Grain free “Greens” pie and transitions

September 28, 2014 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, Brunch, dinner, farm time, Gluten Free, Nuts and Seeds Tags: GF, greens, Kale, nut crust, Otis 16 Comments

Quotations hug the word greens- just so you know it is not a green pie with an accidental s. It’s a nut crust stuffed with beet greens, green curly kale, lacinato kale, red russian kale, a fair amount of garlic, a little egg and a sprinkle of peppery goat cheese. Yes we do have a lot of kale in the garden.

A recent three day mini yoga workshop left me high on breath and thoughts. Trying to be present while practicing produces quite a large container full of ideas to be processed either drifting off to sleep at night or on an early waking morning with time to contemplate.Which means don’t reach for your phone. Let the mind percolate.

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A year in sourdough

May 2, 2014 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, Bread, breakfast, Fermenting Tags: Ed Woods, Sourdough bread, sourdough starter 43 Comments

I’d like to start with a story of my one hundred year old starter, passed down from generation to generation but alas this is just not so. It started with this little packet of freeze-dried magic from Ed Woods… who I assume was a real person but I’ve no personal connection to except for our http://www.com encounter. I ripped open the packet and followed the instructions to start developing my newbie starter. It took a mere five days if I remember correctly. We have had a relationship for about 18 months now so the beginning is a little fuzzy.

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sticky orange and almond cakes {gf}

March 28, 2014 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, Brunch, dessert, Fruits, Gluten Free Tags: almond, almond powder, eggs, gluten free, orange, orange cake, Paris 57 Comments

These little orange and almond sticky cakes and me go back.

Way back. Back to my time in Paris working in and out of a kitchen that I think two people could maybe stand in… if one of those people was a child at least. I’m going to have to dig out some pics of that adorable little kitchen that served me and my two kids well for two years- and quite a few others for whom I catered.

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savory galette: ham, chèvre, leeks

January 21, 2014 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Appetizer, Baked Goods, Brunch, dinner, Orcas Island Tags: chèvre, Hempler's ham, leeks, Polar Bear Plunge, savory galette 30 Comments

We rang in a quiet but lovely New Year’s Eve this year here on Orcas Island. A little food and drink at our local favorite wine and tapas bar, The Barnacle, in Eastsound and then a drive past a couple options of music and dance. Pausing near the front entrance, with the music escaping and small groups of people laughing, milling in, out and about, filled our social card for the night. A movie and a split of champagne would fulfill our needs.

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spiced applesauce cake

January 14, 2014 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Apples, Baked Goods, breakfast, Brunch, cake, Canning & Preserves, dessert, farm time, Fruits Tags: apples, Applesauce, applesauce cake, cake, Fat Toad cinnamon caramel sauce, Gourmet magazine, tea cake 21 Comments

So you might be thinking this is a little more fall like and it is similar to the apple quince crumb cake but to me it’s more of a grab and go slice. I’d eat this after a workout. And it is a great little cake for January when you want to feel like you are eating on the lighter side. When you still want something sweet but not like cranberry cheesecake or chocolate mousse sweet. This easy to make and easy to eat cake can double as a breakfast cake or afternoon tea cake. OR if you want, slap a little cinnamon cream cheese or buttercream frosting on it, or spiced caramel sauce or how about Fat Toad’s cinnamon caramel sauce… and call it dessert. You can find this amazing goat caramel sauce at Chez Chloe but to buy now visit Fat Toad🙂

This works:

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chunky chocolate ginger snaps

December 10, 2013 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, Chocolate, Cookies and Bars, holiday Tags: chocolate, chocolate ginger snaps, Chocosphere, ginger, molasses, valrhona 38 Comments

I’ve always had a thing for ginger.

When we are sick, the first home remedy is fresh, peeled ginger brewed with lots of pressed lemon juice and raw honey.

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Apple quince crumb cake

November 12, 2013 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Apples, Baked Goods, Brunch, cake, Fruits, Seasons Tags: Apple quince crumb cake, apples, buttercreamblondie.com, cinnamon, crumb, sour cream, streusel 34 Comments

I’m still enjoying the last bits of Germany. I’ve walked the architecturally divine streets of the small town of Detmold, the location of the Hochschule für Musik where O is officially finishing up his last semester as Professor. And we spent several days in Babblesburg with my Schwiegermutter (mother-in-law) and Schwägerin (sister-in-law) and family in Babelsburg, which lies just outside of Potsdam, (which lies just outside of Berlin:) But before I share photos on my days here, I must get this cinnamon apple crumb cake recipe out to you. If you ever happened to search the Internet with the not so original words apple crumb cake, you might have already stumbled across this recipe from buttercreamblondie. It is a go to this fall for apple cake. I researched quite a few recipes and am not sure how this one was developed but I very much like the ratios. I followed the recipe exactly except for the addition of about a cup of honey poached quince. Ok I’m lying a little because the first time I had to cut in 1/2 cup full fat yogurt cause I didn’t have enough sour cream. Anybody out there watch the sitcom The Middle? Imagine me tucking my head to my chest and whispering “I’m lying”.

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Fall recipes… revisited.

October 13, 2013 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Appetizer, Baked Goods, Chez Chloe, dessert, pumpkins, Seasons, Soup Tags: pumpkin bread pudding, pumpkin soup, pumpkins, spiced apple caramel 24 Comments

This looks familiar your saying to yourself. Well at least those who have been hanging around these parts for the past year. And well, if you haven’t been, nor have you had the inclination to dig into the past, I’ll make it easy for you. Your starter, main and dessert. We’ll start with dessert first.

Pumpkin Bread pudding with Spicy Apple Caramel sauce

This is also my little hello and no, I haven’t fallen off the edge of the blog sphere. My bricks and mortar shop, Chez Chloe (check out the new website), had a hopping summer and I’ve been busy busy preparing for the holidays. My dear husband and number one eater is off to Germany for one last round of teaching and then turning in his papers to become a full time US of A resident on the one and only Orcas Island in the Evergreen State! Three cheers!!! My cooking and photos tend to wain when he is away.

Here is a starter that is a little out of the ordinary. Try this with your next fall meal. It was a hit.

Pumpkin and Feta Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

I see I was having some fun with fonts last fall:)

Here is a wonderful stew to serve between your starter and dessert. Inspired by a post from my friend at Karista’s Kitchen, Mulligatawny is an anglo-Indian recipe often served with chicken but I used beef and will make it again soon with lamb.

This salad, stew and dessert made the perfect fall meal.

Mulligatawny

Hope all is right in your world and the colorful leaves fall gently around you.

Enjoy.

Tschüß xx

Orange Carrot Muffins with Chai Glaze

May 22, 2013 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, breakfast Tags: carrots, chai glaze, orange cakes 53 Comments

Hi gang… here’s a little healthy yum to share.

Orange carrot muffins with a fresh brewed chai tea glaze.It’s been a busy month as you might have seen but there’s a little routine starting to rear it’s head. The garden grows and with plenty of grass clippings for mulch, we might actually stay ahead of the weeds this summer… (we’ll revisit that thought in August!) Kale on the left and broccoli on the right has tiny baby heads beginning to form.

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Gone fishin’

March 5, 2013 By Wendy Ellen Thomas in Baked Goods, My life Tags: blackberry scones, My life 42 Comments

Gone fishin’

That might be the sign hanging on my blogging door- except for the fishing part. And except for the relaxing by the stream part. We had a ginormous week of getting our container from Germany which equals boxes all over the house and THE grand piano.