Almond Rhubarb Crumb Cake
I love rhubarb. Maybe I love it because it reminds me of my father who unironically enjoys jam, specifically strawberry rhubarb jam, more than most. I love rhubarb for it’s color and its tartness which compliments anything sweet so effortlessly. I love it because it is so specific to spring, not unlike artichokes (which I also love, perhaps because they remind me of my mother) and cherry blossoms. Just as quickly as rhubarb comes into season, sometime in late April, it leaves, sometime in early June. The fleeting weeks of rhubarb season are marked by subtle hints of change. At a time when things seem so much of the same, it is these things I hold onto most for a sense of hope—the slow retreat of wool sweaters to the back of my closet, pollen on my computer when I work outside, using Citibikes instead of the subway to get around. Time moves and seasons change and sometimes it’s okay to just allow the change to happen around you. To come into and out of seasons in your own life like rhubarb in late spring. This cake came about as a reminder of all these things. It is nostalgic, bright, simple, and delicious and I could eat it every day until peach season. I hope you enjoy.
Ingredients
For the Batter
1 cup rhubarb
1/2 tsp tapioca (or corn) starch
1 tbsp agave nectar
1/3 cup coconut oil
2 eggs
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup gf flour
For the Crumble
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1 tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp almond extract
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Chop rhubarb into 1/2 inch pieces and add to a bowl with starch and agave. Toss until fully combined and set aside.
In a medium bowl, with a hand whisk or an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together coconut oil, sugar and maple syrup. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition (this will add air into your cake). Add in almond extract and beat again until incorporated. Set aside.
In another bowl, combine your dry ingredients. Whisk until combined. Fold into sugar mixture until fully incorporated and no dry parts remain. Add your rhubarb in, gently folding it into the batter. Pour into a 9 inch springform pan, spreading evenly to create a flat layer.
In a small bowl, combine all your ingredients for the crumble. Mix together and sprinkle evenly over the top of your batter. Bake for 25-35 minutes until a toothpick when inserted in the center comes out clean. The cake will be should be very moist and the edges will be a dark golden brown.
Allow to cool completely and dust with powdered sugar. Serve and enjoy or eat it one forkful at a time straight from the pan. Whatever mood you’re feeling.
Blueberry Cornmeal Scones
My favorite thing to do on Saturday mornings in spring is get a cup of coffee and a pastry and sit and watch the world go by. With limited (but growing) gluten free and vegan options, sometimes it’s just easier to make my own. And these gluten free, dairy free, and refined sugar free (save for the frosting!) blueberry cornmeal scones are literally my breakfast pastry dream. Like if blueberry scones and corn muffins had a baby, these are not too sweet, perfectly moist, and super flavorful. They are all your favorite parts of scones and leave behind all your least. I topped mine with dust from dehydrated blueberries and dehydrated lemon wedge for a hint of sour to cut through the sweet of the glaze. Cheers to Saturday morning routines and making them work. I hope you enjoy!
Ingredients
1 heaping cup blueberries (I used frozen from Trader Joes)
Juice from ½ lemon
1 tsp tapioca starch
⅔ cup finely ground cornmeal (I took polenta and pulsed it in a blender until it resembled fine sand)
1-⅓ cup gf flour (I used a mix of coconut flour, almond flour and gf flour but anything will work)
1-½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
2 tbsp coconut sugar
Zest of ½ lemon
½ cup vegan butter
Pinch of salt
1 egg
½ cup buttermilk (½ cup non-dairy milk + 1 tsp apple cider vinegar)
½ tsp vanilla
2 tbsp maple syrup
Frosting:
1 cup confectioners sugar
¼ cup water (more depending on consistency)
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, mix together blueberries, lemon juice, and starch until all the starch is wet. Set aside.
In another mixing bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt and whisk until combined.
Add in butter (if using a stick of butter, cut into 8-10 cubes before adding). With a pastry blender or your hands, cut the butter and fold into flour mix until butter pieces are about the size of pea and all the flour is incorporated. Then, using your hands, form a well in the center.
Pouring into the center of the well, add your egg, buttermilk, maple syrup and vanilla. Using a fork, whisk to combine. Then using your fork to gently pull flour mixture into the well, begin stirring just until all the flour is incorporated. Don’t over mix. Fold the blueberry mixture into the flour mixture.
Dump your dough mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Gently, with your hands, form into a round that is about 1-2 inches high. Cut into 8 equal parts and spread apart on the pan so they are about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 15-25 minutes until golden. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
While the scones are cooling, mix frosting. Evenly spread frosting over scones and garnish with freeze dried blueberries, lemon zest, and dehydrated lemon wedges. Enjoy!
Orange Cardamom Polenta Cake
My roommates and I started calling this cake the “anytime cake” when we realized that its sublet sweetness and maleable flavor made it perfectly acceptable to eat at any time of the day. Served with a cup of coffee in the morning or with poached pears and ice cream for dessert, it became not only anytime cake, by everytime cake, as we found ourselves craving it at all hours of the day, sneaking back into the kitchen from our rooms on work from home days for bites before lunch or for a mid-day snack. This cake is easy to make and so good, you are going to want to eat it all in one sitting.
Ingredients:
1/3 cup almond flour
2/3 cup gluten-free flour
1/2cup finely ground yellow cornmeal
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2teaspoon fine salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup) vegan butter softened (I use @earthbalance soy-free sticks)
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 orange, zested
4 tbsp orange juice
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugars. Add eggs, 2 at a time, mixing well after each addition until the mixture is smooth.
4. Add vanilla, orange juice, and orange zest. Mix until just combined.
5. Add dry ingredients to butter sugar mixture. Mix until just combined. Add olive oil and mix again until well combined.
6. Spread evenly in a greased springform pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick, when inserted, comes out clean.
7. Allow to cool completely. Sprinkle with powdered sugar or serve with ice cream. Perfect for dessert or served with coffee.
Creamy Pesto Baked Risotto With Sea Scallops
This recipe is the comings together of many different spheres of influence in my life. For one, the creamy vegan pesto was largely the necessary product of my mother’s overgrown basil plant in our backyard. Where basil mojitos tend to be a summer drink of choice, one can only drink so many before becoming positively drunk. Alternatively, last fall, I had dinner at Lola Taverna, a Mediterranean restaurant in Lower Manhattan with fabulous cocktails and even better food. I ordered the most delicious creamy, pesto-ey orzo with shrimp. Since then, in which time I consulted a nutritionist who confirmed that was both lactose and gluten intolerant, I have thought about that meal, among others, and how I wish I could have it again. Minus the fairy lights and the pre-warm ambiance, this homemade gluten-free and dairy-free alternative makes up for what was lost. Ultimately, this recipe was created out of the persistent belief that food should only exist for its multifaceted means of making oneself feel good. This recipe is bright, flavorful, super easy, and meant to be shared.
Risotto
Serves: 4-6
3 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 onion diced
1-1/2 cups arborio rice
4 cups veggie stock + 1 cup veggie stock
1/2 cup dry white wine (pinot grigio or sav blanc is best)
Pesto:
1 cup cashes (about 160 grams)
1 heaping cup basil
4 tbsp olive oil (avocado oil would also work)
1/4 cup water
2 cloves garlic
Juice from 1 lemon
Zest from 1 lemon
2 tsp salt (more for taste)
Black pepper, to taste
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Directions:
To begin, preheat oven to 325 degrees. Additionally, boil water and pour over cashews until they are covered. Allow cashews to sit.
In an oven-proof dutch oven or cast iron pan (that fits with a lid), heat olive oil and garlic over medium heat. Once the garlic starts to sizzle, add in onions and cook until they are soft and translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
Once the onions are soft, add in rice and allow to toast for 1-2 minutes with the heat still on medium, stirring constantly to avoid burning. The rice will take on a slightly darker color but try to avoid browning.
After a couple of minutes, turn the heat off and add initial 2 (or 4) cups of veggie stock. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, until almost all of the liquid has dissolved.
While the rice bakes, make your pesto. Strain cashews and add to a blender (or food processor). Add basil, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, water, salt, pepper, and red chili flakes. Blend on high until smooth. Set aside.
Once the rice has baked, remove from oven and uncover. Add additional cup of veggie stock and white wine and stir until incorporated.
Fold in the pesto, using a spatula to scape the edges of the blender. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
Sea Scallops*
I used to be terrified of cooking scallops mostly because Gordon Ramsey on Master Chef made them seem like the easiest thing in the world to get wrong. But, having exhausted all of the different ways to eat salmon, I mustered up the courage to try. And it turns out, just as easy as they might be to get wrong, scallops are exceptionally easy to get right. One serving is about 4-5 large scallops—I usually go to the market day of to ensure freshness and prepare them in the following way. This recipe is for one serving of scallops and can be adjusted easily for crowds or dinner parties. (*Always SEA scallops, never bay scallops, personal preference but also I think they are just better.)
Directions:
In a medium pan over medium heat, add about 1 tbsp olive oil (per serving). Add one clove of garlic and allow to cook until garlic is lightly golden.
Salt and pepper your scallops generously on both sides. Once the garlic has some color, add your scallops to the pan. Cook for two minutes, without disturbing or moving in the pan.
After 2 minutes, gently flip your scallops to the other side (in the order you placed them in the pan). Add 1 tbsp of dry white wine (same from the risotto) and the juice from 1/4 lemon. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes.
Once scallops are cooked, remove from heat and serve immediately over risotto, drizzling the wine/lemon/oil/garlic mixture over the dish. Garnish with fresh lemon zest or basil.
For the Pesto:
1/2 cup cashes (about 160 grams)
1/2 heaping cup basil
2 tbsp olive oil (avocado oil would also work)
1/4 cup water
1 cloves garlic
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Zest from 1/2 lemon
1 tsp salt (more for taste)
Black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Easy One Bowl Morning Glory Bread
Weren’t morning glory muffins already healthy? Not quite. A lot of our favorite breakfast treats present as healthy when they are really made of copious amounts of sugar and refined grains. This recipe took a classic, morning glory muffins, which present as a healthy breakfast and turned them into an easier and healthier take on the breakfast classic. Vegan and gluten-free, super moist and delicious, and comes together in only a single bowl under 15 minutes. You will never want to go back to your ways!
Ingredients
1/2 cup brown sugar (sub coconut sugar if vegan)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil melted
1/2 unsweetened apple sauce
1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats
1 cup gluten-free flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cloves
1 cup grated carrots
1/2 cup shredded apples
Optional: (but highly recommended!!)
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat oven to 350º. Prepare a loaf pan with vegan nonstick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, combine sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, and applesauce. Whisk with a fork to combine.
Add dry ingredients: rolled oats, gluten-free flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Fold into wet ingredients until combined.
Fold in shredded carrots, shredded apples, raisins, coconut, and walnuts.
Bake for 40-45 minutes. Let cool completely.
Top with coconut or greek yogurt and enjoy!