Fava Bean Timbale with Tarragon and Vanilla Bean

This post is also available in: French

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that the shorter the season of a certain food, the more magical it appears. It's true for figs, cherries, summer tomatoes, and most other jewels of the earth, really. It's certainly the case with fava beans, those brilliantly green peas of the giants.

Seeing them in stores here in Florida is such a rare occasion, that when I recently ran across favas, I wanted to come up with a fun and bright salad to properly celebrate them.

I've heard about the surprising combination of vanilla bean and balsamic before, and finally decided to try it out in the dressing for this timbale. The two make for a very interesting vinaigrette - slightly sweet and incredibly fragrant. If you are a balsamic lover, increase the amount of it in the dressing, as I tried to keep it light.
I also thought it would be fun to present the salad in the form of timbale, it definitely makes the eating experience more special.

We just got back from San Francisco - talk about falling in love all over again. Plenty of fresh fava beans at the markets there, along with the sweetest of cherries, peaches, apricots, and a myriad of the most otherworldly greens. We'll have a Travel Notes post up next week. Meanwhile, enjoy the favas.

Fava Bean Timbale
(serves 4-6)

1 cup fresh fava beans - shelled and peeled
1 cup fresh corn kernels
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon (optional)
2 medium cucumbers - peeled, seeded and cubed
1 cup purple cabbage - finely shredded
lime
8-10 radishes - cubed
handful cilantro leaves
3 tablespoons chives - finely chopped
2 tablespoons sesame seeds - unhulled and optionally toasted
zest of 1 orange - optional
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

I used raw fava beans in this recipe, but you can also blanch the shelled beans in boiling water for a minute before peeling them. Corn can also be boiled, as opposed to raw, for 4 minutes and then rinsed under cold water before cutting kernels off the corn ear. Chop fava beans into 2-3 pieces each. Mix them with corn kernels, tarragon, and a generous pinch of coarse sea salt, leave to soften.
Place the cucumbers in a colander, sprinkle with salt and leave to release juices. Mix cabbage with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lime juice, massage for a couple minutes with your hands and set aside.

Vanilla Balsamic Vinaigrette
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tablespoon each balsamic and apple cider vinegar
seeds of 1 vanilla bean
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
drop of sesame oil (optional)
sea salt and pepper

Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

Assembly
In a bowl, combine all the vegetables with the cubed radishes and the rest of the timbale ingredients. Pour in about one third of the vinaigrette, mix to incorporate. If making a timbale, place the ring mold of the size you like (I used 2 1/4-inch in height and 3 3/4 in diameter) on a plate and pack the salad inside the mold. Place a jar filled with liquid on top and let it stand for 10-15 minutes. Carefully remove the mold and repeat the process to make more timbale. Drizzle with remaining dressing, garnish with chives and sesame seeds. Serve with microgreens or any fresh salad greens.
Optionally, you can also serve timbale as a salad, without molding it. In this case, simply slice the cucumbers and radishes and leave fava beans whole. The rest of the recipe stays the same. Serve in a purple cabbage leaf for a nice presentation if you like.

Peach and Raspberry Summer Tart and a Guest Post for Scandi Foodie

This post is also available in: French

Hello from chilly San Francisco! We just arrived, and the weather forecast is promising sun and high 60s all week. A very welcome change from the Florida heat. We'll keep our Instagram updated throughout the week.

We were thrilled when Maria asked us to do a guest post over at her wonderful blog, Scandi Foodie. You may remember her contribution of a delicious pudding recipe from earlier in the year.
Maria just got married (hooray!) in her native Lapland and is now on her honeymoon in France, hence the much deserved break in blogging. Here's a bright summer tart to wish many happy and healthy years together to the newlyweds. 

I am often asked about cooked alternatives for many of my raw dishes, especially those that involve a dehydrator. Recently, I've been experimenting with recipes, where both raw and cooked preparation is possible. As a result, I've been very intrigued by gluten free and vegan baking, to the point where I bake something new almost every day. It's fascinating how easy it is to avoid products like butter, eggs, refined sugar, and wheat by thinking a bit outside the box and instead making light, nourishing, and delicious goods.

I've never been able to pick a favourite fruit - whatever is ripe and in season quickly becomes my one true love. There is something especially wonderful about the combination of raspberry and peach though. Their colouring and fragrance speak uniquely of summer and the two work together beautifully. In this tart, I added fresh herbs - lemon balm, verbena, basil, and thyme - to continue the summery flavour story and to accent the fruit.

Head over here for the rest of the story and recipe.

And P.S. The Frugally Delicious giveaway winner is Fontrella Cole, Paloma picked your name out of the hat. Congrats and please contact us ohmygolubka at gmail dot com.

To make the raw version of the tart
I made raw tarts using 4 smaller tart pans (4 1/2" in diameter) for easier handling, but that is optional.  Substitute quinoa flakes and quinoa flour with sprouted oat flour. Substitute coconut oil with melted cocoa butter. Mix 2 tablespoons of chia seeds with 5 tablespoons of water and 1 tablespoon of honey, leave for 15-20 minutes to form a gel. Add the chia gel to the crust dough, mix thoroughly with your hands. Leave the filling as is in the original recipe. Dehydrate the crust on its own for 6-8 hours at 115F. Remove from pan, dehydrate for another 4-5 hours. Then follow the same assembly instructions as for the baked tart. Dehydrate with filling for another 6 hours or so.

Wild Blueberry Daisy Cake and a Cookbook Giveaway

This post is also available in: French

This one is for all the recent graduates. Congratulations, it's quite an accomplishment, what you did! We have our own grad in the family this year. My older daughter just completed four tough years at design school, and I wanted to make something very special to celebrate.

I often get asked about making a raw cake. Not a cheesecake or tart, but a proper layered Cake, capital C and all. This was just the occasion to tackle that. 

Daisies have been blooming everywhere recently. Their yellow, festive middles, surrounded by a crown of delicate white petals always put the biggest smile on my face. I got the idea to use the daisy as a decorative element for the cake, as a symbol of spring and the newest of beginnings.

We've got five berry-filled layers of the gentlest texture, cloud-like and airy on your tongue. Then the whole blueberries interject with bursts of cooling freshness.

Paloma was completely enamored with the coconut daisies when I was making them, following along with the whole process, eager to have a taste. Lately, she has been taking much interest in the kitchen, and of course that warms my heart. Paloma made her own mini daisy cake and ate it, too.

Recently, we had the honor of contributing a recipe to a sweet little cookbook called Frugally Delicious. The book focuses on delicious cooking on a budget and is full of tasty recipes from many wonderful blogger contributors. It is honest, beautiful in its simplicity, and full of variety in the recipe index. Hop over to the book's site to learn more.

We are giving away one copy of Frugally Delicious. Simply leave a comment to this post between now and Sunday, June 17th at 12pm EST to enter the giveaway.

Wild Blueberry Daisy Cake
(makes one 2 level round cake, first level - 6" diameter x 4" height, second - 3" x 2")

Cake Batter
12 ounces soft dates - chopped
1/4 plus 1 tablespoon coconut oil- melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
4 cups plain almond pulp left from making almond milk
1 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
1-2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a food processor, blend the chopped dates into a paste, add little bit of water if needed. Don't worry if the paste is not completely smooth. Add coconut oil, vanilla, and salt. Continue mixing. Add the almond pulp, blueberries, lemon juice, and mix well to incorporate. Do it in two batches, if your food processor can't handle the whole amount. You should end up with soft and light to touch cake batter. If your almond pulp is too wet, add a little more of it to your batter. If too dry, add some blueberries, or a splash of almond milk.

Blueberry Frosting
3 cups cashews - soaked for 2 hours
3 cups almond milk
1/2 cup light agave syrup
1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract or seeds of 1 vanilla bean
small pinch of salt
wild blueberry powder (optional) - to taste
1 1/4 cup coconut oil - melted
1 cup fresh blueberries

In a high speed blender, combine all the ingredients with the exception of blueberry powder, coconut oil, and blueberries until very smooth. If using, start adding the blueberry powder, to achieve the desired shade of purple. You can also use fresh blueberries to add taste and colour instead. Add the coconut oil at the end to emulsify. Reserve about 2 1/2 cups of for frosting the cake. Transfer the rest to a bowl and mix in the fresh blueberries.

Assembly
Separate the cake batter into four parts - three even ones and one for the small second level of the cake. If using a springform, lightly grease it with coconut oil. If using a cake pan without a removable bottom, line it with plastic or cake wrap. Spread one portion in the bottom of the pan in an even, flat layer. Top with a thick layer of frosting with the fresh blueberries. Put in the freezer for 1-2 hours, or until the cream is firm. Spread another layer of cake batter on top of the cream, following with the second layer of cream. Freeze for another 1-2 hours and finish with the last layer of cake batter. Put the cake in the freezer for 30 minutes before removing from the pan.
For the small second level, repeat the same steps, with only one frosting layer in between two layers of batter.
Frost the large cake first with the reserved frosting. Arrange the small cake on top and frost it. Arrange the daisies on top of the frosting. Keep refrigerated.

Coconut Daisies
These flowers were made by blending the meat of a young Thai coconut with a small amount of coconut water in a high speed blender. I didn't measure the precise amounts, just eyeballed them. Then, I added dried shredded coconut and some agave and blended until I achieved a smooth, thick mixture. Then spread the mixture on Teflex-covered dehydrator trays, dried for an hour or until the surface became dry and I could cut out the flowers with a cookie cutter. After cutting, I left them in the dehydrator for another couple hours, until completely dry and easily separated. Towards the end of the dehydration time, I squeezed some fresh mango puree in the center of each flower, using a piping bag.

Breakfast with Friends

This post is also available in: French

We've talked about our love for leisurely weekend breakfasts before. Make it outdoors and surrounded by friends and family, and you've got the best morning anyone can wish for.

Natalie is one of those people who has the great taste and passion for hosting all kinds of gatherings - breakfast or not. The cozy little garden in the backyard of her family's urban home is where we had this breakfast. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect spot.

 Pear and Avocado Smoothie

A table full of bright and nourishing foods, children running around, plenty of laughs, sunshine, and a weekend ahead - that is the ultimate breakfast experience.

Gluten Free and Vegan Bagels

Ever since our Valentine's Day event, I haven't been able to get the idea of using rose in food out of my mind. Its scent and intoxicating taste truly take me to a kind of magical fairy land with every bite. No wonder rose is so widely used in aromatherapy - it definitely has a side effect of happiness.

This time, I decided to make a yogurt parfait with layers of rose and lavender - another love of ours. Of course, you can incorporate any flavours you prefer into this recipe. Blueberry, strawberry, chocolate, or vanilla - it all sounds wonderful to me.

Now close your eyes and imagine layers of fragrant rose yogurt, interlaced with milder ones of lavender, plenty of fresh berries, and some crispy buckwheat and cocoa nibs to complete the experience. Dreamy.

Coconut and Sun-dried Tomato Creme Cheese

On a different note, we're ready to say goodbye to our good camera friend Canon 50D (body only), which has captured plenty of delicious dishes and moments on Golubka. We bought it brand new in July 2010 and have been treating it with much love and respect ever since. Sold.

Rose and Lavender Parfait
6.5 oz (about1 1/2 cups) meat of young Thai coconut
1 1/4 cup coconut water
1/4 cup purified water
3/4 oz Irish moss - thoroughly rinsed and soaked in hot water for at least 10 minutes
1/4 cup cashews - soaked for 2 hours
4-5 tablespoons light agave syrup or another sweetener of choice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
pinch of sea salt
3-5 tablespoons dairy-free acidophilus (optional)
1/3 cup coconut oil - melted

Blend 5 oz (about 1 1/4 cups) of coconut meat and all of the coconut water in a high speed blender until a smooth coconut milk is formed. Reserve 1 cup for later. Blend the remaining coconut milk with the purified water and Irish moss until very smooth. Add the reserved 1 cup of coconut milk and the rest of the ingredients, with the exception of coconut oil. Blend thoroughly, adding coconut oil at the end to emulsify.

dried ground culinary rose petals - to taste
100% pure steam-distilled essential rose oil (optional) - one tiny drop
dried ground culinary lavender flowers - to taste
100% pure steam-essential lavender oil (optional) - one tiny drop

fresh berries of your choice
buckwheat crisps
cocoa nibs (optional)
dried rose petals and dried lavender flowers for decoration (optional)

Divide into 2 even portions. Add the ground rose petals and lavender (I used about 4 teaspoons each) and one tiny drop of pure rose/lavender essential oil, if using. Blend to incorporate. Add any flavour and colour you like if you choose to replace the rose and lavender, or leave it plain. Spoon into glasses, alternating the flavours, fresh berries, crisps, and cocoa nibs.

Gluten Free and Vegan Bagels - same recipe as here. This time I added ground coriander and sesame tahini (to taste) to the basic recipe.

Coconut Cream Cheese - recipe here. Sun-dried tomatoes added this time.