I’ve discovered a new flour!

October 25, 2015 by taranoosa

Which gluten/grain-free flours do you use in your cooking?

There are so many options available, with new ones emerging all the time. Until now I have mostly dealt with almond/other nut flours, tapioca, arrowroot, coconut, flaxseed meal and besan (chickpea) flour. These flours are all great in their own way but none of them emulate or replace chewy, malleable, spongy wheat flour (c’mon, we all know it!;). Plus, we need to combine them to create baked goodies.

Well guess what? I’ve discovered something.

I have stumbled across a new grainless flour and it replaces wheat 1:1.

Really??

Yes (in most instances).

And another thing: it resembles wheat.

Really?

Yes.

Do you want one more? In most cases you can use conventional-normal-people-wheat-recipes and just sub the wheat for this flour. No special recipes.

Are you kidding me?

Yes.

(Just joking, no I’m not).

The story….

I’m Australian, but I follow many US-based paleo and other foodie blogs. I kept hearing about this ‘yuca’ flour that people were talking about. It sounded great, albeit hard-to-find, and I knew I couldn’t source it in Australia. I assumed it was either the same or similar to tapioca and would be a starchy flour like it. I’m all for easy-to-use and affordable ingredients so I didn’t look into it too much.

That was until a few months ago when I heard of a new flour hitting the Australian foodie supply and interwebs. It was called Cassava flour. I did some researching and discovered that this Cassava flour was actually the American ‘Yuca’ flour that I had heard about. Cassava was a familiar root vegetable to me, having lived on a pacific island. I had been under the general impression that Tapioca/Arrowroot/Cassava were all names for the same thing essentially, but I wasn’t exactly clear on that.

The lovely folks who supply this product, Otto’s Cassava flour, sent me some information and product to try.

And the rest is history, baby.

I’ve made cupcakes with it. I’ve made pastry (no photo as it did not look pretty, at all. Pastry skills: fail). What did I make the most with the Cassava flour, though?

Pancakes. Pancakes every weekend. Because I like almond meal or gluten-free pancakes as much as the next grain-free girl, but oh man, nothing beats REAL wheaten pancakes. Chewy, bendy and stackable. Except for these, as they are just like real wheaten ones but without the tummy ache! Woot-woot.

I was going to give you some facts on cassava flour. But you can just read them here, from the source.

If you are in Australia you can now purchase Otto’s exclusively through www.pantryinnovations.com.au. Double yay.

Australian Gelatin, oi, oi, oi!

September 30, 2015 by taranoosa

Peptipro jellies

I first discovered the healing benefits of Gelatin a year or so ago and began incorporating it into my regular diet. I googled recipes, experimented with different methods and blogged about it here and here. Most health-focussed sites were recommending the grass-fed, conscious product Great Lakes. I started purchasing this hard-to-get product through Primal Influence (here on the Sunshine Coast) and eventually attended an informative workshop with the lovely Aimee who runs the business with partner Clint.

The problem was, Great Lakes’ is a product of the USA and purchasing it in Australia is quite expensive. After a while I did start noticing it popping up in local health food stores , but it was at the same price or dearer. I then discovered an online store and started purchasing it there as it was cheaper. I felt a little guilty not purchasing it through a local company and ‘going online’, but with the amount I wanted to use the cost was really adding up. I wondered why, with our large cattle industry here in Australia and with so many organic and conscious beef farmers, there was no producer of Australian grass-fed, quality Gelatin.

Well folks, thank God for instagram. Many a discovery has been made on this little app and one sunny morning last month I logged on to discover a sweet little account called Gelatin Australia. ‘Ooh, Gelatin Australia‘, I wondered, ‘Could it be that they sell AUSTRALIAN grass-fed Gelatin?’.

And that’s the end of my ethical dilemma with purchasing Gelatin online and from overseas. I can now buy my:

→ Grass-fed (but grain-finished)

→ Australia-produced and regulated

→ Australian owned

→ A-grade

→ Sustainable

→ Affordable

beef gelatin from an Australian website and it is MUCH cheaper than the alternative brand.

Please note that I am not necessarily claiming Peptipro to be ‘better’ or ‘higher quality’ than Great Lakes. To me, they are both excellent products. My elation simply comes from being able to purchase an Australian product* as that means I can: save on unnecessary shipping, keep our economy going strong and support local producers in this small country of ours. As an Australian however I do automatically feel more confidence in purchasing products that are produced by our own (highly regulated) industry, and had noted recently that Great Lakes’ had removed the ‘grass-fed’ from their labels (this I find quite interesting). * Both brands produce their collagen formula in countries outside their own.

Please also note that www.gelatinaustralia.com.au does stock both of the mentioned brands.

Purchase it here.

Vegetable Spaghetti

March 27, 2015 by taranoosa Leave a Comment

Spaghetti squash instructions

Have you heard of this vegetable before? I vaguely remembered hearing about it, until recently when I found to my delight that they were being stocked in my local fruit and vegetable store.

If you are in the states, and possibly the UK, I am under the assumption that these are commonly available along with other varieties of the squash family. Until recently, here in Australia (and sub-tropical Queensland in particular), they were rarely seen. The only squash we are familiar with are the small yellow button variety and Butternut squash, which we call Butternut pumpkin here. Just to be confusing!

The producers are the Milano Brothers in Victoria who have a facebook page called ‘Vegetable Spaghetti’ with information and recipes about the vegetable. They also list their suppliers around Australia, so you can go ahead and source some in your local area too!

The first time I cooked it without following the instructions listed on their label about boiling the squash, and instead took the advice of the cashier who said he preferred it baked. He instructed me to simply cut it in half lengthways, drizzle with olive oil and bake in a moderate oven for about 45 mins- 1 hr. On this occasion I baked it and added it to a jar of pasta sauce. The texture was perhaps a little too ‘al dente’, as I had not been sure how long to cook it for. Despite this it was delicious and got the ‘thumbs’ up from my kids.

The second time I cooked it I boiled it as per the instructions in the above picture. This method yields a mushier ‘spaghetti’ and is not my preferred version.

I continued to cook it for many months following the first (bake) method and we all enjoyed it each time. However, I recently stumbled across this youtube clip by Against All Grain’s Danielle Walker- where she shares her own method of preparing the spaghetti squash- and I haven’t looked back! This method was third-time lucky for me.

Let me know if you already love Spaghetti Squash, or if you try it for the first time after reading this!

Tara x

Before and after scooping out.

In sauce

Is all Apple Cider Vinegar created equal?

November 16, 2014 by taranoosa Leave a Comment

So, a woman at work who has had digestive problems just like you said that she started using Apple Cider Vinegar and it has helped her immensly. On your next grocery trip, you pick up a bottle from the salad dressing aisle.

Yeah, so what? What’s wrong with that?

Well, nothing is ‘wrong’ with it. But all ACVs are not created equal, so you could be assisting your health a lot more by buying a quality version.

Common Apple Cider Vinegar claims:

– Assists in the PH/Alkaline balance in your body

– Aids digestion

– Improves your immunity

– Weight loss

– Improves skin conditions

– Promotes good gut bacteria

Are these claims true?

I am not sure- I am not a Nutritionist, nor a Doctor or Scientist. But if you are asking me personally if ACV has helped me, then the answer is yes. I have experienced improved digestion of meals by having it beforehand and it has also provided relief of nausea and soothed a sore throat.

How to use it :

– Regularly, as in on a daily basis.

– Before meals, a few teaspoons diluted in water

– In salad dressings

– In your baking. Many Grain-free bread recipes call for ACV + Bi-carb as their raising agent

What to look for:

– Buy brands that are raw, unfiltered and have ‘the mother’ in the jar (the funny-looking cloudy thing)

– Look for dark-coloured, not light-coloured vinegar. The latter will be filtered and pasteurized.

– I personally use Bragg’s, which seems to be the most popular brand and also the most easily found outside of the grocery store. I have found some dearer brands that were ‘organic’ but did not include the mother, so look for a brand that matches the above criteria.

Luckily for me, my mother went through an ‘Apple Cider vinegar phase’ during my childhood (oh yes, there were many health phases….) and I took a liking to the taste, so I enjoy having it daily. If you are the opposite, hold your nose and know that it is for your own good!

Resources:

http://authoritynutrition.com/6-proven-health-benefits-of-apple-cider-vinegar/

http://www.collective-evolution.com/2014/06/02/12-reasons-why-apple-cider-vinegar-will-revolutionize-your-health/

ACV

Tara Prana

Mother. Teacher. Foodie. Friend.