This recipe shared with Diane’s Real Food Weekly Roundup

Coconut Sugar Sweetened Apricot Cobbler Dessert  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients 1/2 C coconut sugar or regular white sugar (add more if your apricots are under-ripe) 6 C fresh apricots 3 tbsp. cornstarch or arrowroot starch 1 tbsp. butter or vegan margarine (optional) 1 tsp. almond flavoring 1/2 tsp. vanilla 3/4 C sorghum flour 1/4 C potato starch, arrowroot or corn starch 1/2 C tapioca starch 1 1/2 tbs coconut sugar or regular white sugar 1/2 tsp salt 2 1/4 tsp baking powder 5 tbsp. palm oil shortening 1/2 C milk (dairy-free milk is fine) coconut sugar or raw sugar for garnish Directions Get a deep, ceramic pie pan out of the cupboard and preheat oven to 350F. Pit your apricots and cut into bit sized wedges and place into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle with cornstarch, flavoring and sugar and fold in so they are evenly distributed. Melt your butter or margarine and gently fold into the apricot mixture. Reserve. If you like you can pour this apricot mixture into your pie pan and use the bowl for the cobbler. Combine your flours, starches, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Cut in your palm oil shortening with a fork, pastry cutter, or (my personal favorite) your fingers. When the shortening has been worked into the flour and you have a crumbly texture of dough, fold in your milk. Spoon your biscuit mixture on top of the apricots in your pie pan, sprinkle the top with coconut sugar or raw sugar for sparkle, and bake at 350f for around 35 minutes or until cobbler turns a light golden brown and seems firm on top. Enjoy with a dairy-free vanilla ice cream or plain. Delicious! Notes Cobbler runnier than you like? Store it in the refrigerator and the filling will set up.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1561 Added:  July 14, 2011 Last Modified:  July 20, 2011

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we have. Every time I make it, our meal becomes a special occasion, and this dish reminds me that fresh, local ingredients can be the best inspiration for a gluten-free and/or vegetarian diet.

Looking for more gluten-free, vegan fried veggies? Try Fried Artichoke Fritters *contains corn*

This recipe is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays where you will find many other great and mostly gluten-free recipes.

Egg-free Gluten-free Fried Zucchini Blossoms Side Dish  Vegetables  American

Ingredients 1 package zucchini with blossoms or 2-3 fat, short farmer’s market zucchini, sliced with ends removed 2/3 cup sorghum flour or 1/3 cup sorghum, 1/3 cup buckwheat or other flavorful whole grain gluten-free flour 1/6 cup arrowroot starch 3/4 cup club soda 1 tsp. your favorite seasoning (Italian seasonings, pasta seasonings, whatever) 1/4 tsp. salt extra gluten-free flour for dusting olive oil More salt for serving. Directions Sift together flour and whisk together with club soda. If you think the batter is too thin, add more of your main flour 1 tbsp. at a time until you like the texture. For zucchini and blossoms, slice in half. For zucchini, dry each slice with a paper towel and dust with flour. Heat a tablespoon or so of oil in a cast iron or nonstick pan on medium-high. Immerse zucchini in batter and place on hot griddle. Turn gently when golden brown and fry other side. Add a little extra oil to the pan if necessary. Remove to wire rack, sprinkle with additional salt and let cool slightly. Serve zucchini with blossoms plain, Serve zucchini slices with marinara or your favorite pasta sauce on the side.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1498 Added:  April 8, 2010 Last Modified:  September 12, 2010

Oasis Natural Foods
523 Main Street
Half Moon Bay
(650) 726-7881

This health food store was listed and reviewed positively by vegetarian sites and gluten-free lists, so I was hoping to pick up a few things for a gluten-free coastal picnic. It was a (small) thrill to actually be able to open the door and go in for the first time in four years. Quarters are cramped, but this little shop DOES have an excellent selection of Gluten-Free products, both mixes and prepared foods. A wide assortment of Pamela’s mixes, Kinnikinnick cookies, Gluten-free cookies and crackers are stored in this tiny place, and I was happy to pick up a box of Glutino round gourmet crackers for my picnic. Unfortunately, rents are high in Half Moon Bay and the prices reflect that- the crackers alone were over $5 and everything else was similarly priced for sticker shock. They offered hot rice and soups in the back, but the soup contained gluten (although it was vegetarian, yay!) so I had to pass. Probably the most interesting item was at the check out counter- a little basket of big gluten-free muffins, labeled accordingly and baked on site. There was only one left, so I snagged my very own almond poppyseed muffin made from Pamela’s Baking Mix. It was pricey, at $3, but I figured it was my only good freshly baked GF option for miles and I’d better take advantage of it.

Since one muffin and a box of crackers does not a picnic make, and DH was looking mopey and hungry, we went to some of the other spendy, spendy grocery stores on Main Street. Oh the prices made my eyes hurt. But, we managed to pick up tortilla chips and salsa. I was dying for guacamole but couldn’t bring myself to pay $6 for it. DH bought a loaf of french bread and some assorted fillings, and we went back on the road… because we had another destination in mind before we had our picnic. *Non-vegan review following*

We first found out about this goat cheese farm from the Half Moon Bay Chamber of Commerce in response to our queries about local, small scale, family run dairies. I was very excited when I learned about the local goat dairy farm, Harley Farms, and the more I heard, the more I wanted to go and check out their operations and of course, taste their award-winning goat-cheeses. The farm is run by a British ex-pat named Dee Harley who started with six goats fourteen years ago and rebuilt and revitalized a 1910 cow dairy farm. Harley Farm is now the home of 200 some American Alpine goats and Harley Farm cheeses have won countless awards. Further, and perhaps coolest of all, Dee “was the first woman ever chosen by the Chamber of Commerce as Farmer of the Year in San Mateo county”. (source: I heart Farms) Harley Farms combines traditional methods with artistry and science, going that extra mile by using the traditional method of separating the curds and whey with cheesecloth bags and using (home grown) fresh flowers, dried nuts and dried fruits to create cheese that is as delicious as it is beautiful. The goats receive no antibiotics or hormones, and vegetarians will be happy to know that they only use vegetarian rennet. Harley Farms have also been recognized by the Slow Foods movement, and were invited to Italy “to represent one of 500 farmers that epitomize the group’s mission of . . .ecological food production, stewardship of the land and “the revival of the kitchen and table as centers of pleasure, culture and community.” (source: MetroActive) As if that wasn’t enough, Harley Goat Farms also recently won a Sustaneable San Mateo award for following “several environmentally-friendly practices by providing goats to the “Rent A Goat” program, where goats clear brush and grass. The farm won a four-year grant from the Natural Resource Conservation Service under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, for creek bank restoration and water conservation. The farm utilizes recycled water to cool the milk and offers free manure to its neighbors.” (source: Sustainable San Mateo)

It is rare to come across a farm where artistry, environmental concerns, and care for animals is combined so dramatically, and it’s no surprise to me that Harley Farms has won so many awards and gained such recognition in their field. When you visit the farm, you definitely feel that you’ve come to a very special place that provides balm and respite from a world where most goods are mass-produced and soulless. You can visit the farm on weekends, and they hold tours (reservations required), or you can just wander out and peek at the goats and their babies in the field and watch the chickens and roosters bouncing freely around the yard. You can also visit a charming little shop featuring all their cheeses for tasting and purchase, including the glorious flower strewn variety, sundried tomato chevre, herbed chevre, and even goat cheese ricotta or herbed spread. One slightly disappointing feature of the cheese tasting area is that it is all served with bread, so us gluten-free folks can’t taste anything. (It’s possible if you ask nicely that you might be able to get them to open something fresh for you, but I didn’t go to the trouble.) DH and I enjoy saying saying hi to the goats and perusing the cheeses for some nice selections to take home with us (and enjoy in a picnic.) And now, perhaps, you see why I bought those spendy crackers! Our favorites are the sundried tomato topped goat cheese, the cranberry (with a walnut surprise filling) and apricot (with a gorgeous green pistachio filling). We also like the herbed cheese, but it’s more commonly available, so we stick to the unusual combinations that Harley Farms is famous for. You can buy local artichoke products at the shop, as well as super free-range chicken eggs. If you’re interested in purchasing some cheese but can’t visit the farm, you can find it in some California Whole Foods cheese cases (Los Altos etc.) or purchase it online through their web site. The price tends to be lower in their shop than in Whole Foods, but this kind of quality, painstakingly produced cheese isn’t inexpensive. In our current economy, business must be tough, but I hope that Harley Farms continues to succeed and receive well deserved accolades for their efforts. Beauty wherever you find it is special- and their cheeses and farm are very beautiful indeed. And did I mention that of course, the cheese itself is gluten-free and vegetarian?

happy animals at Harley Goat Farm

If you enjoyed this article on gluten-free, foodie adventures in Half Moon Bay, you might also enjoy my article on

Heirloom Tomatoes in the Santa Cruz Mountains
Or
a comprehensive list of all my Bay Area travel reviews

We also find our copy of “Weekend Adventures” to be an invaluable source of travel ideas around the Bay area.

*Note: Cynthia at the Heirloom Tomato heaven, Love Apple Farm has a beautiful blog you should check out. If you happen to be local, definitely pick up some of her heirloom tomato plants, on sale starting March 15th, only available at the farm. I plan on going early in April to pick up some new babies.

Growing your own Organic Heirloom Tomatoes

But once you grow beautiful, unique heirloom tomatoes, what do you do with them? Here are some recipes that I have made using my tomatoes:
Grilled Zucchini with Tomato and Olive Salad
Pico De Gallo Recipe
Basil Olive Oil Bruschetta Recipe
Ancho Enchilada Sauce Recipe and
Grilled Portobello Sandwich with Sundried Tomato Feta Spread Recipe
Ratatoille Recipe

Returning to the Love Apple Farm
A few weeks ago I received an email from the Love Apple Farm informing me that they had opened up the tomato stand for the season. I immediately wanted to return and check out some of the varieties that I hadn’t grown this year. Love Apple Farm is a cozy, homey place with herb gardens, small sheds, and green things growing all around, and is an excellent antidote to the cookie cutter strip mall atmosphere that dominates much of Silicon Valley. But the true stars of the show are the amazing tomatoes- quirky, unexpected creatures of all shapes and stripes. When we showed up at the doorstep this Saturday afternoon, they were offering tastings of their red or black tomato jam- I was thrilled by the idea, but had to rely on DH’s report to decide which one to buy. (They were served on wheat crackers.) Then I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to decide which tomatoes to try- I ended up getting six, all of different varieties- Lemony, Homer Fikes, Orange Russian 17, Hippy Zebra, Mr. Brown, and a Cherokee Green… I never knew tomatoes could have so much personality and be so much fun! The Love Apple Farm has completely opened my eyes to the joys of unique, heirloom vegetables, with all their quirks. I don’t know that I will ever be able to look at the bland red globes in the supermarket the same way again. Just look at the gorgeous Orange Russian 117 below- isn’t it the prettiest tomato you’ve ever seen? It was delicious simply prepared with salt- I can only imagine how divine it would be with a little olive oil and some julienned basil…

As a side note- when I brought my tomato jam home, I didn’t quite know what to do with it- until I was reheating some of my buckwheat crepes and decided to make a traditional galette with goats cheese and thinly sliced apples. On a whim I added a dollop of the tomato jam- and was completely blissed out on my snack. This morning I took some Glutino GF crackers and spread them with a little goat cheese and tomato jam- it was delicious. If I have time, I’m so going to try to make my own tomato jam- it’s amazing stuff!

I found Love Apple Farm by doing a Google search for “Santa Cruz,” “winery” and “farms” – and now it’s become a favorite destination. You’ll never know what local farms and gluten free treats may be lurking in your area… until you do a search for them! Enjoy, and I’d love to hear about what you find!

Coming attractions: The July installment of the Gluten Free Recipe Box, a recipe for Gluten Free lasagna with homemade ricotta and a recipe for homemade ice cream. And a teaser- the Gluten Free Beer is still bubbling its way into fermented drinkability!

News: As you may have noticed, the Book of Yum is getting renovated. Quite simply, we’ve accumulated so much content since we began in January that we need better structure and organization. I’m really excited about these changes and think that you will notice a definite improvement in the usability of the site. Feel free to post any suggestions for improvements in the comments, and we will do our best to implement your suggestions into our remodel. In the meantime, see if you can spot all the changes! (Kinda like Where’s Waldo, but less exciting.) There are more changes to come, so stay tuned! And don’t worry, barring any terrible accidents, we plan on staying online and will continue to post at our normal rate during our renovations.

Pickings at our local farmer market seem to be a little slim recently, partly due to all the people rushing to enjoy the gorgeous weather we’ve had lately. I’m especially sad to see the winding down of the mutant kiwi sales. Alas, just as I fell in love with those funny, bulbous fruits, it seems like their season is over. Alas, alas. The lime and avocado man has also vanished- and plentiful apples have been replaced with strawberries of varying degrees of sweetness. I did find some very lovely beets- and unique green and purple scallions, and I look forward to seeing what new delights are waiting me as Spring advances. Stay posted- and while you’re at it, why not check your local farmer’s market? There might even be some gluten free baked goods waiting for you.

Click HERE to find a farmer’s market in your area (US).
If you’re a resident of California click HERE to find a market associated with the California Federation of Certified Farmer’s Markets.

A reader asked where I found the gluten free hoisin sauce. Edward and Sons, AKA Premier Japan Biologique, has a Wheat Free Hoisin sauce (labeled accordingly). You can see a list of their GF products here. Both their hoisin and teriyaki sauce are GF. You can see images of the bottles if you scroll down on this page.

This recipe can be used with a non-vegetarian ingredient like shrimp as well. See the Whole Gang’s Friday Food Fix blog event with gluten-free shrimp recipe roundup

PF Chang Style Spicy Tofu Tofu  Chinese

Ingredients Spicy Tofu: 1 lb. firm tofu, cut into cubes Potato starch Peanut oil 3 teaspoons oil back into hot wok 1 clove chopped garlic 1/4 cup green onions 1 1/2 teaspoon chili paste 1 1/2 ounce house white sauce (i like vegetable boullion with a touch of GF hoisin sauce or gf san-j tamari) 2 ounce Chang’s Sauce (equal amounts of sugar and vinegar combined) 1 tbsp. sesame oil 2 teaspoon cornstarch Veggie Stir Fry: 2 carrots cut into matchsticks 5 or 6 large cabbage leaves, with spine cut out and cut into sticks, and the leafy part cut into rectangles 1 cup mushroom caps, sliced Tops of green onions Veggie Sauce: 1 oz rice vinegar 1 oz sugar 1 oz vegetable broth 1 tsp cornstarch Directions Lightly coat tofu with potato starch. Fill hot wok with enough peanut oil to fry tofu. Fry tofu for two to three minutes until golden brown and cooked all the way through. Put tofu on plate with paper towels. Rinse out the wok. Add oil back into hot wok, garlic, green onions, chili paste, house white sauce, Chang’s Sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch. Mix in fried tofu. Sauce should bind to the tofu. For the Veggie Stir Fry, take one tablespoon or so of oil from the tofu frying oil, heat in wok and add the veggies. Stir fry to desired level of crispiness (or just under it) and create a well in the middle of the veggies. Add Veggie sauce, combine with ingredients and let thicken over heat. Serve tofu with steamed rice or noodles, and on bed of slivered vegetables if desired. Enjoy! Notes Recipe adapted from recipe for PF Chang’s Spicy Chicken found at: http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/525/PF_Changs_Spicy_Chicken45490.shtml As you can see, we are still playing with the proportions of sauce, but the basic idea is there. You can also substitute shrimp or chicken for the tofu.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  adapted from http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/525/PF_Changs_Spicy_Chicken45490.shtml Recipe ID:  1060 Added:  April 15, 2007 Last Modified:  April 16, 2007

When I got home I immediately melted a tablespoon of butter and a tablespoon of olive oil (or less), and sauteed my mushrooms until a brown salmon color and the smaller leaves got all brown and crispy on the edges. I seasoned them with lemon pepper and perhaps 1/4 tsp of GF tamari for added depth of flavor. Then I whisked four eggs, seasoning them with freshly ground lemon pepper and made them into an omelet, sprinkling one half of the omelet with some locally produced dill seasoned goats cheese. When it had half melted, I added the smallest, brownest, crispiest mushroom bits to the filling and folded the omelet over. I served the omelet topped with more sauteed pink oyster mushrooms, fresh basil, and the barest sprinkling of goat cheese. Then I sliced one of our favorite misshapen kiwis, and added fresh strawberries from the market and a dollop of fruit flavored yogurt. Truly a feast, and all the ingredients were produced locally and healthfully in the sunny state of California.