Chapter Content
Okay, so today I wanted to talk about some, you know, snack, sauce, side, and dessert type recipes. I've got a bunch here that I'm pretty excited about.
First up, let's dive into this Creamy Cauliflower and Celery Root Puree. This is a great, like, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and nut-free option, which is awesome. And it takes about half an hour, give or take. It makes about, uh, four to six servings. It's a pretty cool alternative to mashed potatoes. You know, it says here that the cauliflower has sulforaphane compounds, which are good for you.
So, what you gotta do is grab six cups of chopped cauliflower, both the florets and the stems, then two cups of chopped celery root, two medium chopped carrots, and two garlic cloves. You'll also need a quarter cup of nutritional yeast, a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, two tablespoons of hemp seeds, two teaspoons of lemon juice, half a teaspoon of sea salt, and, you know, some pepper.
You get a pot, put a couple inches of water in it, stick a steamer basket in there, bring it to a simmer. Toss in your cauliflower, celery root, carrots, and garlic. Cover that bad boy and steam it for about, oh, ten to twelve minutes, or until everything's super tender. Once it's cooled down a bit, you drain the veggies and throw 'em into a food processor or blender. Add the nutritional yeast, olive oil, hemp seeds, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Blend it until it’s nice and smooth. You can store it for, like, three days in the fridge in an airtight container if you wanna make it ahead of time.
Alright, next I'm seeing this Smoky Carrot-Harissa Dip. Sounds interesting, right? It's gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free. This one only takes about 20 minutes, and it makes about four cups of dip. It says the caraway and cumin seeds in it are full of antioxidants.
Okay, so you'll need two pounds of chopped carrots, half a teaspoon of caraway seeds, a teaspoon of cumin seeds, a quarter cup of harissa paste, a teaspoon of smoked paprika, two garlic cloves, half a cup of cashews, two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, plus some extra for drizzling, and two teaspoons of red wine vinegar, and of course, salt and pepper.
So, you steam the carrots, similar to the last one, in a pot with a steamer basket for about 10 minutes until they're tender. While those are steaming, toast those caraway and cumin seeds in a dry pan for, like, two or three minutes until they smell nice and fragrant. Grind them up – you can use a mortar and pestle, or even a coffee grinder if you want. Then, in a food processor, toss in the carrots, the ground spices, harissa, paprika, garlic, cashews, olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Blend it all up. Drizzle a little olive oil on top, and serve it with crackers and veggies.
Okay, let's check out this Beet-Lupini Dip. This one's gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free and nut-free. It takes about 25 minutes, plus, like, an hour and a half if you gotta roast the beets. Makes about four cups. Lupini beans, apparently, are good for blood sugar.
You're gonna need two large beets, or you can just buy some that are already cooked. Then a can of chickpeas, a cup of cooked lupini beans, half a cup of tahini, four garlic cloves, two tablespoons of olive oil, half a cup of beet sauerkraut or regular sauerkraut, and a half a teaspoon of ground cumin, salt and pepper.
Roast the beets if they’re raw, otherwise skip this part. So, if you gotta roast them, preheat the oven, wrap 'em in foil and bake 'em for an hour to an hour and a half until they’re tender. Let 'em cool, then peel and chop 'em. If you bought ‘em cooked, just chop ‘em up. Throw the beets in a food processor, along with the chickpeas, lupini beans, tahini, garlic, olive oil, sauerkraut, and cumin. Blend it all until it’s smooth. Salt and pepper to taste, drizzle with some olive oil, and serve with crackers and veggies. You can keep this in the fridge for about a week.
Alright, moving on, how about these Cheesy Broccoli-Chive Biscuits? Gluten-free and soy-free. They take about 45 minutes and make eight biscuits.
You'll need two and a half cups of broccoli rice, three tablespoons of sliced chives, three large eggs, two thirds of a cup of shredded cheddar cheese or nutritional yeast, one and a half cups of almond flour, a teaspoon of baking powder, a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder, half a teaspoon of sea salt, and pepper.
Preheat the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl, mix the broccoli rice, chives, eggs, and cheese. In a separate bowl, mix the almond flour, baking powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Then, fold the dry stuff into the wet stuff until it’s all combined. Drop it onto the baking sheet in eight portions and bake for about 30 to 35 minutes. If you use frozen broccoli rice, you'll want to add an extra five to ten minutes. You can keep them in the fridge for about five days.
Okay, we also have this Lemon-Dijon Dressing. This is gluten-free and dairy-free. This takes, like, no time – five minutes. Makes about a cup, which is eight servings.
So, what you need is two tablespoons each of lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and orange juice. Then a tablespoon each of Dijon mustard and tamari. Add some salt and pepper. And finally, half a cup of extra virgin olive oil.
Just whisk everything together in a bowl, drizzling in the olive oil while you whisk. Or, you can just throw it all in a jar and shake it like crazy for 30 seconds. You can keep it in the fridge for a week.
Now, let’s talk about something simple, Simple Cauliflower Rice. It's gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and nut-free. Takes only 15 minutes and makes two to four servings. You just need cauliflower and some olive oil!
You need one large head of cauliflower and two teaspoons of olive oil, and some salt. Chop up the cauliflower, toss it in a food processor and pulse it until it looks like rice. Then, heat the olive oil in a pan, add the cauliflower rice, and salt. Cover it, turn the heat down low, and steam it for like four to six minutes. Serve immediately.
And for dessert, how about these Black Bean Brownies? Gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free. This one takes about 45 minutes plus you have to chill it overnight. It makes 12 brownies. Apparently the cocoa powder and black beans are good for you.
What you need is eight dates, three quarters of a cup of cocoa powder, a can of black beans, half a cup of coconut milk, two tablespoons of ground flax seeds, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a teaspoon of baking powder, a tablespoon of beet powder, a quarter teaspoon of sea salt, some coconut oil, and optional sugar free chocolate chips sweetened with monk fruit, and flaky Maldon salt.
So, you preheat the oven. If the dates are dry, soak ‘em in hot water to soften them up. Throw the dates and cocoa powder into a food processor and pulse until the dates are broken down. Add the beans, coconut milk, flax seeds, vanilla, baking powder, beet powder, and salt. Pulse it all until it forms a batter, scraping down the sides as needed. Grease an eight by eight baking dish with coconut oil. If you're using chocolate chips, stir them into the batter now. Spread the batter in the dish and bake for 35 minutes. They’ll be soft, but they’ll firm up overnight in the fridge. Sprinkle with flaky salt before chilling. Store them in the fridge for up to five days.
For another dessert, here's a Mixed Berry Crumble with Toasted Pecans. Gluten-free and soy-free. This one takes 55 minutes and makes eight servings. Apparently tiger nut flour and pecans are healthier than regular crumble toppings.
Okay, you need six cups of frozen mixed berries, like raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. Three quarters of a cup of tiger nut flour, half a cup of chopped pecans, four tablespoons of cold butter or coconut oil, three tablespoons of maple syrup, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a quarter teaspoon each of salt and cinnamon.
Preheat the oven. Put the frozen berries in a baking dish. In a bowl, combine the flour, pecans, butter, syrup, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Use a fork to break up the butter until it’s all sandy. Sprinkle this mixture over the berries and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the berries are bubbling. Let it cool a bit before serving.
Oh, and I almost forgot about the Herbed Flax Crackers! These are dairy-free, gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free. They take an hour and a half to make about 80 crackers. Flaxseeds have omega-3s, which is awesome.
You need two cups of ground flax seeds, half a cup of sesame seeds, a quarter cup of nutritional yeast, a quarter cup of psyllium husks, half a teaspoon of garlic powder, a teaspoon of salt, and a teaspoon of dried oregano.
Preheat the oven. Mix all those ingredients in a bowl. Add a cup of water and stir it up. Get two sheets of parchment paper and put half the dough on one. Put the other sheet on top and roll it out to about an eighth of an inch thick. Do the same with the other half of the dough. Cut the crackers into whatever size you want. Bake 'em for an hour and 15 minutes until they're crisp and slightly darkened. They'll keep firming up as they cool.
And finally, a Lemon-Almond Cake with Jammy Strawberries. This is gluten-free and soy-free. Takes 45 minutes and serves 12. Almond flour is supposedly a really healthy alternative to white flour.
Okay, you’ll need four tablespoons of melted butter, two cups of almond flour, half a cup of monk fruit sweetener, a teaspoon of baking powder, half a teaspoon of baking soda, a quarter teaspoon of salt, four large eggs, a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and the zest and juice of two lemons. For the jammy strawberries, you’ll need three cups of strawberries, a pinch of salt, half a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and optional rose powder.
Preheat the oven. Line the bottom of a cake pan with parchment paper and grease the sides. In a big bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add the wet stuff to the dry stuff and mix it well. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes.
While that’s baking, make the jammy strawberries. Put the strawberries, salt, vanilla, and a quarter cup of water in a saucepan and bring it to a simmer. Cook for 15 to 18 minutes, until the strawberries are soft and the liquid has reduced. Take it off the heat and add the rose powder, if you’re using it.
Let the cake cool for about 25 minutes. Serve it with a spoonful of those jammy strawberries. You can even make muffins out of the batter if you want!
Oh one more! Baked Jicama Fries with Homemade Ketchup and Herbed Aioli. Jicama is good for the gut, apparently. Gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and nut-free. This takes 45 minutes and serves two to four.
Okay so you need one medium jicama, a tablespoon of olive oil, half a teaspoon of salt, and a quarter teaspoon of pepper. For the aioli, you need one egg yolk, one garlic clove, a teaspoon of lemon juice, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, a tablespoon of parsley, a quarter teaspoon of salt, and a third of a cup of avocado oil. For the ketchup, you need one date, a quarter cup of tomato paste, a tablespoon of red wine vinegar, a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder, and a quarter teaspoon of salt.
Steam the jicama for about eight to ten minutes until tender crisp. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper on a baking sheet and bake at 425 for 30 minutes. For the aioli, whisk the egg yolk, garlic, lemon juice, mustard, parsley, and salt in a bowl. Slowly drizzle in the avocado oil while whisking until it thickens. For the ketchup, blend all of the ingredients in a small food processor. Serve the fries hot with the aioli and ketchup.
And lastly, Salt and Vinegar Golden Beet Chips! Also gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free and nut-free. These take an hour and serve six. Apparently they are great replacement for potato chips.
So you need three or four medium sized golden beets, olive oil, one teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, a quarter teaspoon of garlic powder, a quarter teaspoon of onion powder, sea salt and pepper.
Preheat your oven. Slice the beets very thinly with a mandoline or knife. Grease two baking sheets with olive oil. Toss the beet slices with vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Arrange the beet slices in a single layer and bake for 40-55 minutes. Cool completely before serving.
So there you have it, a bunch of different snack and dessert recipes to try. Enjoy!