Pancakes? or Puddingcake

I started off with a glutenfree all purpose baking mix by the brand King Arthur Flour. I was excited because this mix claims to be useful for breads, cookies, pancakes, waffles, etc. Up until this brand- I had only ever used the Bob's Red Mill all purpose glutenfree biscuit mix 

and adapted it to meet my inspirations. 

I love mixes that have everything in them because it can be much less expensive than trying to do it yourself and can be quite versatile. Cheaper, Easier- I'm all for that!

so this is what I did:

1 cup of this all purpose flour is what it called for to make pancakes according to the box...

I sort of followed the box instructions and then I just went off into my own little world-

1/2 cup whipping cream instead of milk

1 egg

1.5 TB melted butter

1.5 tsp vanilla

2 or 3 TB brown sugar

1 generous dash nutmeg

a couple pats of cinnamon

I had to add water because my mixture was so thick.

I got a pan hot- with grassfed butter but what happened was that the fat from the cream , eggs, and butter made the pancake super thick- good flavor, 

but it was more like a bread pudding flavor and consistency. 

It was weird... and I could figure out how to fix it. 

So, today, I tried again- lowered the heat and cooked them longer- 

They are DELICIOUS!!!! and I ate them with grassfed butter and RAW LOCAL HONEY-

I have a little batter left over- and my next try, I'm going to pop them in the oven in a muffin tin 

and see what happens- I want then a little fluffier ? maybe I should have blended the ingredients to fluff them up, I used a spoon to mix. I'd like some air in them...

As a topping for the Pudding Cake- I took a couple drops of the Pomegranate Molasses -

I got at Savory Spice Shop, and drizzled over the honey on the pancake. 

Now the Pomegranate Molasses is sweet, but is extremely BRIGHT and Tangy!!! Not really a syrup, even though you could make into a syrup by adding sugar. I did not add sugar- I just dropped tiny drops onto my pancake as is- to see what would happen. It was potent- 

Also, just a plug on RAW LOCAL HONEY- eat some every day- just a small teaspoonful is fine- put it in your tea, in your smoothies..especially if you are prone to allergies. I've been doing this for a couple years (I do not religiously eat the honey but I try to eat it a little)- and I don't get allergies anymore... is that weird or what? I started to try this a couple years ago, and bought a super fancy honey. Turns out the honey was made in Brazil! So I have no idea why it worked- 

but I have since switched to Texas Honey.

 The theory is that the bees are picking up the pollen from the environment and then when you eat the honey, you are getting micro-doses of the allergens in your environment, and then your body builds up an immunity. 

Taste Buds agree! - its super thick and it actually gets thicker as time goes by- it doesn't need to be refrigerated and it is super creamy and sweet. just a little bit is very sweet. 

Experimenting in the Kitchen

MINT STICKS my thought was if the mint is fresh and delicious- what happens if you put the leftover sticks in hot water, will you get mint water? Not Really. 
I'm sure it gives off some oils and healthful properties, but it really didn't have any flavor at all. 
Some "food waste" like lemon rind and cilantro stems, or even celery leaves- are very useful for using in dishes. For instance the citrus rind can be dehydrated in the oven with sugar and turned into candy.

Tabouli without the tomato, without the lemon (because I didn't have any)

 and using some new spices I bought at SAVORY spice shop.... YUM!!!!

what you see is black cumin seeds being added to my Tabouli.

I used a Bulghur and Red Quinoa Quick Mix, Fresh Parsley, Fresh Mint, Balsamic Vinegar, 

Lavendar infused Olive Oil, and salt and pepper. 

 Red Lentil & Green Pea Mash  not all experiments have happy endings. The taste was good! but the texture was not too exciting to me. it came out clunky and hard to eat. I had a ton of it- so it is going to get blended with some tahini to make a hummus- some fresh lemon juice will pick this up off the ground and give it new life--which is what I was trying to do anyway but ran out of ingredients and time... 

Chickpea salad

YUM- but it's missing something

the chickpeas were made from scratch- so they are extra crunchy- 

but something is missing- maybe more olive oil. 

I used Turmeric, Cucumber, Cilantro, Hot Pepper Vinegar, mayonnaise, mustard, and Za'atar - 

which is another spice I found at Savory. Its a curry. 

The flavors were good- and it is super fresh and crunchy. I haven't put my finger on what its missing- but maybe some more veggies, like artichoke hearts and fresh lime juice. It marinated over night in the sauce and I think that really helped it a lot.

Other random easy experiments:

A turkey sandwich - oven roasted thin slices, mild slice of cheese (havarti), on Toasted bread --

spread the bread pieces with Honey

Turkey sandwich-- oven roasted turkey, bacon strips, sharp white cheddar (sliced) or Brie, on toasted seeded bread--

quince preserve on the bread

happy experimenting!!!