Grain Free Cut-out Cookies

This recipe comes from our dear friend Laurel over at http://blog.sweetlaurel.com , not only is she the sweetest person you will ever meet... she is an amazing paleo baker!

The only thing I changed is using ghee or butter instead of the coconut oil, as well as half vanilla extract and half vanilla bean paste.

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups Bob's almond flour

1/4 cup pasture butter (melted)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tbsp Sweet Laurel grain free vanilla extract

1/2 tbsp vanilla bean paste

Instructions

Put all ingredients into the food processor, pulse until the dough forms 1 large ball.

Line a cutting board with one piece of parchment, put dough on parchment and press down to form a thick disk. 

Place a second piece of parchment on top of the dough and roll out dough to desired thickness. I prefer 1/4 " for nice thick cookies.

Put the rolled out dough on the cutting board in the fridge to cool for an hour. Preheating oven 30 minutes in to 350.

Take dough out of fridge and cut into desired shapes and carefully transfer to a parchment lined sheet pan. 

Bake for 6-10 minutes (turning halfway) or until they begin to turn golden brown. Allow cookies to cool on sheet pan.

Decorate with your favorite icing! 

Notes

When I formed a ball from the dough scraps after cutting, I made sure to work quickly so the dough didn't get too warm. I also put the rolled dough back into the fridge to cool while the first batch of cookies baked. 

I have found that these cookies store best in the freezer if you're making them ahead of time. 

Black Rice Risotto

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups Lundberg black pearl rice

2 tbsp ghee, pasture butter or avocado oil

1/3 cup shallots/diced - sourced from The Farm Cart

3 cloves garlic/diced

1/2 cup white wine

6 1/2 cups chicken stock or veggie stock

1 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

OPTIONAL 

1 cup finely shredded Organic Pastures cheddar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Bring broth to a steady simmer in a medium sauce pan.

2. Melt ghee in a large saute pan over medium low heat, add diced shallots and cook until they begin to become translucent. 

3. Add diced garlic and black rice to the pan, stirring/toasted the rice for 3 minutes.

4. Pour the white wine into the pan slowly, stir ever minute or so until the wine has reduced. 

5. Sprinkle the paprika, salt and pepper evenly over the rice, stir to mix in. 

6. Add simmering broth a ladle at a time, stirring the rice every couple minutes until the broth reduces. Repeat this process until all broth has been added and the rice is al dente. Takes anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour depending on how your stove cooks.

Optional

7. Turn off heat, sprinkle cheese over rise and stir to mix in.

Notes

- If you choose not to add the cheese you may need more salt added

- My stove cooks really hot/fast so I actually had the heat on low. You're looking for enough heat to create a mild sizzle when the liquid is added but not too much that you see it sticking or burning on the bottom of the pan.

- I love using cast iron enamel cookware for risotto

Giving Back

Magda Barnes founder of Laundry Love SB with Nathan

Hi Everyone!

Nathan and I wanted to fill you in on some of the behind scenes projects we have been working on. Back in September we met up with Luke Barrett from C3H (Central Coast Collaborative On Homelessness) to discuss how we could help our local struggling community members as well as ensure our community’s safety. Luke informed us that in order to receive the proper services to get our local community members on the right track, they have to have an address to receive mail. So we decided to sponsor a P.O. Box for $250 a year. So far 6 people are signed up to receive mail and get back on their feet!

Last month through our local Rotary we were introduced to Deborah and Magda from Worth Street Reach and Laundry Love, who provide free laundry services for those living below the poverty line in the local Santa Barbara area. Their stories of local families struggling to get by inspired us to get involved and give back! So I spent a couple hours reaching out to companies such as Seventh Generation, Ecover and Dr. Bronners asking if they could donate some laundry essentials. To my surprise they all responded with very generous donations which included cases of product. It made us happy to know that not only will the local families be able to utilize the Laundry Love services, they will be able to utilize them while using products free of chemicals! All it took was a few hours and we were able to make a difference, such a great feeling.

I have gone ahead and included a link to the Laundry Love site if you would like to learn more.

                              http://worthstreetreach.org/laundry-love

If you or anyone you know may have any outreach suggestions please email me and as always, a big thank you to all of our amazing customers. You make this all possible!

Cheers,

Whitney

Magda and Deborah Barnes (founder of Worth Street Reach)