Coconut Buckweat Pancakes

Coconut Buckwheat Pancakes

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. Coconut Flour
1 1/2 c. Buckwheat Flour (light or dark)
1/4 c. Sugar
2/3. tsp Bakewell Cream*
1 tsp. Baking Soda
2 Tbs. Veg. Oil (or melted butter)
2 c. Milk (or favorite milk substitute)
1 c. water
1/4 c. flaxseed egg substitute

Procedure:
Combine all dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl.  Add all of the wet ingredients and stir together.  In working with coconut flour, you may find that it absorbs quite a bit of moisture (please see tomorrow's post when I discuss my experience trying out coconut flour).  This batter will be thicker than a "normal" pancake batter, but it should still be able to spread on it's own a little bit when poured onto the griddle, you may have to spread it out with a stroke or two of a spoon, but it should not sit idle in a clump on the pan, or be so runny that is spreads really thin.  Cook on a medium hot skillet, well buttered (or oiled).  Until the bottom is golden brown and the top should be starting to set.  These will not get bubbles in the raw batter on the top while they cook like "full gluten" pancakes (please see bottom left picture).  Carefully loosen them from the pan, as they will be prone to stick because of the high protein content of the coconut flour.  Flip them over and finish cooking the other side.  They will be firm to the touch and seem somewhat heavier than "full gluten" pancakes.

Pancake ready to flip

Pancake, after being flipped

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The flavor of these is very good.  The sweet coconut flavor blends well with the buckwheat flour (which can sometimes overpower an item) making the buckwheat taste more like a whole wheat blend.  The texture is heavier than that of the other buckwheat pancakes that I have posted, and much heavier than "normal full gluten pancakes".  When warm the pancakes have almost a creamy inside texture, when cool they become sturdy enough to make a delicious almond butter (or SunButter) sandwich out of.  My son really likes them for a snack as well as breakfast!  In the picture above, they are shown with the Citrus Prickly Pear Sauce, which was a great combination.  My son tends to eat them warm with butter and a sprinkle of sugar or cinnamon sugar.  Because of their heavy nature, and high protein content these are very filling and a healthy start to the day!  These would be great with mini chocolate chips added or maybe some mashed banana...  or Both!  Sounds like a good experiment to try next!


*Bakewell Cream is a leavening again manufactured in Maine, and usually only found in stores in Maine and other parts of New England.  I highly recommend using this in most quick breads and especially biscuits.  If you are not able to procure the Bakewell Cream, you can simply use 1 tsp Baking Powder and 1/2 tsp of Baking Soda, it will still work good for these pancakes with the coconut flour.

A New Discovery

Most of his life, my son has seemed oblivious to whether he was in control or not.  I think getting in trouble, or being in his own world was just normal for him.  Even while on medication, because of the side effects he was still being disciplined constantly for his violent behavior, instead of his crazy behavior.  Now that he has experienced what it is like to be what he calls "normal",  since eliminating the foods that trigger the symptoms (for almost a year now), and being off the medication, he has just experienced another new feeling:

Just recently he recognized the feeling of going out of control as it was coming on, before totally "losing it".  It was just a few weeks ago when we had decided to eat at a pizza place that has a gluten-free crust.  It was the first time we had eaten there and I double checked about the gluten, it was safe, and we all thoroughly enjoyed the service and the pizza.  It was delicious.  My son loved the gluten-free pizza, he was starving so he ate a lot...  this kid is only about 80 lbs at 11yrs old but he can put away some food!  About 15 minutes after finishing pizza, we were walking in a store, and he looked at me and said, "I think there was something in that pizza that was bad.  I feel it..  it's starting to come up to my head."  I tried to have him explain exactly what he meant and he said it was like he was starting to get shaky, but in his head, not really his body. Sure enough!  Just a few minutes after that, he was totally out of control!  Just absolutely crazy, and it lasted until into the next day sometime.  So I doubled checked the ingredients again in the crust...  it had eggs in it!  That was most likely the culprit!  (Although, you never know, there could have been some cross-contamination occurring with the wheat flour. I did read the reviews on their gluten-free pizza ahead of time and everyone that reviewed it said they had to problems...)

So far, this has only happened once.  Most of the time, my husband and I notice that he is very "wound up", hyper, and just can't seem to control himself.  In these cases, he doesn't realize it until we say something to him about it.  Then together we try and pinpoint what it is that is making this happen.  I am not sure yet, if it needs to be a big quantity of the allergen for him to notice the onset of the symptoms, or if he will simply gain awareness of the feelings over time. 

Either way,  I took this as a new step in his life..  hoping that as he grows and matures, he will become a responsible, healthy eater, being very aware of the consequences of eating the wrong foods, and thus, not having to rely on his parents as being the "food police".  Don't get me wrong, he still gets in trouble (like "normal" kids do, for "normal" kids stuff), he is still a high-energy kid, and constantly talks unless he is sleeping (this runs in the family... just ask my husband *laughing*) but he is becoming more aware of the world around him and the effects he has on it.  It still seems like a slow process at times, but other times we have days that "go down in family history". 

Why Am I Doing This?

This is a blog that will discuss specialty diets, including but not limited to food allergy diets and vegetarian diets.  Six months ago I found out that my son was allergic to all forms of wheat, wheat gluten, eggs, peanuts, yogurt, and oats.  What motivated me to get him tested?  He was diagnosed with ADHD four years ago, since then he has been on several medications trying to find one that worked without the side effects of head aches, stomach aches etc.  We finally found one that worked...  or so we thought.  He had been on it for about a year and a half and I noticed that his growth had slowed way down, he had not gained more than maybe a pound in almost two years, at 9-10 yrs old I did not feel that this was healthy regardless that the medical doctors said "it is fine".  Also he was not sick with it, but his appetite was decreasing and physical/emotional violence was increasing!  My husband and I found ourselves every evening trying to control this violent kid.  This was not my son!  He went from a very happy child to one that was always so negative and violent!

That is when my mom gave me a book to read about treatments for ADHD that did not include medication.  She had just underwent food allergy testing herself for some health issues that she has dealt with for over 30 years.  The book was about food allergies (and some environmental allergies) that contribute to ADHD as well as other health problems.  It was an eye opener!  So I continued to do more research, and then decided medication was not the answer, it was a temporary fix to an underlying problem.  We met with a naturopathic physician who recommended the food allergy testing.  So for the last six months my son has been totally off medication and has cut out the allergens as well as taking fish oil and vitamin D and we have seen a total change!  He is happy again and excited about life!

This change was a huge challenge!  When my son first learned about what foods we were going to have avoid, he was devastated!  His favorite breakfast included eggs, and he loves peanuts and peanut butter and I do a lot of baking from scratch with the regular glutenous flours, so he was upset about what he couldn't have.  We had already been eating foods free of anything artificial (colors or flavors), nitrites, nitrates, and hydrogenated fats, so here are more things we have to avoid.  I could understand his frustration and disappointment!  But then, we discussed all that he could have and everything new that he was going to get to try out, what an adventure it would be!  "And mom is going to do this with you", I reassured him.

I was excited about this "adventure" and challenge!  I have many years of experience in the food service industry as pastry chef and chef, and have dealt with food allergies and specialty diets on a small basis before for others, "surely, I can come up with some awesome gluten, egg, peanut, oat, yogurt, and additive -free food that we can enjoy!" I thought.  So back to the researching, the experimenting, the taste-testing.  Yes, we had some failures!  Like gluten-free, egg-free brownies that came out looking like a pan of molten tar!  It tasted like candy made out of Oreos!  So the kids ate it that way, and reassured me that "it's not that bad" but it definitely was NOT brownies, and I definitely would NOT let them take that mess to school in their lunch! :o)  On the better side of things:  I have also had lots of successes with recipes that came out so good that even my husband and daughter ate it and raved about how good it was "for gluten and egg free...".

So, I am doing this blog to help you!  I have seen how this diet change has helped my son, not only in his health, but his outlook on eating.  He is starting to see that his diet may be different and challenging but it is also exciting - full of new flavors and textures, and he is being so responsible for his own eating.  (Even turning down hotdogs at a cookout at the school when Mom was not there to "remind" him, and sure, he still wishes he could have his old favorites every now and then, but we "remember" how he feels when he eats it and decide it is not really worth it after all!)

In the last few months I keep meeting people everywhere I go, in the grocery store, on vacation, friends of friends, or relatives of friends etc, who are struggling with challenges in their diet, whether it is by choice or by necessity,  and I want to help.  Some of the things I am learning will be posted here along with recipes that I have found to work.  Some may be my own creation, and some may be ones that I get from other sources, in which case I will give credit where credit is due.  I am still in the learning process, so this is just my way of passing on some of what I have figured out to you.  If you have something you have learned that you would like to share, feel free to comment about it!

I hope this blog will become a resource of recipes, cooking ideas, encouragement, and fun for you as you continue on your journey of Living Free from the foods that harm you! 

Frying Pan Pizza

Yes, you can have homemade pizza even if you do not have an oven...  

...or maybe you have a broken oven... 

I am currently in this dilemma.  God has moved me and my family to a wonderful part of the country (hence the Long Time-No Post), and I love where I am, however, the temporary, furnished, living quarters that I am in has no oven.  I am working with

a microwave, 

 

  two burners, 

one small stock pot (probably holds 1 gallon), 

 two, 1 qt sauce pans, 

  and a 10" frying pan.  

 

 
Cooking utensils include 1 metal spatula (which I did purchase at the dollar store... only a plastic one was here when moving in, and it would melt when it got hot..hhhmmm.),

 

 

and 1 plastic spoon/ladle thing.  

 

 Other than than I have 4 each metal forks, knives, and soup spoons, and also collection of "our best" plastic-ware direct from Target!  

 I did bring my chef knife with me, for which I am extremely thankful and there is a small somewhat decent cutting board here.

So all in all, I have had the challenge of thinking up meals for four people with limited equipment.  On top of that, figuring out the gluten, egg, peanut, etc - free meals for my son all at the same time.  Before moving, our family tradition had become homemade pizza every Friday night, which meant making a gluten-free crust for my son and the "normal" high gluten crust for everyone else.  After moving it had been about three weeks or so since we had pizza of any kind because it is so hard to find a pizza shop which sells a gluten-free crust, and we were all really craving some of that comforting homemade pizza...  You know how it is!  So, one Friday night, I got my determination on, and got all the ingredients, pulled out my stock pot "mixing bowl" and got to work!!  In my little kitchen area, I managed to make a HUGE mess (I am really good at that, just ask my husband!) but came up with this GREAT FRYING PAN PIZZA!

1. Simply use the Buckwheat Pizza Crust recipe that I have already posted previously, EXCEPT add more warm water to the mixture to make it closer to the thickness of a pancake batter. Don't worry about over mixing, gluten-free flours typically cannot be overworked.  I usually let the mixture rest maybe a half hour before using.
2. Heat a heavy bottom frying pan (a cast iron one would work great!) to medium low heat, have the lid ready nearby.  
3. Place enough butter in the pan to coat the bottom well.
4. Spread the mixture carefully around the pan until it reaches the sides, if the batter is too thick, this will not work and you will end up with a very thick clump of half cooked dough in your pan.
5. Place the lid on the frying pan and let it cook for about 3-5 minutes.  The bottom should be cooked and light brown and the top should be set, not raw, but it will look undercooked.  
6. Now is the time to flip!  Turn the crust over, CAREFULLY, with your dollar store spatula, as not to break the dough nor bend the $1 spatula.  
7. Immediately after flipping the dough, spread on your choice of sauce, cheese or cheese substitute, and toppings.
8. Cover with the lid once more for 3-4 minutes, until the cheese is melted.  It will not get bubbly and golden like it would in a "normal" oven, however it is awesome pizza when an oven is not available.

Step 4, spreading the batter...

Step 5, after it has been cooked with lid on...

Step 6, a finished gluten-free pizza crust.

I am pretty sure that this technique would also work on a grill or over a campfire, however I would suggest making sure the heat is at a medium to medium low level to prevent burning the bottom while you add your toppings and melt the cheese.

Even if you have a working oven, have fun trying this technique out... It is fun, even though it takes a while because it makes one personal size pizza at a time, but it is SO worth it!

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MAYBE you can have gluten (lucky), and would like a good quick pizza dough recipe??  Here it is; the one I used for the rest of the frying pan pizzas.  Be sure to cook your gluten-free crusts first, if having to use the same frying pan for both type crusts in the same meal, to prevent cross-contamination!

FULL GLUTEN PIZZA DOUGH  *Caution: do not consume if you are allergic to gluten!*

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 packet (1/4 oz.) of instant (rapid rise) yeast
1 Tbs granulated sugar
2 Tbs. olive oil
4-6 cups of all-purpose unbleached flour (bread flour works great for this too, I just happened to have AP flour)
1/2 Tbs salt

Raw full-gluten pizza dough placed in frying pan.

In a large mixing bowl (or small stock pot, as I have) place the warm water.  Sprinkle the yeast over the water, and then sprinkle the sugar over the yeast.  Add the olive oil and about 3 cups of the flour, and the salt.  Stir this until it is smooth then gradually add as much of the remaining flour as needed to get a nice firm, yet soft and elastic dough.  A little stickiness is good with pizza dough.  You will most likely end up having to kneed in the last cup of so by hand as it will get to thick to stir.  If you have a mixer that will handle yeast doughs, you may accomplish the same thing in half the amount of time and effort.  I do not currently have my mixer.  :o(

Full gluten pizza crust (flatbreat) almost done...

Once the dough is mixed, let it rest for about 1/2 hour, then divide it into about 8-10 pieces.  Flatten each piece into a 8"-10" round (whatever will fit into your frying pan) making sure that it is fairly thin keeping in mind that it will puff significantly as it cooks.  At this point, add the flattened dough to your warmed, buttered pan and cook the dough and pizza the same as mentioned above from step 5 - step 8.

When I made these pizzas I only made four pizzas total for that meal, so obviously I had a lot of dough left over.  I decided to cook all the remainder as just plain flatbread because I had no other way to keep it for later.  This worked out extremely well, because it refrigerated great for up to 3-4 days, just storing it in a plastic food storage bag and was super convenient to pull the crusts out and make up pizzas when I didn't have the time, or space, to go into all the effort to mix up dough again.  I used the same frying pan technique, I just warmed the crusts in the pan before adding the toppings.  These crusts would also freeze good for 1-2 months.

Finished full-gluten pizza crusts.