Savory Caramelized Onion "Quiche"

This awesome recipe comes from Diet, Dessert and Dogs. I suppose I never really considered having something so savory tasting for breakfast. I've always thought of cereal or oatmeal with something sugary and/or fruity thrown into the mix. But this onion quiche is kind of a game-changer!

You can store in the fridge for at least a few days, enabling you to simply wake up (as if waking up is really ever that simple, hehe) and heat a slice in the microwave for a quick breakfast/lunch/whatever. Either way, this caramelized onion "quiche" is pretty great stuff. I like to top it with some roasted garlic! 

Recipe at: Diet, Dessert and Dogs

Chewy Nutty Almond cookies

In a previous post I mentioned that I had tried a cookie recipe from the Gluten Free Goddess. These cookies ended up tasting just like caramel! I had to freeze half the batch just to ensure that I wouldn't end up eating them all at once! This tactic didn't really work out because I ended up thawing out the cookies shortly after freezing them... at least I made a legitimate effort, right?
I made some modifications to the GFG recipe - using Honeyville's blanched almond flour instead of Bob's Red Mill. Sometimes I find the taste of sorghum flour a bit too strong so I used a mixture of sorghum flour AND brown rice flour, subbed canola oil for the olive oil, and used a flax "egg".

Mix dry ingredients together in large bowl:

• 1 cup Honeyville blanched almond flour
• 1/2 cup sorghum flour
• 1/2 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca starch
• 1.5 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. sea salt (NOT kosher salt)
• 1.5 tsp. xanthan gum

Mix/"cream" these together in another bowl:

• 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1/2 cup sucanat
• 1/3 cup canola oil (or light olive oil)
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1 Tbsp. agave nectar (or honey, maple syrup, etc.)
• 2 Tbsp. flax meal mixed with 6 Tbsp. water

1. Make flax "egg" and allow to sit for about 10 minutes, or until it starts to get gel-like. Then mix with other liquid ingredients. 
2. Add the dry ingredients mixture to the creamed sugar mix.
3. If too dry, add 1-2 Tbsp. almond milk, 1 Tbsp. at a time.
4. Stir until mix has a dough-like consistency.
5. Stir in, by hand, 1/2 cup chopped almonds (or pecans, hazelnuts, other favorite nut)
6. Cover bowl and chill the dough for 30 minutes in fridge.
7. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 Celsius) and prepare baking sheet. Line sheet with parchment paper.
8. Scoop little balls of dough onto lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart, and press dough balls down just a bit to flatten.
9. Bake in preheated oven for about 18-19 minutes, until cookies are golden. I ended up slightly burning my first batch, and ended up being WAY TOO hard to eat after they cooled. Learn from my mistake ; )
10. Remove cookies with spatula, place on cooling rack. 

Almond Sesame Cabbage Salad

This salad is tangy and nutty, with a slight hint of sweetness! After going gluten-free I missed this salad. I especially missed the crunchy gluten-filled ramen noodles that are commonly sprinkled throughout this salad. The toasted almonds give a nice crunch that helps replace the ramen noodles that I miss so dearly...

Ingredients

• 1 head napa cabbage, shredded
• ½ head of green cabbage, shredded
• ½ cup sliced almonds, toasted
• ¼ cup sesame seeds, toasted
• 5 green onions, chopped
• optional: could also throw in some red cabbage!

Dressing

• ½ cup vegetable oil, I have used both canola and olive oils
• 1/4 to ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
• 2 Tbsp. Tamari
• 3 Tbsp. rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)

Directions

Dressing:

1. Combine all liquid ingredients together in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, let boil for 1 minute (just so the sugar fully dissolves). Remove the pan from heat and let cool.
2. Toast the almonds and sesame seeds (in separate pans). 
3. In a large bowl, combine the cabbage, almonds, and green onions.
4. When ready to serve the salad, add the dressing and mix well. Sprinkle sesame seeds over the top (if using).

Maple Dijon Tofu with Almond Crumble

Alright. So... before I talk about this recipe I need to talk about tofu.
I love tofu, but in the past could never really get any of my recipes to turn out well. I wanted extra firm tofu, and always relied on the Nasoya brand for my recipes. Not to hate on Nasoya tofu, but I do kind of... hate it.

This past year, however, I went out on a limb and tried a new brand that I saw at Whole Foods that I hadn't tried yet. I had always shopped at Meijer (when I lived in Michigan) and since moving to Chicago have been lucky enough to live near a Whole Foods. I tried the West Soy brand tofu and I love it! It's great for holding its own in marinade, because, well... sometimes I forget I have tofu marinating in the fridge... for 4 days.

So now that I've found a brand that I'm fond of, I've been trying out a ton of tofu recipes. Here is one of them, which I found over at A Profound Hatred of Meat.


In all honesty, this is one of THE BEST recipes I have tried for tofu. The almond crumble is slightly salty, rich and has melt-in-your-mouth crumbly texture that goes well with the maple syrup-y sweetness. Add a little kick from some cayenne and zing from the dijon mustard and you're seriously good to go!

Ingredients

• 1 package extra-firm tofu (14 oz. = 397g)
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp. dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. cayenne (or red pepper flakes)
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1. Combine all ingredients (except the oil) and marinate the tofu for at least one hour. I actually left mine for about 3 days in the fridge! I put my tofu (sliced) into a freezer ziploc bag and pour the marinade in. (RESERVE MARINADE!)

2. Heat oil on med-high in a pan and place slices of tofu in. Sear both sides of tofu until golden brown.
Now, Preheat oven to 350F.

3. Make almond crumble:

• 1 cup almonds, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup quick cooking GF oats
• 1/4 cup brown rice flour
• 2 tsp. rosemary
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup

Chopped almonds.

In a food processor, combine all dry ingredients. Pulse until a coarse crumb. Add oil and maple syrup, pulse until mixed well. 

4. After crumble is made, place tofu on lined baking sheet and top with the crumble. Bake at 350F for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Top tofu with the reserved marinade! Ta-dah!