Lemon Spelt Bread

 

The following bread recipe comes from Green Kitchen Stories. It was really great dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I made the dough in the bread maker, and then baked it in the oven. I did alter the baking instructions for ease, and it turned out just as well. So here is recipe  number 5 for recipe week:

Lemon Spelt Bread (Adapted from this recipe from Green Kitchen Stories which was adapted from a recipe by danish chef Oscar Umahro)

Makes 1 large loaf

1/2  C spelt flakes
1 medium sized lemon ( juice and zest)
1.5 C cold water
0.5 Tbsp salt
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1.5 Tbsp olive oil
3.5 C spelt flour

1. Mix the spelt flakes with lemon zest and juice and let sit for 15 minutes
2. Mix together the water, salt, yeast, and olive oil in a large bowl. 
3. Gradually incorporate the flour and spelt flake mixture. 
4. Knead for 5 minutes. It should be elastic and slightly moist
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
6. Form the dough into a long thin shape and put in the baking sheet and cover with a clean tea towel. 
7. Let rise until twice its size ( about 2 hours) in a warm location. 
8. Preheat oven to 425F. 
9. Bake for 25-30 minutes 

Quinoa Falafels

Recipe number 4 for Recipe Week comes directly from my newest cookbook: Quinoa Revolution by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming. I loved their last cookbook so much that I couldn't resist getting this one. I like how they've included the nutritional information with the recipes this time, and the desserts on average have less sugar. So far I've made 4 recipes, and I would make three of them again. So without futher ado:

Quinoa Falafels
taken from Quinoa Revolution, Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming 2012.


1 C water
1/2 C quinoa
1 1/2 C cooked chickpeas ( or one 14 oz can drained and rinsed)
1/2 C chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp minced garlic
1 large egg
3 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Cook the quinoa with the water according to package directions. Let sit and fluff with a fork. 
3. Combine the chickpeas, parsley and garlic in a food processor until the chickpeas are finely chopped but not a paste. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix only until just combined. 
4. Scoop out the mixture by the Tablespoon onto prepared baking sheet, leaving an inch between each.  Press down on each to make a small patty.
5. Bake the falafels for 10 minutes on each side. Let cool for 5 minutes.
6. Enjoy on a salad or in a pita with vegetables and yogurt.
7. I froze half of the falafels on a cookie sheet, and then transfered them to a ziploc bag, so that I could take them out of the freezer individually when I wanted them.

Roasted Eggplant and Hummus Pizza

Recipe three for Recipe week. This is a recipe I'm particularly proud of because I feel like its actually mine. The crust is from Crazy Plates, and I've been using it as my basic pizza crust for years. It's one of the few recipes that I know off the top of my head. I make it by hand sometimes, but I happened to throw the ingredients in the bread maker on the dough setting this time, and it was all set to go when it beeped. I've also included the pictures of the pizza that Louis enjoyed that night - Italian sausage and red pepper. 

Roasted Eggplant and Hummus Pizza

1/4 - 1/2 C of your favorite hummus

2 mini eggplants

1/4 C fresh oregano finely chopped

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 pint of baby bella mushrooms

1 small onion, sliced

1/2 recipe of whole grain pizza crust ( which follows)

1/2 C shredded mozarella

1/3 C Crumbled feta cheese

fresh parsley

salt

pepper

extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 500F

2. Slice the eggplants lengthwise into quarters, then slice into 1/2 inch slices

3. Slice the mushrooms

4. Put eggplant, mushrooms, and sliced onions in baking dish and drizzle with oil  and balsamic vinegar and toss with oregano until evenly coated

5. Roast for 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and turn oven down to 450F

6. Roll out the pizza crust and put it on a pizza sheet ( you could also use a pizza stone here). 

7. Spread the hummus over the surface and cover with the roasted vegetables

8. Sprinkle the mozarella and feta evenly on top

9. Bake for 14-15 minutes. Remove from oven and garnish with fresh parsley and drizzle with olive oil. 

10. Enjoy with a fresh green salad. 

Whole grain pizza crust ( makes 2 pizzas) taken from  Crazy Plates "No Business like Dough Business" 1999 Janet and Greta Podleski

2 1/4 tsp yeast

1 Tbsp honey

1 Cup warm water (105 to 115F)

1.5 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

2.5 C flour ( I use 1 cup whole wheat and 1.5 C whole white)

Directions by hand:

1. Put yeast in a large bowl

2. Mix honey with warm-hot tap water and pour over yeast. Let sit until foamy in a warm area ( about 10 minutes)

3. Stir in olive oil and salt. 

4. Gradually add in flours ( which are already mixed together) and incorporate with hands. The dough should start to come away from the sides of the bowl, but still be pliable. There may be some left over flour which you can use for flouring the work surface. 

5. Knead dough on lightly floured surface for 10 minutes until dough is a nice smooth ball. 

6. Lightly coat the ball with a small amount of oil and put in a bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and place in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour. I heat the oven to 150F while I'm kneading the dough, then turn it off and put the dough in the oven. 

7. Remove the dough from the oven and roll out on a floured surface. I've also taken up throwing the dough which is very fun ( and sometimes messy). Lightly coat the pizza pan with oil before placing dough on the pan. 

8. Cover with desired ingredients and bake for about 14 minutes at 450F.