roasted garlic butter tomato toast

Dairy is an ingredient I love to indulge in, but when I do, I always source from dairy farms with responsible farming practices. Ronnybrook, in New York’s Hudson Valley, is one of those farms. This farm goes above and beyond traditional organic farming methods, never using any pesticides or RBST and making sure their cows get daily access to outdoor exercise. Ronnybrook treats their cows like family and they even have comfort cow stalls with individual mattresses. All of their milk is tested daily to insure that their products meet the highest quality standards.

One of my favorite summertime recipes is roasted garlic tomato toast using Ronnybrook’s European-style unsalted butter. This is my butter of choice because it is fresh churned in small batches and has a higher butterfat content than traditional butters. I usually double this roasted garlic butter recipe and freeze half so it is ready to go for unexpected summer dinner parties.

You can find Ronnybrook at farmers markets all over New York City. They are at the Union Square Farmers Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

This recipe was developed for The Chalkboard Magazine, one of my favorite lifestyle and wellness blogs. 

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ROASTED GARLIC BUTTER TOMATO TOAST // serves 10

by Elisabeth Srur

prep time: 20 minutes // cook time: 40 minutes // TOTAL TIME: 60 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 oz. ( 2 sticks ) of unsalted butter, room temp.

• 2 heads of garlic

• 2 French baguettes

• 4 large heirloom tomatoes

• 1/2 cup fresh basil

• 4 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

• flakey sea salt

• pepper to taste

METHOD:

1. Take your butter out of the fridge so it can warm up to room temperature.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

3. Cut the top off of the garlic heads ( about 1/4" of the way down ) to expose the cloves.

4. Drizzle 1 tbsp. of olive oil on top of each garlic.

5. Wrap each garlic in tin foil.

6. Roast the garlic for 20 - 30 min. each or until a knife comes out easily when inserted in the center. 

7. Allow the garlic to cool about 20 min. ( important so you don't melt the butter too much when you mix it in ) 

8. Once the garlic is cooled, squeeze out the softened garlic cloves and mix into your softened butter.

9. Cut the baguettes in half lengthwise.

10. Generously coat both sides of the baguette with your garlic butter mixture.

11. Wrap the baguettes in 2 sheets of tin foil and toast in your oven or on your grill for 5 -10 minutes per side or until the outside is toasted. Turn your bread once to make sure it doesn’t burn.

12. While the bread is toasting, slice your tomatoes and roughly chop the basil.

13. Cut the toasted baguette into serving sizes and lay out on a cutting board or tray.

14. Sprinkle the salt on top of the bread and then layer the tomatoes on top.

15. Drizzle the olive oil and another light layer of salt and pepper on top of the tomatoes.

16. Top with the chopped basil.

17. Serve while still warm.

gluten free banana & peanut butter "breakfast cupcakes"

Who wouldn't want a cupcake for breakfast?  This healthy recipe is the closest thing to indulging in cake minus the expected sugar crash an hour later.  The best part about these cupcakes is that they use edible flowers from one of the best farm stands, Windfall Farms, as "sprinkles." This recipe was developed for The Chalkboard Magazine, one of my favorite lifestyle and wellness blogs. Hope you ENJOY!

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A jewel box of a farm located in Montgomery, NY, Windfall Farms focuses on micro-greens, salads and specialty seasonal produce like edible flowers. Their philosophy is to sell poison-free food, free of pesticides, herbicides, insecticides and chemical fertilizers that are unfortunately commonly used in conventionally grown produce. The higher standards used for Windfall’s farming practices is one of the reasons the quality of this farm stand is widely known among some of the best restaurants in New York City.

On the greenmarket days, I make sure to head over to Windfall’s stand early so I can grab edible flowers before they sell out.  Edible flowers are not only versatile but nutritious, with most of them containing potassium, phytonutrients, and vitamin C.  I like to use these flowers to decorate desserts, freeze into ice cubes for summer cocktails, add to salads or layer into a sandwich for an unexpected element.

You can find Windfall Farms in New York City at the Union Square Farmers Market ( union square west and 16th street ) on Wednesday and Saturday from 8:00am until they are sold out or every Sunday at the 79th Street greenmarket ( Columbus Avenue between 78th and 79th streets ) from 9am until sold out. 

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GLUTEN FREE BANANA & PEANUT BUTTER "BREAKFAST CUPCAKES" WITH HONEY YOGURT FROSTING // serves 10

by brunchpants

prep time: 10 minutes // cook time: 12 - 15 minutes

CUPCAKE INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter ( or almond butter ) 
• 2 ripe bananas
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 cup gluten free flower
• 1/4 cup almond flour / meal
• 2 tbsp. ground flaxseeds
• 2 tbsp. hemp seeds
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1/4 cup almond milk

METHOD:

1. Pre-heat over to 375' 

2. Put all of the ingredients listed above into a blender.

3. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. 

4. Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way to the top. 

5. Cook for 12 -15 minutes or until a knife comes out smooth when inserted into the center of the cupcake. 

YOGURT HONEY FROSTING INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cups organic greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp. of honey
• edible flowers ( optional ) 

METHOD:

1. In a small bowl, stir the honey and yogurt until blended.

2. Transfer the yogurt mixture into a ziploc bag.

3. Cut a small triangle off one of the corners of the bag.

4. Frost the top of the cupcakes by starting at the outside edge of the cupcake and working your way towards the center, in a circular pattern. 

5. Decorate the frosted cupcakes with the edible flowers.

NOTES:

• You can add more honey if you want a sweeter frosting.
• A Vitamix blender works the best especially if you are using whole flaxseeds.