Good Friends Good Food

Good Friends, Good Food – together but separate. How can that be?
Peggy, Kayte, and I baked with Tuesdays with Dorie for several years. And in some other groups as well. Some well established, some we created ourselves. Then several years ago we all just quit blogging. We tried with some groups but it just wasn’t the same.

Now it’s time to dust off the blogs and try something new. Healthy cooking, and eating, in our kitchens and sharing our recipes.

Twice a month we choose an ingredient and make something special or try something new with it. Or maybe try a recipe together.

This week we are using squash. In two weeks (9/25) our ingredient is green beans. It won’t always be veggies but this is how it worked out this time.

Peggy and Kayte used delicata. I wasn’t able to find one so I went with acorn squash.

And if you have read my blog before you know I like to try new and different things. Nothing has changed. Instead of roasting the squash or aaking it or stuffing it I decided to make Squash Pancakes for breakfast.

• 

1/2 medium acorn squash cooked, peeled, and pureed.
1 egg
3 Tbl canned full fat coconut milk
1 Tbl pure maple syrup (I did not use)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 Tbl coconut flour
3 Tbl almond flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
Coconut oil or ghee for cooking

I baked the squash in the air fryer the night before. After peeling it I pureed the squash and added it to my KETO pancake batter.
Mix squash puree, egg, syrup (if using) coconut milk, vanilla and whisk until smooth.
In a separate bowl mix flours, soda and salt.
Stir the flour mix into the squash mixture and combine well.
Preheat the skillet to hot and pour in the ghee or oil. Add the batter to form pancakes that are 2″ – 3″ in diameter. Flatten to about 1/2 inch thickness. When bubbles form on top flip over.
Adjust heat if browning too quickly or not browning.
When done add more oil/ghee for cook the next batch. ^{(This recipe was adapted from Paleo Running.)}
These were not that good. In fact they were rather bland. I think mixing in some cinnamon would have helped a lot.

Here are Kayte’s and Peggy ‘s post.

Add we already know we have three more past TWD members joining in the long distance cooking!

Stay tuned for Green Beans September 25th.

 

{CC#6}Chocolate Cake for Father’s Day

Sunday is Father’s Day.  In our house that means BBQ, which means Dad cooks his own meal.  But while he may have to work a little on Father’s Day he does get a special treat.

Jesse Rosennberg’s Flourless Chocolate Cake

Simple.  Sweet.  Delicious.  Easy.

2 sticks butter
1 cup sugar plus extra to coat the pans {I used 1 cup Splenda with a dash of Stevia}
14 oz dark chocolate, chopped {Or use chips}
8 large eggs

Preheat oven to 300 F.  Grease a 9″ cake pan.  Sprinkle with sugar.

Melt butter and chocolate in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until completely melted and combined.

Beat the eggs until lightly colored.  Add the sugar and beat (whipping works better) until light and fluffy.

Fold the egg mixture into the cooled chocolate mixture until completely mixed.

Poor into the pan and bake for about 1 hour, testing after about 40 minutes, until cake has a nice crust on top and feels solid but soft.  Cook in the pan for 5 minutes and then turn onto a cake plate.  Cool.

After it cooled I sprinkled with a little powdered sugar.  But it would, of course, be wonderful with ice cream!!  Oh, wait.  I made ice cream and it was wonderful!!

GOOD Cake!!  Even though this was sugar free {I used Splenda and a little stevia} it was still quite sweet. The cake was moist, intensely chocolate, and I will definitely make this one again..

{Okay, we didn’t wait until Father’s Day to eat this.  It is also my Birthday so we are having MY cake on Sunday!}
This recipe is from Jesse Rosenberg of San Carlos, CA.  She grew up in France and learned this recipe from  the lady who hired her for babysitting babysitting.

The recipe is from One Big Table (page 808).

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

{CC#4} Keller’s Brownies

I don’t bake nearly as much as I used to.  It used to be once-a-week.  Now, it’s about…well, it’s once in a while.  And when I do I try to use less sugar.  We aren’t getting any younger and it is harder and harder to ‘work off’ the sweet treats.

But every once in a while we really want something sweet.  Last week we really wanted something so I made Keller’s Cheesecake – using Splenda and Stevia.  This week it is chocolate as in…

BROWNIES!

Keller says brownies remind him of family, comfort, and childhood.  I feel the same way.  Mom used to make brownies.  They were always a treat.  ALWAYS!

I made these using Splenda and Stevia as well.  Instead of 1 3/4 cup sugar I used an equal amount of Splenda and ADDED about 1/4 tsp of bulk Stevia.  INTENSE chocolate flavor (1 cup cocoa), just sweet enough, and very little guilt. Well, as little as you can have with 3 STICKS BUTTER!!.

The recipe is from Keller’s ad hoc at home. {page 303} Also found it on Pretty Simple Sweet.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

{Bundt Bakers} Almost Pina Colada Bundt

Every month I get to make a bundt cake. Every month. YAY!! This month it is a tropical bundt for Bundt Bakers hosted by Lauren.

Tropical, sunshine, beaches, warmth. coconuts, pineapples, mangoes, lemons, jackfruit, bread fruit. The list is long long long. And all the fruits are sweet and eaten out of hand. How to choose one for a bundt? But when I think tropical I usually go with coconut and pineapple. Bingo – Pina Colada Cake but without the RUM!! So ALMOST…..

2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/8 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 1/4 Stevia, divided
1/3 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1/3 cup nonfat yoghurt
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sweetened coconut
1/2 cup fresh pineapple juice

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F.
Generously coat one Bundt pan or two loaf pans with cooking spray, then dust with flour; tap out excess flour.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
In a large grease-free bowl with the electric mixer on medium speed,
whip the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add 1/4 cup of the sugar whipping until the whites are stiff but not dry. Remove the bowl from the mixer, shake the beaters into the bowl, then return the beaters to mixer without washing them. Set the whites aside.

Using the same beaters with another bowl, combine and beat together the oil, the remaining 1 cup of sugar, the whole egg, sour cream, applesauce, vanilla and orange extracts, grated orange zest, and orange juice. Gradually beat in the flour mixture in several additions. Scrape down the bowl and
beaters. Fold in the whipped whites .
.
Turn the batter into the prepared panes). Bake the Bundt for 40 – 43 minutes, the loaf pans for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cake is golden brown and springy to the touch; there will be a shallow crack down the middle and a cake tester inserted in the center will come out dry.
Cool the cake(s) in the
pans on a wire rack for about 10 minutes, then remove cake(s) from the pans and cool.
Before cake(s) cool completely drizzle with Coconut Syrup and sprinkle with sweetened coconut.

Coconut Syrup:

4 cups sugar
1 can of Coconut Milk

Put 4 cups of sugar in a medium sized heavy pot and cook on medium high heat until it begins to caramelize, stirring constantly. When it is brown, carefully begin adding the coconut milk until you get the consistency you want. Transfer the dumplings into a bowl and cover with the syrup, stir until all dumplings are coated and serve!

The cake is a little dense and the flavor of the pineapple is quite subtle. I would add more juice, probably by the “poke method” and coconut next time. The syrup is quite sweet and adds a lot of coconut flavor.
{Approximate Nutritional Analysis (per Bundt-pan serving without syrup): 173 calories; 3 g protein; 5 g fat; O.4 gm satfat 30 g carbohydrate; 123 mg sodium; 13 mg cholesterol [Approximete because I adapted this from another recipe using oranges and sour cream. Almost sugar free.]}

Our gracious hosts this month are Stacy of Lood Lust People Love and Lauren of Gate to Plate . And they will have links to all the lovely bundts on their pages.

BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely Bundts by following our Pinterest board right here. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. This month we have 18 amazing Bundts that fit the bill for any tropical fruit loving person! Be sure to hop on over and check them out. Totally drool worthy!

• Guava and Cream Cheese Bundt Cake by Love and Confections
• Guava and Pineapple Impossible Cake by Passion Kneaded
• Pineapple Macadamia Nut Bundt Cake by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Passion-Orange-Guava Bundt Cake by All That’s Left are the Crumbs
• Mini Spiced Upside Down Caramelized Pineapple Bundt Cakes by From Gate to Plate
• Hibiscus Lime Bundt Cake by Brooklyn Homemaker
• Mango Brown Sugar Glazed Bundt Cake by Noshing with the Nolands
• Pineapple Pound Cake by Magnolia Days
• Mango Ginger Bundt Cake by Food Lust People Love
• Almost Pina Colada Bundt Cake by Tea and Scones
• Mexican Mango Cake by My Catholic Kitchen
• Mango Coconut Bundt by Jane’s Adventures in Dinner
• Mini Pineapple Lime Mojito Bundt Cakes by Blahnik Baker
• Tropical Pineapple Bundt Cake by Bizzy Bakes

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. All recipes and photographs can be found on our individual blogs or our Pinterest board and updated links on our home page.

 

{WWDH} Blueberry Muffins

Muffins are always a hit. Especially Blueberry Muffins. I do love a good blueberry muffin. Now add in some oats and some yogurt and you have a muffin that is hard to pass by and not eat one {- or two – or more……}Blueberry Oat Yogurt Muffins and that is what you get with Donna’s muffins. I changed the recipe just a little so I could actually enjoy them. I subbed out some whole wheat flour and used Stevia instead of sugar. My other changes are listed below.

1 cup self-raising (self-rising) flour, sifted
1 cup Whole Wheat Flour, sifted
⅔ cup Stevia
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup Eggbeaters.
¾ cup applesauce, unsweetened
½ cup low fat regular yoghurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅓ cup rolled oats, plus extra, for sprinkling
1 cup fresh blueberries {Briefly shake in some flour to prevent from ‘sinking’}
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix together the flour, sugar, egg, oil, yoghurt and vanilla until they are just well mixed. Gently fold in the oats and blueberries. Pour the mix into a regular muffin pan. Sprinkle with extra oats and sugar. Bake for 25–30 minutes or until golden and a knife or skewer comes out clean. Place muffins on a wire rack and allow to cool. Makes 12. {Original recipe}

These were quite good. Not real sweet but chewing and filling. If my blueberries had been sweeter they would have been even better. These were my pick for Wednesdays with Donna Hay.

Check the muffins made by

Gaye
Chaya
Kayte
Sarah

BTW the reason I changed up the recipe is because Doc Amy told me my Triglycerides are WAY too high and since I want to live to a ripe old age….
Any way, here’s the count per muffin {ABOUT}

108 calories
18 gm cholesterol
1 gm fat
2 gm fiber
4 gm protein
61 gm sodium
3 gm sugar

 

{IHCC} Bittman’s Coconut and Nut Chews

I am slow getting started with this round of IHCC. Nigel Slater is the new chef until the end of September. I am excited to try some of his recipes, but not just yet! This week is Potluck Week. Since I missed cooking with Mark Bittman early in the group’s life I want to do his recipes for PotLuck. I read his bok, FOOD MATTERS ages ago and have lots of recipes marked. Seemed a logical choice.

Starting with someting sweet and SUGAR FREE.

1 cup sugar Splenda
1 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts {I used pecans}
4 egg whites [about 130 gms], {I would use a few more grams next time} lightly beaten until just foamy
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch salt

Heat the oven to 350°F.
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well with a rubber spatula or your hands.
Use a nonstick baking sheet, or line a baking sheet with parchment
paper. Use a small cookie scoop and make balls with the mixture,
each measuring about 1 tablespoon. Place balls on the pre-
pared sheet about an inch apart.
Bake for about 15 minutes until golden brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool on a rack for at least 30’minutes Store in an airtight container.

I remember Mom making a cookie like this when I was little.

They didn’t last long around our house because we all loved coconut and pecans.

Check out the other POTLUCKS with the IHCC members.