Happy New Year! Whipped Ricotta and Beet Caviar served on Seed and Nut Bread

I humbly offer not one, not two but three wonderful recipes that I did not invent. They came from three of my favourite food blogs, which I encourage you to take a look at if you have not done so already.  All I have to offer is the suggestion that you make these three wonderful dishes and serve them together.

They are festive enough to be served as an hors d’oeuvre with your New Year’s champagne.  They are healthy enough to be eaten as an everyday afternoon snack.  I have taken some photos to encourage you to do this and provided links to the original recipes as well. Enjoy!

THE LIFE-CHANGING LOAF OF BREAD from My New Roots

The original recipe provides directions for making the bread in a flexible, silicone loaf pan.  I don’t own one so I’ve written directions for using a regular loaf pan.  If you have a flexible loaf pan just follow the link above!  You can also find the amazing cracker version of this bread here.

• A bit of ghee or coconut oil for the loaf pan edited Jan 2018
• A bit of rice flour to dust the pan edited Jan 2018
• 1 cup  sunflower seeds
• ½ cup flax seeds
• ½ cup hazelnuts or almonds (I also like walnuts)
• 1 ½ cups rolled oats
• 2 Tablespoons chia seeds
• 4 Tablespoons psyllium seed husks (3 Tablespoons if using psyllium husk powder)
• 1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
• minced fresh rosemary (this is my optional addition)
• 1 Tablespoon maple syrup
• 3 Tablespoon melted coconut oil or ghee
• 1 ½ cups water

1. Oil a loaf pan and dust it lightly with rice flour. edited Jan 2018.  These days, I line my loaf pan with parchment paper instead of greasing and flouring it.  It makes it easier to unfold the bread at the half way point when it is still hot and tender.  I cut a sheet as long as my loaf pan.  When I press it into my loaf pan, the width of the paper is long enough to line the long sides of the pan and the bottom with a bit bit of extra sticking up on either side that I will  use to hold onto later.  The short ends of the loaf pan are not lined, but that has never posed a problem.
2. In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients, stirring well. Whisk maple syrup, oil and water together in a measuring cup. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix very well until everything is completely soaked and dough becomes very thick (if the dough is too thick to stir, add one or two teaspoons of water until the dough is manageable).
3. Pack the dough into the prepared tin and smooth out the top. Let sit out on the counter for at least 2 hours, or all day or overnight.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place loaf pan in the oven on the middle rack, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove bread from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the loaf edited Jan 2018 G.  Grab onto the parchment paper and lift the loaf out of the tin.  Place it upside down directly on the rack and bake for another 30 minutes. The bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool completely before slicing.
5. I find that this bread keeps well in a zip lock in the fridge.

BEET CAVIAR from 101 Cookbooks

• 4 medium beets, washed and trimmed
• 5 plump dates, pitted and chopped
• 2 tablespoons cognac (or some other sort of hard liquor)
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed (I found 2 cloves of garlic to be more than enough)
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus more to taste
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
• 3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
• lots of freshly chopped chives

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the center. Puncture the beets with a fork a few times, and roast for an hour, or until the beets are completely tender when you test by cutting into the center with a knife.
2. In the meantime, gently heat the cognac in a small saucepan. Place the dates in a glass bowl, and, when just hot, pour the alcohol over the dates. let the dates soak for at least 10 minutes.
3. When the beets are cooked and cool enough to peel, remove the skins and chop into cubes. Place in a food processor with the dates, cognac, garlic, lemon juice, walnuts, and salt. Puree until the texture is to your liking.
4. Taste, and adjust the seasoning if needed.

 

WHIPPED RICOTTA WITH LEMON AND OLIVE OIL  from Joy The Baker

• 1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups whole-milk ricotta
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• coarse sea salt (I used Pink Hawaiian salt because I am on Maui right now)
• fresh cracked black pepper
• lemon zest
• olive oil

1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat cream cheese until smooth and pliable.  You can also do this a hand mixer or submersion blender.
2.   Stop the mixer and add ricotta and milk.  Beat on medium speed for 4 to 5 minutes or until mixture is fluffy.   Place in a bowl or on a platter.  Sprinkle generously with sea salt, black pepper, lemon zest, and a generous drizzle of olive oil.

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