My Best Gluten Free - Grain Free Bread Yet!

UPDATED 9/28/22

Why was this particular loaf so much better? I have made several varieties of the gluten free, 100% whole food flour, bread from various websites. One was too eggy. It had 6 eggs per one loaf of bread. It was more like eating some sort of weird loaf of quiche. Others were too moist and dense. This one I remedied by cutting the eggs to 4, adding lots of extra butter, and using milk.

The top is nice and brown crispy. And it is not doughy in texture. I had a slice warm from the oven and literally slathered in slices of butter. Delicious!

Ingredients  

• 2/3 cup organic buckwheat flour

• 2/3 cup organic quinoa flour

• 2/3 cup organic millet flour

• 2 Tbsp coconut flour

• 1 rounded teaspoon baking soda

• 1 rounded tsp baking powder

• 1/3 cup + a little extra organic Pasture Butter, I am very generous with the butter, and I gently melt it before adding to the batter

• 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar

• 2 TBSP local maple syrup

• 4 local & organic eggs

• 3/4 cup local, organic Goat’s milk

• ½ teaspoon unrefined pink Himalayan salt

Vinegar, Milk, Salt, & Eggs

1. Melt the butter

2. Beat the eggs

3. Mix in melted butter, milk, & maple syrup

4. Mix dry ingredients together

5. Add dry to wet & mix well

6. You will have more of a thick bread batter than a traditional yeasted bread dough

7. Pour into a well buttered bread pan ( I use 8 1/2 L X 4 3/4 W X 2 3/4 D )

8. Bake at 350F for 55 minutes or so until top is crispy brown & loaf pulls away from the bread pan sides

Let cool for 10 minutes and then remove to a plate. Allow to finish cooling.

Slice & use for your favorite sandwiches, toast for a buttery delight, add jam, melt cheese on, spread with hummus / peanut butter / Nuttzo butter… whatever pleases you! Bologna from well raised pigs?? I no longer have a source for such childhood comfort foods. Bummer.

Goat’s Milk Butter

I have one frozen package of Piggery Bologna left… the business has been closed for over a year. I will miss this pasture raised pork bologna when I finally decide to break it out of the freezer and indulge.

The Protein Powder I Would Make and Use

Do you use protein powder Paula?

Should I be buying and using protein powder?

What is the best protein powder to use, the best base substance the protein comes from?

Answers: No, No, and Real Food.

A protein powder is derived from some food that the protein has been removed from. This creates a concentrated protein.

Let's be mindful around the food we eat. Protein powders are refined food products. The protein has been extracted from the whole food. Why not just eat the whole food? And, how exactly do they, whoever they are, extract the protein? Chemicals? Extreme heat? 

Mindfulness: Eat whole food.

The above powder ad says it is made from pea, hemp, chia, potato, and chlorella protein... (keep reading below the picture!)

www.bodyunburdened.com

Instead of Refined Isolated Protein Powder From These Sources, Try this:

• Buy hemp, chia, sunflower, golden flax, pumpkin, and sesame seeds. Organic and raw, of course. 
• Measure 1/2 to 2/3 cup of each into a mixing bowl.
• Blend them together well.
• Pour into a wide mouth quart canning jar.
• Use 1 to 2 (or more to your liking) tablespoons in your morning oatmeal, granola, smoothie....

You now have the benefits of a whole food, not just the refined out, isolated protein. You get the healthy fats, the fiber, and all the nutrients that are lost in refining of a whole food into just the protein powder.

Whole foods feed your body cells for:

1. healthy cell regeneration
2. preventative medicine
3. healing medicine

Wapatuli Pie Recipe

I remember Wapatuli Punch Parties from my college days... all too well. A cooler full of fruit juices, fruit chunks, and vodka-rum-whiskey and the party was on a roll. 

Call me old but I like my Wapatuli pie better!

When Jake asked me to make him an apple pie I was low on apples. I combined apples, cranberries, blackberries, and blueberries (all local fruit I froze over the summer, apples fresh from Martin's Farm Stand). I chuckled as I was making it as my mind immediately went to college Wapatuli Parties!

Pie Filling: 

• 2 large apples cut into bite sized chucks, leave skin on for the nutrients and fiber
• about 1 cup of each berry, add more to have enough to fill your pie plate
• 1/2 cup of sucanat, unrefined sugar

Pie Crust:

• 2/3 cup of a mixed flour blend: quinoa, amaranth, millet (I grind myself in my electric coffee grinder)
• 1/3 cup dark buck wheat flour (why the crust looks so deep brown)
• 1/2 cup each coconut flour and almond flour. I only used these as I was out of the above mix blend and did not feel like grinding more.
• 2/3 cup pasture raised butter
• 1/4 tsp. unrefined sea salt
• 5-6 tbsp. cold milk, the coconut flour soaks up more fluid as I usually use about 2-4 tbsp. cold milk
• extra flour for rolling out crust, I used the buckwheat flour

A whole grain crust is a much tastier way to enjoy pie. It has flavor unlike refined, white flour crust which taste like baked wall paper paste and butter. The butter is its flavor saving grace!

Place all ingredients into a food processor and process until the whole mess rolls into a ball. Cut ball in half and roll into pie crust and make your pie.

Whole grain pie crust can be crumbly. (See picture at bottom. I had to piece together a few patches!) Take time and be gentle with it. I use a cotton mat and a cotton sock cover for my rolling pin. I bought these in a package kit at Evans and White's Hardware in Potsdam.

Put the pie together and bake for 45 to 60 minutes, just until it starts getting bubbly. There is no need to over cook fruit.

Enjoy!

Ice Cream's Purpose

To Every Thing (turn, turn) there is a season (turn, turn)...

To everything there is a purpose!

So you are asking me, what real purpose could ice cream possibly have?  Ready for a story? Sit down, let me tell you a story. Stories are the fibers that weave us together as community!

The recent Indian Summer has been a joy. I love warm fall days with bright blue skies. 75 degrees is about as perfect as it gets. This is still good swimming weather!

The sudden Autumn heat made me think some ice cream would be a good idea. Now I confess, I am not a big ice cream eater, maybe once or twice a summer. Ice cream was just appealing to me. My sister was visiting during this fine summery fall weather. After a hike in Stone Valley, I threw out a "Hey, let's get some ice cream" to her and my kids.

Mistake #1, I opened my big mouth before I thought about it and they (my 2 boys and my sister) were not going to let me off the hook on this one.

So, off to the Potsdam Food Coop a shopping we will go! (I had my way and organic, quality ice cream was on the shopping list!)

I suggested we try a pint of The Three Twin's Dad's Cardamom flavor ice cream. Somehow we left with that, the Sea Salt Caramel, AND the 3 pint container of the Alden's Organic Vanilla ice cream. My sister wanted to get the Three Twins Milk Coffee ice cream as well.

Someone had to be the voice of reason... 5 pints of ice cream for 4 people? Seriously? They listened, we skipped the coffee ice cream!

So, are you wondering about the whole "ice cream's purpose" thing here? Let me just say this:

Ice cream in your freezer is like the canary in the coal mine. It is the perfect way to gauge the correct temperature setting of your freezer. Ice cream too hard to eat? The freezer needs to be turned down, meaning the temperature inside the freezer needs to be raised a bit. Ice cream too mushy and runny? Time to set the temperature in your freezer a tad bit lower.

I recommend any freezer temperature changes be carried out in tiny, little increments and tested frequently. It is totally acceptable to leave a spoon right on top of the freezer, you know, just in case an emergency check is required.

Caution: Do not ever hide the spoon inside the freezer. Way too cold in the mouth!

Action to take:  Head on over to the Potsdam Coop or your local natural food store that carries quality, organic ice cream and get some now... before the Indian Summer escapes us!

PS  By the way, I do recommend the Milk Coffee ice cream. It is divine! The cardamom was exquisite! Vanilla is simply scrumptious and the Sea Salted Caramel is a must try. You decide!

Tell me your ice cream story!

PPS Remember to join the Local Living Venture and I as we rock your world (no, not with ice cream) with vibrant health and healing messages!  Whole Health & Healing Academy continues this Thursday evening with Natural Foods Know How. See you there!