Moroccan Pilaf & Cinnamon Sunflower Truffles

A couple of weekends ago I went up to Milwaukee to celebrate Gregory's birthday. We exchanged a few e-mails before the visit to decide on the menu options. He was all about cooking up a delicious dinner that was elimination diet friendly and I could not be more appreciative of that! I really enjoy cooking and baking, but my limits have been stretched on this journey since I need to prepare every meal and snack 24/7 to ensure that I am am not taking in any additives or other foods that I should not be having. Unfortunately this is one of the few recipes that has made me realize that dried fruits (raisins, currants, figs, etc) are a migraine trigger for me, but I still wanted to pass it along, because it is an absolutely wonderful blend of flavors and textures. I have made quite a few recipes from http://www.nourishingmeals.com/ and Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook ,which is where I am gaining all the knowledge for my elimination diet, and everything has been so good. I will continue to make these recipes again and again, even once I am through with this cleanse. We also decided to try our hand and one of the elimination diet friendly desserts and if I do say so myself, they were pretty delectable little treats, even though they looked like cheesy meatballs! It also made me want to invest in a food processor since we had a little incident with a wooden spoon and the blender. Gregory got an extra birthday present and was the lucky recipient of a small wood chip in the last truffle he ate, whoopsy!


Moroccan Quinoa Pilaf
Ingredients:
-2 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
-1 medium onion, diced
-4 carrots, sliced into rounds
-1 cup raw almonds, chopped
-½ cup currants
-1 ½ to 2 teaspoons mild curry powder
-½ teaspoon turmeric
-½ teaspoon ground cardamom
-1 teaspoon Herbamare (this can be found in the natural/organic spices; you can also substitute sea salt)
-4 cups chopped kale
-4 to 5 cups cooked and cooled quinoa (about 1 cup dry)
-1 small lemon, juiced


Directions:
1. Heat a large skillet with olive oil over medium heat. Saute onions for 5 minutes. Add in carrots, and saute about 10 minutes more. Until soft but not quite browned.
2. Add the almonds, currants, and spices- Saute 5 minutes. Add in chopped kale (still wet from washing) and saute 5 more minutes.
3. Stir in Quinoa and stir until thouroughly mixed and all ingredients are heated through. Remove from heat and add lemon juice.

Cinnamon Sunflower Truffles  
Ingredients:
-2 Cups raw Sunflower Seeds
-2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
-1/8 Teaspoon Sea Salt
-1 Cup Pitted Medjool Dates
-2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
-2 Tablespoons Agave Nectar or Maple Syrup
-1/2 Cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

1.Place the sunflower seeds, cinnamon, and sea salt into a food processor fitted with the "s" blade. Process until seeds are very finely ground. It only takes a minute or so.

2.Then add the pitted dates and olive oil. Process again until combined and sticky. Only add the agave or maple syrup if need be. Your dates may be moist enough and you might not need extra sweetener. Check to see if you can form a truffle by rolling some of the mixture in your hands. If it falls apart then add the sweetener and process again. If I were to do this again without a food processor I would process the dates in a separate blender and then mix them with the sunflower seeds.
3. Scoop out the sunflower mixture by the large spoonful and roll into balls. Then roll in shredded coconut. Store in the fridge for up to 10 days.

Magic Blondies

I have found a new favorite recipe! Not just because it tastes great, but it is the perfect recipe to use up all the half bags of chocolate chips, craisins, coconut, nuts, or anything else you may have in your cabinets from a baking extravaganza around the holidays. These were so easy and delicious I actually made them two nights in a row. My roomies were quite dissappointed when I didn't bring any leftovers home from the ones I brought to the office so we made another batch that night. This recipe, of course, comes from Martha Stewart. I made them in a mini-muffin pan and it was the perfect size for the plethora of flavors.

Ingredients:
-2/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut
-2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
-2/3 cup chopped pecans (about 2 1/2 ounces)
-2/3 cup dried cherries or cranberries
-1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
-1 teaspoon baking powder
-3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
-9 tablespoons (1 1/8 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
-1 cup packed light-brown sugar
-2 large eggs
-1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line a standard 24-cup mini muffin tin with paper liners; set aside. Stir together coconut, chocolate, pecans, and craisins in a medium bowl; set aside.

2.Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

3.Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla; mix until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and mix, scraping down sides of bowl, until well combined. Mix in 1 cup coconut mixture.

4.Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each about three-quarters full. Sprinkle remaining coconut mixture over tops. Bake blondies until a cake tester inserted into center comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, about 15 minutes. Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

Oodles of Doodles Sandwich Cookies

Considering I am still thinking about the delicious cinnamon sugar crepe that I had while in Austin I decided to share the wealth and make some snicker doodle cookies inspired by the crepes. I made Betty Crocker's lighter recipe for the snicker doodles. That way I don't have to feel too bad about sandwiching 2 together and adhering with a delicious cream cheese frosting. I used Martha Stewart's cream cheese frosting recipe as an homage to my brother who has been going through the 'Martha Stewart Baking Book' page by page for over a year. As an added touch I sprinkled some toasted coconut into the frosting while making the cookies. I think it adds the perfect flavor to make these a little more special than your average cookie. I personally think that coconut is delicious, although I know plenty of people that beg to differ, so for those crazy folks I left some cookies without the addition.