Gluten-Free Flatbread to the rescue!

My relationship with bread?...Let's just say it's complicated.


I like bread.
I want bread.
On occasion, I need bread.


The relationship is not reciprocal.


Bread could care less about me.
Bread might even hate me.
Bread lures me into its snares with its promises of toasty, chewy, whole-grain goodness.
It entices me with options: "Toast and butter me!" it cries. "Put your favorite foods between 2 pieces of me and take me somewhere!"  On occasion, it even whispers:"Hey, baby. Don't you want to dip me in some eggy batter and fry me?" 98.9% of the time I just ignore bread's unwanted advances and put on a pot of rice instead.


But man, is that other 1.1% a doozy. Then, bread gets in my belly and transforms itself into a gaseous, headache-making mass of evil.


So the other day, as the weak but warmish April sun slanted across a bowl of ripening avocados in my dining room, and bread demanded "Slather me with mashed avocado!" and I felt myself about to buckle, I decided to try making some gluten-free flatbread. That way, I could have the toasty, chewy, whole-grainy experience I longed for without all that pesky waiting around for yeast to rise. I really liked the garlic/dill/onion powder combo, but feel free to add or substitute any herbs you like.

GF Flatbread or Crackers

Ingredients

1.5 C cooked brown rice

1 C cooked quinoa

2-4 T ground flax

1 tsp tahini

½ T water

1 clove garlic, minced

½ tsp dill

½ tsp onion

2 T whole flax

1 T sesame seeds

salt, to taste

To Make Flatbread:

Blend rice, quinoa, ground flax, tahini, water, garlic and herbs in a food processor. Stir in sesame and flax seeds, and add salt to taste. Turn mixture out onto a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten the mixture to about 1/8 inch using wet hands (or a rolling pin…or both). Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough into 3x3 squares and bake in a preheated 300F oven for 35 mins. Let cool 15 mins then use a spatula to carefully remove your ‘bread’ slices from the pan. Wrap tightly and store in the fridge.

To Make Crackers:

Same instructions as above, except you can cut the dough into whatever shapes/sizes you want. Bake 45-50 minutes, until the crackers are golden-brown, being careful not to burn. Let cool 15 mins before carefully breaking them apart. Store in an airtight container (in the fridge if it’ll take you more than 2-3 days to eat them…which I highly doubt. 

...Sadly, the sun went in just before the bread was done. Happily, that didn't affect its deliciousness -- or my ability to slather it with smashed avocado mixed with diced tomato, salt, and pepper -- one bit.

You may have noticed there are no pictures of the crackers here. That's because they all went straight from the baking sheet to my mouth (ok, a couple of them may have stopped briefly in a container of hummus--but that's beside the point).

Beefcake!!!

The other day a Naturopath told me to eat less vegetables. "They're not a good use of your limited funds," he said. "You need to gain weight, and kale doesn't have any calories. I want you to start eating fats instead -- nuts, oils, avocados...you could probably stand 3 or so eggs a day..."
I stared at him in disbelief. "Did you really just tell me to stop eating vegetables?"
"Yup."

As I rode my bike ride home I tried to imagine my post-produce life: meals de-greened and carrot-less; non-apple snacks; breakfast sans citrus. I suppressed a shudder and tried to psych myself up instead: Peanut-sauce-slathered everything, here I come! Yeah, almond butter banana hemp milk smoothies! And yes I will fry my extra dosa in extra coconut oil and eat it with some coconut curry!

But, as always, there is a vast gulf separating theory from practice. And the next day, barely 8 hours of fully fatted and de-fruited existence later, I strongly empathized with the force-fed ducks that become foie gras. By 7pm I had eaten approximately 4 handfuls of almonds, a protein bar, a protein shake, extra dosa fried in extra coconut oil with coconut curry and chickpea curry, and a stir fry with fried eggs over fried rice. I wanted to explode. But it was only 7:30. Surely I was supposed to eat some more (at least according to my housemates, who sadistically egged me on with shouts of "Do it!" and "Beefcake!!") Despite the fact that I had no desire to eat anything ever again, let alone right then, I marched intrepidly back into the kitchen determined to concoct a tasty treat that might invigorate my exhausted appetite. And what better snack for an overstuffed little health-nut like myself than the deceptively named "Brownie Bite." I tried not to cry while I made them. And I tried not to cry while they baked. And when  they were finally cool enough to eat I sat down with my cup of tea, told myself I was ready for more, and dig in. I was still full. Really full. But they were good. And I think that bodes well for someday when I'm not about to explode (i.e. when I'm allowed to start eating veg again).


Brownie "Bites" (Adapted from Two Bite Double Down Dark Chocolate Brownies)

Ingredients:
1 C rolled oats
1 C flour (GF to make them GF)
1/3 C cocoa powder
1/4 tsp each baking soda and baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/3 C non-dairy milk
1/2 C agave or rice syrup
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 egg or egg sub
1/3 C melted coconut oil (can sub walnut or mild olive oil)
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract
1/4 C each shredded coconut and dark choco chips

Directions
Mix dry ingredients (oats through salt) together in a large bowl.
Whisk wet ingredients together in a medium bowl.
Add wet bowl to dry bowl and mix well.
Fold in coconut and choco chips.
Drop by Tbsp onto lightly greased or non-stick or parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake 12 min. in a preheated 350F oven and cool on wire racks.

Makes 20-ish.

Biscuits: The #1 reason not to bake gluten-free foods if you are not a gluten-free person.

So a few weeks ago a friend of mine rode out to the Bob's Red Mill Store. While he was shopping, he came across a big ol' super cheap bag of GF All-Purpose Baking Mix.

"Hey!" friend thought, "I bet Ashley wants some of that. Cuz, y'know, she doesn't eat gluten. And she's real broke. I'll pick some up for her." Now, I'm not a gluten-free person. Wheat-free, yes. But other non-wheat glutenous grains? Bring 'em on. So later that night, when dear friend appeared on my doorstep smiling from ear to ear and exclaimed triumphantly, "I got you some GF baking mix out at Bob's Red Mill today! Now you can have baked things!" I feigned excitement lest I crush his spirits. "Sweet!" I replied, "I can't wait to bake stuff!" After a little while he left, and the GF baking mix got tossed in the kitchen cupboard full of ingredients no one ever uses. Out of sight, out of mind...right?

Wrong. Friend kept on asking me if I had made anything yet, hoping to get some sweet GF treat in return for his thoughtfulness. And every time I made up and excuse or brushed him off, I felt like a jerk. A guilty dishonest jerk. And every time I opened up the kitchen cabinet, there was this enormous bag of GF flour looming up out of the darkness, with its little wholesome, happy, Farmer Bob logo silently mocking me.  Clearly I was going to have to bake something.

Luckily, Housemates and I had a dinner/meeting scheduled. And since it was one of those gross, grey, late-February days with nothing to recommend it except (possibly) comfort food, I decided to make biscuits and gravy.  To eliminate the chances of substitution errors I even followed a recipe that specifically called for Bob's GF Baking Mix, assuming it would be engineered specifically to yield tender, tasty, reasonable facsimiles of "normal" biscuits. Apparently I assumed wrong, because while the biscuits tasted fine, they were flat, on the dry side, and kind of tough.

At first I was bummed out. Was it me? Did I do something wrong? Was it the recipe? Should I try a different one? But then I came to a realization: I'm not a gluten-free person, and I don't need to eat gluten-free biscuits.  Don't get me wrong -- maybe, just maybe, there is such a thing as really good gluten-free biscuits. But I think I'm going to just stick with gluten-y biscuits instead.

Vegan Luau! (Take that, Winter.)

Ah, yes. There's nothing quite like teriyaki tofu and cocktails in colors insulting to nature to beat back the late-February blues -- that seemed to be the reasoning behind the vegan Hawaiian potluck I attended this past weekend, anyway. 

As far as party premises go, a luau-style escape from dreary NW weather seems like a no-brainer. As far as vegan potluck parties go however, the theme presents some challenges. And by "challenges" I mean that there is no such thing as vegan Hawaiian food...besides pineapples and coconuts, of course. 

Never having visited the island, the bulk of my knowledge about Hawaiian cuisine was largely based on rumors about some kind of SPAM obsession. But until this weekend, I didn't realize how central that spongy, pink, pork-flavored bastard cousin of actual pig meat really is to the Hawaiian diet.  I naively assumed that somewhere behind a mountain of blue-tinned meats and pigs on spits there were beans, grains, or greens to be had. A quick Google search on "vegan Hawaiian food" revealed otherwise, however; apparently, all Hawaiian salads (noodle or otherwise) come covered in mayo or fish sauce, nearly everything comes with pork, and there is nary a green in sight.  I did manage to find a relatively easy recipe for Teriyaki tofu with pineapple without too much difficulty though, which was especially nice since my first reaction to the invitation had gone something like this: "Woohoo! Blue cocktails, grilled pineapple, and teriyaki tofu!" 

(Just for the record, this picture does not adequately convey the deliciousness of this dish.)

Hawaiian-Style Sticky Tofu:

 Ingredients

14 oz. extra firm tofu, cut into 16 thin slices 

1/4 C. plus 2 T tamari

2 green onions, chopped

1 large garlic clove, peeled

1 tsp cornstarch

3/4 teaspoon agar agar, powder (this makes it sticky)

1/2 C plus 2 T hot water 

1/4 cup maple syrup or agave

1 1/2 teaspoons vegetarian "chicken" boullion

1/2 teaspoon powdered ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground mustard powder

1 (14 -19oz) can unsweetened pineapple chunks, drained

1 large green pepper or 1 large red bell pepper (or 1/2 of each), seeded and cut into squares 

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. 

Quickly brown the tofu slices in a nonstick pan until browned on both sides.

Place in one layer in a nonstick or lightly-oiled 9 x 13" baking pan.

Place the soy sauce, green onion, garlic, cornstarch, and agar in blender and blend well. Add the remaining ingredients except the pineapple and green pepper. Mix well, then pour into a saucepan and stir over high heat until it boils. Stir and let it boil for about 1 minute.

Add the pineapple and green pepper, then pour over the tofu in the pan. 

Bake for 15 minutes.  Garnish with scallions and serve with white rice.

**I followed this recipe exactly and thought the results were okay. It seemed to lack complexity...maybe fresh ginger, a squirt of lime, or some juice from the canned pineapple would have helped. On the other hand, my friends really liked it, and people went back for more. It was also way better the next day. I'm sure I'd make it again, but I suppose I'd recommend it to someone who was, oh I don't know, attending a vegan Hawaiian potluck...**

Oops! I did it again.

I stopped blogging.
As always, it got away from me for a couple of weeks, and by the time I was ready to come back I had so much I wanted to write about and so many photos that I wanted to post that I just couldn't decide where to start. Christmas candy? Chinese food? Lessons learned after my 3-month-long RGB spree? I waffled. I vacillated. And finally, I just walked away.

At the time it seemed reasonable. There were holidays, and new job, and then another after that! How coul I be expected to cook and photograph and write?! But those excuses are long gone. All that's left is me, my kitchen, and my camera.  Oh yeah -- there are a couple of volunteering gigs too, but I'll try not to let those get in the way.

So here we go again.
Maybe third time's the charm.