Grain-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie/Cake (for one)

I've found several chocolate chip cookie-for-one recipes on Pinterest, but they call for either  traditional grain-based flour, or they're made using all almond flour (which I don't care for the taste of that much). I've been playing around with my various grain-free flours and think I've come up with a winner! My husband and my boys all think this recipe is amazing as well, and they're chocolate chip cookie "specialists"!  Regardless of if you're eating grain-free or not, give this recipe a try!

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(and yes, a glass of cold milk goes quite nicely with a warm bowl of cookie-cake!)

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp unsalted Irish butter (room temp. or slightly melted)
• 2 Tbsp organic brown sugar
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp Madagascar vanilla (trust me... use the real stuff!)
• 5 Tbsp hazelnut flour
• 3 Tbsp quinoa flour
• 1 Tbsp almond flour
• 2 Tbsp dark chocolate chips
• pinch of fine ground kosher salt

Directions:

Combine first four ingredients in a small ramekin or microwave safe mug/dish/etc until well combined. Add the 3 flours (which basically equals a bit more than 1/4 C) and salt mixing well. Fold in your chocolate chips. Cook in the microwave for 60 - 90 seconds, or until you see the "cookie" edges have pulled away from the sides of the dish. Cool a bit and enjoy!

I've discovered Bob's Red Mill offers just about every kind of flour known to man, which I buy at WholeFoods. If you can't find them in one of your local markets, you can purchase online. Tell me if you give this a try. I'd love to know what you think!

Cheers!

Travel Tuesday: Cassis, France

Today I'm sharing with you the beautiful town of Cassis, located in the Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur region in the south of France. We sort of stumbled upon Cassis one day while out on a driving adventure. That's always fun, right? The water was a breathtakingly blue/green and the rocky stone cliffs framed it perfectly. The first day in Cassis we just followed the crowd and did the tourist-thing. Parked in a nearly full lot and squeezed onto a very crowded, rocky beach. The water was truly so beautiful, the crowd was almost not a bother... almost. 

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We just had to return for a second day. This time, though, we did a little research on the area and decided to avoid the crowded beach and go for the hiking route. I'm so happy we did, because the views were even more incredible and we found a little eatery, La Plage Bleue, that had the most amazing seafood (for my husband) and delicious salad (for me) enjoyed overlooking the water we were so drawn to in the first place! The cliff walks were only partially open due to the strong winds that day, but we still managed to take in some of the views along the Calanques de Casis. My husband and I both agree, Cassis is well worth the visit and on our next trip to the region, we'll do our best to rent a flat and enjoy the views even longer!

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I hope you've enjoyed today's Travel Tuesday. Let me know if you've been to Cassis and if so, how did you like it?

Instagram Spotlight no.3

Hi friends! Instagram Spotlight no.3 is here featuring an interior designer, a prop stylist, and a food and lifestyle photographer. All three have gorgeous photos with inspiration in each frame. Please give them a look and a follow! Be sure to let me know of any Instagram accounts you think I should be following or even featuring here! And if you've not done so already, follow me on Instagram.

Cheers!

-Patti

Grain Free Banana Pancakes (for one)

I decided to give up grains a little more than a year ago. You can read about that personal decision here. For the most part, I've only been thrilled with my change in diet. That being stated, there are some days when I really just want comfort food that is best delivered in a bread or cake form. A few weeks ago, I was having one of those days. I've come up with the following recipe with inspiration from this Paleo English Muffin recipe I found on Running to the Kitchen (thanks, Gina!). 

I'm not following the Paleo Diet, but often Paleo recipes are a good starting point for what I'm looking for in a grain free dish. Since I still eat dairy and basically everything except grains, here's the recipe I created to take care of my pancake cravings. I've made this recipe three times and each time it does the trick. Even my kids and husband love it, and they're not use to a grain free diet.

Ingredients

• 5 tsp Quinoa Flour
• 5 tsp Hazelnut Flour
• 1 tsp Potato Flour
• 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
• Dash of Kosher Salt
• 1 tsp Madagascar Vanilla
• 1 Tbs melted unsalted Irish Butter (it just tastes better)
• 1 Egg (whisked)
• 1 very ripe Banana (smashed well with fork)

Directions:  Combine well first five ingredients. In a separate bowl combine remaining ingredients and mix well. Blend the dry and wet ingredients and stir until you have your batter. Cook your pancakes as you would regular pancakes, on a medium heat griddle with melted butter to prevent sticking. Don't over-heat your griddle. These pancakes take a bit longer to cook in the center. Slow and steady wins the race here. If you've discovered you have pancakes that look perfect on the outside, but are still wet on the inside, you can pop your stack of pancakes in the microwave for  30 seconds and you should be good to go!

Top with your favorite maple syrup and fresh berries. Enjoy!