Crust less sweet potato pie

I always joke that I can be a vegan if I can quit drinking wine. After putting my daughter to bed during the week or the weekend night, I would have a glass of wine while catching up news or watching movies. It’s sort of my way of slowing down from the fast-moving day and relaxing. But then, I get into this bad habit, snacking while drinking. These past few days, I have tried to steel away from mindless snacking at night. While I was checking inside the refrigerator for dinner idea yesterday afternoon, I saw the two peeled roasted sweet potatoes from the other day. I decided to bake this crust less sweet potato pie. As always, baking makes me happy and this healthy dessert after dinner helped me feel full and satisfied.

Ingredients:

2 to 3 roasted sweet potatoes, peeled and meshed with a fork, about 2 cups (see note)

3/4 cup water or milk of your preference (see note)

2 tablespoon grounded flaxseed or chia seeds

1-2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/2 cup buckwheat flour (see note)

1/4 cup organic sugar in the raw turbinado sugar or more to your preference

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup pecan (optional)

In the food processor, add roasted sweet potatoes, chia seeds or flaxseeds if using, pipkin pie spice, and water. Purée for a minute or two until the mixture resembles pancake batter texture (see below picture). If the mixture is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of liquid a time.

In a glass measure cup, combine buckwheat flour, sugar and baking powder. I used a Pyrus 9.5″ pie plate and didn’t bother to grease it. Pour in the sweet potatoes mixture first and then the flour mixture. Gently fold them together and sprinkle the top with roughly chopped pecan. Bake at 350F for about 50 minutes. I let it cool down on the dinning table.

After dinner, I can’t wait to cut myself a slice. It slided out nicely. But it’s moist and creamy. It’s not very sweet but the pumpkin pie spice compensate the sweetness. I wanted to savor every single bite but found myself quickly finish the whole slice and went for the second. Omg. Who is the one trying to stop overeating?

We finished the leftover today. The pie is as good as it was yesterday. Yummy!

Note:

I have made this pie couple times. Make sure that you roast the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil at 350F for about one hour. You want the roasted sweet potato on the dry side. Therefore, the sweet potato mixture won’t be too watery.

I used Arrowhead mills buckwheat flour. I have also made this pie with koda farm mochiko flour and 1% organic milk (substitute non-dairy milk for vegan). My kids like the chewy texture from the mochiko flour. But I like the buckwheat version.

I also prefer using golden ground flaxseed for smoother texture. But I ran out of it yesterday and used chia seeds instead.

March 30, 2016 by tracy1153 Categories: Dessert, recipeTags: Buckwheat, Crustless, Dairy free, Easy, Egg free, Healthy, oil fre, Pecan, quick, Sweet potato pie, Vegan Leave a comment

Jam cookies two ways

I don’t remember why I bought a jar of organic raspberry spread a while back (to admit, I like to try new products). My kids had been eyeing on it. Finally, we opened it to eat with my no knead bread over the snowbound weekend. Then the jar has been sitting inside the refrigerator. So I decided to make some jam cookies. I always made them with nuts, but came up the nut free version for my kids’ school snacks (inspired by my earlier posting of Avocado cookies).

Nut free oat jam cookies:

1/3 cup water

3 tablespoon flaxseed meal (note 1)

2 cup quick cooking oats

4-5 tablespoon orange sugar (note 2)

1/2 teaspoon baking soda (optional)

jam of your preference

Mix 1/3 cup water with 3 tablespoon flaxseed meal in a glass measuring cup and set it aside. Grind the quick cooking oats in the food processor to a coarse meal or to a flour if you prefer. Transfer the oats to a plate, use the spatula to mix in the orange zest sugar and baking soda.
Then, fold in the flaxseed meal mixture until combined. Use a ice cream spoon and scoop them out on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare the nut version jam cookies.

Pecan oat jam cookies:

1 cup pecans or nuts of your preference

1/3 cup organic raisins or dried fruits of your preference

2/3 cup quick cooking oats

1-2 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)

2 tablespoon water

jam of your preference

Measure all ingredients into the food processor. Pulse couple times until the mixture come together. Or do nuts first and then the rest if you prefer nuts and oats in different texture. Use the spatula to scrap out everything into the same plate. If the mixture is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of water a time. Let the mixture sit for couple minutes.

While the nut mixture is resting, use the back of half teaspoon to make an indentation of each nut free oat cookie and fill the indentation with raspberry jam.

Then use the same ice cream scoop to scoop out the pecan oat mixture to the parchment paper lined baking sheet. Repeat the same process, making an indentation and filling with the jam. Bake them both at 350F for 15-20 minutes.

My husband and my son each swallowed three pecan oat jam cookies within minutes after I set them on the cooling rack. So my daughter took a close shot of one cookie only ^^.
I tasted both but preferred the nut free version. The orange zest balance the sweetness of the sugar. My daughter loves both. What do you like?

Note 1:

I used to buy Bob’s red mill golden flaxseed meal. But now, I buy them at whole food bulk aisle and grind them in the coffee grinder.

Note 2:

To make orange sugar, mix equal amount of orange zest and organic raw sugar. You get about 1 tablespoon of zest from 1 organic orange. Alternatively, you can use zest of other citrus fruits and adjust the amount of sugar. Or use honey or maple syrup for sugar free version, but you may need more oat flour.  If the cookie mixture is too dry, add 1 tablespoon water a time. Vise versa. If the mixture is too runny, add 1 tablespoon oat flour a time.

 

January 28, 2016 by tracy1153 Categories: recipe, SnackTags: Chia seeds, Easy, Gulten free, Healthy, jam, Jam cookie, Kids friendly, Nut free, Oats, Oil free, Orange zest, Pecan, sugar free, Vegan Leave a comment

Kabocha squash cookies

Honestly, I haven’t been baking for days except making mini banana chocolate muffins for my daughter’s star student celebration. Why? I received this 48oz coffee cake (OMG) from my prior boss and various treats for the coming holiday. I have been stuffing myself and feeding kids those festive food while feeling so guilty><. No wonder people set their new year resolution to start eating healthy.. I am definitely one of them!!

So finallly, I am making these guilt free cookies using homemade kabobcha squash purée left from making the soup the other day.

Ingredients:

1 cup kabocha squash purée (note)

2 heaping tablespoon chia seeds (optional)

1/3 cup crasin or dried fruits of your preference

1/3 cup pecans or nuts of your preference, roughly chopped

1 cup instant cooking oats

combine all ingredients together. use ice cream scoop to make them into ball shapes or use tablespoon to flatten them into cookies. Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes. My daughter already swallowed three of them before the picture was taken:-).

Note:

you can also use sweet potato purée but may need to adjust the amount of oats added in depending on the moisture level of the purée.

December 20, 2015 by tracy1153 Categories: recipe, SnackTags: Chia seeds, Cookies, craisin, Easy, Gluten free, Healthy, Kabocha squash, Oat, Pecan, Vegan Leave a comment

Buckwheat oat apple pancake

Who doesn’t like pancake on a lazy Sunday morning? The smell and the taste of the pancake literally make me wake up with a smile. My kids love sweet potato pancakes (see my prior posting). But then I have seen these two apples laying on the countertop for days. I decided to make a twist..

ingredients:

1 cup buckwheat flour

1/2 cup instant cooking oats (notes)

1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional)

1-2 teaspoon cinnamon and pinch of nutmeg or spice of your preference

1 1/2 cup water or liquid of your preference

2 mid-size apples

pecans just handful (optional)

oil of your preference for pan frying

In a bowl, combine flour, oats, chia seeds if using, cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour in the water and let the mixture rest. Roughly chop pecans and roast in a small nonstick pan under low heat. shred apples (I got a bit over 2 cups). Then, fold in apples in the flour mixture, and set aside the roasted pecans. In the same nonstick pan, drop the mixture of your preferred size and pan fry it like making any pancakes. They were more like apple hash^^.  Last but not the least, sprinkle the pecans on the top and serve with honey or maple syrup.

Note:

I used coarsely ground buckwheat flour from a local farm. So it’s almost black color. You can use arrowhead mills buckwheat flour. They are lighter in color.

You can use oat flour instead of quick cooking oats. Also feel free to add in your preferred nuts and/or dried fruit. But you may need to adjust the liquid a little bit more or less.

 

December 6, 2015 by tracy1153 Categories: recipeTags: Apple, Buckwheat, Chia seeds, Easy, Gluten free, Healthy, Oats, Pancake, Pecan, Vegan Leave a comment