Secret Recipe Club

Secret Recipe Club – Zucchini Bread Pancakes

March 16, 2014 by angelaskitchen 6 Comments

It is time again for Secret Recipe Club reveal day! Woo-hoo! What is the Secret Recipe Club? It’s a lot like Secret Santa, but with recipes. Each month you are assigned a blog. After selecting a recipe from that bloggers repertoire, you make and post it on reveal day. It is a great way to find fun recipes and blogs. I like how it gets me to actually sit down and go through another person’s blog. Blogs are a lot of work and take time to put together. Instead of skimming through just the new stuff (as is usually easier when we see a new blog) it is fun to really sit down and go through what else the blog has to offer. Fun stuff!

Makin' Zucchini Bread Pancakes with my little helper!

My assignment this month was Andrea’s blog, Adventures In All Things Food. On her site she has all sorts of lovely cooking (like Homemade Pumpkin Syrup, Apple Walnut Waffles, Corn Tortillas, Tzitziki Sauce, and Creamy Sweet Potato Hummus), crafting (check out this unbelievably cute Easter Bunny Onesie and these awesome Felted Pumpkins), and peeks into their life on a farm (including their chickens, so you KNOW I love that). I checked with my littlest helper who wanted to help with my challenge this month and her choice was Zucchini Cake Pancakes. YUM!

My big changes were to make the recipe gluten and dairy free (of course) and increasing the vanilla a touch. The biggest issue I faced was that zucchini is not in season, so wasn’t as juicy as peek season zucchini AND I needed to have more liquid for the batter as I was working with a gluten free flour blend. The big thing to watch for is to make the batter thin enough for pancakes so that it cooks all the way through and doesn’t stay doughy in the center.

My recommendation is to make a single pancake to see if it cooks though and if you need to adjust the liquid balance of the batter. Gluten free flour blends can be weird like that… 🙂 We loved the flavor of these and will make them again using other gluten free flour blends until we find the one that works the best. I’ll update this post when that happens, because I think this recipe is a keeper!

Secret Recipe Club – Zucchini Bread Pancakes

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Course breakfast & brunch, dairy free, gluten free, pancakes

Servings 4

Ingredients

3 cups packed zucchini shredded & drained
1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour blend with xanthan gum I used Better Batter Flour
1 1/2 tablespoons ground golden flax seed optional
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground or grated nutmeg
3 large eggs
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup plain dairy free yogurt I used coconut yogurt
1/4 to 1/2 cup plain unsweetened milk substitute I used almond milk, more as needed
Zest from half a lemon finely minced, optional
2 teaspoons gluten free vanilla extract

Instructions

Make sure your zucchini has drained a bit before using it in this recipe. If your squash is fresh, it will give off a lot of excess water as it sits. Grate zucchini first, then set aside in a colander while assembling the other ingredients.
In a small bowl whisk together the dry ingredients: gluten free flour blend, ground golden flax, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add remaining ingredients, except the zucchini. Mix everything together. We used an immersion blender to mix this part of the recipe. The batter will be thick. Add zucchini and stir into batter. If batter seems too thick, add more milk substitute until batter is the correct thickness for pancake batter.
Pour 1/4 cup of pancake batter in an oiled or well seasoned pre-heated skillet. Cook till golden on one side and steam bubbles start to form on the top. Flip and wait till the other side turns golden brown. Continue with remaining batter until all pancakes are cooked. Serve with maple syrup and enjoy!

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Secret Recipe Club – Cranberry Pomegranate Vanilla Popcorn

December 15, 2013 by angelaskitchen 6 Comments

This month my assignment was Heather’s blog, Join Us, Pull Up a Chair. I love the yummy variety of things on her blog. SO many yummy, yummy things, like Crunchy Quinoa Salad, Cranberry Chutney, Garlic Scape Pesto, Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting, Quinoa Pizza Bites, German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars and Italian Chard Soup. Swoon! I wanted to pick something I could bring to the holiday celebrations that are happening now. As my kiddos love popcorn, we made a Christmas variation of Heather’s Valentine’s Day Popcorn. Because of our allergies and how we roll, I don’t use microwave popcorn, so adapted the recipe to cook in our Whirley Pop popcorn popper. I also wanted to avoid food dye so we could share this with friends who can’t eat food dyes, so replaced the color with 100% pomegranate juice. It worked like a charm! And the very subtle pom flavor mixed nicely with the vanilla. To make everything a bit more seasonal, I tossed in dried cranberries. Thanks for the inspiration, Heather! I can’t wait to try more recipes from your blog.

Secret Recipe Club – Cranberry Pomegranate Vanilla Popcorn

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Course dairy free, gfcf, gluten free, popcorn, Snack

Ingredients

3 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pomegranate juice
2 teaspoon gluten free vanilla extract clear for brightest color, but I only had brown on hand
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
salt to taste
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Instructions

Stir together sugar, pomegranate juice and vanilla. Set aside. Measure popcorn and set aside.
Put coconut oil three popcorn kernels to the whirly pop. Snap down the lid. Put pan over medium-high heat and start cranking the handle on the pan to stir. When the there kernels have popped, add sugar mixture and popcorn to pan. Close pan cover. Continue to crank handle on whirly pop until popcorn finished popping.
When all popcorn has popped, remove from heat. Pour popcorn into a bowl or pan and salt to taste. Toss with dried cranberries.
Any left over popcorn can be cooled completely before storing in an air-tight container.

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Secret Recipe Club – Marshmallow Popcorn Balls

November 10, 2013 by angelaskitchen

This month my assignment was Corey’s blog, at Learning Patience. I love the yummy variety of things on her blog. SO many tasty things, like Grilled Fennel Crusted Pork Chops, Grilled Romaine Salad with Shrimp, Mexican Sweet Potato Fries, Wonton Mini Nacho Bowls, 7 Vegetable Quinoa Soup, Bruschetta with Shrimp, Tarragon and Arugula and Crunchy Chocolate Chip Coconut Macadamia Nut Cookies.

It was a tough call, but last month with Halloween looming and days of leaf raking ahead, there was no question in my mind which recipe I needed to make: Marshmallow Popcorn Balls. Yum! These fun treats were really fun to make, easy and delicious. I added some seasonal sprinkles to add to the fun. I can’t wait to make these with other seasonal sprinkles for upcoming holiday treat platters. 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe, Corey!

Secret Recipe Club - Marshmallow Popcorn Balls

adapted by Angela Litzinger at test.angelaskitchen.com from Corey at http://www.thehinzadventures.com/2013/01/15/marshmallow-popcorn-balls/

The recipe I have included is the basic popcorn ball. Add up to 3 cups mix-in options when adding the popcorn to the melted marshmallow for different varieties.

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Course dairy free, Desserts and Treats, gfcf, gluten free, Halloween

Ingredients

12 cups popped popcorn
Up to 3 cups of mix-in ingredients optional: nuts, dried cranberries, chopped apricots, etc.
10 oz. package marshmallows
1/4 cup gluten and dairy free margarine or 3 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
sprinkles optional

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the popcorn and any mix-in's. Set aside.
In a large pot, combine marshmallows, margarine or coconut oil, and salt.
Cook marshmallow stirring very often over medium-low heat until melted.
Pour hot marshmallow mixture over popcorn mixture, and mix well.
When cool enough to handle, oil hands and shape mixture into balls. When shaped, decorate with sprinkles and place in a lightly oiled muffin tin to hold shape.
To store, wrap each popcorn ball in plastic when cooled.

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Warm Lemon Pudding – Secret Recipe Club

May 12, 2013 by angelaskitchen

My assigned blog this month was No Reason Needed. She participates in a bunch of fun blog groups, so there were tons of delicious things to pick from. I almost made Apple Streusel Inside-Out Cake or the Banana Sundae Sauce, then Chicka Chicka Salad turned my head. I’m telling ya, it was a hard decision! I finally went with Warm Lemon Pudding. The tangy lemon sounded like just what I needed to celebrate Spring weather FINALLY arriving in my area.

I altered the Warm Lemon Pudding to be gluten and dairy free, because that is how we rock at our house. Then, because I was hoping for a sponge cake topping, I also whipped the egg whites separately before folding them into the batter. Finally I decided to bake my puddings in single servings sizes and use a water bath during the baking process to help keep the pudding/custard part to set without curdling. I wasn’t sure if this was necessary, but felt it was a good idea as I was baking the pudding in single serving sizes. The final puddings baked up light and fluffy. The top layer has a texture between a light sponge cake and a meringue and the pudding layer on the bottom is more of a sauce that thickens to a pudding texture as it cools. Gluten Free Dairy Free Lemon Pudding is a wonderful light dessert with a bright lemon flavor that would pair beautifully with all the lovely Spring berries that are out right now. Thanks so much for the recipe. It is wonderful!

Warm Lemon Pudding

I used 2 medium-large lemons to get the amount of zest and juice needed for this recipe.

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Course dairy free, Dessert, gfcf, gluten free, lemon, pudding

Ingredients

2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons corn starch or sweet rice flour
1 cup gluten & dairy free milk substitute of choice I used drinkable-style coconut milk from a carton
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 egg yolks room temperature
2 tablespoons finely minced lemon zest
1 teaspoon gluten free vanilla
3 egg whites room temperature

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In a blender, food processor or using a mixer, whisk together the sugar and corn starch. Add the milk substitute, lemon juice, egg yolks, lemon zest and vanilla, blending well.
In a separate bowl, whip egg whites until they are a whipped into a stiff peak. Fold the whipped egg whites into the yolk mixture until well blended.
Divide mixture between 6 ramekins, custard cups or canning jars. Place ramekins into a 9x13 baking dish. Pour hot water into the baking dish until halfway up the ramekins. Place into a 325 degrees F oven. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until set. Allow pudding to cool enough to eat, or cool completely for a thicker pudding layer.

Secret Recipe Club – Dairy Free Cardamom Ice Cream with Candied Pistachios

April 14, 2013 by angelaskitchen 10 Comments

My assigned blog this month was Corina at Searching for Spice. Corina’s blog is a record of some of the dishes she is making and as a push to try new things. It is lovely! So many delicious things I need to go back and try, such as Avocado, Yogurt and Coriander Dip, Watercress Risotto, or Afghan Potato Salad and Beef Kebabs. Yum! But the recipe haunting my dreams was Cardamom and Pistachio Ice Cream. I changed it up by making it dairy free (because that is how we roll) and changing it from a pistachio ice cream to one with candied pistachios, because… Well, because I wanted to! Mmmmm….

Caramel ribbons studded with toasted pistachio in cardamom ice cream. The stuff of dreams, I tell ya. Um, and my kids may have caught me licking the ice cream paddle after it was made. And I wouldn’t share until the ice cream had chilled more. It is that good. Thank you, Corina! We will be making this again with the pistachios in the ice cream, because this ice cream is magical. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Secret Recipe Club – Dairy Free Cardamom Ice Cream with Candied Pistachios

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Course dairy free, desserts & treats, gfcf, gluten free, ice cream

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup a 13.5 oz can canned coconut milk (NOT low fat)
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 large egg
3/4 cup sugar
for candied pistachios:
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoon water
1/2 tablespoon coconut oil
1/2 cup roasted pistachios

Instructions

Combine the coconut milk and cardamom in a saucepan. Heat on medium-low heat, whisking often. As soon as it is about to simmer, take pan off the heat and leave for 15 minutes for the cardamom to infuse.
Beat the egg with the sugar until light colored.
Slowly pour the coconut milk mixture into the egg yolk and sugar, whisking all the time.
Return the egg, sugar and coconut milk mixture to the saucepan and heat gently, whisking continuously. It should gradually thicken. Stop when it forms a custard that coats the back of a spoon. Pour mixture through a stainer. Put plastic wrap on the surface of the custard before chilling for a minimum of 2 hours or over night.
To make candied pistachios, combine sugar and water in a saucepan and place on medium-high heat. Swirl pan several times until sugar is dissolved. Wipe down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to remove sugar crystals. Cook for about 10 minutes just till you see the mixture start to turn color. I cooked mine until a soft caramel stage (use and ice water test). Add the coconut oil and stir to combine. As soon as the oil is melted, add the nuts and remove from the heat. Pour over a silpat or parchment paper and spread it out. Set aside to cool. Can be made ahead of time but be careful, you’ll eat it before you make the ice cream.
When ready to make ice cream, put custard into ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturers instructions. After churning in the ice cream maker, fold in caramel/candied pistachios then, transfer to another container for 1-2 hours until firm.

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Secret Recipe Club – Nutty Marshmallows

February 11, 2013 by angelaskitchen 14 Comments

This month my assignment was a wonderful blog written by …

Coffee Cake in a Mug (or Jar), Secret Recipe Club

September 10, 2012 by angelaskitchen 10 Comments

It is time for Secret Recipe Club reveal day! Woo-hoo! What is the Secret Recipe Club? It’s a lot like Secret Santa, but with recipes. Each month you are assigned a blog. After selecting a recipe from that bloggers repertoire, you make and post it on reveal day. It is a great way to find fun recipes and blogs. I like how it gets me to actually sit down and go through another person’s blog. Blogs are a lot of work and take time to put together. Instead of skimming through just the new stuff (as is usually easier when we see a new blog) it is fun to really sit down and go through what else the blog has to offer. Fun stuff!