Chanterelle, Goat Cheese and Thyme Frittata with Caramelized Shallots

November 13, 2015

Something about the combination of mushrooms, goat cheese and thyme is just absolute perfection. I love making a big frittata to use up whatever happens to be hanging around the kitchen and this week I was lucky enough to have a handful of chanterelles leftover from our weekend foraging in the woods. Happy to have a brother studying mycology who can lead me to good spot, I’m afraid I would be hopeless (and mushroomless) without him.

This is so easy to throw together and while it is delicious straight out of the oven all puffed up and golden with gooey cheese, it is equally tasty eaten cold the next day. I love making this for a weekend breakfast but you can also serve it for dinner with a peppery arugula salad.

Ingredients

Serves 4

1 tablespoon butter

2 shallots, thinly sliced

1 cup sliced chanterelle mushrooms (or cremini)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

10 large eggs

2 tablespoons cream

a good sprinkle of salt and pepper

one small log of chèvre, about 4-6 oz

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit. Place a cast iron skillet over medium low heat and melt the butter. Add the sliced shallots and slowly sauté until they caramelize, about 10 minutes. Throw in the mushrooms and thyme and cook until the mushrooms soften. In the meantime, crack the eggs into a large bowl and beat with a fork until fluffy. Add the cream, salt and pepper and mix to combine.

Pour the egg mixture over the mushrooms and crumble the goat cheese over the top. Cook over low heat until the bottom of the frittata is set, around 5 minutes. Pop the pan into the top third of the oven and bake until puffed and golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Give it a jiggle before removing from the oven to make sure the center is set. Let cool slightly before cutting into wedges to serve.

Trick or Treat

October 31, 2015

The best part about Halloween is the candy, hands down. My absolute favorite has always been the peanut butter cup and this year I wanted to try making one that was free of all the refined, processed stuff. I was surprised to find that they can be easily whittled down to five simple ingredients: chocolate, peanut butter, coconut oil, salt and vanilla. Yes, that’s it! They are also ridiculously easy to make, the only hard part is waiting for them to firm up in the freezer. This recipe makes approximately 12 mini cups but could be easily doubled…or tripled. Let’s get real.

Ingredients

Makes approximately 12 mini cups.

1 cup dark chocolate chips

4 tablespoons natural salted peanut butter (or almond butter for paleo/vegan)

4 teaspoons coconut oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

a few pinches of vanilla salt (or plain kosher salt)

Melt the chocolate chips over a double boiler or in the microwave for a minute or two, checking and stirring often. Line a mini muffin tin with paper cups and spoon a small amount of chocolate in the bottom. Use a spoon to make a small well and transfer to the freezer to harden for 10 minutes. In the meantime, combine the peanut butter, coconut oil and vanilla in a small bowl until smooth.

Remove the hardened chocolate cups from the freezer and spoon a teaspoon or so of peanut butter into each cup. Top with the remaining chocolate and use a toothpick to drag the chocolate into the peanut butter (kind of looks like a spider web, we are festive over here). Sprinkle a little salt on the top and pop them back in the freezer for a couple hours to firm up. Let the cups sit out for 10 minutes or so before eating for the perfect melt in your mouth texture. Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Spice Squares With Cinnamon Frosting

October 8, 2015

October is a wonderful month. The morning air is crisp enough to pull out your favorite sweater to go on an early walk through the brilliant leaves and lingering fog. The drop in temperature also means time for baking, something I have dearly missed since starting my treatment. I was overjoyed to discover these grain free treats with the rich spices we all crave when the sun starts to get heavier in the sky. Oh and there is frosting! Actual frosting. I am crying.

These pumpkin spice squares are tasty enough to fool those who do not happen to be on a super restrictive diet. They were a complete revelation for me, before these sweet little squares came into my life I was moping about, convinced I would never find a treat that would satisfy my sweet tooth. These are all that and more, I think I might even prefer them to a normal flour and sugar filled cake! Bake a pan of these up and bring them to your next pumpkin carving party, no one will be the wiser and they will quickly disappear!

Ingredients

Makes approximately 16 small squares.

For the cake:

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup almond butter

1/4 cup honey

2 eggs

1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of kosher salt

For the frosting:

1/4 cup coconut butter

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup raw honey

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the cake ingredients in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer for one minute. Pour into a greased 8×8 glass oven safe pan and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and it is set in the middle. Let cool completely.

While cake is cooling, whip the frosting ingredients with an electric hand mixer until light and fluffy. Once the cake has cooled cut into small squares and top with a dollop of the cinnamon frosting.

Adapted from this recipe.

Cruel Summer

September 15, 2015

I always intended for this to be a very honest space for me so I will admit that this summer has not been an easy one. For starters, it was unbearably hot most of the time and not something us fair ladies do well with. More than that though, I have been dealing with some health stuff I have been ignoring for the past five years or so. Things finally became so dismal that I decided I really needed to make a change even if it meant making some sacrifices in order to get my life back.

After many tests and rounds of blood work I was finally diagnosed with SIBO, something that is not very well known and notoriously hard to get rid of. It stands for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and basically means the good bacteria that lives in your stomach migrates to your small intestine for whatever reason and is not supposed to be there, causing a long list of unpleasant maladies. I won’t go into too many details but I have had a long history of GI symptoms and had recently been having some new ones such as nausea and bloating no matter what I ate. The most difficult though has been fatigue, unexplained joint pain and a depression I just couldn’t shake. I know that some fatigue is bound to come with rearing a toddler but this was much more than simply being tired. I just felt like my body simply couldn’t do the most simple tasks and every day just felt so overwhelming. Apparently SIBO is linked to leaky gut which causes an autoimmune response and your body begins to attack itself, which would explain why I was feeling so sick and exhausted all the time.

Under the guidance of my doctor I am now on a treatment plan which includes a long list of supplements and herbal antibiotics. I cut out all grains and sugar at the beginning of the month and will transition to a diet designed to treat SIBO at the end of the week in hopes of healing my poor insides. I am already feeling so much better, it’s pretty amazing.

Looking forward to feeling happy and healthy again, whatever it takes.

Strawberry, Rhubarb and Rose Compote

June 10, 2015

Over the weekend we took a trip to our local farmers market that just opened for the season here in St Johns. The booths were overflowing with fresh Oregon strawberries and rhubarb so I bought as much as my little stroller basket could carry, not quite sure what I would do with it. There is always pie, but honestly I was feeling to0 impatient to wait for dough to chill. Then there is crisp, which I love but a bottle of rosewater caught my eye and a quick compote came to mind!

This is so lovely to spoon onto pancakes, spread over toast or dollop onto yogurt in the mornings. It’s also delicious over ice cream for dessert! The rose flavor is subtle and the tart rhubarb and lemon is perfect with the sweet berries.

Ingredients

2.5 cups rhubarb, cut into 1″ pieces (about 3 stalks)

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

zest from 1 lemon

pinch kosher salt

1 heaping pint strawberries, sliced (about 2 cups)

juice from 1/2 lemon

1/2 teaspoon rosewater

In a saucepan combine the rhubarb, water, sugar, lemon zest and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and cook uncovered until rhubarb is soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Stir in strawberries, lemon juice and rosewater. Let cool completely before transferring to jars which can be refrigerated up to a month. The compote can also be canned in a water bath for a taste of June in the middle of winter.

Cherry Almond Clafoutis with Chantilly Cream

June 4, 2015

We have had an unexpectedly early summer here in Portland, with temperatures in the 80s in June which is almost unheard of. I’ve lived here for 12 years now have always remembered the grey gloom hanging on throughout the month. Backyards have come alive these past few weeks with garden parties and the trees are heavy with fruit already!

My family came to visit last weekend and I decided to use a beautiful basket of cherries to make a clafoutis for our Sunday dessert. The combination of juicy red cherries and sweet almonds is one of my all time favorites. This is so easy to put together and bakes up perfectly, almost a foolproof dessert. A simple chantilly cream (fancy way of saying whipped cream with a touch of vanilla) is a special touch that definitely tips it into the dessert category, though without the clafoutis is a lovely breakfast similar to a dutch baby.

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

pinch salt

1 cup milk

4 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

3 tablespoons salted butter, melted + 1 teaspoon butter at room temperature for greasing the dish

2 1/2 cups fresh cherries, washed and pitted

2 tablespoons powdered sugar, for dusting

Preheat the over to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Lightly butter an 8 cup baking dish and set aside. In a blender whir up the flour, sugar, pinch salt, milk, eggs, vanilla and almond extracts until smooth. Slowly add the melted butter and blend to combine. Pour 1/4″ batter into the buttered dish and bake for 10 minutes until just slightly set. Remove from oven and sprinkle the cherries in a single layer over the just set batter. Pour the remaining batter over the cherries and return to the oven, baking for an additional 45-50 minutes or until the clafoutis is puffed and golden brown. Allow to cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving.

Chantilly Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla in a stainless steel or glass bowl. Using a whisk or mixer beat the cream until fluffy. Do not over beat or you will quickly end up with butter! Top the clafoutis with a dollop of fresh cream and enjoy, hopefully at dusk in the garden surrounded by roses and fairy lights.

Blueberry Muffins with Lemon and Lavender

May 21, 2015

You know those things you get an intense craving for that can’t be satisfied until you just give in? A big one for me is a piping hot blueberry muffin, fresh out of the oven and overflowing with ripe berries. Yeah I know you need one now. Lemon + blueberries is one of my favorite pairings and you can never go wrong with a little pinch of lavender (especially when summer is so close you can taste it). These are fresh and summery and bursting with fruit, with a light and airy texture and not too sweet. The first time I made them I got a little greedy and added too many blueberries…honestly I did not think it was possible but there is such a thing as too many. Apparently you need a little muffin to hold those berries together! I scaled it back to one heaping cup and that is perfect for twelve muffins, just be sure to divide them evenly when filling the cups. Summer in a muffin, I tell ya!

Ingredients

Makes 12 Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup canola or melted coconut oil

1 large egg

1/3 cup milk (I used whole but almond works too)

zest of 1 lemon

1 heaping cup blueberries

1 tablespoon dried lavender

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit. Lightly grease twelve muffin cups. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. In a small bowl whisk together the oil, milk and egg and add to the dry ingredients, stirring until just combined. Fold in the lemon zest and blueberries. Divide batter evenly into the prepared muffin cups and sprinkle with lavender. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Slather with butter and enjoy on a sunny patio with friends.

ONE

February 18, 2015

To celebrate Greta turning one the talented ladies of The Weaver House graciously offered to take some keepsake photos for us. I met Hannah and Kelty through mutual friends and the great connector that is the internet. We have since bonded over sleepless nights and the never-ending sweet moments of motherhood. I was so touched when they offered to take photos for us, their work is so lovely and I knew they would capture the quiet moments of our day to day life perfectly.

Thank you so much Hannah and Kelty, I will treasure these beautiful photos always!

It’s My Party

February 9, 2015

Greta turned one a few weeks ago and I am still trying to figure out how that happened so quickly. It seems like she went from baby to toddler almost overnight and as amazing as it is to watch her grow into a little girl I wish I could freeze time and keep her small just a little longer. She is busy exploring the world and starting to show her personality more and more. Currently she is displaying her dislike for peas by throwing them on to the ground, one by one. Just yesterday she loved peas! So it begins.

My mom came up to help celebrate and we made a birthday cake together. Honestly this was probably my second time making a cake from scratch and I was reminded why I don’t make them often. So many rules and steps, I tend to find the baking process tedious rather than relaxing. Four hours later we had a two layer cake covered in sprinkles for the big kids and a tiny Greta sized cake covered with strawberries for the birthday girl.

We had a very small and simple get together of a few close friends as to not overwhelm Greta. She didn’t know what to think of her little cake when we placed it in front of her – she carefully picked all the strawberries off and ate them first! I finally took her hand to show her that she could eat the cake too and then it was game on. She soon dived right in, face first. Classic!