2011 | The Wannabe Chef

Yearly Archives: 2011

Gluten-Free Pancakes

Written on May 19, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Breakfast

Pancakes make me happy. My guess is that they make you happy, too. But it’s been years since I’ve made pancakes for breakfast; they’re not the most gluten-free friendly food. But after my first experiment with chickpeas flour, I realized just how much this would improve my life.

But first, a lesson on cake:

“Young man, you’re not having cake for breakfast. You’re having fried cake with syrup for breakfast.”

Done.

These were just as easy to make as “real” pancakes and tasted among the best I’ve had. They absorb moisture really easily, so have the maple syrup standing by. And they don’t get soggy! Perfect.

Gluten-Free Pancakes

Ingredients(Makes 4 medium-sized pancakes):

1/2 cup chickpea flour
1 egg
1/3 cup water
1 (heaping) Tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
Butter or oil for greasing

Method:

Whisk together the flour, water, egg, sugar, baking soda, and salt until all the clumps are gone from the batter.
Heat a pan or skillet over a burner set to medium with some butter or oil. Scoop about 3 Tablespoons-1/4 cup of batter into the pan. Cook for about 40 seconds until the edges are cook and bubbles come up through the batter. Flip and cook for another 15 seconds until the other side is set. Serve while still hot.

Top with maple syrup, nut butter, coconut shreds, fruit sauce, or whatever else you can think of.

You can bet what’s on the menu for tomorrow’s breakfast.

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Warm Red Potato Salad

Written on May 18, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Side Dish

Some people don’t like to cook. I don’t get them.

Most of the time I’d rather make my own meal than go to a restaurant. It’s just not the same as home cooking. Last week was crazy with work and most of my meals I didn’t cook or were just salads thrown together. It was awful. This week is much more relaxed and I’ve been able to cook again, and not just fudge but better things like this potato salad. I could eat this again and again. The vinegar and sugar make for just the right sweetness. You’ll never miss the mayonnaise in another potato salad.

Warm Red Potato Salad

Ingredients:

1lb red potatoes
1/2 yellow onion, julienned
3 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons white or apple cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon chopped parsley
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Bake the potatoes for 1 hour in an oven set to 350 degrees. Remove them and cut them up into 1-inch chunks.

Soak the julienned onion in cold water for 5-10 minutes to remove some of their pungency. Drain the liquid from the onions.

Add all of the ingredients together and mix. Serve while still slightly warm. Refrigerate any leftovers

Who doesn’t love potatoes and onions? Whoever doesn’t I love them enough for the both of us.

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Alton Brown’s Microwave Peanut Butter Fudge

Written on May 17, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

This recipe is a life-changer.

I’ve long been obsessed with microwave chocolate fudge. I’ve tried making my own peanut butter fudge in the microwave in the past but the texture was never as good as the chocolate version. Finally, when I saw that Alton Brown had a recipe for microwave peanut butter fudge I knew I had to make it.

Alton Brown has to be my favorite Food Network chef, and not just for this recipe. Don’t get me wrong—I love watching Ina and Paula and Giada so that I can make fun of how ridiculous and fattening their “basic” recipes are. But Alton actually writes recipes like he knows what he’s doing, and that’s what makes him fun to cook from.

Overall I stuck to the recipe pretty well. I halved the recipe and the only change that I made was melting the butter only and stirring in the peanut butter until it melted, too.

The fudge came out as an odd, doughy texture that was delicious but not really “fudgy.” I pressed it into a pan and let it sit in the refrigerator until it hardened up a bit and it came to the right consistency.

I wouldn’t leave this at room temperature since it got soft pretty fast. But other than that it was perfect; the taste was very rich and very sweet.

In other words, I need someone to take the rest of this off my hands right away

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Summer Green Bean Salad

Written on May 16, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

This week I’m moving out of where I live now. As everyone who has ever done that before knows, that means Operation: Eat Out The Pantry has begun. I try to keep enough canned and dry goods that if a war suddenly broke out I could live off of what I have for a month. Or through a New England winter. I made this in 10 minutes from canned goods. It would be great in the Summer with fresh green beans, too. It makes a lot which means I have my work cut out for me this week.

Summer Green Bean Salad

Ingredients(Makes 4 entrée servings):

1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can green beans, drained OR 1 cup fresh steamed green beans cut
1/4 cup sliced olives
1/4 cup craisins(optional)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 Tablespoons white vinegar
3/4 teaspoon salt

Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl.

Toss the salad until all the ingredients are spread out. Serve at room temperature.

As good as this was, I have a feeling it’s going to be more fun eating through my chocolate stash than cans of beans. Just a thought.

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Plant-Based Diet: An Update

Written on May 14, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Running

We’ll get to that in a minute.

Back in April I posted about a plant-based diet to get back into shape after a rough 4 months or so.

And then I fell off the wagon that weekend. I had some excellent chicken dishes at the Elephant Walk and later the best raw dessert from Wildflour Bakery and other stuff I don’t really remember. But I didn’t want to stop trying then so I put on my big boy pants and made a salad.

Lots of them, actually. A typical meal has become vegetables, roasted or sautéed, with some beans or a few eggs. If I cooked an egg any way other than frying it I’m sure that’d be healthier but fried is perfection. Who can argue with that?

Oh an I drink a lot of these, too, “for my health”. They just taste so good.

Anyone, if you asked me I wouldn’t say I feel or look any different. Everyone says “Start a plant-based diet and you’ll suddenly have so much energy.” I’ve never been a bounce-off-the-wall person before and I’m still not.

But then something funny happened this week. Tuesday I casually ran 10 miles in just under 1 hour 24 minutes. That same course took me over 5 minutes longer a month before. Then, 2 days later, I ran it again in 1 hour 25 minutes, like I do this every day. I don’t. Or I didn’t, but now I do? And I’ve been increasing the weights I lift, too, so I must be doing something right.

That’s not to say I eat perfectly by any means. I eat chocolate all too often. I have honey by the spoonful when I’m bored or stressed. And I eat giant slices of vegan/gluten-free pound cake from Wildflour when I’m done with exams. It’s vegan so there must be plants in there somewhere. But progress is progress, and this is an update, not an end.

And now I’m off to run. I hope I don’t run too fast and taste cake. Or maybe I do.

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Savory Italian-Style Socca Pancakes

Written on May 12, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Entree

I’ve had an unopened bag of chickpea flour in my pantry for 4 months.

That’s 4 months too long.

After seeing socca on Anna and Serena’s blogs recently, it was about time that I try out socca pancakes. These were so flavorful, and so easy, too. It really was just like making any old pancakes. I might have burned myself trying to pick the fried batter off the bottom of the pan; it was worth it. When(not if) I make this again, I’d use a jarred marinara sauce, but since I didn’t have any I threw that together, too, and threw in the recipe. Top with a fried egg for something truly amazing.

Savory Italian-Style Socca Pancakes

Ingredients(Makes 1 serving):

For the pancakes,

1/2 cup chickpea flour
1/2 cup water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning
olive oil for cooking

For the sauce*,

1/2 cup diced tomatoes, mostly drained of water
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt

*You could also just use 1/2 cup of your favorite store-bought marinara sauce.

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To make the pancakes, whisk together the flour, water, salt, and herb seasoning until there are no clumps in the batter.

Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add half of the batter to the pan to cook. Once the sides have darkened and the bottom has cooked, flip the pancake once to cook the top batter. Move to a plate and cook the other half of the batter.

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To make the sauce, mix together all of the ingredients.

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Assemble by spreading half of the sauce over the first pancake and layering it with the second. Scoop remaining sauce generously over the top and season to taste.

Socca to me.

I’ve said that about 60 times by now. I still think it’s funny.

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Fruity Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Written on May 11, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Snack

As good as peanut butter, fruit, and chocolate are, peanut butter and fruit can be damn good on their own, too. With fruit and yogurt, this is a great snack for a toddler. Or yourself if you don’t want to share; I didn’t. I used a strawberry yogurt and the dip tasted just like a PB&J but the recipe is totally customizable. It keeps in the refrigerator for a few days, too—not that they’ll be any extra.

Fruity Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 6-8 servings):

1/2 cup fruit-flavored yogurt*
1/2 cup natural runny peanut butter
1/4 cup powdered sugar
Fruit/veggies for dipping

*To customize the flavor, use 6 tablespoons of yogurt and 2 tablespoons of any fruit jam.

Method:

Mix together all of the ingredients completely making sure there aren’t any clumps.
Move to a serving dish.
Serve with chopped fruit and vegetables.

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5 Kitchen Rules I Break The Most

Written on May 10, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Sunday Confessional

I’m not a rebel. I turn my papers in on time. I never borrow something without intending to bring it back. I would return rented movies back on time if anybody still rented movies nowadays. Still, there are just some rules in the kitchen I don’t care for. Of course I’ll change my ways when I step foot into a real restaurant kitchen. But you can bet on none of these happening when I’m at home.

1. Wash your hands before starting cooking.

I’m sorry. If I’m cooking for other people or guests are over, sure I’ll wash my hands. But if it’s just me, myself, and I eating, I just don’t care. Hell, depending on the hour of the day I might not be wearing pants. Don’t drop by unannounced.

2. Always attend a heated oven.

Now, in my defense I’m always present and counted for when it comes to a stove top. But not an oven. I’ve even left the house at times with the oven going and no one home(don’t read that, mom). I have better things to do than stand by and watch a potato bake for 2 hours.

3. Wash and peel your fruit and vegetables before eating.

If I don’t wash my hands, do you really think I’ll wash my vegetables? Besides, the skin is wear all the nutrients are. This has left for some unsavory moments, like biting into lettuce from the farmer’s market(which I did wash, just not thorough enough I guess) and chewing on dirt. They’re just extra B Vitamins.

4. Bake with room temperature eggs.

Really? Does anyone remember to do this?

5. Always heat oil in a pan before adding anything else.

When you’re searing tuna or a steak this is a great idea to get a nice, browned outside and rare inside. But when you’re a veg-head sautéing chickpeas and vegetables, there’s not much you can do to ruin the dish. I usually don’t even thaw frozen veggies before putting them on the stone. Sue me.

So, now that some of you might never want to eat with me again, fess up: What kitchen rule do you break when no one’s looking?

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Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Filled Strawberries

Written on May 9, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Dessert

Sometimes covering things in chocolate just isn’t enough.

That’s when you add peanut butter.

I made these on Mother’s Day, even though I had seen my mom Saturday and wasn’t going to see her Sunday. What can I say? I’m not going for son of the year award. Since there’s nothing with chocolate that can’t be better with peanut butter, I figured these would work, and they did! And they’re just as simple to make as the original, too.

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Filled Strawberries

Ingredients:

Strawberries
No-stir peanut butter
Chocolate

Cut the strawberries in half.

Melt the chocolate in a microwave or double-boiler.

Put about a teaspoon on one side of each strawberry and sandwich it lightly with the other.

Gently roll the strawberry in chocolate, being sure to cover it all around about 3/4 of the way up.

Put the strawberries on a sheet of wax paper and refrigerate until the chocolate has hardened. Serve at room temperature.

These are a little messy, but oh-so worth it. The peanut butter adds just enough flavor to pair well with the chocolate. This will teach fruit to ever try and be healthy again.

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Honey Recipe Round-Up

Written on May 8, 2011 by Wannabe Chef in Recipe Round-Up

I love honey. Like, I really love honey, a maybe-I’ll-stop-after-3-spoonful’s-straight-from-the-jar kind of love. It’s light sweetness is perfect for sweet and savory foods which make it a chef’s best friend. Here are a few of my favorite dishes with honey in them. Hopefully you’ll find something you like enough to make for your honey(aren’t I a hoot?).

January 11th 112