Life and death

I've heard that death is as much a part of life as living is.  But knowing it  doesn't soften the blow.   Dealing with death is difficult, painful, and confusing.  I was reluctant to post about it, because its taboo, and well saddening.  

However, just like studying your history will (hopefully) help you to prevent making future mistakes.  Being aware of death, might help you to lead a more fulfilling life.  

I've adapted a strategy for dealing with stressful situations, that directly references death:

When you are stressed out about something that seems incredibly important (at the time), and it's going around and around in your mind.  Just think, one day I will die.  How important is this, really?  And poof!  Whatever it was, really in the grand scheme of things, not important at all.  

Missing loved ones is extremely difficult.  The only small piece of advice I can share is; live with honor and intention.  Your Loved one would have done the same, and remembering them as you walk through life, being an honorable, intentional person is the only way I know to never let them die. 

xo Dinah

Hello 2014!

I fell asleep on the couch way before midnight on New Year's eve.  Leaving the champagne corked in the refrigerator, and the sparklers unlit.  The new year creeped in quietly in our house, and with the exception of flipping the calendar page, not much else has changed.

I am not really a believer in resolutions, because they are seldom followed, and most of the time may you feel bad about yourself that you couldn't pull it off.  I was inspired by some of the other blogs I read, because they set more attainable goals, that they actually reached.  So I have decided to set 1 goal a month, but not something overly ridiculous, and after that goal has been reached- set a new one for the next month.

The first goal I set is to bake my way through the "Babycakes" cupcake cookbook I got myself for Christmas.  I am just going to bake the gluten free recipes, and I began this goal yesterday.  The result was not picture worthy, because I added chocolate chips and failed epically.  Baking gluten free is very different from traditional baking.  There is no ad-libbing, you can't just toss in some of this or some of that.  Lesson learned.

My overall goal for 2014 is happiness.  

xo Dinah!

Thin Mints

I just got my hands on The Ultimate Gluten-Free Cookie Book  By Roben Ryberg, and I'll have to say that at first I was more than skeptical about her single flour philosophy in gluten free baking.  All of the cook books I have use for gluten free baking require several flours, mixed to achieve the desired consistency to effectively mimic wheat flour, but not Ms. Ryberg.  She says that instead of trying to create a wheat flour replacement, look to the qualities of the flour you are using and accentuate them.  Intrigued I was.  Although I must confess I didn't think it would work.

Ingredients

1/3 Cup Canola oil
1/4 Cup sugar
1 Cup brown rice flour
1/3 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Egg
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate coating
12 chocolate (I used enjoy life chips)
2 Tbs. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp mint extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine oil and sugar, beat well.  Add the brown rice flour and and beat well.  Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl at least once during mixing.  Add the remaining batter ingredients and beat well.  Continue beating until the dough comes together, it will be soft and oily to the touch.

Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thickness.  Use 1 1/2 inch round cookie cutter to cut the cookies and place them on the prepared pan.  Bake the cookies for 8 to 9 minutes, until the tops are dry.  Let cool well before coating: the cookies will be crisp upon cooling.

In the book she uses the microwave for making the coating.  But I prefer the results of a double boiler.  Combine all ingredients for the coating in the double boiler, and set your burner on medium.  While the chocolate melts, prepare your cooled cookie sheets with wax paper.  When all the chocolate has melted, and when mixed is smooth and silky, you are ready for coating!  I used tongs to dip the cookies into the chocolate, then a butter knife to remove the excess before resting the dipped cookie on the wax paper.  After all the coating was done, I put the in the refrigerator to harden.  

Recipe adapted from The Ultimate Gluten-free Cookie Book by Roben Ryberg

So, these cookies where a major hit.  I'm sure it had something to do with the fact that they were dipped in minty chocolate, but I am now a believer in the single flour recipe.  It makes gluten-free  baking more accessible for people who want to try it out.  

Pizza!

OK, let it just be said that we take our pizza extremely seriously around here.  In addition to being Italian and vegetarian (for almost as long), my husband and I manage a restaurant that is kind of famous for awesome pizza.  Pizza is one of those comfort foods that is unparalleled in its amazingness.  So when faced with the challenge of doing this gluten and dairy free, you might think impossible!  But never fear, we will get through this together.

If you, or a member of your family is going gluten free, and you really love bread, you must go directly to your nearest book supplier/ amazon and pick up one of Bette Hagman's cookbooks.  She is amazing, and her flour mixes are so good that other cookbook author's use them as well.

We will begin with the flour mix. You can store the remainder of this mix in the cabinet, refrigeration not required.

Bette Hagman's french bread/ pizza flour mix:

(makes 6 cups)
3 1/2 Cups White rice flour
2 1/2 Cups Tapioca flour
2 Tbs. Xanthan gum
2 (7 gram) packets unflavored gelatin
2 Tbs. Egg replacer
1/4 Cup white sugar

Put all the ingredients in a plastic bag, and shake it up so its mixed up nicely.

Next comes the actual pizza!  (makes 1 crust)

Dry Ingredients
1 1/2 Cups French bread/Pizza mix
3 Tbs. almond meal
3/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp Dry yeast granules

Wet Ingredients
2 egg whites
1 1/2 Tbs. Olive oil
1/2 tsp. Vinegar
3/4 Cup warm water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Lightly grease 1 cookie sheet.
Blend dry ingredients in a medium bowl, set aside.
Place wet ingredients in the bowl of your heavy duty mixer and blend, (reserve some of the water).  Turn the mixer on low and add the flour mix.  (Add the reserved water if the dough gets too firm, it will need to be spread onto the cookie sheet.)  Beat on high for 3 1/2 minutes.

Spoon the dough onto the prepared sheet, and spread into a circle 12 inches in diameter, using a spatula.

Let rise about 10 min then bake for 10 min (without toppings)
remove from oven and top with sauce, cheese, and you favorite toppings: bake for 22-25 min.

**For the cheese I use Daiya cheese.  It is dairy, gluten, and soy free.  It stretches, and melts, and oh ya, its also delicious!

recipe adapted from Bette Hagman's cookbook the Gluten-free gourmet Bakes Bread

The result is airy and crunchy, and pizza!  Nobody should be forced to live in a world without pizza, and now you don't have to.  I like to bake and extra crust, cool, and freeze.  Then whenever I want: thaw, top, and bake; for a super fast delicious week night dinner.

xo Dinah!

Be kind

Good morning friends,
This morning marks lots of new beginnings for lots of dear ones.  My sweet little guy begins his first day of kindergarten, and a very close friend of mine is welcoming a sweet baby girl into the world.
With new beginnings come new challenges to be sure.  New things can be exciting, but sometimes they can be a bit overwhelming as well.

Some people need more time to adjust to new things.  Some times you need some time to adjust to new things.  Here is my message for today: Be kind.  Be kind to others: you never know what someone is going through, be compassionate.  Be kind to yourself: the beginning can be difficult, but it will get easier.

Wishing everyone everywhere a lovely day.

xo Dinah!

Pickles!

Hello friends!  It is no secret that pickles are amazingly refreshing, delicious, and tangy.  But did you also know that they were incredibly easy to make, and that once you do, nearly impossible to go back to store bought pickles?

Ingredients:

3 Cups water

6 Tbs. white vinegar

3 Tbs. kosher salt

5 cloves Minced garlic

8-10 sprigs dills

2 lbs. Kirby cucumbers cut into spears

1/2 tsp. black peppercorns

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. mustard seeds

2 0r 3 glass jars with lids

Combine first 3 ingredients in a pitcher and stir well. Place several sprigs of dill in the bottom of each glass jar.  Pack jars with cucumber spears; pack as tightly as possible without squishing the spears.  

Top the cucumbers with minced garlic

Mix the peppercorns, mustard seeds, and red pepper flakes together, add the spice blend to the pickle jars. Give the water, salt, vinegar mixture another stir; then pour over the cucumbers.  Fill the jars up to the very top, put the lids on, and give them a good shake.  Now put them into the refrigerator for 3-7 days.  

Voila!  Trust me on this, these pickles will amaze you.  The simplicity, the crunchiness, they are delicious!  

P.S. I also make non-edible flying pickles, available in my ETSY shop. (:

xo Dinah!

World famous: Bean salad

Ok, so maybe this recipe isn't exactly "world famous" but anyone who has been to my house for dinner, especially during the summer, has probably eaten some of this protein packed, super simple, delicious salad.  This being the last week before school starts,  I thought it would be a great time to share some summer favorites.

After a hot day, lounging by the pool, or blowing bubbles in the park; everyone needs a recharge!  And over the years this has become one of my go to favorites. 

ingredients:

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

1 can garbanzo beans

4 cloves minced garlic

3 Tbs. lemon juice

7 Tbs. red wine vinegar

6 Tbs. olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. salt

generous amounts of black pepper (to taste)

1/2 lb. green beans 

2 stalks celery finely minced

optional: I like to top with either crumbled feta cheese or sliced hard boiled egg.

Combine oil, garlic, celery, lemon juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.

Trim the green beans, and steam until tender, about 5-7 minutes.  Rinse under cold water & drain well.  

Open the cans of beans, drain and rinse well.  

Combine the green beans and canned beans,  in the large bowl (with the dressing in the bottom).  

Stir gently to combine.

Cover and let marinate for at least 2 hours.

Top with optional toppings (or not) and serve cold.

Enjoy!  

adapted from Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen