The Smiling Onion

Vegetarian and Gluten-free Cooking

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Creamy Cilantro Dressing

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I was fairly shocked to see cilantro at the greenmarket last week – I mean, it’s almost November, for cripes sake! Yet buy a bunch I did, with zero regrets. I love having fresh herbs in the house because they always give dinner a lift – you’re only a quick blend away from a lovely dressing, dripping sauce, or drizzling sauce that will always take your meal to the next level.

This creamy dressing is one of those easy meal lifters. It, like most of my sauce recipes, is also quite versatile. You can use it to dress a salad or grain bowl, drizzled over a protein, or all over your quesadillas. In other words (for you Dr. Seuss fans) whether you eat this in a house, with a mouse, in a box, or with a fox …  you’ll definitely enjoy it.

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Easy Chocolate-Teff Pudding (Vegan & Low-Fodmap)

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Chocolate pudding has to be one of the all-time best comfort foods. Especially the type that comes in the little individual cups at the grocery store. While I never ate the really commercial kind, I have been known to buy the Zen brand  (made with almond milk) on occasion, and it sure does hit the spot. It’s not where I go when I want something super rich or decadent, but rather a nice, comforting reminder of childhood.

I’ve also made my own dairy-free pudding on occasion, since it’s not too difficult to make and I get to eat a lot more than what comes in the tiny little cup. However, the recipe I usually use calls for egg yolks to thicken the custard, and I wanted a completely vegan version. I also wanted something that was super quick and easy to make, which means I shouldn’t have to separate any eggs or labor over the stove while it thickens.

Enter teff flour, a high-protein gluten-free flour that should definitely be a pantry staple. (For more teff flour recipes, check out my maple-teff muffins, savory waffles, or pumped-up jam bites).  How did I come up with using teff flour in chocolate pudding? Well, I recently added sorghum flour porridge to my breakfast rotation, which is made by whisking a sorghum flour paste into boiling water until thick. Out of sorghum one morning, I discovered it’s just as good – if not better – made with teff. In fact, since teff has a chocolatey-flavor anyway, I ended up throwing in some cocoa powder and cinnamon to spice things up and the flavor was surprisingly close to chocolate pudding. And it thickened so quickly.

My curiosity was piqued. While this teff-chocolate breakfast pudding was more teffy than chocolatey – and far too grainy to be a sub for my imitation Zen brand pudding – perhaps one could use teff flour to thicken an actual chocolate pudding. In case you haven’t guessed already, one definitely can! And there are some definite advantages:

Advantages of using teff flour in chocolate pudding:

  • More protein, which is always good when you’re eating sugar
  • Thickens in minutes
  • No starch
  • Nutty flavor that pairs well with chocolate
  • You can let the pudding simmer/boil without worrying about ruination (NOT true if you use eggs to thicken)

Advantages of this recipe:

  • All of the above, plus:
  • Vegan, gluten-free, and Low-FODMAP (it’s difficult to find desserts that are all of these things)

Oh, and don’t worry about the coconut milk: there is absolutely no detectable coconut flavor to this pudding.

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Roasted Kabocha Squash with Walnut Sauce

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Since the weather isn’t doing its part to get us into the fall spirit, I decided to do mine. Despite the unseasonable warmth, winter squash is starting to pop up at the Greenmarket, and I’ve been eating my weight in kabocha (aka Japanese pumpkin). Kabocha has a wonderfully starchy texture and sweet, buttery-nutty flavor that lends itself to all manner of dishes, and it happens to contain zero FODMAPs! That means that, unlike with other winter squashes, those of us on the Low FODMAP diet don’t have to measure out portions.

This recipe is a fabulous way to start transitioning into autumn, embracing the sweet abundance that is coming our way. I wish I had posted it in time for Rosh Hashanah, when it is traditional to eat sweet foods for a sweet new year. (I’m a couple days late on that, but hey, it’s still the beginning of the new year!) Anyway, whatever your diet or religion, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this lovely side dish/small plate. If you’re not a fan of kabocha (or its price tag), this fabulous vegan walnut sauce would be great on all manner of roasted veggies – especially the sweeter ones like carrot, sweet potato, and other winter squashes.

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Zucchini Spice Cake with Vanilla-Nutmeg Frosting

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It started with a gigantic zucchini, surreptitiously hidden amongst many ordinary-sized zucchinis in my mother’s garden. Once it emerged, we were left wondering how something so enormous could successfully remain in hiding for so long. Was something supernatural at play? Not wanting to take any chances, my mother not-so-surreptitiously unloaded the mysterious monster onto me, where it not so much sat as embodied all of the remaining space in my fridge with its girth.

When life – or family, in this case – hands you a gigantic zucchini suspected of  having supernatural powers, breaking it down becomes somewhat of an urgent matter. So I made zucchini bread. And it was awesome. Enjoyed warm, right out of the oven, it was even supernaturally-awesome. Airy, delicately spiced, buttery….so it was true! There was loveliness inside even the scariest monsters.

Once refrigerated, the bread took on a denser, cakier texture and it occurred to me that it might function as a delicious layer cake. (I happen to like my cakes on the denser side, provided there is some light and fluffy frosting accompanying the layers!) So, enter this zucchini-spice cake, which is composed of two zucchini bread layers separated and surrounded by a vanilla-nutmeg cream cheese frosting that you won’t be able to stop eating. If you can, I’d be worried that this recipe unknowingly transmitted some supernatural  zucchini powers to you, dear eater! And what a pickle we’d be in then.

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5-Spice + Turmeric Carrot Breakfast Pudding

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What if it were acceptable to eat pumpkin pie filling for breakfast? Would you? Even in summer? I might. Because this 5-spice + turmeric carrot pudding tastes like a breakfasty twist on pumpkin pie – in pudding form of course. The spices are subtle yet warming – the perfect start to your day – and the color is vibrant. And, as an added bonus, the fresh turmeric root provides a nice anti-inflammatory boost!

While this 5-spice + turmeric carrot breakfast pudding screams autumn, I find myself craving warming breakfasts like this year round. Would you expect anything less of a winter ice-cream eater? Anyway, if you’re not much for warming breakfasts in summer, this pudding is also fantastic cold. (In fact, if you chill it, it will taste even more like pumpkin pie filling.) I, however, actually prefer it warm,  with a splash of almond milk, a sprinkle of raisins, and some toasted coconut. The notes of molasses in the jaggery sugar compliment the cloves and pepper in the 5-spice perfectly, and the raisins add a nice bite.

So…breakfast pudding, anyone?

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Imitation Horchata

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Horchata is a delicious, creamy beverage that originates in Valencia and is popular in many parts of Latin America. The version I’m familiar with is served in Mexican restaurants and usually made from rice, but this “imitation” version uses boxed almond milk for simplicity’s sake. In fact, I almost didn’t want to post this recipe, since it’s laughably easy! However, I realized that if I was making it all the time, maybe others would want to do the same – especially since drinking something cold, sweet, and creamy on a summer day just can’t be beat. Boy does it hit the spot! So I decided to share.

All you need is some unsweetened almond milk, maple syrup, and a light sprinkle of spices. Mix it all together and it tastes like…well…horchata! So easy!

This drink is a perfect afternoon pick-me-up, especially if you’ve been out in the sun all day. It’s also fantastic as a dessert craving quencher or the sweet ending to a spicy meal. You’ll be amazed how something so easy can taste so delicious.

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Carrot Top Pesto

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Summer is in full swing and with it comes gorgeous Farmer’s Market veggies galore. This includes carrots that have not been rudely decapitated – or in other words, relieved of their feathery tops. And what a blessing that is!

Carrot tops join the ranks of underappreciated and often discarded veggie parts, along with beet greens, fennel fronds, and potato skins, among others. I’m still waiting for Chopped or some other Food Network show to do an episode that features these underutilized veggie components, all in the same round. Or maybe they have — I’m a bit behind on my Food Network binging! If they did, I hope someone made potato skin nachos with pickled beet greens, carrot top pesto, and fennel frond queso…

Anyway, back to carrot tops. Next time you find yourself with a cutting board full, please don’t throw them out. Instead, make this quick + delicious, flavor-packed pesto. You’ll be glad you did!

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Tofu Satay Bowl

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Do you ever spend forever trying to decide the simplest things? I know I do…when it comes to ordering food, that is. I’m sad to say that far too much of my brain power has gone to agonizing over questions like “Sweet potato fries or regular?” “For the soup, did you want the cup or the bowl?” and “Pesto or marinara?” If these questions seem trivial, they absolutely are. But for someone whose happiness level is very much tied to getting these questions right – and who suffers from a disproportionate amount of ordering regret when it’s a miss – the decision can take a little while.

I had a similar dilemma when crafting this recipe, which was born out of a delicious thrown-together dinner (bowls are fabulous for these situations) a couple weeks back. I wasn’t planning to make it a blog post, but I was really happy with the tamarind-peanut sauce I had spontaneously created and thought a warming tofu satay bowl worth sharing. Then I had the leftovers – cold – the next day and found myself with an intriguing idea: should I post a summer salad instead? Same sauce – maybe make it a tiny bit more dressingy with a little vinegar – sub papaya for the broccoli, keep the tofu, cilantro, and peanuts, and maybe throw in some fresh basil? It certainly was quite delicious cold and you can never go wrong with fresh papaya! But I really liked that warm dinner bowl,  too…

I was so torn that I ended up buying both broccoli and papaya at the store so I didn’t have to decide until later. And I ended up going with the satay bowl. I don’t have any regrets (because this bowl is really quite delicious) but if you feel like trying the salad variation I described, do go for it. I don’t think you’ll have regrets either way.

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Lapsang Souchong Carrots

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Lapsang Souchong is a deliciously rich and smoky Chinese black tea that is fantastic for both cooking and drinking. Since it’s a black tea, it also carries with it all those lovely black-tea health benefits – antioxidants, heart-healthy compounds, etc. – though, since the tea is smoked over pine leaves, I do find myself wondering whether the antioxidants survive. Tea experts, please chime in! My google searching has proved inconclusive (nobody is talking about this on the internet, apparently) and I’d love to know what affect the smoking process has on a tea’s health benefits.

In any case, I can say with certainty (albeit certainty subjective to my own taste preferences) that the smoking process has a beneficial affect on the taste of this tea. If you’ve never tried it, you really must – I playfully call it the Laphroaig of teas since its smoky, intense, complexity reminds me of a bacony scotch.

This makes it a perfect ingredient for sauces and marinades, as it lends this complexity of flavor to the simplest of dishes. Seriously – you’ll be amazed at how easy these carrots are to prepare. Simply mix a 5-ingredient marinade together, pour it over some carrots, and bake until tender. That’s it! Serve them over your favorite grain with a poached egg or some baked tofu for a simple, delicious meal or leave them as is for a lovely side dish. You really can’t go wrong.

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Bourbon-Sour Cream Ice Cream for the 4th of July!

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You may have noticed that I tend to put whiskey in my holiday blog posts – at least once a year.  There’s this year’s Irish Whiskey Banana Bread (St. Patty’s Day), last year’s Cinnamon-Sugar Sandwich Cookies with Chocolate-Whiskey Cream (Valentine’s Day), and my whiskey-glazed Apples & Honey Cake from Rosh Hashanah 2015…er…5776 (Jewish calendar). In any case, I’m beginning to realize I may have a whiskey dessert problem.

But what a wonderful problem it is! Bourbon lends itself perfectly to ice cream. In fact, no matter what flavor I decided to create, it probably would have included at least 1 tablespoon of the stuff since adding alcohol to homemade ice cream helps make it creamy and prevent iciness. (So does arrowroot starch, incidentally, which you’ll also find in this recipe!) And the caramel notes of the bourbon with the tanginess of the sour cream – it really can’t be described in words.

In addition to tasting divine, this ice cream recipe is also lactose-free, low fodmap, egg-free, coconut-free, soy-free, and nut-free! Interestingly, I haven’t been able to find a lactose-free ice cream recipe that doesn’t use coconut milk or nut milk, and really wanted one, since coconut can tend to taste quite coconuty and nut milk doesn’t quite have the proper texture to yield a creamy result. This probably has something to do with the fact that traditional ice cream is made from a blend of heavy cream and milk, and, while there is plenty of lactose-free milk on the market, I don’t think there is any heavy cream. There is, however, lactose-free half and half and lactose-free sour cream. I had a hunch that thickening the half and half slightly with some arrowroot starch (which also prevents an icy ice cream texture) and then blending it with the sour cream might be a winning combo –  and I’m happy to say I was right!

This ice cream is the perfect balance of creamy, rich, tangy, and sweet. Whether you’ve never had sour cream ice cream before, or you’re already a convert, you really must try it! So plug in that ice cream maker, grab yourself a bowl, and get ready for some fireworks.

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