Chocolate Chip Cookies

Well, I promised recipes and here I go! I tried out this gluten-free, vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe from Elana's Pantry . The base recipe was great, but I still had to adapt it to my low carb/sugar guidelines so here is the original recipe and how I changed it.

Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten Free, Vegan) *Courtesy of Elana at elanaspantry.com

•2 1/2 cups Blanched Almond Flour
•1/2 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt
•1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•1/2 cup grapeseed oil
•1 tablespoon vanilla extract
•1/2 cup agave nectar
•1 cup dark chocolate 73%
1.Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2.Stir together wet ingredients in a smaller bowl.
3.Mix wet ingredients into dry.
4.Form 1/2 inch balls and press onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
5.Bake at 350 degrees for 7-10 minutes.
6.Cool and serve.
For additional almond flour recipes, go to elanaspantry.com

So, if you aren't concerned about the super high fructose in agave nectar this would be great, but since I am not ok with that kind of sugar if I can help it... here is what I did:

1. These are VERY oily in the dough state so don't freak out when you make them :) I added about 2 Tbsp - 1/4 cup more almond flour.
2. I used kosher salt b/c that's what I have
3. I didn't have gapeseed oil, so I substituted 1/2 corn oil and 1/2 olive oil
4. Instead of the agave nectar, I used 10 packets of purevia (stevia type) sweetener + 1/2 of a ripe banana that I had frozen and then thawed and mashed.
5. My grocery store didn't have 70% cocoa chips so I used Ghirardelli 60% (close enough right?)
6. I added the sweetener and banana into the wet ingredients and "beat" them together with a fork.
7. I baked the 1st batch on 350 for 9 min. and the second on 325 for 11 min. I don't think it matters which you do... they both came out slightly gooey in the middle (but very yummy!)

So, how did they turn out, you may ask? GREAT!!! The oiliness (is that a word?) reduces slightly when they are cooking, I think the excess oil in the dough helps them to keep from drying out and crumbling during the baking process. Anyway, you can definitely taste the banana that I used in place of the agave nectar, but I think it is a yummy, delicate addition. If you didn't want the banana taste, you could use maybe applesauce or a pear. (Here I go on another rabbit trail so bare with me... I read somewhere else that a lady used 2.5tsp stevia blend + 1/4 pear for every 1/4 cup agave nectar that a recipe called for. So, that's why I tried banana - its what I had.) The texture is chewy and substantive b/c of the almond flour.

Next time I make them (and believe me, there WILL be a next time!) I will maybe try the purevia sweetener by itself and also start with about 1/2 the oil and see what the texture is. These turned out great, but the amount of oil is just too much. Once I fix that, well, it will be pure yumminess!

These aren't low fat by any stretch of the imagination, but since that's not what I am tracking all the ingredients listed above are legal :) I can't tell you how much I am enjoying my new way of eating. I have been feeling great, losing weight and not sacrificing a thing!

Almond Milk Ice Cream

Hello! I haven't been blogging much this week b/c I have been really busy with work... Anyway, I had read a recipe for almond milk ice cream and I thought I would give it a few modifications and see how they worked. The result... I'd have to say pretty darn good.

Here's what you need:

2-3/4 to 3 Cups almond milk
1/4 cups sugar or 5 packets stevia type sweetener
3/4 - 1 tsp vanilla (depending on preference)
1/2 tsp guar gum
TINY pinch salt

Heat the milk, sugar/stevia, vanilla and salt in a sauce pan over med/low heat until sugar is dissolved. Let cool in the refrigerator for several hours until cold. sprinkle in the guar gum and shake really well to combine (you don't want any clumps ick!) Oh, I forgot to mention that I have a Cuisinart ice cream maker that I used... I'm sure if you know how to make ice cream w/o one it would work just fine too. Anyway, take the bowl of the ice cream maker out of the freezer and turn on your machine. Pour in the mixture and let er rip! There you have it, low carb, vegan vanilla ice cream :)

Now, here is what I am going to do next time I make it: I am going to make my almond milk with about half as much water so that it will be extra thick and creamy, and I am also going to whip up some vegan/gluten-free chocolate chip cookie dough and freeze it and add it into the ice cream maker toward the very end of the freezing process... Oh my goodness! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Also, a note about the guar gum... If you make the ice cream w/o it it will freeze into a solid rock in the freezer. The guar gum keeps it soft and pliable so it stays yummy.

I am ready to start posting something interesting again :)

I got my almond four today! I'm sure this isn't all that exciting to some of you, but for me... well, lets just say that I have been checking the tracking info daily in anticipation of its delivery :) I am so excited to try making almond bread, pasta and chocolate chip cookies! (yes, I said cookies, I saw a great recipe for vegan ones that look absolutely delicious!) I am also going to make some butternut squash ravioli (yummy). Oh, also going to be on the menu when I get my guar gum and the ener-g egg replacer is almond ice cream! Who said eating healthy can't be wonderful? Stay tuned for some great recipes!

My personal update

Well, here it is... So this morning I weighed myself and I am down to 115.4 (woohoo!), but I also measured myself and I can't seem to find where I lost the weight. My clothes fit better, I think my stomach looks flatter, but that dang measuring tape still says that I have a 32" stomach, a 26.5" inch waist and after that I didn't even bother to look at my thighs... It's not that I am disappointed, I am thrilled that the scale has gone down, but my goal has been to lose inches more than pounds. Maybe it has to do with how I am working out and the muscle is replacing fat??? I really don't know. But, like I said, I definitely feel like my clothes fit looser, so its coming off somewhere :) Maybe its just coming off in really small increments all over so I didn't really notice it on the measuring tape. So, there you have it, that's where I am at.

The New Look!

Hey everyone... I hope you like the new look :) If for some reason you find it hard to read, please let me know and I will try to fix it ~ Thanks for reading!

This is getting good!

Ok, so I posted about making the almond milk yesterday, but I didn't mention that you should/could save the pulp that is left over. When I made the milk, I saved the almond 'mill' that was left over and just stuck it in the freezer until I could figure out what to do with it. Well, my chance came sooner than I expected... When I was trying to be creative and find something new for my non-vegan daughter, Jadyn, it popped into my head that she LOVES chicken nuggets (specifically, McDonald's chicken nuggets) so... I beat an egg with some almond milk and a tiny bit of vinegar (similar to buttermilk) and then I tenderized a chicken breast, cut it into 'nuggets', coated it in the egg mixture, coated it in the left over almond mill, and deep fried it in olive oil. Now, I was totally winging this and taking that into consideration, it turned out really good! I did forget to season the almond crumbs, so that would be a must, but other than that I think it was a great use of the left overs. Who'd a thought... low carb, battered, deep-fried chicken? Yum! I'll have to try it again when I get the almond flour I ordered to see if the finer ground texture is better.

Also, since I was going to be sharing different things that we were eating, last night we had seasoned brown rice, Santa Fe sweet potato fries ( http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2008/08/sweet-potato-shoestrings-fries-that-is.html ), and sauteed yellow summer squash. I winged the seasoned brown rice and it turned out pretty great :) so i was happy about that. Just in case you were wondering... I put 1-1/2 cups brown rice, 3 cups water, and a dash of each: basil, thyme, and fresh ground black pepper. I also added a tiny tiny pinch of cinnamon :) and I had to season it pretty generously with salt. I let it all cook like usual and when all the water was absorbed, I drizzled a tiny bit of olive oil so that it wouldn't clump up.

Yoga

First off, ALMOND MILK IS YUMMY! LOL, so I made my first batch of almond milk last night and it turned out really well. Here is the recipe:
I blanched 2/3 cup of raw almonds in boiling water for 3 minutes, drained and let them cool for about a minute or two. Then I removed the skin (comes off super easy) and placed the almonds in some water in the fridge for about three hours to soak. I then rinsed them and added about 1.5 qts of cold water and 1 packet of stevia (if you want it sweeter ..see note below*). Blended until smooth and strained the milk with a flour sack (or whatever those really thin embroidered cloths are). Store in refrigerator for about 5 days. I kind of combined different methods to make this and the link below doesn't mention soaking the almonds. However, some sites didn't remove the skin and they say to soak them for at least six hours. Take your pick :) (Recipe revised slightly from another website) http://www.veganreader.com/2009/09/12/almond-milk-recipe-the-creamiest-of-them-all/

Now then, on to yoga... I did the 10 Minute Solutions: Yoga workout today and I really enjoyed it:) I didn't do all five, just the first three and I definitely felt it. For those of you who haven't tried yoga, don't knock it til you try it! I am getting into pretty good cardiovascular shape but I need the strength training to get in better muscular shape and I think this may be something that I add into my workout about twice a week. I should also note that I had my three yr. old daughter trying to climb on and under me while doing downward dog so I am not sure if that hurt or helped my workout :)

*Note: Stevia is an extract of the stevia plant and it does not have the same affect on blood sugar that other sweeteners do. I have not done a whole lot of research on it, but what I have found so far is that it is natural an not created chemically in a lab somewhere. I will be doing more research to find out for sure, but until I do, I will only use it if it is absolutely necessary.