Tag: dairy free

Crustless apple, walnut and poppy seed cake (Flódni)

naturally gluten-free , dairy-free

Flódni is a unique traditional Jewish Hungarian dessert. The original recipe uses apples, poppy seeds, walnuts, plum jam and all these ingredients are baked into a flour crust. This recipe uses the three main ingredients: apples, poppy seeds and walnuts plus the plums but has no crust. It is a gluten free recipe, in fact it is a very clever gluten free twist to the original recipe as the carbohydrates come from the poppy seeds. Its sour, bitter and sweet flavors come together to give a distinct culinary experience.

Traditionally, it is made at the end of the year for Christmas and Hanukkah but can be eaten any time during the year. It is filled with symbolic meanings for the end of the year. Each layer is rich and decadent and according to folk traditions can supposedly bring prosperity, health and protection for the entire family.

I was inspired by the recipe that came from a website – credited at the end. I have been making this delicious alternative at Christmas time for years. I made some changes to the original recipe. I moved some sugar from the nut filling into the poppy seed filling. I also added plums to the poppy seed mixture and some alcohol to the apples. Oh and honestly adding a little ginger to the walnuts did wonders.

The poppy seeds need to be soaked for 1 hour. I think if you follow my recipe, the poppy seeds should have enough time to soak. While the poppy seeds are soaking, make the apple mixture. By the time you place the dish in the oven, the poppy seeds should have had enough time to soak if not feel free to wait longer before putting the dish in the oven.

RECIPE

INGREDIENTs

Ingredients for the poppy seed layer

  • 200 g (about 1 cup) poppy seeds
  • 1 Tbsp melted butter (coconut oil for dairy free version)
  • 3 eggs, divided
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • handful of raisins
  • prunes, chopped (I used 3 prunes but feel free to experiment)
  • 1 orange or 1/3 cup orange juice + 1 Tbsp dried orange peel

Ingredients for the apple layer

  • 1 kg (about 7 larger) tasty cooking apples
  • 1 Tbsp fresh chopped ginger or 1.5 tsp dried ginger ( cut and sifted)
  • 4 Tbsp sugar or honey
  • 1 tsp ground apple pie spice or cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 Tbsp rum (optional)

Ingredients for the top egg-white layer

  • 150 grams (5 oz) ground walnuts
  • 4 egg whites
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp fresh ginger or 1/2 tsp dried cut and sifted ginger
  • salt

METHODS

  • Preheat oven to 300 F (150 C). Lightly butter a baking pan (8 x 11.5 x 2″).
Preparing the poppy seeds
  • Grind the poppy seeds. (Coffee grinder works well).
  • In a smaller bowl, cream the melted butter, sugar and 3 egg yolks. Add the ground poppy seeds, prunes, raisins, orange juice with the peel and pinch of salt. Mix.
  • Beat the 3 egg whites until stiff. Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the poppy seed mixture from earlier.
  • Spread this poppy seed mixture onto a lightly buttered baking pan. Let is rest for 1 hour.
Preparing the apples
  • Wash, peel and core the apples. Grade them through the large holes of a cheese grader. Put the grated apples in a medium sized pot and cook it in a large pot on high medium heat until the liquid evaporates. When done add rum, ginger, ground apple pie spice, pinch of salt and 4 Tbsp of sugar/honey.
  • Spread the apple mixture on top of the poppy seed mixture. Place the dish in the preheated oven. Bake for 40 minutes.
Adding the nut mixture
  • Walnut/egg white topping: Have the ground walnuts ready. By the end of the 40 minutes, beat the 4 egg whites until stiff. Gently fold in the walnuts and the sugar. Spread this mixture on top of the apples and put the dish back into the oven. Decrease the temperature to 250 F (120 C). Bake for another 40 minutes.

Let it cool and settle. Serve at room temperature.

enjoy!

Source

Text and photos by twincitiesherbs.com

Moroccan eggplant stew with garbanzo beans

Enjoy this delicious and easy vegetarian eggplant dish. The eggplants are browned and cooked with some tomatoes, pungent spices, onions, and garbanzo beans. They are then served with rice or couscous and yogurt sauce. I also added sweet mama squash that complemented the dish nicely and made it more suitable for this ‘going from the summer into the fall’ time period. With the warming spices and the baked squash, it will be a great meal for this time of year. Not only that it suits the weather but it is delicious … honestly my family can’t get enough of it. I might have to go back to the farmers’ market tomorrow to get more eggplants.

RECIPE

Serves 4-5 people

Ingredients

  • 2 medium eggplants
  • olive oil
  • 2 large onions, sliced
  • 1 Tbsp graded fresh ginger
  • seasoning: 2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp cumin powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1 cinnamon stick,
  • pinch of saffron (optional)
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 2 large tomatoes or 2 cups canned tomatoes
  • 1 cup dried garbanzo beans or 1 can (14 oz)
  • 1 dried hot pepper or to taste
  • salt and pepper
  • couscous or rice to serve
  • cilantro

Browning the eggplants
Browning the onions.

Directions

  • Garbanzo beans. Soak overnight and discard the soaking liquid. Add enough cold water to cover the beans. The water should be about 1 inch above the beans. Cook the beans for 3 hours. (You can use a pressure cooker, just adjust the time). They need to be cooked slowly for a long time until they are nice and soft. They can take up liquid after they are cooked so add more water if needed. Add 1 tsp salt when done.
  • Preparing the eggplants. Wash and cut eggplants into cubes. Salt them and put them into a colander for 30 minutes to let the liquid drain. Pat dry.
  • Frying the eggplants. In a wide skillet, on medium low heat, slowly brown the eggplants in some olive oil for about 20- 30 minutes or until soft. They will not cook any more so make sure they are soft and well cooked before you add it to the sauce. Stir frequently. Make sure they don’t burn. Set aside.
  • Caramelize the onions. Brown the sliced onions in a separate dish in oil with care, it takes about 30 minutes. Stir frequently. Set aside.
  • Making the sauce. Crumple the saffron between your thumb and index finger and add hot liquid, stir well (optional). Otherwise you can just put whole saffron strains in the dish. Set aside. On medium high heat warm up 1 Tbsp oil and add the ginger for 5 minutes. Then add the paprika, cumin, garlic and stir for 1 minute to activate the spices. Add the chopped tomatoes and stir well. You can add a little water here too. Cook the tomatoes for about 5 minutes until they have become ‘saucy’. Add the saffron, cinnamon stick, freshly graded nutmeg and hot pepper. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat. Cook for 10 minutes on low medium heat. Add a little water if needed. Add the browned onions, eggplants and garbanzo beans from earlier. Cook for 5 more minutes covered. Let the dish sit for 15 minutes so the flavors can come together. Take out the cinnamon stick and the hot pepper pieces. Add salt and pepper or anything else that needs to be adjusted.
  • Serve with cilantro, rice or couscous and yogurt sauce. I also added some baked sweet mama squash slivers and they nicely complemented each other.

enjoy!

Recipe, photo and text by twincitiesherbs.com.