Vegan Coconut-Oat Pancakes with Blackberry-Peach Compote

It’s January, which means many of us are attempting to eat healthier to negate the many calories packed on over the holidays.  I'm trying to eat better this year, but not because I overate this past month (or did I, hm), but because my detox diet last year made me more attuned to the types of grains I eat, so my sort-of resolution for this year is to eat less gluten and, if I do eat gluten, it should be of the whole grain variety.

Although there is no way I am giving up pizza at Roberta’s. So when I made pancakes for brunch last weekend, I started to scheme about how I could make them healthier. Add to that the fact that, for the past few months, I’ve been getting a number of requests for egg-free recipes, and I came up with this.

Currant Yogurt Muffins

As much as I love being a CSA member, some weeks I get things that have minimal utility. Case in point: loads of curly cress (it's so strong and peppery that you can't use much of it) and last week's quart of fresh currants. You can't really eat them like grapes or other berries - they're super tiny and very tart - so the only thing you can really do is bake them or add them to savory dishes that could benefit from a little tartness.

I used my currants two ways: first in an eggplant caponata (which is all about agrodolce - sweet and sour - so the currants were an excellent addition) and later in these muffins. The tart currants melded beautifully with the yogurt and their flavor was accented by a bit of almond flour and extract. A touch of orange zest lent these a wonderful fragrance (reminiscent of the classic cranberry-orange flavor combination) and freshly ground fennel seeds rounded out the mix, providing a bit of mild savoriness.

Manchego Cheese Popovers with Membrillo Butter

I've recently noticed that popovers are taking restaurants by storm. They've shown up in place of bread at a number of restaurants in my neighborhood (including one of my favorites, Buttermilk Channel), and it's nearly impossible to find a brunch bread basket that doesn't contain them. I had never made them at home because I found them intimidating; I think it's because they have their own special pan in which they should be baked, and things that requires a specific pan are usually fussy. Not the case with popovers, though.

Popover batter is actually ridiculously easy to make. You do not have to have any baking skills whatsoever to make these and, more importantly, to have them come out good. No need to cream butter, knead and raise dough, or work with hot sugar. Just a few simple ingredients that most people always have on hand get whisked together and put into the oven. Really, it's as simple as that.  The key skills here are actually patience  and resisting the urge to open the oven door.

Strawberry Rhubarb Ginger Scones

I can’t believe I got up early on both Saturday and Sunday to go to the Waverly and Baltimore Farmers Markets, respectively. Saturday’s trip was exclusively for dairy, and Sunday was the opening of the larger Baltimore Farmers Market (the one under the JFX). I really love going to the JFX market – waking up early, perusing the market, and walking home with bags full of produce makes me feel productive, and, for some reason, walking to the market and then walking home with heavy bags of produce reminds me of being in NYC – probably because one of the aspects of living in NYC is that you have to lug all of your purchases home because you don’t have a car.

It’s not quite summer yet, and the market is still overflowing with spring produce: asparagus as far as the eye can see, spring onions, greens, and herbs are the most abundant right now. Both markets were selling strawberries from North Carolina, and there was but one vendor at each market selling rhubarb . I had to get the rhubarb because it’s going to be out of season soon and I wanted to make a pie with it. So of course I got strawberries to go with the rhubarb – they’re a classic pair in pies (although I prefer peach with rhubarb, but it’s not peach season yet, so strawberries it was).

Baked Egg Gratin

I was supposed to post this a month ago, but clearly I forgot about it. After my weekend trip to NYC, where I had not one but two brunches with my friends (one of which was in fact at Five Points, and at which I indeed ate baked eggs and drank morning punch), I remembered this old post…

Brunch is an institution in NYC, and I have discovered that it’s not so much a big deal anywhere else. I suppose it has a lot to do with the fact it’s so easy to just hop on the subway and meet your friends within a half hour, regardless of where you’re going and regardless of the weather. But even if it weren't so easy, sunny Saturdays were definitely made for brunch and pavement pounding.

Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

My supervisor at work - who is awesome for many reasons - gave me a sweet holiday present last month – a jar of wild Maine blueberry jam that she had made in August while she was vacationing in Maine with her family. I didn’t want to just put it on toast; I was saving it for something really good. Last weekend, I came up with it: super-fluffy pancakes.

 

I haven’t made pancakes in years, and I recall that my previous attempts were flat and kind of blah. I know that I’m much better in the kitchen these days, so I decided to revisit them. I love using buttermilk when I bake – the end result is always seriously moist and fluffy – so I decided to use it in my pancakes, too. And, as I had hoped, the pancakes turned out exactly the same way.