I originally made this cake in 2005 and have recently been craving it. Here is the adapted recipe for food intolerances. It’s going to be the showpiece for Sunday Night Dinner. I also added crystallized ginger to the batter for an extra bit o’ spiciness. HEAVEN.

FOR THE TOPPING
3 tablespoon palm oil (coconut may be flavorful)
1/2 cup sucanat mixed with 1 tbsp. molasses
1 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
4 large Bosc Pears
– FOR THE BATTER –
4 ounces palm oil or grapeseed oil
4 ounce Applesauce
3/4 cup sucanat
2 tablespoon Ginger grated
3 Eggs (or Ener-G Egg Replacer as directed)
2/3 cups Molasses
3 cups gluten free baking mix
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
1/3 cup crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups rice milk
1 1/2 tablespoon Vinegar

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil a 9-inch springform pan, and line the bottom with a 10-inch circle of parchment paper.

To make the topping, combine 3 Tbs palm oil, ½ cup sucanat, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Melt the oil over medium heat for about 1 minute; then pour the mixture into the prepared springform pan, completely coating the parchment paper. Place the quartered pears on top of the oil-sugar mixture, lining the pieces up tightly in a decorative circle so that none of the bottom shows through.

To make the batter, cut palm oil into 1-inch pieces, and put them in a large mixing bowl. Add ¾ cup sucanat, and cream the mixture on medium speed for 3-5 minutes, until it is smooth and a pale tan color. Add the grated ginger, and beat 1 minute more. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating on low speed and making sure that each egg is fully incorporated before adding another. When all the eggs have been added, slowly pour in the molasses and beat to fully mix. The mixture will look as though it is “breaking” or curdling, but don’t worry—it will come together when the dry ingredients are added.

In a separate medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to fully combine.

Alternately add small amounts of flour and rice milk to the batter, stirring and folding with a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are just absorbed. Do not overmix the batter. Pour and scrape the batter into the pear-lined pan, smoothing the top with a rubber surface. The pan will be nearly full.

Carefully transfer the pan to the center rack of the oven, and bake for about 1 hour and 45 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the cake’s center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Cover the pan with an upside-down serving plate; then carefully invert them together. Release the sides of the pan, and lift it away. Gently lift the pan’s base off the cake, and peel away the parchment paper. Allow the cake to cool for a half hour or so, and serve warm.

Yield: One big cake, likely serving 10-12 people

There is an abundance of arugula in my yard.

I was originally considering an arugula pesto, but I am well underway on my winter cleanse and am not consuming pasta (rice, quinoa or otherwise). I proposed a salad to go along with dinner on Sunday, and a roommate asked if that salad could be warmed.

I’m not accustomed to making ”warm salads”. Typically my greens are cold and raw or sauteed. In a mood to take on a challenge and get crazy in the kitchen, I set out to find a “warmed salad” using arugula and other ingredients available. The recipe below is the result: a winter salad adapted from a recipe I found on thekitchn.com. It was an incredibly nourishing, yet lighter addition to Sunday dinner than steamed or stir-fried winter greens.

There is still an arugula overgrowth happening outside. I am wondering – what are you favorite recipes for arugula? I’d love to hear your ideas and recipes. Click here or on the comment tab below and share your kitchen magic!

Warm Sweet Potato Arugula Salad
serves 4

1 large sweet potato, cubed into small pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Fresh black pepper
Sea salt
2 small bunches arugula, washed and torn
1 cup walnuts

Dressing
1/4 cup apple cider
1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tsp. dry mustard powder
Salt and pepper

Heat the oven to 500 degrees F. Toss the cubed sweet potato with the oil, spices, salt and pepper. Spread thin on a large cookie sheet and roast for about 15 minutes, or until browned at the edges.

Meanwhile, heat a cast-iron or other teflon-free skillet on medium high heat. Toast walnuts, stirring frequently, until aromatic and lightly browned (about 5 minutes). Whisk dressing ingredients together, or blend at high speed for greater emulsification.

Toss hot sweet potatoes with the arugula and walnuts. Drizzle the dressing over the salad to taste. Salad will wilt slightly, which is desired.

Another gem stumbled upon online: the menu and recipes served at the Inaugural Luncheon on January 20th, 2009. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies has posted the recipes, along with a great deal of information on the luncheon itself. A fun visit for the Omabaphile or the Martha Stewart in you.

JCCIC Luncheon page

Inaugural Luncheon Recipes

(Seafood Stew, Roasted Duck with Cherry Confit, Herb-Roasted Pheasant with Wild Rice Stuffing, Winter Vegetables, Molasses Whipped Sweet Potatoes and Cinnamon Apple Sponge Cake)

Traditionally, Hoppin’ John uses ham hocks or bacon to add a smoky flavor to nutrient-rich beans. In lieu of this, I’ve used chipotle powder to add spiciness and smokiness to this traditional Southern New Year dish. Eaten annually on the first day of the New Year, Hoppin’ John is supposed to ensure good luck. It certainly worked for me last year!

• • 6 scallions
  • 1 T extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
  • 1 small bunch collard greens or kale, chopped
  • 1.5 cup dried black eyed peas, cooked (or 2 x 10 oz package frozen black eyed peas, thawed and rinsed or 2-15 oz can, thoroughly rinsed)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 tsp. thyme
  • 1/2 t salt
  • 1/2 t black pepper
  • 1 tsp. chipotle powder
  • 1 T chopped garlic
  • 12 fl oz vegetarian broth or bean liquid

To cook dried peas, place in a small soup pot and cover with water – about 2″ over bean line. Soak overnight, drain, rinse, and cover with water again. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, simmering until tender, about 2 hours. Drain.

Trim scallions. Remove the dark green tops and set aside. Cut the white and light green sections into 1/4 inch thick slices.

Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the carrot and stir well to coat with oil. Add the white and light green sections of the scallions and the celery, reduce heat to low and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the kale and bell peppers and sauté for about 3 minutes or until the carrot begins to brown. Add the black-eyed peas and stir well. Sauté for 1 minute. Add the bay leaf, salt, black pepper, chipotle, garlic and broth. Stir well and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes, or until the liquid is almost completely absorbed – there should still be about 1/3 cup sauce.

Thinly slice the dark green scallion tops while the mixture simmers. Then stir in half the scallion greens. Ladle the hoppin john over a bed of cooked rice and sprinkle with remaining scallion greens.

This pumpkin butter was really easy to make and resulted in a tasty spread that I am donating to a craft fair to benefit Shakti Rising. Who says you have to pay for gourmet?

Some uses for this fabulous spread:

• On toast (with cream cheese – an  absolute favorite in my dairy days)
• Swirl with cream cheese and serve with bread or crackers for a holiday party
• As a topping on vanilla ice cream
• Thin with water or apple juice and drizzle over waffles, french toast, or pancakes
• As a sauce for baked apples
• Stir it in yogurt for breakfast, top with chopped walnuts
• Use instead of pumpkin in pumpkin muffins
• And whatever else your imagination can create (reply below with your ideas!)

Behold — the pumpkin butter:

• 15 oz. canned pumpkin
• 1 cup organic applesauce
• 1/3 cup sucanat
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. freshly grated ginger
• pinch of cloves (up to 1/8 tsp)
• 2 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a small pan, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Mixture will splatter – be careful! Upon boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally as mixture thickens.

When mixture is very thick, remove from heat and let cool.

While spread is cooling, bring a large pot of water to a boil and boil jars and their lids to sterilize.

Spoon into tight-sealing jars and keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

Last night I carved my first turkey. Having emerged back into carnivorism after 15 years meat-free, this was a genuinely novel experience. My inner scientist was reliving memories from the cadaver lab in college, my inquisitive child was exploring the newness of the entire experience, and my 15 year old vegan self was in shock, then likely passed out completely since I heard no word from her.

I clumsily picked apart the bird and was left with the bones. A perfect, perfect excuse for homemade soup stock.

Making soup stock from bones is powerful medicine. The long cooking time in stock allows the heat of the water to penetrate the bone, releasing really potent nutrition into the stock. What is leftover is nothing short of medicine — cures for the common cold, liquid bone-building nutrition, numerous nutrients that can penetrate into our bodies and revitalize, nourish, and rebuild us during these dormant winter months.

Below is a stock recipe which the household turkey is contributing to. Again I have an opportunity to give thanks for its life and maximise its gift to the household. Again I have a chance to be grateful for such nourishment and celebrate its life by going forth and celebrating my own.

Reduced Fat Turkey Stock:

• 1 Organic turkey carcass
• 10 to 12 cups water
• 1/2 cup carrot slices
• 1 celery rib, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 burdock root, scrubbed clean and chopped
• 1/2 large onion, cut into chunks
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 1 small whole dried red pepper
• 2 sprigs rosemary (or 1 tbsp. dried)
• 1 sprig sage (or 2 tsp. dried)
• 1/2 tbsp. dried oregano
• 4-8 whole peppercorns
• sea salt to taste (or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos if you tolerate soy well)

Place broken bits of turkey in a large soup pot over medium-high heat and cover with water by at least an inch. Add carrots, celery, burdock, onion, garlic and herbs and spices. Cover and bring slowly to a boil; reduce heat to low and skim off any scum on surface. It is important to simmer your stock and do not continue to let it boil. This leads to a richer tasting stock. Furious bubbling breaks up particles and causes clouding also. Cover the pot and simmer approximately 3 to 4 hours.

Remove from heat to strain. To remove smaller bits in the stock pour the liquid through a fine mesh sieve placed over a large pot. Discard turkey bones, meat, and vegetables. Place stock into shallow containers and refrigerate immediately. Refrigerate soup stock overnight and skim any congealed fat from the surface in the morning.

The stock will last for about a week in the fridge. You can freeze the stock and it should maintain taste and quality for about three months. This nutritive stock can be used for turkey soup, as the liquid for boiling brown rice or other whole grains, or as a healing broth for the ill over the winter season.

RECIPE: Vegan Pumpkin Tart with Pecan Crust

1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup water, more as needed
2 large potatoes, cubed
3 carrots, sliced in half lengthwise and chopped
2 cups kale or favorite mixed greens
3 tbsp. fresh parsley
2 tsp. nutritional yeast
Tamari or soy sauce, to taste
1 tbsp. chickenless broth powder mixed in 1 cup Imagine Foods non-dairy cream based soup mix (can be found at Fred Meyer in natural foods section)
1 tsp. arrowroot powder (cornstarch may be used)
1 leek, sliced thin
3 stalks celery, sliced thin
4 ounces of mushrooms, sliced
Red pepper flakes to taste
Rosemary to taste
Pepper to taste
Oregano to taste

BISCUIT CRUST
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup unbleached white flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. sweetener of choice
3/4 tsp. salt
1 cup non-dairy cream soup base or hemp milk
3 tsp. vinegar
2 tbsp. Earth Balance, palm oil or coconut oil

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Sauté onion in water until clear. Add potatoes and carrots and cook until they begin to soften. Add all remaining veggies and cook for 3-5 minutes. Reduce heat, and add nutritional yeast, tamari, and seasonings. Dissolve broth powder and arrowroot/cornstarch in soup base and pour mixture into steaming veggies. Stir and continue cooking until mixture thickens slightly.
Spoon mixture into a 9×13 baking dish. Cover with crust and bake until crust is browned, about 30 minutes.
For Crust:
Sift flour(s), soda and powder, salt and sweetener. Cut the margarine into the mixture until it becomes coarse. Mix the vinegar with the soup base and let sit for approximately 3 min. Pour soured milk into flour mixture and mix with a fork until moist. Knead dough in bowl and turn out onto floured cutting board. Roll dough to fit the top of the casserole and lay it over the veggies.

The colors and flavors of this untraditional chili are wonderfully diverse and complex. Like many chilies, this one tastes better the next day! Serve over brown rice or in a large baked potato.

2 tsp. olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 tsp. chipotle powder (or 3 dried chipotle chilies ground in a spice mill)
1 tsp. cumin
2 cups vegetable broth (or water)
1 large garnet yam, peeled and diced
2 large zucchini, chopped
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 14oz. can crushed tomatoes, preferably fire roasted
1 15oz. can No Salt Added pinto beans, drained
1 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. lime juice
4 tbsp. cilantro, chopped, and more to garnish, if desired.

Heat olive oil on med-high. Add onion and sauté until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add chili powder and cumin and cook, stirring for one minute. Add vegetable broth and yams. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, until yam is softened. Add corn, zucchini, tomatoes with their juices, and beans. Cook, uncovered, for 10 more minutes, until chili thickens and yam is very tender. Stir in orange zest, lime juice and cilantro. Spoon into bowls and garnish with additional cilantro, if desired.

Serves 4.

Recipe taken from Pioneer Organics Healthy Home Delivery Newsletter, week of 11/08/04

250 calories, 6.6 grams of protein, 47 grams carbs, 4 grams of fat per serving (a recipe makes 4 servings)

This recipe is courtesy of Whole Foods. Several months ago they asked for recipe makeover requests for those with food intolerances. I emailed asking for a soy, dairy, gluten-free lasagna. Evidently, I wasn’t the only one! Below is the original makeover with the soy-free option (which I used). The eggs in the recipe cleverly serve to hold all ingredients together in absence of the cheese. While it lacks the gooey, chewy texture that only loads of mozzarella can provide, the flavors come close enough to satisfy this girl’s cravings. Happy with the results, I am sharing them with all of you.
Enjoy!

Two readers requested a gluten-free, dairy-free lasagna recipe. Surprising as it may seem, not all tomato, marinara or pasta sauces are gluten-free and some even contain dairy, so be sure to read the label carefully before making your selection. For those who cannot tolerate soy, this recipe can be made soy free by eliminating the tofu. Simply increase the number of eggs to four. Distribute the egg mixture in equal parts over each layer of noodle and top with sauce as per recipe instructions.

Serves 6 to 8

• 1 (14-ounce) package soft tofu (not silken), drained (omit for soy-free)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 pound ground turkey or chicken (I used grass-fed ground beef)
• 3/4 pound button mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 bunch spinach, stemmed, cleaned and coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch fresh basil, stemmed and coarsely chopped
• 4 cups gluten-free tomato or marinara sauce
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 2 tablespoons garbanzo or fava bean flour (any gluten-free flour will be fine)
• 1 (16-ounce) package gluten-free lasagna noodles
• (always an improviser, I added carrots, broccoli, zucchini, and red peppers to my lasagna mix in place of the tofu.)

To prepare the filling, coarsely crumble tofu onto two layers of a lint-free dish towel. Wrap tofu in the towel and lightly press out excess moisture; set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté onion until tender, about 4 minutes. Add turkey and cook, stirring frequently, until just brown, about 8 minutes. Add mushrooms, garlic, oregano, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. In two batches, add the spinach and cook until just wilted, about 2 minutes each. Stir in basil and tomato sauce. Decrease the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Whisk eggs and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt together in a medium bowl. Add flour and whisk until well blended and slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Unwrap tofu, crumble it into small pieces and add it to egg mixture. Stir to fully coat. Set aside.

Meanwhile, cook lasagna noodles according to package directions in salted boiling water, but reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes. The noodles should be slightly firm, as they will continue cooking in the oven. Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again.

To assemble the lasagna, preheat oven to 350° F. Ladle 1/4 cup of the sauce into the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch baking dish and spread it out evenly. Place 3 lasagna sheets on top of the sauce. Place 1/3 of the tofu mixture on the lasagna sheets along with about a 1/4 of the sauce, distributing it evenly. Repeat layering two more times with 3 lasagna sheets, 1/3 of the tofu mixture and 1/4 of the sauce. (If going soy-free, pour a little of the beaten eggs over each layer as well) Finish with a final layer of noodles and remaining sauce, taking care to spread the sauce evenly all the way to the corners. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the lasagna from the oven and let stand 15 minutes before slicing.

Nutrition Info

Per serving (About 16.5oz/472g-wt.): 570 calories (170 from fat), 18g total fat, 3.5g saturated fat, 30g protein, 69g total carbohydrate (6g dietary fiber, 2g sugar), 115mg cholesterol, 880mg sodium