stone fruit

raw cauliflower couscous w/ cherries + a sumac-lemon vinaigrette /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

the month of june always brings about the anticipation of summer, and undoubtably the nostalgia of the summer months.  i see the anticipation of summer on children's faces, adults too, but there's something about the significance and care-free quality that summer holds for the kid in us.  for me, it was going to the pool, taking vacations with my family up to martha's vineyard, building sand castles, staying up late with my brother and the neighborhood kids to play hide-and-seek.  adventure and excitement were everyday occurrences, for you didn't know if a thundershower would envelope you with its downpour, or if your friend would get their hands on a bunch of water guns and balloons and there would be a spur-of-the-moment water fight.  bbq's, hamburger and hotdogs, watermelon, and ICE CREAM - hello carvel and ben and jerry's! while i still dream about super-soakers, sandcastles and sweet, cold food items that melt in your mouth, i also dream about tending to my garden, sowing seeds and watching them grow, and seeing how happy the warm weather makes our pup!  

another thing i loved as a kid was couscous - near east brand was my jam, especially the garlic and olive oil flavor!  it was always an easy dish to make on the stovetop for the times i would prepare dinner for myself. but, this time around it's  a raw, cauliflower version with sweet (first-of-the-season!) cherries, a ton of herbs and a super tangy vinaigrette to counter the sweet and earthy flavors going on here.  i see this dish being in heavy rotation in the coming months - there's seriously nothing like NOT turning on the oven to make our apartment even warmer than it already can get in the summer!  happy june, ya'll! xo

raw cauliflower couscous w/ cherries + a sumac-lemon vinaigrette

| serves 4 as a side |

ingredients

  • 3 cups cauliflower (about half of a large head)
  • 1/2 cup cherries, stoned and cut in quarters
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely minced
  • 1/4 cup fresh mint, finely minced
  • 1/4 cup fresh dill, finely minced
  • a big handful fresh peas, shelled and blanched (frozen peas work just as well, but cook according to package directions)
  • 2 tablespoons capers, roughly chopped
  • 4 small leeks, sliced thin

sumac-lemon vinaigrette

  • juice from 1 large lemon (about 1/4 cup)
  • 3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon sumac
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • salt + pepper

instructions

make the vinaigrette

  • to a small bowl, add lemon juice, salt, fresh ground pepper, sumac and garlic; stir to dissolve the salt, taste and adjust if needed.  vigorously whisk in, a little at a time the olive oil and taste as you go
  • refrigerate until ready to use

assemble the couscous

  • cut the cauliflower head in half, then cut florets into small pieces and pulse in a food processor until you are left with a fine crumble.  place the crumbled cauliflower in a large serving bowl and season with salt and pepper 
  • add the remaining ingredients and toss to combine.  add dressing as desired and adjust seasoning if need be

enjoy!

spelt scones with baked stone fruit /  by Lindsey | Dolly and Oatmeal

these stone fruits were some of the last i had in my kitchen.  and while i could have easily eaten them as is, i decided to bake them up, and toss them into some simple scones.  stone fruits this summer, especially peaches, did not disappoint.  while i was out east on long island for our wedding, my family and i were fortunate enough to stay in a rental house that sat between a beautiful creek and a peach orchard (!) for the entire week my mom and i would jog through the path that lead through the peach orchard, past a growing corn field, up to what was called a "button tree", down a path lined with plum trees, nectarine trees and wildflowers.  on our way back we would point out the beautiful peaches, and help each other from not picking the superb fruit before us.  every other day or so, we would drive down the street to the farm stand, and buy our peaches that we had longed for that morning.  i'm never ready to say "see you next year" to such delicious fruit, but i've been lucky enough to have had so much this summer.

i really wanted the fruit to be super present in these scones so i cut them in rather large chunks, and paired them with a scone recipe that lets them shine.  i've had my fair share of baking-with-fruit experiences where the batter surrounding the fruit never cooks, and i was left with gooey, uncooked sections, so i pre-baked the fruit to let some of their juices out..  although this recipe is vegan, it is not gluten free.  i have been experimenting with spelt flour, as i know it's more nutritious than many other grain flours.  flours with gluten have a very limited presence in my diet, as their glycemic index is can be high.  therefore, i frequently bake with grain flours/meals such as almond flour, buckwheat, and oat flour as their glycemic index is way lower than that of grain flours. however, i look forward to mixing in spelt whenever i can with my grain free flours.  

the original scone recipe called for a mix of unbleached flour and spelt; i used 100% whole grain spelt flour here.  feel free to substitute any grain flours, i would think substituting half the spelt with rye flour would taste pretty rad here.  (i'm not sure how grain free flours and meals would work.  i'm still working on the perfect grain free scone, definitely haven't found it yet!) i also substituted butter and heavy cream, with coconut oil and coconut cream, and both lent a sweet subtle scent.  these scones are delicious in their right; hearty but light, nutty but also slightly sweet, all with a delightful crumb.  

spelt scones with baked stone  

| makes 8 large or 16 small scones | 

| vegan | 

adapted from Kim Boyce's Good to the Grain and also inspired from  here  and  here 

ingredients

for the scones

  • 2 1/4 cups whole spelt flour
  • 2 tablespoons raw turbinado sugar or coconut palm sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup coconut oil, solid
  • 1 cup chilled, unsweetened coconut cream (i like Native Forest Organic)

for the fruit

  • 1 cup mixed stone fruits (roughly 1/2 pound)
  • 1 teaspoon coconut oil, melted 
  • 2 teaspoons raw turbinado sugar (alternatively, you can use any sugar, agave nectar, maple syrup, or honey) 

instructions

preheat oven to 350°.  line a small rimmed baking sheet with parchment

make the baked fruit

  • slice and remove the stones from your fruit.  cut all fruit the same size and place in a medium sized bowl (i cut mine into about 1 inch cubes).  pour melted oil over fruit, and toss in the sugar.  gently, toss the fruit so that each piece is coated with oil and sugar
  • place in the middle of your oven and bake for 15 minutes - you want your fruit tender, but not mushy.  (this also depends on the ripeness of your fruit pre-bake.  if they are very ripe check after 10 minutes, if less ripe you may need to bake longer than 15 minutes.  you know they're finished when a sharp knife is inserted easily to the fruit.)
  • remove from the oven and let cool completely

make the scones

turn the oven temperature up to 400°  and line a baking sheet with parchment paper

  • place flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to mix.  (if using a liquid sweetener do not add yet.) next, add the hardened coconut oil and pulse until the mixture resembles fine cornmeal
  • turn out scone mixture into a large bowl and add the cooled fruit.  use a spatula to gently mix.  add the coconut cream a half cup at a time until the dough comes together 
  • place your parchment lined baking sheet on a work surface.  dust the parchment with some flour, and turn dough out onto the sheet.  using your hands, shape the the dough into a 1" inch thick, 9" circular disk.  using a sharp knife, cut in quarters and then in quarters again until you have 8 pieces
  • sprinkle tops of scones with a hint of sugar (optional)
  • bake in the middle of your oven for 17-20 minutes, rotating halfway through.  you know they are finished baking when the tops and bottoms are golden brown

enjoy!