Mother’s Day is coming up, and what better way to start Sunday than to prepare a batch of this healthy French toast made with my Paleo Bread dipped in a coconut milk-based batter. This Paleo brunch recipe is based on one called Bradley Inn Blueberry French Toast Casserole that I found in our local paper, the Daily Camera, in December 2007.

I suggest baking Paleo Bread the day before making this gluten-free French toast casserole; allow the Paleo Bread to cool overnight, then prepare this dish the next morning. Another tip –be sure to bake your Blueberry French Toast Casserole on the lower rack of the oven so that it cooks through evenly and the top does not burn.

Serve this Paleo French toast with dairy-free Coconut Whipped Cream. This dish travels well to a potluck.

You may have noticed that recently I’ve been using new photography techniques on my website. I’ve been studying the photography and food styling of my friend Kelly at The Spunky Coconut. This new technique is a little more about the composition than the food, very artful, and I find it quite attractive. Of course I’ll keep taking close up photographs as I have for the past 7 years –which style of food photography do you like best, close up, or overhead composition?

Here are some Paleo French toast recipes from other bloggers:

• Paleo French Toast from George at Civilized Caveman Cooking
• Banana Bread French Toast from Juli at paleOMG
• Paleo French Toast Apple Slices with Caramel Sauce from Carol at Ditch the Wheat

And here are dairy free Coconut Whipped Cream recipes from other bloggers:

• Coconut Whipped Cream from Danielle at Against All Grain
• Paleo Fresh Berries with Coconut Cream from Amy at The Paleo Cupboard
• Coconut Whipped Cream from Molly at Paleo Plan

The post Blueberry French Toast Casserole appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

This recipe for Paleo Breakfast Bars is an amended version of a recipe I posted in 2009. I have rewritten this recipe for several reasons.

First, although a number of people swore by it, others commented that the bars came out crumbly for them. Second, the original recipe was not Paleo as it contained grapeseed oil and agave (for more information on which foods are Paleo go to this list from balancedbites.com, or this list from fitbomb.com).

In any event, this simple gluten-free homemade breakfast bar recipe is a favorite in our house as it is easy to pack for a hike and delicious enough to serve as a healthy dessert after lunch or dinner. I also serve it to the boys as a Paleo after school snack –their friends love it and eat a whole dish at a time, however they refer to these as granola bars or power bars.

Last week I had the good fortune to pop into New York to do some pre-publicity for my new book, Paleo Cooking from Elana’s Pantry. I met with several magazine editors and appeared on Fox News Live with the very engaging interviewer John Hunt, and I spoke extensively about the Paleo Diet. Here is the video.

Just a reminder, my book Paleo Cooking from Elana’s Pantry will be published early this summer, on June 18th, 2013.

Here are some of my other favorite Paleo snack recipes:

• Cherry Vanilla Power Bars
• Vegan Almond Pulp Crackers
• Chocolate Espresso Power Bars –not Paleo if made with agave, use honey as amended in the recipe

The post Paleo Breakfast Bars appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

I really don’t write a lot on my website because:

1. I’m not a writer.
2. I figure you all come here for the recipes anyway.
3. What’s the point? I like short and sweet. Literally.

Every now and then though, I do get the itch to write just a bit. And this recent comment on Facebook tickled my writing fancy:

I absolutely adore your recipes. I’ve been Paleo for over a year and feel/look amazing. I have to ask, though, aren’t treats such as Paleo baked goods supposed to be a very occasional treat? It seems that they’re being posted on a near daily basis.

And this was my response:

You are totally right, however I have a houseful of almost a dozen growing boys here everyday after school and they aren’t Paleo (most aren’t even gluten-free) so they get at least a Paleo treat a day –far better than the standard teenage fare of soda and chips, if you know what I mean!

Why the heck are there so many dessert and bread recipes on here? Well, it’s not that much of a challenge to come up with a Paleo chicken recipe –they’re all over the internet. Just sift through the websites of people like Martha, Ina, and Elise, and you’ll likely find some nice healthy steak and vegetable dishes as well. They’re probably gluten-free and maybe even Paleo. However, when it comes to finding baked goods that are of course treats, well, that’s not as easy, and that it is something I provide on this website –I create classic Neolithic dishes (like these Paleo Chocolate Chip Scones) that use Paleo-friendly ingredients.

Further confirming this hunch is the list of the Top 10 Most Viewed Recipes on my sidebar; just crank your eyes over a few inches to the right and take a gander at that feature. As you can see, folks look at, and I assume therefore want, baked goods. And so I am pretty much always testing something, and thankfully, the hordes of boys that come to my house after school take pleasure in eating the items that I am continuously testing.

And now back to our regular programming:

These gluten-free, dairy-free Chocolate Chip Scones are made from coconut flour. So no, the measurement of 1/2 cup of flour is not a typo (I get this question on just about every recipe on my website that uses coconut flour). Coconut flour is unique in that just a little bit goes a long way.

On another culinary note, I want to point out that coconut flour is quite light and fluffy –great for cakes and muffins. So these quick and easy Paleo Chocolate Chip Scones are rather cakey and fluffy and don’t have a heavy crumb. They’re a bit different than a classic scone. They’re also nut-free which is deliberate as I’ve had more and more requests for nut-free recipes lately.

Finally, yet most importantly, I based this recipe on one from Brian Musial at mypaleodiet.net, although I’ve made a number of modifications. He has a lovely site that you may wish to peruse for other healthy Paleo recipes. Enjoy the scones and thanks for listening.

Peace out,
Elana

The post Paleo Chocolate Chip Scones appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

If I had a grain free muffin of the month club November would be pumpkin spice muffins. September would be banana muffins and May would be blueberry muffins. Of course, I have no such club, however, I do love a good healthy muffin.

For those of you who have nut allergies? These grain free Pumpkin Spice Muffins are nut free.

The roasted pumpkin in this muffin makes it delicate and moist and the spices add a robust fall flavor. I use a tablespoon each of ground cinnamon and ginger. The result is a healthy one given that cinnamon is a wonderful blood sugar stabilizer and ginger is anti-inflammatory. When baking, these muffins will perfume your home with the wonderful aroma of healing spices.

Next week I will be posting the vegetarian Pumpkin Spice Whipped Cream recipe that you see crowning these Pumpkin Spice Muffins. If you want immediate gratification, check out Marla’s recipe at familyfreshcooking.com, and check out the gorgeous photos on her site as well.

While I based my dairy free pumpkin whipped cream recipe upon hers, mine is a bit different. Marla’s has less sugar (she sweetens it solely with stevia) and mine has more spice. That’s what I love about the internet –there’s a recipe for everyone if your fingers do the walking.

Here are some of my other gluten free muffin recipes:

• Banana Muffins
• Bran Muffins
• Carrot Muffins

The post Pumpkin Spice Muffins appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

I discovered this hot cereal on Ricki Heller’s blog, Diet Dessert and Dogs, after she tweeted it a couple of days ago.  I’ve had it for my gluten free breakfast every day since!  You can call it hot cereal or porridge, either way, it’s a superfood way to start your day, and quick and easy at that. What is porridge?  According to Wikipedia, porridge is a dish made by boiling grains such as oats or other cereal meals in water, milk or broth.  In fact, there are lots of ways to make a gluten free porridge, this one just happens to be my favorite, probably because it’s Paleo friendly.

I grew up on Cream of Wheat (isn’t that lovely). We did not eat ours with sweetener, it was a savory dish for us, with tons of butter (actually margarine) and salt.  This new gluten free breakfast brings back my memories of hot cereal during childhood.  Here’s my version of the hot cereal posted on Ricki’s blog (original recipe by Andrea Nakayama).

I use a full teaspoon of cinnamon in this hot cereal as there are studies that indicate this spice controls blood sugar, and I also like its flavor. This gluten free hot cereal would make delicious and healthy breakfast with a side of Simple Fruit Salad and Dandelion Root Coffee

Here are some other gluten free breakfast ideas you might enjoy:
-Muesli Scones
-Granola
-Blueberry Muffins

The post Porridge appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

I originally posted this date sweetened, gluten free muffin recipe the year before last in my Great Agave Debate post.  Because it was part of something so much bigger, it kinda got lost in the mix.  I’m re-posting it because I think it’s an easy, super tasty, healthy recipe that will please both agave lovers and haters alike.

For more information on agave, please check out my Great Agave Debate post and all of the amazing reader comments and debate that follow it.  Meantime, everyone, enjoy these purely fruit sweetened coconut flour based muffins!

I loved Joy the Baker’s awesome post on coconut flour; her accompanying recipe for Coconut Waffles looks obscenely good (I can’t wait to make it myself).  If you haven’t been to her site, be sure to check it out.  Joy is an amazing writer with true wit and an outrageously good sense of humor.  Her recipes are pretty darn great too!

The post Banana Walnut Muffins appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

I have been a huge fan of Michael Ruhlman’s book Ratio for quite some time.  His work really came to life for me when I saw him speak at Blogher Food last year.  He conveys his love of good food in a passionate manner, which I find compelling.

So, when my friend Silvana invited me to participate in this month’s Ratio Rally, I said yes, even though I have not really baked using ratios and scales.  I am definitely a numbers person though, so the concept is not a daunting one.  If you don’t like numbers and scales, do not read any further.  This post is not for you!  If you’re into making recipe templates that can serve as the basis for numerous other recipes, then proceed.  And get out that scale!

According to Ruhlman, “a quick bread is composed of cake batter ingredients that are stirred together.“  He goes on to say that “muffins are quick breads baked into cups.“  Hence, my decision to make muffins. Ruhlman’s ratio for making a quick bread using wheat flour is 2 parts flour: 2 parts liquid: 1 part egg: 1 part fat.

The ratio I came up with for muffins uses almond flour, and is 4 parts flour: 4 parts egg: 1 part sweetener.  After much experimentation, I can say that  I doubt these proportions will work with other flours as almond flour is a very unique ingredient.

So why create this recipe at all?  Well, it is still versatile in two ways.  First, it is a wonderful template for a muffin recipe.  You can experiment by adding different flavor combinations including: date walnut, lemon poppyseed, dried cranberries with white chocolate chips, cinnamon raisin, and orange dark chocolate chip.  Second, you can scale up the recipe and make as many muffins as you like.  Double it for 8 muffins.  Cut it in half for 2.  It’s that flexible.

The ratio for making a basic, lightly sweetened almond flour muffin is (4:4:1), and here is the complete recipe:

To make a loaf of quick bread, simply double the above batter and bake it for 35-40 minutes on the lower rack of your oven in an 6-½ x 4-inch baby loaf pan (Luminarc).

My findings? Because almond flour is more wet than wheat flour, I ended up eliminating the 2 parts of liquid that Ruhlman used in his ratios.  And because almond flour is more fatty than wheat flour I have eliminated the fat that was part of his formula.  Finally, I used equal parts almond flour and egg in my recipe because almond flour is heavy and requires extra leavening, and eggs are a wonderfully simple form of leavening that is high in protein.

I did not have a hypothesis when I began this experiment.  I based my ratio on Ruhlman’s and started out with liquids, fat and all sorts of unnecessary other ingredients (that I found are not relevant when baking with almond flour).  In order to come up with the recipe above, I baked the muffins 4 times before the result was remotely edible, and 5 more times to perfect them.  As you can see, when it comes to baking, hands on is the only way to go; guessing does not work.

The winner of last weeks giveaway for a brand new 12-Cup Food Processor from the Cuisinart Elite Collection™ is M. Sieu! I want to thank everyone for participating and sharing your favorite food processor recipes.

The post Almond Flour Muffins appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

When the boys were little we used to have green eggs for breakfast everyday.  They grew out of that phase a while ago and now I think this Green Eggs recipe is perfect for St. Patrick’s day.

Now when I make these, I serve them with chicken breakfast links and my Dark Rye Bread (as shown above).  Green eggs are a colorful, fun, super healthy, hearty way to get in green veggies at the start of your day.  You can also make these yummy gluten free, dairy free eggs with spinach.  Here’s the recipe.

I’m chilling today and making Hamantachen after a wild weekend of partying with some amazing women.  With St. Patrick’s Day and Purim so close together, there is lots of baking to be done over here.  Tomorrow, I’m hosting a huge Purim party for our Chavurah.  Later this week, I’ll be posting some new Hamantaschen recipes so stay tuned. 

For now, here are some more gluten free St. Patty’s Day recipes from friends:
-Green Eggs and Ham Quiche from Heidi of Adventures of a Gluten Free Mom
-Grain Free Irish Soda Bread Biscuits from AndreAnna of Life as a Plate
-Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream from Shirley of Gluten Free Easily

The post Green Eggs appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

Did you know that I am obsessed with all things muesli?  I have a recipe for muesli bread in my book, and I make just about everything else I can with muesli.  While traditionally muesli has oats in it, I make mine grain free, as I follow as diet that is very close to Primal/Paleo.

So what exactly is muesli?  According to Wikipedia, it is a “popular breakfast cereal based on uncooked rolled oats, fruit and nuts. It was developed around 1900 by Swiss physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner for patients in his hospital. It is available as a packaged dry form, or it can be made fresh.”

These scones have my favorite little muesli combination of dried fruits and nuts, and are the perfect vehicle for fellow muesli addicts.  I am about to sit down and enjoy one for my afternoon snack with a cup of Dandelion Root Coffee.

Muesli SconesNote: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.
2 cups blanched almond flour
½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup dried apricots, cut into ¼-inch pieces
¼ cup sunflower seeds
¼ cup sesame seeds
¼ cup pistachios, coarsely chopped
1 large egg (size does matter as dough will not hold together with a small or medium egg)
2 tablespoons agave nectar or honey

1. In a large bowl, combine almond flour, salt and soda
2. Stir in dried fruit, seeds and nuts
3. In a small bowl combine egg and agave
4. Stir wet ingredients into dry
5. Use your hands to form dough
6. Shape dough into a 6 ½ x 6 ½ square that is about ¾” thick
7. Cut dough into 16 squares
8. Bake at 350° on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (thanks Jenn!) for 10-12 minutes
9. Serve

You can “mix it up” by using different dried fruits and nuts for this muesli scone recipe and coming up with your own favorite combination.  Please remember though, to share your results with us in the comment section below as I’d love to hear all of your ideas for variations and adaptations of this recipe.

The post Muesli Scones appeared first on Elana's Pantry.

Once again, it’s all Joy the Baker’s fault.  This scone obsession of mine.  When I saw those cute little hand cut squares of Orange Chocolate Buttermilk Scones on her blog, joythebaker.com, I knew I had to make them mine.  And I did.  And then some.

So, here’s the latest in my scone series, gluten free Cranberry Orange Scones.  As you can see, there is a strange “orangeness” on the top of my scones.  That’s because I had a little extra zest leftover and rolled the dough in it.  Feel free to give this a try if you’re big time into the orange zest thing.

Gluten Free Cranberry Orange SconesNote: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.
2 cups blanched almond flour
¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup white chocolate chips
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 egg
2 tablespoons agave nectar

1. In a large bowl, combine almond flour, salt, baking soda, cranberries, chips and zest
2. In a smaller bowl, combine egg and agave
3. Mix wet ingredients into dry
4. Knead dough with hands if necessary to ensure proper distribution of ingredients
5. Form dough into 2 little circles so that each one is about ½-inch in thick
6. Cut each circle like a pizza, into 8 slices
7. Using a metal baking spatula transfer to a parchment paper lined baking sheet
8. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes
9. Serve

As you can see, with white chocolate chips, these scones are not even close to Paleo or Primal.  So, if you’re looking for a healthier treat, substitute the white chocolate with dark chocolate.  Or maybe just experiment with leaving out the chocolate altogether –blasphemy to chocolate lovers, I know!

Here are some more gluten free scone recipes you may enjoy baking:
-Bacon-Cheese Scones (Gluten-Free, Egg-Free, Cow-Dairy-Free Scones) from Approvechar
-Gluten-Free Vegan Cherry Oat Scones from Cybele Pascal
-Strawberry Chocolate Chip Scones from Gluten-Free Goddess

The post Cranberry Orange Scones appeared first on Elana's Pantry.