This month, the theme was beer. The fabulous folks at the 512 Brewing Company hosted us for an evening of unlimited beer and yummy foods made with beer.

photo by Jennie Chen at MisoHungry

What is so great about these potlucks is not only that there is SO.MUCH.FOOD, but also that the food is wildly creative and delicious. This is not the sort of potluck where, inevitably, someone shows up with a bucket of soggy fried chicken from KFC. This is that sort of potluck where Beeramisu (a play on Tiramisu) is placed next to delightfully tangy Beer-Lemon Curd from Jennie at MisoHungry. It’s a potluck where Lisa from Lisa is Cooking brings gooey Beer-Pretzel-Cashew Caramels and Kristi from Austin Farm to Table brings her amazing Oktoberfest Pizza with Beer Braised Sausage, Sauerkraut, and Stoneground Mustard.

With so many talented foodie folks in this town, it’s always fun to come up something creative to bring. This time around I decided on these little baby cakes. I’m pretty much totally over the whole cupcake fad, so I refused to make these in a muffin pan or to even call them cupcakes. These are mini-cakes. Even individual cakes, if you will. Not cupcakes. Please, not cupcakes.

(Of course, if you would like, you can totally bake these in a muffin tin and call them cupcakes. Your kids will love them.)

These cakes are so incredibly moist and a perfect indulgence for the fall.

ROASTED KABOCHA – REAL ALE MINI CAKES WITH BROWN SUGAR CREAM
makes twelve mini cakes
adapted from this recipe at Epicurious

There is very little flour in these guys which is part of the reason why they are so moist. And, it also makes it much easier to adapt it to a gluten free recipe. Just substitute the all purpose flour for 1 cup of your favorite high protein gluten free flour mix. I’ve included a recipe for my favorite high protein mix below. Oh, and make sure that your oat flour is gluten free. If it isn’t, just replace the oat flour with another 1/3 cup of your GF flour mix.

For the Brown Sugar Cream:
1/2 teaspoon agar agar powder
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 Tbs. agave nectar
3 large egg whites, lightly beaten and placed in a medium sized, heat safe bowl
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the Cakes:
3 lbs. kabocha squash, sliced in half lengthwise and seeded
1/4 cup coconut milk, or more as needed
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds removed (reserve pod for another use), or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Nonstick canola oil spray
1 1/3 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup mild-flavored olive oil
1/2 cup Real Ale Brewhouse Brown Ale, or other dark brown ale (Newcastle would be great)
2 large eggs
1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup oat flour
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon Himalayan salt, or 1/2 tsp. sea salt

1. For brown sugar cream: Stir agar agar, cream, and sugar in medium saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Temper the warm cream mixture into the egg whites and then add the mixture back to the saucepan over medium low heat. Whisk until mixture thickens, about 12 minutes (do not boil). Strain into a clean bowl. Cover and chill until cold. (This can be made ahead and chilled overnight.) When the cream has set, transfer it to a stand mixer and whip to stiff peaks. Place cream in a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and set aside.

2. For cakes: Lightly spray the flesh of the kabocha squash with non-stick spray and place it face down on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Roast the squash in a 425 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until it is soft. Allow it to cool to room temperature.

3. Scoop out the flesh and puree it in the food processor. Add coconut milk as needed to create a smooth puree.

4. Turn the heat in the oven down to 375°F. Spray 12-(6oz.) ramekins with nonstick spray. Place 1 cup of the squash puree in a large bowl (reserve remaining puree for another use). Add sugar, vanilla seeds, oil, beer, and egg to the squash puree and whisk together. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt over the wet ingredients and stir until smooth. Divide batter among prepared ramekins.

5. Bake cakes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cakes in ramekins. When cakes are cool, remove them from the ramekins and pipe brown sugar cream on top.

GLUTEN FREE HIGH PROTEIN FLOUR MIX
makes about 5 1/4 cups or 1.5 pounds of flour
adapted from a recipe in Gluten Free Baking with The Culinary Institute of America

1 3/4 cups (9oz.) white rice flour
1 1/4 cups (6oz.) tapioca starch
1 3/4 cups (6oz.) soy flour
1/2 cup (3 oz.) dry milk or dry soy milk powder

Whisk it.

OTHER KABOCHA SQUASH RECIPES FROM AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
Kabocha Squash Simmered with Lemon at Mental Masala
Shrimp and Kabocha Squash in Coconut Milk at Apple Pie, Patis, and Pate
Kabocha Pumpkin Hot Pot at Serious Eats
Crustless Milk and Cardamom Pumpkin Pie at No Recipes
Kabocha Cookies at Bread + Butter (You can use your high protein gluten free flour mix to make these gluten free.)

One thing that I forgot to mention in my last post is that one of the participants in the raw foods class that I taught was a pediatrician who specializes in alternative therapies for kids with Autism. She and I talked at length about our theories on health, wellness, and diet and we were both so happy to find that we had the exact same opinions.

Throughout my years of researching illnesses and disorders and how they can be treated with diet, one disorder that I somehow had managed to overlook is Autism. And, it is so strange that I did because upon receiving the results of my food allergy test, my doctor recommended that I go on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, which is one of the most commonly recommended diets for kids with Autism.

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet and a Gluten Free, Casein Free Diet (GFCF) are similar in that they both eliminate gluten, but they differ greatly in some other areas. In addition to eliminating gluten, SCD takes it one step further by eliminating all grains (rice, corn, millet, etc.), high starch foods (potatoes, yams, tapioca, arrowroot, etc.), and all sweeteners, except honey. SCD does allow some dairy products (if they can be tolerated), meats, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, and nuts. You can learn all about the science behind this diet, which was created by a team of doctors and refined by a biochemist, here.

In a nutshell, the theory is that by excluding complex carbohydrates and only eating foods that early man was eating before the agricultural revolution, our digestive systems can work properly and entire body can function optimally – especially our brain!

Because I was allergic to so many different grains, dairy, yeast, and legumes, it seemed that my digestive system would most likely benefit from SCD. I’ve avoided really diving in because it feels like such a restricted diet. But, after meeting my pediatrician friend and realizing that there is a huge Autistic population out there who really HAVE TO adopt this diet, I thought I should at least take a closer look and try to develop more recipes to make the transition easier for them – and maybe even myself.

Banana-Chia Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes about sixty bite sized cookies
inspired by this recipe at 101cookbooks.com

Otherwise if you eat them just as is, you can enjoy all of the healthy benefits of chocolate and chia seeds in one delicious vegan, gluten free, grain free, casein free, egg free, soy free, peanut free bite!

3 bananas, mashed
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbs. chia seeds
3 Tbs. water
2 cups almond flour
1 cup shredded coconut
1 Tbs. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. baking powder
about 1 cup carob or chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a liquid measuring cup combine the bananas, coconut oil, and vanilla and stir them all together. In a separate small bowl, combine the chia seeds and water. Allow these to sit for about 10 minutes or until it forms a gel-like consistency and stir them into the banana mixture.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut, cinnamon, cardamom, salt and baking powder. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined. Fold in the carob or chocolate chips.

3. Line a sheet pan with a Silpat or parchment paper and spoon scoops of dough, about 1 1/2-2 tsp. in size, onto the pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes on a rack located in the upper part of the oven. Bake the cookies as long as possible without burning the bottoms. Gently remove the cookies from the sheet pan and transfer them to a cooling rack.

First, I made several mini pies for a raw foods class that I taught in San Antonio last weekend. In that version, I pressed the crust into the bottom of several ramekins. And, I left the coconut oil out of the filling so that it maintained a consistency that was similar to a pudding. Then I could easily spoon the filling over the top of the crust and eat it immediately. The purpose of adding the melted coconut oil to the filling is so that once it is chilled, it will set up almost like a regular key lime pie. Without it, you can’t really slice a large pie into pieces, but it does make a nice custardy filling for individual pies.

After teaching the class I had some crust left over and several avocados. Being allergic to avocados, the only hope these little guys had of being consumed was for me to make another pie for other folks to eat.

And, I knew just the group to feed it to.

For the last several weeks I have been volunteering for the Sustainable Food Center, and I’m telling you, no one loves or appreciates good, fresh, organic, healthy food like these folks. Seriously. Last week, I was sitting in the SFC office eating my lunch and a crowd gathered around to admire the fresh candy cane beets in my salad, more than one person asking which farmer from Saturday’s Farmers Market I had purchased them from.

When has that ever happened in your office?

These folks are more passionate about fresh produce than my cats are about naps and bowls full of kibble- and that is saying a lot. They do so many amazing things for our community and are a huge reason that the local, organic food movement has such a huge following in Austin.

I thought the least I could do is make them a pie.

Raw Vegan Key Lime Pie
makes one nine inch pie

To melt the coconut oil without heating it above 110 degrees, let it sit in a 110 degree dehydrator for about an hour before making the pie. Or, you may melt it in a saucepan over very low heat, removing it immediately from the heat once it is almost completely melted.

Crust:
1 1/2 cups macadamia nuts or cashews
1/2 cup shredded coconut
2 cups pitted dates
pinch Himalayan or Celtic Sea Salt

Filling:
4 huge Hass avocados
juice of 11 juicy limes
3/4 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup virgin coconut oil, melted

1. For the Crust: In a food processor, combine nuts, coconut, dates, and salt. Process the mixture until it is well combined, a little bit chunky, and sticky. The food processor may shake around a lot, so be sure to hold it in place while it is running. When it is done, press the crust mixture evenly into a 9 inch pie pan.

2. For the Filling: Using either a blender or the food processor, combine the avocadoes, limes, agave nectar, and coconut oil. Blend until smooth (this may take up to 5 minutes in a food processor) and pour the filling over the crust. Smooth the top with an offset spatula. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the pie and place it in the refrigerator for at least one hour and up to one day before serving.

I am officially kind of a nerd.

Last Tuesday night was another meeting of the Austin Food Lover’s Book Club aka “My Favorite Night That I Look Forward to Every Two Months”.

Beautifully photographed by the lovely Mrs. Summer Huggins. See more of her fabulous photos on her Flickr photostream.

Every two months we read a food related book and each person brings a dish related to the book. With members like Addie from the Austin American-Statesman, Jodi from Tasty Touring, Lindsey from Apron Adventures, James from JamesEats, and other die hard foodies and writers, the food is always fantastic.

For this meeting we were discussing Michael Ruhlman’s “The Soul of a Chef”. (BTW, I thought it was a fabulous, inspiring, exciting read – especially the section on Thomas Keller – and recommend it highly to all of my foodie friends.) Ruhlman discusses so many dishes in such savory detail and I was having trouble deciding which one I wanted to prepare for the book club.

But then, I remembered that one of our dear members is vegan, and although I’m sure that the offal dishes and terrines mentioned the book are delicious, they are far from being vegan-friendly.

So, I was on the hunt.

One of the chapters in the book is about Michael Symon and his Cleveland restaurant, Lola, so I decided to look up what they were currently serving on the menu. Being in the mood to bake and seeing that it was pretty much the only thing I could veganize, I chose to create a Caramelized Pineapple Tart of my own.

Turns out, the tart was great. Everyone raved. And, how did our token vegan, like it?

She didn’t to make it to the meeting.

Another gorgeous photo by Summer Huggins

Vegan Caramelized Pineapple Tart
makes one nine inch tart

Tart Pastry:
12 oz. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. organic unbleached confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
14 Tbs. EarthBalance Buttery Sticks, cut into 1 inch pieces
Ener-G Egg Replacer for 1 egg
a few Tbs. ice water

Filling:
2-20 oz. cans crushed pineapple, packed in juice, not syrup
3/4 cup organic evaporated cane sugar
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. Chinese Five Spice powder

more sugar, for caramelizing the top of the tart after baking

1. For the Pastry: In a food processor, quickly pulse together flour, confectioners’ sugar, baking powder, and salt. Scatter the Buttery Stick pieces over the top of the dry ingredients and pulse until there are no buttery pieces larger than a marble. With the machine running, quickly add the Egg Replacer and the ice water, 1 Tbs. at a time, until it just begins to form a cohesive dough. Remove the dough from the processor, form it into a disk, wrap it up in plastic wrap and let it sit in the fridge for about an hour.

2. For the Filling: While the dough is chilling in the fridge, combine everything for the filling in a sauce pan and place over medium high heat. Let the mixture simmer, covered, for about 45 minutes to an hour, or until it resembles a thick jam. You want the mixture to be thick and sticky with as little moisture as possible so as to avoid a soggy crust.

3. To Assemble: Preheat your oven to 425F degrees. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll it out to about 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Press the dough into the bottom and sides of your tart pan. There will be excess dough hanging over the top. To remove this excess quickly and to make a nice even edge on the top of your tart, simply roll your rolling pin over the top of the pan and trim away the excess dough. (I put the leftover dough in freezer bag and put it in the freezer to make mini tarts later.)

4. Place a large piece of foil inside of your tart making sure that it covers the entire surface of the crust. Fill the tart with dried beans or pie weights and blind bake the crust for about 10 minutes. Take the tart shell out of the oven, remove the foil and weights, lower the oven temp to 350F degrees and spread the pineapple filling evenly inside. Bake the tart another 15 minutes. The crust will remain a pale color even when it is finished cooking, so you really need to feel the crust to tell if it is done. It should be very firm and crisp.

5. Allow the tart to cool completely in the tart pan. When it has cooled, remove it from the pan and sprinkle a light layer of sugar over the top. Using a kitchen torch, caramelize the top of the tart as if you were making a Creme Brulee. Cut into 8 wedges and enjoy!

I suspect you could also caramelized the top of the tart under the broiler although I have never tried it this way. If any of you give it a shot, let me know how it turns out.

It was fantastic to get to meet so many of them in person finally: The fabulous April from The Hungry Engineer, who hatched the idea of a food blogger potluck, the cutest foodie couple of all time,Rachel and Logan (and their amazing Banana Bread Pudding) from Boots in the Oven, the overwhelmingly talented Penny De Los Santos, and so many others.

I knew that there would be a room full of people who live and breathe all things culinary, including David aka The Soup Peddler and Addie from the Austin American Statesman, so I wanted to be sure to serve something super tasty and a bit off the beaten path.

Enter: Curry Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies!

There have been about a billion incarnations of this cookie over the years, including a wheat-free, vegan, agave-sweetened one that I used to sell on a regular basis. I figured that in this group of hard core foodies there wouldn’t be a lot of dietary restrictions, so I decided to make a version with plenty of wheat flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. They came out fantastic and everyone loved them, but to be honest, I think that the vegan versions that I had made in the past were every bit as good.

So, with this recipe you have options. You can use real eggs, real butter or real milk. You can also use Gluten-Free Rolled Oats and Gluten Free Oat Flour (with a teaspoon of xanthan gum added to it) to make it gluten free. And, you can use just about any type of curry powder. I’ve used just a simple yellow curry powder (make sure it doesn’t have garlic in it), and I’ve used hot curry powder to give it a good spicy kick. Both of them were great.

Any way you make ‘em, they are sure to be a new taste adventure for your palate and a crowd pleaser!

Vegan Curry Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes about three dozen cookies

1 cup EarthBalance, softened
1 1/4 cups Organic vegan cane sugar
1/2 cup Organic vegan brown sugar
Ener-G Egg Replacer equal to 2 eggs
2 Tbs. soy, rice, hemp or almond milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup organic unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 Tbs. curry powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt (only use this if your EarthBalance or butter does not have salt in it)
3 cups organic rolled oats
2 cups vegan chocolate chips
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

1. In a KitchenAid Mixer, cream together the softened butter and sugars until they are thoroughly combined. With the machine running, add the “eggs”. When they are mixed in, add the milk and vanilla.

2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, curry powder, and salt. Slowly add these dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in the mixer. When they are all mixed in, add the rolled oats, chocolate chips and coconut, one at a time and on very low speed until everything is well incorporated.

3. In between the palms of your hands, gently roll the dough into golf ball sized (and shaped) cookies. Place them about 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets and bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Let them cool for 1 minute on the baking sheet and then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Me: “Am I bad person if I eat Gingerbread for breakfast?”

Luke: “Hell bad or just Pergatory bad?”

Me: “No, seriously. Is it terrible if I just have sweet bread for breakfast?”

Luke: “Well, it’s possible you may only be subjected to an eternal void instead of hell…”

With the threat of actual damnation cast aside, I scooped up an amazing cup of tea and a big slice of this gingerbread and stuffed my face.

I’m not a big fan of eating sweet stuff for breakfast, but I just simply couldn’t resist this Gingerbread. I used my favorite gluten free flour combo of the moment – white rice flour and millet flour – which leaves not even a slight hint of “Obviously Gluten Free” flavor or texture. The white rice flour, while not nutritionally the best option, provides a flavor and texture so similar to regular all-purpose flour. The addition of millet flour adds more nutrition and a nutty flavor similar to whole wheat. I’m tellin’ you, the combo of the two is gluten free heaven.

The glaze over the top is, admittedly, pretty awesome, but if you avoid sugar, this gingerbread is still pretty stellar without it. If you do include the glaze, feel free to just use regular lemon or even orange.

Mmm! You are going to love it!

GINGERBREAD WITH MEYER LEMON GLAZE
makes one loaf

Going along with my theme of altering recipes to meet my needs, I found this recipe at Simply Recipes. This Gingerbread is an adaptation of those yummy looking cupcakes.

1 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or EarthBalance
1/4 cup rice milk
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup unsulphured molasses
Ener-G Egg Replacer for 3 eggs, made with warm water, or 3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1/3 cup powdered sugar, optional
1/4 Meyer lemon, juiced, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If your loaf pan is not non-stick, lightly grease the bottom and sides. In a medium bowl, sift together white rice flour, millet flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, spices, and salt. Set aside.

2. In a microwaveable bowl, melt butter and rice milk together in the microwave. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the agave nectar, molasses, prepared Ener-G Egg Replacer, and vanilla. Beat slowly together until fully combined. Add the dry ingredients and then pour in the melted butter mixture. When everything is just incorporated, add the fresh grated ginger and mix just enough to evenly distribute the ginger. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake about 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out with a few crumbs on it. Allow the loaf to cool in the pan while you are preparing the glaze

4. In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar and Meyer lemon juice. Allow to thicken slightly in the bowl before brushing over the top of the gingerbread. Let the bread cool a bit and let the glaze harden before eating.

Other Gingerbread Recipes Around the Blogosphere:
Ginger-Molasses Cupcakes at Gluten Free Girl
Vegan Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies at The Post-Punk Kitchen
Almond Flour Gingerbread Cookies at Elana’s Pantry
Vegan Blackstrap Gingerbread with Lemon at Shmooed Food
Gluten Free and Vegan Pumpkin Gingerbread at Eat’n Veg’n

With as many food allergies as I have, finding recipes that suit all of my needs and actually taste good is practically impossible. I’ve searched through many an allergy free cookbook and website, but it seems the recipes always include at least one thing that I am still allergic to. Gluten Free recipes almost always still include dairy and eggs, and vegan recipes almost always still include wheat. And almost every recipe includes sugar. So, what’s a gal like me to do?!

TAKE MATTERS INTO MY OWN HANDS.

That’s right. I’ve changed my whole approach. I’ve decide to start tackling everyday, allergen-filled recipes and adapting them to suit my needs. I’ve tried enough recipes and found enough substitutions to know what works and what doesn’t. So, save for a few tried and true sources – like Karina’s Kitchen, Julie’s Raw Ambition, HaveCakeWillTravel, and Gluten Free Girl – I’m going start just adapting stuff on my own. I want to start making baked goods like the incredible Deb at Smitten Kitchen or the mind-blowing desserts by Aran at Cannelle et Vanille. There is no reason why folks with allergies and various dietary restrictions shouldn’t be able to savor all of these gourmet sweets, too. And, so, it is my hope that I can make these treats accessible to all of us.

This recipe was my first attempt at my new found approach, and it was a biggie. I saw it on Deb’s site and as soon as I caught a glance of it, I wanted it soooo bad. There would have to be a lot of substitutions, but I decided that this would be The One to start the ball of gourmet goodness rolling.

And, my, what a great choice that was.

These are so amazingly good. I got such a rush pulling these out of the oven and realizing that I had done it! I had successfully adapted this recipe into something that, not only tasted deeeelicious, but something that I could truly be proud to serve to anyone, even folks without dietary restrictions.

VEGAN/GLUTEN FREE PUMPKIN SWIRL BROWNIES
makes two dozen brownies
adapted from Deb’s adaptation on Martha Stewart’s recipe

The first time I made them, I included 1 tsp. of xanthan gum as a binder. However, I found that with all of the flax already in the mix, the xanthan gum made it a bit too chewy. They were still awesome, but I think next time I will leave it out.

1/3 cup cocoa powder + 1/2 cup water, stirred together in microwavable bowl
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or EarthBalance spread, cut into pieces
2 cups oat flour or Gluten Free Rolled Oats, pulsed into flour in a food processor
1 tsp. baking powder
big pinch cayenne
3/4 tsp. salt
4 Tbs. ground flaxseed + 3/4 cup water, stirred together and set aside for 10 minutes to thicken
3/4 cup + 1/3 cup agave nectar, separated
1 Tbs. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin puree
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 cup maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray 13×9 inch pan with canola spray.

2. Add the butter to the cocoa/water mixture and microwave for 2 minutes, stirring halfway through, or until the butter is melted.

3. In a large bowl whisk together oat flour, baking powder, cayenne, and salt. In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together flax/water mixture, 2/3 cup agave nectar, and vanilla. Add these wet ingredients to the oat flour mixture. At this point the dough will be super thick and that’s okay.

4. Divide the dough equally into two separate bowls. Stir the chocolate mixture into one of the bowls of dough. Add 1/3 cup agave nectar and enough water to this bowl to make it into a thick brownie batter.

5. In a small bowl, stir together the pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup. Add this to the other half of the dough and stir it well. Now, you should have a bowl of brownie batter and a bowl of pumpkin batter.

6. Scoop half of the brownie batter into the prepared pan and smooth it out as evenly as possible using a rubber spatula. Add half of the pumpkin batter on top of the first layer of brownie batter and smooth it out evenly being careful not to mix it up into the brownie batter. Add another layer of brownie batter and finish the layering with the rest of the pumpkin batter. After smoothing out the top, run a butter knife through the batters to create a swirly, marbled pattern.

7. Bake for about an hour or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. Allow to cool in the pan, cut into squares and enjoy!

Other Punkin Sweets Around the Blogosphere:
Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies with Chocolate-Peanut Butter Pots de Creme at HaveCakeWillTravel
Vegan/Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie at Gluten Free Goddess
Gluten Free/Sugar Free Pumpkin Cheesecake at Kalyn’s Kitchen
Vegan/Gluten Free Pumpkin Coconut Loaf Cake at eat’n veg’n
Casein Free Spice-Kissed Pumpkin Pie at 101 Cookbooks

Oh, and P.S. Check out the new page I added. You can now see what I eat everyday when you check out my food diary. It may give you some more ideas of tasty things that you can eat, too.

In my opinion, a meal is not complete without a sweet little treat at the end of it. That balance of savory and sweet is vital in every meal I eat. At home, I usually finish a meal with a little square of good quality dark chocolate, but at Enoteca, I decided to polish off my delicious meal with a little Toasted Almond Polenta Cookie. Because I don’t normally eat a whole lot of sugar, most sweets I taste in restaurants or stores are waaaaay too sweet for me. This cookie, however, had just a hint of sweetness – and you could taste the salt in it. That, to me, is a major defining characteristic of a perfect cookie. The only downside was that the cookie obviously had wheat in it because about five minutes after I ate it, I started nodding off at the table – a tell tale sign that I have eaten wheat.

But, it was so delicious, I was determined to make a batch of them at home that I could eat to my heart’s content. These guys that I made are a bit crumblier than the ones at Enoteca, but the flavor is just about spot on – and they are gluten free and egg free! The one possible drawback that you may find is that the polenta has a bit of a grainy texture. I happen to love it, but Luke didn’t particularly care for it. If you are worried about the texture bothering you, try using cornmeal instead of the polenta. Also, wait until they have cooled completely before you try cutting them or they will be too crumbly to hold their shape. But, once they have cooled, hold onto your hat, because these guys are awesome.

GLUTEN FREE ALMOND POLENTA COOKIES
makes approximately two dozen cookies

I’ve found that a great place to buy very inexpensive gluten free flours is at an Indian specialty grocery store. You can find huge bags of buckwheat, rice, millet, chickpea, and lentil flours for just a few dollars. Of course the labels will most likely not be in English, so you may have to ask for what you are looking for, but the amount of $$$ you will save is pretty considerable.

1 cup millet flour
1 cup ground almonds or almond meal
1/2 cup gluten free oat flour (try Bob’s Red Mill brand)
1/2 cup polenta aka corn grits
1/2 cup organic cane sugar
zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 tsp. sea salt
2 Tbs. ground flaxseed + 5 Tbs. water, combined in a bowl and allowed to thicken for 10 minutes
1 Tbs. almond extract
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or EarthBalance, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and lightly oil a 9×13 inch pan.

2. In a food processor, combine the flours, polenta, sugar, ground almonds, lemon zest, and salt. Pulse them a few times until just combined.

3. Stir the flax/water mixture and add it to the processor. Add the almond extract and scatter the pieces of butter over the top. Blend the mixture until it is moist and starts to hold it’s shape. If there are still small chunks of butter, it’s okay.

4. Dust your fingers with flour and press the dough evenly into the prepared pan. Bake 30-40 minutes, or until the edges are browned.

5. Allow to cool completely, cut into 2 inch squares and enjoy with a cup of tea or espresso.

UPDATE: I sort of accidentally left these cookies sitting out on the counter for about a week covered with just a measly piece piece of foil, and, I gotta tell ya, they taste even better now. It’s like they defy the laws of proper food storage. The flavors have melded together so nicely, and they are perfectly crispy. Pretty cool, huh?

One of my clients was having a guest for dinner who is gluten/dairy intolerant and training for a triathlon. Because of her training, her normally healthy pescetarian diet was even more restricted than usual, and this tart was the perfect solution for the dessert portion of the meal. A gluten free crust made mostly of pecans, a creamy base for the peaches made from pureed cashews, and the lack of unhealthy sweeteners made this dessert “the most satisfying peach pie all season”! (Her words, not mine.) It was like she was cheating, but she wasn’t. And, the leftovers have been a tasty and super healthy breakfast all week for my client. Not a bad deal, huh?

The only down side to this tart is that it didn’t hold it’s shape when I sliced it and it was a bit tough to get out of the pan. In the future I would probably line the removable bottom of my tart pan with a piece of parchment and add a little more coconut butter to the Lemon-Ginger Cream. Another possibility would be to freeze the tart for at least an hour without the peaches and add them just before serving. Better yet, I would do all three, just to be on the safe side.

RAW PEACH TART WITH LEMON-GINGER CREAM
serves six to eight
adapted from a recipe by Renee Loux

Crust:
2 cups pecans
1/2 cup pitted dates
2 Tbs. maple syrup
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. sea salt
water, as needed

Lemon-Ginger Cream:
2 cups cashews, soaked 1 hour and drained
Juice and zest of 1 small lemon
3 Tbs. maple syrup
3 Tbs. agave nectar
3 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger
2 Tbs. coconut butter
water, as needed

Peaches:
4 large peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 Tbs. maple syrup
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1. For the Crust: Grind the pecans and dates together in a food processor. Add the cinnamon, maple syrup and salt. Mix until thoroughly combined. The crust should be sticky and should hold itself together. It is too crumbly, add a little water as needed. Press the crust into a tart pan with a removable bottom, or a glass pie plate.

2. For the Lemon-Ginger Cream: Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until it is super smooth. Add water as necessary to blend it, but try to keep it as thick as possible. Spread the cream in the tart crust.

3. For the Peaches: In a large bowl, toss the peaches with the lemon juice, maple syrup, cinnamon and ground ginger.

4. To Assemble: Arrange the peaches over the top of the tart and chill for at least an hour before serving.

When all these peaches started rolling into town, I knew a cobbler was right around the bend. I can up with this one that is absolutely delicious, although it came out a bit more crumbly than I had anticipated. Overall, I’m totally okay with that, though, because it turned out to be a fantastic mix between a cobbler and a crisp. Yum, yum!

PEACH COBBLER CRISP
serves 8

Masa is a finely-ground corn flour used to make corn tortillas. It is usually found on the Mexican cooking aisle of the grocery store or in specialty groceries. If it’s not readily available in your area, substitute it with 1 3/4 cup rice flour and 1/4 cup finely-ground cornmeal.

For the Peaches:
12 medium-small peaches, pitted and sliced
3 Tbs butter or Earth Balance
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 Tbs. cornstarch

For the Topping:
2 cups masa
3/4 cup agave nectar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1/4 tsp. salt
4 Tbs. butter or Earth Balance, melted
2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar, plus enough soymilk to equal 1/3 cup of liquid
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large-ish pot, melt 2 Tbs. butter over high heat. Add the peaches, vanilla, agave nectar, and cornstarch. Stir and cook for about 2 minutes or until the peaches just start to soften and the liquid begins to thicken. Remove from heat and pour peaches and liquid into an 8″x11″ (or 2 qt.) baking dish. Set aside while making the topping.

2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the masa, baking soda, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt. Combine the wet ingredients in a liquid measuring cup and pour them over the dry ingredients. Stir to combine. Press the topping over the peaches and bake 15-20 minutes, or until the juices are bubbling and the topping is golden brown.

3. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes. Serve with a big ol’ scoop of ice cream!