Granola Girl

There are exactly 19 days until my husband walks across that stage, diploma in hand, and our future is yet undetermined. Will we return to our beloved Southern California, will we stay in St. Louis, or will we end up somewhere entirely different? These questions are plaguing our minds while my husband, Dan, is saturating his brain with information to write papers and take finals. My gut tells me we belong in our native land where the avocado trees grow and the waves crash on the sand. I miss visiting the Redwood forests in Santa Cruz, sitting on the beach feeling the off shore breeze, gazing at the ever present mountain ranges. But St. Louis has been our home for the last 3 years and we have made deep friendships that will be difficult to leave. We are all homesick, and sick to leave home.

I mentioned in my last post that when I am stressed I bake. Well, it is a stressful time and my body keeps telling me, "I think you should treat yourself to some granola". I think my body is right! Being a California girl granola is part of my being. I recently posted on my facebook page that stress eating on a gluten-free/sugar-free diet is not very satisfying, but I think this granola recipe begs to differ.

Why sugar free? Well, it has come to my attention over the past year and a half of being "sugar"-free that my body reacts to cane sugar as if I have an allergy. After all, it is technically a grass, and I have terrible hay fever. My eyes immediately get itchy, my nose gets runny, I get sleepy. In a day or two it developes into a cold. In my opinion it is not worth having a cookie that will do that much damage. I also have an aversion to eating anything synthetic or chemically altered, so that disqualifies most of the sugar subtitues that are in products labelled "sugar-free". Stevia in limited doses is fine, but long term it starts to alter my hormone levels and do crazy things! Add on top of that a corn allergy, and even though I would not be eager to ingest corn syrup in any form, my body clearly rejects that possibility as well. But through all these challenges I actually feel like one of the lucky ones...forced into healthy, or slightly more healthy eating.

All I can say is AMEN for Agave and Coconut Palm Sugar. I still have to keep my intake of sweets (even fruits) at bay, but it means that I don't have to give up culinary goodness altogether. I just have to keep my special products on hand, put in a little elbow grease and my cravings are satisfied. Almost everything must be made from scratch in my kitchen, but that does not mean it has to be difficult or time consuming. In fact, I just started munching on my treat that was placed in the oven only 30 minutes ago. It's warm, crispy and slightly sweet. I hope you will enjoy it as much as my family and me!

This recipe was adapted from one of my favorite chefs...Alton Brown...Goog Eats!

Ingredients

3 cups gluten-free rolled oats (I use Trader Joe's, but Bob's Red Mill works also)

1 cup chopped almonds

1 cup gluten free Brown Rice Crisp cereal (I use Erewhon)

3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut, optional (this has cane sugar in it)

1/4 cup coconut palm sugar (Sweet Tree brand)...or you could use brown sugar if you don't need to be sugar free

1/4 cup Agave syrup...or you could use real maple syrup...not the fake stuff!

1/4 cup coconut oil...you could use Canola if you choose

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup raisins or other dried fruit, optional...they are very high in fruit sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, cereal, coconut and palm sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine agave syrup, oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto a sheet pan covered with parchment paper. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to achieve an even color.

Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add raisins or dried fruit if desired and mix until evenly distributed.

And Now the End is Near

Well, it has been a busy final year of seminary with only a few weeks remaining. Life is currently full of chaos as all graduates and their families are finalizing papers, studying for finals, looking for jobs, packing, looking for new places to live, planning graduation parties and adjusting to the fact that some of the deepest friendships will soon be scattered across the globe. It is a bittersweet time, and not exactly the time in which I would have anticipated posting a new blog. But, it is my outlet, an emotional release to transform all these thoughts and feelings into words. What else do I do when I am stressed? I bake! Not exactly agreeable to the waistline, but definately satisfying to the belly and to the suppressed creative wayfarer living inside my head.

Us Gluten-free'ers don't normally get an opportunity to really "enjoy" a warm, tender, tantillizing piece of bread. It is almost an oxymoron to describe gluten-free bread as either soft or delicious, but my friends, we have hit the jackpot...the Motherload of all bread recipes! It is simple, quick and versatile. You can use it as a side dish for dipping in olive oil, making savory sandwiches, or turn it into a delicious Italian style dinner roll. Welcome to the world of Gluten-free Rosemary Focaccia!

A few tips before you start...

Always be sure to use super-fine grind brown rice flour, like Bob's Red Mill Brown Rice Flour. It doesn't say super-fine on the label, but you will know it on your tastebuds if you use something else. Can you say "sandpaper"?

Always have your eggs at room temperature.

Always measure the temperature of your liquid with a thermometer.

Tightly wrap leftovers in plastic wrap, then seal in a ziplock bag. You can store them for up to 2 weeks in the freezer, but it will dry out and get crumbly very quickly. It is best just to eat it all right away, and trust me, that should not be a problem!

Let the magic happen!


Rosemary Foccacia

1 TBs cornmeal (optional)

1 cup super-fine brown rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca flour
2 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1 1/2 teaspoons gluten-free instant dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon gluten-free onion powder (McCormick)
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped

3 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 large clove garlic, minced
3/4 cup warm water (110 degrees)

Topping (optional, but DELICIOUS!)
1/4 tsp salt
1 sprig fresh Rosemary, chopped
Red onion, thinly sliced
Cooked, crumbled bacon (extra delicious)

1. Grease a 9 inch square cake pan. Sprinkle with cornmeal if desired.


2. Combine flours, sugar, xanthan gum, yeast, onion powder, salt, and rosemary in a small mixer bowl.


3. In a seperate bowl whisk eggs, olive oil, vinegar and garlic together.


4. Add to warmed water, and with mixer in medium immediatly add to dry ingredients.


5. Once combined, scape down bowl and beaters.


6. Beat dough with mixer for 2 minutes, using a spatula to keep stirring down the dough on the mixer beaters. The dough will be soft and sticky.


7. Transfer dough to baking pan. It is helpful to smooth it down with slightly wet hands.


8. Add toppings if desired.


9. Cover with aluminum foil and let rise in warm place for 30 minutes.


10. Preheat oven to 400 degrees while dough is rising.


11. Bake for 15 - 17 minutes. Top will be golden brown.


12. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before gobbling it up!

*If making dinner rolls, use a muffin pan, and adjust baking time.