gluten free Archives - Splash of Sherri

cherry, tahini, date smoothie

Posted on July 29, 2020 by Sherri

Sometimes I make myself something that’s so delicious I can’t wait to share it with everyone. Last week I blended up this cherry, tahini, date smoothie at least a dozen times! My family loves smoothies and this one is a win, win for more than just breakfast or an after workout energy boost. It’s not only delicious and refreshing but super healthy and has three of my favorite ingredients blended together.

Cherries are my number one favored fruit, always have been. The sweet taste of cherries are not only irresistible but nutritious and contain a ton of health benefits. Some studies say they can reduce inflammation, improve sleep, boost heart health, and help you recover faster after exercise. I use frozen cherries to add to the frostiness and since they can be purchased all year, you can enjoy summer in a glass 365.

Tahini is like liquid gold and I add it to everything from dressings, and hummus to baked goods (check out my tahini chocolate chip cookies), and of course smoothies. It’s a puree of pure sesame seeds and tastes like a less sweet peanut butter with a sharper flavor. Aside from its appealing nuttiness, it’s a healthy and yummy way to add antioxidants, anti-inflammatory properties, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats to your diet. I’m a big fan of Soom Foods Tahini, but when I can’t get it, I like Whole Foods brand, or any of the Israeli brands I find in the kosher or mediteranean section of my local grocery.

Dates have become my preferred way to add natural sweetness without adding processed sugar to many baked goods and definitely smoothies. They’re great on their own as a snack because they are so sweet and chewy plus a little goes a long way. When added to a smoothie, they add little bursts of sweetness throughout, are high in essential nutrients, fiber, nutrients and said to improve digestion.

My cherry, tahini, date smoothie is a great way to the start, middle, or end your day! Blend these three powerhouses together and you have a unique, balanced, and nutritious smoothie that hits all the marks. Enjoy!

ingredients
1 cup frozen cherries
4 ice cubes
½ cup low-fat Greek yogurt (vanilla or plain)*
½ to ¾ cup almond milk** (depending on how frozen you like it)
1 tablespoon tahini***
2 medjool dates (make sure to take the pits out)

simplest directions ever
Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy!

*if you want to make this vegan, you can sub nondairy yogurt or omit and add extra ice cubes
**feel free to sub any milk you like. I adore the taste of almond and oat milk so those are always my first choice.
***if you strongly dislike tahini, feel free to substitute cashew, almond, or peanut butter.

the new passover bagel

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Sherri

This year I tried a new Passover bagel recipe. It’s unlike any other I have tried before. Why is this bagel different from all other bagels? Sorry, but I think you knew I just had to go there! For one thing it’s made with almond flour making them gluten free. It’s not like a big crusty and doughy bagel made with flour and yeast, but it can’t be – no yeast or flour! However, using just a few Passover friendly ingredients I was able to bake something that was the perfect addition to our Sunday morning breakfast. It’s crusty on the outside and a little chewy on the inside which gives that bagel feel. You won’t believe it!

The Passover bagels we all know and love during this holiday are really more like rolls or popovers than a bagel. They are really good, but not a bagel as much as we try to convince ourselves they are! These are much more like a bagel and they are even boiled first. When I made them this morning I could not wait to share them with you. They get a big thumbs up from my family and if only we had lox in the house it would have be a win, win! But, we did have TempTee cream cheese so no complaints!

They are really easy to make and once you get the hang of it, the second time around is even easier. It took me about 20 minutes to get the dough ready and boil them so not too bad. Baking was under 30 minutes which was great. All in all worth the 45 minutes start to finish with an end result of 6 delicious Passover bagels. They are best warm from the oven, but what isn’t? I really liked it toasted (which I definitely recommend for any leftovers the next day). My son thinks they will be great as bagel chips, I’ll have to get back to you on that. The recipe only makes six and they all disappeared in minutes, so no leftovers today to try that out.

One of the fun things about Passover is we make different foods we don’t ordinarily during the year. This makes them more special and boy do we have to be creative about it! The new Passover bagel is proof of that! I hope you give this recipe a try – I think you’ll really like it. Happy Sunday everyone…..Enjoy!

Ingredients
3 cups blanched almond flour
1 cup potato starch (or tapioca starch)
2 teaspoons baking powder (kosher for Passover)
2 tablespoons. honey
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar*
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
2/3 cup warm water
1 egg (or yolk only) – for egg wash
Toppings: everything bagel spice, sesame seeds, Poppy seeds, or other favorite bagel topping

set up
1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Set your rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350° F
3. Set a large shallow pot of water filled ¾ full on the stove and bring to a boil. By the time you are done with the dough it should be boiling. Once it comes to a boil reduce the heat so you have a gentle boil.

time to make the bagels…
In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients until well incorporated and there are no lumps. In a second bowl or large measuring cup, combine all wet ingredients (except the egg) and mix by hand until honey looks dissolved. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and mix in the wet until a smooth dough forms. It feels like a moist playdoh. Let it rest for a couple of minutes.

Divide the dough into 6 equal portions which will be a little over ½ cup each. Roll each piece into a ball and then flatten slightly. Press your index finger into the center and make a hole. The dough is pliable enough to pick up and form it from both sides. Repeat with each bagel.

Carefully drop bagels into the simmering water and wait until they float to the top. This takes about 30 seconds to a minute. Gently remove with a slotted spoon and arrange them on the prepared baking sheet. Continue with all of the bagels.

Bake the bagels for 10 minutes.

Remove bagels from oven and brush with beaten egg or egg yolk (whichever you are using) and topping. It’s best to brush and top one bagel at a time so the seeds will stick.

Return bagels to the oven and cook for 20-25 more minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10-20 minutes before serving. Some sites say this allows for them to firm up a bit. If there are leftovers the next day, toasting is best.

*a few sites say you can omit the cider vinegar bit I think you need it. Speaking of sites, I have adapted this recipe from various sites all extremely similar or the same I don’t have a clue which one created it. So here is a shout out to just a few I looked at. www.kiwiandcarrot.com www.koshereveryday.com and www.healthstartsinthekitchen.com if you are the original creator, please take a bow!

flourless almond cake

Posted on April 7, 2020 by Sherri

This flourless almond cake is one of best cakes I have ever tasted and perfect for the Passover holiday. It has 8 ingredients doesn’t need any fancy equipment, is gluten free, extremely delicious, and comes together in less than 10 minutes plus baking time. If I had to compare it to anything I would say it tastes like a big moist almond macaron – and there’s nothing wrong with that!

I don’t usually change ingredients the first time I try a new recipe. However, I misread how much sugar to put in and used less than called for and it was perfect. I love when there are happy accidents! I also sprinkled one less tablespoon of sugar on top just because I was being frugal, and it tasted just right! The sugar and almonds on top add a nice crunch in contrast to the moist and dense cake. All-in-all my family gave this cake a 10 and I agree.

I adapted it from Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street. It’s a take on a Spanish Almond Cake (Tarta De Santiago) and originally contains citrus and cinnamon. On the show, they made two different almond cakes and the minute I saw them, I thought they would be perfect for Passover, and I was right. I can’t wait to try the other one – spoiler alert, it has chocolate in it!!!!!! Serve with lightly sweetened non-dairy whipped cream and some berries. Have a sweet holiday and as always – Enjoy!

ingredients
1 scant cup sugar (meaning 1 tablespoon less than a cup)
3 extra-large eggs plus 3 extra-large egg whites
½ teaspoon almond extract
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 ½ cups blanched almond flour
2 tablespoons turbinado or demerara sugar
1/3 to 1/2 cup sliced almonds
optional: serve with lightly sweetened non-dairy or dairy whipped cream and berries

Since it’s tough to get some ingredients, I’ve started adding substitutions and options on my posts at this time: large eggs will work fine too, I only keep extra-large in my house because that’s all my mom used so I do too. If you don’t have kosher for Passover extracts you can skip it all together but then when making it any other time of year, add it. If you don’t have turbinado or demerara sugar you can swap in white sanding sugar or 1 tablespoon regular table sugar. You can also use an 8” pan if you don’t have a 9” it will just be higher which is fine, just sprinkle with 1/3 cup almonds instead of 1/2 cup.

directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and set the rack to the center of the oven. Line the bottom of a 9 inch round cake pan with parchment paper and spray sides and bottom with cooking spray. You may also brush with oil if you would like.

In a large bowl, combine the white sugar, whole eggs and egg whites, salt and both extracts. Whisk vigorously (about 1 minute) until well combined and frothy. Add the almond flour and whisk until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan then sprinkle with the turbinado sugar and then the sliced almonds.

Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and the crust feels firm in the center when pressed. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Run a knife around the edges of the cake, then invert onto a place. Remove the pan and parchment then re-invert onto a serving plate. Let the cake cool completely before serving.

Lights Out Summer Gazpacho

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Sherri

I have to admit, lights out summer gazpacho is a funny name for a recipe. It’s definitely not the original name I came up with. However, 10 minutes after I finished photographing this beautiful soup, I put it in the refrigerator, went upstairs to publish this post and the lights went out in my house! The computer shut down and my post was lost! Now I worried, what would happen to my delicious gazpacho? I ran downstairs and poured myself a bowl. Topped with some avocado, cucumber and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, this cool refreshing soup took my mind off how hot my house was! It was the perfect dinner.

Gazpacho is a cold Spanish soup, made with tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and onions. It takes less than 30 minutes to put it all together and only gets better with age. There aren’t too many soups you can say that about. Plus, I don’t know about you, but among the many staples I have in my kitchen, are onions, garlic, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and tomato juice. With these few ingredients you are always ready for a Bloody Mary (just add vodka), a great Greek salad, Israeli salad, and of course this quick, easy and delicious gazpacho. In this recipe, I used Roma tomatoes, a.k.a. plum tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes but you can substitute any kind of tomato. Heirloom would be a great choice, which I know can be expensive but worth the flavor they add, tomatoes on the vine, or a mixture of several varieties. During the summer, you can find sweet and delicious Vidalia onions* – I use them for everything and they are great in this cold soup! I also like the large sweet Spanish onions, which are appropriate for this Spanish soup.

If you are lucky enough to live in an area where you can go to a farmer’s market for ingredients, or straight to the farm, you should take advantage of that. There is nothing like fresh farm grown fruits and vegetables. They often have their own variety of tomatoes and when fresh picked enhance anything you cook or bake. I hope you try this easy and refreshing gazpacho. It’s a quick and easy light lunch or dinner along side salad or quiche. Enjoy!

ingredients
4 plum tomatoes
1 pint red teardrop tomatoes
2 bell peppers (any combination of red, yellow or orange)
1 English (aka hot house cucumber) cut in 1/2 and seeded
1 sweet onion cut into large pieces (if vidalia onions are in season, use them!)
4 cups low sodium tomato juice (I use Trader Joe’s low sodium Garden Patch)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup good extra virgin olive oil
3 to 4 cloves of garlic minced
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
hot sauce (optional)
garnishes: avocado, croutons or oyster crackers, finely diced cucumber, sliced olives, feta cheese or grilled fresh corn.

recipe makes 6 to 8 servings

vibrant and beautiful peppers from the farmer’s market?

directions:
Cut the tomatoes, peppers and onions into approximately 1″ pieces. Slice and take the seeds out of the cucumber. Mince the garlic and add to the onion. Put the vegetables into the food processor one at a time and pulse until it’s coarsely chopped. Don’t process it too fine. Then after you process each vegetable, add it to a large bowl or pot.

Add the tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and sugar. Mix well and chill before serving. You can top it with any of the garnishes suggested or come up with one of your own.

*In Georgia they say people eat them like they would a peach as they are so sweet. Two fun little facts: they are Georgia’s official state vegetable – and I’m a huge fan!