bread and they all come out wonderfully.  You can use berries, chopped apples or most any other fruit instead of the raisins. 

Ingredients:

2 cups whole organic milk (or 2 cups half & half) – preferably unpasturized

¼  cup organic butter

2/3   cup organic sugar, sucanat or rapudura

4 organic pastured eggs

2 teaspoons cinnamon

¼  teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract

4 cups bread, torn into small pieces

½  cup organic raisins

Directions:

1. In medium saucepan, over medium heat, heat milk (or half & half) just until film forms over top. Combine butter and milk, stirring until butter is melted. Cool to lukewarm.

2. Combine sugar, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Beat with a whisk for one minute.

3. Place bread in a lightly greased 1 1/2 quart casserole.

4. Sprinkle with raisins if desired. Pour batter on top of bread.

5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 to 50 minutes or until set. Serve warm, room temperatures or cold. It’s good at all temperatures.

Read more great, Pennywise Platter Thursday posts here: http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2010/04/pennywise-platter-thursday-48.html

Read more great, Real Food Wednesday posts here:  http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2010/04/real-food-wednesday-4710.html

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