easy cranberry and apple cake

I tried out another version of this tonight (with orange juice instead of apple cider- and it's NOT vegan or gluten free) for our monthly Teams meeting, and this one turned out even better, so I thought it worth posting. It got compliments all around. And it's easy, as well as a great seasonal dessert. Here's the recipe I used.

cranberry-apple cake (gluten-free, vegan)

I love baking with cranberries, and this was so, so good! (And the smells were remarkable). It would only have been improved with some walnuts or pecans, in my opinion. And I think it would have benefited from a bit of the flour mixture being incorporated with the carn-apple mixture beforehand (the recipe doesn't say to) because the fruity mixture stayed very moist at the bottom-- it was still tasty as could be with a spoonful of both the cakey and the fruity- a great combination of tastes.

From 11/09/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Here is the recipe for the gluten-free, vegan recipe. I made mine the non-gluten and vegan variety (and with about half of the cane sugar than the recipe called for).

country pumpkin muffins (with walnuts and raisins)

These are my new favorite muffins. And they will put you in a neighborly sort of mood.

From 11/09/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

We packed up the autumn delights along with some Anjou pears and headed next door-- where an old woman and her epileptic son, who's my mom's age, live-- around lunchtime today to shoot the breeze on the ills of today's world. He calls me Betty Crocker for my homey ability to make baked goods without a box mix (though that's not always how we roll). And she commented that when she was mothering her brood of seven, she would have never have let her child go out looking the likes of Abigail, hair unkempt, no socks... She meant it in a complimentary way, though, emphasizing how much unnecessary work she put on herself (and driving herself crazy in the process), making sure her children all looked perfectly presentable, bathing them until they were ten years old herself. We like to make a big deal about the important things and leave the other things to the wind. They were taken aback at Jack and Abigail's good manners.

I substituted some wheat flour and some cane sugar here and there, and the muffins turned out fabulous. Plus, they were made with loving hands, which occasionally slopped and stirred some out of the bowl, inviting us to taste test (the batter's great!). And the recipe makes a bunch.

From 11/09/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

From 11/09/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Ingredients

* 2 cups sugar
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 3 eggs
* 1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
* 1/2 cup water
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
* 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 cups raisins
* 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, oil, eggs, pumpkin and water. Combine flour, baking powder, soda, spices and salt. Add to pumpkin mixture; blend well. Fold in raisins and walnuts. Spoon into greased muffin tins, filling 3/4 full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes.

orzo with Parmesan and basil

In trying to use up some ingredients we've had in the pantry for a while, I seeked out an orzo recipe, and found this.
I used a bit less Parmesan than the recipe called for and used 1/2 olive oil instead of butter (which I substituted for earth balance). Jack asked if we could have it every day. I told him we'd make it again, but the likelihood of every day is slim. It was very good-- and tonight was a lazy night, so while it would normally have been a side, it became our main course complemented with some edamame and apples.

apple chicken

1 1/4 teaspoons vegetable oil
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (I just left bigger pieces of chicken)
4 Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced into 1/2 inch wedges
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cider vinegar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Heat oil in large nonstick skillet. Add chicken and brown on all sides. Add apple slices, saute 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1/2 the wine and chicken broth, reduce heat, cover, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix remaining wine and broth together with remaining ingredients; add to skillet. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until sauce thickens.

A great fall dish-- we served it with mashed potatoes, peas, and these homemade rolls (substituting some of the ingredients to make them a little healthier-- Abigail and I are happily back on the wheat with little to no effects).

Apple Pie Brownies

I know it's been awhile since I've posted at all, but I finally got around to trying my hand at one of Jonathan's favorite childhood memories. He claims it was as good as he remembers.

1 stick butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 – 1 1/2 cups chopped apple (I used 2 apples)
1/2 cup walnuts, optional
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 Tbs. cinnamon

Grease a 9″ square baking pan. In a large bowl, beat the melted butter, sugar and eggs. Stir in the apples and nuts. Mix in the dry ingredients and pour into the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

Now to find the energy to update the pictures on this blog...

gluten-free apple crisp

From 09/23/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

http://www.elanaspantry.com/apple-crisp/

Technically, mine isn't gluten-free, since I added a bit of spelt flour to thicken up the "crisp," as the recipe said to "crumble" the topping over the apples, and mine was too wet to crumble. It left a bit to be desired, but with some ice cream on top, it tasted pretty good. I like that it's sweetened with agave nectar. And, we picked the apples ourselves this morning.

healthy spelt banana muffins

I stumbled across this tasty recipe for wheat-free banana muffins here when we had two ripe bananas that no one wanted to eat. I'm finding that spelt flour (not gluten-free) is a nice substitute for all-purpose or wheat flour in baking.

From 09/02/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups Whole Spelt Four
• 2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 pinch Salt
• 1/2 cup Coconut Oil (melted)
• 1/2 cup Raw Agave
• 2/3 cup No Sugar So Delicious Coconut Milk
• 2 cups Mashed Banana
• 1tbsp Vanilla
• 2 dashes Cinnamon

~Preheat Oven to 325 degrees and spray muffin tin with baking spray (I found a coconut oil one and it's great!)

~Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Add wet ingredients to the dry and stir just until combined. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, turning once after 10 minutes. Enjoy!

vegan gluten-free zucchini bread

From 07/25/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

This was my first attempt with baking gluten and dairy-free (I did try a boxed brownie mix that proved to be chewy and delicious), but it turned out super and made my house smell HEAVENLY (And I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same way even if I weren't on this restricted diet right now). It's a great moist consistency and just the right sweetness. I was even inspired to share with my family. Gail gobbled up her thick slice like it was a bowl of marshmallows. Child got the sweet-tooth. Jack, though at first dissuaded by "zucchini" in the name, eventually tried and asked for more. And I didn't tell Mike it was made for me. Did he notice? Nope.

I wanted to use up some of the zucchini that is taking over our garden. I'm thinking raisins would also have made a good addition (I definitely added the walnuts). And I modified the recipe a bit to eliminate the refined sugar-- I substituted raw cane sugar and some honey (just a few good squirts). I went crazy with the cinnamon 'cause I'ma cinnamon-loving gal. Here's the recipe.

pineapple-cashew quinoa stir-fry

From 07/01/2011 (by Eye-Fi)

Do yourself a favor-- this was really good, and I didn't follow the directions exactly as they said-- I simplified, and it still turned out fantastic- full of juicy flavors and textures that were just right.

Recipe from Veganomicon-- see full recipe here.