Category Archives: Gluten Free

Beet Tofu (Zen Shojin Cuisine) Great for Summer Days V & GF

Posted on by
P1030535

Beet Tofu Buddhist Temple Food

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Raw Baby Beetroot, 1 tsp Ginger, 2 Tbsps Sugar, Juice of 1/2 lemon, 3/4 tsp Sea Salt, Pinch of black pepper, 1/4 Cup Shoyu or Soy Sauce, Filtered Water, 7 Tbsps Potato Starch.

Add the beets, sugar, ginger, lemon, salt and pepper, shoyu and enough water to cover to a saucepan and simmer until beets are cooked. When cooked blend the mixture in your blender until smooth then transfer back to your saucepan over med heat and stir continuously. Mixture will thicken rapidly, take off the heat from time to time while stirring to avoid burning. When thick transfer to a plastic bowl or glass bowl which will hold 1 cup of water. Sit the bowl in a water bath and allow to cool naturally, not in a fridge as will go too hard. Squeeze out onto a shallow dish and cut into slices or shape into balls. Tastes delicious. This Tofu will keep for one day. But am certain will be eaten very quickly.

 

Beet Tofu, Cucumber Fans, Carrot Flower with Sesame Seeds, Rice Ball with Chive Confetti, Steamed Kale and Edible Flowers. No artificial colours – nature is full of colours.

A perfect arrangement for Summer Days. Shojin cuisine translates as cooking with love and all of the temple dishes are vegan. They utter these five phrases before eating (known as gokan no ge) beautiful xxx

I reflect on the work that brings this food before me; let me see whence this food comes.

I reflect on my imperfections, on whether I am deserving of this offering of food.

Let me hold my mind free from preferences and greed.

I take this food as an effective medicine to keep my body in good health.

I accept this food so that I will fulfill my task of enlightenment.

 

 

P1030530

Ginger Biscuit, Lemon Custard and Chamomile Cream Dessert V & GF

Posted on by

This weeks shared recipe from the VLE kitchen. Ginger nut biscuit base, real lemon zest custard and chamomile infused cream. Tastes delicious!! Uses easy to find ingredients. This recipe makes 10 individual desserts or one family size. The chamomile is nearly in bloom in the garden and will make a beautiful decoration for next time.  ♥ V & GF ♥Ginger, Lemon and Chamomile DessertGinger, Lemon and Chamomile Dessert

Kale, Wakame & Dill Bagels V & GF

Posted on by

wakame and dill bagels_edited-1This recipe was inspired by another recipe in the Spring edition of The Vegan magazine. They had a recipe for Kale Bagels using regular bread flour and yeast. Because I am trying to have less gluten this recipe was created today in the kitchen. I had slightly overcooked mine baking for 30 mins. They are quite a light colour when cooked. Next time I will glaze them with either 1 part tamarind paste 3 parts oil or with tamari sauce both would compliment the other ingredients. The other recipe posted before this one is for Cheesey Apricot & Sesame Seed Pate which I made to compliment these bagels.

Magical Millet & Corn Health Bread V & GF

Posted on by

millet bread 001This new recipe is a perfect and versatile healthy bread that is gluten free. The texture of the bread is very light and soft with a slight sweet nutty flavour. Am pleased how this recipe turned out. It was a first attempt at making gluten free bread using millet.

12 Health Benefits of Millet:

1. Millet is alkaline and it digests easily.

2. The Hunzas – who live in a remote area of the Himalayan foothills and are known for their excellent health and longevity – enjoy millet as a staple in their diet.

3. Millet will hydrate your colon to keep you from being constipated.

4. Millet acts as a prebiotic feeding microflora in your inner ecosystem.

5. The serotonin in millet is calming to your moods.

6. Millet is a smart carb with lots of fiber and low simple sugars. Because of this it has a relatively low glycemic index and has been shown to produce lower blood sugar levels than wheat or rice.

7. Magnesium in millet can help reduce the effects of migraines and heart attacks.

8. Niacin (vitamin B3) in millet can help lower cholesterol.

9. Millet consumption decreases triglycerides and C-reactive protein. Scientists in Seoul, South Korea concluded that millet may be useful in preventing cardiovascular disease.

10. All millet varieties show high antioxidant activity. A team of biochemists analyzed the antioxidant activity; all varieties showed high antioxidant activity.

11. Millet is gluten-free and non-allergenic. A great grain for sensitive individuals.

12. Millet’s high protein content (15 percent) makes is a substantial addition to a vegetarian or vegan diet.

Here is the recipe:

 Firstly you need to boil 1/2 cup of millet in 2 cups of Carrot Juice (I used 4 carrots and 1 Cup of non GM Soya Milk in the blender to make the juice) instead of carrot juice you could use filtered water instead. It takes about 20 mins for the millet to cook and you can optionally add 1 tsp of turmeric. (You could use quinoa grain instead of the millet)
 
Wet ingredients:
Millet with carrot juice (above)
1/2 Cup Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 Cup Agave or Maple Syrup
1/2 Cup of Filtered Water
Add wet ingredients to your blender and blend until smooth.
 
Dry ingredients:
1 1/4 Cups Organic Corn Flour
2 1/2 Tbsps Baking Powder
Pinch of Sea Salt
2 Tbsps Ground Golden Flax
 
Add wet to dry and place in the fridge to rest for 30 mins. For a savoury loaf/rolls add 1/2 cup Sesame Seeds, 3 tsps Tamarind Paste and 3 tsps Herbes de Provence. (See other variations below). The mixture is quite sticky and will make 6 rolls or one small loaf. If making a loaf using a silicone loaf tin just pour the mixture in but if you are using a metal tin line with baking parchment. If making rolls line your oven tray with baking parchment and place 1 heaped tbsp for each roll on the paper and shape and smooth with a spatula knife. If making the savoury loaf/rolls sprinkle top of dough with sesame seeds. Bake in a preheated oven at 170 C and bake for 30-40 mins until a toothpick comes out clean. Leave to cool for 10 mins before turning out.
 millet bread 006
Other variations to add to the bread dough:
 
For spicy add 1 cup of mixed chopped cilantro, chilli flakes, chopped peppers. For Sweet add 1 cup of mixed dried fruit and nuts.
 
You could make this recipe live by grinding the uncooked millet into flour and baking in the dehydrator in silicone shaped containers at 65 C for 3 hours, turn out of containers and place directly onto mesh tray sheets and cook at 75 C for a further 8 hours