Spinach Dip

This is my favorite appetizer to order when we go to restaurants, however, when my kids are with us, we don't order it- because it is a Dairy based item. When I discovered Manchego cheese was Sheep's Milk and very similar to Parmesan, this was the first thing I thought of.  So tonight my kids had Spinach dip, and it is just crazy to me that it tasted EXACTLY like the restaurant dip I love!

I think it is just awesome that I can get cool things like Goats Milk Cheese and Sheep's milk cheese at Walmart just blocks from my house!  They also have Glutino Bagel chips and Purple Corn Tortilla chips.  I just recently learned that purple corn is always non-gmo, so I make it a point to always buy the purple ones. I buy the Mexican ones from Herdez to avoid the price hike for the 'organic' or 'non-gmo' label.

Spinach Dip

6 oz Spreadable plain Goat Cheese
5 oz wedge Manchego cheese (sheep's milk cheese) grated
3/4 cup Mayonaise (not fat free or miracle whip-  it won't work)
1 - 1 1/2 cups steamed spinach (can sub with frozen)
1 tsp Dried Minced Garlic
1 TBSP Dried Onion Flakes
1/2 tsp Louisiana sauce or Tabasco sauce
Pinch of Chilli Pepper Flakes

Stir to combine all ingredients.  Grease a 4x9 inch bread pan and bake 350 for 27 minutes or 'til the top is slightly golden.  I served it with Glutino Bagel Chips and Purple Corn Tortilla chips.

Authentic Flan!

Flan:

1 TBSP Rice Flour
1/2 Cup Rice Milk

1/2 Cup White Sugar* 
*  *  *  *
13.5 oz can of Coconut Milk (look for a good brand that does not add water if possible)

4 Eggs

1/4 TSP Cinnamon

Pinch Ground Cloves

*  *  *  * 

1/3-1/2 cup Cajeta (Goats milk caramel)

*You can use Agave nectar or coconut sugar, but it does affect the color.  Also add 1 tsp tapioca starch if you choose to use Agave Nectar.

1) Before starting, make sure that your can of coconut milk is cold enough that when you open it, it is mostly solid. You will end up using the solid part and tossing the water.  I use the Golden Star brand and end up with only 1-2 TBSP of water in the bottom of the can.
2) The first 3 ingredients are the Sweetened Condensed milk substitute.  Rather than boiling the rice milk to condense it, it is just so much easier to condense it by adding rice flour to it- Mix rice flour into COLD rice milk and then bring to boil over medium heat stirring constantly.

3) When mixture thickens remove from heat and add sugar mixing until fully dissolved and then add the solid coconut cream/milk and stir until smooth.
4) Put eggs in medium bowl and whisk together before adding the warm milks mixture, cinnamon, and cloves. 
5) Spread cajeta over the bottom of a 9 inch pie pan.

6) Pour the contents of the bowl over the cajeta and bake 325 for about 60 minutes or til fork comes out clean when poked in the middle of the flan.  Flan will be dull in appearance with no sheen.

7) Let cool for 30 mins on the counter before placing in refrigerator for an hour. Then remove from pan by placing a plate over the dish and inverting it onto a plate.  The cajeta/caramel will now be on top and drooling over the sides.  If you think you need more cajeta add it now. 

8) Serve cold.

Very Berry Coconut Macaroons

With Valentines Day approaching your mind naturally deviates to reds, pinks, baking, and most definitely SWEETS!  It is that time of the year and most definitely one of those times that all enjoy!  In honor of Valentines Day I thought I might make some cookies that were on the Valentines Day theme.  Marachino Cherries seemed like a good pick to start with.  I originally was going to use some of the liquid from the cherries as an extract to boost the flavor, but the liquid is actually not so very tasty, so I used the extract from another red berry-  Raspberry Extract.  The combination of the two really made for an excellent flavor too!

In the cookies pictured I used coconut sugar which is slightly darker than brown sugar.  The pink color was barely tinged by the darkness of the sugar.

Very Berry Coconut Macaroons

2 eggs
3/4 cup Sugar (I used coconut sugar in the cookies in the picture)
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Raspberry Extract
1/3 cup Rice Flour
1/2 cup Tapioca Starch
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
2 1/2 cups Coconut 
1/4 cup Chopped Marachino Cherries, well drained (abt 15)
Red Food Coloring (4-8 drops)

Thoroughly mix first 4 ingredients in Medium sized mixing bowl. Then add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined. Drop on to cookie sheet in tablespoon drops shaped in a ball. Bake 325 for 20 minutes. Then raise temperature to 350 for an additional 3-5 minutes.

 

*If you have an allergy to egg, you can use 2 small-medium bananas instead of eggs.  Bananas will only slightly affect the flavor.

Coconut Meringue Pie

This is a post I have been trying to put out since Thanksgiving. I have literally written this post 3 times now, 2 times it got swallowed up in the depths of Blogger and vanished. I had lost interest in putting out the effort in recreating it, until last night when I learned about Coconut Sugar (or Palm Sugar).  A very HIGHLY nutritious sugar made from Coconut-  So much so that I think I may consider replacing our vitamins with cookies these days!  It completely reignited my fire for this recipe being that this IS a Coconut pie that calls for sugar- Yeah, you know where I am going next :)

So if you are wondering what sparked my thrill with Coconut Sugar, read about it here. It's far more nutritious than blackstrap molasses.  At 35 its Glycemic Index scores better than molasses, which is 55, though it does not touch the GI of Agave Nectar which is 15 or better.  Strictly speaking about nutritional value, here is a chart that sets everything strait- from white or brown sugar to Maple Syrup and Agave Nectar. Below the chart that has the amounts of each macro-nutrient, there is a chart that tells you what each of those macro-nutrients do for your body. I think you will be just as AMAZED at the values as I was.  If you are interested in buying it, I have a link to the best price I found online on my Best Priced Ingredients page. (If you buy from a health food store they will charge you about 5 times the price!)

This pie is truly a Coconut Pie!  Coconut Milk/Cream, Coconut extract, Coconut Shreds, and now Coconut Sugar- To me that is just COCONUT HEAVEN!  I love coconut and I don't know too many people who do not.  Now, yes, it is true that I have not yet made it with Coconut Sugar, but I do not foresee any problems.  The substitution is 1 to 1 and all I have read says the flavor is just as sweet as sugar.  

Coconut Meringue Pie

1 teaspoon gelatin

2 TBSP COLD Rice Milk

*  *  *  *
2 cups unsweetened coconut cream
3/4 cup sugar - By all means replace with Coconut Sugar if you have it!
Pinch of coarse salt

3 large egg yolks

1/4 cup Tapioca Starch

*  *  *  *

1 teaspoon pure coconut extract
1  2/3 cups shredded coconut

**Use My  Pecan Crust adding 1/4 cup melted chocolate mixed with 2 TBSP Coconut Cream (mix these together before adding them to the crust ingredients- Baking the crust before adding the filling and then again only if you top with the meringue)

1) In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 2 TBSP cold rice milk. Let stand for 5 minutes. 

2)In a medium saucepan, whisk together coconut milk, sugar, gelatin mixture, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk egg yolks with Tapioca starch until combined.

3) Slowly whisk one-fourth of the hot-milk mixture into egg yolks; return to saucepan. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture returns to a boil, for about 1-2 minutes. Stir in shredded coconut and coconut extract. Transfer to a large bowl; let stand 15 minutes.

4) Pour filling into the prepared crust. 

5) You can top with either a meringue or whipped topping.  I top with meringue then bake Meringue for 15 minutes at 350. 

6) Refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours.

For Meringue (adapted from The Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book):

3 Egg Whites
1/2 tsp Vanilla or Orange Extract
1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar
*  *  *  *
1/3 cup Sugar

Beat first set of ingredients til soft peaks form and then add sugar and beat til the peaks are firm and glossy. Spread over the filling while filling is still hot/warm and then bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes or until partially golden on top.

Melody's Sweet Potatoes

When I was growing up, every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas we had sweet potatoes with brownsugar topped with marshmallows.  And WE LOVED IT!  That is til we grew up.  Then our taste buds were no longer interested in all that sugary sweetness.  For a few years I just opted to not make sweet potatoes for our holiday celebrations.  But then a friend of ours in Laredo, Texas introduced us to a new way of making sweet potatoes.  They were HEAVEN!  Sort of like a Sweet Potato Crisp.  My dad says they are like sweet potato pie. 

The original recipe was drenched in dairy and did have some wheat, which at the time was OK.  However, times have changed warranting additional changes, so that recipe has been altered and tweaked.  I am pretty darn sure, though, that no one would even know there was a difference by either taste or looks if compared to the original recipe!

Sweet Potatoes

Topping

1 cup Chopped Pecans

1 cup Coconut

1 cup Brown Sugar

1/3 cup Sorghum Flour

1/3 cup Melted Butter

Potatoes

6 cups of Boiled, skinned, mashed sweet potatoes

4 Eggs

1/2 cup Coconut Milk

1/2 cup Rice Milk

1/2 cup Butter

2 tsp Vanilla

1) Boil Sweet potatoes.

2) While potatoes are boiling, make the topping. Pretty easy.  Throw all the dry ingredients in a Medium bowl, mix; add melted butter and mix again.

3) When the potatoes are done boiling, take themout of the liquid, peel, and mashed them. AND they really dont HAVE to be perfectly mashed its your preferrence.

4) Add all the remaining ingredients to the potatoes and mix well.

5) Evenly place all the Potato mixture in a 13 x 9 inch baking dish and then evenly distribute the topping over it.

6) Bake 375 for 25 minutes.

Coconut Pecan Pie Crust (substitute for crumb or graham cracker crust)

This pie crust is like a substitute for a graham cracker or crumb style crust.  It started out for me as a nut and butter crust that I used when I would make my pumpkin pie.  However, with each holiday season, I would tweak the previous recipe.  It has gone through many changes and I really love end result of this crust!  It is my favorite pie crust of all of them and great with custard style fillings.  I think I just did my last tweak!

Coconut Pecan Pie Crust

3/4 cup frozen pecans
1/4 cup Tapioca Starch

1/2 cup Coconut

2 TBSP Brown Sugar

3 TBSP Melted butter or crisco

1) In food processor, pulse pecans until largest pieces are the size of split peas.

2) Put the processed pecans in a bowl and add the tapioca starch.  Mix til nuts are evenly coated.
3) Add & incorporate coconut and sugar. Then mix in melted butter

4) Place 'dough' in 9 inch pie pan and press over bottom and sides with your fingers

5) Add your favorite filling and bake according to the filling instructons.  If your filling is no bake, then bake 400 for about 12-14 minutes or til lightly golden. When it is done baking it may be more puffy than you care for, if so, just press it done gently with your fingers or the back of a spoon.

Traditional Flakey Pie Crust

The flakiness comes from two primary ingredients- Water and Butter. Just like these 2 ingredients make the flakiness in traditional baking, they also do in gluten free baking.  For best results butter needs to be soft, room temperature by resting outside of the refrigerator vs microwaving.  If the butter melts, then the water and fat components will combine and you will end up with a hard heavy crust instead of a light and flakey one.  Which brings us to the next important bit of information.  When adding the butter, it is important that you handle the dough just enough to make the fat consistent through out. You don't want the butter fully incorporated as the water is. If the butter melts or is over incorporated, the possibility  of flakiness is gone.

Flakey Pie Crust

1/2 cup Tapioca Starch

1/2 cup Rice Flour

1/3 cup Sorghum or Coconut Flour

1/4 TSP Xanthan Gum

1 TSP Salt

2 TBSP Sugar

*  *  *  *

1/2 cup Butter, room temp

5 TBSP Cold Water 
*  *  *  *

1 Egg White

1) Grease 9" pyrex pie pan, then place all dry ingredients of list 1 in a bowl and mix them together well.

2) Take cold water mix it into the dry ingredients by pressing into the mix with a fork.  When the mix resembles sand, stop.

3) Drop butter into the mixture by nickle-quarter sized clumps.  Take a pastry dough mixer and cut into the dough until there no longer seems to be any of the water/sandy looking mix left.  You DONT want it to be brought together in a ball.  Might take 1-2 mins.

4) Lay out a sheet of saran wrap or two if one is not wide enough-  and dump the contents of the bowl on it.  With out pressing, spread it to about an 8" circle- cover it in another saran wrap, and gently roll to 11" circle.  If the dough splits, push it together.  The dough is forgiving and will go back together, just be sure to roll only once.

5) Remove top saran wrap and using the bottom saran wrap pick up the circle and lay it over your greased pie pan. Gently press into the pan.  If pieces brake off in transfer, just press back together-  no big deal. Form edge of crust as desired.
6) Bake the crust at 400 for 10 minutes then let it cool fully. 

7) Once the crust is fully cooled, using your fingers or back of a spoon, spread the final egg white over the whole crust and bake again at 400 for 6 minutes. 

8) Use this with any pie filling taking about 15-20 minutes off the baking time, or covering the pie with a tin foil tent for the entire baking time.

For a 2 crust pie follow the same instructions with these amounts:

3/4 cup Tapioca Starch

3/4 cup Rice Flour

1/2 cup Sorghum Flour

1 1/2 TSP Xanthan Gum

1 1/2 TSP Salt

3 TBSP Sugar

*  *  *  *

2/3 cup Cold Butter

1/2 cup (+/- ) Cold Water
*  *  *  *

2 Egg Whites

Follow baking instructions for bottom crust above, then follow baking instructions for pie recipe you are making being sure to coat the top crust with eggwhite. 

Apple Pie

What would Thanksgiving be without Apple Pie?!  My husband for one, would rebel against Thanksgiving if Apple Pie was not on the menu, so Apple is a must in this house.  This is our favorite Apple Pie recipe. Besides the fact that it is not from a can, the best part about this recipe is that every bite is relatively all apple.  It has no gel-like filler and as a result no extra sugar.  As for this recipe, it is pretty darn easy and absolutely worth it!

Apple Pie Filling

4-5 Fuji or Gala Apples

4-5 Granny Smith Apples

*  *  *  *

2/3 to 1 cup Sugar

2 1/2 TBSP Tapioca Starch

1 - 2 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Large Pinch Salt

*  *  *  *

Pastry for 2 crust pie

1 TBSP White Sugar

1) Peel and slice apples.  I slice them 1/8 inch or 3-4 millimeters thick. Place them in a large ziplock bag and set aside.  (If you are using a 9 inch dish and like your pie to be just level with the side of the dish, use 8 apples.  If you are using a 9 inch dish and like your pie to be over filled, use all 10 apples.)

2) In a bowl combine the 2nd list of ingredients. If you are using 8 apples and like your pie subtly sweet, use 2/3 cup sugar; if you are using 10 apples and like your pie subtly sweet use 3/4 cups sugar)

3) Pour mixture over the apples in the ziplock bag.  Seal bag and massage mixture til apples are evenly covered.

4) Pour into a glass baking dish and bake 400 til apples are soft and syrup has begun to collect in the dish (about 15-20 minutes).  Then remove pan from oven and pour into uncooked pie pastry and cover with second crust.  Be sure to cut vents in the crust (to let the steam escape and your crust bake) and sprinkle the 1 TBSP white sugar over the top.

5) Bake 400 for about 30-35 minutes or until pie crust looks done.

Pecan Pie

I LOVE the Holidays!  It is a wonderful time filled with meaningful and delicious baking. There is great reason to bake and even better reasons to eat what you bake.  In my mind it is the greatest time of the year for pies. Pies, when done right, are the BEST kind of dessert.  This year the favorite pie was Pecan Pie. I did not really stick to one recipe, but looked over several and then made a twist of them all.  And of course it would not be my kind of pecan pie if I did not use my trademark- Agave Nectar.

I think the most frequent complaint on a Pecan Pie, is that the sweetness is way too sweet. In my opinion, it is a turn off if all I taste is sugar.  Pecan Pie should not be flooded with a taste overwhelmed by sugar, it should be a subtly sweet pie that showcases the pecans, because after all it IS Pecan Pie. . .RIGHT? Corn syrup is very frequently used in combination with sugar as the primary ingredients.  I am not a fan of corn syrup or sugar.   SOO the changes I have made focus on taking away the sugar drenched taste that the typical Pecan Pie boasts, while increasing the Pecans to offset the sweetness.  The end result was a dreamy blissful pecan delight! 

Pecan Pie

1/2 cup Chopped Pecans
1/2 cup Maple Syrup

1/2 cup Agave Nectar

1/4 cup Brown Sugar (lightly packed)

2 TBSP Melted Butter

1 1/2 TSP Vanilla Extract
2 TSP Molasses

1/4 TSP Salt

4 Eggs

*  *  *  *

1 pie crust

Pecan Halves

1) Combine the first ingredients.
2) Pour into unbaked crust.

3) Top filling with enough pecan halves to fully cover.

3) Bake 350 For 40-50 minutes.  Check at 40 minutes and then increase by increments of 5 minutes if not done. You will know it is done when the filling swells to be dome like and when you touch/tap it has firm touch through the center.  As it cools, however, the dome appearance will go away.  In my oven it generally takes 50 minutes, but my oven really does not vent moisture very well, extending the time it takes to bake wetter goods.

Whipped Cream Substitute

This week has been a hard week in homeschooling, getting my kids to do their work has been insane and so I reverted to bribing their bellies.  Pumpkin Pie to be exact.  It is their favorite and I had a fresh pumpkin strait from our garden ready and waiting to be used.  It was also the most perfect opportunity to post this wonderful Whipped Cream recipe since I have been trying to get it posted for quite a while now.  When opportunity knocks. . .TAKE ADVANTAGE!  With the Holidays right around the corner now is a better time than any to post it, so thank my kids!

Non-Dairy Whipped Cream

1 cup Coconut Cream*
*  *  *  *
1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar
2 TBSP White Sugar
1/2 TBSP Vanilla Pudding
1/8 tsp Gelatin

The recipe is best in a stand mixer, but if you only have a hand mixer, that will work too.

 

1) Refrigerate Coconut Cream for a few hours or over night.

2) Chill mixing bowl and beaters in Freezer for about 1 hour.

3) Combine 2nd list of ingredients in a small container.

4) With mixer on "Whip" or "Aerate" whip Coconut Cream until stiff (a couple of minutes is likely sufficient) and then sprinkle 1/2 of the dry mix over it and whip it for about 10 seconds then repeat with the last 1/2.

Makes nearly 2 cups.

*If you do not have coconut cream, use coconut milk following the first instruction leaving the can in the refrigerator over night. After opening the can, separate the thick milk from the thinner liquid.  Use the thick part along with 2 TBSP of the thinner liquid for every 3/4 cup of thick milk.

Seven Layer Dip

When you think gluten and dairy free there are so many things that you can't have it is almost very difficult to see what you CAN have or what can easily be modified so you can have it.  Well here is another great one.  Perfect for a lazy day or a holiday party.  Not to mention a perfect healthy snack.

Seven Layer Dip

16 oz can Refried Beans

8 oz Non-Dairy Sour Cream

1-2 mashed avocados

1/2 - 1 cup Grated Non-Dairy Cheese

1 diced Roma Tomato

1 small can chopped Olives

2 Green Onions Chopped 

In a 9" glass pie pan or a 9" in square dish layer the ingredients in the order they are listed.  Enjoy with your favorite chip.  We like corn tortilla chips. SO EASY!!

Sugar Cookies

These are not your typical gluten free sugar cookies.  I think if any gluten free item is 'sold cheap', it is definitely sugar cookies.  Why do I say this?  The flavors in sugar cookies rely heavily on basic ingredients; flour, butter, sugar-- not much to mask any 'off' flavors. Every gluten free individual who was not brought up eating gluten free, probably knows exactly what I am talking about. Gluten free flours have such distinctive tastes to the non-native they can give any  item, that relies on typically simple tastes, a bad wrap-- making its partakers cringe at the simplicity of the cookie.  

This is a gluten free take on the recipe that I used at the beginning of my baking journey as a young girl-- Good ol Betty Crocker. It is a bit different than most.  Rather than relying on flavors of flours that the average mouth is not accustomed to, I have created a mixture that not only makes the cookie melt in your mouth, but also allows the familiar flavor of oatmeal* to guide the senses as familiar spices take over. 

Through the years of school I have taken these cookies to Valetines Day and Christmas Parties for my kids.  Each year the kids respond to them in amazement because they are 'real' gingerbread cookies.  The wonderful brownish color and the spice flavorings.   I LOVED seeing the kids reactions as they ate them.  Did they even know they were 'weird' gluten free cookies??  It was sort of refreshing to see that my kids really were not so different after all.  

To those of you who thought that your sugar cookie days were over at the first taste of cardboard, step back into the party, 'cuz it aint over honey!!

Sugar Cookies

1 egg

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup butter

- - - - 

2/3 cup sorghum

2/3 cup tapioca starch

2/3 cup ground dry oatmeal*

1/2 cup rice

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 tsp guar gum

3/4 tsp ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg, rounded

*Some of you may go on high alert at the thought of oatmeal, because of intolerance.  You can buy Gluten Free Oatmeal here

1) Cream together the first 4 ingredients; be sure to make sure they are at room temperature before starting.

2) Using your coffee/spice grinder, grind your oatmeal in increments of 1/3 cup at a time and then mix all the dry ingredients together in their own bowl. (If you are lazy like me and do not like to decorate the cookies, add 2 teaspoons of colored sugar and 2 teaspoons of colorful sprinkles to the dry ingredients for a simple and festive decor)

3) Mix the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture 1 cup at a time.

4) Divide in three parts and refrigerate over night.

5) Roll out to a 1/4 inch thick, cut cookies, place on greased tray

6) Bake 375 for 6-8 minutes

Tamales

Tamales are a Mexican Delicacy; and loved by any who has ever tried one.  If you are familiar with them, you will know that no alterations need to be made to fit in with a Gluten and Dairy free diet.  They are also pretty easy to make, though very time consuming (I am assuming this is why they are only made for special occasions in Mexico).  

I helped my mother-in-law make Tamales for the first time the first Christmas after getting married.  After making them this one time, I was good to go.  It was a very easy process to pick up.  All I needed was a basic recipe and I would make it on my own.  In Mexico they don't record recipes or use measuring cups or spoons, so I could not just ask for the recipe.  The first recipe I started out with came from the cookbook Authentic Mexican by Rick and Deann Bayless, though over the years I have tweaked it to what I felt was ideal, based off of what I have learned from my immersion in the Mexican Culture. In actuality it really had nothing to do with how I felt but how my husbands native taste-buds reacted.  So I really took notes on every comment or furrowed brow and made alterations as necessary.  This recipe makes about 25.

In order to dull the time consuming effort making tamales takes, I make them in two shifts.  The first shift is the night before when I make the filling.  The second shift consists of making the corn masa and putting the Tamales together.  Be sure to wear an apron or clothes you do not care about.

Filing Ingredients:

3 chicken thighs

3 large dried ancho chiles

2 large dried California or New Mexico Chiles

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 clove of garlic (or scant teaspoon garlic powder)

1-2 TBSP oil

1 tsp sugar

   salt to taste

1) Remove stems from dried peppers and dump out the seeds. Place them on bottom of large pot and place chicken thighs over the top of them (this is so the peppers don't float when water is added).  Fill pot with just enough water to cover chicken and peppers. Boil covered until the chicken is cooked through.

2) Reserve 1 1/2 cups of the broth. Shred chicken. Remove the skins from the peppers.  (The easiest way to do this is to take the boiled pepper by the pointy end and using both hands pinch the tip gradually moving downward until the meat slides free.)  You must remove the skin; skin will ruin your Tamales.

3) For the sauce combine 3/4 cup of the reserved chicken broth, all the chile meats, black pepper, and garlic in a blender and blend until smooth.  Put tablespoon oil in a large skillet and heat until a drop of the blender sauce will sizzle upon hitting the oil.  Then pour sauce in all at once.  Boil stirring constantly for 5 minutes to thicken.  Add the remaining 3/4 cup of reserved broth, turn stove down, to medium heat, and simmer stirring occasionally, while you work on shredding the chicken. When there is approximately 1 cup of sauce remaining, season with salt, add sugar, turn off the stove, and add the shredded chicken.

Before starting the Masa, place 8 oz of corn husks in a pot of water and boil for 10 minutes.  When done boiling leave them in the water and let set for 2 hours.

The Masa - Corn Dough

1 3/4 cup Masa Harina Corn Flour (not to be confused with corn meal)

3/4 cup crisco

1 1/4 cup warm chicken broth or water (to start)

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt, then salt to taste

The Masa dough is going to be the challenging part.  Do not just plan on following the recipe.  Be prepared to make alterations.  Climate makes a huge difference.  A dry climate like New Mexico will require more liquids.  A climate like Chicago will require less liquids.  I made these in the summer time one year and only needed 1 cup of water, but in the winter time this year i needed 1 1/4 cups of water.  So the trick is going to be checking the consistency.  If it spreads on the corn husk as easy as peanut butter and stays put, then the dough is right.  You should not be fighting the dough in forming the Tamale.

Start by cutting the Crisco into the corn flour as if you were making a pie crust. Then add the warm water, baking powder and salt.  Be sure to taste the mix and make sure there is sufficient salt.  If there is not enough salt the Tamales will not taste very good; it is better to have a little too much than not enough.  If you struggle with getting the masa dough to stick to the corn husk, then the dough needs more water.  If you need more water add water 2 Tbsp at a time until the consistency is right.

Forming the Tamales:

(you will need Baking Twine)

1) It is easiest to form the Tamales with corn husks that are about 6 inches wide. If you need to, you can over lap 2 husks to make them wide enough. 

2) On the corn husk form a 4 x 4 inch square of masa dough less than a 1/4 inch thick. Then place about 1 TBSP of the filling down the middle.  

3) Bring the sides of the corn husk together so that the sides of the masa square touch each other.  Then roll the excess of the corn husk semi-tightly to one side. Fold up tail and tie with the baking twine.

Steaming the Tamales:

I use a large pot with a strainer insert. 

1) Before forming the Tamales fill the pot with enough water so that the straining basket is on the water, but water does not come into the basket and take note how high up the water goes on the side of the pot (you will likely need to add water to the pot during the cooking process and won't be able to tell if there is water in the basket). 

2) Line the sides and bottom of the straining basket with some of the corn husks. 

3) As you finish forming the Tamales, set them upright in the basket.

4) When all the Tamales are formed and in the pot, fill empty spaces with leftover corn husks and lightly crumpled aluminum foil until the pot is full.  Do not pack tightly.  

5) Put lid on pot and bring water to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to medium. 

Cooking time will be approximately 1 hour 15 minutes.  Check water about every 20 minutes to make sure there is enough by removing the basket from the pan; add water as necessary. Check the tamales by removing one from the bunch and sampling the masa.  The masa should be firm and husk removable with little masa residue on wrapping. If not, cook another 15-20 minutes and recheck. 

Pumpkin Pie Crust and Filling

This is the most wonderful discovery as of yet.  While I was not a lover of pumpkin pie, but in actuality was disgusted by it, after creating this crust and filling one Thanksgiving, I. WAS. IN. LOVE!!  This recipe is the most often requested, as it is also a low carb recipe; and we all know how that fits into our society today! 

SO here it is:

PIE CRUST

3/4 cup frozen pecans
1/4 cup Tapioca Starch

1/2 cup Coconut

2 TBSP Brown Sugar

3 TBSP Melted butter or crisco

1) In food processor, pulse pecans until largest pieces are the size of split peas.

2) Put the processed pecans in a bowl and add the tapioca starch, coconut, and sugar.  Mix.
3) Add melted butter and mix again.

4) Place 'dough' in 9 inch pie pan and press over bottom and sides with your fingers.

FILLING

1 - 15 oz can plain pumpkin puree, or you can roast and puree your own pumpkin*

2 beaten eggs

1/2 cup rice milk

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cups white sugar

1 tsp dark molasses

2 tsp fresh ground cinnamon (use a coffee/spice grinder)

1 tsp nutmeg

I highly recommend fresh ground cinnamon.  It is far superior to  pre-ground cinnamon: it has a mild spiciness that pre-ground does not have, perfect for pumpkin pie.  Mix all ingredients together, pour in crust.   Start baking in an oven preheated to 375 for 25 minutes, reduce to 350 for 20 minutes, and then finally to 325 for 20 minutes or until knife comes out nearly clean.  This baking technique will prevent the pie from drying out on top causing it to split down the middle.  Serve warm with a whipped topping.

*To puree puree your own pumpkin first roast it in an oven at 350 by slicing it in half and placing it face down on a cookie sheet.  An average averaged sized  pie pumpkin takes about  75-90 minutes to roast. When it is done roasting you should be able to remove the meat from the skin with a spoon very easily.  Once you remove meat from the skin, mash. Be sure to remove excess moisture.