Creamy Cauliflower Dressing

This is delicious. You would never guess it is dairy free (it is so rich and creamy). I love the versatility of cauliflower! Add this whole food dressing to your daily raw salads :).

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups chopped cauliflower
1 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice (1 lemon)
1-2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon agave nectar (or honey)
1 tablespoon prepared brown mustard (I am not a fan of mustard so I used about a teaspoon)
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
fresh ground black pepper (to taste)
1 tablespoon dried basil or dill OR 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or basil

Roast garlic with oil, or dry, on low in a small frying pan for 5 minutes or until garlic is lightly browned. Set aside. Place cauliflower and water in a pot and bring to a boil. Cover and cook the cauliflower on low until tender (about 5-10 minutes). Add the cauliflower, water, lemon juice, garlic, oil, mustard, vinegar, agave nectar, salt and pepper to a blender. Blend until smooth. I used our Magic Bullet and blended for 1 minute. (I love the Magic Bullet.) Add chopped herbs or dry herbs and blend briefly. Scrape the dressing out into a bowl or storage container. Enjoy!

Flying Apron

The "Flying Apron" is a gluten-free and vegan bakery in Seattle Washington (Ballard neighborhood to be more exact). It is one of a kind! The "Flying Apron" has finally published a cookbook with all their wonderful recipes! I picked up the cookbook last week and I can't bake the recipes fast enough.

So here is a little plug for "Flying Apron" by Jennifer Katzinger (her and her father opened the bakery back in 2002). If you are on a gluten-free diet, if you are vegan or if you just like to switch up your diet on a daily basis by using various flours and sweeteners (this would be our families reason ;)) then this cookbook is a must for your kitchen library! (I got it for $14 bucks at Costco)

I'll be sure to post the recipes on my blog as I slowly make my way through these original and exciting gluten-free and vegan recipes.

Creamy Tomato Soup

Only a few more weeks of winter. I need to fit in as many delicious warm soups as I can. This one is wonderful. I will definitely be canning this soup in the fall when we have an abundance of tomatoes ready for harvest.

Complements of: "Just 4 Kids"

2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 red onion, minced
1 leek, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 potato, peeled and diced
3 cups vegetable stock or organic chicken broth
2 pounds ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2/3 cup whole milk (or unsweetened soy milk)
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil over medium heat and cook the onion, leek and garlic for 10 minutes or until very soft but not browned. Add the carrot and potato and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the stock (or broth) and bring to a boil. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste and season to taste with salt the pepper. Let simmer for 20-30 minutes. Add the milk. Transfer the soup to a blender or food processor and process until very smooth (I left mine a bit chunky, but next time I'll try "very smooth"). Return the soup to the rinsed-out pan and reheat gently. Garnish with snipped chives or fresh grated Parmesan, if desired. Enjoy!

Baking and Cooking Wheat-Free

Today you can buy many wonderful varieties of grains. If you can't eat wheat because of the gluten or any other reason there are a wide range of grains/flours you may be able to eat. A favorite alternative to wheat is often spelt.


Spelt: Many people who can't eat wheat gluten can handle spelt. Spelt has gluten, but different form of gluten. If cooking with spelt I just replace 1 cup of wheat flour (white or whole wheat) with 1 cup of spelt flour (white or whole spelt). It works perfectly and spelt is an amazing alternative.

Other wheat alternatives you will see me use on my blog are: brown rice, teff, buckwheat, corn, kamut, barley, rye, oats, millet or quinoa.

Check out my "baking and cooking with various flours" post or "baking and cooking with various grains" post.

Also, be sure to check out my recipes listed under my post "wheat-free".

I highly recommend all people to cook without wheat a few times a week. Are bodies will thank us!