Adventures In Vegan Baking: Spelt Biscuits

I managed to tear myself away from watching episodes of Deadwood long enough to make these delicious spelt biscuits from the Babycakes cookbook. Though spelt flour does contain some gluten, some people with wheat allergies can tolerate it since it is easier to digest. I also just happen to enjoy the faintly nutty taste it has.

My favorite biscuit recipe is definitely still the one found in Marion Cunningham's The Breakfast Book (easily my favorite cookbook) but if you're looking for a healthier alternative i.e. one that doesn't call for butter or cream, this one works. As with most of the recipes in The Babycakes books, coconut oil is the fat used and needs to be melted for baking.

Babycakes Spelt Biscuits

2 C white spelt flour + more for dusting
1 T baking powder
1 t salt + more for sprinkling
1/3 C coconut oil + more for brushing
3/4 C hot water*

Preheat oven to 375. line baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Pour in oil and hot water and mix until combined and a dough is formed. If the batter is dry, add more hot water.

Dust the counter with spelt flour. Place the dough on the surface and drag it through the flour. Pat the dough until it is 1 inch thick. Cut out biscuits with a 3 inch round cookie cutter and place on baking sheet.

Brush each biscuit with coconut oil and sprinkle with salt.

Bake on the center rack for 8 minutes*, rotating the sheet 180 degrees after 4 minutes. The finished biscuits will have a golden, flaky crust.

Let the biscuits stand on the sheet for 5 minutes before serving.

I even remembered to use my new apron!

Some Tips:

*The batter seemed a little wet to me, so definitely add more flour during the mixing.
*This is the baking time the recipe calls for but I ended up baking them for about 12 minutes. Definitely keep your eye on them...

Now, the biscuits didn't rise as much as I was expecting but they still tasted good. I'd recommend making them a bit bigger than I did. I don't have any cookie cutters in the house just yet so I improvised with a juice glass.

And, as is the case with most vegan baked goods, try to eat them within a couple of days for best taste. But that shouldn't be too hard.

Decorating, Savers Style.

Now that I'm finally done unpacking I've begun the decorating process. Despite a nasty rumor about my desire to 'put doilies everywhere' I don't have any nefarious plans to completely re-do James' condo. But as much as I enjoy the Red Sox, beer, and popular movies I don't really want to live in a clubhouse and would like to create a more co-ed atmosphere. Enter: French Country Farmhouse. That is my decorating theme. Deceptively simple and easy to pull off on a budget.

I started with the dining room table where I envisioned some kind of glassware centerpiece with a white cloth runner underneath.

I picked up this glass jar thing and the cloth at Savers for $3 each. Then I found a white column candle at TJ Maxx for $4.

I also picked up this super cute apron at for $3, perfect for all those things I haven't been baking.

And, since it's always a good idea to have backups, here's an alternative lace runner that I got at Goodwill for $1...

...along with another piece of glassware for $4. Imagine there's some flowers in it.

I'd say not bad for $15 total!

Meanwhile, in the basement....

James assembled the wall of TVs.

Home sweet home!

You're My Bike, Blue. You're My Bike!

I picked up a used Ross Road bike today...

and christened it Old Blue.

I (Heart)ford: Salute

I've been in the throes of a summer cold the past couple days, making it hard to sleep and leaving me without much of an appetite (horror of horrors!) Therefore, writing about food has felt a little odd. But. Must. Blog.

As I've mentioned before I recently moved back to Connecticut. On my first night back after a long, sweaty move James and I headed to downtown Hartford for dinner. We decided to try Salute, recently voted the best new restaurant by The Hartford Advocate and it did not disappoint. They have a lovely outdoor seating area which is quite large, especially for downtown. First, there was this:


Salute's "Almost Famous" garlic bread. If you're at all familiar with the Hartford restaurant scene (I just rolled my own eyes, but stay with me) you may recognize this from the old Hot Tomatoes menu. Several of Salute's owners left Hot Tomatoes to open this place but brought along this customer favorite. When I was a kid they used to sell a frozen version of it in a couple of local specialty food stores in the area (R.I.P Cheese and Stuff) and I distinctly remember that back before my father remarried his nearly empty fridge always seemed to have a loaf of this in the freezer.

The point is, whatever you do, order this garlic bread. Order it as a side, order it as your dinner, I don't care. Just. Get it.

Of course, there is a full menu of delicious Italian-inspired fare as well as chop house-style dinners. I went with the Shrimp Piccata pictured below which was made with leeks, onions, tomatoes, and capers in a white wine butter sauce.

James had the Pomodoro, which was a simpler dish of tomato sauce with garlic, basil, and mozzerella cheese over rigatoni. It was better than mine and a good example of how simple dishes made with super fresh ingredients can be great, especially when good basil is involved.

For dessert we went with the classic tiramisu, which they described as being in 'the traditional style.' It had a thicker texture and a richer taste than other tiramisus I've had--similar to a cheesecake. All in all it was a great meal in a lovely setting and made me feel a little better about leaving Boston for Hartford.



I should also mention that on Mondays their happy hour goes until the restaurant closes, so get down there and have a few then listen to free jazz in July and August across the street at Bushnell Park. Who says there's nothing to do downtown?

Postcard From Vacationland: I Heart Portland (and some other stuff too)

I'm baaaack! Well, technically I got back on Friday but I've been busy unpacking, not fitting into a bridesmaid dress thanks to my lax vacation eating/drinking, and seeing Soundgarden rock out in Mansfield, MA. But, back to Maine.

James and I spent a day in Portland right at the beginning of our trip and we had a great time. I love Portland. It's the city I wish Hartford could be. Not too big, but not too small with tons of restaurants, bars, and small businesses to keep things interesting. Unlike Hartford, people actually live in downtown Portland. Imagine: Strolling down cobblestone streets amid historical buildings while breathing in the salt air....sigh. Anyways, we started the day at the landmark Becky's Diner on the advice of my friend Elizabeth's mother, both of whom are Maine natives.


The food is standard diner fare, nothing fancy. But it's done right and the ingredients are fresh. What more can you ask for?

Egg Sandwich with Tomato and Homefries

I also kept seeing this sign of the lobster and the Guinness everywhere. I couldn't help but think "That lobster's never going to enjoy that pint because I'm gonna eat him first." Nature is cruel.

Around mid-afternoon we popped into a cafe called Mornings In Paris. Cheesy as that name is, it caught my eye as well as a magazine clip taped to the window with a picture of Martha Stewart claiming "These are the best whoopie pies I've ever had!" Oh really? They also had a Nutella latte that I really wanted to get, but my pants told me no. I regret that decision.

The comforting glow of the display case

The whoopie pies are made by Cranberry Island Kitchen out of Portland and they are indeed, the best whoopie pies I've ever had. (Omg...on their website they have whoopie pie cakes! *ahem* Sorry. Cake makes me excited.)

Here's a picture of some espresso chip and chocolate ones we picked up at a gourmet food store in Raymond later on in the week:

After whoopie pie mania we had dinner down by the docks at Ri Ra, an irish pub/restaurant chain with a distinct foodie slant. This deconstructed goat cheese and roasted vegetable tart with spicy tomato jam is definitely a contender for an at home recreation.

And of course, no summer evening is complete without some ice cream. We decided to get our fix at Mt. Desert Island ice cream which had some lovely signage out front:

When Food and Wine Magazine tells you something, you listen up ok?

I had salted caramel and James had coffee oreo. This ain't your momma's ice cream. Flavors there are intense and feature the traditional (cookies and cream) alongside the experimental (Sherry Catalana).

After a day of gorging ourselves, we headed further into the wilds of Maine to my family's vacation home in Raymond. We didn't do too much, which was perfect.

We enjoyed some wild strawberries...

Went on a pretty, yet buggy evening walk...

Ate outside...(the food was still on the grill. Unless baked potatoes with lemon is your idea of a good meal...)

And made the trip out to The Lobster Shack at Two Lights.

Mmmm shore dinner.

If you go, get ready to stand in line.

But with views like this it's worth the wait.

Bye Bye Boston. It's Been Real.

Well, I didn't get through the bucket list but I did manage to make some headway. Plus, I'll be back in Beantown for various reasons over the next few months anyways. Can't stay away. Boston gets in your bloooood.

On Saturday I had a pretty epic last night out in Cambridge with some friends. We hit up ZuZu and recreated this scene from Animal House with a bunch of hipsters, but sadly no togas. Consequently, the walk home looked something like this:


When I eventually woke up on Sunday James and I went to Zaftig's in Coolidge Corner, since he's never been. Normally going there on a weekend automatically means a 2 hour wait. But it was past 3 pm so we were seated right away. Magic! I had some Gravlax to celebrate:



After lunch we drove over to lovely Jamaica Pond:



James and I had a baseball catch (I won) and then we headed up to Cambridge for ice cream at Toscanini's, which has the best ice cream I've ever had ever. Then we walked back to Boston via the Harvard bridge, which I would recommend both for the lovely views and the calorie-burning potential.

The next day I loaded a bunch of stuff into my dad's van and drove back to CT, which wasn't very interesting.

Anyways, I'm going to be traveling quite a bit over the next couple of weeks. First we're heading up to Portland on Saturday to hang out with some friends and then we're going even deeper into the wilds of Maine to spend some time at my family's camp (or vacation home for you non-Mainers.) I'm then going to go to Rhode Island because apparently my life is all about New England-based travel right now. Tough, I know. But I'll be back sometime next month with more posts about food I like to eat, restaurants I like to visit, and things I need to complain about.

Working Through The Bucket List: Grendel's, a Greek festival, and Cutty's

Ever have one of those days (weeks, months, whatever) where you can't get motivated to do anything? Sadly, I have lots of things to do and very little drive to actually do any of them. For instance: it's taken me three days just to write up to this sentence.

Anyways, I'm still working through the bucket list while simultaneously trying to savor what's left of my time in Boston.

Sure, it's fun to go to the Fenway or ride on the Duck tour boats but it's the little things, the ones that come with living in a place for a while, that I'll miss the most--like a moment of unexpected beauty during an afternoon walk to the T stop:

I'll also miss hanging out at a bar where everybody knows my name. Well, most of them. Ok, maybe just a couple of the bartenders. And maybe they don't actually remember my name. But, they know I've been there before. And that's what counts.

Where was I going with this? Oh, Grendel's brunch. Right.


I've written about Grendel's Den in Harvard Square several times before. I mean, it should really have it's own label at this point. When I lived in Cambridge I'd go in at least weekly with my friend Elizabeth. But once I moved across the river and she moved to NYC my visits became fewer and far between. When I found out Elizabeth was coming to town last weekend we decided we had to go to Grendel's and we had to go for brunch. I'm proud to say that we accomplished both those goals with flying colors.

Note: If you're going to spend a Saturday night at a bar and then go back there for brunch the next morning, make sure you don't sit on the same stool the whole time. Try a booth or a chair. Mix it up a bit. Your back will thank you.

As you can see above, I got eggs Florentine. I was told the hollandaise was 'banging' and indeed it was. Also 'banging'? This epic side of bacon for $2:

James ended up joining us for brunch but he forbade me from posting the photo of him enjoying a Reuben. He did allow me to say that it is 'James Approved.'

Later that day, after emerging from the dark confines of Grendel's, we got wind of a Greek festival being held in Central Square. I had missed Hartford's Greek festival while I was in NYC and had been jonesing for a gyro ever since (yes, that can happen.) Luckily these guys were on hand to help me get my fix:

'Hello young lady. You want gyro?'

Just give James a tray of gyros and hang the Greek flag in his eye line and he is one happy camper:

Me on the other hand? A bowl of warm loukoumades, please:


The next day we stopped by Cutty's, a little sandwich shop in Brookline.

I got the eggplant spukie topped with hand-pulled mozzarella and their olive-carrot salad.


While James got a turkey sandwich. Boooring.

Come on. If you'd rather text than eat your food, you've ordered the wrong thing. James.