I thought to add another layer to this challenge, I would prepare you a day before the challenge with some items and tips so that the week can go smoothly. I have decided therefore to start a couple days early, just so I can give you the best ‘advanced notice’ for certain recipes. My New Roots is a great resource, and oftentimes gives you directions to make things from scratch (beans, sprouts, cheese etc.) I have tried to pick a few different types of recipes to test out. Some that are more labour intensive but worth the wait, some that are quick and easy and use minimal ingredients. Each week I will try to do a ‘science experiment’ where I try to make something I’ve never done before.
This week I went a bit nuts. I made my own ghee, ricotta and sprouts!
I made ghee (clarified butter) to be used in all the recipes for the week. I am a big fan of coconut oil (vegan equivalent) but I have been testing the waters with dairy recently and thought I would give it a try. Sarah Britton of My New Roots has great directions in her Cookbook, and also here.
I was silly and forgot to take a picture of the end product when it’s fully melted, a beautiful BRIGHT yellow liquid. Oh man is this stuff easy to make and so good, it tastes like the butter from the movie theatre. There are some things I prefer coconut oil to still (anything sweet) but I attempted the ghee radishes from the cookbook the other day and my was it fantastic!
Another item that you will need to prep in advance, if you choose to do the recipe, is goats milk ricotta for the Homemade Goat’s Milk Ricotta with Roasted Fruit. This I have to say, wasn’t so easy. Sarah made the directions seem easy enough (see here), but I decided to double the recipe as I freaking love a good cheese haha. Perhaps that was the problem, it would not curdle! I ended up reheating the milk and adding more lemon juice, and finally it began to curdle, but not like it says in the recipe. So my suggestion is to bring it to a very slight boil, and then put in the lemon juice and really let it sit for a while (especially if you make double).
Then the fun part. I used a reusable produce bag because it already has a draw string, hung it on top of the sink and let gravity do it’s magic for an hour or so. The end product was so worth the wait. I would call this more of a cream cheese then a ricotta, but it was absolutely fantastic!!
I also experimented, and made sprouts! I was so excited by this, to use in both the Socca with Grilled White and Green Asparagus, Dill and Feta (Book – p. 61) and in the Black Lentil Salad with Tzatziki, Avocado and Pea Shoots (Book – p.57). My dear mother bought me a sprout making kit to make it with – but you could easily do it with a clean jar, some cheesecloth and some balancing skills. Sarah gives explicit directions here (also in the cookbook). I was shocked at how easy this was, the only thing that was challenging was my ‘cool dark place’ in the house is in my bedroom behind a curtain, and so I often forgot to rinse them. I ended up putting a reminder on my phone hehe.
Last but not least, the Life Changing Loaf of Bread. When I went to see Sarah talk in Vancouver, she told us that this was the recipe that got her popular in the blogging world. I can see why. It is so unique yet so remarkably similar to bread in some ways, yet totally gluten free! (just oats nuts and seeds!) I recommend making a double batch of these, as you will eat lots of it (it’s uncontrollable really) and it also freezes well. The perfect part is you don’t need to dirty up any dishes, or chop/prep any nuts or seeds. SO EASY!
That is one dense piece of bread!
Other things you may want to prep the day before the challenge starts:
- Almond milk (soak the almonds) if you are making it from scratch (this will also be useful for the Moon macaroons!).
- Vanilla Rooibos Fig Newtons – these take a little while to make, even making the dough in advance would be ideal
- Oyster Mushroom Bisque is great to make the first day or even before hand, you can freeze in portions for throughout the week!
Let me know of any other things that you like to prep the week before, love to hear your comments below!
xoxo Hannah