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The Best Mushroom Potato Risotto

Posted on April 15, 2021April 15, 2021 by Carolin Vater

The first thought, that’s probably come to your mind is: “Why The Best Mushroom potato Risotto?”.

Well, as you might know, I absolutely loveeeee Risotto. Any kind of Risotto, to be honest. As a side, as a main, as a starter. With or without meat or fish. I simply love it. And I cook it a lot. So what happened to “classic” Risotto? Well, it so happened, that between lockdowns, I spent 3 weeks in Milan, last autumn. Historically, Milan is world-famous for their Risotto Milanese and it was my great desire to go out, eat it & most of all, bother a chef into showing me how it’s done properly – but then the Rona happened….

So, instead, I let myself be inspired, as much as possible by my surroundings. Looking into restaurants, through their closed doors, strolling down the streets, peaking at menus, I might’ve tasted & cooked “at home”. There was that one day, when I had everything to make a great vegetable Risotto – apart from Risotto rice. What a bummer!!! Nevertheless, Italian cuisine is about taking basic ingredients & highlighting their amazing natural flavour, without overpowering it with too many spices and I had potatoes at home. Potatoes, similar to rice, have quite a high starch content. So I wondered, what would happen, if I just cut the potatoes into teeny tiny squares & cooked them the exact way, that I would cook a classic Risotto.

One thing led to another & The Best Mushroom Potato Risotto was born!! Below you can have a look at my very first try (& I actually believe it was so spontaneous & so improvised, that it was the best I’ve ever made!).

Recipe Inspiration

Now, from my first try in Milan to the recipe, you’ll find below, there were another few tries in-between. I also figured, that it’d be a great dish to bring some much needed variety to the winter season. If you’re like me & you’re trying to mainly eat seasonal and regional products, you’ll be bored come December. So, I’ve thought about the basic winter veggies & how they could be combined into something a little more exciting & came up with a mix of root vegetables as a base. Different types of cabbages as the actual “veggie component” & mushrooms as an umami-packed topping.

I really, really hope, you’ll love this dish as much as I do. I am looking forward to your reactions & comments to it. Possible substitutions can be found below the recipe!! ✌🏻

Print Recipe

Potato Risotto with cabbage, kale & mushrooms

Using multiple root vegetables & cabbage, as well as kale & mushrooms, this dish combines some of the best the winter has to offer.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: gluten-free, Italian, Mediterranean, vegetarian

Keyword: gluten-free, regional, seasonal, vegetarian

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

6 medium potatoes
1 yellow beetroot
1 beetroot
1 large carrot
1 stalk celery
1 red onion alternative: 1-2 shallots
2 garlic cloves
1/8 red cabbage
6 leaves kale
1 handful flower sprouts
6-7 king oyster mushrooms
50 g parmesan cheese vegan option: nutritional yeast

Liquids

3 tbsp olive oil
75 ml tequila or vodka or white wine
300 ml vegetable broth
4-5 tbsp aceto balsamico

Spices & herbs

salt & pepper to season
pinch freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp chili flakes
2 twigs rosemary
3-4 cloves

Instructions

For this specific version of the recipe, I would recommend you to start by cutting everything & placing it into small bowls.
The potatoes, beets & carrots should be the same size and should be cut into small squares.
The red cabbage should be cut into slices, the kale roughly chopped & the flower sporuts halfed.
The onion, garlic & celery should be finely chopped & the mushrooms cut into slices.
While you're preparing for cooking, heat the broth, measure the tequile (or alcohol of your choice) and get out 2 pans & 2 pots.

Risotto

You start preparing this risotto as you would any risotto, by adding some olive oil & butter to a large pot & sauteeing first onions, then garlic & celery. Next, you add the beets & carrots. After 2-3 minutes, you can add the potatoes. Sautee for another ~3 minutes, then add your rosemary & the tequila.
Once the tequila has evaporated, add your first ~150-200 ml broth, stir the risotto. Let it simmer on low heat & make sure to stir it regularly. As soon, as the liquid reduces, add more broth, one ladle at a time.
It should take the beets, carrots & potatoes around 15-20 minutes to cook. Try them, but make sure, they're not getting too soft.
Once done, add some butter & parmesan, season with salt, pepper & nutmeg. Stir & set aside, with the lid on, for 2-3 minutes.

Cabbage & Mushrooms

While the risotto is simmering, place a pan on the stove & heat it to medium heat. Add some olive oil, then the red cabbage. Add the cloves & let it cook for a couple of minutes, until it starts getting soft. Next, add the balsamico vinegar & let it reduce.
Move the red cabbage to one side of the pan & add the kale & brussle sprouts to the other. Season everything with salt & pepper & cook for roughly 4-5 minutes.
Heat a pan to high heat, add some olive oil, butter, rosemary & 1 garlic clove. Then add the mushrooms & cook on high heat until they're getting some colour. Add some chili flakes & cook for another minute.

Finishing

To serve, first add the risotto on a plate, then add some cabbage & top with mushrooms. Add some freshly grated parmesan & a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper & enjoy.

Substitutions & other ideas

My first try of a Potato Risotto was at the beginning of October, in Milan. At the time, courgette and other veggies were still in season, which made a great combination. I used potatos, carrots, tomatoes & courgette & cooked it all in one pot. This makes the dish a one-pot dish, great for hectic & short evenings, when you don’t feel like cleaning an entire kitchen’s equipment. 😂

If you want to go vegan, you can just omit the parmesan cheese or replace it with vegan hard cheese. What it does, is that it brings a little umami kick & some creaminess to the dish, but it’ll be just as good without (I’ve tried it!!).

If you’re not drinking alcohol, or you simply don’t want to use tequila, just omit or change to your liking. Possible substitutions may include sparkling wine, champagne, gin,… whatever floats your boat, really!

There are just a few more things to say…

First, of all, I really hope you enjoyed this recipe & I hope you’ll make it soon. If you do, please let me know how it goes. 😍😍

Also, as you might know, I am raising some money for a good & professional food processor. If you want, you can support me here.

Happy cooking,

Carolin 💕

P.S. If you don’t wanna miss out on recipes, you can subscribe to my newsletter .

National Day of Healthy Nutrition

Posted on March 7, 2021March 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

So, today is the national day of healthy nutrition, here in Germany. I wanted to add something to it, so I’ve created a new recipe. As I think it’s very important to integrate a healthy nutrition into any kind of lifestyle, it’s also a meal prep recipe!!

My kind of healthy nutrition

For a while now, I’ve been working on eating more regional produce. This winter has been (and still is) quite tough… Here, in Germany, there’s not a whole lot to eat during winter… Different kinds of cabbage, beets, potatoes, carrots, the occasional Jerusalem artichoke. Fruit wise, pears and apples are everything there is – I am dying to eat some fresh berries!!! it gives me all the joy in the mornings…

Eating this way, however, made me challenge myself a lot. I had to come up with soooo many different ways to use up the kilos and kilos of cabbage…

For those who know me, I’m really not that big a fan of cabbage…

Nevertheless, I tried numerous vegan filled cabbage rolls, slaw versions, cabbage soups (that was a challenging one for me, as my boyfriend can confirm, haha). Cabbage as a side, in vegan cream sauce, with mushrooms,… the list goes on! I’ve taken a liking to some of it now.

Jerusalem artichokes on the other hand? Well, I don’t know why they’re so “in”… You can’t make a puree out of them, because the inulin will just end up making the whole thing super sticky. This makes a great ingredient for gluten-free bread though. I mean, loads of people just buy inulin and add it as a binding agent… how bout just grating it and adding it to your bread next time? (Really adjust your psyllium though!!!).

The "National Day of Healthy Nutrition" Recipe

So, after trying so many different things, I kinda needed some soul food… so, I’ve created a coconut-apple-cake (recipe coming soon) and a buckwheat bowl. Buckwheat is a regional grain (thank god!). It has a distinct nutty flavour, so whatever you’ll add to it, you already have a fantastic base. In the light of national day of healthy nutrition, I therefore created this new recipe: my Healthy Buckwheat & Veggie Bowl. Full of YUM!!!

Print Recipe

Healthy Buckwheat & Veggie Bowl

Regional & Seasonal products united in a fantastic & versatile meal prep bowl!

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: gluten-free, oriental, vegan, vegetarian

Keyword: gluten-free, organic, regional, seasonal, vegan, vegetarian

Ingredients

1 cup buckwheat groats
1 tsp vegetable broth
50 g dried & chopped tomatoes or more if you like 🙂
1 large carrot
1/2 cucumber
3 spring onions
100 g dried cranberries
3 tbsp olive oil
salt
pepper
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon
tiny bit of chilli flakes
1/2 lemon
1 handful hazelnuts

Instructions

Let's start the buckwheat bowl, by cooking the buckwheat.
In a small pot heat 2 cups of water (use the same cup you use for measuring the buckwheat!!) and add the dried tomatoes and vegetable broth. As soon as the water starts boiling, add the buckwheat groats and reduce heat to low heat, with the lid on. It should only simmer, similar to cooking rice, really. Make sure not to stir the buckwheat while cooking.
Let it simmer until almost all the water has evaporated. Then turn off the heat, set aside the lid & let the buckwheat rest and cool down a little.
While the buckwheat cooks, you can start chopping up the carrot into small pieces and crush the garlic. Heat a pan to medium-high heat and add 2 tbsp of olive oil. Add the chopped carrot and heat it slowly. You want to draw out as much of the carrots sweetness as possible. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, cinnamon and chili flakes and add the crushed garlic. Slowly roast until cooked through.
While the buckwheat is cooling down & the carrots are in the pan, you can take a large bowl and add the cranberries. Also slice the spring onions and cut the cucumber into small pieces and add to the bowl. Roughly chop the hazelnuts and also add them. (You could roast them in the pan before, if you'd like). Add juice of 1/2 lemon and 1 tbsp of olive oil.
Finally, add the cooled buckwheat & carrots. Serve on it's own or with hummus, feta cheese, fried tofu or tempeh. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days.

You could also caramalise it, if you want. As this recipe is created for the national day of healthy nutrition, however, i’ve decided not to use any sweeter at all.

According to the season and your home, you can also exchange the added ingredients whichever way you like. The basic components of the recipe are the following way: The carrots provide the sweet component of this dish, the buckwheat the more bitter parts, the acidity comes from the lemon and the freshness is brought by the cucumber. Just keep that in mind when exchanging parts of it. 🙂

Happy cooking & please leave your feedback & questions below! For more recipes sign up for my newsletter & check out my other recipes or follow me on Instagram.

💕

The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad

Posted on February 8, 2021February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Last week, I’ve made The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad salad. A couple of days ago, I received the request to publish a dish which makes you feel full long. In event of my recently published meal-prep ebook, I decided to make it a meal-prep recipe. It is also a meal, that qualifies as seasonal, regional, gluten-free & vegan – isn’t that just the best f****** combination ever? It’s made with potatoes, lentils, kale & tomatoes.

Therefore, today, I am showing you how to prepare The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad ever. I am also including several substitution options, in order to adapt it to other seasons and to make the preparation even faster, depending on your personal circumstances.

Possible Substitutions

As promised, please find the possible substations below.

Dried lentils:

First of all, the lentils. In order to make the preparation quicker, you could use pre-cooked lentils. Just make sure to wash them before using them. The liquid is usually a bit starchy & full of FODMAPS, which can irritate the stomach. You may use any type of lentils, you’ve got left in your cupboard , Just be aware, that the cooking time varies for different types of lentils.

Raw potatoes:

You could use pre-cooked baby potatoes, if you can find them, to decrease preparation time.

You could also use sweet-potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes or even pumpkin instead of regular potatoes, in case you can’t or don’t want to eat them.

Kale:

Any leafy green is suitable, really. As it’s a winter green & grown in my area, I like to use kale. But you could perfectly use rocket leaves, spinach or even lamb’s lettuce. I also like the taste of kale. Sautéed for a short while, it retains its texture yet gives off an incredible taste. Substituting it, I would most likely go for rocket leaves, I think, as they provide a lovely nutty flavour.

Walnuts:

You can use any nuts you like. So make use of what you’ve got left over in your cupboards, depending on your preferences, food allergies, etc. You can also mix different nuts. A lovely addition, in my opinion, are toasted almonds or pine nuts.

Cranberries:

It’s the same for cranberries, really. It makes sense, though, to use small dried fruits or cut them into small pieces. I’d recommend raisins or apricot, as they’ve got a little acidity. Other dried fruits, like dates, can be really sweet, which could lead to an overpowering sweetness for the overall dish.

Proteins:

If you want to add an extra portion of proteins, I can recommend some pan fried tofu or some feta cheese.

Recipe: The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad

Print Recipe

The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad

The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad is perfect for meal-prep. Super nutritious and full of fibres and complex carbs. Seasonal & regional products, making a fully gluten-free & vegan meal.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time45 mins

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian

Keyword: gluten-free, lactose-free, soy-free, vegan, vegetarian

Servings: 4 portions

Ingredients

15 baby potatoes
200 g dried green lentiles
250 g kale
1 red onion
2 cloves of garlic
150 g walnuts
100 g cranberries
2 bay leaves
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp balsamico vinegar
1 lemon
salt
pepper
maple syrup
cumin
1 tsp mustard
150 g cherry tomatoes

Instructions

---- Should you use pre-cooked lentils & potatoes, please skip this step ----
First of all, we have to cook the lentils & potatoes. Let's start with the potatoes. Please wash them & add them to a pot with salted water. There is no need to peel the potatoes. Bring to a boil & reduce to low heat. Let them simmer for around 15-20 minutes (until done, but not too soft). Next, on to the lentils. Add 1.5 cups of water to a cup. Add salt & the bay leaves. Bring to a boil and add the lentils. Let them simmer for around 15 minutes, on low heat.
Once, the potatoes & lentils are cooked, drain them & let them rest for a minute.
While the lentils & potatoes are cooking, cut the onion into slices and chop the garlic into small pieces. You should also wash & cut the kale at this point. Half & quarter the cherries tomatoes. Make use of the time, you're waiting!!
Pour the cooked lentils into a bowl & add 2 tbsp of olive oil, the juice of half a lemon and the tomatoes.
Put a pan on medium-high heat & add the walnuts. Be careful not to burn them. Once they've taken some colour, get them out and chop them up roughly.
Now, that the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to it. Add the potatoes & roast until they start to get brown. Turn down the heat to medium & add the onions. Sautee them for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic. Add the kale & sautee for another 2-3 minutes.
Season with salt, pepper, cumin and smoked paprika. Add 3 tbsp of balsamico vinegar, for sweetness & acidity. Let it reduce for a minute, then add everything to the bowl with the lentils & tomatos. Add the chopped walnuts and cranberries & mix everything.
The dish is already great that way, but i recommend you to add some of my vinaigrette (see in notes) when you eat it.

Notes

For my vinaigrette, please check my following recipe: Quick & Easy Endive Salad (gluten-free)

Last but not least...

Lastly, if you want to learn more about Meal Prep – what it is & how to do it & you want to try more recipes, check out my Meal Prep eBook.

I’ve included 5 recipes, a printable weekly meal planner and shopping list. I’ve also added the most important tips and a list of things you should always have at home.

I also want to let you know & you might know this already, that I focus on recipes, which are naturally gluten-free & so is this one. Furthermore, it has a lot of complex carbs, is high in fibres & very low in sugar. Eating it for lunch, it should keep you full for the rest of day. If you feel, you want to add an extra amount of protein, please feel free to do so.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the recipe for The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad. If you try it, I’d love to get your feedback, in the comments below. As always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Happy Cooking,

Carolin 💕

Gluten-free & Vegan Banana Bread

Posted on January 24, 2020February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Banan Bread

What better way, than to start my holidays with a gluten-free & vegan banana bread? That’s right, there’s no better way. That’s why I decided to finally publish my own banana bread recipe.

It’s a very basic recipe, which doesn’t need any additives, sugar, gluten, eggs, soya or anything else. It’s the perfect bread for almost anyone with food allergies or intolerances.

Why doesn’t it need any of those additives? Well, because there are 6!! bananas mixed into the dough. I know, it sounds a lot – but let’s be honest: it’s a BANANA bread. The bananas make the dough sweet & perfectly sticky.

One of the most important things about the recipe is, that you should do everything by hand. That means, mash the bananas with a fork – yes, all 6 of them. Mash them well, until it’s almost like a thick smoothie. I also recommend using a spatula for mixing the rest of the dough later on. Using a food processor & electric mixer will destroy too much of the structure & the bread won’t turn out as great. Just trust me with this.

Print Recipe

Gluten-free & Vegan Banana Bread

inspired by hawaiian banana bread with very little ingredients, a lot of bananas & buckwheat flour.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Breakfast, cake, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: gluten-free, vegan

Keyword: breakfast, gluten-free, lactose-free, soy-free, vegan, vegetarian

Servings: 1 loaf

Ingredients

6 bananas almost completely brown!!
200 g buckwheat flour
75 g tapioka starch
20 g baking powder
200 ml almond milk or any other plant-based milk
3 tbsp maple syrup or any other syrup
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 pinch salt
150 g chopped walnuts

Topping

1 banana cut into half
3 tbsp finely chopped nuts any nuts will suffice (great way to use any leftovers)

Instructions

Before starting with the banana bread itself, pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees & prepare your loaf tin with baking paper.
Start with adding the 6 bananas to a large bowl & break them into smalelr pieces with your hands. Next, mash them with a fork until creamy. This step is really important, as the banana is what makes the bread stick together. You could use a mixer, but it is THAT much better when using a fork & mashing them slowlely.
Next, add the maple syrup & almond milk & mix with a spatula. Again, using a mixer is possible, but the results are better doing it by hand.
Last, but not least, add all the remaining ingredients, apart from the chopped walnuts. Mix the dough until well combined & quite goeoey. I hate to repeat myself, but if you still can, mix it by hand, please.
As a last step fold in the chopped walnuts & transfer everything to your prepared loaf tin.
Top the banana bread mass with the chopped nuts & the banana. Make sure to press the banana slightly into the dough, so it doesn't burn.
Bake for aroung 60 minutes. Take the banana bread out of the loaf tin immediatly, as to allow any excess moisture to evaporate.
Enjoy! 😊

Ingredient substitutions

So, once you reached this point, you’re probably asking yourself if you can exchange some of the ingredients… Yes, you can. Here’s a list of what & how:

Buckwheat flour: You could exchange it for brown rice flour or chickpea flour I would start with using 175g first as they need more water & if you need add some more almond milk.
Tapioca Starch: You can use any starch, but tapioca will have the best results. Try adding 50 grams of potato or corn starch & after that go tbsp by tbsp.
Maple syrup: While Maple syrup has a very unique taste, which fits perfectly with the nutty buckwheat, the walnuts & banana, you can use any syrup, from agave syrup through coconut sugar syrup to rice syrup.
Walnuts: You don’t have to use any nuts at all. I, personally, just really like the crunch & texture & also the taste of anything that combines maple, banana & walnut is a dream come true to me.

There’s also the possibility to make cupcakes out of this dough, but make sure to use a non-stick cupcake try, because it WILL stick to the usual paper inlays. Also the dough will be good for around 24 cupcakes. You could also use 2 smaller loaf tins.

Banana Bread Cupcakes
gluten-free vegan banana bread

With my gluten-free & vegan banana bread recipe I’m leaving for holidays & I will be back with a new recipe in February.

I hope you’re enjoying this recipe & as always leave comments, should you have any questions or you wanna share your results.

Feel like baking something else? Try my CarrotCake.

You can find all my recipes here.

Have a lovely day.

Love, Carolin 💕

The best gluten-free Carrot Cake

Posted on January 3, 2020February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

So, here it finally is: the recipe to my signature dish – my gluten-free carrot cake.

I thought long & hard, if I really wanted to share this recipe on social media, before releasing it. Here it is now, though. I only left out my secret spice mix – so feel free to get creative, if cinnamon is not “enough” for your taste buds.

This cake is a real treasure, because it is so simple, but so delicious. I’m making this cake a good 10-15 times a year… basically, every time I’m with my family or I need a little “pick me up”.

So, lovely reader – I hope you’ll enjoy it!

My German readers are probably thinking: “Why carrot cake? It’s an easter cake!” Well, the might be so in Germany, but it just is my favourite cake, so why only make it once a year for easter?! There are also several variations possible for this cake – so just continue reading below! 😊😊

Don’t like gluten-free Carrot Cake? Well, you should try this one first, but if you’re still not convinced, try my cheese cake or courgette-chocolate cake.

Recipe Variations

Flour:

Ground nuts are usually quite expensive, so if you want to make this cake a little bit cheaper, you can replace another 50-100g of ground nuts with flour. I would stick to the ones you’re already using (rice flour + tapioca starch in my case).

I also tried using golden millet flour, cornstarch, cornflour, buckwheat flour & brown rice flour. They all worked fine, actually every combination works fine. It’s a great recipe for using up all your “left-over” flours, the bits and pieces that are just piling up in your cupboard.

Vegan:

In all honesty, I haven’t tried making it vegan, but you have 2 options which should work: either use aquafaba as an egg white substitute or buy some “egg replacement” in any organic supermarket. As for the egg yolk, you can make a flax or chia egg instead. I, personally, don’t like using aquafaba or egg replacer, as my diet is based on a natural approach. Therefore, I don’t want any additives or chemicals in my food. But feel free to try it & I’d be happy to hear how it turned out. 🙂

Nuts:

Many people do have nut allergies, but can eat some of them. Simply replace with the nuts you’re not allergic to. The ideal replacement for almonds would be pecans. Nevertheless, you may use whichever you like & simply grind them with your food processor.

Glazing:

As for the glazing, I’m personally not a fan of frosting, cause it’s very thick & way too creamy & heavy for my taste. if you do prefer a frosting though, you can replace my glazing with a basic cream cheese & lemon juice frosting. The vegan option would be a cashew frosting (also with added lemon juice). I wouldn’t leave out the lemon though, as this gives the exact right balance between sweet & nutritious.

Print Recipe

The best gluten-free Carrot Cake

the very best gluten-free carrot cake & my signature dish

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: cake, Dessert

Cuisine: gluten-free

Keyword: gluten-free, lactose-free, soy-free

Servings: 12 pieces

Ingredients

Batter

500 g organic carrots
200 g ground almonds
200 g ground hazelnuts
50 g rice flour
50 g tapioca starch
150 g roughly chopped walnuts
2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cinnamon
1 pinch salt
200 g coconut sugar
6 eggs
50 g olive oil
1/2 lemon zest & juice

Glazing

3 tbsp lemon juice
200 g icing sugar coconut icing sugar if you can find it
2 tbsp chopped & roasted nuts to sprinkle on top

Instructions

Batter

Before we start with the actual preparations for the cake, let's start by pre-heating the oven to 180 degrees & greasing a ~24cm tin. I normally add baking paper to the bottem, as the cake is quite moist & it'd be difficult to get it off the tin after baking, otherwise.
Let's start with grating the carrots, as fine as possible. I would usually use my food processor. Add them to a large bowl with the ground almonds & hazelnuts, walnutds, flour, starch, baking powder & cinnamon.
Next, in a seperate bowl, mix the egg yolks with the coconut sugar until creamy, almost a little foamy. Add the olive oil, lemon juice & zest. Mix, preferably, with a wooden spoon.
In another seperate bowl beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff.
Last but not least, add the sugar-egg yolk mix to the flour-carrot mix. Mix well with the wooden spoon. Afterwards, fold in the eggwhites carefully - the more cautious you're with this, the better the baked cake.
Bake for ~60 minutes - the cake will rise quite a bit, so don't choose a tin too small (I used a 24cm tin). Once finished, let it cool completely before adding the glazing. You can take off the outer part of the tin direcly, so the cake won't stick to it lateron.

Glazing

Mix the icing sugar with the lemon until thick & creamy. Add it to the top of the cake. If you want, you can add some marzipan carrots & some chopped & roasted nuts. You could also make little flowers from another carrot & place it on top. Next - Enjoy.

After having spent 6 months building this page, creating recipes, thinking of marketing strategies, having server issues, learning how to code & at the same time, studying & working, I was offline for the month of December. I’m honest, it has been a real challenge to keep going at times, as 24 hour-days simply don’t seem to be enough.

Nevertheless, I am very proud of the results of my blog, as well as my instagram & I started building a real community.

At this point, I want to give special thanks to Steffi from Kochtrotz, who although she has soooo many followers, always took the time to answer all my questions & took a real interested in my ideas. I learned a lot from her book & her very informative posts. Hopefully we’ll be able to organise a get-together in the future, Steffi!

For 2020, my goals are easy: finish my nutrition certificate, get my barista certificate, publish more recipes, giving a better insight into living with food intolerances & starting to educate & coach people on personalised nutrition.

I hope to see you along the way! I wish you all a happy new year & a lot of energy for 2020!

Enjoy my gluten-free carrot cake, eat well, drink good coffee & relax!

Love, Carolin

Pumpkin & Ginger Soup

Posted on November 11, 2019February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Although I ended up not posting for a while now, I’m back on track & I want to share my Pumpkin & Ginger Soup Recipe with you.

I ended up making this, while I was sick with a head cold & remembered, that Ginger is beneficial against inflammations. So, off I went & decided to use my leftover veggies & some ginger in order to make a soup.

(Also very good for you: Some fresh Ginger & lemon tea. Add some honey or agave to sweeten it.)

I really love soups, because if you blend it, you can really add all your leftovers, especially the ones that don’t look so good anymore. More importantly, you can also add some of those veggies you don’t really like, but that are really good for you. It’s a real win-win situation!!

As always, my Pumpkin & Ginger Soup is gluten-free & free from additives. It is also free from lactose & soy & it’s vegan. The colour & smoothness, solely comes from blending it properly & adding enough water. If you think your soup is a little bit too thick, just add a little bit of hot water.

For those, who prefer intense & strong flavours, you can increase the chilli, rosemary & ginger amount – but don’t overdo it. Ginger becomes more intense the longer it cooks & suddenly all you taste is ginger.

Now, without further ado: THE RECIPE ⬇️⬇️

Print Recipe

Pumpkin & Ginger Soup

a warming pumpkin & ginger soup to beat the cold feeling of autumn storms.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time45 mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian

Keyword: gluten-free, lactose-free, soy-free, vegan, vegetarian

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 small pumpkin / squash
3 small potatoes
2 small carrots
1/4 celeriac root
1 onion
3 cm ginger root
3-4 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
salt & pepper
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 litre water
2 tsp veggie broth organic, no added sugar or artificials
1 clove garlic
1 tsp chilli flakes or more if you like
3 twigs rosemary

Instructions

First things first: Place a big pot on medium heat. While heating up, you can cut the onion, the garlic & ginger. (As you will puree the soup, they don't have to be the same size, so just get it in there!)
Once the pot is warm, add 2 tbsp of olive oil & the onion. Roast for a little bit, before adding the garlic & ginger. Let both caramelise for about 3 minutes.
While the onion & garlic caramelises, you should cut the carrot & celeriac root, as they tend to take longer then the other ingredients. Cut them into small cubes, but don't be to picky about it - remember, we will puree the soup lateron. Once cut, add them to the pot & stir every now and again. Let them roast for another 3-4 minutes.
Next on the list: Potatoes & Pumpkin. You can cut both into the same size & add it once you're finished. Keep stirring everything, so it all roasts equally well.
Now you can add the rosemary (just the way it is, no need to get the leaves off), the bay leaves, season with all the remaining spices & stir again.
Add the veggie broth & water. Stir well & reduce to low heat. Let it simmr for 20 minutes (the longer the better...). Once everything is soft, you can puree / blend it.
Serve with pumpkin seeds, olive oil, some bread on the side and topped with some sprouts. 🙂 Enjoy & Share this recipe. 🙂

Pumpkin Soup Again?

While I appreciate that there are many pumpkin soup recipes out there, this one is special, as it combines the different flavours so well. I also made a bunch of other pumpkin recipes, but I’m working through my backlog & simply haven’t managed to upload any others yet.

Stay tuned, though, for my lentil & pumpkin stew, as well as my quinoa bowl with roasted pumpkin & roasted pumpkin hummus. Oh, and I forgot – Pumpkin Risotto!! Yayyyy, it’s pumpkin season!!

My bread, btw, is a recipe from Steffi (Kochtrotz.de) & it’s the first gluten-free toast I ever made!! 😊

What else?

You want something else, that involves pumpkin? Simply drop me an email or contact me on Insta. You can also, just leave a message in the comments below. 😊

Now, as always, I hope you enjoy this recipe & please share your versions of it with me.

For more recipes, simply click here.

I wish you a lovely week.

Happy cooking,
Carolin 💕

Gluten-free Sourdough Waffles

Posted on October 24, 2019February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Gluten-free Sourdough Waffles – need I say more?!

Everyone feeling, like I’m overdoing the whole sourdough thing a bit? Might well be, but it’s so essential in the gluten-free kitchen. The thing is, that gluten-free flours don’t rise naturally & also they don’t stick together naturally (the missing gluten part and all that…). If you add some sourdough to your mix though, you’ll be surprised how well the dough forms and how well these waffles (or whatever else you’re baking) rises. Really, you should try it. They even convinced my gluten-eating family: “They don’t even taste gluten-free.”. Probably one of the nicest compliments a gluten-free cook can get…

What about us Vegans?

While I try to eat as little animal products as possible, it is quite the challenge to bake gluten-free & vegan. I’ve tried a few thing and they were okay, but every now & again I indulge in a little “proper” soul food. BUT:

you can replace the egg-whites with aquafaba.
and the egg yolk with flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flax seeds + 6 tbsp water in this case)
you could also try and use 2 mashed bananas. It won’t raise as much, but it’d be tasty af (I’d reduce the sugar amount in this case though, or it could become too sweet)

Now, without further ado, the recipe ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Print Recipe

Gluten-free Sourdough Waffles

Very delicious waffles, that will make everyone around you quite happy. Doesn't matter if you serve them for breakfast or tea-time. They're an all day kind of dish.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Resting Time30 mins

Total Time1 hr

Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: gluten-free

Keyword: breakfast, gluten-free, lactose-free, organic, soy-free, vegetarian, wholefood

Equipment

Waffle Maker

Ingredients

200 g (brown rice) sourdough starter from the fridge
150 g brown rice flour
150 g buckwheat flour
50 g white rice flour + some more, if too liquid
75 g coconut sugar
200 g oat milk (or any other) + some more, if too thick
2 eggs seperated
1 pinch salt
2 tbsp coconut oil very soft or melted
2 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp vanilla sugar / extract
1 tbsp baking powder

Topping Ideas

berries
apple puree
yoghurt
icing sugar

Instructions

Start with adding your sourdough starter to a bowl & add the brown rice flour. Mix it well (it will be quite dry).
Next, add the buckwheat & white rice flour & baking powder, as well as the egg yolks, milk & coconut sugar. Mix until everything's incorporated.
Last, but not least, add the coconut oil & cinnamon & vanilla sugar / extract & incorporate.
Now, add the pinch of salt to your egg whites and bbeat them until stiff and fold them into your waffle dough. The dough is going to be quite thick, which is perfect for waffles.
Bake the waffles as per instructions on your waffle maker & serve topped with icing sugar, yoghurt, berries and / or apple (or other fruit) puree.

Chocoholic?

Well, me being me, I got a little carried away & decided I wanna change it up a litte. If you want to do the same follow these steps just before baking the waffles:

Take enough dough for 2 waffles & add it to a separate bowl.
Add 2 tbsp of baking cacao to that bowl & mix well.
Now to get the marble look, add the normal dough to the waffle maker first, but don’t spread it out evenly, just drop a few bits here & there.
Then, fill the holes with the cacao dough
Bake as usual & enjoy.

Not chocolatey enough? Yea, not for me either. I made a waffle from the cacao dough itself & it was a fabulous idea. For the extra chocolate satisfaction, I can recommend adding some chocolate spread, chocolate chips or some. cacao nibs to the dough before baking it. 😍

I hope you guys enjoyed this recipe. Let me know how you get on making my gluten-free sourdough waffles (below in the comments or use #carroskitchen on instagram). You can also follow me on Instagram so you won’t miss any updates.

For more recipes with sourdough, try my sourdough pancakes.

For any other recipes, click here.

Happy Eating & until next week,

Carolin 💕

Gluten-Free Sourdough Pancakes

Posted on October 17, 2019February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

“Oh, lovely Sunday, you’re my favourite of all days, please give me gluten-free sourdough pancakes!”

As Sundays are my favourites, I tend to celebrate them with a big brunch. A highlight are my gluten-free sourdough pancakes, which taste just like “real” American pancakes.

I love to prepare a big brunch, because I also celebrate life & everything I am currently happy for. I tend to take some time for myself. My Sunday brunch is an entirely stress-free zone and I avoid looking at my phone, the laptop or anything else. It’s just me, my pancakes & some music.

A lot of you are probably thinking: “Why more breakfast recipes?!”. Well, to be honest, I only recently made these pancakes for the first time and they’re the best gluten-free pancakes I’ve ever met. Now, for me, this was reason enough to post them. Also, a couple of days ago, it was #worldpancakeday – so this is my contribution. Without further ado: The Recipe! ⬇️⬇️

Print Recipe

Fluffy Gluten-free Sourdough Pancakes

Gluten-free pancakes, that don't even taste gluten-free. Fluffy, delicious & so easy!!

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Resting Time30 mins

Total Time1 hr

Course: Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American, gluten-free

Keyword: breakfast, gluten-free, soy-free, vegetarian

Servings: 10 pancakes

Ingredients

200 g sourdough here: brown rice sourdough
120 g coconut milk
2 tbsp coconut sugar or4 tbsp maple syrup
100 g brown rice flour
100 g ground almonds / almond flour
2 tbsp coconut oil + some more for frying
2 eggs
4 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp cinnamon
pinch salt

Instructions

Before you do anything else today, start mixing the dough as it has to rest for 30 minutes.
To start the pancakes, mix sugar / maple syrup, eggs & butter until creamy.
Next, add the remaining ingredients, one at a time and mix until everything is fully incorporated. It should be a thick dough, just like usual pancake dough. If it's a little too thick, you might add some more milk.
Before we continue, let the dough rest for roughly 30 minutes. Ideally to prepare the table, get dressed, have a shower or whatever else is part of your morning-routine. 🙂
Now, after 30 minutes, place a pan on medium heat and add some coconut oil, once hot. Add pancake dough, one at a time & fry for roughly 2 minutes on each side.
Place finished pancakes on a plate & store in an oven on 50 degrees until all of the pancakes are finished.
Serve with fresh fruits, some seeds, cacao nibs & maple syrup. If you're feeling creative, you might even wanna add some apple puree* - you've got 30 minutes resting time you could use to make some. 🙂 (I always prepare some ahead of time and have it stored in the freezer / fridge). You might also add some whipped cream (vegan or not) or clotted cream.

For overnight sourdough pancakes

Mix Sourdough with 100g rice flour & 100g water and let it rest overnight. Proceed with the rest as above.

Notes

*Apple puree

For the apple puree, simply cut 1 kg apples. Add them to a pot and add a little water - just about 1cm. Also, add some cinnamon, around 2 tbps. Let the apples cook with the lid on for roughly 20-30 minutes, until soft. Either puree with a food processor or a blender and store in glass jars. If you want to keep it longer then a week, it's better if you freeze them.

As for the apples, I use whichever ones I get from the market, but remember green ones are slightly sour & red ones are slightly sweeter. You could also mix them.

Now, I’m obviously wondering, what your favourite pancake recipes are. So please don’t hesitate and tell me; just use the “comment” space below. 🙂 Also, please comment below, if you have any further questions or if you made these pancakes and you took a picture. I’d love to see your results.

For all those, disappointed, because this is not a French Crepes recipe: Don’t worry. There’ll be one very soon! 🙂

Now everyone, I hope you enjoyed this recipe. You might also enjoy my Quinoa Buckwheat Granola as addition to your Sunday Brunch.For all other recipes, click here.

If you never wanna miss an update, follow me on Instagram and Facebook or sign up for my newsletter on the top of this page. ⬆️⬆️

Happy Cooking & until next week,

Carolin 💕

Gluten-free Cheesecake (family recipe)

Posted on October 10, 2019February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Gluten-free Cheesecake – that’s where dreams come true. Cheesecake is a real comfort food & takes me back to my childhood, when we used to invite the whole family over, on Sundays, for “coffee-time”.

Me, personally, I prefer the “classic Germany” style cheese cake & not so much the American style with all that cream cheese, which feels kinda heavy & thick. Also, if you don’t actually bake a cake, how’s your entire flat/ house/ … gonna smile like cake & really makes you look forward to eating it? Right?!

Therefore, my recipe, which is an old family recipe, is gluten-free, fluffy & light. Bake for a little over an hour, until lightly browned. And also: It’s soooo delicious – I mean, obviously. 😉

I’ve also included another variation for the topping. I like the classic one, but sometimes I go a little fancy on my cakes. Both variations are lovely & maybe you could just split the cake in 2 and try it out!

Now, without further ado, as I’m sure you only wanna know about the recipe, not my family history: THE RECIPE for my delicious gluten-free cheesecake. 😊

Print Recipe

Gluten-free Cheesecake

Our family recipe! Naturally gluten-free & perfectly moist.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr 15 mins

Total Time1 hr 45 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: German, gluten-free

Keyword: gluten-free, organic, soy-free, vegetarian

Servings: 1 28 cm cake

Equipment

28 cm cake tin

Ingredients

50 g butter (unsalted) plus some more for greasing the tin
6 medium eggs
300 g sugar
1 medium sized lemon (zest & juice)
1 kg full fat quark / curd
150 g millet semolina + some for the tin
50 g millet flour (golden is best)
2 tbsp starch (tapioca or corn)
1 sachet vanilla sugar
1 sachet baking powder
pinch Salt

Topping

2 tbsp melted butter
2 tbsp icing sugar

optional

500 g frozen berries any mix you like
5 sheets gelatine
2-3 tbsp sugar / sweetener of choice

Instructions

Start with greasing your tin & adding some semolina so the cake won't stick to the tin later. Next, pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees.
Before starting the batter, start with beating the eggwhites with a pinch of salt until stiff.
Now, for the batter, start mixing the butter, eggyolks, sugar & vanilla sugar until fluffy. Add the lemon zest & lemon juice and mix again. Then, add the quark & mix, on low speed, until fully incorporated. Repeat with the semolina.
Next, add the flour & baking powder mix slowly, while mixing. Make sure the flour is sifted beforehand & mixed with the baking powder. Last but not least fold in the eggwhites very carefully. Make sure to use a spatula or whisk as to keep it light & fluffy.
Add to the prepared tin & bake for 65-75 minutes. Use the "toothpick" method to check if the cake is done. Once done, carefully apply the melted butter & dust with the icing sugar. Make sure to do this right away, as it'll leave a lovely crust once cold
Let the cake cool completely, before eating. Ideally let it rest inside the oven (thanks for the tip Steffi, from Kochtrotz - you can find her gluten-free cheese cake, here.)

Alternative Topping: Berry Glazing

If you prefer a fruit topping, such as the one below, let your cake sit and allow to cool down.
In a small casserole, heat the frozen fruits with a little lemon juice, 1 tbsp water & the suggar (if added). Let the berries simmer for a couple of minutes, until soft & juicy.
Next, add the gelatine sheets to cold water (or follow instructions on back). Leave them in for 5 minutes.
While waiting for the gelatine, you might want to strain the berries, as the berry glazing will become much nicer without all the seeds. Really get into it though, as not to waste anything. (I used the remainders, including the seeds, in my porridge the next morning - no need to waste it!)
Once strained, pour back into the casserole & add the gelatine. Mix until fully incorporated & add to the cake. Either leave the cake in the tin, so nothing will run down the sides or be really, really careful. The higher the glazing, the yummier - for me at least.
Store in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Vegans welcome

Now, I know this cake isn’t vegan & I personally am not 100% vegan. There are some exceptions, such as this cake. Nevertheless, IF I use animal products, they come right from the best organic farm there is (Demeter, from our neighbours). Nevertheless, if you want it vegan, it should work replacing the quark with a vegan version & the butter with margarine or any other vegan butter. This won’t be a problem & I’ve tried it before. (If the quark is very watery, make sure to strain it before using it.)

The difficulty lies within replacing the eggs. You can try use a mix of flax eggs & aquafaba. I gotta let you know though, that I haven’t tried it on this recipe yet.

If you want to make my berry blazing, you can replace the gelatine with agar-agar – no problem. 😊

Now, Ladies & Gentlemen, I guess you’re already at the supermarket , buying everything you need to make this delicious gluten-free cheesecake. Also, I do hope you guys love this cake as much as I do. It really is one of my favourites and it makes me happy as soon as I smell that cake.

Any questions or comments? Leave them below or contact me on Insta or here. As always, show me how your cake turned out via the comments below or on social media! I’d love to see your versions of my gluten-free cheesecake.

Want more dessert? How about my gluten-free crumble or chocolate & courgette- cake? For all other recipes, click right here.

There’ll be a new recipe next week.

Until then, happy baking.

Love, Carolin 💕

Vegan Lentil Stew with Tofu

Posted on October 3, 2019February 7, 2021 by Carolin Vater

Today, I present you my hearty vegan lentil stew with tofu. As I am born in autumn (missed winter by 2 days), I love this season and I love the food that comes with it.

As for the lentil stew, I’ve always loved it and I have tried it many different ways: The classic German (northern & southern style), Spanish Lentil Stew and even Indian Lentils… I love every single one of them!!

Now, after I decided to focus on a plant-based diet, I had to find a replacement for sausages & meat (in German Lentil Stews) and chorizo (in Spanish Lentil Stews). Why do I need a replacement? To be honest, the sausages, meat & chorizos add a lot of flavour. If you simply prepare it without an alternative, it just doesn’t turn out as delicious. Therefore, thank god for smoked Tofu, which I add along with sun-dried tomatoes.

For the Carnivores...

My Hearty Vegan Lentil Stew with Tofu is one of my family’s favourite dishes and during autumn & winter, I’m asked to cook it regularly.

Sometimes, around Christmas though, I do use organic chorizo from the butcher. We usually spend Christmas in Mallorca where you can get good chorizo almost everywhere. It does give a more intense flavour – so for all carnivores out there: simply replace the Tofu with Chorizo. Make sure you roast the chorizo slowly, but properly.

Print Recipe

Vegan Lentil Stew with Tofu

Something to convince even the biggest vegan sceptics. Hearty Vegan Lentil Stew with Tofu. The perfect Autumn Food. As always, gluten-free.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Soaking Time3 hrs

Total Time4 hrs 30 mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: gluten-free, Mediterranean, vegan, vegetarian

Keyword: gluten-free, lactose-free, vegan, vegetarian, wholefood

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup brown lentils
2 cups water
3 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion
1 garlic clove
2 medium carrots
1 small green pepper
0.5 jar sundried tomatoes in olive oil
0.5 smoked tofu
1 tsp vegetable broth
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp cumin
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 l water

Instructions

Start with adding the lentils to a bowl or pot and add the 2 cups of water. Next, top with a lid or towel (if using a bowl) and leave for a couple of hours. I usually leave it for about 2-3 hours.
Once, the lentils have soaked, pour them through a collander and let them drain until you're ready to add them to your stew.
Afterwards, put a wide pot onto medium heat, add olive oil as well as the chopped onion and garlic. Sweat the onion and garlic until soft. Next, add the chopped carrot and roast for another 5 minutes. Last, but not least add the chopped pepper and roast for another couple of minutes, before adding the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and tofu, cut in small squares.
Keep stirring regularly for another 2-3 minutes, then add the lentils. Season with vegetable broth, cumin, smoked paprika, salt & pepper.
If you have some leftover red wine, you could add it now and deglaze the ingredients. If you do, make sure your pot is on medium-high heat and let it evaporate almost completely.
Next, add the water & chopped tomatoes. Let it simmer for at least 1 hour. (The longer it simmers, the better it's going to taste.)
Season with the already added spices, if needed. Serve with some bread* & top with different seeds.

Notes

I used WunderBrod from Bauckhof - get it here.

Soooo, I hope all of you are hungry now & eager to start the soup season. Now, if you try my recipe, I’d love for you to leave a comment. Alternatively, you can share your pictures here or on Instagram. Remember to use the hashtag #carrotskitchen when you do, though.

If you want to prepare something for a special occasion, try my whole roasted cauliflower.

For all other recipes, click here.

Don’t forget to check out this amazing bread from Bauckhof: get it here. (unpaid advertisement)

As always, I hope you enjoy my recipe. If there are any autumn recipes you want me to post, just leave a comment below.

Until next week & Happy cooking.

Love, Carolin

Recipe Inspiration

The Recipe: The Best Mushroom Potato Risotto

Potato Risotto with cabbage, kale & mushrooms

Ingredients

Liquids

Spices & herbs

Instructions

Risotto

Cabbage & Mushrooms

Finishing

Substitutions & other ideas

My kind of healthy nutrition

The "National Day of Healthy Nutrition" Recipe

Healthy Buckwheat & Veggie Bowl

Ingredients

Instructions

Possible Substitutions

Dried lentils:

Raw potatoes:

Kale:

Walnuts:

Cranberries:

Proteins:

Recipe: The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad

The Best Vegan Potato & Kale Salad

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

Last but not least...

Gluten-free & Vegan Banana Bread

Ingredients

Topping

Instructions

Ingredient substitutions

Recipe Variations

Flour:

Vegan:

Nuts:

Glazing:

The best gluten-free Carrot Cake

Ingredients

Batter

Glazing

Instructions

Batter

Glazing

Pumpkin & Ginger Soup

Ingredients

Instructions

Pumpkin Soup Again?

What else?

What about us Vegans?

Gluten-free Sourdough Waffles

Equipment

Ingredients

Topping Ideas

Instructions

Chocoholic?

Fluffy Gluten-free Sourdough Pancakes

Ingredients

Instructions

For overnight sourdough pancakes

Notes

Gluten-free Cheesecake

Equipment

Ingredients

Topping

optional

Instructions

Alternative Topping: Berry Glazing

Vegans welcome

For the Carnivores...

Vegan Lentil Stew with Tofu

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes