Baking for One

A terrible thing happened to me.  Yes, ME!  My son's pediatrician asked me to lay off the dairy for a week or two to see if that might improve the tiny (well, he's not tiny) one's disposition and penchant for barfing.  Ever since he was born I have been keeping my low blood sugar regulated with copious amounts of cheese and I have the most amazing sweet tooth while breastfeeding.  Did you know that practically all chocolate sold in stores contains some sort of dairy?  Milk fat, milk protein, lactose, butter, etc. It is making my life difficult.  And yes, this is all about me.  On top of this, my husband is attempting to diet, so when I have a sugar craving, I need to keep it to a single portion.
Awhile ago, I found this very handy idea on pinterest: a single-serving chocolate chip cookie recipe.  It can be found HERE.  I have now tested it with both coconut oil and canola oil instead of butter.  I recommend using less coconut oil if you need dairy free - perhaps by as much as half.  It makes for incredibly rich, slightly crunchy cookies.  I actually preferred the canola oil substitute and the ratio remains the same.
I love to experiment with recipes.  I tweak everything to test the limits of a recipe and see if I can make something I like even more.  This time I chanced upon something truly wonderful AND dairy free.  Here is some incredibly rich, fudgy goodness:
Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 Tbls canola oil
2 Tbls white sugar
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp milk (I used almond)
pinch of salt (kosher)
1 Tbls cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup flour
2 Tbls chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.
In a small bowl, mix oil, sugar, egg, milk and vanilla thoroughly.  Add all dry ingredients and mix until combined.  Add chocolate chips and mix again.
Bake for about 9 minutes.

Note 1: I bake these on a small pampered chef stone - which happens to be the perfect size for exactly three cookies, which is what this makes.
Note 2: These would be great with coconut oil, but cut it by half.
Note 3:  I discovered a brand of chocolate chips that does not have any milk in them: Guillard. 

Enjoy!

Banishing Dairy

A couple years ago, I went through this horrible phase of stomach problems.  In the process, I learned that red meat and dairy are my triggers.  Red meat was fairly easy to eliminate from my life - we didn't eat much of it anyway - but dairy is a lot harder.  I have never tried to completely eliminate dairy, but I have drastically cut back on how much I consume.  Ever since doing both of these things, my body is much happier with me.
I am currently experimenting with almond milk.  In fact, we ran out of regular milk and all we had in the fridge tonight was vanilla sweetened almond milk.  My son really wanted crepes for dinner (sort of an off-and-on Sunday night tradition in our house).  I decided to try dairy-free crepes and I am pleased to report that they were a huge hit.  The texture was even more delicate than with regular milk and they had a subtle nutty flavor that we all enjoyed - particularly my husband.  He was the one who told me this *had* to go on the blog.  So, with the disclaimer that I have never been to France, here you go:

Dairy-Free Crepes (based on the Betty Crocker crepe recipe)
1-1/2 cups flour (throw in half wheat flour if you want to add a healthier twist, but not more than half)
1 Tbls sugar (omit if you are using sweetened almond milk)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups almond milk
2 Tbls canola or vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs (add a third if you like a slightly chewier crepe)

Mix all dry ingredients, then add in wet ingredients.  Stir until very smooth with a whisk (or you can throw everything into a blender).  Let the batter rest for about half an hour.  You can even leave it in the fridge overnight. 
I use this wonderful Italian crepe pan my husband got for me.  You heat it right on a burner then dip the hot pan into the batter, flip it back over and set it back on the stove to set.  You can also make them in a pan, but I confess, I am not great at getting them thin and uniform.
Top/fill with your favorite ingredients.  I like strawberries and bananas with chocolate or raspberries and whip cream.