Snow Cream or Snow Ice Cream is one of those wintery pleasures that comes with a big fluffy snowfall.

How healthy it is depends on what kind of milk and sweetener  you put in it. I prefer to use stevia to sweeten it, because for some reason that little bit of stevia goes a long way.

I did see a recipe that claims the Southern way is to use sweetened condensed milk. Holy Sweet Cow! That would taste good, but the calories would be way too much for me. I switched sugar for Swerve,  but stuck with Fairlife whole milk, because snow cream needs the higher fat content. You can use any milk you choose. See variations below. 

I didn’t grow up on snow cream, but my husband did until his mother read an article about the possible dangers of eating snow.

Is the snow safe to eat?

Generally speaking, yes, according to this article. However, be smart about it, and don’t take the first flurries, which act as an environment scrubber. Don’t eat snow mixed with dirt, or close to where you have pesticides. I have a deck and considered that the best and cleanest place to gather my snow.

I played around until I got the consistency I liked, and look how good it looks.

It tastes like a cross between vanilla ice cream and vanilla sorbet. 

The only sweetener I use to replace sugar is Swerve. I used one cup of milk and 2 tablespoons Swerve, a teaspoon vanilla and a pinch of salt. Taste the milk. See if it’s sweet enough for you. It will lose some of what you taste, once you put your snow in the mix. You may want it sweeter. You can use liquid stevia (just a few drops).

Variations on Snow Cream

Southern Snow Cream: Change the milk to condensed.

Paleo Snow Cream: Use almond milk or coconut milk and honey, stevia, Swerve or maple syrup for sweetener.

Sugar Free Snow Cream: Use milk of choice, Swerve (powdered erythritol), Vanilla

Orange Cream Snow Cream: Replace two tablespoons of milk with freshly squeezed orange juice and teaspoon orange zest.

Healthier Snow Cream: Use low fat milk, stevia or Swerve, Vanilla

Keto Snow Cream: Use heavy cream, Swerve, Vanilla

Add Sprinkles for fun.

Snow Cream Tips

• Use a stainless steel bowl that has been in freezer.
• Make sure all ingredients are mixed together and placed in bowl in freezer for about 10 minutes (or put them outside if it’s still super cold).
• Have everything ready. Then gather snow.
• Snow texture varies and you may not use all of it.

I’m thinking I could list endless possibilities for flavoring snow cream. I’m wondering what a little whiskey might do.

Here are a few I’ve found that are most interesting.

Snow Cream Frapuccino 

Boozy Snow Cones

Chocolate Snow Cream

Cake Batter Snow Cream

How about YOU? Do you engage in snow cream and have a favorite recipe?

Let’s connect. I love hearing your comments and getting to know you. We can connect on instagram and please subscribe below.

More Ice Cream Recipes from Spinach Tiger

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Snow Cream, with a Sugar Free Option

How to Make Snow Cream with a sugar free option using stevia.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes minutes

Total Time 22 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 stainless steel bowl
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/3 cup sugar or 2 tablespoons Swerve sweetener
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 8 cups fluffy snow

Instructions

• Place bowl in freezer or outside for 10 minutes to get it very cold.
• Add milk, vanilla, salt, sweetener into bowl. Place back outside for ten minutes.
• Add snow to liquid mixture until incorporated. Start with 4 cups, and add what you need.
• Snow cream should be fluffy not melting.
• If you see it melt, pour off, add more snow.

The post Snow Cream, with a Sugar Free Option appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I’m reposting this sourdough biscuit recipe from 2019, as 2020 has shifted into a sourdough year. Stay tuned for my next post on the best sourdough focaccia you will ever eat. 

I was baking with the twins and each made their own starters from scratch. We had three jars of starter and needed to come up with some recipes to use it. One day we made sourdough waffles, but we were super excited to make these easy sourdough biscuits.

This is how our sourdough biscuits were born.

If you’ve been around here for a while, you know I’m not a biscuit novice. My original southern fluffy biscuit has been visited over 360,000 times, and has great reviews.  If you love fluffy southern style biscuits, you’ll love these.

If you are followed my stories on instagram, you would know that once we decided to make sourdough bread, we made bread every day trying out different recipes and methods. All the bread was crusty and delicious and like biscuits, once you get it, you get it, even if it’s intimidating at first.

Making Sourdough Starter

Sourdough starter is basically flour and water. You should use unbleached flour  and filtered water starting with a 1 to 1 ratio for 100 percent hydration.  This means equal water to flour. You might see starters made as low as 65% hydration. That will result in a thicker starter, a stiffer baked good.

Start with 150 grams of unbleached bread flour (you can mix in some wholewheat flour) and 150 grams of filtered water. Stir into a jar large enough to hold it. Leave in warm (ish) place like inside a cabinet door. When we started making starters, we left them on the counter, in jars with lids and fed them every day. It was around 70 degrees F. although ideally, 75 is better.

We started our starter in the middle of summer and it took about two weeks to get a starter we could use. Each day, I would pour out half  and add back in that same amount I did the first day. 

Check each day for bubbling. Feed the starter after it peaks and is hungry. This means it has risen and is now starting to deflate. This can take 24 to 36 hours. When you see this, feed your hungry starter. Hunger looks weepy or watery.  Some people consider their starter is ready at 6 days. We went for two weeks and made two starters (just in case). Both were successful.

Maintaining a Healthy Starter

I keep in fridge and feed once a week. When I’ve forgotten by a few days, the starter gets that nail polish smell and very weepy. However, I’ve always been able to save it.  

I keep 100 grams of starter. I discard 50 grams and feed 25 grams of flour and 25 grams of  filtered water.

Now that it’s winter I put them in my laundry room/baking nook which is warmest part of the house.

Last night this starter doubled in size. 

Last night, I woke up to a wonderful bubbly starter.

Flour for Sourdough Starter

I used unbleached bread flour, but at times I feed it whatever I have (usually all purpose flour). You can use any kind of flour, (unbleached) and even mix flours. You will want to feed your starter when it peaks (rises and is bubbly).  This is very simplified, and there is a wonderful, in-depth article here from Serious Eats. 

We decided to each make our own starter that summer and all three took hold.  Eventually by the end of summer we combined the starters. To keep it going, I have kept it in the refrigerator and fed it every week with 20 grams each of flour and water, while discarding 40 grams first.

This starter made this bread, which was a 24 hour process. The biscuits, though can be made right away as long as you have a nice bubbly starter.

Keeping Your Sourdough Starter for Years 

When I know we are not making bread, I keep in refrigerator in a mason jar and feed weekly. I will discard the amount I’m going to feed. For example, discard 40 grams, feed 20 grams flour, 20 grams water. That’s it. It has remained active and alive for 18 months. 

Some people freeze their starter, but I’ve never done that. 

Baking these Easy sourdough biscuits is a great way to use left-over or discarded sourdough starter.

When I asked Doug which biscuits he liked better, he thought they were equally good, but different.

They were fluffy and flavorful with a slight sourdough tang.

Are sourdough biscuits gluten free?

No, they use regular flour. I’ve read some gluten free recipes for sourdough but haven’t tried them yet. Some people that are gluten sensitive can eat sourdough bread without the typical problems. Everyone is an individual.

Can you freeze sourdough biscuits?

Biscuits are best eaten the day they are made. You can but if you decide to freeze them, bake them for a minute or two less, and then heat them up in the oven.

Please follow me on instagram and if you make a recipe, tag me #spinachtiger. I would love to see it.

If you like this recipe, we really would appreciate you rating it five stars. It means a lot.

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Sourdough Biscuits with Sourdough Starter

Use up sourdough starter by making delicious fluffy sourdough biscuits.

Course Biscuits

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter cold in cubes
• 1 cup sourdough starter
• 1/2 cup milk
  
• Kitchen Tools
• Pastry Butter Cutter
• Biscuit Cutter
• Cast Iron Griddle or Baking Sheet

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Whisk all dry ingredients together.
• Add cold small cubed butter. Mix with hands or cut in with pastry cutter
• Add starter. Mix well.
• Add in milk, more if needed. You want a sticky dough you can handle.
• Form dough into a round and make 10 two-inch biscuits. Less if biscuit cutter is larger.
• Arrange on cast iron griddle or baking pan, touching.
• Bake for 13-15 minutes.
• Makes 8 to 10 biscuits. I was able to get 10 with a two-inch biscuit cutter.

The post Easy Sourdough Biscuits with Sourdough Starter appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Not all chocolate desserts are created equally.  There is a huge difference with unsweetened cocoa powders. I’ve tried several and am now using this cacao powder by Better Body Foods, which is giving me the chocolate flavor I want without having to add any chopped chocolate.

I have been greatly challenged this past year with unsweetened cocoa powder because I opened a home keto bakery. I need consistency and the one thing that was affecting flavor greatly  was the cocoa powder I was using.

I decided to give Better Body Cacao at Costco a chance and now I have 8 bags in the cupboard. It’s an organic superfood Organic Cacao superfood with antioxidant flavanols, polyphenols, fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals.

When I use this in my chocolate recipes, I reduce the amount of cacao powder. If you’re using a different unsweetened cocoa powder, use 1/2 cup. If you do use this cacao, only use 1/3 cup and taste as you go, as it’s very strong.

If you want to make sure you have portion control, use these small 4 ounce jars. I use them for desserts and love that they come with lids.

Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding with Swerve, Milk, Heavy Cream and Butter

I’m using Swerve Sweetener for the sweetener which performs very well in puddings and curds. You can read here what Swerve is and why I use it.

I am old fashioned and use milk and cream for my pudding. Fairlife whole milk has 6 carbs for the cup and the cream has zero. Because I’m not using typical corn starch found in most pudding recipes, I use 3 egg yolks to bring the richness and a little vanilla. I also add in some butter at the end.

Top this sugar free chocolate pudding with some stabilized whipped cream.

Nutrition Value: 2 Net Carbs (see more below).

More Sugar Free Desserts from Spinach Tiger

Keto Lemon Budino

Keto Meyer Lemon Curd

Keto Chocolate Cupcakes

Keto Texas Sheet Cake

Sugar Free Chocolate Buttercream

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Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding

Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding is low carb, keto friendly, made with Swerve, and Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. Kid Friendly.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Keyword chocolate pudding, keto chocolate pudding, sugar free chocolate pudding

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 7

Calories 147kcal

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk see notes
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup 1/2 cup Granulated Swerve
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 5 ounces Choc zero Chocolate Chips
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• dash sea salt

Instructions

• Heat the milk and cream in a saucepan.
• Add in chocolate chips. Stir over low heat.
• Whisk egg yolks in a separate bowl. Add in some of the chocolate and stir.
• Add the egg yolk mixture into the chocolate and heat on low.
• Add in milk mixture. Continue to stir for a few minutes until thickened.
• Add butter and continuing stirring.
• Take mixture through a sieve onto bowl. Pour into vessels.
• Refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours before eating.
• Serve with Stabilized Whipped Cream Recipe Here

Notes

I used Better Body Foods Cacao powder which is stronger than many unsweetened cocoa powders. If you use an unsweetened cocoa powder, you may want to use 1/2 cup. 

Net Carbs Per Serving: 2

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 7 | Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: -8g | Fat: 12g | Fiber: 2g

The post Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding with Stabilized Whipped Cream, Keto Friendly appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Budino means pudding in Italian, but it’s much more than we think of as pudding in America.

Why do I think this is the best chocolate budino recipe around? See for yourself! It’s so rich, you can turn it upside down! You can use sugar: I used swerve to keep it low carb and near sugar free. Either way, it’s amazing!

This chocolate budino recipe is rich, and dense but not fudge dense, not truffle dense. It’s a thick, creamy, dreamy pudding type dessert with concentrated flavors and a smooth texture.

There are some recipes out there that are over-complicated and turn budino into a thick unseemly fudge-type texture. You don’t want that! You want this.

Adapted from Nigella Lawson, this budino is so easy and so well balanced, It was the least complicated chocolate recipe I could find, but certainly not lacking in complexity.

Chocolate Budino Recipe: A few Cooking Notes

I did not add the cornstarch from the original recipe and it is not missed! I used 2 ounces of 70% chocolate, and regular Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa. I also used a lower carb whole mik, Fairlife, which has lower carbs. You can use any whole milk you like.

You can add a bit of bourbon instead of vanilla if you want to booze it up. I’m thinking the next time I might add in some hazelnut extract for that nutella taste!

I topped the budino with a stabilized whipped cream. It will look exactly like this all week, which is a good thing, because I’m only going to eat one a day!

It’s Easy to Make this a Low-Carb, Sugar Free Chocolate Budino Recipe

Pudding is made with milk. Budino is made with milk and  heavy cream. I use the Fair Life full-fat milk to keep the carbs lower and switch out the sugar with Swerve. You really cannot tell.

This can make four ample servings, but I divided it up into seven small dessert dishes, the size of espresso cups, making this 5 carbs per serving.

More Chocolate Desserts from Spinach Tiger

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Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding

Sugar Free Chocolate Pudding is low carb, keto friendly, made with Swerve, and Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. Kid Friendly.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Keyword chocolate pudding, keto chocolate pudding, sugar free chocolate pudding

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 7

Calories 147kcal

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk see notes
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup 1/2 cup Granulated Swerve
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 5 ounces Choc zero Chocolate Chips
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• dash sea salt

Instructions

• Heat the milk and cream in a saucepan.
• Add in chocolate chips. Stir over low heat.
• Whisk egg yolks in a separate bowl. Add in some of the chocolate and stir.
• Add the egg yolk mixture into the chocolate and heat on low.
• Add in milk mixture. Continue to stir for a few minutes until thickened.
• Add butter and continuing stirring.
• Take mixture through a sieve onto bowl. Pour into vessels.
• Refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours before eating.
• Serve with Stabilized Whipped Cream Recipe Here

Notes

I used Better Body Foods Cacao powder which is stronger than many unsweetened cocoa powders. If you use an unsweetened cocoa powder, you may want to use 1/2 cup. 

Net Carbs Per Serving: 2

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 7 | Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: -8g | Fat: 12g | Fiber: 2g

The post Luscious Sugar Free Chocolate Budino Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I’ve searched the internet for hours it seems looking for the kind of scalloped potatoes that danced in my head. Old fashioned, no cheese, creamy, crispy, elegant.

I kept finding cheesy potatoes.

If a recipe doesn’t say gratin, it shouldn’t have cheese. Everyone thinks cheese should be in everything. Not me, not in this subdued creamy bechemel sauce. You can, of course,  add cheese to this recipe to make it, but then it would be called potatoes au gratin.

I love nuanced cooking, meaning this: the simpler, the more balanced, the more delicate the bite, the more excited I am. Any bad cook can stick cheese in everything and call it a casserole, but when you have the opportunity to just eat creamy potatoes with a crunchy top, take it.

True, old fashioned scalloped potatoes recipe should be about two things. Potatoes and opposite textures. Creamy on the inside from the milk and crispy on the outside (also from the milk).

Believe it or not, there are some simply awful scalloped potatoes recipe on the internet. Some call for cans of soup and breadcrumbs. Don’t do either of these.

Most don’t cook the potatoes before baking. My mother does that, and her scalloped potatoes are never done and yet still runny. Some just sprinkle the flour between each layer. Why take that chance?

I went with my gut and created a recipe on the spot for Christmas Eve. I took the chance my culinary skills would get me where I wanted to go.

I actually baked these in this 9 x 13 baking pan and these pictures are the reheated version. You can half the recipe and bake in an 8 x 8 pan.

They were actually much creamier, when originally baked, although the reheated version was pretty splendid.

Come along with me and make the most delicate and sumptuous old fashioned scalloped potatoes recipe.

Slice thinly, using a mandoline. I used this inexpensive one from Oxo.

Gently simmer the potatoes in milk and water, because we do not want any crunch in our scalloped potatoes.

Make a bechemel. This is super easy and guarantees the creamiest, most comforting, soul touching dish.

I added a  touch of heavy cream to the milk, but you will be fine just using whole milk. Add white pepper, but ever so gently. A little of that goes a long way to burning a throat. Add in some mustard powder to the flour or mustard to the roux (which is what I did) for a little lift and to prevent the dish from being bland.

Add nutmeg. I’m Italian, and we add nutmeg to everything, but only freshly ground, or skip it.

You can bake this old fashioned scalloped potatoes recipe slowly in a low oven.

I had a prime rib in the oven baking at 300 degrees F. I put the scalloped potatoes in the bottom rack under the roast and let them bake slowly. Eventually, even at this temperature, they browned just as you see them.

If I didn’t have the prime rib in the oven, I would have baked them at 350 degrees until they browned on top, about 60 minutes. (The potatoes are already partially cooked), which reduces baking time.

This is enough for 9 servings, as it is baked in this 9 x 13 pan which comes with a lid for easy refrigeration.

We had prime rib, roasted brussels sprouts with dried cherries and almonds, salad and this red velvet cake. If the only thing we had were these scalloped potatoes, I would have still been happy. It was my favorite bite of the night, and my favorite leftover.

More Potatoes Recipes from Spinach Tiger

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Old Fashioned Scalloped Potatoes Recipe

Creamy potato dish with crispy top, these are a no cheese version of scalloped sweet potatoes, perfect to accompany any protein, great for special occasions and pot luck dinners.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 9

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 4 pounds potatoes peeled
• 2 onions sliced thinly
• 6 tablespoons butter plus butter for onion
• 6 tablespoons flour
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme optional
• 5 1/2 cups milk divided 4 and 1
• 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
• salt
• pepper
• chopped parsley or thyme for garnish

Instructions

• Using a mandoline, slice potatoes thinly. Don't worry about making layers of each potato. If they are thin, you will put layer potatoes some on top of the other for about three layers between bechemel sauce.
• Place potatoes in 1 cup milk and enough water to cover potatoes by one inch and gently boil until potatoes are almost done. Drain. Save some of the starchy water.
• Slice onions very thinly. Melt butter in frying. Soften onions (do not allow to turn color) in butter. Set aside.
• Make Bechemel Sauce
• Season flour with nutmeg, salt, pepper, thyme,
• Melt butter in heavy bottomed pan. When it's almost melted, add flour and stir until incorporated. Add 1/4 cups starchy water and four cups milk to flour mixture to make roux.
• Bring roux to boil, continue stirring until roux is thick and creamy. Take off stove.
• Assemble
• Layer potatoes, salt, pepper, onion, bechemel sauce, making sure to save some bechemel for top.
• Bake at 325 degrees for approximately one hour. I baked at 300 degrees F for 90 minutes. Potatoes browned perfectly. I did this because I had a prime rib in oven at 300 and couldn't turn oven up.
• Allow to cool about 10 minutes before serving. Potatoes will be very hot.

Notes

You can add some heavy cream to the milk. I added in 1/4 cup, but you can use just all whole milk.

The post Old Fashioned Scalloped Potatoes Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I’m happy to say that this gluten free oatmeal cookies recipe is just as good as any oatmeal cookie recipe I’ve baked. I’ve made a few different oatmeal cookies recipe here at Spinach Tiger, but only today it occurred to me to ice them the old fashioned way. This means that the cookie dough recipe does not have a lot of sugar, because the glaze is plenty sweet.

Then I made them again and browned the oats which took them yet to another level. Both ways are good. Toasting the oats give them more interest, more nutty flavor.

Use heavy cream to make an authentic oatmeal icing.

Options for Old Fashioned Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies Recipe with Icing

• Make them with browned butter or toast oats in butter.
• Add dried fruit, raisins.
• Add nuts, almond butter or peanut butter.
• Add chocolate chips.

Unlike some of my gluten free baking, I got lucky and this recipe worked for me the very first time.

The texture is more cake than crisp, but that’s what I wanted. I remembered an oatmeal cookie that I would purchase one at a time at a little grocery store called Ma n Pa’s in Long Beach California which sells prepared food. I looked them up and they are still there, but I don’t know if they still make their legendary oatmeal cookie. Sometimes I would stop in there just to get that cookie.

I like these because you can freeze the dough, freeze the cookies and keep on hand for snacks.

Let’s connect. I would love for you to come back for more gluten free baked goods and so many healthy choices. You’ll find such a variety of delicious food here. Please subscribe and never miss a recipe.

More Gluten Free Baking

Gluten Free Strawberry Scones

Gluten Free Blueberry Mascarpone Tart

Gluten Free Cherry Dutch Baby

Gluten Free Almond Tart

More Gluten Free Recipes from Spinach Tiger (Go Here) 

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Gluten Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies

Gluten Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies

Course Gluten Free Cookies

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 3/4 cups gluten free flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups gluten free oats made in gluten free factory
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg1/2 teaspoon vanillaorder here

Icing

• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 2-4 tablespoons heavy cream.

Instructions

• Mix flour, salt, baking soda, set aside.
• Melt butter in large frying pan.
• Add oats, cinnamon. Cook on low for five minutes stirring frequently.
• Add in brown sugar. Mix well.
• Turn off heat.
• Add egg to milk.
• Add vanilla.
• Stir in flour.
• Add this matter to the oats.
• Mix well. Cool enough to form cookies. At this point, you could chill batter or bake cookies.

Icing

• Add a tablespoon of cream at a time to confectioner's sugar and mix well to get the consistency you want.
• Spoon icing on cookies while they are still hot.
• Cool before serving.

The post Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Do you cook or bake to procrastinate? I do.

Today is the day, we are installing quarter round on our hardware floors and it’s my job to paint those strips of wood in our hot garage.  I’d rather have flour on my hands instead of paint thank you very much.

The only thing saving me is the DVR? Are you with me? Today I caught up with Brain Dead, which is some kind of political comic relief/satire (sort of). I have to see where this goes. Have you watched it?

I’d prefer to pretend that life is a bowl of cherries, even if we all know better and we’re all feeling uneasy, no matter what side of the fence we’re on.

Alas, even cherries have pits and they are not that easy to get out, so I use a cherry pitter like this one.

Cherry Dutch Baby is a summer comfort food.

It’s a baked pancake very similar to my apple dutch baby that so many of you love.

Although this is gluten free, it’s not lesser than, even though it may not puff up in the same way.  I made side by side versions and in a blind taste test, Mr. ST like the gluten free one better.

The Secret to Cherry Dutch Baby is Amoretto

The secret to the cherries is cooking them stovetop with butter and amaretto for about five to ten minutes to soften and flavor. They will be a bit tart, but not too much.  If you don’t have amoretto, try bourbon or brandy. They like cherries too!

Sliced almonds give the perfect crunch and marrying of flavors, just like these chocolate almond cherry scones.  This reminds me of this pear almond clafoutis. I didn’t add the almonds when I baked this. It was an afterthought and I broiled them for about a minute, once the dutch baby was done.

Retro Rose called me after taking some home to let me know that her friends tasted and raved big time. So I got four endorsements today for this successful gluten free cherry dutch baby. My testimony is that I had to pull myself away from it, but I have a love affair with cherries.

How about you? What’s your favorite summer fruit? See more of mine on Instagram and let’s connect.

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Almond Cherry Dutch Baby, Gluten Free

Cherry dutch baby topped with almonds is a perfect summer comfort food brunch.

Course Brunch

Cuisine German

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 20 fresh cherries pitted
• 2 ounces amaretto
• 4 tablespoon butter divided
• 3/4 cups gluten free flour I use Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450.
• Combine flour with sugar, salt, baking powder.
• Combine eggs with vanilla and mix with flour.
• Add milk, and mix. Set aside.
• Melt two tablespoons butter and add to the mixture.
• Pit Cherries
• Melt 2 tablespoons butter in 10 inch skillet that you will be making the dutch baby in. (Oven proof).
• Add cherries and amoretto. If you don't have amoretto, you can use brandy, or skip. Cook on low for 5 to ten minutes, stirring frequently.
• Pour batter on top of cherries. Add almonds.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
• This may not puff up the same way regular floured dutch babies do, but will taste good.

More Cherry Recipes

Cherry Pie

Chocolate Cherry Almond Scones, Gluten Free option

The post Cherry Dutch Baby, Gluten Free appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

French Macarons Recipe, Chocolate Dipped

A few tips to help you make successful macarons:

• Weigh your ingredients. I needed six egg whites instead of 4 because they were small.
• Use white parchment paper. Never use aluminum foil. (Okay, sometimes I used brown, but white is better).
• Make your own almond flour and blanch almonds first. It’s cheaper than purchasing almond flour. It’s tricky at first, but not difficult. It eliminates any skins. Do not use almond meal. Use almond flour, sifted.
• Sift everything three times. Once you incorporate the confectioner’s sugar with the almond flour, sift again. You might even consider running the confectioner’s sugar with the almond flour once through the food processor to get a good incorporation and silky texture.
• Make a template for the macarons. One template for all batches. Just put another piece of parchment over the template. Southern Fatty has a printable template you can download here. I didn’t always use one, but you may find it helpful.
• Don’t get discouraged. Remember that even the failures taste good.

Please let me know in the comments below if you have made French macarons and have any good tips to add here. I’d love to know if you have a good French macarons recipe.

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Chocolate Dipped French Macarons Recipe

A vanilla French Macaron dramatically dipped in chocolate with all my tips for macaron making success.

Course Dessert

Cuisine French

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 18 minutes minutes

Total Time 48 minutes minutes

Servings 20

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

French Macaron Shell
s:

• 115 grams blanched almond flour
• 230 grams powdered sugar sifted
• 144 grams egg whites room temperature important to weigh the egg whites; I used 6 small eggs
• 72 grams granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla paste can use scrapings of one vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Ganache Filling

• 6 ounces chopped dark chocolate The darker the better; do not go under 60% cacao - I used Ghiradelli 60% bittersweet, which melt well. See notes

• 1/2 cup scalded milk
• 1 tablespoon butter

Dipping Chocolate

• 6 ounces chopped dark chocolate

Instructions

Macaron Shell Instructons

• Mix together almond flour, confectioner's sugar and salt. Whisk until well incorporated. Sift. Set aside.
• Beat the egg whites for a total of 10 minutes, gradually adding sugar as instructed below. This is best done with a Kitchen Aid type mixer, but you can use an electric hand held mixer.
• Add 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar to the egg whites and beat for 4 minutes on number 4 or medium-low speed.
• Begin to add more sugar gradually and beat for 3 more minutes on number 7 or medium-high speed.
• Continue to add in the sugar to completion and beat on number 8 for 3 more minutes. Beat for 1 more minute on highest speed, adding in the vanilla.
• Add the egg white mixture to the dry ingredients using your largest spatula, folding the mixture together. Fold no more than 40 times. The egg whites will deflate a bit and that's fine. The texture should be like a running lava, not a pancake batter. Do NOT stir. Fold.
• Put into a piping bag with a plain 1/2 inch tip and pipe onto your circles, piping from the side. On my second batch I used a tip made for cake batter and that worked super well.
• Give each baking tray a good bang on the table three times to get the air out. Rest for 60 minutes. By this time, the macaron is flattened, which is a good thing, as this will help to prevent a hollow macaron.
• Bake at 300°F for 16 to 18 minutes. Spin the pan around in the oven at 8 minutes. Check to see if they are done by lifting a macaron up with parchment and trying to pull away. The macaron should pull completely away when done. Remove from parchment paper and cool on baking tray.

Make Ganache

• Put chocolate in small bowl. Pour scalded milk over the chocolate and let sit for one minute. Stir from center in small circle until all the chocolate is melted. Add in butter, continue to stir until melted.
Allow to cool before filling. If you have left over ganache, you can freeze it or refrigerate for another use.

Make Dipping Chocolate

• Chop and melt chocolate in saucepan double boiler over simmering water. The best way to dip the macaron is to put the chocolate into a very small container.

Assemble

• Once macarons are completely cool, fill each with ganache.
• Dip halfway into melted chocolate. Place on parchment paper. Once chocolate hardens, refrigerate for a few hours to overnight before serving. Take out one hour before serving. Macarons can also be frozen and thawed in three hours.
• Yield: 40 shells to make 20 macarons

Notes

Use the best chocolate you can find no less that 60% cacao. 70% is preferred; however, Ghiradelli makes a 60% chocolate chip that melts well and tastes good. Other grocery store chocolate chips will not perform well.

More French Desserts You May Love

Classic French Madelaines

French Raspberry Tart

The post Chocolate Dipped French Macarons Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Veal Meatballs with Ricotta Cheese and Fresh Mozzarella

While I was making these veal meatballs with ricotta cheese and gooey mozzarella, I was gearing up for the Academy Award’s Red Carpet, which I look more forward to than the awards themselves.

In all the years I’ve lived, I’ve watched things in the world get better, while other things get just plain stupid.

The Red Carpet Might Take Itself  Too Seriously

You can no longer ask women at the academy awards “who” they are wearing or “what” they are wearing, unless you get into some SERIOUS questions, because supposedly it insults women. I think it was Reese Witherspoon who started the campaign “ask me more.” This article lists many of the serious questions that the women want to be asked.

One actress wants to be asked ““What social cause are you most passionate about and why?”

Oh my goodness, while all of that is “nice” that is not what the red carpet is for. It’s not the Miss America contest, nor is it an Oprah interview. It’s the red carpet, the one time that glamour IS the reason people are tuning in. In this world of social media, the actresses have a million and one opportunities to champion their causes and become known.

Don’t tell me that women who fretted over make-up, botox injections, cheek implants, jewelry and well, not hair this year, but that’s another story, will feel badly if you talk to them about their appearance. They want to be on that best dressed list. It’s part of the fun, and we need fun.

. Movies are powerful, but their main draw is a place of escape and for sheer entertainment.

We need the red carpet and we care about those dresses!

Doesn’t this picture of the extremely talented Jennifer Lawrence just make you smile?

Next thing, someone will tell me is that I can’t eat veal, but even if they do, I’m not listening.

I’m swooning (mostly) at red carpet fashion and I’m eating veal.

Veal Meatballs Process

When I made these veal meatballs, I was spinning many plates, and made them in steps over two days. I mixed and baked the meatballs on Saturday, placed them in a dish of tomato puree overnight and then on Sunday added the cheese and baked. It almost felt like not cooking!

This is a meal to serve with crusty bread and a salad, when you are craving comfort food Italian style. This could even be a party dish, a heavy appetizer, or game day nosh. It’s man food with a woman’s touch, and a hearty family meal.

I did a little looking around the other day and discovered my most popular category is my Italian food category, which has over 120 Italian recipes. I’ve decided to dig a little deeper and make more Italian food here.

So tell me, do you want more Italian recipes, and what recipes are you most interested in?

Please connect with me on instagram, where I take you on a culinary journey of what we’re eating and drinking in Nashville, and all the things that get whipped up in Spinach Tiger’s kitchen. Just click on my IG feed below.

More Meatballs from Spinach Tiger

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Veal Meatballs, with Ricotta and Fresh Mozzarella

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground veal
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• salt
• pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 large can tomato puree
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 8 mini fresh mozzarella balls or 1 cup shredded mozzarella

Instructions

• Pour milk over ground veal
• Season with salt and pepper
• Add egg, parsley, grated parmesan, bread crumbs and very loosely, gently mix together. You don't want the meat to be compacted, as that will make the meatballs tough.
• Form into small balls.
• Place foil or parchment paper on baking sheet.
• Bake meatballs for 20 minutes at 375 degrees.
• From here, you can place in your own favorite tomato sauce or do the following method.
• Mix white wine with tomato puree. Put meatballs in sauce and refrigerate for several hours to overnight.
• When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Scoop ricotta cheese into baking dish in various places.
• Do same with mozzarella.
• Bake until heated through and cheese is melted about 20 minutes.

The post Veal Meatballs, with Ricotta and Fresh Mozzarella appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Sometimes cooking and especially baking can be a test of one’s character. Thus, is the case with the goat cheese biscuits.

I didn’t set out to make them. I set out to make goat cheese frosting!

But, did you know that flour and confectioner’s sugar look alike.

Yep. I did that. I used flour and then realized uh oh.

It’s not like me to want to throw food into the trash the way they do in Hollywood restaurant kitchens like in the movie Burnt. As they tested and tested and tested again recipes that might win the fictitious chef his hopeful three Michelin Stars, lots of food got trashed.

They should have trashed the movie. While we all love Bradley Cooper, his character never got lovable. Even

in the moment when he serves a little girl cake for her birthday, I just wanted to hit him with it.

I didn’t like the title, although I felt a bit burnt by the end.

I can’t stand fallen heroes who have talent and then use every drug,  every woman and every good friend.

I can’t stand temper tantrums and broken dishes in kitchens. I can’t stand antics. Go home, Chef. Break up your own house. Do violence all by yourself. No perfect scallop is worth eating that comes out of a toxic kitchen.

Aren’t we over scallops anyway?

I also can’t stand that somehow someway they had to have a gay character (the only endearing one in the bunch)  that had a crush on a straight guy. Pathetic.

And, how cliche that the female chef whom he nearly forces to work for him falls in love with him for absolutely no good reason except that he leaves her at a party, he physically assaults her in the kitchen, and he won’t let her take the lunch time off to spend with her daughter on her birthday.

Chef Adam Jones is a bit of a monster in the kitchen, yet drums up loyalty, even with us in the audience who actually feel sorry for him when someone gets even for his past antics and arranges some payback. We should have cheered the avenger, but we didn’t because the movie line was “like the bad boy.” After all, the bad boy will come out smelling better in the end.

But he really didn’t. He stunk and he burned us. He was not adorable.  He did have amazing blue eyes to gaze upon, but it wasn’t enough. We wanted him to come through and break out of his miserable self, so we could make sense out of the the female chef love interest, who had moxy in the beginning of the movie and lost it.

His  (sort of) therapist (Emma Thompson) was dressed absurdly for no good reason and her talent was diminished. While she delivered the only line of truth, it was too little, too late, and only zeroed out by line from a previous girlfriend who had gone down into hell with him. “We were good together.” No you weren’t good together; you were addicts,

toxic and in destruction.

You also look way too beautiful to have lived life on the dark side with the charming Chef Adam Jones.

 We always want the bad guy to win, if he so much as does a meek apology or glances our way. UGH!

Here’s the worst part of this movie.

I did not leave hungry for anything except scrambled eggs that were cooked in a home kitchen for him after he got blitzed.

I wanted to love this movie. But I already loved enough of the wrong things and people in 90’s.

Chef Movies I Do Love

Now if you really want to see a good movie revolving around the coveted Michelin stars, I have two for you, a movie:

The Thirty Foot Journey

If you really truly want to get inside of an Michelin Star Awarded Chef, see the documentary, For Grace which I wrote about here. I promise you to be blown away.

For Grace, a Documentary about Chef Curtis Duffy

While both chefs are flawed and a bit jagged at times, they are engaging in their personal story and compelling in their passion to cook. The 30 Foot Journey does a masterful job of displaying the complexities of people who are driven to perfection by a love of food, while still being as approachable as the food truck chef in Chef.

Chef (a movie to love)

 Chef is a feel good movie that tells more than the story of a chef, scorned by a food blogger. It’s the story of the guts it takes to bring tasty food to people, the price it takes in a personal life and a father/son story.

I could see this move over and over, as long as I have a Cubano Sandwich ready!

The Making of a Goat Cheese Biscuit

I could have just as easily thrown a fit when I discovered that I just put two cups of flour into my butter when I was trying to make frosting. I caught myself.

The test of character in a regular home kitchen is having the determination to do something with a mistake, as I still believe failures are the best teachers, and if you aren’t failing, you aren’t succeeding.

Knowing I make very successful biscuits, why not make one with goat cheese, even if the order of ingredients was not quite right, which I fixed for you in the recipe. Just know that even doing it wrong, they came out right and every last one disappeared before my eyes.

So tell me, do you have a favorite food movie?  I’d love to hear about it in the comments, or tell me about your funny kitchen mistakes.

Print

Goat Cheese Biscuits

A goat cheese biscuit, fluffy and tender with a sweet goat cheese flavor.

Course Biscuit

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 4 ounces goat cheese cold
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter very cold
• 3/4 cups buttermilk or whole milk
• milk for brushing biscuits

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees (425 for convection oven)
• Mix dry ingredients together well.
• Chop butter and goat cheese into small pieces. Place in freezer for 10 minutes.
• Using hands, mix into flour mixture, making sure not to smear in, leaving small pieces.
• Add in milk and mix using wooden spoon
• Form into a ball and pat down.
• Cut with biscuit cutter.
• Place on baking stone, or cast iron pan or griddle, touching.
• See this post for biscuit tips.
• Brush with milk (to aid in browning)
• Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

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