Homeland

I spent last weekend in Juneau- a very short trip, just barely three days for a family wedding. The weather was uncharacteristically beautiful for September and it was hands-down one of my favorite trips home in the past six years. It's so strange without my mom there, though!

My #1 required stop is always, always Paradise Cafe & Bakery. My brother met me there within an hour of my plane landing and we stuffed our faces with bread pudding and pastries. Perfection.

My grandpa Ralph spends a great amount of his time painting nature scenes with oil on canvas. His apartment is full of his work, and I snuck into his studio while my dad + uncle + grandpa were distracted trying to set up a tv. There's seriously amazing video of that- here!

Sandy Beach is sandy.

On the way to a family birthday party (seriously this weekend was full), Lizzie and I stopped by an open house for what used to be Kowee Creek Fish Hatchery, and is presently a beautiful home on the most insane piece of property I've ever seen. A salmon spawning creek runs along side the house, there's a massive garden, two waterfalls, a cave, beautiful old windows, and on and on.

My flight back to Seattle was perfectly clear almost the entire way, which is incredibly rare flying out of Juneau. I basically spent two hours staring out my window at ice fields.

 

Glorious!

Fancy Camping

Gluten Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread & A Lighting Issue

Two weeks ago, in my first CSA from Tiny's Organic- I was blessed with a child-sized zucchini. "Blessed" being a bit of an objective term. I've spent the past two weeks staring at this thing. It took up half of my butcher block counter and I'm pretty sure that it moved on its own at least once. A giant zucchini is not a thing to be dealt with lightly. You cannot just chop it up and throw it into whatever happens to be for dinner, or munch on lovely little zucchini spears. Absolutely not. Giant zucchinis exist solely to be baked into things.

from our garden - snuggling zucchinis by m soto

I modified this recipe to suit my needs. Gluten free, more zucchini, less sugar, and butter instead of oil. Feel free to work with the original recipe if you find it suits you better. My version yields a nicely sweet, soft and moist loaf, without even a hint of the density or gritty texture that's characteristic of many gluten free baked goods. It's hands down my favorite GF recipe so far.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs
3 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend (I used half Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free AP Flour, a quarter millet flour, and a quarter white rice flour- use whatever mixture you prefer.)
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp sea salt
2 tsp xanthan gum (omit if using standard flour)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 cups shredded zucchini - moisture squeezed out (I do this by wringing it out wrapped up in a clean dish towel or cheese cloth- do not skip this step or you'll end up with soggy bread!)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts


Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and lightly grease two 8"x4" loaf pans. In a large bowl beat together sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla extract until foamy. In a separate bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, salt, xanthan gum, baking powder, and baking soda. Gently stir dry ingredients into wet, being sure not to over-mix. Fold in shredded zucchini and chopped nuts, then pour batter into pans. Bake 50-60 minutes, until top is cracked and a toothpick inserted in the middle of your loaf comes out clean. Allow to cool before slicing.

---------------------

I'm having major issues with lighting my photos in my new apartment, and I need your help! Even in the middle of the day with both of my blinds open I don't get enough natural light to get a decent photo. The light in my apartment is extremely yellow, and I don't have enough photography/lighting skills to get around this. My food photos are hideous and it's bumming me out! Without being able to rely on natural light- what are my options for taking decent photos? Below is the best I could get of my zucchini bread. And normally I wouldn't photograph brown on top of brown, oops. Suggestions?

The Canning Queen & A Tale of Three Seasides

Two really wonderful videos showed up on my Google Reader this morning:

The first is from Etsy on a delightful woman named Classie Parker- The Canning Queen of the Desert. "I teach people how to put the love in their food- by canning!"


The Canning Queen of the Desert from Etsy on Vimeo.

I love her!

The second is from The Perennial Plate on foraging wild foods along the West Coast, and features one of my favorite bloggers and wild food enthusiasts Langdon Cook.


The Perennial Plate Episode 68: A Tale of Three Seasides from Daniel Klein on Vimeo.

Link Love!

- The photos on Honey and Jam alone are enough to completely suck you in- and paired with the recipes her blog is completely irresistible. This recipe for Tomato Cobbler is a beautiful savory take on a traditional fruit cobbler that would be the perfect use for gorgeous summer tomatoes.

- The comments on this recipe had me laughing. Earlier today Michael tweeted "See the comments; what do y'all think, too far or am I allowed a little sap once in awhile?" And I guess the funny part is that I absolutely loved his writing in this post. Peach and Sour Cream Buckle is a simple recipe with just the right amount of mush. I love it.

- I have no idea how I managed to wait so long to link to this recipe. Grits with Corn, Goat Cheese, and Roasted Tomatoes from The Kitchn was one of those recipes that I made the same day that I discovered it. It tastes like eating summer. I used a beautiful vegetable ash chevre in mine and kind of wanted to cry it was so good. Please make this.

- Another recipe from The Kitchn that I should have shared some time ago- Velvety Broccoli and Feta Pasta has been a major stand-by for me the past few months. I generally end up eating half of the pesto out of my food processor bowl with a fork and my fingers. No shame.

What have you been loving lately?

Events: August 20th & 21st- Arts in Nature Festival & September 2nd through 5th- Radical Mycology Convergence

I'm a little late on this post- as Arts in Nature Festival starts in less than twelve hours- but I do love last minute plans.

"This experiential performing-arts based event which includes a wide variety of live music performances, dance troupes, aerial & fire performances, interactive arts activities, illuminaria, and sound & visual installations in 8 of the rustic cabins creating a Museum of Sound that festival attendees can explore and interact with.  Some of this year’s festival artists include: Trimpin, The Moondoggies, The Legandary Oaks, Lelavision, The Cabiri, Christian Swenson, Caspar Babypants, and The Early Music Guild to name a few.  The event is free with a suggested $10 donation.  It is also a waste-free event with food served on reusable plates and cloth napkins." 

More information can be found here!

------------

The Radical Mycology Convergence is happening over Labor Day weekend and is going to be a weird and awesome weekend full of weird and awesome mushroomy things. I am almost a little embarrassed about how excited I am about this.

"A free, volunteer-run gathering of mycologists, hobbyists, and Earth healers coming together to share skills and information related to  the benefits of the fungal kingdom in terms of remediative properties as well as human uses. This weekend-long event will culminate in a remediation project to put theory to practice and will also be a unique chance to build community with like-minded mycophiles (aka mushroom lovers) from around North America."

More information can be found here, and please do note that you need to RSVP to attend. I will be leaving from Seattle that Saturday mid-afternoon and have room in my tiny car for another two people. Shoot me an email at renai.marie@areyoumyghost.com if you're interested in carpooling! Car is FULL!

Vegan & Gluten Free Coconut Cupcakes

 Uh oh from Another Pint Please

I normally wouldn't ever post a recipe without including a picture of the actual said item, but I'm still in a bit of a battle with the lighting in my apartment. If I posted any of the pictures I took you probably wouldn't want to make these. I sure as hell wouldn't.

Despite their lack of a decent photo- these cupcakes are unbelievably light and tender, and not even just for a gluten free baked good. Admittedly- there are a lot of leavening agents going on here, but they work really well with Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Flour which has become my go-to for much of my GF baking. These can easily be made with standard AP flour as well- just omit the xanthan gum.

Ingredients:
- 2 cups Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Flour or flour of choice
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 2 tsp. xanthan gum (omit if not using GF flour)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1 14oz can unsweetened coconut milk (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce, smashed banana, or yogurt (vegan or non is fine)
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup unsweetened flake coconut, plus extra for topping cupcakes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and line a muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl sift together dry ingredients including sugar, and set aside. Combine coconut milk, applesauce, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl. Create a well in your dry ingredients, then pour in wet ingredients. Fold together gently, being sure not to over mix (gluten free flours aren't really an issue with this- but it's a good practice regardless). While batter is still lumpy- gently fold in coconut flakes. Spoon batter into liners, top with additional coconut, and bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before eating- and feel free to top with powdered sugar or frosting of your choice if you'd like them a little more sweet. Makes 1 dozen.

Pretty Little Peach Pie

I ended up making my version with Greek yogurt and not quite enough sugar. My peaches were lovely but still a bit tart. This baked up beautifully though, and I wasn't left with even a smidge of a piece leftover. I do love my old co-workers.

Original recipe here.