Bitter Orange Almond Cake

I was so excited for Passover this year! It's always an opportunity to dig into my culinary heritage a bit, but with methods and ingredients agreeable to my ethics and belly. Passover is all about FOOD. Judaism, in general, is all about connecting with the metaphysical through physical ritual - but food is the particular "physical" star of this holiday. 


I spent the first seder at my sister and brother-in-law's in Santa Barbara and the second at my parents' in Agoura Hills. My sister's seder was a potluck of sorts, and I jumped at the opportunity to make the dessert. It is one of my life missions to make the perfect dense flourless almond cake. I poked around for recipes and found this bitter orange variation all over the internet. It has Sephardic Passover culinary roots and was further popularized by the great cultural anthropologist and Middle Eastern and Jewish food writer, Claudia Roden. I love it's surprising bitterness, simplicity, and moistness. I think it has sophisticated flavor and would be fabulous paired (or soaked) with some dessert wine to balance the bitter.





INGREDIENTS
oranges (2) washed
almond flour (1 1/2 cups)
eggs (6) separate the yolks from whites
sugar (1 cup) or 3/4 cup agave or maple syrup and use one less egg
gluten free baking powder (1 t)


DIRECTIONS

1. Boil filtered water, reduce to a simmer, and boil oranges for two hours.
2. Remove oranges and cut into quarters to cool.
3. When cooled, blend in food processor until smooth.
4. Add the sweetener, almond flour, baking powder and egg yolks.
5. Preheat oven to 350°.
6. Beat the egg whites separately until they peak. 
7. Fold the peaked egg whites into the batter.
8. Pour batter into a greased springform pan, pop into oven and cook for about 1 1/2 hours. 
9. Cover the top of the cake with foil if it starts to burn and remove when the batter doesn't stick.
10. Let cool completely before cutting or covering. Sift almond meel or sugar on top, or serve with melted chocolate, orange syrup, berries, or almond ice cream.

I tried a purely vegan version (with flax meal instead of the eggs and maple syrup instead of the sugar) and it didn't come out well (too mushy and the flavor was too concentrated). Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Enjoy! xo, J

Arugula & Roasted Asparagus with Sweet Potato Chips

I shamefully don't cook with asparagus nearly enough, but after getting some in our farm delivery this week and making this salad, I want to cook with them all the time. Asparagus is awesomely versatile, so this is just one of many ideas. I found it on this fantastic Colombian food blog (where you can find things like Tres Leche Rice Pudding and Empanadas) and changed it up a bit to my taste.

SALAD INGREDIENTS

arugula

asparagus cut at a diagonal into 1" pieces

sweet potatoes (2 small) sliced into chip size, about 1/4"

olive oil

salt

DRESSING INGREDIENTS

dijon mustard (1 T)

fresh lemon juice (1/4 cup)

olive oil (1/4 cup or less to taste)

cumin (1/4 t)

garlic clove (1) minced 

salt 

pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 400°.
2. Mix your dressing ingredients together so it has time to settle and come together.
3. Toss your sweet potato slices with oil and salt. Pop into the oven. 
4. Toss your asparagus with oil and salt.  Pop into the oven.
5. When the asparagus is tender yet still crisp, take out of the oven and cool.
6. When the sweet potatoes are golden and crispy, take out of the oven and cool.
7. Toss the arugula, asparagus, and dressing together. Lay the sweet potato chips on top.

Enjoy!

xo, J

Roasted Leeks & Quinoa

I make a lot of "recipe centric" meals in an effort to learn, but man, I don't always want to follow a recipe. This is one dish where you don't have to follow anything, and hopefully it will give you another one of those non-thinking options when you just want to EAT. We need a stockpile of those, I think. Basically, the gist of this one is:

ROASTED VEGGIE + GRAIN + SAUCE + CRUNCHIES 

The sauce is nice because it unifies the ingredients into a composed-feeling dish while the crunchies add satisfying texture. And if you cook a ton of the grain or whip up a bunch of the sauce and pop in the fridge for next time, then you'll have the basics on hand for another quickie recipe, like a sandwich wrap or something. 

INGREDIENTS 

leeks roughly chopped

olive oil

salt

quinoa

tahini

lemon

sunflower seeds 

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat the oven to 400. 
2. Cook your quinoa with water or stock. When done, fluff with a fork to prevent mushing. (I cook extra for later and use water so it can become either sweet or savory.)
3. Toss the leeks with olive oil and salt on a baking sheet. Pop them in the oven. Make sure to watch closely and stir around because bits will start to burn. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
4. Mix some tahini with water and salt so it becomes a sauce. 
5. Toss together the quinoa, leeks, and tahini sauce. Finish with some fresh squeezed lemon and sunflower seeds.

Enjoy! xo, J