Roasted Banana Coconut Milk Ice Cream

This treat disappeared so quickly, I wasn't able to snap a picture of the final product!  :)

Four Servings

3 medium-size ripe bananas, peels removed (about 2 1/2 cups when sliced)
2 to 3 tablespoons real maple syrup
1 tablespoon coconut butter
1/3 cup cool or cold filtered water
2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1 tablespoon agave syrup; add additional as needed for preference
1/8 teaspoon finely ground, unrefined sea salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups (one 14 ounce can) unsweetened preservative free coconut milk (regular, not lite).

1-Gently melt coconut butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in maple syrup. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Lightly oil a 2 quart (preferably glass or Pyrex) baking dish. I use an 8 x 10 or a 9x9x2 inch pan or a 9 inch Pyrex pie plate. don’t use a large pan or the syrup will burn. The syrup will caramelize.

2-Slice the bananas into 2 inch pieces into a medium bowl. Toss with maple syrup and coconut or palm oil. Scrape into the prepared pan. Reduce the heat to 400 degrees F and bake for 30 to 35 minutes (stir only one time) until bananas look browned and cooked through.

3-Add 1/3 cup water to a small saucepan. Slowly sprinkle with gelatin. Let stand for 2-5 minutes to soften. Warm over medium-low heat, without stirring until gelatin dissolves.

Scrape the mixture into a blender, vita-mix or food processor. Add the agave and sea salt. Blend until smooth.

4-Add the roasted banana mixture, coconut milk, and vanilla. Blend until smooth , stopping to scrape the sides with a spatula. For a sweeter taste, add an additional 1 tablespoon agave. Blend, taste, and repeat if needed.

5-Pour into one or more wide-mouthed jars. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours before churning.

6-Scrape the chilled custard into the canister of your ice cream maker. Churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

7-Serve immediately or spoon into several 8-to 16-ounce freezer safe containers. Cover and freeze for 3 or more hours for a firmer texture.

8-Soften solidly frozen dessert by placing it in the refrigerator for 30 to 45 minutes or on the counter for 15 to 30 minutes before serving.

Vegan Vegetable Focaccia Bread

I have been so hungry for Vegetable Focaccia, so I made my organic, whole wheat version...yummy! 

Vegan Vegetable Focaccia Bread (Makes 13 x 9 inch focaccia)

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour (preferably fine grind)
1/2 + 1/8 tsp salt
1/2 + 1/8 tsp dry yeast
1 cup + 1 Tbsp water (room temperature)
3/4 tsp agave nectar
3/4 Tbsp olive oil

For Olive oil/Vegetable topping


2 Sweet red peppers sliced into sixths
1 Sweet green peppers sliced into sixths
6 Cloves garlic
1 cup Sliced onions

1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp sea salt


For final drizzle
1/8 cup of olive oil

Method

In a bowl, mix flour, salt, yeast, water and agave nectar for about 2 mins.The dough will be sticky, but smooth. Add olive oil to the dough and mix for another 15 sec. Let the dough rest, uncovered for 5 mins and then mix again for 2 mins. If the dough is too wet, add a small amount of flour.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and add 1/2 Tbsp olive oil to grease the parchment paper including the side walls. Place the dough on the sheet pan. Rub the top of the dough with 1 tsp of olive oil. Flatten the dough using the palms of your hands. The dough might not cover the entire pan. Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate it overnight.

Evenly spread vegetables out on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees F.  Bake until the peppers' skin begins to blister.  Remove from heat and place into a glass bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and let set for 5 minutes.  Remove the skin of the peppers.  I ate the skin as I peeled. :)  

Place vegetables into a saucepan.  Pour the remaining ingredients for the topping over the roasted vegetables and cook over medium heat for 3 mins.  Let cool and refrigerate. 

The next day remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it sit out for 4 hours. While the dough is resting, pour 1/4 cup of olive oil in a pan. Add all the dried herbs mentioned in the ingredients. Heat the oil for 3 mins. Let the vegetable/oil mixture sit at room temperature.

Remove the plastic wrap covering the dough and drizzle 1 tsp of olive over it (not vegetables). Using your fingertips, starting in the middle, press the dough so as to fill out the pan. The pressed dough may still not fill the pan. Loosely cover the pan and let it sit for 20 mins. Repeat this procedure again (not vegetables). The third time, pour the herbed oil/vegetables over the dough using your fingertips again press the dough. You will see air pockets as you press. This time the dough should fill most of the pan. Cover the pan and let the dough sit for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven at 500 degrees F. Add sea salt and drizzle an additional 1/8 cup of olive oil on top of the dough and place it in the oven. Reduce the oven temperatutre to 450 degrees F and bake for 15 mins. Rotate the pan 180 degrees and let it bake for another 11 mins.  Keep a close eye on the bread, as each oven varies in temperature.  The bread will not be as tasty if overdone.  :)

Remove it from the oven and let focaccia cool on a wire rack. After 10 mins. slice it and serve with some olive oil.

Middle Eastern Chickpea & Rice Salad

Serves 10

What You Need:

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of one lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 minced garlic clove
2 red peppers, cut into wide strips
2-1/2 cups cooked brown rice

1-cups wild rice varieties
1 15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
24 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup pitted kalamata olives (I used black olives)
1 cucumber, peeled, deseeded, and diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup finely diced sweet onion


What You Do:

Preheat broiler. 

In a bowl, combine lemon juice, lemon peel, olive oil, and garlic. Set aside. 

Place red peppers on baking sheet and broil until skin bubbles and starts to turn black. Remove peppers from broiler and place in a covered bowl for 5 minutes. Remove outer skin, and dice peppers.  The skin comes off easily if you broil the peppers long enough.

In a large bowl, combine rice, beans, tomatoes, olives, cucumber, parsley, onion, and peppers and toss with lemon juice dressing.

Absolutely yummy!