Bright Beginnings: Gf/Sf Blueberry Muffins

Yum a dum dum. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and these blueberry muffins are a grainfree, easy-peasey way to feed a crowd. Thanks to Guilty Kitchen!

Sometimes gf/sf cooking can be an exercise in abstraction, as baked goods can easily become an interpretation of the intended treat rather than a version of it. These muffins, however, are the real deal and  I was impressed by how very recognizably blueberry muffiny they tasted.  I admit that coconut flour is a huge moisture suck, but the resulting teensy lack of moisture was not enough to stop me from eating three...a day.

When I was in seventh grade, I spent a few weeks learning html so I could build an awesome website on Geocities. I'm dusting off the ol' coding cap to upgrade Cooking Up Kefi--so bear with me as I figure out how to tweak the new template.

Gf/Sf Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients

• 3/4 c coconut flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp + pinch baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• dash nutmeg
• 6 eggs
• 1/3 c maple syrup
• 1/3 c Greek yogurt (FIBYDY)
• 1 TBSP vanilla extract
• 1/3 c + 3 TBSP coconut oil, melted
• 12 oz frozen blueberries (I used 10 oz and think the extra berries would have helped the moisture issue)

Assembly

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with paper or lightly grease each muffin hole.

2. Combine dry ingredients.

3. Add wet ingredients to dry mixture and stir until lumps are out--it won't be perfectly smooth, but it'll do.

4. Spoon into muffin tins until each is nearly full, as these guys don't rise too too much. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until you can stick a fork in them and it comes out clean.

5. Let cool completely before gobbling up.

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A Few of My (New) Favorite Things

Meanwhile, back in the real world... vacations, apparently, end and every day does not include sight seeing, the beach, Greek lessons, and frappe.  Needless to say, JetSet Kef and I had a great time, inspiration for future culinary creations was a plenty, and I am none too pleased to be back in the land of never-ending job applications.

The saving grace is that there are two new delicious things dictating my diet these days.  

The first is frozen blueberries.  Oh my sweet Lord Jesus THIS is what people mean when they say "nature's candy."  I can't believe the rest of the world knew about these pebbles of frozen heaven and I didn't...can't be long until I have to change my blogger profile picture to this:

The second is a kale-chickpea-squash salad. This was the treat waiting for me as soon as I got off the plane...and what I made as an officialy vacay-detox lunch the next day... and what I made for dinner while babysitting last night...it's getting a lot of mileage.  Originally a Serious Eats creation with some heat, my dear friend PortuKef evolved the recipe with Japanese flavors and sesame oil, and then I morphed it into my preferred palate with curry powder--proving that chickpeas ain't no one trick pony. The key to this chameleon salad? Be patient enough to let the chickpeas caramelize, which really brings out their buttery deliciousness.

Kale-Chickpea-Squash Salad

Ingredients

• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 onion, diced
• Olive oil
• 1 TBS curry powder/cumin/coriander/chili/or any deep-flavored spice you prefer 
• 1/2 bunch of kale, washed and shredded off the center stem
• 1 med zucchini/any other summer squash, chopped
• Half lemon, for juicing

Assembly 
1. Heat 2-3 TBS olive oil and your choice of spice over med-high heat for about a minute.  Add chickpeas, stir, and saute until chickpeas start to soften and brown, about 5-7 minutes.
2. Add onions and stir into chickpeas and spice and allow mixture to caramelize. You may need to add more olive oil.  The onions will brown, and you'll know you're on the right track when the whole thing starts to smell a little sweet.  Stir more frequently here to avoid getting chickpeas stuck to the bottom of your pan. This will take another 7 minutes...maybe more, maybe less. You aren't going to screw anything up by letting it cook longer.
3. Throw in the shredded kale, stir it about and let it wilt for a minute or two. I do not like raw kale, so I keep it in for the longer side.
4. Remove everything from the pan, but don't wash it. 
5. Throw the zucchini into the pan and let cook through, maybe 5 minutes. I add a bit more olive oil and spice--use your judgement.
6. Combine the chickpea mixture with the squash. Serve warm or cold. Immediately before serving, squeeze lemon juice to taste.
 

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Blueberry-Banana Muffins

Usually, my food tastes better than it looks (and CERTAINLY better than I photograph it for this blog!).  I whipped up a batch of blueberry muffins last night and was pleasantly surprised to find that for once, they looked as good as store-bought ones do.  Now-- the pictures still don't do them justice, but that's just the way it goes sometimes.

In other news, I'm about to graduate from nursing school, BabyKef has TWO Masters' degrees, and I'm getting new orthotics today which means that my month-long running hiatus is OVER. If all THAT isn't reason to praise the Lord, I don't know what is.

Thanks to everyone who helped me study, listened to me whine, and didn't take it personally when I ignored their calls/emails/texts--these juicy muffins are for you!

Ingredients

• 4 c flour
• 2 c sugar
• 5 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 ripe banana, mashed
  
• 1 cup lowfat buttermilk
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil (I used canola)
• 3 tsp vanilla
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon
  
• 2 cups (12 oz.) fresh ripe blueberries

Assembly 
1. Preheat the oven to 400. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
2. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and banana together.  Add buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and cinnamon.
3. Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and mix well with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.  When fully combined, add blueberries.  Batter will be very thick.
4. Fill muffin tins about 3/4 of the way.  Cook for 20-22 minutes, or until you can insert a fork into center and it comes out clean.

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Gratuitous Gratitude #1: The Calculus of Cooking

One day in college, I decided to throw a dinner party.  I didn't know how to cook, really, but having mastered literacy by the second grade, I felt confident I could at least follow a recipe.  So I picked out several ambitious recipes with about 100 ingredients each, and muddled my way through, to pretty spectacular results (if I do say so myself).  The problem came the next time I offered to make dinner for people: this time, I had deluded myself into thinking I knew how to cook and picked out new, equally-ambitious recipes with even more ingredients. The result was, uh, less-than spectacular.

This persisted for the next four years and led to many nights of apologizing ("I can't imagine what went wrong with the duck confit, but my isn't this mango gallete delicious?"), until one day it occurred to me that I had started with calculus before I knew how to multiply.  So I went back to some more basic things and experimented with types of food I wanted to learn how to cook.

So now I present to you: three recipes I am grateful for.   These are three of the easiest, most basic, most instructive recipes I know.  The Bluberry Focacia is a GREAT first-bread to make and you'll learn a lot about how a dough is supposed to look/rise because you can't mess it up; the smokey marinara sauce can be paired with ANYTHING and make it better, and the nutella bread pudding (yes... you read that right) is just the best thing you will ever put in your mouth, period.  Plus, they're so good everyone will be very impressed and think you are a domestic-mother-effing goddess, as some of us are known around these parts. And that's something to be grateful for.

Also- I don't know how to make a "jump"--but one day I will, so sorry if these multi-recipe posts give your fingers carpal tunnel from scrolling down.

The easiest bread I've ever made: Blueberry Focacia
I got this from Oprah Magazine and it has been a big hit everywhere. DO NOT BE INTIMIDATED.

• 1 package (1/4 oz) acive dry yeast (you can get this in the baking section of most grocery stores)
• 2 1/4 c warm water
• 6 c all-purpose flour
• 1 c brown sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 lg egg
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp (seriously room temp-- makes everything easier)
• 5-6 c blueberries (at this time of year, you might be able to get away with 1/2 fresh, 1/2 frozen--but try it once with fresh so you can see what it should be like!)
• Oven preheated to 400F
   

1. In small bowl, mix yeast and water together and set aside for about
5 minutes (will get a little foamy).  In a large bowl (on standing
mixer if you have one-- if not, no biggie), combine flour, HALF cup of
brown sugar (save the rest for later), salt, and cinnamon. Stir the
egg into yeast, then pour wet mixture into dry mixture and mix on low
speed (or combine very quickly if you don't have standing mixture).
Add butter, mix until combine. Knead dough until smooth and pliable
but still relatively wet-- about 5 minutes.
2. Grease large bowl with oil or Pam. Put dough in bowl and cover w
plastic wrap (again-- has to be plastic, not tin foil, or it won't
rise).  Let rise for about an hour in a warm place- dough will double.
3. Grease two baking sheets. Break the dough into two halves and place
one half on each baking sheet. Stretch out slightly until dough is
1-inch thick and oval-shaped. Cover with greased plastic wrap for
another 45-60 min.
4. With greased fingers, "dimple" surface of each loaf. Sprinkle each
loaf with half your berries and 1/4 c brown sugar.  Bake until golden
brown- about 30-35 min.

The most versatile sauce I've ever made: Smokey Marinara
Many thanks to the people at myrecipes.com for bringing me this incredible sauce (and, incidentally, the inspiration for butternut squash lasagne)!

• 1 tablespoon olive oil 
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar (this is what makes it so delicious
• 1/8 teaspoon salt 
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper 
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes, undrained (I cannot say enough how much it matters that they are fire-roasted--the flavor differential is incredible)
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained (in late summer, I substitute with fresh heirloom tomatoes and it makes it even better)

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add garlic, basil, parsley, and oregano; sauté 1 minute, stirring frequently.
3. Stir in balsamic vinegar and remaining ingredients. Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
 

The best dessert I've ever made: Nutella Bread Pudding

Do I even need to preface this? I found this recipe while in South Africa, and since then it has tantalized palates from five countries on four continents. Be careful- it is truly dangerous!

Ingredients
•    6 croissants for a small batch, 12 for a large
•    as much Nutella as you dare (I use about 5/6 a jar for a large batch)
•    2 eggs
•    1 cup cream
•    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•    1/2 cup sugar




1.    Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2.    Slice each croissant in half lengthwise, then slather one side with Nutella. Place the croissants nutella-side-up in an ungreased glass baking pan until you get to the top layer, where I like to do nutella-side-down.  Try and arrange them as equally as possible with as few gaps as possible. This does not have to be pretty!
4.    Whisk/beat Teggs, cream, vanilla extract, and sugar to a medium bowl and until combined.  On good days, I get this to a custard-consistency, but it works even if it doesn't quite make it there.
5.    Pour the custard over the croissant-nutella-goodness until it is covered. You may need to manipulate this by pushing down on some of the croissant pieces--that is fine.
6.   Let sit at room temp for at least 30 minutes--if you have longer, let it sit for about 90 minutes.
7.  Bake for 30-45 minutes. That is a huge range, I know-- but this is an oven-sensitive recipe, so check it a few times.  You want a golden brown top and a "set" pudding-- so basically it should look like there's no more liquid in the mixture.

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