A Little Light Reading

In case you haven’t noticed, I love to bake. Although cooking is very high up on my list, baking will always been my first love. I still remember the year I received my very first cookbook, “The Better Homes and Gardens New Junior Cookbook”. I still have it. And up until my gluten intolerance diagnosis I was still using it now and again.

Thus began my love affair with cookbooks.

I read cookbooks like other people read a good novel – cover to cover. I love the photos, recipes, extra notes… I love it all! I love it for its practicality mixed with creativity. In the same book – in the same RECIPE – you can learn something brand new and be inspired to branch out and create something else. Love it!

I have what some might call… a large collection of cookbooks. There are the ones I keep handy for reference and inspiration. Those are kept in an easily accessible place. But then there are the completely outrageous… or old and sentimental… or professional level books that I keep just for fun. Just to read and soak up and learn new terminology or techniques. Out of most of those – OK, all of those - I will never, ever cook even one recipe. I just love to read them.

A little odd? I prefer to call it passion.

So what is a girl to do with cookbooks full of wonderful recipes that technically are taboo for GF people? Did you guess “play around with those wonderful recipes until you nail a delicious dessert that will knock the socks off of people”? You are absolutely RIGHT!

This one is unbelievable. I made this dessert for a dinner party at a friend’s house and one of the guests who happens to be a good friend gave probably the best possible review of my dessert. She said, “I don’t like cheesecake, Katie. And I don’t really like pretzels. But I love this!” Was she just being nice, you ask? When I asked if she wanted to bring some home her eyes lit up and she eagerly said “yes!”. I’m thinking she was in earnest.

If you love salt and sweet together… this is one dessert you are going to luhhhhhhhh-uhve. Word of caution, though. Use great restraint. If you bake this cheesecake just to have around the house you’ll pick, pick, pick until – voila! – it’s gone. And you and I both know that it won’t really be gone. It will be with you for weeks to come, if you get my meaning. So share the love – bake this one to bring to a get-together at a friend’s house. It will keep your waistline status quo and your friends happy.

Chocolate Covered Pretzel Cheesecake

1 cup gluten free pretzel crumbs (crush 1 ½ to 2 cups of GF pretzels into crumbs)

3 Tbsp brown sugar

4 Tbsp butter, divided

8oz GF semi-sweet chocolate

4 8oz bars cream cheese, brought to room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 Tbsp GF all-purpose flour

1 ½ Tbsp vanilla extract

4 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 ½ GF pretzels, broken into bite-size pieces

4 oz GF semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover the outside of a 9” or 10” spring form pan with aluminum foil and place in a large, shallow baking pan. In a small bowl, mix together pretzel crumbs, 3 Tbsp melted butter and brown sugar. Press into the bottom of the spring form pan. Bake for 12 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees.

In small glass mixing bowl, melt the 8oz chocolate in the microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir and cook for another 15 seconds. Stir again. If needed, continue to cook in 15 second increments, stirring after each time, until the chocolate is completely melted. On a piece of wax paper spread the 1 ½ cups of broken pretzel pieces. Pour the chocolate over the pieces and toss to coat. Refrigerate until set.

In a large mixing bowl beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer until smooth. Add the sugar, GF flour and vanilla. Beat until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed. Add the sour cream and beat on low speed.

Remove chocolate covered pretzels from the refrigerator and break up into bite-size chunks by hand. Add to the cream cheese mixture and fold to incorporate. Pour into the prepared spring form pan and smooth the top. Pour enough very hot water (boiling not necessary) into the large, shallow baking pan to cover the bottom half of the spring form pan. Bake, in the water bath, for 1 hour and 5 minutes.

Allow baked cheesecake to sit for 10-15 minutes then run a knife around the rim of the pan to help loosen the cake. Allow cheesecake to cool completely, then refrigerate for 8 hours.

To decorate, sprinkle extra crushed pretzel crumbs on top. Melt chocolate chips and 1 Tbsp butter in the microwave on high for 30 seconds, repeating the same steps used to melt the chocolate for the pretzels. Drizzle the melted chocolate-butter mixture over the top of the cheesecake and extra pretzel crumbs.

The Multi-Tasker

I miss sandwiches. I know there are alternative breads out there for me to use, but the truth is I just don’t love them. I will say this, though. Udi’s Sandwich Bread makes pretty good toast. And The Grainless Baker’s Cinnamon Raisin Bread does as well. But to have a good ol’ ham and cheese sandwich on bread just isn’t the same. Rice-based bread is either sweet (and in my opinion, the sweetness works against a deli sandwich) or rather rough. There have been times where the inside of my mouth has actually gotten scraped up from the roughness of the bread.

No thanks.

So, in the quest to find alternatives to the alternative breads, I’ve had to get rather creative. The first attempt was inspired – and I can’t believe I’m saying this – by McDonald’s McGriddle Sandwich. Could I use two small pancakes to make an egg and cheese sandwich? I must say, it wasn’t shabby. Sure, it didn’t taste like white bread… but it was soft and squishy. I love soft and squishy.

After a while, I gave up on anything bread-like and just made ham and cheese roll-ups… complete with a pickle in the middle. It was a nice change for lunches, but rather boring.

Then I stumbled across The Multi-Tasker. Buttermilk Biscuits. Salty, crisp outside… light and soft inside. They can be your “toast with jam” in the morning, or your egg and cheese sandwich. They can be your “english muffin” with peanut butter or your companion for a bowl of beef stew. Yes, they can even be your ham and cheese sandwich!

Explore the world of sandwiches with the buttermilk biscuit. That baby will take on many forms and fulfill that empty, sad place in your heart where you thought only squishy bread could live. Alright, so I’m getting a little dramatic… but you get the point.

Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits

½ cup potato starch

½ cup corn starch

¼ cup tapioca starch

¼ cup brown rice flour

1 ¾ tsp xanthan gum

1 Tbsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar

1/3 cup cold butter, cut into ¼ inch cubes

¾ cup buttermilk

2 Tbsp melted butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray or line the baking sheet with a Sil-pat.

In a food processor, pulse together the potato starch, corn starch and tapioca starch, brown rice flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda and salt until thoroughly mixed.

Drop the butter cubes over the starch mixture and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Turn the food processor on and pour the buttermilk in as it churns, until well incorporated.

Turn the dough out onto a piece of wax paper lightly dusted with white or brown rice flour. Using your hands, pat down the dough to about an inch high. Cut out biscuits with round biscuit cutter and transfer to the baking sheet. (It helps to flour the cutter as well.) Cut out as many circles as possible, then gather up the dough and pat it down again to one inch. Repeat the process until all dough is used.

Bake for 25 minutes. Immediately after removing from the oven, brush twice with melted butter.

My Italian Roots

I grew up in New Jersey where I had the privilege of eating around my Italian grandfather’s table quite frequently. He was a hard-working man who came to this country and loved it for everything it stood for. He was proud to be an Italian – but just as proud to be an American!

Perhaps one of the reasons I still love Italian food as much as I do is because of those times spent around that table. I can still remember the smell of homemade sauce simmering on the stove that would greet us as we walked in the back door. It’s more than just the taste of delicious red sauce over perfectly al dente pasta… it’s the memories that go along with it.

On my refrigerator I have a saying that I absolutely love. When I first found it, I felt as though someone else had reached into my head, pulled the words out and placed them on paper.

“When I walk into my kitchen today, I am not alone. Whether we know it or not, none of us is. We bring fathers and mothers and kitchen tables, and every meal we have ever eaten. Food is never just food. It’s also a way of getting at something else: who we are, who we have been and who we want to be.” *

I read it often these days. I hope that one day my own kids will talk of the memories attached to the aromas in their mom’s kitchen… how warm chocolate chip cookies smelled of comfort and how, no matter where they go, the smell of garlic and tomato sauce always reminds them of home.

It would be a lovely legacy to pass on from my grandparents… through me… to my kids.

Gluten Free Baked Spaghetti

16oz gluten free spaghetti (I used Tinkyada)

1 lb ground beef

3 Tbsp dried minced onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jar (24-26oz) meatless gluten free spaghetti sauce

½ tsp seasoned salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

½ cup parmesan cheese

5 Tbsp butter, melted

2 cups ricotta cheese

3-4 cups shredded mozzarella

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Boil a large pot of water and cook gluten free spaghetti according to package.

While the spaghetti cooks, cook the ground beef in a large skillet. When the beef is almost completely browned, drain the fat and add the minced garlic and dried onion. Stir in the spaghetti sauce and warm through.

Rinse cooked spaghetti thoroughly with cold water. In the emptied pot used to cook the pasta, add the melted butter and Parmesan cheese. Stir to combine. Add the pasta back into the pot and stir. Add the eggs and toss to coat pasta thoroughly.

Pour half of the pasta into the 9x13 baking pan and spread out into a thin layer. Top with half of the ricotta cheese (spread ricotta to cover), half of the meat sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Pour remaining pasta over the top and repeat the layers. Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

*Excerpt from “A Homemade Life” by Molly Wizenberg

A Love Affair

I love lemon. Anything lemon. I love it enough that 9 times out of 10 I will choose it over chocolate. Yes, you read that right. It is so refreshing and lemon desserts are usually lighter than their chocolate counterparts. I love the pop of the tartness on my tongue mixed with the sweetness. Basically, you can throw anything lemon at me and I’m going to love it.

Enter lemon squares. I want to hug the person that came up with lemon squares. Delightful, buttery shortbread morsels topped with lemony goodness. How can you go wrong? Place a lemon square on a plate alongside a cup of Lady Gray tea and I’ll call it the perfect teatime. After dinner with a glass of milk and you’ve got the perfect light dessert after a rich meal. Heck, put one on a plate all by itself first thing in the morning and I’ll call it breakfast!

Did I mention I love lemon?

Once I decided to go on the quest to create gluten free replicas of “regular” food, I knew lemon squares would be on that list somewhere. It’s not as easy as you think. Mostly, the shortbread is the tricky part. I don’t like the shortbread of a lemon square to be so crispy that is snaps… although there is nothing wrong with a plain old piece of butter-laden shortbread. Nothing at all. A lemon square, though, is a delicate, almost fragile dessert that melts in your mouth. (Are you drooling yet?)

This recipe does a pretty good job of fitting that drool worthy description. Tart-sweet lemon curd on top, melt in your mouth buttery shortbread on the bottom. I highly suggest keeping them in the fridge. A cold lemon square is as refreshing a tall glass of lemonade on a hot summer day!

Did I mention I love lemon? Just want to make sure the subtle theme of this post came through.

I love lemon.

Gluten Free Lemon Squares

2 sticks cold butter

½ cup powdered sugar

2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour (I used King Arthur)

4 eggs

1 ½ cups sugar

1 ½ Tbsp grated lemon zest

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)

1 Tbsp corn or tapioca starch

½ tsp baking powder

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a 9x13 pan with non-stick spray.

Cut sticks of butter into tablespoon size pieces. In the food processor, pulse together the butter, powdered sugar and flour until the butter is broken down into pea size pieces. Dump the mixture into your prepared pan and press it down with a flat spatula until flat and even. Bake for 20 minutes.

While the shortbread is baking, whisk the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, juice, cornstarch and baking powder until smooth. When the crust comes out of the oven, immediately pour the lemon mixture over the crust and return to the oven. Bake 20-25 minutes until the center jiggles just slightly but is set.

Do not cut until completed cooled. I recommend cooling completely on the counter, then refrigerating until chilled. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

A Very Cherry Discovery

Yesterday I gave my friend a tour of Wegman’s Market from a gluten free point of view. She recently realized she was having issues with gluten and is in that difficult time of figuring out what is safe to eat… and what is NOT safe to eat! It was wonderful to walk along with her, chatting, and sharing my information. She’s a comfortable friend… the sort of person with whom grocery shopping together feels perfectly natural.

As we walked into the produce section, I glanced at the lovely cherries once again (see my post entitled “Cherries, Cherries Everywhere…” for more info), but sighed to myself. My last endeavor was, to say the least, slightly aggravating. The recipe itself was simple. It was the process of removing each and every pit from those juicy cherries that drove me batty. I ended up with a beautiful cherry crisp… and grossly stained fingers and fingernails.

So as I glanced at the cherries with my friend, I quickly dismissed the idea of attempting another cherry dessert. Sure, my husband loves them… and I love to make things he loves. But the labor and staining from the last dessert still lingered in my mind. Slowly, my eyes wandered over to the barrel next to the cherries. There, tucked in the back of the barrel was a sign that read: “Cherry Pitter, $12.99.”

Life is not the same, folks.

I’m not huge on kitchen gadgets. I like a good, sharp knife. Measuring cups and spoons. Once in a while I’ll get out the old garlic press instead of mincing my garlic by hand. But I can honestly say that if you are a cherry lover… you must go right now (wait – finish reading first) and get yourself a cherry pitter.

My handy dandy new little friend pops that pit out like it’s nobody’s business. It literally took a sliver of the amount of time it took me last time to pit and cut up four cups of cherries. In fact, this time my 7-year-old daughter did it for me… and it STILL took only a sliver of the amount as last time.

Run. Now. Buy yourself a cherry pitter… and some cherries, while you're at it. And since you'll need a reason to use your brand new cherry pitter... how about a Cherry Cobbler?

Cherry Cobbler

1 ½ cups plus 1 ½ Tbsp gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur brand)

¾ tsp xanthan gum

1 ½ cups sugar, divided

¼ tsp salt

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¾ tsp cinnamon

1 egg, beaten

1 ½ sticks butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ cups milk

4 cups of pitted cherries, cut in half

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together the 1 ½ cups of flour, xanthan gum, ¾ cup of sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Whisk in the egg, melted butter, vanilla and milk until smooth.

In a medium bowl, stir together the cherries, remaining ¾ cup of sugar and 1 ½ Tbsp of flour. Dump the cherries into the baking pan and spread evenly.

Pour the batter evenly over the cherries.

Bake until slightly browned on top, about 45-50 minutes. Cool 10-15 minutes, then dust with powdered sugar. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream… or plain!

Chinese Food (My Way)

My husband pretty much gave up gluten-filled foods when I did. He didn’t have to, but that’s just the kind of man he is. Sacrifical. Truth be told, he’s pretty darn wonderful, but don’t tell him that… he might get a big head.

He’ll still have toast or a burger at a restaurant… but at home, he’s pretty much taken up the gluten free lifestyle. It’s made things immensely easier for me. I equate it to trying to quit smoking when your spouse still smokes… temptation around every corner! But if you go on the journey together…

Tim loves Chinese food. He’s a General Tso’s Chicken or Chicken and Broccoli kind of man. I only love one thing on the Chinese take-out menu… pork fried rice.

OK, that’s not entirely true. I am a sucker for Sweet and Sour Chicken. The only problem is that I feel so incredibly guilty ordering deep fried chicken in a sugar-laden sauce that I just can’t bring myself to do it. But, man, is it good.

Since I’m on a roll with confessions, don’t even ask about Orange Chicken… another no-no that I would dream about, but not order. I love it more than S&S Chicken.

I guess I should have said the only thing I will actually eat at a Chinese take-out place is the pork fried rice.

There. It feels better to have that all straightened out.

I gave up the pork fried rice, though, since Chinese take-out places are notorious for cross contamination. Good thing it’s actually pretty easy to make. The one problem is that I don’t keep things like bean sprouts in my house. (Do you?) Also, everyone in our family, with my mom being the only exception, hates peas with a passion. My kids didn’t even like pureed baby food peas! There was much gagging and spitting in our house when baby peas were introduced.

So I came up with an “everyday fried rice”, made up from things I almost always have sitting around the kitchen. It’s not super exotic or fancy, but by jing, it’s pretty darn tasty! When I have a craving for pork fried rice… or when I just want to change things up at dinner… I go for this recipe.

I hope it helps with your Chinese take-out craving, too!

Everyday Pork Fried Rice

2 boneless pork chops

¾ cup gluten free soy sauce (I use Kikkoman), divided

2 Tbsp brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp fresh ginger, chopped

2 Tbsp ketchup

2 cups water

1 ½ cups sticky rice (I use Nishiki)

3 Tbsp veggie or canola oil, divided

1 small onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and shredded

3 eggs

1 Tbsp butter

2 cups frozen sugar snap peas

3 hours before cooking:

In a gallon bag or plastic container with lid, mix together ½ cup soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger and ketchup. Add the pork chops and coat thoroughly in the marinade. Marinate for 3 hours in the fridge, flipping the chops every so often.

To make fried rice:

Remove chops from the fridge, wipe off any chunks of garlic or ginger and let rest on a plate on the counter for 10 minutes. Heat a sauté pan to medium heat, add 1 Tbsp of oil and pan sear the chops, cooking until no longer pink. Remove from the pan and let meat rest for 15 minutes. Cut into bite size pieces and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, stir the water and sticky rice together. Cook as directed on the package of rice. Set aside.

Cook sugar snap peas according to the package (microwave is easiest since so much is happening on the stovetop). Set aside.

Scramble the eggs in butter in a small sauté pan. Set aside.

While the rice is cooking, in a large sauté pan, heat the remaining 2 Tbsp oil over medium heat. Add the onion and carrots and sauté until softened. Once softened, add the bite-size pork pieces to the pan. Heat through. At this point, if things seem a little dry, add another tablespoon of oil. Add the rice, scrambled eggs and sugar snap peas. Toss to combine and heat through. Add the remaining ¼ cup soy sauce, a little at a time, to taste. Toss again to combine and heat through.

Serves 4-6 people.

A Culinary Longing

I have found, in the time since being diagnosed with gluten intolerance, that there are very few foods I truly miss. Most things have something comparable to switch to and I try very hard to make them as delicious as possible (or, in other words, just like the gluten-filled version). The one thing, though, that still makes me let out just a little sigh is… pizza. True pizza shop pizza. I can’t help it, I have Italian blood running through my veins. It’s not as though I have a choice. I’m a helpless victim of heredity. It was, in fact, the last gluten-y thing I ate before switching over to the gluten free diet.

It was the “test” meal I had to eat after being off gluten for 2 weeks. I thoroughly enjoyed every bite… savoring it. I did NOT, however, enjoy the consequences of that slice. Oh, that it would be so cruel to attack my body as it did!

I have tried numerous recipes for gluten free pizza crust… all of which have been complete disasters.

Tasteless, flimsy, odd stuff that was insulting to my Italian taste buds.

Until tonight.

Tonight I made a pizza that had a chewy crust. Did you just see what word I used? CHEWY. The outer edge of the crust was crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside. Yes, I wrote that word again. It had good flavor, it had good texture and everyone at the table, including my picky almost-three-year-old, liked it.

Sure, I’ll probably still sigh a little as I drive past my favorite little pizza shop on the corner, because let’s face it, there is nothing like a piece of real, gluten-loaded pizza.

But no more tasteless, flimsy odd stuff for us anymore! Let’s call it Christmas in July, dear friends!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO US!

FOR AN UPDATED VERSION OF THIS RECIPE, CLICK HERE

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

1 ½ cups warm water (around 110 degrees)

2 Tbsp sugar

1 packet of yeast

1 ½ cups brown rice flour

½ cup sorghum flour

2 cups tapioca starch

2 tsp xanthan gum

2 tsp salt

3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

To prepare the crust:

In a 2 cup measuring cup, stir together the warm water and sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add the yeast and give a quick stir. Let sit for 10 minutes, until a tan foam covers the top.

In the meantime, mix together (in a stand mixer bowl) the brown rice flour, sorghum flour, tapioca starch, xanthan gum and salt. Stir to completely combine. Add the yeast water and olive oil. Mix, using a bread dough hook (or the paddle attachment, if you don’t have a hook) until the dough comes together in a moist ball.

Grease the inside of a medium bowl and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with a wet paper towel and let sit in a warm place for an hour. The dough should almost double in size in that time.

To make the pizza:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Lightly cover a pizza stone or pan with brown rice flour (to prevent sticking) and place the dough on the pan. Using your hands, work the dough out into a flat circle, leaving a little extra on the outer edge (like a ledge of dough around the circumference of the circle). Bake the pizza crust (without any toppings) for 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and add sauce, cheese and any toppings you choose. You can also add a little Italian seasoning over the cheese for more flavor. Bake for another 20+ minutes until the cheese is bubbled up and beginning to brown all over the top. Remove from oven and let sit for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

Give Grit the Boot

Dear Frustrated Gluten Free Friend,

I know. You’ve tried so very hard. You’ve experimented with different blends of flours, toiling for hours over a bowl and measuring cups, trying your hardest to find the perfect blend that would mask the grit of gluten free baking. Time after time, experiment after experiment… grit.

There is hope, dear friend! No longer do you need to toil. No longer do you need to use expensive ingredients, only to end up with something like sand in your mouth.

I would like to introduce you to the answer to your problem. Gluten Free Friend, meet Pamela’s Baking and Pancake Mix. (Don’t be shy, say hello!)

I don’t know how Pamela did it, but she made a gluten free flour blend that has absolutely no grit whatsoever. Nada. In a past post I gave a recipe for cornbread using Pamela’s Baking Mix. It is absolutely amazing. In fact, it’s better than any gluten filled cornbread recipe I’ve ever had!

So, no more. No more frustration over gritty baked goods. Go now… right now… and get yourself some. Target carries it. Wegmans carries it. Acme carries it. If you don’t have any of those around, check out www.pamelasproducts.com. In the top right corner of the main page is a “Find Retail Locations” button. If that search ends up at a dead end? No worries, I’ve got it covered. Click on this link and you can buy a stash to keep your cupboard! http://www.amazon.com/Pamelas-Ultimate-Baking-Pancake-4-Pound/dp/B000NMJWZO (Don’t panic at the price. You are buying 3 four-pound bags. That will last you for months of gluten free baking and cooking. Better to have too much than to run out before you had the chance to make everything you’ve been missing since starting your gluten free diet!)

Trust me, it will be as though the heavens open and wonderful grit free, gluten free baked goods come bursting forth. And since I know you’ll be dying to try it out immediately, below is a fantastic banana bread recipe for you to make.

Here’s to a new friendship! May you have many happy years together. And God bless Pamela!!

Love,

Katie

Gluten Free Banana Bread

1 stick butter, softened

1 cup sugar

½ tsp salt

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ cups Pamela’s Baking and Pancake Mix

3 ripened bananas, mashed

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Using non-stick spray, coat two 8-inch loaf pans.

In a medium bowl, combine the butter and sugar with a wooden spoon. Once well combined, add the rest of the ingredients, stir until well mixed. Pour batter into the prepared pans and bake for 50 minutes.

The Challenge

What is it about a challenge that causes us to do things we wouldn’t usually do under normal circumstances? In most cases it’s not a competition, since someone is daring you to try something you’ve never done. So with whom would you be competing against? Just yourself, really.

I l-o-v-e a culinary challenge. Whether the challenge is given to me by me or by someone else, I cannot wait to start and see what happens! My friend, Becca, asked me to attempt a gluten free version of Kandy Kakes. Remember those? Those sinfully delicious little cakes with a strip of peanut butter on top, coated in chocolate? Yes, those.

It’s hard to say, really, if I lived up to the challenge. I took some liberties, you see. First, I can’t use peanut butter because of my son’s peanut allergy. So, instead, I used almond butter. Also, not only did I swap milk chocolate for dark chocolate, but I used much more than you ever get on a pre-packaged Kandy Kake! Seriously, though, how many people do you know of would complain about more chocolate? Yeah, that’s what I thought, too.

So, here it is. Moist cake (no grit!), creamy almond butter, and twice as much chocolate. Oh, yes.

Thanks, Becca, for the challenge! (By the way, I have a lovely Katie’s Kandy Kake sitting here with your name on it. Claim it quickly… I can only keep little hands off of them for so long!)

Anyone else have one more for me? Bring. It. On. ;)

Katie’s Kandy Kakes (GF version!)

4 eggs, beaten to a lemon color

1 cup milk

2 Tbsp veggie or canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups sugar

2 cups Pamela’s Baking Mix

1 ½ cups peanut or almond butter

2 cups dark chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake in a greased 10x15 jelly roll or baking pan.

Combine the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla in a large bowl using a hand mixer on medium. Add the sugar and beat to thoroughly combine. Add the Pamela’s Baking Mix and beat until smooth. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 20-30 minutes until set in the middle. Remove from the oven and immediately drop spoonfuls of peanut (or almond) butter over the cake. Once melted, spread evenly over the entire top of cake. Freeze, in the pan, for 1 hour. Once frozen, use a biscuit cutter (or whatever shaped cutter you choose) to cut out the cakes. Place the cake cut-outs on a cooling rack placed over a cookie sheet.

In a small saucepan, heat the heavy cream on low. Place chocolate chips in a small bowl. Once the cream is hot (but not boiling), pour over the chips. Wait one minute, then stir until the cream is completely incorporated into the chocolate. Balance one cake on a fork or spatula. Keeping the cake over the bowl of chocolate, spoon the chocolate over the cake to coat. Return the cake to the cooling rack to set. Repeat until all are coated. Allow cakes to rest for about 30-45 minutes to set.

(Don’t worry if they don’t look perfectly smooth, they will taste amazing!)

Top 10 Comfort Foods

We all have our own personal versions of comfort food. Chocolate. Mashed Potatoes. Soup. Spaghetti and Meatballs. There is sometimes a memory attached, like a grandmother’s signature dish… or sometimes it’s just a warm concoction that soothes the soul. Few would say today’s recipe shouldn’t be in the Top 10 of Comfort Foods. In my eyes, it’s where comfort food begins. It’s your basic gentle, warm, creamy meal that is perfect in every season. You can serve it at a picnic, alongside your Thanksgiving turkey or curl up under a blanket on a snowy day with a bowlful. Can’t go wrong with that, right?

Any guesses? (If your eyes prematurely drifted to the paragraph below, you already know. I’m not too great at the concept of suspense. Ah, well.)

It’s Mac and Cheese. Yes, my gluten free friends, we can have creamy mac and cheese… and I bet no one will notice that it’s gluten free! As for my friends who still belong to the world of gluten, this recipe is for you, too. Just swap our rice noodles for some of your gluten packed ones! It gets better… this will be wonderfully creamy without heavy cream. Heck, it doesn’t even have whole milk in it! Just good ol’ 1% milk. OK, fine. There is a stick of butter in it. But I should add this feeds an army. A 9x13 pan filled to the top!

Since variety is the spice of life, add whatever you want! Diced tomatoes, bacon bits, broccoli crowns, cut up hot dogs… the possibilities are endless! You can also top the mac and cheese (before baking) with more cheese or bread crumbs. But before you start experimenting, give the basic recipe a try. Who needs that stuff in the blue box? Not us!

Gluten Free Mac and Cheese

1 stick of butter

1 small onion, chopped

3 ½ cups of 1% milk, divided

2 tsp prepared yellow mustard

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup cornstarch

16 oz Colby jack cheese, cut into ½ inch cubes

1 Tbsp salt, for the noodle water

1 bag rice elbow noodles (I used Tinkyada), about 3 cups

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

To a large pot of boiling water, add the 1 Tbsp of salt and the rice elbow noodles. Cook until just shy of soft (they will finish cooking in the oven). Drain and immediately rinse with cold water (for gluten free noodles only).

While the noodles are cooking, melt butter in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until soft and translucent. Add 3 cups of milk (reserving ½ cup) and heat. Add the mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine.

In a bowl, mix together the remaining ½ cup of milk and the cornstarch. Just prior to the milk beginning to boil, add the cornstarch milk to the pan. Stir and continue to heat until the milk begins to thicken.

Once the milk is thickened to a creamy sauce consistency, turn the heat to low and add the cubed cheese. Stir until the cheese cubes are melted into cheesy goodness. (At this point, you may want to taste the cheese sauce to see if salt or pepper is needed.)

Add the rice noodles to the pan and toss to combine. Pour into an ungreased 9x13 baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes until bubbly on the edges.

Serves: 8 people as a main dish, 12 people as a side dish

I Made a Complete Mess of Dinner

My hubby is so very laid-back, he’s happy with whatever I put on the table. I’m not kidding. If it’s been a crazy day and dinner just didn’t happen, he happily sits down and has a bowl of cereal. He will often give me the night off and whip up his specialty… breakfast for dinner.

There is one dinner, however, that my hubby will actually ask for, especially if we haven’t had it in the recent past. So when he asks, I deliver. I mean, how could I not? He endures cold cereal without even a cringe. The man deserves to have a request granted now and again.

The best part about his one main request is that it is embarrassingly easy. I don’t even bother with a recipe anymore. I just slap it together, bake it in the oven and dinner is on the table.

You’ll thank me for this one. It’s great for anything from a quick dinner to your next Super Bowl Party and get this… the leftovers are amazing!

Say hello to Mexican Mess. I just know you’ll be good friends.

Mexican Mess

1 bag tortilla chips

1 pound ground beef

1 packet taco seasoning (I use Ortega)

1 15oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 jar taco sauce (or enchilada sauce, if you are into spicy stuff)

1-2 cups of cheddar or colby jack cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Prepare the ground beef and taco seasoning as directed on the seasoning packet. Add the black beans in the last few minutes of cooking to heat through.

Crush handfuls of tortilla chips into bite-size pieces and cover the bottom of a 9x13 pan with them. As much or as little as you like! Spread ground beef mixture over chips.

Pour about ½ of the taco sauce (less or more, if you choose) over the ground beef.

Sprinkle shredded cheese over the taco sauce.

Crush handfuls of tortilla chips again and cover the cheese with them. Again, as much or as little as you like!

Bake for 25 minutes. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Cabbage Done Right - Or - A Recipe For Even the Most Staunch of Cabbage NaySayers

Two posts in one day. Too ambitious? Nah, no such thing!

It’s a tradition in my little family (and when I was growing up) to choose whatever you want for dinner on your birthday. When I was a kid, my siblings and I had very definite choices. My sister, Laura, wanted Hawaiian Meatballs. My brother, Nick, wanted our Aunt Fannie’s casserole. I was a ham girl. Still love an Easter ham.

My daughter, for the past few years, has picked the same thing. It was a surprise for my husband and me the first year… but now we’ve come to expect it. It’s not the typical pizza or cheeseburger request.

Hannah’s birthday dinner request is Cabbage and Noodles. I told you it was different, didn’t I? I’m not a huge cabbage fan. I’ll eat the lovely crispy purple cabbage in a salad, but I don’t love hot, wilted cabbage. This, however, is actually very good. Hannah – who most definitely IS a fan of cabbage – called it “scrumptious” at the table this evening. Doesn’t that alone make you want to try it? If that doesn’t get you motivated to purchase yourself some cabbage and give it a try, then how about this?

It has bacon in it.

I thought that might do it. ;o)

Cabbage and Noodles

1 package of GF egg noodle-ish noodles (I used Schar Tagliatelle pasta)

3 Tbsp butter

½ lb bacon, chopped into small pieces

1 small onion, chopped

1 small head cabbage, chopped

Salt & pepper, to taste

Cook noodles according to package. Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again. Return noodles to the pot and stir in the butter. Cover and set aside.

While noodles are cooking, cook bacon in a large, deep skillet (or a Dutch oven) over medium to medium-high heat, until evenly browned and crispy. Drain the bacon on a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the bacon drippings in the skillet.

Add the onions to the bacon drippings, cook and stir over medium heat until the onion begins to soften. Stir in the cabbage and cook until wilted, stirring occasionally. Add the bacon back in and cook onion, cabbage and bacon until the cabbage is tender, about 10 minutes. Gently add the noodles and toss to combine. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Heat 1-2 minutes until heated through. Serves 4-6.

A Very Happy Gluten Free Birthday!

Today is my daughter's 7th birthday! I know it's not a milestone birthday, but I'm still in amazement at how fast the last 7 years have gone. I'm concerned I'll blink my eyes and the next 7 years will be gone... and heaven forbid I blink again!

So today's post is in celebration of my girl. She's a beauty. She's funny, smart, very silly, an amazing reader and has an artistic ability that has already surpassed her mommy's ability (not like that's saying much, but you get the point). She's a joy to have in my life and I consider myself blessed to be able to be home with her as we journey through the world of homeschooling together.

Now let's face it, no one wants to spend too much time in the kitchen on such an important day! I have no problem admitting that I didn't created today's recipe. I have an amazing cookbook called "The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free" by Anne Byrn (Workman Publishing) and this recipe is soooo good. (Interested in purchasing? Just click here: http://www.amazon.com/Cake-Mix-Doctor-Bakes-Gluten-Free/dp/0761161074/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310676883&sr=8-1)

In honor of my Hannah Banana, I made Chocolate Banana Cupcakes with my own "less sweet" buttercream frosting.

Happy Birthday to my sweet girl!

Chocolate Banana Cupcakes

1 package GF chocolate cake mix (I used Betty Crocker)

1 cup mashed ripe bananas

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup vegetable or canola oil

3 large eggs

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly spray 2 cupcake pans with non-stick spray or line the cupcake pans with cupcake liners.

Mix cake mix, bananas, buttermilk, oil, eggs and vanilla in a medium bowl for 30 seconds with an electric mixer on low. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and then mix on medium for 1-2 minutes.

Using an ice cream scoop, fill cupcake cups 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Frost with your favorite frosting or dust with powdered sugar.

When Only a Ridiculous Amount of Chocolate Intensity in Your Mouth Will Do

Let’s face it. There are times in life when you just need something to eat that bursts with richness, decadence and CHOCOLATE. It could be a milestone birthday, a family reunion, a yearly get-together with your old college roommates… or a Tuesday. Hang on. Hear me out.

Tuesday is a wonderful day of the week that is completely overlooked between Good-Grief-the-Weekend-Is-Over Monday and By-Jing-We’ve-Made-It-Halfway Wednesday. Let’s raise a glass… and have some chocolate… in honor of it!

I can justify anything.

So, if you are looking for an intense chocolate experience, look no further. But listen, my friend. Whatever you do, do NOT over bake this one. To waste this celebratory delight because you popped on the phone and forgot all about it would be a crime. Baby it, coddle it, give it your full attention. It will reward your diligence by remaining almost fudgy.

I would like to introduce you to my good friend, the Flourless Chocolate Cake.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

1 pound bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 pound (2 sticks) of butter

1/4 cup sugar

6 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 cup coffee

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9 inch cake or spring form pan. If using a spring form pan, cover the outside of the pan with foil.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan on low. Add chocolate chips 1/4 of a bag at a time to the melted butter. Reheat the mixture until the chocolate chips are melted, being careful not to burn the chocolate. Remove from heat and set aside.

Beat the 6 eggs with the sugar until frothy and light yellow in color. Slowly whisk a small spoonful of chocolate into the egg mixture. Repeat the last step several times. (Do NOT dump all of the chocolate into the egg mixture or it will cook the egg). You don’t want scrambled eggs in your cake!

Once you’ve whisked in several spoons of the chocolate mixture, it is safe to pour the remaining chocolate into the egg mixture. Mix in the salt vanilla and coffee.

Pour batter into your prepared pan and place that pan into a large rectangular baking pan Pour an inch or so of hot water in the larger rectangular baking pan (called a water bath).

Bake for 45 minutes until the center seems set (no jiggling!). Cool on the counter for 10-15 minutes and then place cake in the refrigerator.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving. Serves 8 to 12. Thin slices, this is rich.

NOTE: To bump it up ANOTHER notch, omit the powdered sugar, place a ¼ cup of seedless raspberry jam in a small saucepan and heat until loose. Pour over cooled cake and refrigerate until chilled and set. Wow.

Time to Make the Doughnuts...

There is an orchard near our house that makes the most amazing apple cider doughnuts. These are not the fluffy, airy puffs of dough covered in glaze that you get at a doughnut chain. These are dense, moist, cakey doughnuts, rolled in sugar. They are unreal. They are also completely off limits for this gluten free girl!

So when I stumbled upon a recipe for a doughnut that was quite similar in texture, I knew I had to tweak it! Hence… below you will find a recipe that will forever change your life. Ok, it won’t really, unless of course you eat more than one and your cholesterol levels go sky high. Then it actually WILL change your life.

My doughnuts are made with pumpkin puree… but that doesn’t mean you have to wait until the leaves start changing colors to make them. Make these bad boys for guests, a loved one’s birthday breakfast or to serve a friend with a cup of tea.

Be aware… the dough will be very fragile, so handle carefully when putting them into the hot oil. Once in, they become hearty! I suggest sliding each one on a spatula and then sliding it into the oil. To try and just pick them up will result in torn or oddly shaped doughnuts.

WARNING: The picture below reeks of sheer deliciousness. Please use caution and a paper towel to catch the drool.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Doughnuts

· 2 eggs

· 1 cup sugar

· 2 tablespoons butter, softened

· 1 cup canned pumpkin

· 1 tablespoon lemon juice

· 4 1/2 cups Pamela's Baking Mix (may need an extra ¼, if too sticky)

· 1/2 tsp salt

· 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

· 1 cup evaporated milk

· Oil for Deep Frying (I use canola oil)

· 1 cup sugar

· 2 tsp cinnamon

In a mixing bowl. beat eggs, 1 cup sugar, and butter. Add pumpkin and lemon juice; mix well.

Combine Pamela's, salt, and pumpkin pie spice; add to pumpkin mixture alternately with milk.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup of Pamela's baking mix onto a clean work area. Use an ice cream scoop to measure dough for each doughnut (dough will be sticky). Drop each dough portion onto the prepared work surface. Gently turn until all sides are coated in Pamela's Baking Mix and dough is no longer sticky. Use your hands to gently shape each dough portion into a circle. Press your finger through the center of each dough portion all the way through to the work surface below; move your finger around so that you create a whole in the center of the dough, about 1'' in diameter. Gently transfer shaped dough to a floured cutting board.

In a cast iron dutch oven or deep fat fryer, heat oil to 350 degrees. Fry doughnuts, a few at a time, until golden, about 3 minutes (turn halfway through frying time with a slotted spoon). Drain on paper towel lined plates.

Combine 1 cup sugar and cinnamon; toss warm doughnut in mixture to coat. Makes at least 2 dozen, depending on size of doughnuts.

Cherries, Cherries Everywhere, But Nary-A-One to Spare

I went grocery shopping yesterday and came across some lovely cherries. I hastily grabbed them and added the bag to my cart, not thinking twice about what I would do with them. (Yes, I am an impulse shopper. It’s a dangerous habit and hard to break. Heaven forbid my mom and I go shopping together when we are in one of our impulse shopping moments. It’s not pretty. Not pretty at all.) When I got home, I decided I would try my hand at a cherry crisp recipe. I tucked that idea in the back of my mind and went on with whatever it was I was doing at the time.

Jump ahead to today. Late this morning, my mom and I were doing the oh-so-very thrilling task of washing the mini-blinds in my living room. Tim walked past with something in his hands, looking rather pleased. Upon further inspection, I spotted a handful of freshly washed cherries – my cherries! – in a paper towel. His pleased look was obviously because he loves cherries and had just scored a mighty fine snack. I stopped in my tracks and, with a frantic look in my eyes, said, “WHAT are you doing with those cherries?!?” Poor Tim. Picture a deer in headlights. He hadn’t done anything except get himself a healthy snack and here was his lunatic wife, flipping out about it. Looking confused (as he very well should have) he said, “I… I can’t have them?” Me: “NO! I need exactly 4 CUPS of pitted cherries to make my cherry crisp! What if I don’t have enough?” Again, deer in headlights. “Cherry crisp? What cherry crisp?” So, I calmed down and told him my plan… and he graciously returned the cherries to the bag and sought out another snack.

The kicker is that when all was said and done and I had pitted the cherries needed for the crisp, there was almost the exact amount of cherries left in the bag as Tim had in his hand hours before.

He’s long suffering, it’s true. But – at least he got first dibs on a rockin’ good cherry crisp.

Fresh Cherry Crisp

4 cups pitted, fresh cherries

1 cup white sugar

4 tablespoons gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur brand

1 cup oats

1 cup Pamela’s baking mix

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, mix the cherries, 4 TBS flour and white sugar. Evenly spread the cherry mixture into baking dish.

Combine the oats, Pamela’s baking mix, brown sugar and melted butter together. Crumble evenly over the cherry mixture. Bake for 35 minutes.

Summer, Summer, Summertime!

Summer is not my favorite season. It’s not even on the list of my favorite seasons. If it were up to me, summer would be outlawed. (Perhaps, environmentally speaking, it’s a good thing I haven’t been trusted with great influential power.) Summer is, however, my family’s favorite culinary time of year. It’s corn on the cob season! My husband’s eyes will involuntarily drift to the corn fields around mid-June, scoping out the crops to see if they are getting close to “knee high by the fourth of July”. We are blessed to live near Amish country and love to take full advantage of living so close. Tim’s commute involves driving right past farms with roadside stands of just-picked-this-morning veggies. We do our part to help farmers maintain their land. No need to thank us for this sacrificial act.

By the way, looking for perfect corn on the cob every time? Cobs in pot, covered in cold water. 1 Tbsp sugar, 1 Tbsp lemon juice in the water. Bring to a full boil, leave at full boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, let sit 10 minutes. Serve immediately! OK, on to the real reason for this post…

What to have with our delicious corn? I went with balsamic glazed chicken tenders. It’s slightly sweet, slightly tangy, altogether delicious. Throw some summer fruit on your plate alongside the corn and chicken and you’ve got yourself a pretty healthy summer dinner.

OK… and butter. Because corn on the cob without a little butter is just fundamentally wrong.

Balsamic Glazed Chicken

2/3 cup balsamic vinegar, divided

1 cup chicken broth, divided

4 Tbsp white sugar, divided

2 cloves garlic, minced and divided

2 tsp dried Italian herb seasoning

4 skinless, boneless, skinless chicken breasts or 8 boneless, skinless chicken tenders

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Whisk together 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar, ½ cup broth, 2 Tbsp white sugar, 1 clove of minced garlic and 1 tsp Italian herb seasoning. Pour into a gallon zip bag and add the chicken. Marinate in the fridge for at least a half hour, flipping the bag halfway through.

Repeat directions for the marinade, setting the second batch aside to use after the chicken is cooked.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken from the marinade and cook 5-7 minutes on each side. Remove chicken from the pan, place on a plate and cover with aluminum foil. Add the second batch of the balsamic mixture into the pan, increase the heat and cook until it reduces down and thickens into a glaze, about 10 minutes. Return the chicken to the pan, turning each piece to coat and to reheat through.

I'm on a Roll! (so to speak)

Lest you start to think that I spend my days baking sweet goodie after sweet goodie… I give you… Lasagna Rolls! This was a Giada DiLaurentiis recipe that I trimmed down. “Trimmed down” is my nice way of saying I lightened up on the fat! Giada called for loads of whole milk, whole milk mozzarella and whole milk ricotta… as well as prosciutto! YIKES. So I used 1% milk, part-skim everything else and eliminated the prosciutto altogether. I bumped up the garlic factor and used fresh spinach and made, quite honestly, one humdinger of a pasta dish. The best part is this recipe is great for non-gluten free people, too! Just substitute the GF lasagna noodles for your run-of-the-mill gluten-y ones! The recipe may look intimidating, but it was actually less work than traditional lasagna.

I will be entertaining some vegetarian friends in a few weeks and am pretty sure I’ll be making this recipe. Considering the meal will need to be peanut-free, potato-free, gluten-free AND meat-free, this one fits the bill perfectly!

Oh – one more thing. Did I mention that my kids ate spinach without complaining about it? For that matter, without even realizing it was in there? My daughter just assumed it was the Italian herbs I normally use. This one is looking better and better with every word I type, isn’t it?

Lasagna Rolls

1 Tbsp garlic, minced

4 Tbsp butter

1 ¼ cup milk plus ¼ cup, separated (I use 1%)

4 tsp cornstarch

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

Pinch of ground nutmeg

1 (15oz) container part-skim ricotta cheese

½ bag of fresh spinach, about 4-5 cups

1 cup plus 4 Tbsp grated Parmesan

1 egg

¾ tsp salt, plus more for salting pasta water

½ tsp pepper

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

12 uncooked gluten free pasta noodles (I used Tinkyada), 8 for dinner and 4 extra in case any tear

2 cups marinara sauce

1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

To make the béchamel sauce:

Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and sauté lightly. Add the spinach and stir until wilted, but still nice and green. Remove spinach from pan onto a plastic cutting board. Chop the spinach into smaller pieces.

In the same pan, add the other 2 Tbsp of butter. Once melted, add the 1 ¼ cups of milk, stirring occasionally until heated. Stir together the other ¼ cup of milk and the cornstarch and pour into the hot milk. Stir until thickened. Add salt (to taste), pepper and 2 Tbsp of Parmesan. Stir to combine.

To prepare the pasta:

Add the olive oil to a large pot of boiling, salted water. Boil the noodles until just tender. Drain and rinse thoroughly with cold water.

To make the filling:

Whisk the ricotta, spinach, 1 cup of Parmesan, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Set aside.

To put rolls together:

Spray a 13x9 glass baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the béchamel sauce over the bottom of the baking dish. Lay out a lasagna noodle on a cutting board and spread about 3 Tbsp of the ricotta mixture over each noodle. Starting at one end, roll the noodle up. Lay each roll seam side down in the béchamel sauce, being careful not to let them touch each other. Spoon 1 cup of marinara sauce over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the remaining 2 Tbsp Parmesan and the mozzarella cheese over the rolls.

Cover tightly with foil. Bake until heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese on top becomes golden, about 15 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes.

The additional 1 cup of marinara can be heated and served as an additional sauce for the rolls.