miso-yam soup w/ sesame roasted carrots /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

ok, before the holiday season gets out of control, with all the cookies and treats that are popping up all over the place, let's get our nutrition on!  i've somewhat been off my regularly scheduled eating patterns with traveling, and the recent holidays.  so whenever i'm looking for a boost, be it when i'm sick or my stomach is dysfunctional, my go-to is miso soup.  it's easy to make, suuuper soothing, and has (magical) healing benefits.  personally, i'm a fan of miso's beneficial bacteria that helps aid digestion as well as maintain a healthy immune system! one could go on about everything else that miso is good for, but i'll leave that to the experts.  

i recently came across a super-duper ipad app, Uniqlo Recipe.  not usually one for recipe apps, i was interested in it because i'm a fan of the photographer who shot it.  i came across a recipe for butternut squash miso soup and was instantly obsessed. the original recipe came from Brian Leth, a chef who runs an awesome restaurant here in brooklyn, Vinegar Hill House.  most miso soups i've eaten come in broth form, so i loved the idea of a creamy, slightly sweet miso soup, and i loved how the ingredients seemed subtle enough to not outdo the miso flavor.  using what i had available in my kitchen, i swapped some ingredients for others using white flesh yams in place of the squash, and roasted carrots instead of sautéed apples and brussels sprouts.  the soup was a cinch to make and so darn yummy; a total winner!

miso-yam soup w/ herb + sesame roasted carrots | gf + v

| makes 4 cups |

i used white flesh yams but feel free to use any sweet potato, potato, or squash (except spaghetti squash) here  

adapted from Brian Leth via Uniqlo Recipe

ingredients

  • 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch chunks
  • 1/2 tablespoon red miso paste
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • approximately 3 cups filtered water
  • salt to taste
  • one bunch of baby carrots (~4 ounces), washed and cut in half (alternatively, you can use larger carrots and cut them into smaller pieces)
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon mirin
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh chives, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons fresh cilantro, minced
  • pinch of salt
  • toasted sesame seeds and extra chives for garnish

instructions

 

make the soup

  • place the yams in a stock pot with the miso paste and 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil.  cover with 2 cups of the filtered water (or until yams are completely covered).  give the ingredients a stir to dissolve the miso.  bring to simmer, cover and cook the yams until tender; about 20-25 minutes.  carefully transfer soup ingredients to a blender, puree soup until smooth - thin with water until you reach your desired consistency.  season with salt and transfer back to stock pot
  • ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with carrots, toasted sesames and chives

 

roast the carrots

  • preheat oven to 375° and line a baking sheet with parchment
  • in a mixing bowl, toss carrots with sesame oil, mirin, chives, cilantro and salt.  spread out onto baking sheet and roast until lightly browned, 12-15 minutes

cranberry + orange zest pop tarts w/ ginger glaze /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

every sunday morning my husband and i get up and go to the farmer’s market here in brooklyn.  this has become a fairly regular ritual for us over the last nearly two years since we moved to this neighborhood.  around the corner from where our market is in carroll gardens is a little coffee/pastry shop that i first saw on yelp when we moved to the surrounding neighborhood (i’m sorry to admit how much i depend on yelp, especially in cities other than my own!).  we have since made it part of our sunday morning routine to grab a nice hot coffee from them in these cold winter months.  they serve counter culture which is a great roaster out of durham, nc, not too far from where my husband grew up.  also at smith canteen one can find some super yummy treats such as ginger glazed rhubarb pop tarts in the summer months, and pumpkin pop tarts in the colder months.  these delicious pastries seem to constantly be screaming my name, once in awhile frank will indulge and i will have a bite or two.  
 
this brings me to the past few weeks where i've been anticipating the upcoming holidays and trying to develop a cookie dough resembling the cookies i grew up eating around this time.  through that, i ended up coming out with not only a cookie dough, but with a few tweaks, an all-purpose pastry dough that is fitting for all sorts of baked goods.  the experimentation process got a little heavy one afternoon and i ended up making everything from thumbprint cookies, to hand pies, to linzer tart cookies, to rugelach- type looking cookies.  needless to say it was an exciting day!  after the excitement was completed i got to thinking what i really wanted to  make with this dough.  then i thought of those delicious, flaky pop tarts at smith canteen that i always want more than a bite of.  so keeping with the seasonal pop tart theme i decided to go with what my farmers’ market has, fresh cranberries!  i mixed them up with some sweet citrus and sugar, cooked them down until they burst a bit, and filled these little pastries up! ‘tis the season, xo.

cranberry + orange zest pop tarts w/ ginger glaze | gluten free + dairy free

| makes 8 pop tarts |

cranberry filling adapted from Bon Appetit

ingredients

1 ½ cups almond flour
1 cup oat flour
½ cup arrowroot powder
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
¼ cup coconut oil, solid and cold
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons coconut palm sugar
2 organic free range eggs

6 ounces fresh (or frozen) cranberries (about ¾ cup)
⅓ cup coconut palm sugar
½ teaspoon orange zest
1 ½ tablespoons fresh orange juice
½ teaspoon arrowroot powder
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup powdered sugar
1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon almond milk

equipment

2 large pieces of parchment
mini food processor
rolling pin

make the dough

in a medium sized bowl, whisk almond flour, oat flour, arrowroot, baking powder and salt together until mixed, set aside.  in a small bowl, combine the eggs with the coconut palm sugar until sugar is disolved.  transfer egg mixture to a small food processor and add the cold coconut oil, pulse until combined - about 20 seconds.  mix the wet ingredients into the dry, working the dough until incorporated.  form dough into a ball and cut in half, wrap each piece in parchment, refrigerate for 20 minutes - the dough can be made ahead and left in the refrigerator for up to one day

make the cranberry filling

in a saucepan combine the cranberries with the sugar, orange zest, juice, arrowroot powder and vanilla extract, stir to combine. set the saucepan over medium-low heat, bring mixture to a simmer.  let it cook, about 10 minutes, until many of the cranberries have burst, and the liquid has thickened.  set aside and allow to cool completely

assemble the tarts

preheat oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper

take one piece of the dough from the refrigerator and place between the 2 large pieces of parchment paper.  with the rolling pin, roll out dough into an 8” x 10” rectangle, about 1/8" thick. use a pastry cutter and slice 8 (2” x 5”) rectangles (you can make these larger or smaller depending on what you prefer, these are loose guidelines). repeat with remaining dough.  this dough liked to stay chilled, if it sits too long at room temperature you may have a bit of difficulty getting it to do what you want.  i popped my dough back in the refrigerator if it sat out too long

spoon out filling onto 4 of the pieces, take the top piece and place over the filling.  press the edges lightly with your fingers, then use the tip of a fork to seal the dough together.  gently transfer tarts to parchment lined baking sheet (what i find super helpful is to slip your hand underneath the parchment and gently lift while still supporting from the bottom).  repeat with other half of dough.  bake for 15 - 18 minutes, rotating halfway through, until edges are lightly browned.  let cool

in a small mixing bowl, whisk the powdered sugar, ginger and almond milk together until the sugar and ginger is dissolved.  place in refrigerator until ready to use

once the pop tarts have cooled remove the glaze from refrigerator.  with a pastry brush or spoon, distribute glaze evenly over the tops of the pastry.  allow to set or inhale immediately!