Apple Pear Zucchini bread with Gluten free options

Apples are in season now, also pears and

zucchini so this bread is a great recipe to share this month. I made it this past weekend with 1 zucchini, 1 pear and 1 apple and made it low sugar and gluten free for my daughter. The recipe calls for 2 cups of chopped pears or apples and 1 cup shredded zucchini but I like more zucchini than fruit so do 2 cups zucchini and 1 cup fruit.  I've made it with just pears and zucchini and also just apples and zucchini but I really like to combine apples and pears.  It's a very versatile recipe.  The recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of brown sugar but works well with a low sugar option.  I cut the sugar by more than half and just added 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 2 T sugar and 1/4 cup of honey, it is still very yummy and sweet enough. I also did mine gluten free substituting flour for Bob Mills Gluten free flour which measures cup for cup.  It had a slightly different texture but tasted great, the recipe makes 2 loaves and I took one to work and they loved it. The bread also freezes well. I shredded the zucchini, apple and pear in my food processor which worked great and super easy. Here's the recipe:
Apple Pear Zucchini Bread

flour mixture

1 cup chopped or shredded apples and or pears
2 cups shredded zucchini
1cup sugar (low sugar option 2 T)
1/4 cup honey
1 or 1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups flour (gluten free option Bob Mills gluten free flour is cup for cup)
2 t pumpkin pie spice
1 t cinnamon
 1/2 t nutmeg
1 t baking soda

wet ingredients

1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
can also add 1/2 cup chopped pecans




In a large bowl, combine 1st 7 ingredients.  Combine flour. spices, baking soda, baking powder and salt in small bowl and then stir into wet ingredients until blended. Pour into 2 greased loaf pans.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool in pans for 10 minutes, remove to wire rack to cool completely.  Makes 2 loaves.

Enjoy,
Bamah

combined ingredients ready for loaf pan

Shepherds Pie recipe

This month's recipe is my easy, versatile shepherds pie.  It's not really a pie, although you could add the mixture into a pie crust and make a savory pie, it's really a casserole.  This is a family recipe from my grandmother that I grew up eating and have made myself for years.  I've changed it up some, mostly using more fresh vegetables and also different kinds of ground meat besides hamburger meat.  The basic recipe is a layer of browned ground meat, my grandmother always used hamburger meat but when I made this last weekend I used a pound of ground lamb and a pound of ground pork.  The second layer is vegetables, typically carrots, onions, corn and peas, but I added broccoli, squash, sweet peppers, eggplant and garlic.  You really can add any vegetables you like, and instead of an actual veggie layer, I just added them into the meat mixture, seasoned with seasoned salt, pepper, Tastefully Simple spinach and herb mix, Worcestershire sauce and Tastefully Simple bayou bourbon glaze.  It's best if the meat has some kind of sauce added to it so it's not dry. Pour into casserole dish and add layer of mashed potatoes, sometimes I add cooked rice instead and top with shredded cheese.  Another option to mashed potatoes is mashed cauliflower, or turnips, I like to add turnips and cauliflower to potatoes and mash them all together.  Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 350 until bubbly and cheese is melted or heat in microwave for 10 to 15 minutes.  Another great thing about this recipe is that you can do it in sections of time or delegate to others. The meat can be cooked  and set it aside or frozen for later, my husband cooked mine while my daughter and I went out on an errand. I used vegetables that I had previously cut up and frozen plus fresh ones from the farmers market.  My daughter cooked the potatoes before we went out then mashed them when we got home while I cooked the vegetables and added the cooked meat to them and put the casserole together.  It could also be done a day before and put in the refrigerator prior to cooking and then cooked the next day.  I made 2 medium casseroles, 1 for our dinner and the other my daughter took back with her and cooked later. The possibilities are endless, which is my kind of cooking. Plus leftovers heat up great in the microwave.

Here's the recipe:

meat and veggie mixture

Shepherd's Pie

1 to 2 lbs. ground meat, lamb, hamburger, pork or any combination, browned

1/2 c chopped onion

1 clove minced garlic

1/2 c chopped sweet peppers,

1/2 to 1 c chopped broccoli

1/2 c chopped carrots

1/2 c corn

1/2 c chopped eggplant

1 c fresh or frozen English peas

2 T Worchester sauce

2 to 3 T bayou bourbon sauce or steak sauce

1 t each seasoned salt, pepper, parsley or herb mixture

2 to 3 c cooked mashed potatoes

1 to 2 c shredded cheddar cheese

In large skillet, brown meat, drain off grease, add Worchester sauce, bourbon sauce, seasonings, eggplant, onions, garlic and carrots and cook until almost tender.  Add rest of vegetables and continue cooking, adding peas last until all tender and combined, checking seasonings.  In casserole dish, layer meat and veggie mixture, cooked mashed potatoes and top with shredded cheese.  Bake in oven at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted or heat in microwave on high for 10 to 15 minutes until bubbly.

layer of meat and vegetables

Enjoy,

Bamah

mashed potatoes with turnips added

final layers prior to cooking

Bubbly, yummy goodness

Farmers market tourist

Hillcrest farmers market

June is a busy summer month with lots of activities, summer produce and vacations.  It's the beginning of peak seasonal crops at local farmers markets and what better way to experience the flavor of summer than to take advantage of local produce.  One of my favorite thing to do is combining traveling/vacation time with my love of farmers markets by checking out farmers markets at the places I travel to.  This June I made two trips with my family, one to Little Rock, AR and also to North Carolina where I also visited Norfolk, VA and the Outer Banks.  We went to 2 different farmers markets on each trip and I'm sharing my pictures and experiences on this post.  My oldest daughter, Tabitha, was with me on both trips and called me a farmers market tourist. I loved it so making that the title of this post.

We visited family in Little Rock, AR the third weekend in June.  Before going, I looked up farmer's markets online and found 2.  Hillcrest Farmers market on 2200 Kavanaugh Blvd on the sidewalk in front of Pulaski Heights Baptist Church.  It's open on Saturday mornings from 7 to 12.  It's medium sized with a great variety of vendors, probably somewhere around 20  (I didn't count). It was really similar to the Lawton's Farmer's market but without food trucks, although there was a small coffee truck.  It was mainly local farmers with produce, flowers, baked goods, local honey, homemade hummus, and more.  I bought honey, rolls, corn on the cob, tomatoes, pickles, flowers and fresh pinto beans plus several kinds of fruit.  We had a blast there, visiting with various vendors and it was our favorite because it was more local. My daughter and I both had on Oklahoma T shirts and several vendors noticed so asked questions as to what brought us there and were thrilled that we'd chosen to visit them on our trip. We really enjoyed this one and took a lot of pictures.  They had tomatoes as big at Tabitha's hand and so many fresh flowers.




 

River Market by Riverfront park

The second Little Rock farmer's market we visited was the River Market in an open air pavilion overlooking Riverfront Park in the downtown area.  It's open Saturdays from 7 until 3.  It was much larger with more commercial vendors, crafts, local products plus produce. It was fun and we bought granola and local rice mixes but liked the Hillcrest one better. It had a lot more commercial feeling instead of local but was glad that we checked it out. We did enjoy walking around Riverfront park and looking at the Arkansas river.






5 Points Community farm market

The 4th week of June my oldest daughter, Tabitha, and I flew to North Carolina to visit my youngest daughter, Aubree, who lives in Hertford about an hour away from the Outer Banks.  She is a travel occupational therapist who contracts through the company she works for with facilities all over the US moving every 3 to 6 months.  I've passed my love of farmers markets on to my girls so Aubree always finds local markets at every place she lives. She found an indoor farmers market in Norfolk, VA an hour from her called Five Points Community Farm Market. It was open Thurs through Sunday during the day but sadly it closed this month.  We went on a Friday and ate lunch at their café with local ingredients which was fantastic plus did some shopping. They had a great little spice shop where the owner made her own spice blends so I bought several spices.  I only bought produce that we could eat on our trip, mainly fruit since we were flying home.  It was a lot of fun walking around and seeing what they had plus Aubree shopped for herself.





5 Points community farm market I loved this cute



Edenton farmers market                                                                                         yummy lunch at 5 Points

The final farmers market I went to on my travels was on a Saturday and Aubree took me to her favorite local farmers market in Edenton, NC about 30 minutes from her home.  It's open on Saturdays during the summer months from 8 to noon. It was rather small (10 to 15 vendors) but they did have a nice variety of local meat, eggs, cheese, homemade soap, plants and produce. I bought homemade soap to take back with me and fruit to eat on our trip.  Again, with flying home my purchases were limited but we enjoyed visiting with the vendors and Aubree introducing us to her favorite ones which is always fun.

Edenton farmers market

I hope I have inspired you to become a farmers market tourist and check out local farmers markets wherever your travels take you. I have found it easy to just type farmers market and the city I'm visiting online and find the information I need. Next month my family and I will be traveling to Meridian MS for a family reunion and the Meridian farmers market is on our agenda.

Enjoy,

Bamah

 

lovely plants at Edenton



French Onion Soup and Caramelized Onions recipes

Onions are in season now at our local farmer's market and this soup recipe is a great way to use all kinds of different onions.  I like to use a mixture of onions for my soup, spring onions, sweet purple ones and large white sweet onions.  I also like to add a little cabbage either green or red or both to my soup which is also in season now.  I cook the cabbage along with the onions, low and slow until they are golden brown and sweet tasting.  The key to really good soup is to caramelize the onions which is cooking low and slow for at least 30 to 45 minutes. You can do it in a large pot on the stove but you really have to watch it so the onions don't burn.  Another option is to use the crock pot but this will take 10 to 12 hours for the onions to be done.  Caramelized onions are so easy to do in the crock pot and freeze beautifully for toppings, or to add to recipes later.  Just freeze in small batches or in ice cube tray and then transferred to freezer bag when frozen. Just add thinly sliced onions, a little olive oil or butter (or both) and salt, I use seasoned salt in my cooking. Some recipes call for sugar but the onions are sweet enough without adding sugar so I don't add any, a little balsamic vinegar is good too. Another key to really good soup is to use a really good beef broth, sometimes I use veggie broth in a pinch and add beef bouillon to it but beef broth is the best.  I make all my own broths and freeze them in quart freezer bags.  Also to make the soup broth really rich and flavorful red wine is a must, it doesn't take much 1/2 to 1 cup, I usually just pour a little in and taste as I go so don't really measure it. This soup also freezes really well and can be used later as is or with beef and/or noodles added later.
Here's the recipes:


Caramelized onions

sliced onions

8 to 10 med/large onions

3 to 6 spring onions

2 to 4 T olive oil

2 to 4 T butter (need 1 T of oil/butter per every 2 onions so any combination works)

1 to 2 t salt or seasoned salt (1/4 t per every 2 onions)

1 to 2 T balsamic vinegar, optional

DO NOT NEED TO ADD SUGAR

Place everything in crockpot and cook on low for 10 to 12 hours. Add additional ingredients for French onion soup or let cool and freeze.  Some recipes call to drain the onions and freeze the liquid separate for soups, I didn't, I just froze it as is in ice cube trays until solid then placed cubes in quart freezer bag.

caramelized onions

French Onion soup

3 to 6 med or large onions, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 to 3 T butter
1 to 2 T olive oil
1 to 2 t each seasoned salt, pepper, parsley
1 c red wine or port
4 c beef broth
1 to 2 T Worcestershire sauce
optional added vegetables, 1/2 c sweet peppers, chopped, 1 c chopped red  or green cabbage

thick slices French or Italian bread, toasted
Swiss, mozzarella or gruyere cheese or any combination

In covered pan cook onions and garlic in butter and olive oil over very low heat for 45 min to 1 hour until very tender and browned, stirring occasionally.  Or just used caramelized onions cooked in crock pot and add minced garlic, seasonings, broth, wine and Worcestershire and cook about 45 minutes until all heated through and vegetables are tender.
To serve, place soup in serving size bowls that are oven safe, top with toasted bread and cheese.  Broil in oven for 2 to 3 minutes until cheese melts.
Can also be heated up in the microwave until cheese melts but it's not
as good as in the broiler.

French onion soup with added veggies

Enjoy,
Bamah





is best to put the soup in oven safe bowl, top with bread and cheese and broil

Cheesy, yummy goodness

Gluten free Chinese Dinner recipes

For my 2nd post this month I asked my youngest daughter, Aubree, to share her some of her gluten free recipes.  She's a wonderful cook and has recently gone gluten free so adapting recipes to fit her health needs.  I thought it was a great idea to have her as a guest writer, I'm sure I'll have her share more recipes in the coming months.  Enjoy, Bamah




I am writing a post as a "guest writer" for my mother. Recently I had to go gluten free for health reasons, and I also went grain free to assist with decreasing some damage from years of eating gluten. One of the hardest things about being gluten free is not being able to eat pretty much any Chinese food as soy sauce has gluten in it. So, I Googled some recipes and then adapted them to my tastes. I'll include links to the originals for reference at the bottom. For my Chinese food night, I make Cashew chicken, gluten free egg rolls, and cauliflower fried rice. As I am my mother's daughter, I love using fresh produce from the local farmer's markets wherever I live, and what I put in my food depends on what I pick up each week.

Gluten free egg rolls:

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground pork, chicken, beef, or seafood. Or no meat if you want vegetarian.
• 2 cups~ Green Cabbage
• 1 cup~ Cauliflower
• 1 cup~Bok Choy
• 1 cup~bean sprouts
• 2 tsp fresh ginger (use more or less depending on how much you like)
• 1/4 cup Coconut Aminos or gluten free soy sauce
• 1 Tbs Rice Wine Vinegar
• 1 Tbs sesame oil
• 1 Tbs Tastefully simple Onion Onion, Garlic Garlic, spinach and herb dip, and Bacon Bacon. (these are my staple seasonings, but you can use regular spices of whatever you like.)
• 1 tbs sea salt and pepper
• 2 Tbs fat (I used bacon, butter, coconut oil or avacado oil; I will also use a mixture of several depending on my mood )

Instructions

1. You can either pulse a half of cauliflower in a food processor to "rice" it, or you can buy the pre "riced" cauliflower in the freezer section. I also shred and/or finely chop cabbage, sprouts, and bok choy.

2. Transfer the mixture to a large skillet, add your fat and let them cook about 8-10 minutes over medium high heat; stirring often. I also add the soy sauce and a little rice wine vinegar, and some sesame oil. 

3. Add your meat to the skillet along with the veggies and continue for another 5-7 minutes (or until the meat is cooked through). At this point I add the remaining ingredients, give a good stir and turn the heat to low and let mingle for about 5-10.

4. I use coconut wraps in place of a won ton wrap and it works great (get them on Amazon, link below). I just hold the wrap over the hot pan to let it warm up (it's easier to work with); put a scoop roughly about a tablespoon and a half on the wrap; fold up both sides carefully and then roll (you can also see youtube videos on rolling egg rolls for reference). I usually go an extra step by browning them in a skillet that has my coconut or avocado oil heated up at medium high heat; it just takes a few seconds on each side...they come out a bit more crunchy. 

If you are not a fan of the coconut wraps, or if you don't want to try them, you can always just spoon some of this onto a plate or bowel for an "unwrapped" egg roll. I have tried it both ways, and its good no matter what.

**As with all of my Mum's recipes, depending on the veg in my fridge, I have added shredded broccoli, brussel sprouts, some bell pepper or green onion, spinach and arugula. Feel free to have fun with variations on this recipe.

I also sometimes make this mixture up the day before as it is probably the longest cooking element and its easier to just scoop and heat the wrap when the other dishes are almost done. Plus I only have 2 skillets and so not enough to run 3 things at once. ;).

Cashew Chicken:

Ingredients

• 3 raw chicken (thighs, breasts or combo of both, your choice).
• 2 tbsp avocado or coconut oil (or some of both)
• 1/4 cup cashews
• 1/2 medium Green Bell Pepper (or other colors if you prefer, I like Red and Orange)
• 1/2 tsp fresh ginger
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar 
• 1 1/2 tbsp gluten free soy sauce or Coconut aminos
• 1/2 tbsp chili garlic sauce (available in most ethnic grocery store sections, its a red paste used in a lot of Asian cooking)
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (you can use fresh or I use tastefully simple Garlic Garlic)
• 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tbsp Sesame Seeds
• 1/4 medium white onion
• Salt + Pepper

Instructions
1. Heat a pan over low heat and toast the cashews for 8 minutes. Toast them until you start to see some browning. Remove and set aside.

2. Dice chicken into 1 inch chunks. Cut onion and pepper into equally large chunks.

3. Increase heat to high and add oil to pan.

4. Once oil is up to temperature, add in the chicken pieces and allow them to cook through.

5. Once the chicken is nearly fully cooked. Add in the pepper, onions, garlic, chili garlic sauce and seasonings(ginger, salt, pepper). Allow to cook on high for 2-3 minutes then reduce down to medium.

6. Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and cashews. Cook on medium and allow the liquid to reduce down until it is a sticky consistency, There should not be a lot of liquid in the pan upon completing cooking.

7. Serve in a bowl, top with sesame seeds and drizzle with sesame oil.

I have also added spinach to this dish, and enjoyed the results. Also, I don't quite measure everything, so if I think there is too little liquid in the pan, I'll add some more.

Cauliflower Fried Rice:

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower (or 1 package pre "riced")
• 1/2 cup Frozen Peas/carrots (I use Edamame, snow peas, bok choy, or whatever I have in the fridge/freezer)
• 1 tbsp avocado or coconut oil (again, I like to combine them)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tbsp Sesame Seeds
• 2 tsp Sesame Oil
• 1 Tbs Rice wine Vinegar
• 1 tbsp gluten free soy sauce/ coconut aminos
• 1/2 cup white onion
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. If you are using a fresh head of cauliflower, you will need to pulse it in a food processor to get a "rice" consistency. Or use the pre "riced" cauliflower in the freezer section. Personally, I find the frozen cauliflower has a better cooked consistency vs the fresh.

2. Add oil to pan and turn it on high heat. Let it get hot before adding cauliflower, but don't burn it.

3. Place pulsed "rice" into pan and flatten out over entire surface. Allow to cook through for 10 minutes (cauliflower should brown/get crispy). This is also where I add the soy sauce, Rice wine vinegar, and sesame oil when the rice is almost cooked.
4. Stir rice and add onion, garlic, veggies, and season with salt and pepper (I also add some onion seasoning and sometimes the garlic chili sauce from the previous recipe for a nice bite. You can add any of your favorite seasonings) You can turn the skillet down to medium high depending on how its cooking. (sometimes medium if the "rice" is overcooking)
5. Continue to cook and stir over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
6. Push "rice" to one side of pan, grease the empty half and crack two eggs into pan

7. Combine eggs and "rice" until eggs are cooked through.
8. Turn off heat and garnish with sesame seeds. Serve warm and enjoy!

As always, I have added other veg to this recipe including spinach, bok choy, and sprouts.

This meal does feel uniform by using the same core Asian foodie ingredients of rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, garlic chili sauce, and gluten free soy sauce. These recipes are adapted from several blogs which are listed below, and those authors should get most of the credit. I have merely taken their ideas and put my spin on them. I have also made this meal vegan and paleo for various friends with other dietary issues. All the spices I use with almost everything I cook are from Tastefully Simple since Mum sells it and they are awesome. But, feel free to use any of your normal spices, or fresh. I make this frequently as leftovers are nice, and I often crave some Chinese.

If you want to try buying a head of cauliflower and "rice" it, you can try it in a food processor, grate it, or just really finely chop it. I did this at first, but love the convenience of the pre cut and frozen from the store. Also, the consistency is much more "rice" with the pre cut frozen type vs fresh; the fresh can be more mushy. (this can be minimized with rolling the cauliflower up in towel and twisting to get some water out, but this also condenses the cauliflower and adds to the mushiness. 

Original blogs:https://www.ketoconnect.net/recipe/easy-cashew-chicken/

https://www.ketoconnect.net/recipe/cauliflower-fried-rice/

http://www.gonewiththegrain.com/item/keto-egg-rolls/

Coconut wraps: https://www.amazon.com/NUCO-Certified-ORGANIC-Gluten-Coconut/dp/B01LL3FQQC/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1496114075&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=coconut+wraps&psc=1