Everything inside -- vegan pockets ***

It's a proven fact that if you put any food inside another food -- julienne strips of veggies inside rice paper wraps, chickpeas and veggies inside triangular pastries, zesty tomato goodness inside yeast dough -- people will eat it. People love pastry. That's a thing, right? People love eating things inside things. Veggie sushi rolls? Even using cabbage leaves to hold a bunch of avocado and cashew cream makes for a hearty and tasty bite.

But my mandate here today was to make something that didn't need to be eaten right away -- so goodbye cabbage leaf roll up, goodbye sushi roll, good bye rice paper cold roll. I love you all, but go away now. Byebye.

My mission is freezer food. So, here goes. I wanted to make a soft yeast pastry, roll it out thin, stuff it with goodness, seal it, then freeze it unbaked to stock my freezer with things that can be thrown into the oven or toaster oven. I label the outside of the bag with what it is, and how long it takes to bake from frozen.  One answer to a quick dinner.


This is called "find stuff in the freezer and use it".

mixture 1 -- faux beef crumbles and veggies with cumin and marjoram

dough balls, 50g each, ready to be rolled

it doesn't have to be perfect!

good enough

ready for the filling!

a couple of table spoons is enough

single layer on a silicone sheet and baking tray, ready for the freezer or oven

keep it simple!

mixture 2 -- faux chicken crumbles with edamame and tamari/sesame oil/coconut sugar

step one

step 2

step three

step 1

step 2

step three: fold it over easy does it

press the edges closed all the way around

step one variation 

step two variation -- wait for it

step three variation -- lift the edges to the centre and press

press all the way from the centre out to one end

ta da

now press all the way out to the other end

ta da again!!

pick it up

silicone pans are great for freezing the pastries or for baking the pastries

once they are frozen, I will bag them and label the bag with the filling and the cooking instructions

filling 1:

1 onion finely diced, cooked in a pan with 2 tbsp coconut oil and a sprinkle of sea salt

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced sweet potato
1 cup diced potato
1/2 cup green peas

1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp marjoram
1 tsp chili powder -- optional

 1  tsp sea salt (to taste)

1 package 'faux beef' crumbles,(or 'faux chicken' crumbles, tofu, or a couple of cups of cooked lentils or split chickpeas)

directions:

1. cook the onion
2. add the other vegetables and spices
3. cook until done
4. stir in the beef crumbles and cook well


filling 2:

1 onion diced + 2 tbsp coconut oil cook in a pan with a sprinkle of sea salt

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup diced carrot
1 cups diced sweet potato
1 cup edamame

2 tbsp tamari
1 tbsp coconut sugar
pinch of garlic powder (or more if you can tolerate it)
1 tsp sesame seeds
drizzle sesame oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar


1 package faux chicken crumbles ( or tofu cut into very small bits)


directions:

1. saute onion with coconut oil and sea salt
2. add other veggies and seasonings and cook until done
3. add faux meat and cook

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

yeast dough pastry:

2 cups water
2 tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp yeast

1/2 cup tapioca starch
3 1/2 - 4 cups kamut flour
1 cup almond flour
2 tsp sea salt

1.  combine water, coconut sugar, and yeast, and let proof
2. mix together the dry ingredients
3. add the yeast slurry to the dry ingredients, and form into dough. Knead by hand or in a mixer
4. let rise and punch down.
5. when ready, divide into 50 g balls
6. roll out the balls with a rolling pin, put some filling in, and close them up
7. move carefully to a pan to either go in the oven or in the freezer. Freeze them in a single layer on silicone or parchment lined trays. When they are fully frozen, bag them in ziplock bags, and label the outside with the filling and the baking instructions, as well as the date you made them.




bake from fresh at 345 for about 30 minutes
bake from frozen at 345 for about 45 to 50 minutes

Pizza Crescents

So, these little crescents can be made ahead of time and frozen, so that you don't have to do any prep on the day. I made them for my son's birthday party. I froze them single layer on a baking sheet (lined with parchment) so that on the day I could just pop them in the oven. Simple!!! Tasty!!! These crescents are not gluten free, BUT there is a gluten free crust option for an open pizza.

dough

ingredients:

1 cup  warm water

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp yeast

1 tbsp oregano

2 tsp sea salt

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 cup almond meal

1/4 cup ground chia seeds
1/2 cup quinoa flakes

1 cup kamut flour
1 cup spelt flour

directions:

1. combine water with honey (should be ‘bath’ temperature)

2. add yeast, stir, and let sit.

3. Combine other ingredients in a bowl (or in your mixer -- I use my mixer to make all doughs. but it's completely doable by hand, especially because of the short kneading time)

4. Add proofed yeast mixture and stir to combine and form into dough

5. Knead dough for a couple of minutes (only). Add as much kamut flour as you need to for correct dough consistency. Dough should be soft but not really sticky.

6. Make a dough ball, coat in olive oil, put in bowl, cover with a piece of parchment and a damp tea towel, and allow to rise.

when ready, divide the dough into 40 gram pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then flatten. 

Each batch makes approximately 2 dozen

filling:

1 lb ricotta
2 eggs
2 cups tomato sauce
340 grams mozzarella cheese, shredded
sea salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 tsp dried basil

mix well!

directions:
1. place a couple  tablespoons of filling  in the middle of each circle of dough
2. fold over and secure the edges, rolling them slightly
3. bake at 345 degrees for about 30 minutes, or freeze in a single layer on a cookie sheet, then bag in an airtight bag for future use.

these can be baked from frozen at 345 for 40 minutes


I had leftover filling so I spread it on this:

1/2 cup + 2 tbsp water
2 tbsp ground flax
2 tbsp ground chia seeds
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tbsp oregano
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup almond flour
2 tbsp coconut flour

Which made a really terrific gluten free pizza crust. Yum!

Crepes for Dinner!

It's a simple thing, really. But almost everyone loves crepes. You can fill them with whatever you like, savoury or sweet, and it's a very pleasing meal.

At four o'clock I realized I didn't know what to make for dinner. So, I thought of crepes. I whipped up this batter, then let it sat while I began to compile the filling. For the uninitiated, crepe batter (especially one with chia seeds in it) needs to sit for a while before using. The filling was a result of a quick scan of the freezer, and some of the lovely tomatoes sitting in a bowl on the counter. Kidney beans, tomato, onion, garlic, corn, peas, carrots and broccoli made a bring and very very tasty filling. By five o'clock, all the crepes were finished, and the filling was cooked and ready to fill. The crepes were interesting, comprised mainly of almond flour, water, and eggs, with some chia seeds (I might grind them next time) and a wee bit of kamut flour. They are thin, with a delicate and yet fluffy texture. I wish I had a gluten-free flour to sub in that would keep the same sturdiness and flexibility. If you know of one yourself that you like to use, please let me know how it goes. 

These high protein crepes and their veggie-full filling make a very satisfying, belly filling meal that's nicely colourful, and full of deliciousness.  And enjoyable for all ages. The recipes for both the crepes and the filling will follow on the heels of this one.