Shakshuka is pure comfort food. It doesn’t have a season, and it doesn’t need a reason.
But oh, are there reasons.
Since I last posted in October, a LOT has happened, but the biggest news (which is news to absolutely no one) is that we are in the midst of a global pandemic. And in New York City, we were at the very epicenter for quite a long time and are still finding our way out. My loved ones and I have been fortunate in that we have been able to stay home and stay healthy. Although this is something we do not take for granted, it doesn’t diminish the fact that social distancing and living under quarantine for months can be mentally taxing.
A lot of my time in quarantine has been spent cooking and eating comforting foods and of course, making bread. It’s been great to see so many of my friends learning to make sourdough, because now I feel like part of a big club!
But if you’re like me, you’re having trouble keeping up with your bread-baking habits. With a loaf in the freezer, a loaf in the bread drawer, two loaves proofing in the fridge, and jeans up in my closet that I haven’t worn since March giving me side eye from beneath a thick layer of dust, what am I supposed to do with all of this BREAD?!
Hey strangers! Are you EVEN surprised that I disappeared again? I’m not. Womp. The last time I posted was right before heading off on tour to New Zealand. That was three months ago. Omg. MONTHS.
I’ve been MIA a lot recently, but between the tour + vacationing in Australia + performing in Oregon + (some more) vacationing in the mountains + (even more) performing at home in NY + finally getting into spinning, I’ve been busy this summer. Especially that last part. Time flies when you’re trying to look cute holding in cardio burps.
There are very few breakfast foods I love more in this world than the blueberry muffin.
Whether it’s fresh out of the oven or one of those generic ones you get in plastic wrap at the corner store, there’s just something about a blueberry muffin that is so satisfying. Not a chocolate muffin, not a poppyseed muffin, and definitely not a CORN muffin (Pointless. WHY? Just eat some cornbread). I don’t know if it’s the buttery flavor, the sweet blueberries, or the temporary carb-induced euphoria, but whatever it is, I loooove it.
I have learned to cherish leftovers in a whole new way over the past seven months. Things can get crazy over here (in the best kind of way) trying to juggle school, teaching, blogging, working, AND attempting to have some kind of a social life. As much as I love making new recipes and playing around in the kitchen, I very often have to rely on leftovers to be my meals, or to become the ingredients for new meals.
This kind of makes me feel old. I used to cook new recipes on weekdays regularly, but I think those times are dwindling. I just don’t have the same time or energy I used to… WHAT IS THIS “BEING AN ADULT” THING AND HOW DO I END IT?
Somebody please stop me from eating all of these immediately.
I made these last night, and as of the exact moment I began writing this post (12:32 AM) I had already eaten two of them.
Okay, I had eaten three. But I didn’t eat enough dinner last night. ALSO, I hadn’t yet photographed them, so I had to get rid of all the ugly ones. See? It’s ok. I was doing you a favor… Yeahhh.
I have been dying to make a healthy version of cinnamon rolls since birth, basically. I LOVE cinnamon rolls. In college, one of my roommates would make those amazingly delicious and crazy easy cinnamon-rolls-in-a-tube for special occasions. You know, the ones with the dough that you have to wear protective eyewear to open because the package is GOING to explode? Yeah, you know. SO good.
Unfortunately, those don’t exactly fit into an unprocessed lifestyle, and my goal is to make everything as delicious as possible while also using “real-food” ingredients. And so, these were born. And they are STILL gooey as all heck.
I threw some apples into the mix, because I’m still a li’l bit stuck in autumn and am not loving this weird transition into winter. It has been raining like crazy in NYC for the past few days, but it has been FREEZING. It might as well be snowing. Except that it’s not, so instead of making snowmen in the park and getting days off from school, I’m getting soaked by tsunamis of cold taxi puddle water on my way to class. Do I look amused to you? (Imagine that you can see me, and that I look unamused.) The change in seasons is always a weird time on the East Coast, but cinnamon rolls are for all the time. So, let’s just call these seasonal and be done with it.
Since I didn’t want to use powdered sugar, these do not have your typical “icing,” but they are soaked with a maple syrup glaze, which I think is probably the next best thing. They’re SO delicious warm, with a piping hot cup of coffee or tea on the side. Also, when I was looking for recipe inspiration, I saw that Chocolate Covered Katie put raspberry jam IN her cinnamon rolls. So, obviously, I put some raspberry jam on a warmed up roll for breakfast, and my life was changed. Like, really forever.
The fact that I have a pan and a half of these in my kitchen is really dangerous. Anybody want to help take some of them off my hands?
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk, almost boiled
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp. salt
1 egg
2 c. Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2 c. Whole Wheat Graham Flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
Filling
1 Honeycrisp or Gala apple, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup walnuts
1 tbs. cinnamon
2 tbs. coconut sugar
1 tbs. honey
3 tbs. melted coconut oil
Glaze
2 tbs. melted coconut oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350˚F.
Dissolve yeast in warm water.
In a saucepan, heat almond milk on medium heat until almost boiling. Reduce heat and add coconut oil and honey, whisking until melted. Remove from heat and transfer contents to a large bowl – let cool until a bit warmer than room temperature (so that the coconut oil is still a liquid)
Once cooled, whisk in yeast slurry, egg, and salt.
In a separate bowl, combine flours.
Slowly add flour to wet ingredients until completely combined and dough can be handled. Extra flour may be added. Knead dough for a few minutes with floured hands.
Let sit in a warm place to double in size, about 1 hour.
Combine filling ingredients in a food processor and pulse until a coarse paste forms.
Once dough has risen, punch it down and roll out on a floured surface until about 1/4 inch thick.
Spread filling evenly over dough.
Roll the long end of the dough inward to create a log.
Using a very sharp knife, cut into 16 even slices.
Arrange slices together into two greased cake pans.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Whisk together glaze ingredients and drizzle evenly over warm rolls.
