Spelt Pancakes

I've been missing my pancakes in a really bad way. Who doesn't love pancakes? Smothered in either maple syrup or yogurt and fresh fruit, it's just irresistible, and the ultimate comfort food breakfast.

Since starting my diet, and taking my daughter off wheat and sugar, I haven't made pancakes. I just didn't think it was fair to have her watch everyone else devour them while she made do with something else. I also didn't think I'd be able to resist them.

These aren't as fluffy as pancakes made with wheat, because, well, it's not made with wheat. But what it lacks in fluffiness it more than makes up for with the taste.

The other issue I had with these is that the batter is a bit runny. I had to use a small frying pan to make them, otherwise they probably would have turned into a giant pancake cake.





Pancakes

1 cup white spelt flour
1 cup whole spelt flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar or xylitol
2 cups soy milk
2 eggs

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and whisk well.

Grease and heat a small frying pan, and pour in 1/3 cup batter at a time. Let it cook until the edges are brown, flip over, and cook another few minutes on the other side.


A great serving suggestion - top with low fat Greek yogurt, fresh cut up fruit, and sugar free chocolate syrup!

Baking with Xylitol

I tried making chocolate chip cookies using xylitol and my own homemade xylitol brown sugar. What a royal flop that was. Apparently, xylitol and cookies just don't agree with each other, which is a shame. The cookies came out mealy, tasted weird, and they all kind of puddled together in my cookie sheet to create a huge mass of cookies gone terribly wrong.

I'm back to searching for sugar alternatives for cookies. Honey doesn't work, as it changes the texture of the batter too much. Artificial sweeteners are out, because they are just not healthy. I'm thinking to try raw sugar next. It's not the healthiest alternative out there, and too much of it is still as bad as white sugar, but it's not refined and stripped of all its natural minerals.

I think I can feel another shopping trip coming on, along with a foray through my cookbooks to see what I can play around with.

Stay tuned and have a great day!

Greek Yogurt Honey Cake

Don't let the title put you off! You'll regret it! When I first saw this recipe, I immediately found at least 4 ingredients that I couldn't use, but it looked delicious so I couldn't resist trying it.

After completely butchering the recipe, I pulled a bundt cake out of the oven smelling so good my mouth was watering. It looked nothing like the picture accompanying the original recipe, and tasted nothing like that recipe was ever intended to, but nevertheless, I've created a winner here!

Before you get to the recipe, a note about brown sugar. Brown sugar is a mix of regular white sugar with molasses added to it. To make your own, combine 1 cup xylitol and 2-3 teaspoons molasses (more for dark brown sugar and less for light). I find that all molasses is pretty much equal, so no need to spend on a brand name. I mixed it together till it looked like regular brown sugar.





Another problem I had with this recipe was that xylitol does not caramelize like sugar. Therefore the top of the cake ended up being a bit dark and slightly bitter when I turned it out of the bundt pan. If you can, use regular brown sugar. This certainly didn't stop anyone from eating this - half was gone before I knew what hit me.

Greek Yogurt Honey Cake

3/4 cup honey
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 tsp vanilla sugar (I used xylitol vanilla sugar)
2 eggs
2 cups whole spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup brown sugar (read above)
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Beat the honey, butter or margarine, and vanilla sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the batter alternating with the Greek yogurt. Mix well until blended.

Combine pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Spray and flour a bundt pan with cooking spray. Spoon half the nut mixture evenly on the bottom of the pan and then cover with half the batter. Repeat with remaining nut mixture and batter.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan.


A note about baking cakes made with xylitol - They will stick and are sometimes impossible to turn out nicely when baked with xylitol. I would advise you use a regular round pan instead and line it with parchment paper. If you do decide to go the bundt pan route, choose a pan with a simple design for easy dislodging of the cake.

Dietetic Onion Soup

Weather like this that makes you want to curl up under the covers and stay there deserves a nice, piping hot stew. But who would think we'd have 65 degrees and HUMID in the middle of December?? In New York?? Unheard of! But, I still need some sort of soup to warm the soul and entice me to get out of my pj's.

I created this recipe a while ago, and it's been a hit ever since. Add a slice of my spelt bread, and voila! Delicious lunch.

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the soup, but it truly is delicious, and low fat.



Dietetic Onion Soup

2 Spanish onions, sliced
2 large red onions, sliced
6-8 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
3 cubes frozen parsley
3 cubes frozen dill
salt and pepper to taste
water to cover

Add everything to a 4 quart pot, and add water to cover. Bring to a boil. Lower the flame and let it simmer for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

When the soup is done, allow it to cool and blend it with an immersion blender and reheat.

Optional - add some shredded mozzarella before serving, along with a slice of toasted bread.

Chocolate Cake

I'm too excited by the success of my chocolate cake to hold back from writing it until next week like I said I would. So l'kavod Shabbos, here it is. It's my spin on Hershey's chocolate cake that is found on the side of their cocoa cans

Use the best quality cocoa you can find for this - it really makes a huge difference. I used cocoa from Penzey's Spices since according to the Star-K cocoa powder does not need kosher certification, and it truly is the best cocoa powder out there.

Have fun baking, and again, hide this when you're done!! To quote one of my friends who tasted it 'this cake makes you cut a thin slice every few minutes and look both ways to make sure no one's eyeing you'.

Chocolate Cake

2 cups xylitol

1 ¾ cup white spelt flour

¾ cup cocoa

1 1/3 tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup soy milk

½ cup oil

1 cup boiling water

2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine all ingredients. Pour into a lined 9x13 pan. 

Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Spelt Bread

When I first heard the diagnosis for my daughter and the strict instructions of 'no wheat and no sugar' I literally gulped. What on earth was I going to feed the child?? How can one live without wheat?? Quite well, I learned.

At first I set out for my local grocery and loaded up on spelt products for my daughter, whom I shall call Ess for the purpose of the blog. She is no longer able to eat school lunches, which means I have to send with a lunch box of food with her comparable to what her classmates are eating.

I tired of that route quickly. Ready made spelt products are costly, and to be honest, don't taste all that great. Add 'no sugar' to the mix, and you're setting yourself up to eating tasteless store-bought products.

Around the same time I decided to take myself off wheat and sugar to help the weight-loss process along, and I got really fed up. I wanted GOOD food. So did my poor little girl. I pulled out my trusty KitchenAid and set to work. After many batches of dough dumped in the garbage, this is what I ended up with.


Spelt Bread

7 cups white spelt flour
2 tsp dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1 Tablespoon honey
1 Tablespoon salt
1/2 Tablespoon dough conditioner - optional

Dissolve the yeast in 1 cup warm water, with either the honey or a sprinkle of regular white sugar. When it bubbles, add the remaining water, half the flour, the salt, and dough conditioner. Start mixing and add the remaining flour slowly - you might not need the entire 7 cups.

VERY important - take care not to over-knead the dough!!! The gluten in spelt flour is very delicate, and it is possible to over-knead it. I usually let it mix for 2-3 minutes after the dough forms.

Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 2 hours.

Preheat your oven to 200 F (yep, you read right). Grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans with cooking spray and set aside.

Punch down the dough with your fist. Divide in two, and shape each half into a loaf and place into the prepared loaf pans. Place the pans in the oven and allow them to rise in the warm oven for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, raise the oven temperature to 350 and bake the bread for approximately 50 minutes.

Once these are done, HIDE THEM!!! The first time I got it right, my daughter and I ate through and entire loaf. It's that good.

Does Spelt Contain Gluten?

The $10 million question - does spelt contain gluten? Can those who are intolerant or allergic to gluten eat spelt?

The answer is yes, spelt does contain gluten, and should be avoided by people who are gluten sensitive or have celiac disease.

Spelt is very similar to wheat in appearance, but has a tougher husk than wheat which help protect the nutrients in the spelt. Spelt has more protein than wheat and that protein is much easier to digest. There is also less gluten in spelt flour than regular wheat flour. Therefore SOME people who are allergic to wheat may be able to tolerate spelt. But if you're on a gluten-free diet, spelt is not suitable for you.

Please, if you fall into any of the above-mentioned categories, either avoid spelt altogether, or ask your doctor before trying it.

My Very First Blog Post

Eeeeeekkkkk I actually did it!! I'm starting a blog and I'm super excited! Truth is, I haven't written in years, and I wasn't planning on starting anytime soon. After a very traumatic incident that happened in my teen years I put down my pen. Forever. Or so I thought.

After searching high and low for delicious, healthy wheat free recipes and not finding any that I liked, I decided to start the healing process of a blog, and writing again. This time, about spelt. Sounds scary? Trust me, it isn't. Once you get the hang of working with spelt, it becomes your best friend.

Because my family is slowly going wheat-free (some of us are due to necessity, and the others are following because it's easier for me to have everyone eat the same foods), I have been playing around and experimenting with spelt flour and sugar alternatives.

I am really excited to share my journey and recipes, projects, and whatever else I'm up to with the world! Stay tuned for the very first recipe - delicious, easy homemade spelt bread.