The Simple Things

Sometimes I feel there’s this expectation for food bloggers to constantly come up with an original recipe, one that no one ever thought of and believed imaginable. In my case, I do try to do that from the get-go (and sometimes succeed), but I usually start with a recipe ratio I can modify to my liking and go from there. In this case, Ruhlman’s Ratio is the perfect example.

Originality (or the modification of a recipe to the point it looks nothing like the recipe and is thus “yours”) can come with the price: over-complication. For instance, I would add up to ten separate flours, two different liquids, and other things just for it to be different and hopefully work. And sure, it usually worked out, but then it would get too confusing… and expensive.

So I work to keep ingredients at a minimum (unless it’s spice, smoothie, or salad related, in which case this argument is null and void) in my baked goods and meals, simply because I want to be able to taste and enjoy them all. And though some of the recipes I post aren’t anything new or “original”, I’m starting to see that simplicity can be timeless and appropriate for a wide spectrum of meals.

Take home fries for instance: there isn’t anything new about them, and almost everyone has a particular way of preparing it. You can add or remove ingredients as you go, or make it with what leftovers you have on hand. It’s a non-recipe recipe, only with the intention of it being delicious being your guide.

And before you ask, yes, it was delicious.

Happy Home Fries

600 g Golden potatoes, diced into small cubes
15 ml Olive oil (or whatever fat you prefer)
3 (325 g) Bell peppers, finely sliced
1 Carrot, finely diced
3 Garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
225 g Leek, thickly sliced
1 tbsp. Dried tarragon (or parsley)
1 tsp. Sea salt
1/2 tsp. Rosemary powder
1/2 tsp. Sage powder
   
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Coat the potatoes in the olive oil and pour them onto a medium to large baking sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
Bake for 30 minutes, and then increase the heat to 400ºF to bake for an additional 15 minutes.
In a large cast iron pan, grease the pan with additional olive oil and cook the bell peppers, carrot, garlic, and leek on medium heat until softened and slightly caramelized.
Add the potatoes and spices until completely integrated, and then turn off the heat.
Serve hot.

Makes 4 servings as a side dish.

New Priorities

As I worked to finish my midterm by the deadline, another week between posts went by. The realization of no longer having a plan still lingers in the back of my mind, but a new realization has taken its place for introspection.

That is, I’m going through the process of deciding what my priorities are. 

Tell me, has your Mara come to Tea lately?

This can be an ever-consuming venture, as I’m the sort of person with a plethora of big dreams, seemingly bigger than my life can permit simultaneously. To an extent, my dreams are too large to manifest themselves at the same time in the here and now, but I still dream and want and need.

The Burt-man, being ever observant in my turbulent changes these last few months, provided me with his Pennsylvanian Dutch wisdom the best he could (Dad figures tend to do that). He told me that life was like a chessboard and I was chess piece on that board. As a singular chess piece, I only have a certain number of options of squares to which I can move to, and each piece on the board plays the game differently. You play the game with the options you have, and work with the strategies to move from square to square to ultimately assist in best playing the current game.

In where I ultimately plan to be, I cannot move through life thinking “if only I had so-and-so’s life” or “why is it easier for so-and-so to do this or be that.” They’re just a different chess piece in a different game.

I bring this up because I still struggle with wanting to do everything and do it right the first time. I want[ed] to be a full-time graduate student with a full-time job of my dreams (with benefits), live on my own, heal whatever is conflicting my body, become amazingly fit as I excel at rock climbing, weight lifting, running, and yoga, blog beautiful posts and recipes five times a week, have an active social life and time for a significant other, learn the cello, sing jazz, travel often, have daily enlightening meditations and philosophical realizations… 

And this all had to happen at the same time in the course of a year or I viewed myself a failure to all Morri-kind.

I still want to do and be all these things, and I am confident that at the right time and place I will. It’s a matter of priorities, of deciding what move on the chessboard you position yourself first.

Not surprisingly, the personal growth my blog has nourished has become a top priority. This isn’t about the site itself, but more what it had manifested: self-awareness, confidence, the evolution of my passions, and a focus of my creativity. And though I have a few of the things I want to do in life underway (part-time graduate school, part-time work, part-time social life, working to become awesomely fit and healing holistically), fueling and nurturing my creative outlet has taken center stage.

For one, that means taking photography seriously and actually understanding why I produce the photos I take, and how to make them more professional looking. It also means taking the recipes to a higher standard.

Here goes everything.

Pumpkin Chai Latte

480 ml Filtered water
2 Chai tea bags (or loose tea equivalent)*
120 g Pumpkin puree
1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg, plus a dash as garnish
1/4 tsp. Allspice
1/4 tsp. Coriander
1/2 – 1 tsp. Unrefined apple cider vinegar, optional **
Sweetener, to taste ***
120 ml Almond milk (or whatever “milk” you prefer)

In a medium saucepan, cook the water on high heat until it simmers, and add the tea bags to steep for three to five minutes.
Remove the tea bags and lower the heat to medium-low, and add the remaining ingredients save for the almond milk.
Pour the chai tea into two mugs and set aside.****
In a separate cup, froth the almond milk with an immersion blender, milk frother, or simply put in a lidded jar and shake rigorously.  
Pour the milk on top of the tea and garnish with nutmeg.
Serve hot.

Makes 2 servings.

*I used Trader Joe’s Rooibos Chai Tea
**When I was sick this time last year, the old boyfriend put apple cider vinegar in my rooibos tea and it tasted like a tangy hot apple cider. He had read somewhere that it helped with sore throats and the overall feelings of crumminess.
*** I used honey, about one tablespoon per serving. (I get such a sweet tooth for my tea as it gets colder.) But this can be easily made herbivore using maple syrup, stevia, coconut sugar, date sugar, or left unsweetened.
****The pumpkin puree has a tendency to separate and sink to the bottom. Simply stir until you add the almond milk.

Spiced Pumpkin Cornbread & Salted Raw Pepita Butter

I am one of the many people in the world that looks forward to fall for a number of reasons: the rainstorms that smell like snow; piping hot meals in the forms of porridges, stews, roasted meats and veggies, and cobblers; sipping on hot chocolate, chai tea, and apple cider; leggings, scarves, warm hats and mittens; the leaves changing; and finally, all things pumpkin.

While I have thoroughly enjoyed and embraced other foods synonymous with fall (apples, carrots, and kale in particular), pumpkin is one of those things I literally count down the days until cans of it are displayed on the shelves. I love everything about this winter squash: the flesh, the seeds, the growing, and the artwork. It is so versatile and so easy to incorporate in practically any recipe you can think of. What’s not to like?

Last year, you could say I went a little fanatic with putting pumpkin in everything I ate. And it looks like this year will follow the same route of pumpkin-ness (I mean, you’ve seen my header, right?), with the promise of non-pumpkin fall treats to balance it out.

This week I was hankering for some pumpkin pancakes, and thought of using special arepa flour (also called masa flour on this blog, i.e., corn flour treated with lime) as the base. Well, for those who use this flour regularly, you will know how dry your dough/batter can be, and thus add more liquid to make it manageable. As the result, my first pancake was impossible to flip and broke apart, and my desire for pumpkin corncakes went out the window. So I did what I thought was the most logical thing to do: I baked it in a loaf pan.

Pancakes? Sadly, no. But delicious warm quick bread? Yes, sir!

Spiced Pumpkin Cornbread

240 g Masa flour
360 g Unsweetened almond milk (whatever “milk” you have on hand will work too)  
200 g Pumpkin puree
5 g (1 tsp.) Whey
2 Large eggs
60 g Applesauce
1 tsp. Bourbon vanilla extract
1 tsp. Sea salt
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Ground ginger (freshly grated is okay)
1/2 tsp. Allspice
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1 tsp. Baking soda
5 g (1 tsp.) Unrefined apple cider vinegar
60 g Melted butter
120 g Thompson raisins, optional

Combine all of the ingredients as listed (except the baking soda, cider vinegar, butter, and raisins) in a medium-sized bowl and place in the fridge to sit covered over night.
Remove the chilled batter from the fridge and get it to room temperature before adding the remaining ingredients.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
In a greased single loaf pan, pour the batter and spread it evenly.
Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or longer, depending on the oven.
Remove from the oven and leave it to cool for half an hour before removing the loaf from the pan.
Slice to desired thickness and serve warm.

Makes 4 – 8 servings.

Naturally you need something pumpkin to put onto pumpkin bread, right? I made a batch raw pepita butter (salted) that definitely suited that need.

Salted Raw Pepita Butter

300 g Raw pepitas
1/2 tsp. Sea salt
Spices, optional*

Place the pepitas in the food processor and leave it to pulse for 10 minutes** (scraping the sides as needed).
Once it takes a “loose dough” consistency, add the salt and continue to process for 5 minutes or until liquefied.

Makes 10 servings.

*I added pumpkin-y spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and sage, and sweetened it with a little stevia.

**I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to make raw pumpkin seed butter without additional oils or sweeteners. And really, I don’t think it even took the entire 10-ish minutes to be liquid pumpkin seed goodness.

Self-Realization and Without a Plan

I have been wondering almost to an obsession why I have suddenly come to a standstill. Over a week had gone by and there wasn’t a recipe made, a photo taken, or a witty post written. I came back from my long weekend in Florida and discovered something daunting and rather terrifying: I lost my plan.

It didn’t occur to me until a few days ago what my breakup would mean in the long run. Here I was at twenty-two (a month shy of turning twenty-three), in a relationship with a man I thought was the forever kind, and poof! All the plans and dreams that involved "us" were gone, completely thrown out the window as if it never existed. I was feeling, for lack of better words, lost, because for 2.5 years I didn’t have a plan without him in it.

“We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” (J. Campbell)

Flash forward to today, with hormones and emotions flaring up, and I have been looking into new plans, short and long-term goals for what I want to do in life. My friend in Florida and our mutual friend in Italy have shown me from their past heartbreaks that the heart does heal and the world will not implode in on itself while being single. By no longer having a plan that includes another person at this point in my life, I can focus on my studies, my health, my passions in conflict resolution/food justice/sustainable development, and learn the beauty of solitude and inner quiet.

 "By creating a strong body and emanating good health, we attract more of the same in our lives." (R. Mars)

The world seems so vast and new, raw and intimidating. I have started to see how much of ourselves we give to others, intentionally or not, and the positive and negative effects it can have on you as a whole. You start to question yourself: Did I make this decision for me or because it was expected? The scary part is wondering whether or not you would know the difference.

You think you know everything in your early twenties. You think you can handle whatever trials the world decides to throw at you, because it is what is expected. I can’t believe how much self-inflicted stress I endured because I felt I didn’t have the plan that suited the expectations of everyone else  (Rosenberg and Gandhi’s (2003) Nonviolent Communication has really helped in this department). Once my old plan literally fell to pieces, the one that consisted of pleasing everyone along with unrealistic goals and expectations I had put upon myself, self-realization and an inner calm overtook me.
 
In a lifetime of gasping for air, in asking for the right to breathe, I could feel my entire lungs utilized and I breathed deeply. I’m sleeping throughout the night and eating healthily. I’m finally acting my age and having fun doing it.

So what’s my plan? To keep doing what I’m doing, and learning all I can along the way. I’m going to continue being inspired by the people life puts on my path, love them and honor them for the lessons they bring. I’m going to give generously, receive fully, and pay it forward whenever I can.

And naturally, with an assortment of recipes coming your way. 

Hearts and Tarts

  The Queen of Hearts

    She made some tarts,

        All on a summer's day;

    The Knave of Hearts

    He stole those tarts,

        And took them clean away.

    The King of Hearts

    Called for the tarts,

        And beat the knave full sore;

    The Knave of Hearts

    Brought back the tarts,

        And vowed he'd steal no more.

~ Anonymous (1782)

W. W. Denslow (1901)

With the exception of reading this poem in Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, I never considered the gastronomic pleasures of the tart. In some cases, the words “pie” and “tart” overlap and blur: if it is a baked dish consisting of a filling over a pastry with an open top, it can be either without people batting an eyelash.

Ah, the beauty of food terminology.

I’ve made a few pies to share on Meals with Morri, the majority of which could be equally considered a tart; though in my upbringing "pie" is the more common term in the United States. So when the Gluten Free Ratio Rally was challenged to make tarts knaves and kings alike would want with their afternoon tea, I felt it was high time to make the distinction.

 It’s all about the crust, really. Pie crust, at least on MWM, falls in the flaky category, the one Michael Ruhlman wrote about in Ratio and Alton Brown gave awesome tips and tricks in making on Good Eats. There are literally clumps and bumps of fat left whole to create this amazing crunchy yet tender texture that beautifully pairs with the filling it holds. The tart crust, as I have come to understand, is usually a shortcrust pastry, similar in taste and texture to the shortbread cookie (Coincidence? I think not!). The binders (fat and liquid, and sometimes egg) are brought to room temperature, and care is given to make sure each and every flour granule is coated with fat. The result is a light and crumbly crust.

The one I chose to make was the pâte à foncer, a shortcrust pastry that includes egg. I wanted a flat crust that took center stage with a savory filling that was moist but not too wet. What I got was a crust that may have just become my go-to pastry for future tarts and pies. It crumbled, yes, but it didn't fall apart... VICTORY!

The ratio is quite simple (and rounded up): 5 parts flour, 3.75 parts fat, 1 part liquid, 1 egg yoke, and a little sugar (honey, in this instance).

Grain-free Pâte à foncer (ratio from Michel Suas's Advanced Bread and Pastry: A Professional Approach as discovered on The Second Lunch)

195 g Coconut flour
100 g Garbanzo bean flour
100 g Quinoa flour
148 g Salted butter, room temperature
148 g Coconut oil, room temperature
79 g Milk (I used Goat milk), room temperature
1 (16 g) Large egg yoke
6 g Honey

Allow butter, coconut oil, milk, and egg yolks to come up to room temperature. (Butter should be almost mayonnaise consistency.)
Soften the butter and mix with the paddle attachment on the electric mixer's medium-high speed.
Add the honey, yolk, and milk, and then slowly incorporate the flour.
Mix until just incorporated, and refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to an hour.*

And now... the tart part!

Savory Onion Tart Squares with Pâte à foncer crust

28 g Salted butter
1 Large yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
20 ml White wine, adding more as needed
6 g Dried parsley
1 tsp. Dried tarragon
1 tsp. Dried thyme
1/4 tsp. Sea salt
1/4 tsp. Cracked pepper
122 g Pumpkin puree
1 Egg, yoke and white separated
Filtered water, for the egg wash
Prepared Pâte à foncer

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
In a large cast iron skillet on medium heat, melt the butter and stir in the wine.
When the mixture begins to brown slightly and become aromatic, add in the onion and garlic to cook for 25 – 30 minutes until caramelized (adding more white wine if it starts to stick at the bottom).
Stir in the spices and cook on low heat for another 5 minutes before turning off the heat and setting aside.
In a small bowl, combine the pumpkin puree and egg yoke and set aside.
On a large cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, roll out and flatten the dough into a rectangular shape with a thickness between 1/8 and 1/4 inches (remember: the thicker the crust, the wetter you will want a filling).**
Spread the pumpkin until it is about an inch from the edge of the crust, and then top it with the onion (at this point, if you want to add cheese such as Ricotta, Parmesan, Gruyere, or Swiss, go right ahead).
Combine the egg white and equal parts water for the egg wash and coat the edges using a pastry brush.
Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, or until the crust has browned slightly.
Remove from the oven and let it cool five minutes before cutting into squares.
Serve warm with a sauce accompaniment or as a side to a soup/stew.

Makes 9 – 16 servings.

*I found that chilling the dough over an hour made it difficult to spread out and rather dry. The next time I use this shortcrust recipe (and I will), I'm simply going to go from mixer to pan and see how it fares.
**I also want to use a wetter filling next time (maybe twice as much pumpkin or incorporate ricotta in this particular recipe). I do think this would be delicious with cooked apples with a caramel sauce, though.

Now, I wasn’t the only one who took on the challenge to make a gluten free tart. Charissa of the Zest Bakery was our marvelous host this month. As the name suggests, the Zest Bakery is "a passionate (and zesty!) bakery that strives to provide delicious, gluten-free foods and desserts in the Bay Area. To ensure there are no gluten-containing products present in the bakery or on our equipment, we built our bakery from scratch.”

That is devotion right there, with people who are sincere and passionate about the welfare of others. I now have a delicious reason to visit the Bay Area, if only to be inspired by what they do.

But really, the GFRR always inspires me. See for yourself why…

Charissa | Zest Bakery    Cheddar Apple Tart   
Karen | Cooking Gluten Free!    Plum Tart (dairy and egg free)   
Paula | Gapey's Grub    Sugar Free Pear Tart   
TR | No One Likes Crumbley Cookies    Pumpkin Tart   
Sihi | Wandering Ladle    Banana-Pomogranate in Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Tart Shells   
Heather | Discovering the Extraordinary    No-Bake Mini Pumpkin Tarts (grain free)   
Pete and Kelli | No Gluten, No Problem    Spiced Cider-Poached Cinnamon Apple Tart   
Jonathan | The Canary Files    Vegan Cardamom Cashew Cream & Fig Tartlettes   
Mary Fran | FrannyCakes    Savory Sweet Potato tart  
Caneel | Mama Me Gluten Free    Pecan Tollhouse Tarts   
Morri (me!) | Meals with Morri    Savory Onion Tart Squares with Pâte à foncer crust (grain free) 
Jean Layton | Gluten Free Doctor    Nectarine Rose Tart (dairy-free crust)     

Claire Berman | This Gluten-Free Life    Fresh Summer Sweet Tomato Tart  

Playing with Paleo: A Delicious Birthday Experiment

The autumn storms have rolled in and brought with them that crisp air I love so much. Pumpkin and apples are in ample supply, and baking is becoming a coming occurrence in my household. With my Masters application officially submitted, I’ve exhaled this breath I had apparently been holding. Along with other hard lessons digesting from September, October is looking to be one creative and relaxed sort of month (save for midterms, of course).

The best part of fall is the flavor selection. We have foods that warm and fill us, sweet and savory ingredients that come together in a symphony of delights, and the oven always seems to be preheated and ready to go. To add to that, fall is the season I become very adventurous in my recipes.
 

Over the weekend I celebrated my two best friends’ birthdays. J and TJ, a ridiculously adorable couple, have been so supportive and loving as I pieced together what had been causing my recent stress, and visiting them (individually and together) always lightens my heart and brightens my day.

What was left of the piñata...

So when I was approached with the challenge to make a Paleo dessert for TJ, a lover of pumpkin and cheesecake, my Creative Mind’s gears starting turning.

In place of cream cheese and butter, because TJ is lactose intolerant, I looked for ways to make turn raw, dehydrated coconut flakes into “cheese” with a creamy nut butter consistency. (How did I do it? Read on for the link in the directions.) For the crust, almond meal and coconut oil was used to make it grain-free and dairy-free, and it had a marvelous crushed graham cracker taste and consistency.

 It was a delicious experiment, and one that will only get better over time. As for TJ and J?

They loved it.

Paleo Pumpkin Birthday "Cheese"cake

For the crust:
240 g Almond meal
64 g Honey
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
120 g Coconut oil, melted

For the filling:
500 g Homemade coconut “butter”
425 g Pumpkin puree
3 Large eggs
400 g Honey
Juice of 1 Lemon
1 tsp. Bourbon vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg
1/4 tsp. Ginger
Sea salt, to taste (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
In a medium bowl, combine the almond meal, honey, cinnamon, and melted coconut oil. (If a little wet, add a little more almond meal until it is soft but stable to the touch.)
Press the mixture throughout a greased 9-inch pie pan until evenly covered, and then set aside.
If you do not have homemade coconut butter on hand, proceed to Chocolate Covered Katie’s blog to learn how to make your own, and then add it to the remaining ingredients for the filling in another medium bowl to mix.
Pour the filling in the center of the pie pan and spread it evenly.
Cover the crust with aluminum foil to prevent burning and bake at the center of the oven for one hour.
Remove from the oven and let it sit for 2 – 4 hours until room temperature and then let chill in the fridge for an additional 2 – 4 hours or overnight before serving.
Serve cold.

Makes 8 – 16 servings.

September's Harvest, October's Delight