Goji berries, tigernuts flour, wild brown millet flour, chia  and coconut sweetener each have unique health benefits. Combining all these ingredeients into one cookie makes for a exceptionally healthy cookie. This particular cookie is also gluten free, vegan-friendly and very delicious.

Thanksgiving is a great time to introduce more whole grains and whole sweeteners.

Pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, turkey stuffing and even mashed potatoes can be
adjusted to provide more nutrition and keep all the delicious flavour.

Those who eat whole grains and whole sweeteners on a regular basis will find
they eat less at the traditional food fest as the body will be satisfied sooner.

Thankgiving is here and there is no better time to dreate a whole grain/whole sweetener version of this tradtional holiday treat.
This is the version served to my family for years and it's always a big hit.

 

Sour Cherries are best known for as the pie cherries. Black cherries tend to be too sweet to mix with sugar or other types of sweeteners, which is essential to the thickening of the filling. I have only seen them twice fresh and both times, despite the fact they were not organic, I snapped them up since they were fresh, local and their flavour is perfect for baking. I am not sure why they are so hard to find fresh since in the baking industry, they can be purchased so easily frozen, which means they are being produced in large quantities. I am going to assume it is matter of demand and the public does not understand the benefits these tasty cherries. This coffeecake is perfect for treat for tea or a snack as it is moist, not too sweet and has the sour cherries flavor for a bit of contrast.

Summer is an odd time for dessert lovers. While we, normally, would never turn down a delicious pastry and gooey cake, our appetite for such things seems to disappear when the hot whether arrive. This is actually a normal response. Our attraction to rich foods in the cooler months is natural as our body like to burn fat for fuel to keep us warm. However in the summer, light and simple is a better way to go, especially with all the fresh delicious local fruit available

Sesame Pecan Lace Cookies

A Lesson in Substitution

Lace cookies are a traditional fancy cookie, so thin and delicate that they bubble in the oven, giving them a lacey look. This is a conversion of a traditional recipe that used a combination of white flour and ground blanched almonds.  It is important to understand that both ingredients will tend to dry the mixture and this makes the cookie a little stronger. Most people would buy the almonds, already ground, which, most of the time, are stale and extremely dry. I did not want to use almonds for this recipe (mainly, because I didn’t have any the time) but I understood that the substitution had to match the power to bind. Sesame seeds are a great option.

Late July and August is a perfect time to find fresh apricots and wild blueberries at your local famer’s markets and should be available at your local specialty and grocery stores. If not, ask for it. Let store owners know you want to purchase in-season local fruits and vegetables so they understand that there is a market for these items.

 

This recipe is a perfect summer treat. The custard is light and the pastry flaky and the mild flavour of the custard allow the rich flavours of the fruit to stand out. If you are “pastry challenged”, you may want to do the gluten free version which is impossible to overwork. Pastry can be challenging as you must not stretch the gluten or the pastry will be tough. Gluten-free pasty does not have that problem.

 

Like the crisp, cobbler and betty, as well as several other versions, the buckle is believed to be a variation of the pie. Colonists who came to North America would not always find the ingredients they typically used so many of these desserts evolved based on what they did have to work with. Many of the earliest versions featured the various berries which are native to North America especially in New England and Canada.  

The buckle is a layer of cake with a layer of fruit and baked with a crumble topping. Some recipes fold the fruit into the cake layer but this is not necessary as leavening from the baking powder will cause the cake layer to rise and envelop the fruit. Any fruit can be used in this versatile dessert.

A delicious cookie made with wine, figs and onions. That's right, onions. It has to be tasted to be believed. The onions mellow the sharpness of the wine and the excessive 'figgyness' of the figs, giving the cookie a rich complex flavor profile.
Onions, wine and figs are three of the most phyto-nutrient rich foods and by combining them, flavor and health benefits are improved .

I conceived this dessert in my mind in 1985 while sitting in a bar in Spain; staring at a picture of tartufo. Pure ice cream and sorbet are two of the easiest, cleanest desserts to make. Any type of sweetener can be used since it is the technology of the ice cream machine that makes it airy and, therefore, easy to eat as a frozen product. Freezing things successfully is all about air. As long as there is air in it, anything freezes well. By marrying the meringue, also full of air, together with the sorbet and ice cream, a delicious combination of sweet and tart and smooth and crunchy is achieved.