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Summer Recipes: Vegetarian, Vegan & Flexitarian Whip up three farmers' market-fresh recipes.

Are you seeing farmers’ markets everywhere, and getting eager to try everything? So are we! It’s time to taste the rainbow with summer recipes. Try a vegetarian recipe, a vegan recipe and a flexitarian recipe from the Clean Plates restaurant guides, and from The Clean Plates Cookbook:

VEGETARIAN: Barbabietole (Beet Salad) from Chef Mette Williams of Culina

Serves 4

8 golden baby beets
8 candy-striped baby beets
1 1/2 c. kosher salt
10 sprigs thyme, 2 sprigs cleaned and chopped
1 medium shallot, finely diced
¼ c. orange oil*
2 tangerines, segmented; save juices from segments and use to marinate beets
8 leaves watercress
½ c. soft goat cheese
2 Tbsp. basil oil*
petite basil or chopped regular basil
¼ c. candied pistachios or roasted pistachios

Cover the bottom of a roasting pan with a layer of kosher salt. Lay out a few thyme sprigs and then place 7 of each beet variety on top. Cover with foil and roast in the oven at 350° F for 30-45 minutes. To check the beets’ doneness, insert a toothpick. If it goes in easily, they are done. Let them cool until you can hold them comfortably, and then peel off the skins. The beets are easy to peel when warm.

When beets are all cleaned, cut into bite-size pieces and mix with the chopped thyme, diced shallots, orange oil and tangerine juice.

For the reserved raw beets, make sure they are free from dirt, and slice paper-thin on a mandolin or slicer, width-wise. These beet disks will be a garnish, and you can do them ahead of time and keep them in clean water until ready for use.

To assemble, place a few pieces of watercress on a serving plate and put the marinated beets on top. Scatter the tangerine segments, goat cheese and pistachios and drizzle with the basil oil and a bit of the beet marinade. Sprinkle on the basil and place the beet disks on top.

Note: avocado can be substituted for cheese if you want to make the salad vegan.

* To make a large batch of either orange oil or basil oil, take one cup orange segments or one cup basil, combine with two cups olive oil, and let sit overnight. Strain through a cheese cloth and discard the leaves or fruit left in the cheese cloth.

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VEGAN: Asparagus Soup and Cashew Cream from The Conscious Cook, by Chef Tal Ronnen of LYFE Kitchen and Crossroads

Serves 6

sea salt
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large bunch asparagus, ends trimmed, cut into 2″ pieces
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 quarts vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1 c. Thick Cashew Cream, plus more for garnish (instructions below)
freshly ground black pepper
2 c. fresh baby spinach
microgreens for garnish

Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Sprinkle the bottom with a pinch of salt and heat for 1 minute. Add the oil and heat for 30 seconds, being careful not to let it smoke. This will create a nonstick effect.

Add the asparagus, celery, and onion and sauté for 6 to 10 minutes, until the celery is just soft. Add the stock and bay leaf, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add the Cashew Cream and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Working in batches, pour the soup into a blender, cover the lid with a towel (the hot liquid tends to erupt), and blend on high. Add the spinach to the last batch and continue blending until smooth. Pour the soup into a large bowl and stir to incorporate the spinach batch. Ladle into bowls. Garnish each bowl with microgreens and drops of Cashew Cream.

Thick Cashew Cream

Makes about 2 1/4 cups

2 c. whole raw cashews (not pieces, which are often dry), rinsed very well under cold water

Put the cashews in a bowl and add cold water to cover them. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

Drain the cashews and rinse under cold water. Place them in a blender with just enough fresh cold water to slightly cover them. Blend on high for several minutes until very smooth. (If you’re not using a professional high-speed blender such as a Vitamix, which creates an ultra-smooth cream, strain the cashew cream through a fine-mesh sieve.)

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FLEXITARIAN: Grilled Salmon with Strawberry Avocado Salsa from The Clean Plates Cookbook

Serves 4

The salsa is also great as part of a meat-free meal. Try it with roasted or grilled veggies!

2 limes
1/2 medium avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/4″ dice
6 oz. strawberries, hulled and cut into 1/4″ dice
1/4 small red onion, cut into 1/4″ dice
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
fine sea salt to taste
4 (5- to 6-oz.) sustainably sourced salmon fillets, about 3/4″ thick, skin removed if you like
organic extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
freshly ground black pepper

Zest one of the limes. Juice the zested lime to yield 4 teaspoons of juice. In a medium bowl, combine the lime zest, lime juice, avocado, strawberries, onion, cilantro, and salt to taste. Cut the remaining lime into wedges. Set the salsa and lime wedges aside separately.

Prepare a grill to medium-high heat. Brush both sides of the salmon with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill the salmon until just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side.

Serve the salmon hot, with the salsa on top and the lime wedges on the side.

Salmon photo by Family O’Abé

5 Healthier St. Patrick’s Day Foods

If the thought of artificially dyed bagels, cupcakes and beer makes you feel a little, er, green, you’re in luck: we’ve found five festive, Clean Plates-approved choices for St. Patty’s.

Cabbage. Boiled? No need! For a real treat, ferment it into sauerkraut—your cabbage will come alive with gut-friendly nutrients, enzymes and probiotics. Try our easy recipe for Home-Fermented Sauerkraut (below), from The Clean Plates Cookbook. The cruciferous veggie can help prevent cancer, support the digestive tract, is anti-inflammatory, and packed with vitamin K, vitamin C and antioxidants.

Organic potatoes. The traditional tubers are a good source of vitamin C, vitamin B6, copper, potassium, manganese, and fiber. But no matter how you cook them, it’s important to avoid conventionally grown potatoes. These root vegetables are heavily sprayed, says Clean Plates founder Jared Koch, so they may contain a lot of pesticides and fungicides.

Dark beer. You can give in to a Guinness. Dark beer actually beats pale beer in iron (an essential mineral that helps carry oxygen to our blood cells) and antioxidants (which help reverse cellular damage). It also absorbs more slowly into the bloodstream, making it less disturbing to your blood sugar level.

Corned beef. If you want to indulge in a little corned beef, which is a source of iron, protein, zinc and B vitamins, make sure it’s sustainable, organic or, ideally, from a grass-fed cow, which tends to be lower in fat and higher in vitamin E. Remember, though, that if you buy corned beef pre-made, the curing process means it may contain nitrates and higher levels of sodium than plain beef.

Green veggies and fruits. Nothing brightens a St. Patty’s Day plate more than greens: kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, spinach, parsley, cilantro, collards, even kiwis. Eat your greens, and lots of them.

Home-Fermented Sauerkraut

from The Clean Plates Cookbook

Makes 4 to 5 cups

10 tsp. fine sea salt, divided (see below)
2 lbs. green cabbage, cored and shredded finely
1 to 2 Tbsp. flavoring ingredients (see below)

In a bowl or measuring cup, combine 5 teaspoons of the salt with 4 cups of lukewarm water, stirring to dissolve the salt. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, in large mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, the remaining 5 teaspoons of salt, and flavoring ingredients, if you like, stirring to thoroughly combine. Transfer to a large, nonreactive container, packing it down. Let stand for 15 minutes, so the cabbage can release some of its juices.

Check to see if the juices are enough to cover the cabbage. If not, add enough of the salt water mixture to cover. Cover the top of the cabbage with a double layer of cheesecloth, tucking it in at the edges. Set a plastic, glass, or ceramic plate on top of the cabbage, ideally one that fits just inside the container, to keep the cabbage submerged. Place something heavy on top of the plate, such as a bowl or a lidded jar filled with water. Cover the entire setup loosely with a clean kitchen towel and set it aside in a cool place (no warmer than 75°F) for 3 to 6 weeks, checking the sauerkraut a few times a week to skim any foam from the surface and rinse the plate. When the bubbling stops, the fermentation is complete and the sauerkraut is done, although you can taste it any time during the process, and if it’s done to your liking, it’s done.

Transfer the sauerkraut to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator.

While our preference is for you to always use fine sea salt, in this recipe it’s especially important—”regular” or iodized table salts have additives that can affect the fermentation process.

Ways to Flavor Your Sauerkraut

Although it’s not necessary to add any flavoring ingredients, if you like, you can add 1 to 2 tablespoons of whole spices, just one or a combination. Here are a few ideas:

• Peppercorns
• Juniper berries
• Caraway, fennel, cumin, coriander, dill, celery, or anise seeds
• Bay leaves
• Cinnamon sticks
• Whole cloves or allspice

Lentil and Red Kuri Chili by Chef Ray Garcia of FIG

Burrowing down in the latest cold snap, and craving comfort food? The classic pasta, meat and potato belly-warmers are tasty…but can be tough on digestion. So we tapped a Clean Plates-approved chef, Ray Garcia of FIG in Santa Monica, California, for a winter meal that goes down easy—and features fresh, seasonal ingredients.

He came back to us with his Lentil and Red Kuri Chili recipe. “I wanted to make a hearty winter dish that was vegetarian but substantial enough to satisfy your chili craving,” explains Chef Ray. “My menu at FIG, like with most people’s diets, reflects a balanced way of eating. We have a number of big carnivore dishes like the tongue and bacon-wrapped bacon, but just as many dishes like quinoa and curry that satiate without using meat. This chili is one of those dishes.”

We think you’ll enjoy the red kuri squash, “a thick-skinned winter squash that looks kind of like a small pumpkin,” according to Chef Ray. “It is a great ingredient to use because it has a delicate sweetness that can enhance other ingredients or work well on its own.” And the nutrient-dense lentils pack a powerful punch—more than 30% of their calories come from protein, and they’re also loaded with cholesterol-lowering fiber.

Lentil and Red Kuri Chili by Chef Ray Garcia of FIG

1 large red kuri squash
1 onion, diced
4 Tbsp. diced jalapeño
3 Tbsp. grapeseed oil
1 tsp. toasted cumin
1 Tbsp. chili powder
2 c. vegetable stock
1 c. cooked brown lentils
½ c. baby kale
1 black twig apple (or other semi-tart apple), diced
¼ c. pomegranate seeds
2 Tbsp. toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
kosher salt and pepper (to taste)

Take half of the kuri squash and roast in oven at 350°F with salt and pepper for about 30 minutes. Peel and purée.
Peel and dice the other squash half, and blanch in boiling salted water for 4 minutes. Cool in ice water.
Sweat onion and jalapeño in oil, add cumin and chili powder. This takes about 5 minutes. Keep heat at medium to stop cumin from burning.
Add purée, then vegetable stock. Simmer 10 minutes.
Add lentils, squash pieces and chopped kale. Simmer for 20 minutes over low heat.
Season with kosher salt and pepper.
Mix apples and pomegranate seeds with toasted pumpkin seeds and top chili with this mix.

Photo by FIG

For more recipes, check out The Clean Plates Cookbook!

Super Bowl: Thyme Carrot Chips with Potato-Yogurt Dip

Big day + big game doesn’t have to equal big sub sandwich with a side of pizza. This hearty, vegetarian take on chips and dip is like loaded mashed potatoes in a bowl, with caramelized onions and roasted garlic for sweetness—no butter or cream needed.

Roasting the carrots in thyme-infused oil is an easy way to add healthy depth of flavor, and the carrots get a deep, natural crispness without a trip to the deep-fryer. Make extra as a snack alternative to chips, and try sprinkling with cumin before roasting for a warm, peppery flavor.

Serve the dip warm or at room temperature, and serve any leftovers as a stand-alone side dish. As an alternative, serve the dip in precooked potato skin shells for a more traditional look.

Thyme Carrot Chips with Potato-Yogurt Dip

Makes 8 servings

4 large cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
1/3 c. plus 1 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
10 sprigs fresh thyme, plus 1 Tbsp. picked leaves, for garnish
1 Tbsp. unsalted pasture-raised, hormone-free butter
1 medium yellow onion, sliced into half-moons
1/2 tsp. organic coconut sugar
2 medium organic russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
8 large organic carrots, peeled, and then peeled into long strips with vegetable peeler
kosher salt
1 c. organic, no sugar added plain Greek yogurt
3/4 c. low-sodium vegetable stock, warmed
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Place garlic in sheet of tin foil; drizzle with 1 teaspoon oil. Wrap tightly and roast until very tender, about 45 minutes.

Turn down oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Pour remaining oil into small saucepan with thyme sprigs. Heat over medium heat until oil is warm, then remove from heat and let steep for 10 minutes to infuse oil. Strain and discard thyme.

Melt butter in medium sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add onions, sprinkle with sugar and sauté until caramelized, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, put potatoes in a pot and cover by 1 inch with lightly salted water. Bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and return to pot.

Toss carrot strips with 2 tablespoons thyme oil. Lay in a single layer on baking sheets and roast until browned and crisp, about 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through.

Immediately sprinkle lightly with salt, and let sit to cool completely and harden, about 20 minutes.

Blend yogurt with 1/2 teaspoon salt, roasted garlic cloves and caramelized onions in blender. Pour into potatoes and mash together with masher until combined. Pour in remaining thyme oil and stock and stir with wooden spoon until smooth and combined. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with thyme leaves and serve with carrot chips.

For more recipes, check out The Clean Plates Cookbook!

Winter Warmer: Coco-nut Granola

To warm up from the cold, some members of the Clean Plates staff went shopping for granola. Frustrated by the choices on the shelf (cheap oils, refined sugars and artificial flavors were everywhere), they decided to whip up a batch of their own. The result not only hit the spot, but might beat a cold: it’s made with coconut oil, a natural immunity-booster; honey, which is anti-bacterial (one pediatric study also found honey to be more effective than a common, OTC cough suppressant), and oats, whose fiber may increase immunity. This granola is great for breakfast, for a snack or as a topper on oatmeal or plain yogurt.

Crunchy Coco-nut Granola

4 c. organic rolled oats
1/2 c. organic steel cut oats
2 c. chopped, mixed raw nuts
1 c. toasted and salted shelled sunflower seeds (or use raw shelled sunflower seeds and add 1/2 tsp. sea salt)
1 handful flaxseeds
1 handful shredded coconut
1/2 c. organic coconut oil
1/2 c. raw honey

Combine all dry ingredients, then stir in oil and honey. Bake on cookie sheet at 300° F, mixing every 15 minutes until lightly browned, approximately 30-40 minutes total. Important: The granola will not be dry when it’s done baking! It will be moist and sticky. It will dry rapidly as it cools.
Optional: add 1 c. dried fruit, such as raisins or chopped dates, when granola is cool.

For more great recipes, check out The Clean Plates Cookbook!

Food Talk: Macrobiotics

You may not be familiar with Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa, but you’ve probably come across his approach to healthy and harmonious living, “macrobiotics.” Founded in the 1930s and named after a term first coined by ancient Greek physician Hippocrates, the approach prescribes cutting out processed foods, refined sugars, dairy and meat, and emphasizes whole grains, pickled and fermented foods, sea vegetables, contemplative practices and thoroughly chewing food. The macrobiotic belief is that wellness arises from keeping the body in tune with the natural environment, by maintaining the balance between yin (cooling foods) and yang (warming foods).

We asked shiatsu practitioner and macrobiotic-inspired chef Shandoah Goldman (pictured) to share her modern perspective on this old philosophy—and a recipe.

Q. What does macrobiotics mean to you?

A. Literally, it means ‘big life.’ For me, it is the balance between yin and yang and of the five tastes: sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and pungent. Macrobiotics is also about eating seasonally. We get the most nourishment from the foods that grow in the same environment we live in. For example, during this time of year, root veggies like turnips and daikon grow in New York. These foods are warming to our bodies, so it’s best to eat them during the colder months.

Q. How did you come to follow a macrobiotic diet?

A. I was actually brought up eating this way. During my adolescent years I strayed a bit, but as a teenager, I realized I truly felt best when I predominantly followed macrobiotic principles. I integrated these principles of balance into my shiatsu practice by creating personalized menu plans for my clients. This later grew into a successful macrobiotic-inspired catering company, and I now use these principles to create simple, easy and delicious recipes for my blog, Zensational Appetite.

Q. Macrobiotics gets a bad rap for being strict and time-consuming. Any tips for making it more accessible?

A. Just as macrobiotics teaches, I really believe it’s all about finding a balance: you can maintain the basic principles and adapt the practice to your individual needs. It doesn’t have to be so complicated or time-consuming. I like keeping cooked grain on hand and then making “one pot meals” where all the cooking is confined to one pot through a layering system so you can spend less time cooking and more time enjoying the meal.

Try one of Shandoah’s “one pot meal” ideas:

Shiitake, Root Vegetable Nabe

1/2 daikon root peeled, sliced on the diagonal
1 burdock root, peeled, sliced on the diagonal
1 carrot, peeled, sliced on the diagonal
1 small piece ginger root, sliced or grated
1 c. water
1 Tbsp. tamari (or soy sauce), more to taste
5 medium shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1 handful kale
scallion, sesame seeds, kimchi to garnish

Place roots, carrot, ginger, water and tamari in a shallow pan. Cover and let simmer on low heat until roots are tender (5-7 minutes). Add shiitakes, cover and simmer for a couple more minutes, then add kale on top. Cover for one more minute and turn off heat so kale becomes tender but not soft. Serve in a bowl, garnished with sliced scallions, sesame seeds, and kimchi if you like spice. Goes great with brown rice. Total cooking time, only 10-12 minutes.

Check out Souen and Ozu, Shandoah’s favorite Clean Plates-approved macrobiotic restaurants in NYC.

Images courtesy of Zensational Appetite

Healthy Dollar Menu

If you’ve been tempted by the dollar menu at your local drive-thru, you’re not alone. McDonald’s recently reported a 2.5% increase in sales thanks to that famous menu. Unfortunately, low prices tend to go hand-in-hand with low nutritional value. But here’s the good news: we’ve come up with a delicious competitor.

Our organic veggie burger is easy to make, healthy, filling and cheap! The patty itself is only a dollar (less if you choose conventional ingredients), and there’s more than one way to serve it. Keep in mind that the cost may vary slightly depending on where you shop and the brands you choose.

Organic Veggie Burger Patty: $1
Organic Veggie Burger Patty, Open Faced on Organic Sprouted Grain Bun: $1.40
Organic Veggie Burger Patty on Organic Sprouted Grain Bun: $1.80
Organic Veggie Burger Patty on top of One Cup of Organic Mixed Greens: $1.95

Veggie Burger Patty
Makes 4 patties
1 c. uncooked organic brown rice
2 Tbsp. organic olive oil, separated
1/2 organic red onion, chopped
2 organic garlic cloves
1/4 lb. organic cremini mushrooms
2.5 c. cooked organic black beans*
1/2 tsp. organic chili powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
*It’s cheaper to buy dry beans and cook them yourself than to buy beans by the can.

Cook brown rice per the instructions on the package. Heat 1 Tbsp. of the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until the onion is transparent. Add mushrooms and sauté until soft and starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Place 3/4 of your black beans in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add mushroom mixture, brown rice, chili powder and sea salt. Pulse until coarsely mixed together. Empty contents of food processor into a bowl and gently stir in the remaining black beans. With slightly wet hands, form mixture into four patties.

Heat remaining oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Cook the patties on each side until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Serve with your favorite condiments such as whole grain mustard, organic ketchup, sauerkraut, sriracha, or olive oil and vinegar.

Have it your way.

Bright Idea

Have you gotten into a meal monotony, where you make the same things over and over?

Brighten things up with Re-Color the Palate. Created by holistic health practitioner and Clean Plates nutritional consultant Ashley Spivak, the site will teach you to make multiple dishes using the same five to seven ingredients.

How it works: the home page features a “Raw Materials Round-Up” of Spivak’s latest grocery list and recipes. Shop once, and you’ll have a variety of palate-pleasing tastes to get you through the week.

Spivak also spotlights a key ingredient and offers several ways to prepare it. For Clean Plates, she put the spotlight on chia seeds. Try one of the following four recipes featuring the protein- and fiber-rich super seed:

As the site’s name suggests, Re-Color the Palate is also big on palettes. Spivak explains that foods’ colors indicate their unique nutrient profiles, so eating a variety of hues means you’re getting a wider range of nutrients while also preventing your palate from dying of boredom.

Taste the rainbow.

Want more recipes? Check out The Clean Plates Cookbook!

Morning Toast: New Year’s Brunch Cocktail

What kind of toast goes best with brunch on New Year’s Day? Whichever one you didn’t drink the night before. (Ba-dum dum.)

Actually, we think the best spirit to bring to the first day of the year could be a seasonal one you mix at home. So we turned to “The Liquid Muse,” Natalie Bovis, to shake things up and away from the usual mimosas and Bloody Marys. An LA-based mixologist and author, Bovis is also the creator of OM, the world’s first USDA-certified organic prepared cocktails. For Clean Plates, Bovis infused invigorating seasonal flavor into her Lavender Gin Sour. (Psst…for more great recipes, check out The Clean Plates Cookbook.)

Lavender Rosemary Gin Sour

¾ oz. Lavender Rosemary Syrup (see instructions below)
¾ oz. fresh lemon juice
1 ¾ oz. dry gin
Garnish: lavender sugar rim (lavender and sugar ground finely in a coffee grinder)

Rim a cocktail glass with lavender sugar. Pour all ingredients into a mixing glass. Add ice, shake vigorously and gently strain into rimmed cocktail glass.

Lavender Rosemary Syrup

1 c. brewed lavender tea
1 c. white granulated sugar*
25 rosemary leaves, plucked from sprig

*Clean Plates tip: Substitute coconut palm sugar for cane sugar.

Add eggs, potatoes, and toast…to a delicious new year.

Lavender image courtesy of PHOTO/arts Magazine.

Recipes excerpted from Edible Cocktails: Garden To Glass by Natalie Bovis, The Liquid Muse, 2012. Used with permission.

Jelly Belly: Sufganiyot for Hanukkah

Mmm, jelly donuts. Traditional for Hanukkah, “sufganiyot” (that’s soof-gon-ee-YOTE, their Hebrew name) are deep-fried in honor of the oil in the Hanukkah story, then filled with jelly, custard or even chocolate. Although this certainly isn’t the healthiest of dessert choices, traditional foods hold a very important place in our lives. With that in mind, we came up with a few healthy twists to boost these treats’ nutritional value:

Stop smoking. For starters, you can try frying in a healthier oil. You’ll want to use one with a high smoke point (when oils smoke, their structure changes); some great choices include grapeseed oil, organic and non-GMO canola oil, and unrefined coconut oil. Unrefined coconut oil is wonderful because unrefined oils are richer in nutrients, but beware when frying because its smoke point is usually around 350°F.

Go g-free. In addition to healthier oils, this recipe calls for gluten-free flour. Gluten isn’t always bad; there are plenty of people who can tolerate it. But by making a gluten-free dessert, you can cater to everybody’s needs.

Get sweet on this. This recipe has a couple of alternatives when it comes to the sweet stuff. For the filling, it calls for a sugar-free jam such as St. Dalfour, which uses fruit concentrate in place of sugar. This recipe also uses coconut palm sugar in place of cane sugar for the dough. Coconut palm sugar is a low-glycemic sweetener that also happens to have minerals and vitamins. It’s fantastic for baking because it can be substituted for cane sugar in a 1:1 ratio.

Sufganiyot
Makes about 12 donuts

3/4 c. warm whole milk or water
1 packet dry yeast
1/4 c., plus 1 tsp. coconut palm sugar
2 c. gluten-free all purpose flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill
1 tsp. xanthan gum
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 large egg
1 vanilla bean
2 Tbsp. butter
1/4 c. cane sugar
Oil for frying (grapeseed, organic and non-GMO canola, or unrefined coconut oil)
1 jar sugar-free jam, such as St. Dalfour

In a small bowl, whisk the warm milk or water with yeast and 1 tsp. sugar. Set it aside for 5 minutes until it begins to foam. In a large bowl, mix the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, remaining coconut palm sugar and salt together. In a standing mixer, mix together the egg, vanilla bean, and butter together on low for about a minute. Add the yeast mixture and mix for another minute. Add the flour mixture and mix on high for 3 minutes. Coat a large bowl in oil and place the dough in the bowl. Set it aside to rise for about 1 hour.

Rub flour or oil across your work surface. Roll out the dough to about 1/2 an inch. Use a cookie cutter or glass with about a 2 inch diameter to cut out donuts. Set them aside to rise for about another 30-60 minutes, until they have doubled in size.

In a heavy sauce pan, heat 2-3 inches of oil to 350°F. Use a candy or deep fry thermometer to keep track of the temperature. Place the cane sugar in a small bowl next to the stove. Lower the donuts into the oil one at a time in batches of about 4-5. Be careful not to crowd the donuts in the oil. Let them cook for one minute, then flip them over and cook for another minute. Remove from the oil and roll in cane sugar. Fill a pastry bag with jam, and inject each donut. Set on cooling rack to cool. Serve immediately.

Happy Hanukkah!

Clean Plates - Enjoy Eating Healthy

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