Carrot macaroni and cheese recipe

I've been in denial for the last few weeks, but I'm finally starting to accept the fact that I'm moving across the country in less than a week.  Don't get me wrong, I'm beyond excited, but I always turn into a mess before I move.  When I left for college, I cried for the entire 5 hour drive, and as I was moving out after college, I broke down in the food court on campus and cried like a baby (luckily this was the food court right next to the hospital, so crying was a common occurrence).  Of course I'll miss my friends more than anything, but it's also hard to say goodbye to all of my food-related loves in Michigan (particularly my farmers' market, my CSA farm, and Zingerman's).  And I'll miss the kitchen where I really fell in love with cooking.  I packed up the kitchen yesterday (how did I have so much stuff in there??), and it's weird seeing it so empty.  I still have a few things that I'm taking in my car because I can't survive without the ability to at least cook the basics while the rest of my belongings are in limbo on a moving truck, but it's not the same.  I'm excited to create new food memories in my new kitchen, but I'll always have fond memories of this one.  So, it's only fitting that I share one of the last things I made in Michigan, carrot mac and cheese.

It should be no surprise to you that I crammed vegetables into mac and cheese, and this worked wonderfully.  I really liked the way that the carrot blended with the cheese to make a hearty sauce that wasn't too heavy.  It was sweeter than your typical version, but it wasn't too much, and I thought it was a nice change.  However, unlike normal mac and cheese, I didn't enjoy the leftovers cold (I know I'm weird...), so make sure you warm it up.

Carrot macaroni and cheese (adapted from Food & Wine)
(Printable version)

12 oz. carrots, sliced thinly
1 large orange, zested and juiced
1/2 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz. chunky brown rice pasta (penne, fusilli, etc.)
3 oz. sharp cheddar cheese

Combine carrots, orange zest and juice, and water in a small saucepan, cover, and let simmer over medium heat until carrots are tender (about 30 min).  Let the carrots cool for a few minutes, and then puree them in a blender with salt and pepper (you may need a little bit more water to make a thick puree).

Cook the pasta according to package directions (make sure to stop when it's al dente), and reserve about a cup of the water before draining the pasta.  Add the pasta back to it's cooking pot, stir in the carrot and reserved pasta water, and let cook over medium heat for 5 min.  Then add 2/3 of the cheese and stir well.  Spread pasta out in a 8x8" baking pan and top with remaining cheese.  Bake at 350 for 20 min.  Serves 4.

Hello again!

Wow, it's been a while.  Between finishing up things in the lab, packing, and trying to see everyone before I move next week, I've been quite busy.  Plus, last weekend I went to Florida to throw Mom a surprise birthday party.  I think I cooked more for the party than I have at home in the past month (I've been living off of the cooked grains and beans from my freezer).  I made two cakes: a flourless chocolate cake that was rich and delicious, and an Italian cream cake (apparently it was so good that Mom asked me to make another one while I was home, and I've been informed that I'm making it for a family reunion).  For the last few years almost everything I've baked has been gluten-free with very minimal sugar, so it was incredibly easy not worrying about either (the chocolate cake was gluten-free, though).  The other favorites at the party were the stuffed mushrooms and bacon-wrapped jalapenos, both from The Pioneer Woman.

 She didn't have a heart attack or spill her wine!!

I have a couple of recipes that I'll hopefully get around to sharing in the next week or so, but I doubt I'll be cooking much in the next couple of weeks because I'm planning to pack my kitchen this weekend, and I have no idea how long my belongings will be stuck on a moving truck somewhere between Michigan and Georgia.  After that, hopefully I'll be able to share all kinds of concoctions (likely involving peaches and tomatoes... probably not together, but who knows!).

Two gluten-free granola bar recipes

In addition to the fig, pecan, and flax crackers I made for my Mother's Day care package, I also sent two kinds of granola bars.  I found two recipes that sounded fantastic and couldn't decide between them, so I went overboard as usual.  Luckily granola bars fare well in the freezer, so none of them went to waste.  Both have relatively little refined sugar and are gluten-free, and I thought both were delicious.  Unfortunately the cocoa and orange variety (on the bottom in the picture, if you can actually tell them apart) had too much liquid and didn't stay together very well at all (I pieced one together for the picture).  I loved the combination of chocolate and orange, though, and I think the problem could be remedied simply by reducing the amount of orange juice.  The fig, raisin, and walnut ones were fabulous, too, and these held together well.  So, here are both recipes.  I recommend going overboard and trying both.  What do you have to lose?

Cocoa and orange granola bars (adapted from Anja's Food 4 Thought)
(Printable version)

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
zest of one orange
3/4 cup dried fruit (I used half apricots and half currants)
1 1/4 cup orange juice (I would start with 3/4 cup and add more if necessary)
2 Tbsp honey

Combine oats, walnuts, salt, cinnamon, cocoa powder, zest, and dried fruit in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, stir together orange juice and honey.  Pour the orange juice mixture into the dry ingredients and stir well.  Let this sit for 15 min, and then add more orange juice if the mixture isn't sticking together.  Spread this out on a parchment-lined baking sheet so that it's about 1/2" thick, and bake at 350 for 25 min.  Then let cool and cut into bars.  Wrap individually and freeze for long-term storage.  Makes 20 bars.


Fig, raisin, and walnut granola bars (adapted from Simply Sugar & Gluten-free)
(Printable version)

2 cups rolled oats
2 Tbsp flax meal
6 Tbsp teff flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup dried figs, chopped
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/3 cup agave nectar or honey
2 eggs, beaten
water if necessary

Combine oats, flax meal, teff flour, walnuts, figs, raisins, cinnamon, and ginger in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, stir together agave nectar and eggs.  Pour the agave mixture into the dry ingredients and stir well.  If you need to moisten the mixture so that everything sticks together, add water a tablespoon at a time.  Spread the mixture out on a parchment-lined baking sheet so that it's about 1/2" thick, and bake at 350 for about 20 min.  Then let cool and cut into bars.  Wrap individually and freeze for long-term storage.  Makes 20 bars.

Cabbage stuffed with quinoa pilaf recipe

I loved this simple quinoa pilaf, especially because my last pilaf was virtually inedible.  The flavors were very simple, but the combination of quinoa, tomatoes, raisins, and pine nuts was perfect.  I got the pilaf recipe from Gluten-Free Goddess, but decided to stuff cabbage instead of mushrooms.  The pilaf would be great alone, as well (I had some left after stuffing the cabbage, and enthusiastically gobbled it up while the cabbage rolls were baking).  I'm submitting this dish to Weekend Herb Blogging, which is organized by Haalo from Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once, and hosted by Astrid from Paulchen's Foodblog.

Cabbage stuffed with quinoa pilaf (adapted from Gluten-Free Goddess)
(Printable version)

8 large cabbage leaves
1 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups cooked quinoa
15 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 green onions, chopped
3 Tbsp raisins
3 Tbsp toasted pine nuts
salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and then add cabbage leaves and boil until they're tender (about 5 min).  Remove the leaves from the water and set aside to cool.  While the cabbage cools, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Then add the garlic and saute for a minute.  Stir in the remaining ingredients, season with salt and pepper, and let heat through for a few minutes before removing it from the burner.  Then stuff each cabbage leaf with about 1/3 cup quinoa pilaf, roll the cabbage up tightly, and place it seam side down into a large baking dish.  Bake at 350 for 20-30 min.  Serves 4.

Warm butter bean, red onion, and spinach salad with mustard recipe

Even after making Brunswick stew this week (which is getting better and better!), I still have butter beans in my freezer (for some reason I thought it was a great idea to cook 3 pounds of them a few months ago).  Before I made the stew, I was inspired by Gel's kitchen to make this salad.  I made the recipe and it was pretty good, but then I got the idea to add whole grain mustard.  Sometimes I have random last-minute ideas that fail miserably, but this one took the salad from ok to wonderful.  Next time I'll probably add more spinach, but it was great just as I made it.  I tried the leftovers warm and cold and couldn't decide which way was better.

Now the only problem is deciding how I want to use my last bag of butter beans.  Do I make more of this salad?  Do I try mashing them up like potatoes (an interesting idea I just read about)?  Any favorite recipes out there?

Warm butter bean, red onion, and spinach salad with mustard (adapted from Gel's kitchen)
(Printable version)

1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 large red onion, sliced thinly
2 1/2 cups cooked butter beans
salt and pepper to taste
2 large handfuls spinach
2 Tbsp whole grain mustard (I used one with horseradish)

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and then saute the onion until it's very tender (about 10 min).  Add butter beans to the skillet, season with salt and pepper, and stir everything around for a couple of minutes.  Then add spinach, stir well, and cook until the spinach wilts.  Stir in the mustard and serve.  Serves 3-4.