Baking up a storm!

According to the husband, I am constantly cooking up a storm.  He is right; I do cook a lot.  And the kitchen does sometimes look like a storm hit it, after I'm done.  Lately, I've been baking up a storm.  I've been craving soft, warm moist baked things that don't taste like rubber or crumble to nothingness on the first bite.   Can you blame me?

Here's what I've been baking:

Biscuits!  Recipe from Hey that tastes good!:  http://www.heythattastesgood.com/2008/12/biscuits.html

I made them vegan by using shortening and hemp milk.  Fantastic.  Even the hubby liked them.

Karina's Delicious Gluten Free Bread, from Karina's Kitchen:

http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2009/02/delicious-gluten-free-bread.html

I use brown rice flour instead of millet flour, and everything else stays the same.  Except, I do not have a bread machine, so into the oven it goes.  Scroll down to the bottom of the recipe for the non-bread machine instructions.  Great bread, and it still tastes decent after a week in the fridge.

Cinnamon Apple Muffins, also from Karina's Kitchen: 

http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2008/11/cinnamon-apple-muffins.html

Great tasting muffin, and freezes well.  Omitted the nuts and the allspice, simply because when I made these, I was craving muffins but in no mood to run to the store to get all the ingredients.

Pumpkin Pecan Cookies, also from Karina's Kitchen:

http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2008/11/pumpkin-pecan-cookies.html

I swear I am not virtually stalking Karina.  Really!  I omitted the nuts on both versions (I really should go to the store sometime) and used homemade pumpkin puree rather than canned.  Version 1 had chocolate chips from Enjoy Life and version two had dried cranberries.  Both were great, but I preferred the chocolate ones.  I think there is a chocoholic gene in my family!

Hamburger and Hotdog Buns from Celiac.com:  http://www.celiac.com/articles/404/1/Hamburger-or-Hot-Dog-Buns-Gluten-Free/Page1.html

Made both hamburger buns and hot dog buns.  The dough is very forgiving.  On the hamburger version, I messed up the measurements on the dry ingredients and I baked them at the wrong temperature.  They still came out okay.  I used Egg Replacer instead of the eggs and hemp milk instead of regular milk.  Good, non-crumbly buns!

Let me know what you've been baking.  I'm always on the look out for new ways to mess up the clean kitchen!

Good News!

My pistachios are not part of the pistachio recall.   That doesn't mean yours are safe to eat though.  

This is the email I got from Whole Paycheck:

Thank you for your email. Our Food Safety team is looking at all areas of our business, the FDA is investigating and we will continue to monitor the situation as it unfolds. At this time we have recalled

Flavor Tree In-Shell Salted Pistachios 16 oz with Best Before dates of 07/21/2009, 08/12/2009 & 10/16/2009 ONLY
365 Pistachios dry roasted & salted (In-Shell) 16oz with Best Before dates of 07/08/2009 GL1, 07/08/2009 GL2, & 11/27/2009 GL1 (other lot codes are not affected).

Please contact your local store regarding any bulk pistachios you may have purchased, since these items are sourced regionally.

All pistachio related recall information will be posted on our website at http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2009/04/pistachio-manufacturer-recall/

Kind regards,

-(Very nice customer service person at Whole Paycheck)

Mine have a different "Best Before" date, so I've been chowing down.

Pistachios

I've been craving pistachios lately.  I'm not even that fond of them.  There is a reason to why I crave them, but be advised that it's a long story.  In October, I was on a business trip, working the registration desk at a conference.  Another person there, who was working the same desk, left an almost full bag of roasted pistachios under the counter (distributed under the 365 brand by Whole Paycheck).  She lives in Seattle, but doesn't work at my office.  I figured I'd run into her at some point, so I brought the bag home.  I've seen her a few times since then, but never with advance notice, so I've never given them back.  

Last week, the hubby was looking for something to snack on, so I pulled out the bag.  And then I started snacking on them.  Even though I don't really like them.

Then, the pistachio recall happened.  I emailed Whole Paycheck immediately to find out if these pistachios were also recalled a few days ago, and I still haven't heard back, so I don't know if they're safe.  I totally understand that under our current food system, it takes a million years to track down the source of food (it shouldn't, but that's a whole nother post!).  So, these pistachios sit on my desk, staring at me every time I use the computer, begging me to eat them.  And, for some reason, they sound really good.  I think it's only because they are there, and I can't have them, that I crave them.  

Right now, they're calling my name, "Christina, eat me!  Eat me!  What are the odds I'll make you sick?"

I have to go away now, simply because I can't handle the siren song.