Thinking Outside the Recipe!

What Holly Hobbie Taught Me: or, How to Make the Perfect Pancake on Saturday Morning

2009-10-02T13:39:00.000-07:00

In 1979, the year before my baby brother was born and life would change forever, Saturday mornings meant my Holly Hobbie pajama-shirt and a bowl of cereal on a tin TV tray perfectly placed in front of my thin blue and white Holly Hobbie sleeping bag. We’d stay there until the School House Rock videos rounded out the morning and segued into lunchtime. It was then that I’d pack my Holly Hobbie lunchbox with enough goodies to make it through the afternoon and climb onto my Holly Hobbie banana seat bicycle, Holly Hobbie basket and all, and leave the world behind for the rest of the day. You see, I was rather obsessed with her: the bonnet, the prairie dress, the wildflowers, the oh-so-pure little girl who I oh-so-identified with.

It was a simpler time, when it was normal (as opposed to trendy) to make all your own jam, gather fallen leaves and weave them into a crown, and sit in the sagebrush cave in the empty lot next to your house and talk story to your Holly Hobbie doll. But then brothers are born, and life becomes more complicated. Fortunately, someone in my life had the delicate insight to know that a little girl with a new baby brother would want (read “need”) to start doing some cooking for herself every now and again, and I was gloriously gifted Holly Hobbie’s Cookbook, the little book that changed my life. Up until this point in my life I don’t think I had done more than dipped an apple in peanut butter, or put a slice of raisin bread covered in cottage cheese and cinnamon in the toaster oven. But, I found myself suddenly inspired. I began flipping through the pages, marking recipes I wanted to try, and dreaming of time spent cooking with her, my hero, Holly Hobbie.

So the next Saturday morning, I awoke early, as we usually did on Saturday mornings. But instead of rushing for a bowl of cereal and cartoons, I snuck into the kitchen by myself, pulled on my handmade “Ginger” apron, and begin mixing batter with Holly.

Here’s what Holly Hobbie taught me about making the perfect pancake:

1. Your batter should be a little bit lumpy. To this day, I don’t why, but slightly lumpy batter makes pancakes better.

2. Test the griddle. Sprinkle drops of water on the pan. When the water “dances” then the griddle heat is just right. Do NOT attempt to pour your batter on the griddle until it is perfectly ready. It makes all the difference.

3. When the tops of your pancakes are full of bubbles, and only then, turn your pancakes over. Make sure you turn them before the bubbles break. I am not sure how many pancakes I had watched my mom make, but somehow this tip never really stuck with me until Holly said it.

4. Pancakes always taste better when eaten with people you love! Isn’t that the truth? Thanks to Holly and her pancakes, Saturday mornings mean pancakes. Thirty years later and life has become even more complicated. Two kids. A mortgage. The question of whether or not to spend my precious time “tweeting”. Where is my Holly Hobbie cookbook now that I really need it? Time to go digging.

Old-fashioned Buttermilk Pancakes(not exactly Holly’s, but with all the love)

Ingredients:
1 egg*
1 ½ cups buttermilk**
2 T. vegetable oil
1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
*To make vegan, use Ener-G egg replacer for eggs
**To make vegan, substitute 1 cup soy milk and 1 T. vinegar

Directions:
Blend egg, milk and oil. Blend dry ingredients and add to liquids. Heat griddle. When water sizzles, your griddle is hot enough. Pour batter onto greased griddle from pitcher or tip of large spoon in pools slightly apart. Turn pancakes as soon as they are puffed and full of bubbles, but before bubbles break. Turn and brown on other side. Serve with pure maple syrup and butter. Makes ten 4” pancakes.

Broadway Café

2009-06-15T20:10:00.000-07:00

It's almost funny how much our lives revolve around our next meal. So much math, reading, science, and problem solving comes from our time in the kitchen together. And now, writing is happening a lot more in there too. Zeal has actually always written his own recipes (or typed them on the computer). And he's had a semi ongoing project with a friend that is a recipe scrapbook of sorts with photos and recipes they make together along with drawings and stickers and such. But now, our latest project takes our family's favorites and makes our kitchen our very own diner. Introducing the latest Zeal tidit to be produced in our sweet little kitchen...

The official Broadway Café menu...

This tri-fold menu includes all of Zeal's favorites: breakfasts, snacks, soups, salads, main courses, beverages/smoothie, and desserts. He worked on it for about a week- making lists, brainstorming, categorizing, naming favorites, and finally typing and formatting the menu the way he wanted it (I helped with the descriptions).

Now this is not to say that we will begin short order cooking, but this has been such a wonderful way to further document some of our favorite meals. And as we prepare to move from our house on Broadway to our new home in Hawaii, I get a little teary when I read his menu just thinking about the era in his life that is coming to an end. And then excited thinking how our life menu will continue to expand.

tools to kitchen creativity

2009-05-05T10:34:00.001-07:00

Cooking with a child is another wonderful way to connect: with each other, the world, and our unique creative selves. It allows us to explore natural materials, mimic real scientists, and learn ways to approach future problems. As children play with recipes and ingredients, they ask questions and make discoveries that will lead to a greater understanding of their world. So with an eye towards encouraging our kids to really get cookin', here are a few wonder-filled tools that help can us cook up some good old-fashioned curiosity and creative fun together.

See the rest of this article on The Savvy Source!

nests updated

2009-04-10T05:06:00.000-07:00

We had a few extra supplies and so revisited the crispy treat nest project yesterday. This time, we used a muffin tin (lightly oiled) when forming the nests. It worked wonderfully! It was much easier for the kids to get a nest shaped, and they were able to work on them while the mixture was still warm. Some of the kids used a spoon to get the nest shape and some used their fingers. Both methods worked well, and the nests quickly filled with many different "eggs" fit for snacking from in between the active play moments of the afternoon.

So if you're looking for a little cooking project for your holiday weekend, this one is for all the cool kids!

don't drown your food: or remembering retro

2009-04-09T21:35:00.000-07:00

Remember those old Saturday morning cartoon PSA's? Today, I was on a few long walks down memory lane, one of them that included sharing those sweet memories with a few of my very favorite kids. It all began when we were in the middle of eating, a great time to tell old tales and share memories together. So we got to talking about dipping food and our favorite sauces, and this little piece emerged:

Come to find out, this wasn't remembered by several of the adults in attendance (which I still can't believe). For me, this (and all the other PSA choices you'll find that come up when this little video finishes) were such a part of my childhood, and I so remember them fondly. And to think, now they are considered retro. I just love sharing retro with my kid and his friends. So fun to give them a little piece of my childhood.

And doesn't this little bit of eating advice go over so much better when it is coming from Lewis the Lifeguard as opposed to Mama the Nag? I think so.

getting nesty!

2009-04-06T14:32:00.001-07:00

From the little golden nest that hangs from the living room reading lamp (the subject of the mythology of the living room buzzard), to the papîer-måché nests that live with the fairy houses, we've been really getting nesty these days. So why would our food be any exception?

In celebration of spring and all this lovely bird watching weather we have been having lately, we made some little nests fit for snacking. We used the time-honored crispy treat combination, but substituted Fiber One cereal to make it more stick and twig-like. We formed them into little nest shapes and added some locally made speckled chocolate eggs we found. Of course, jelly beans, jordan almonds, or any other egg shaped candy would work just as well.

Happy nesting!

dessert for breakfast - strawberry napoleons!

2009-03-27T14:58:00.000-07:00

I woke up one morning last week to a sign hanging in the entry to the kitchen that read:

Dear Mom,
Can you help me make strawberry napoleons when I wake up?
Love,
Zeal

It was so sweet; I can't believe I didn't get a picture of it before it got repurposed.

Well, as you might know, strawberry napoleons are a rather sweet dessert, NOT a breakfast item.

But, yes, I am usually up for the challenge of turning dessert into breakfast, so here is what we did:

1. Bake puff pastry sheets.
2. Split baked puff pastry sheets (top from bottom) and cut into appropriately sized individual pieces.
3. Whip some cream (we use our vitamix blender for a quick whip) - leave it unsweetened.
4. Add some Dr. Oetker's organic vanilla pudding and mix with the whipped cream.
5. Slice strawberries into a bowl.
6. Set up your assembly line (assembly line cooking is always a perfect way to involve the little ones in any project - sushi, sandwiches, desserts like this!):

7. Enjoy!

anjali's handprint cookies

2009-03-19T12:08:00.000-07:00

When I first learned I was pregnant, I ordered this cookie cutter kit from Chinaberry.

When Anjali was 4 weeks old, I was finally able to get her to spread her fingers long enough to get an outline of her hand so we could get her cookie cutter made. One the side, it is engraved with her full name and birthdate. So sweet.

We used a standard sugar cookie recipe (good Ol' Better Crocker), but substituted buckwheat flour (because that is what we had). Zeal thought that was a good attempt at her skin color, "except she doesn't have little specks on her skin." We also decorated some with frosting and sprinkles and shared them at a potluck. They didn't last very long, so we didn't manage to get a good picture of the batch. That will probably be what we do for her first birthday.

Anyway, here's her little fist (still not wanting to spread her fingers out for very long) next to her cookie (eaten via mama's milk):

It's a blurry little picture, a good metaphor for this time- she's growing so fast and here we are just trying to keep our senses and create a few keepsakes so we can remember her so small and sweet.

a great day for a tea party!

2009-03-16T17:28:00.000-07:00

The weather has been weird and typically pre-spring. Off and on rain. And nothing says tea party around here like a good sudden thunderstorm.

It's been a long while since we have had such a party, the kind that call for some stuffed friends and a dig in the costume box, er, I mean "costume closet" as the costumes seemed to have piled up way too far these days. It seems we need a thinning. Anyway, you get the picture... costumes are required at his kind of tea party.

Here's a few scenes from the kitchen as we got to work on our orange scones that were to be the main course at the party:

We used this recipe from Martha (one that came highly recommended) but veganized it by souring some hemp milk (a cup of the milk and 1 T. vinegar) instead of buttermilk and using earth balance instead of butter.
I might add here that scones are a great project for kids because they lend themselves so well to the cutting and shaping only little hands can provide.

They came out just beautifully...

And here we are getting the tea ready, selecting the herbs and flowers to make it just the perfect blend:

And finally, the table is set, the tea is served, and the scones are... devoured!

Just in time for the sun to come out again.

pizza pockets

2009-03-05T10:39:00.000-08:00

We're slowly making our way back into our schedule of cooking and eating. On this day last week we got together with friends and made pizza pockets.

Our recipe for the dough was the same one listed here, Party Pizza Dough.

And we used the same little pie molds we used for these.

For the filling, we used a spinach, onion, garlic, feta cheese combination based on Amy's Spinach Pizza Snacks, one of Zeal's favorite lunch munchies. We added some pizza sauce and gobble, gobble, gobble... They were a smashing success!

the way the cookies crumble

2009-01-27T16:49:00.001-08:00

Zeal and I took advantage of one of Anjali's many naps today to sneak into the kitchen to finish some "cookies" we began late yesterday once she was down for the night (I might add here that nights are going quite well; we're all actually sleeping!!)

So, back to the cookies. Last month, we tried our favorite oatmeal raisin cookie recipe (good ol' Better Crocker) using our favorite pancake mix (Azure Standard Buckwheat) instead of the flour, baking powder, etc. Remember the birth day cake? Yes, we are in a pattern with cutting corners with pancake mix. ;) Well, the cookies turned out great. Your best ever! A triumph, said Daddy.

So, in need of a late night snack we could all enjoy, Zeal and I thought about those cookies. Those cookies. And we were officially on a mission. The boys went to the store for a bit of brown sugar. And then we got to work.

Only problem: in our baby's-here, we're-running-the-cupboards-dry mode, we were also out of egg replacer, or anything that would work as a binder for these cookies.

We thought oil might do the trick, but nope, that didn't work.

Disappointed, but okay we'll live, we went to bed and planned to go to the store in the morning.

Well, morning led to afternoon and we never did get to the store. At one point, Zeal remembered the cookie project and long story short we decided not to go out.

Can I just have a bowl of it? he asked, and then ate a bit with a spoon.

And then, with a brightened, light bulby face...

Let's make it into granola!!! he announced.

Brilliant kid. It's so, so good!

That's just the way I like my cookies to crumble. Yum.

**And yes, that's a Darth Vader mask you see in the picture. Zeal says he's Darth Baker.

Birth Day cake

2009-01-18T12:26:00.000-08:00

For those of you who read my other blog, The Wondershop, you already know about the birth of our daughter Anjali.

She is three weeks old today, and I just can't believe how big she has already gotten and how fast the last three weeks have flown.

When we were planning her birth, one of the things Zeal had settled on was that he wanted to make her a birthday cake. We figured it was a wonderful activity for us to do together when I was in labor, before real active labor began. And so we did. Only we did it a few days early when we had what can only be called a "false start". We kept it for a few days and pulled it out when the time was right, when we could actually celebrate the eating of it with a baby. And as it turned out, it was a good thing we did make it a few days early, because her very quick arrival left very little time for cake making.

Here it is...

Our Birth Day Buckwheat Carrot Cake, a hearty, healthy sweet in honor of our little sweetie!

The recipe is as follows:

Buckwheat Carrot Cake
*Since we had used all of our baking products with our holiday cooking, we made this cake with buckwheat pancake mix instead of flour, baking soda, and powder. It worked out wonderfully! I highly recommend trying it sometime.

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
2 cups buckwheat pancake mix*
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups finely grated carrots
1 cup crushed pineapple
1/2 cup chopped nuts (we used pecans)
1 cup coconut
4 eggs (we used Ener-G egg replacer equivalent)
1 cup vegetable oil

Directions:
Mix together pancake mix, cinnamon, sugar, oil and eggs. Blend in thoroughly carrots, pineapple, nuts and coconut. Pour into a greased springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Cool. Frost with a mixture of cream cheese and agave nectar (sweetened to taste).

::

We have been so fortunate to have been showered with love and support and amazing food these last three weeks as we settled into our expanding family. So while we have been doing very little cooking lately, Zeal is anxious to get back into the kitchen. In the coming months, Zeal and I are sure to be much more regular here than we have been in the last few weeks, and as Anjali eventually begins her own experimenting with food, I'll probably also share some baby food making as well.

Thank you all for the love and welcoming of Anjali!!

predicting weather through cookies

2008-12-15T11:15:00.000-08:00

Last week, Zeal read the weather report in earnest. The weekend forecast was snow, snow, and more snow. I quote, "we will be more surprised if there isn't snow, than if there is." So when the weekend came and went with only a small dusting that left as quickly as it came, he was, shall we say, disappointed.

So, what do you do when there is no white, fluffy stuff falling outside? Make it in the kitchen, of course.

Snowball Cookies (aka Russian Tea Cakes)
makes: about 3 dozen (depending on the size of your cookies)

Ingredients:
1 c. softened butter
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/4 c. flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c. nuts, finely chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Mix butter, sugar, & vanilla. Add flour, salt, and nuts. Mix thoroughly.
Roll into 1-inch balls. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 10 minutes. While still warm, roll in powdered sugar. Once cooled, roll in sugar again. Oh, so yummy!

Do I get points for this artery-clogging, completely non-nutritional treat being all organic?
Maybe not.
But it does work to bring on the real stuff.

Holidays are Delicious

2008-12-12T06:06:00.000-08:00

Looking for a bit of holiday inspiration? The Savvy Source has created a holiday guide covering all things holiday, including this little piece by me...

Holidays are Delicious: The Creative Family Kitchen During the Holiday Season

Holiday magic often begins in the kitchen. Creating traditions is yet another way to build creativity, and the holiday season is a particularly wondrous time to begin a new tradition or rediscover an old one. So as you step into your kitchen this month, involve your children, explore together, and have fun!

Click here to read the rest of this article and to check out the rest of the Savvy Holiday Guide.

our little soup factory

2008-12-11T00:25:00.000-08:00

In preparation for baby (who should be gracing us anytime now) we spent the day making these various soups, putting them all in freezer bags, and all ready and waiting to be plopped into our crock pot for those days when we will likely be up to our ears in diapers and out of food.

In our stash and now helping to fill our freezer are these various soups:

-Tuscan White Bean & Escarole Soup
-Two-Mushroom Barley Soup
-Moroccan Lentil and Chickpea Soup
-Pesto Potato Soup
-Winter Squash and Sweet Potato Soup
-Black Bean Soup

All of these soup recipes came from the wonderful Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker (200 Recipes for Healthy and Hearty One-Pot Meals that are Ready When You Are) by Robin Robertson. I borrowed this book from a friend and have thoroughly enjoyed picking through it. So far, so great! There are many more things than just soups included in this little gem, such as breakfasts, grains, pastas, desserts and bread. Good thing winter brings out the slow cooker in me. :)

...and what to do with the leftover gingerbread?

2008-12-10T11:21:00.000-08:00

And after making that traditional little house, we used the leftover gingerbread to make a few little men to nibble on. We popped them in the freezer and have been pulling out one a day (or every other) to decorate.

For easy decorating, add a tablespoon of icing to the corner of a ziploc bag. Make sure the bag is closed tightly and cut a very tiny hole in the corner. Instant kid-friendly (an inexpensive) pastry bag!

He goes traditional on me...

2008-12-08T21:12:00.000-08:00

For the third year in a row, we have made our own gingerbread house from scratch. We've also done the kit kind in the past, but it is always much better when we make our own.

In years past, the houses were wild and exciting and I had high hopes for the creative magic I have come to expect from this boy, and what does he do but go traditional on me. :) Four straight walls, a slanted roof, one front door and 4 paned windows. Who knew?

Still, it was great fun to see his confidence in the process grow and watch him pretty much do the whole thing from cutting the pieces to putting it together to decorating all by himself. aaah, the sweet ginger-y taste of independence.

This year, we used this recipe and I highly recommend it for a sweet, but not too sweet, and not so gingery taste that the kids just loved.

Mama's Nuts

2008-12-07T20:04:00.000-08:00

What happens when said child is working intently on a science fair project and pregnant mama gets a hankerin' for the pecans waiting patiently for her in the kitchen...

Mama's Cinnamon Nuts (You must, must, must try these!)

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar (maple or cane)
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 1/2 cups pecans or walnuts (NOT chopped)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 c. boiling water

Directions:
Mix sugar, cinnamon, cream of tartar and boiling water and boil (to 246 degrees, if you have a candy thermometer, or until mixture forms a "ball" if you drop a bit of it in cold water). Add nuts and remove from heat. Add vanilla and stir until mixture sugars on the nuts. Quickly turn on a flat surface and separate the nuts.

You will not regret giving these EASY little treats a try! I promise. But beware, they don't last long!

Straws! Fabulous Kitchen Tool of the Week

2008-11-29T09:06:00.000-08:00

I admit to being a slacker on posting a weekly tool lately. Here's one I couldn't let slip by without mention: straws!

Last week, while searching through the pantry Zeal ran across a half-used packet of disposable straws we bought way back when and used for a building project to make newspaper dowels (rolling a straw up in a sheet of newsprint makes a sturdy dowel to use in all sorts of construction). So this week, among other things, he has been testing how long he can get a straw and still be able to suck up the liquid. Amazing what joy a simple tool will bring!

a holiday drink for mommy

2008-11-26T18:26:00.000-08:00

So, I've been in the kitchen most of the day preparing for the holiday feast that will ensue around here come tomorrow about mid-day. Most of today's "cooking" consisted of drink making, the ones we usually have for the adults... drinks I won't be taking part in this year. But why should everyone else be without them? Still, I wanted something a little special, and non-alcoholic- for me (besides my usual-of-late "belly tea".

So, I decided to make a "Ginger-only" drink, featuring, what else, but....

ginger!

For a brief while I became enamored by this spice that is my namesake. We even went out of our way on a trip years back in Australia, to visit this place:

So here's todays creation, something I've never made before but always loved. Ginger-ale.

How to Make Homemade Gingerale
Ingredients
1/2 lb. fresh ginger, cut into 1/4 inch "coins"
2 cups tap water
2 cups light brown sugar
1 cinnamon stick
pinch cayenne pepper
sparkling water

Directions:
Combine ginger, tap water, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a saucepan. Bring to boil. Once boiling, turn down heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cayenne. Let cool. Once cooled, strain syrup into a container/pitcher. When ready to serve, pour 1/4 cup of syrup and 1/2 cup of sparkling water over ice. Stir. Yum, yum!

And now, I don't think I'll ever go back to the store-bought stuff again. I have ended up sharing it with the rest of my family (I just couldn't keep it a secret - it was that good!) and they too agree, that it is definitely worth making at home!

bringing bread to life

2008-11-24T20:25:00.001-08:00

One of the wonders of this "soup weather" is the bread that comes along with it. Lately, I've been doing a lot of experimenting with different flours, teff being my favorite, but there's something I just cannot ignore about wheat. Zeal has been asking to grow the stuff for a few years, and then gave up asking when I was always skirting the issue (for some reason the prospect terrifies me). Well, now he has renewed energy.

A few weeks ago, we picked up this video Bread Comes to Life while at the library. It's been sitting in our library box this whole time not being watched, just forgotten about. Today after getting a reminder that it is now due at the library, we pulled it out for a go. We are so glad we did! This little gem of a video is intended for ages 4 and up and is a beautiful montage of music and imagery that really does bring bread to life. I was as mesmerized as Zeal as we were watching.

Here's the word from the people at Informed Democracy, the producers of the film:

This newly released 22 minute video (June,2003) narrated in verse by Lily Tomlin with music by George Winston, tells the story of bread from a garden of wheat to a loaf to eat. The program is for the early elementary curriculum, and its purpose is to inspire wonder and provide information about the food we eat as well as the process and the people who bring bread into the world. Whether it's buttering morning toast, pulling a sandwich out of lunchbox, or eating pizza for dinner, bread is a cornerstone of every child's diet. Yet many have never seen a field of wheat, mixed and kneaded a lump of dough, or tasted a loaf fresh out of the oven. Using live-action footage, time lapse-photography and animations, BREAD COMES TO LIFE shows the sowing, growing, reaping, threshing, milling, mixing, kneading, shaping rising, baking and breaking of bread in a garden and home setting as well as on a farm and in a large mill and a commercial bakery.

More information about the film, with companion activities, resources, information about the book and clips of the video can be found on the Bread Comes to Life website.

And guess what, it is based on a book, which we are now on the search for.

And so now I guess I will do it: plant a little patch of wheat, that is. And thanks to these people, we have a good start on what fun we can have with it. Here's looking forward to bringing our bread to life!

Taco Soup

2008-11-17T02:40:00.000-08:00

We're entering into soup-phase, that time of year when our cooking revolves around the many combinations of WARM we can come up with. And as in many years past, that includes one of our family favorites, Taco Soup.

Here's the recipe for this quick and yummy soup that has everybody smiling.

Taco Soup
Ingredients:
1 lb. tofu, cubed
1/2 onion chopped
taco seasoning mix
1 1/2 quarts of tomato juice (more, if you like our soup more soupy and less chunky)
1 cup salsa
tortilla chips
your favorite taco toppings (cheese, olives, avocado, etc)

Directions:
Sauté onion and tofu in a bit of olive oil until lightly browned.
Add taco seasoning mix (only half a packet if you want to cut the spice) and stir for one minute.
Add tomato juice and salsa and simmer until warmed through.
Ladel soup into bowls. Add tortilla chips around the edges of soup and top with your favorite taco toppings.

A little something for Daddy during this holiday season...

2008-11-11T09:51:00.000-08:00

Well, I know I normally just stick to posting ideas for family cooking projects, or things Zeal and I have made together, but I just can't resist giving you this one too, because Daddy just loved it so much (since the pregnancy began our house has become rather... "dry").

Here's what Daddy got for Halloween...

A Pumpkin Martini!

Sugar the rim of a martini glass with a mixture of fine sugar and pumpkin pie spice.

Shake equal parts vanilla vodka, pumpkin spice syrup (such as the kind coffee/lattés are flavored with), and half and half (Silk creamer to make it vegan). Pour into martini glass.

Top with a bit of nutmeg and serve.

reaching for a bit of "love grass"

2008-11-10T11:24:00.000-08:00

When I was in college, I used to head to Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, California on the weekends for a bit of entertainment, book store browsing, and of course to frequent all the lovely food choices. Down one of the alleys there used to be (I don't think it exists anymore) a small family owned hole-in-wall Ethiopian restaurant. Being 18 and raised in a small town in Northern Nevada, I had never experienced the wonder of Ethiopian food. I quickly fell in love, especially with the spongy fermented bread called injera, made from teff flour. I've tried to make injera over the years, but never had the "secret recipe". I'm still experimenting with it the perfect injera recipe, but mostly am finding that teff works for us and our cooking in many other forms too.
(image: man sieving teff grain, from WaterAid International)

Lately we've been using it to make bread, pancakes, these pumpkin bars, and muffins like these:

We simply used this banana muffin recipe and substituted ivory teff flour for wheat flour.

We've been getting our teff in bulk through The Teff Company, but it is available in smaller doses in some grocery stores as well.

Here's a bit more about teff and its many nutritious properties, making it a wonderful grain choice in any healthy family's cooking experiences:

The grain has a high concentration of different nutrients, a very high calcium content, and high levels of phosphorus, iron, copper, aluminum, barium, and thiamin. A big advantage, the iron from teff is easily absorbed by the body. Teff is high in protein. It is considered to have an excellent amino acid composition (including all 8 essential amino acids for humans) and has lysine levels higher than wheat or barley. Because of this variety, it stimulates the flora of the large intestine. Teff is high in carbohydrates and fiber. It contains no gluten, so it is appropriate for those with gluten intolerance or celiac disease.

One of the many things I just adore about using teff, is that it takes its name from the Greek word for Love Grass. That just makes me smile. :)

How to Bake a Pumpkin & Pumpkin Pie Bars

2008-11-06T15:57:00.000-08:00

We've been having fun just slowing down, which means spending a bit of time with our pumpkins. Here's what we did with our sugar pie pumpkins.

How to Bake a Pumpkin

Quarter pumpkin.

Work with a friend to scoop out the seeds. (Of course, save a few of the seeds for planting next year and the rest for roasting.)

Place the quartered pumpkin in an oven proof bowl. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Pour about 3 cups of water over the pumpkin. Cover and bake for about an hour (or until soft) in a 350 degree oven.

Scoop out pumpkin and purée in a blender.

And then, make whatever pumpkin goodies your little hearts desire.
Here's our pumpkin pie bars. So yummy!

Here's our recipe (made up that very day):

Pumpkin Pie Bars
Ingredients:

Bars:
2 cups flour (we used 1 cup of teff flour and 1 cup buckwheat)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil (or whatever oil you like to bake with)
puréed pumpkin from one average-sized sugar pie pumpkin
3 eggs (we used Ener-G egg replacer)

Topping:
Mix a little powdered sugar with a bit of milk (we used soy)

Directions:
Combine dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Drizzle topping and let cool. Cut into bars.