Happy Spring from Leslie Cerier; Gourmet Gluten Free recipes and cooking classes March 26, 2008

Hi all,

Hope all is wonderful with you! Sun is shining here and as I am raking up my perennial herb and flower gardens, I am reminded of all the goodness to come!

Just want to let you know, that on March 27th, I am off to Kripalu Yoga and Wellness Center in the Berkshires to teach the baker how to do gluten free baking with teff. This will be fun and delicious! There are lots of gluten free recipes with teff grain and teff flour (pancakes, cookies, pie crusts, side dishes and more) in my latest cookbook, Going Wild in the Kitchen. You will find one of my breakfast favorites the Teff Banana Pancakes recipe from Going Wild in the Kitchen which is Wheat-Free and Gluten-Free at the end of this blog, and if you want more recipes, please go to my website: lesliecerier.com and you can also scroll through my blog, too.

Teff Banana Pancakes (Wheat- and Gluten-Free)
This basic pancake recipe is easy to make and is delicious with a variety of sweeteners and juices. Feel free to substitute maple sugar or rice syrup for honey, and soymilk for juice. Ground-up flax seeds easily take the place of eggs in these delicious pancakes made with naturally sweet teff and bananas. The batter is light and looks like pudding.

Serves 4-6; 25 three-inch pancakes.

2 tablespoons flax seeds
2 ripe bananas
1 1/2 cups apple juice or soymilk
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon honey, maple sugar, or rice syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons safflower, almond or coconut oil
1 1/2 cups teff flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Optional: Add 2-4 eggs

1. Grind flax seeds in a blender until powdery. Add bananas, eggs (if using), juice, vanilla, honey, and 1/2 teaspoon oil. Blend well.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine teff flour, baking powder, sea salt, and cinnamon. Stir in banana and juice/soymilk mixture and mix well.
3. Place the griddle or 12-inch skillet over medium heat. After a minute or two, brush on one teaspoon of oil. Using a tablespoon, scoop up the batter and pour it on the hot griddle, one heaping tablespoon for each pancake.
4. Cook pancakes for 3-4 minutes on the first side, or until you see tiny holes on the top of the pancakes. Flip them over and cook for another minute or two.
5. Serve plain-or dipped into yogurt and Strawberry Sauce.

Variation: Add 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans.

Then on April 3rd, I am off to CA to help my friends Charlie and Marianne Cascio, author of the Esalen Cookbook. We will be teaching the Esalen cookbook workshop at Esalen. Get a taste of warm weather and then back on the 14th of April.

For those of you that haven’t registered yet for my April 27th and May 11th cooking classes, please do take advantage of the early registration discount. Register 2 weeks before each class, and save money. Take both classes and save more money. Details on my website: lesliecerier.com …. Please click on the link for cooking classes.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon, happy spring!
Leslie

Organics! Cooking classes with local seasonal produce and Whole grains! March 16, 2008

Hi all,

I just taught a wonderful cooking class to nutritionists and dietician, a hands-on cooking class on whole grains. Taking folks who had not cooked whole grains before and introducing them to the basics to infinity. First we did what is called a flight of rice. We cooked and tasted Bhutanese Red Rice, Chinese Black Rice and Jade rice cooked in water. One of the grains, we dry roasted first before simmering. Ok, now we got the basics… Next we created a new recipe: a teff lentil loaf cooked in coconut milk and spiced with chilies, cumin, fennel, garlic and cilantro. What a beautiful mosaic from the yams, red bell pepper and collards that were in this delicious one pot meal. Next up, quinoa with roasted root vegetables cooked in red wine.

So in this class of beginners we went from basics to exotics and one pot meals with gourmet, organic, local and seasonal produce. Delish!

hope you all can come to my upcoming classes: please go to my website: lesliecerier.com for details. Here’s what’s next: April 27th– Creative Cooking with Sea Vegetables, and May 11 is EAting for Strong Bones. See you all soon.

all the best,
Leslie