Keto Garlic Bread

 On a cold winter evening soup is an excellent dinner. One thing I miss is some crusty bread to go with my soup. This garlic bread recipe is quick, simple, and even the non-keto members of the family will gobble it down.

Keto Garlic Bread

Ingredients:

1 cup shredded Mozarella cheese

1/4 cup almond flour

1 egg

garlic powder

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well.

2. Turn out the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and press into an 8 inch circle.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until the edges are slightly browned.

Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

 In my search for doable keto cookies I have found this gem. These cookies are simple to make, easy ingredients, and super tasty. They are 2 carbs per serving and well worth the treat.

Keto Peanut Butter Cookies

INGREDIENTS

• ▢1 cup creamy salted peanut butter 
• ▢1/2 cup confectioners swerve sweetener 
• ▢1/4 cup almond flour 
• ▢1 large egg

INSTRUCTIONS

• Prepare: Preheat oven to 350 F. Set aside baking sheet lined with parchment paper or baking mat. Stir together all ingredients in mixing bowl until well-mixed; resulting dough should be thick and dense.
• Form Cookies: Scoop 1 to 2 tablespoons of dough to form 1-inch ball, placing it onto baking sheet. Repeat until dough is used up, resulting in about 18 balls, arranged about 2 inches apart. Flatten each ball by pressing down using fork and rotating 90 degrees to press down again, forming criss-cross pattern.
• Bake & Cool: Bake at 350 F for 12 to 15 minutes or until edges of cookies are browning. Cookies will be very soft coming out of oven; cool on baking sheet before serving.

Keto Spritz Cookies

 Christmas 2020 has been different in so many ways. One major change has been that I have been eating Keto. As is normal for the Riddles, we made a bunch of cookies to give as gifts to family and friends. I love to bake, but it was really hard not to be able to enjoy all the delicious things we were creating. So I set out to try some Keto cookie recipes. I am not a huge fan of recipes that require lots of additional expensive powders to make. I found this press cookie recipe: simple ingredients, easy to make, makes a lot, and BEST of all....each cookie is only 1 carb!!!  I like to bake with Swerve, I feel like it tastes more like sugar than other sweeteners. I finished mine off by dipping them in melted sugar free chocolate chips...PERFECTION!

KETO Spritz Cookies

INGREDIENTS

• ¾ cup softened butter
• 1 cup powdered sweetener , or equivalent sweetener
• 1 tsp vanilla
• ½ tsp almond extract
• 1 egg
• 3 ¾ cups almond flour, buy finely ground, blanched
• 1 tsp baking powder

• INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare two baking pans with silicone liners or parchment paper.
  2. In a standing mixer, cream together the butter, sweetener, egg, and vanilla and almond extracts.
  3. Add in the almond flour and baking powder and mix it all together to form a dough.
  4. Spoon the dough mixture into the cookie press and press out the cookies, at least an inch apart.
  5. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until the edges begin to turn brown.
  6. After 15 minutes you can move the cookies to a cooling rack. Let the cookies cool completely before serving.

Chocolate Espresso Snowcaps

 I am trying to put all our favorite cookie recipes here on the blog. So far, there are two. This one is definitely in our top 5. Chocolate Espresso Snowcaps comes out perfectly every time. We usually double or tripple the recipe to make sure that there are enough for all of our neighbor Christmas Gift cookie boxes. Be careful with the directions, this recipe requires refrigeration, don't skip the cooling or you won't get puffy crackled cookies, but you will get chocolaty puddles. 

Bake, and enjoy these delicious and festive Riddlehaus favorites.

Chocolate Espresso Snowcaps

Makes 18 cookies

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 teaspoons instant espresso
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
• 1 tablespoon milk
• Confectioners' sugar, for coating

Directions

Instructions Checklist

• Step 1

  In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, espresso, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg until well combined; mix in cooled chocolate. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture; beat in milk until just combined. Flatten dough into a disk; wrap in plastic. Freeze until firm, about 45 minutes.

• Step 2

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Pour confectioners' sugar (about 1/2 cup) into a medium bowl; working in batches, roll balls in sugar two times, letting them sit in sugar between coatings.

• Step 3

  Place on prepared baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies have spread and coating is cracked, 12 to 14 minutes; cookies will still be soft to the touch. Cool cookies on a wire rack.

Keto Pizza Crust (Fathead Dough)

 I am a Jersey girl, and if I am honest, the one thing that made me sad about going Keto is not being able to eat pizza. I have made some pizza crust alternatives with zucchini, and they were ok, but I decided to try a fathead pizza dough. I had very low expectations, especially since there were so few ingredients but HOLY MOLY...was I surprised! This pizza dough recipe is delicious. It bakes up well, is crispy on the edges, and you can pick it up and the pizza holds it's integrity. If you are skeptical, I enourage you to give it a try.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (plus more for topping)
• 2 tbsp cream cheese
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 1 egg (beaten)
• sauce & pizza toppings of your choice

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, microwave the cream cheese and mozzarella together for 90 seconds, stirring half way through.

3. Stir in the almond flour and beaten egg to combine (if your dough appears to be too sticky, add in a little more almond flour). Knead with your hands until a dough forms.

4. Place the dough in between two large pieces of parchment paper and roll the dough out into a 10" circle, or until it's about 1/3 inch thick. (*See tips in the recipe notes below for keeping the dough from sticking to the paper).

5. Remove the top piece of parchment paper, and place the bottom sheet with the dough on it onto a pizza pan or upside down sheet pan.

6. Use a fork to pierce lots of holes throughout the dough to help it cook evenly and prevent bubbling.

7. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden brown.

8. Remove from the oven and top it with sauce, cheese and the toppings of your choice.

9. Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes. Gobble up.

Rose Hip Jam

 

On a walk near the water in Scituate this weekend we came across a huge patch of beach roses covered in rose hips. We had a lot of fun stuffing our pockets with hips. We ended up with quite a few and decided to make some jam. 

Rose hips are fun to find an pick, but they are a lot of work to process. I found a good audiobook and embraced the restful moment while I cleaned the hips. the tops, spikes and seeds must be removed.

Rose hips are also super good for you. They are packed full of vitamin C. If you are not making jam, I also recommend drying the hips and using them for tea.

Rose Hip Jam

Ingredients:

200 grams of rose hips, stems, thorns and seeds removed

350 ml water

3 tablespoons lemon juice

400 grams sugar

1 package (50 grams) powdered pectin

Directions:

1. In a medium stockpot combine prepared rose hips, water and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer about 20 m inutes, or until the hips are soft and cooked through.

2. Using an immersion blender, pulse the soft fruit to a smoothness of your liking. 

3. Add the sugar and stir over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil. When the fruit is boiling stir in the pectin, and keep the jam at a boil for a full minute.

4. Finish the jam by filling hot, sterilized jars with the hot jam and processing in a hot water bath canner for 10 minutes. 

Sourdough Discard Crackers

This is a great way to use discard. During the colder months when we were doing school from home these were a great snack to pop in the oven. I barely managed to get them off the pan before they were all eaten. Super easy, very tasty and definitely a keeper recipe.

Sourdough Discard Crackers

2 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 cup starter
2 tablespoons seasoning of your choice
salt

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Melt the butter and mix with the starter, then incorporate your seasonings.

2. Pour your batter out onto a parchment lined baking sheet and spread it thin.

3. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven. Immediately score into the shapes you desire. Return to the oven for an additional 40 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.

Sourdough Country Loaf

This rustic loaf recipe has worked beautifully pretty much every time. My two pieces of advice are these: 1. Know your starter. Make sure you know that your starter is in the active phase. If it is not active this recipe will be dense, and you will have to use it for croutons. 2. Be patient. This recipe needs to sit around all day. It is great to do on a day when you will be around the house for a while. Learn how to incorporate it into your daily rythms. Don't try to rush it or take shortcuts. It won't work. Also, if you have a big family like mine, and you want to make two loaves at once, make two separate recipes in two bowls. Doubling this recipe was not successful for me, the dough is too massive and heavy and does not rise properly.

Sourdough Country Loaf

Ingredients:

200g sourdough starter, active
400g water
650g flour
20g salt

Directions:

1. Using a scale and medium sized mixing bowl, incorporate all ingredients using your hands. The dough will be sticky, that's OK. Cover the bowl with a damp towel for 4 hours stretching and folding 4-5 times.

2. The stretch and fold technique: Grab one side of the dough and stretch a small handful up about 6 inches then fold into the middle. Give the bowl a quarter turn and continue that motion three more times until all sides have been folded into the middle. Repeat this 4-5 times over the 4 hour resting period.

3. Shaping your loaf: After 4 hours your dough should be smooth and springy. Shape your loaf and turn it into a banatin or bowl with a well floured towel to rest for 45 minutes. While your loaf is resting heat your oven to 450 degrees and place a covered dutch oven in to preheat. For more information on how to shape a country loaf please see HERE

4. After your loaf has rested and the dutch oven preheated, turn your loaf out onto a piece of parchment. Score the breat to allow for a good rise. Place the loaf and parchment carefully into the dutch oven and bake: 35 minutes with the top on, and 16 minutes with the top off. Ramove from the oven and cool for at least ten minutes before cutting.

Sourdough Cobbler

COVID season has given us more time. Some of that time I have given to re-visiting my sourdough starter. Last year I attempted a starter, and somehow I managed to let it turn into something that smelled like diaper. Thankfully, this time was a bit more successful. We have created so many excellent recipes with our starter. I am also obsessed with not throwing any away, so I have some great sourdough discard recipes as well that I am going to add soon.

This one was an amazing surprise. It was born out of necessity. I had a lot of starter that needed to be used, and it was too hot to make bread. Plus, I had some fruit that had ripened quickly and needed to be eaten. This recipe gets four points for awesome...1. it uses brown sugar with the fruit, this was excellent. 2. The butter is cut into the butter like a biscuit mix, so the crust is light and fluffy. 3. There is a butter and sugar topping that provides a bit of sweetness and a crispy top. It went over really well in our house.

Sourdough Cobbler

Ingredients:

filling:

• 2 1/2 lbs of fruit
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar 
• 1 tsp cinnamon 

dough:

• 3/4 cup of flour 
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp butter
• 1 cup sourdough starter 

topping:

• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 3 tsp sugar

Directions:

1. Cut up your fruit and mix with the brown sugar and cinnamon. Set aside while you create the dough.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium mixing bowl. Using a pastry blender, blend in the butter until it is in pea sized pieces, then mix in the sourdough starter.

3. Spoon the fruit evenly over the bottom of a 10 cup baking dish, then cover the fruit with the prepared cobbler dough.

4. Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter, and combine with 3 tablespoons of sugar. Brush or drizzle the topping over the cobbler dough.

5. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling and the cobbler crust is lightly browned. 

Quarantine Recipe #5: Churros

As we explored Mexico this week we absolutely had to make Churros. I have never made churros before, and it was super fun! They turned out great, and disappeared fast!

Churros

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter cut into pieces
1 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
dash of salt
1 cup flour
1 egg

coating:
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan heat the butter, water, sugar and salt. Bring them to a boil. Add the flour, reduce the temperature to low and stir until just combined. Set aside in the bowl of a mixer to cool for 5 minutes.

2. When the dough has cooled beat in the egg. Be careful to make sure the dough has cooled enough, if it is too hot the eggs can scramble and cook.

3. Heat oil to fry the churros in a medium pot. When the oil reached 350 degrees it is ready. Move the dough into a pastry bag fitted with an extra large star tip.  Pipe 4 inch sections of dough into the hot oil. Cook the churros 4 minutes.

Remove cooked churros to a paper towel and allow to cool for 30 seconds. Roll the churros in the cinnamon and sugar topping and enjoy! You can enjoy your churros straight up or dip them in chocolate sauce.