Holiday Tamales de Elote

Gathering in the kitchen to craft hand-made tamales with fillings to suit every taste is a time-honored family tradition for the holidays. Not my family, and not only the Christmas holiday.

Sweet corn tamale with a sprinkle of cheese, plus crema

Still, when I saw sweet corn tamales for sale in the local mercado latino, I knew right away what the perfect Christmas breakfast would be. Tamales de elote can be eaten as lunch or dinner, plated elegantly on a thin layer of salsa verde and drizzled with crema.

Or they can be found at street markets, like the one where I first tried them. Fresh off a plane from Seattle, I wandered the market overdue for breakfast. The sweet corn tamales smelled so good, I couldn't resist - and what a revelation!

Most of the time, one finds tamales of simple masa harina filled with savory or spicy meat or cheese mixtures. Whether in an open air market, at home, or in a restaurant, the sweet corn variety are a rare find. For me they will also be a treat, and especially good as a late morning breakfast.

PB Chocolate Chip Cookies, Take 2

Batch 2 in front of Batch 1

Batch 2 of the garbanzo bean-based peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies came out really well! This time we followed Texanerin's recipe, but with three modifications.

First, we upped the peanut butter to almost half a cup.
Second, we used a little gluten-free flour (1/8 cup coconut flour and 1/4 cup almond flour) to make them a little more cakey and a little less doughy. Even that small amount stiffened the batter up enough that the food processor strained to mix it.
So we added a 1/4 cup of water, which took care of that issue.

Overall, I preferred the flavor and texture of this batch to the first. (As a side benefit, the dough was also less sticky, easy to scoop and drop onto the cookie sheet.) My co-conspirator and fellow taster, however, preferred the first batch.

Next time, we'll skip the coconut flour and halve the water. But for now, I'm delighted.

Vegan Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate mousse with no cholesterol? Hard to believe it could not only be possible, but also delicious.

Although I first tried it after watching it be made, and thus knew exactly what the ingredients were, if it had been served to me with no disclosure, I would just have thought it was a yummy, rich, dark mousse.

The benefits of making this treat vegan are clear - fewer calories, less sugar, less fat, and none of the cholesterol from the standard recipe's cream and egg yolk. Thanks to the soy, it does have protein, calcium, and iron - practically a health food.

My version:

• Silken (and only silken) tofu - one 12-14 oz block
• 6 to 12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips
• A dash of vanilla, and a sprinkle of salt
• 2 Tbps agave syrup (optional)

1. Blend the tofu well, melt the chips and beat them in, adding final ingredients while mixing.
2. Spoon into serving cups, and chill at least one half hour.

A half cup serving will feel decadent to most people.

Coconut Milk Ice Cream

"It's a dawn; it's a new day; it's a new life for me, and I'm feeling good!" - Newley & Bricusse

Nearly a year ago, I chatted with a friend about my experiences with wheat (and avoiding it) and she asked me about dairy. Apparently, lactose troubles many who either have celiac or (like me) simply find that avoiding wheat makes them feel much, much better. In addition, not all dairy is equal. At the high end of the scale is sweetened condensed milk, which I only ever drink in Thai iced tea. At the low end are butter and aged cheeses. In between are some mid-level items, like a glass of milk or a cup of yogurt  - but their digestibility does not mirror their lactose content (many people can't handle milk, but have no symptoms with yogurt, probably because of the live cultures that come with it).  In a family of dairy lovers, with one lactose-intolerant child, she had tried alternative products for every dairy category, looking especially for those that everyone in the family could enjoy together.  In the ice cream category, coconut milk-based treats rocked.  Not cheap, and not always easy to find, but fully worth it.

Bearing all this in mind, over the months I've tested a range of dairy products I used to consume without a second thought.  And sure enough, Thai iced tea sets off a ruckus in my insides.  Half and half in my tea? No problem.  A big latte or bowl of cereal? Not too bad, but better with almond milk substituted. Yogurt? Not a burble, and still great for my fruit smoothie. Cheeses? Really varied, but always best in small doses. And then there's ice cream.

What I love about ice cream is its richness, and the elegant mouth-feel of a high-quality, simple ingredient brand (or house-made batch). Sorbets, like popsicles, are wonderful for a clean, icy fruit experience; but they aren't ice cream. Versions made with soy or rice taste off to me; and their thickeners tend to feel funny on the tongue, like a cheap ice cream.  I left the coconut-milk version until last largely because I was afraid they might be as good as my friend claimed, and become an expensive habit.  On my sporadic visits to Whole Foods, a pint seemed exorbitant. But today I found a pint of chocolate at Trader Joe's, for less than a pint of Ben & Jerry's at a Safeway.

Where have I been? !  This lovely concoction is creamy and rich, deep chocolaty, with a strong back flavor of coconut.  Since I adore these two flavors together, that pleases me greatly.  While I am an enthusiastic convert, there are reasons not everyone will want to switch - 180 calories per half-cup serving, 8 grams saturated fat, 16 grams sugar. And the clearly discernable flavor of coconut, which, inexplicably, not everyone cares for.  For you all, try the other substitutes in the freezer section.  As for me - it's a new day!