Kid Friendly!

I'm in that season of life where my kids can't seem to coordinate things.

For example, if they would just get their winter colds at the same time, as opposed to having one get sick, then sharing it with the other, who then shares it back again, etc... so that they are sick (off and on) all winter, that would be GREAT.

My kids can't seem to agree on what dinners they like. If one likes it, the other doesn't. Don't get me wrong, I don't make separate meals for my kids. What I make for dinner, I make for dinner and that's that... but it sure would be nice if they BOTH sat down to the dinner table, a look of joy on their sweet faces as they explain, "OH MOTHER! What a wonderful dinner you have prepared for us!"

What! A mama can dream, can't she?

I have, however, come across a dinner that, though it doesn't render them speechless with excitement, DOES get eaten without any complaint. In fact, my 5-year-old actually said, "Oh, THIS chicken? I like THIS chicken!" and my daughter, who generally is a good eater, sat down and munched away.

Can I get an "amen"?

All around, this dinner is actually fun to eat. It's like eating a sourdough pretzel with mustard, only it's a chicken dish. It's fast and easy, and only requires 3 ingredients (unless you decide to dip your tenders in honey mustard dressing, which I highly recommend). And your kids will like it!

Can I get just one more "amen"?

Gluten Free Pretzels 'n Mustard Chicken Tenders

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken tenders
1/4 cup yellow mustard
3-4 cups of gluten free pretzels

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil.

Place the pretzels in a gallon size baggie and smash with a meat mallot or rolling pin until ground into very small pieces. Pour pretzel bits onto a large plate.

Place mustard on another large plate.

Using a basting brush (or your hands if you don't have a brush!), thinly coat a piece of chicken with mustard. Then place the mustard-covered tender in the pretzels bits, flip it over and press down to coat on all sides. Place tender on the cookie sheet and repeat for the rest of the chicken.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 9 minutes, flip the chicken tenders and cook for another 9 minutes.

It's All About Priorities

Summer is here.

You'll notice I didn't end that statement with an exclamation point, as one would do if saying this with some sort of joy or excitement.

No, I ended it with a plan ol' period... because the fact that summer is here is just an obvious observation... one, I should mention, that I am not thrilled about.

I loathe summer.

As a side note, I love the word "loathe"... it's so much better than "hate". Loathing consists of more of a burning hate... it says it all and then some.

Back to summer.....

My friends and family know that the arrival of summer also means the arrival of my hibernation period. I do not sunbathe... mostly because I do not enjoy being burnt to a crisp or uncomfortable sweaty.

Thus, I usually spend the summer working on home projects... reorganizing closets, rearranging and reorganizing the homeschool room... things like that.

This summer, however, has been slightly different. By slightly, I mean completely.

Yes, I have a plethora of projects I should be working on. But really, all I want to do is read. I have a stack of books lined up that I have been meaning to read all year and just haven't gotten to... so all I aspire to do is sit and read.

One does not cross things off one's To Do List whilst sitting on one's tushy, reading.

It's rather easy to get caught up in a good book. Fortunately, my daughter is exactly the same way. So the other day, it was quite the normal afternoon... with the two of us couched out in the living room, reading. My 4-year-old son was happily entertaining himself with some Legos.

Have you ever noticed how time slips by much faster when you are caught up in a good book? Frankly, I think it's an insult to an author to stop reading at the climax of the story just because, say, it's time to make dinner. Consider this... the author poured him or herself into this story, spending countless hours getting the facts straight and the plot perfect. Who am I to put that book down at its peak just because I have a family to feed?

It is at times like these, friends, when you need to have a plan. A dinner-on-the-table-in-30-minutes plan.

I've got one for you.

With this recipe, you can make hot sticky rice, steamed broccoli and the main dish in 30 minutes. I kid you not.

It's summer. It's time to pick up that book, sit that tushy down in your most comfy chair (in the air conditioning!) and get engrossed in your favorite book.

Oh, but first... you may want to print out this recipe. Might just come in handy later today... around 5:00 PM.


















Gluten Free Barbecue Smoked Sausage

1/2 of a medium onion, thinly sliced
1 Tbsp butter
1 lb smoked turkey sausage (or kielbasa), cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 cup ketchup
1/3 to 1/2 cup brown sugar
1-2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, lightly brown sausage. Lower heater to medium and add sliced onion and saute until onion is soft. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a light boil. Lower heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes until sauce is thickened and all flavors have combined, stirring occasionally.

Serve over hot rice. Makes 4 servings.

A Journey of Learning

I've been gluten free for about 2 1/2 years now. I remember those early days of trying to sort through all the information and recipes to figure out what to eat. Because seriously, I believed I was doomed to eat cheese and apples for the rest of my life. (I didn't say I was rational during that time.)

So much has changed since then. I am confident enough with my gf cooking to entertain non-gf friends in my home... and I serve only gf foods. It's been a journey of trial and error... of learning.

What I hope to do, through this blog... through connections on Facebook and through people... it to help ease the burdens of others who are on this gf journey, too. If I can help to navigate the recipes or walk a newbie through the local grocery store with a gf perspective, I will. It's a scary time, in the beginning, figuring out what is safe and what is not... mourning things you will never taste again... it feels like starting over in the kitchen.

One thing I have learned is that there is always room for improvement. Early on, I played around with a pizza crust recipe. The results were the best I had eaten up to that time and I was excited to share the recipe! Recently, though, I decided to work on it again. With just a little tweaking, I found I loved it more! The crust has more flavor, is chewier... and requires less time (no rising!).

We are on this journey together, my friend! May I encourage you to share what you know with others just starting out? In the meantime, I'll share my updated pizza crust with you.

You know it's because I love you, right? Good.

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

1 ½ cups warm water (around 110 degrees)

2 Tbsp sugar

1 packet of yeast

1 cup brown rice flour 

1 cup sorghum flour

2 cups tapioca starch

2 tsp xanthan gum

2 tsp salt

4 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  paddle attachment on medium high speed until the dough comes together, about 5 minutes.

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). Add sauce, cheese and any toppings you choose. You can also add a little Italian seasoning over the cheese for more flavor. Bake for 20-25 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.

Dinner in a Hurry

It was one of those days today.

After getting through various subjects during our homeschool day, we snarfed down some lunch, threw ourselves into the car and headed out for an afternoon of errands. I had planned my errand run so that they were (miraculously) all west of where we live. As we banged out errand after errand, I was pleased with how smoothly things were going... and how I was actually able to accomplish everything on my list.

It's such an adrenaline rush... crossing off everything on your list. (Or is that just one of my quirks? Huh.)

We would get home with more than enough time for me to plan and execute a nice dinner for all. No rushing, no panicking... just planning and executing.

Then, in a split second, I blew it all to pieces. I mentioned to my mom, who had come along for the ride (literally) that I needed to get to the library STAT because my 3rd grade avid reader was desperate for something new to read. She has read every age appropriate book in my house. Twice.

Now, I should mention that my mom is the epitome of fun. She loves spontaneity and adventure (the non-adventurous type of adventure... like trying a new restaurant, things like that). So when I mentioned the need for the library run, she immediately jumped on it, saying we could throw that into our afternoon of errands.

Some of her spontaneity must have sloughed off of her and landed on me, because I agreed to it. I should mention, as well, that I am NOT the epitome of fun, spontaneity or adventure (the non-adventurous type or the adventurous type!). Nevertheless, off we went.

Did I mention the library is 20 minutes east of our home? Not in the westward plan.

30+ books later, we were headed back home. My backseat was filled with contented children, reading their newly acquired library books.

Remember my plan? My plan to plan and execute a lovely dinner? Out the window.

I came home, brought all the books and various items from our errands into the house, set the kids up with their books on the couch... and ran into the kitchen.

I floated between the fridge and cupboards, frantically looking for something to feed my family.

It's times like these that I love food that can be thrown (sometimes literally) together. Within 30 minutes, I had dinner on the table. And... AND.... it was yummy! Whew.

So what you have below is more of a guideline. There is so much wiggle room in this recipe, it's ridiculous. I've done this before for you, Reader, and I'll probably do it again.

Enjoy experimenting! But may I suggest waiting until a day where you lose your mind and spontaneously throw more on your plate than originally planned? That day where you won't possibly be able to throw dinner together in time?

This might make you look like a culinary rock star.

Gluten Free Pineapple Fried Rice

• 4 cups cooked white rice (or brown rice, or Nishiki sticky rice)
• 1/4 cup diced onion (red or sweet... or scallions)
• 1 cup diced ham (deli or cubed ham steak)
• 1/2 cup green peas (or edamame, or snow peas, or sugar snap peas)
• 1 (8oz) can pineapple chunks, drained (or 1 cup fresh)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 Tbsp white sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder (or more, if you want)
• 1/4 cup gluten free soy sauce (or gf tamari)

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add non-stick cooking spray to coat. Cook and stir the onion, ham, and peas in the hot pan until onions have softened, about 2 minutes. Stir the pineapple chunks into the pan; cook until pineapple begins to darken, about 2 minutes.

In a small non-stick pan, cook eggs to scrambled. Add to the onion mixture and stir to combine.

Mix the rice, sugar, salt, pepper, and garlic powder into the pan; stirring constantly. Cook until heated through, about 3 minutes. Add the soy sauce, and stir to combine.

Serves 4.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink....

You know that moment when you know you need to go grocery shopping but haven't yet gotten there and it's time to figure out something for dinner? It's usually around that time that I implement my method called "something that lets me throw whatever is left in the refrigerator together to make a meal fit for a king... or at least my 3-year-old". It's a highly complicated method that requires years of training and practice.

That, or a refrigerator full of compatible leftovers or scraps of odds and ends.

Enter the quiche.
Quiche is really just a pie with an egg base that allows you to throw anything you like into it. Literally. I've known people who threw leftover french fries into their quiche and loved it. Veggies, meat, cheese, fungus (aka mushrooms)... you name it, you can put it in there.

Have you heard the saying that baking is a science but cooking is an art? Well, here's the chance to stretch your culinary creativity. If you've never experimented with quiche, now's the time to start.

Most of all... have fun with your food. Remember... it's an art!

Gluten Free Mix-and-Match Quiche

8 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp of whatever seasoning you want.... yellow mustard, rosemary, thyme, garlic powder, etc...
6-8 oz of diced ham... or bacon, turkey, sausage, steak, etc......
1 cup steamed and chopped broccoli... cubed potato, mushrooms, artichokes, brussel spouts, etc........
1/4 cup finely chopped onion.... chives, scallions, shallots, etc.......
2 oz shredded muenster cheese.... monterey jack, colby, swiss, etc......
2 oz shredded sharp cheddar.... or any other sharp cheese you like!

Preheat oven to 374 degrees and spray a 9-inch pie pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper and whatever seasoning you decide to add.

In the prepared pie pan, toss together the meat, veggie, onion and cheeses of your choice and spread evenly in the bottom of the pan.

Pour the egg mixture over everything and back for 40-50 minutes until golden brown on top and the center is set.

Serves 4-6 people.

Convinced

So I’ve been on this quinoa kick.

(For those of you who are looking at that word with a quizzical look, it’s pronounced /keen-wah/. Want to learn about it? Check out this link: http://vegetarian.about.com/od/glossary/g/whatisquinoa.htm.)

I really want to find (healthy) alternatives to the usual rice or the forbidden couscous… and quinoa was something that I had heard a lot about, but never really tried. I was in my beloved Wegman’s a while ago, saw the package in the gluten free section and entered into the realm of the impulse purchase. (I do that. A lot.)

The big question mark on this journey into all things quinoa was my sweet husband. Tim loves - as I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts - meat and potatoes, broccoli and rice, pasta, seafood and all the other basics of cooking. He can be… wary… of the introduction of substitutions for the “real” stuff. Quinoa would fit into that definition. Considering the fact that my husband NEVER complains about what I make for dinner (including the occasional bowl of cereal), I try to be mindful and experiment more with my mom… who, culinarily speaking, is up for basically anything.

My first experiment with quinoa was the vegetable quinoa soup, also found on this blog. It is amazing. The problem, though, was that the flavor of the quinoa was masked by all the other strong flavors going on in the soup. The quinoa really served as a texture in the soup… to give it more body. It didn’t get to shine.

So, round two. Quinoa Patties, again found on this blog. YUM. These were sampled only by my mom and me and we both agreed they were creamy, comforting… and the garlic mayo set it over the top. When Tim called from work to check in on everyone, I mentioned the quinoa experiment in progress. He was obviously relieved, though he didn’t actually say the words. His voice, however, reeked of relief.

On to round three. This time, he wasn’t getting out of the experiment. I found a recipe on www.soveryblessed.com for Quinoa Pizza Bites and slightly altered it… really just to make it even easier for me to throw together. I made these for dinner last night. My 7-year-old ate it and liked it. My 3-year-old tried it and announced he liked it, but wanted yogurt. (Ah, to be three.) Both my mom and I thought they were delicious and worthy to be put into my recipe arsenal. And my husband… well, he skeptically dove in and found that he really liked it! Said it was "quite good".

I’m so proud of him.

All you need is a little marinara sauce on the side and you’ll be amazed how much these little guys taste like pizza. Oh, and if you want to keep this completely vegetarian, just substitute some diced cherry tomatoes for the pepperoni and it will be equally delicious.

Now – on to round four? I wonder what else I can do with my new friend, Quinoa……

Gluten Free Quinoa Pizza Bites

1 cup uncooked quinoa

2 cups water

2 large eggs

½ to 1 cup onion, chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tsp Italian seasoning

½ tsp salt

½ cup chopped pepperoni (or diced cherry tomatoes)

Place the quinoa and water in a medium saucepan fitted with a lid. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to low and let cook for 20 minutes until tender. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a non-stick muffin tin with non-stick spray.

Mix together all ingredients in a large bowl and distribute mixture into the muffin tin, making 12 muffins.  Press down on each one gently with wet hands to compact.

Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden on the edges. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Serve warm with marinara sauce.

Mistaken Identity

I don’t know what’s going on with me. I used to be a meat and potatoes girl. Now I find myself experimenting with things like hummus…. and today’s ingredient, quinoa.

What is happening to me?

I’m not interested in hamburgers as much anymore. Sure, I’ll enjoy a good burger at Cheeseburger in Paradise (who, by the way, has a rockin’ gluten free menu!)… but when I set out to cook, burgers aren’t anywhere near the top of my list. Ground beef, for that matter, isn’t up there.

I’m married to a meat and potatoes guy. He comes from a meat and potatoes father. My dad was a meat and potatoes man. My brother? Meat and potatoes.

Maybe I’m just stretching my culinary wings. Yes, that’s it.

What scares me is that my mom has one foot firmly planted in the vegetarian world. (The other foot, incidentally, is firmly planted in the bacon world.) For the record, I’m not scared of vegetables. I like them, for the most part. And I’m very interested in experimenting with them, within reason. I just don’t want to make the full leap into vegetarianism.

For some reason, in my little brain, I think I’m on that road. Now, I have plenty of friends who happily live a vegetarian life. They are creative and healthy and make delicious food. I know I’d be happy with the meals.

I think the part that scares me is IF (and I mean IF) I am heading down that road… that means I would be attempting to cook gluten free, peanut free, potato free AND vegetarian food. And that exhausts me just thinking about it.

I think I need a slice of bacon.

Gluten Free Quinoa Patties

1 ¼ cups cooked quinoa, room temperature

2 eggs, slightly beaten

¼ tsp salt

2 Tbsp parsley, chopped

1 Tbsp butter

½ sweet onion, finely chopped

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (better to grate your own rather than use the canned)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup gluten free bread crumbs (I pulsed 3 pieces of gf bread in the food processor until crumbs)

1 Tbsp oil

In a small sauté pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and sauté until softened. Remove from heat and immediately add the minced garlic. Stir to incorporate and warm garlic through. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the quinoa, eggs, salt, parsley, onion-garlic mixture and parmesan cheese. Add ½ cup of bread crumbs. Mix together and let sit for a minute. Test the consistency of the mixture to see if it able to be formed into a small patty. If needed, add more bread crumbs until desired consistency is achieved.

Shape mixture into 6 small patties.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the 6 patties and cook until deeply browned. Flip and repeat. Remove from pan.

Serve with a garlic mayonnaise. (1/4 cup of mayo with 3 cloves of chopped roasted garlic.)

Soup's On!

Since embarking on my journey to embrace more soup (not literally, obviously…. hugging one’s soup leads to much pain and many burns) I have been surprisingly pleased. I have found that soup really is my friend and although I don’t think I’ll ever say something like, “Boy, could I go for a nice bowl of soup right about now!”, I do believe that I may come to a place where homemade soup becomes a regular occurrence in this house.

I’m not there yet, but I’m working on it.

It’s recipes like this one that really help move me onward towards that goal. Something hearty, with lots of deep flavor… that’s what is required in order for me to sit down to a bowl of soup. Chicken broth and some spindly noodles ain’t cutting it, folks.

Now… when I add to this equation the fact that it’s a crock pot meal… well, NOW you’ve got my attention! Not only do I not have to do a lot of work, but there is something to smelling your dinner cooking all day that makes you anticipate it. For someone who isn’t a soup lover, that’s a very good thing!

Best of all, you can change things up in this one. Rather than a regular can of diced tomatoes, try using the diced tomatoes with green chilies in it. Add diced jalapeno… or turkey instead of chicken… or whatever else floats your boat!

Most of all, have fun!

(Did I really just encourage to have fun with soup? I must be getting closer to my goal after all!)

Gluten Free Chicken Taco Soup

1 onion, chopped

1 (15 oz) can black beans

1 (15 oz) can creamed corn

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1 ½ cups chicken stock

2 (10 oz) cans diced tomatoes (do not drain)

1 pouch taco seasoning of your choice

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Toppings of your choice (optional): shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, corn chips, etc…

Place the chopped onion, black beans, corn, chicken stock, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes in the slow cooker. Add the taco seasoning and stir to combine. Lay the chicken breasts on top of everything, press down slightly to submerge. Cook on low for 5 hours.

Remove the chicken breasts, shred and return to the slow cooker for another hour. Serve with toppings.

Serves 8.

Happiness in a Bowl

I have yet to find a recipe that is “too rich”. You know what I mean, right? When someone takes a bite of some deeply chocolate dessert or multi-layered pasta dish and says, “Goodness! I can’t eat this, it’s muhh-ch too rich!” Usually, you’ll find me staring at them with a completely blank countenance. I cannot fathom that idea.

But – we need to live a balanced life. Or so I’m told.

I do enjoy “lighter” fare. Perhaps a better description would be “guilt free”. It’s nice to sit down to a meal and know that it’s fair game… no gluten, low fat and full of flavor. I often try to “lighten” heavy dishes… not because they are “muhh-ch too rich”… but because they are WAY too fattening.

Today’s recipe is the cream of the crop. It is warm, it is comfort, it is low fat, it is gluten free and it is guilt free. You read that right.

I know. If you could reach through the screen and hug me, you would. I accept the gesture.

Whip up a big ol’ batch of this and freeze some. When you need a hearty meal that is free of all guilt, grab this little guy out of your freezer and enjoy.
It really is happiness in a bowl.

Gluten Free Quinoa Vegetable Soup

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 ½ cups carrots, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

1 cup onion, chopped

2/3 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

Salt and pepper, to taste

4 cups chicken (or vegetable) stock

2 cups water

15 oz tomato sauce (be daring and use your favorite marinara sauce… amazing!)

1 ½ cups red skin potatoes, cut into bite-sized cubes with skin still on

2 garlic cloves, minced


In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and quinoa. Season with salt and pepper. Saute for 5 minutes until onions start to become translucent. Add stock, water and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil. Add potatoes and garlic, stir to combine. Bring to a light boil. Cover and let cook until potatoes are soft. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.

This Chick Is All Chickened Out

There are times when I find myself walking to the fridge and staring inside at its contents… uninspired with my options. While I try to keep things lighter with pork or chicken, I can get very bored with them. You can make chicken a million different ways, but it’s still chicken. Don’t get me wrong, I like chicken… but sometimes this chick needs variety!

So once in a while, I whip out ham. I love ham. I make a mean ham at Christmas and Easter. So, to add ham to my menu once in a while is a real treat. This particular recipe is reminiscent of Easter dinner with the addition of pineapple in it.

If you have picky eaters in the house, I urge you to try this. It’s naturally sweetened with pineapple juice (except for a couple of tablespoons of brown sugar). It sits on a bed of unbuttered rice. Toss some steamed broccoli on the side and your kids will have a great alternative they’ll love!*

*This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This meal is not intended to cure your picky eater of their pickiness. Any likeness to your picky eater is purely coincidental.

Ham Pineapple Skillet

2 Tbsp butter

2 ½ cups cubed, cooked ham

¼ cup onion, chopped

1 (20oz) can pineapple, drained with juice reserved

½ cup water

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp brown sugar

2 tsp yellow mustard

2 Tbsp cornstarch

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the ham and cook until heated through. Add the pineapple chunks.

In a medium bowl, combine the reserved pineapple juice, water vinegar, brown sugar and mustard. Reserve ¼ cup of this mixture and pour the rest in with the ham and pineapple. To the reserved pineapple juice, add the cornstarch and stir until smooth. Once the ham and pineapple skillet is reheated through, add the cornstarch juice. Stir to combine.

Increase heat to medium-high and reduce juices until a thick sauce, about 10-15 minutes, stirring often.

Serve over rice or buttered noodles. Serves 4.

Kung POW! This One's a Knockout!

With November comes my husband’s birthday. Since there are many dishes he loves that, frankly, make me gag (think crab, fish, most Chinese food) I try my darnedest to give him a little treat… a little taste… of the things I don’t make for him the rest of the year. (You know, on paper… that sentence sounds incredibly selfish. Huh.)

Anyhoo….

Last year, it was Shrimp Fra Diavolo. *shudder* Nasty stuff, but he loved it. So, mission accomplished. This year, I wanted to go a different route… maybe something in the Chinese food world. But, I knew that I would also be feeding the kids, my mom and my aunt who is visiting us from Ohio. Why is that a potential problem? Tim loves spicy food. The spicier, the better. Why, I’ll never know. Personally, I like to be able to actually taste my food, not melt the inside of my mouth. But that’s another subject.

So typically, I would make him a spicy dish. Since I wouldn't be cooking for just Tim, I needed to keep the spice level down. Way down. This year, I went with Kung Pao Chicken. And by jing, it was quite good! Not spicy, bursting with flavor… and my daughter even liked it! (Truthfully, that’s not much of a shocker. The shocker would have been if my 3 year old liked it, but since he doesn’t like much, I didn’t bother with him. Better to focus on the positive, right?)

I served this up with some sticky rice (…yummmmmmm) and steamed broccoli. It was simple, it was easy, it was delicious. Sorry, by the way, for the slightly blurry picture. It was my hubby’s big day and I just took a quick shot to be able to show you the dish.

Cheesy pun coming your way, courtesy of Katie…

Want a little Kung POW on your tongue? Try this Kung Pao!

Gluten Free Kung Pao Chicken

¼ cup Catalina dressing, divided

¼ cup peanut or almond butter

1 Tbsp GF soy sauce

2 tsp chili sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbsp minced gingerroot

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces

In a small bowl, mix together 2 Tbsp Catalina dressing, peanut/almond butter, soy sauce and chili sauce until combined.

In a large skillet, add the remaining dressing and warm on medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for about a minute. Turn the heat up for medium-high and add the chicken, stirring frequently. Cook for about 2 minutes then add the peanut/almond butter mixture. Cook for about 7 minutes until the chicken in cooked through, stirring frequently to scrap up brown bits from the bottom of the pan.

Serve over rice with a side of steamed broccoli. Serves 4.

Soup? Or a Cheeseburger? YES!

I have this strange quirk about me. You see, I love to make soup. It’s probably one of my most favorite things to cook. I love to chock my soups full of veggies and deep flavors. There’s only one problem.

I don’t really like soup. I endure soup, but it’s never really a culinary event for me. Know what I mean?

I know, I know. Quirky. What this phenomenon has done, though, is set me on a quest to find soups I really do like! So be prepared, there will most likely be a lot of soup recipes on this blog in the future. The ones already posted… Broccoli Cheese, Creamy Cauliflower… they are probably the top two out of three soups I like. What’s the third, you ask?

After covering the veggie-based soups, I wanted to find something really different. Not your everyday chicken noodle or even the beloved Italian Wedding Soup. Thus, I give you… Cheeseburger Soup.

This is one hearty soup. Save this recipe for a cold winter’s night when you’ve been out all day and are chilled to the core. This soup will thaw you right out. It begins deep within, slowly warming your chill. Don’t eat this at the table, though. Grab a bowl, spoon, blanket and your favorite movie and feast on it whilst curled up on the couch.

Now, you see? That, my friend, is a culinary event worth having.

Gluten Free Cheeseburger Soup

1 Tbsp butter

½ lb ground beef

¾ cup chopped onion

¾ cup shredded carrots

¾ cup chopped celery

3 cups chicken stock

4 cups cubed potatoes

¼ cup cornstarch

2 cups cubed cheddar cheese

1 ½ cups low-fat milk, divided

¼ cup light sour cream

2-3 tsp yellow mustard

1 Tbsp ketchup

In a large soup pot, melt 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat. Add ground beef and cook until browned. Add onion, carrots and celery and cook until slightly tender.

Add the chicken stock and potatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 10-12 minutes.

Add 1 ¼ cups of milk, bring almost to a boil, stirring occasionally. In a small bowl, mix together remaining ¼ cup milk and the cornstarch. Add to the soup and stir until it becomes thickened. Lower heat and add cheese, mustard and ketchup (when cheese is almost completely incorporated, taste test to see if more mustard and/or ketchup is needed). When the cheese is melted, add the sour cream and heat through, but do not return to a boil. Serve immediately or refrigerate and reheat at a later time.

Serves 8.

Cauli-WHAT?

I don’t like cauliflower. I really, really want to like it, though. It’s pretty, it’s good for me… what’s not to like? I’ve tried it raw, cooked, covered in cheese, dripping in butter, mashed like potatoes… all with the same results. Gagging.

Until now.

Creamy Cauliflower Soup. I like creamy. I… sort of like soup, mostly when it’s creamy. So why not, right? One last hurrah before giving up on cauliflower.

This recipe is a 6 on the scale of 1 to 10 for labor intensive, mostly because it requires pureeing the cooked veggies to ensure maximum silky smoothness. There are two kinds of labor intensiveness, “Well THAT wasn’t really worth the effort” or “Yowzers, that’s yummy!” This definitely falls into the Yowzers Category, which is why I didn’t place this recipe higher than a 6. It’s completely worth the work involved.

Trying to get your kids to eat more veggies? Try this. It’s creamy (did I mention I like creamy?), it’s mild. IT’S COMFORT FOOD. It actually tastes a little like cream of broccoli soup.

But really, the biggest reason you should try this is because this girl, the one who has gagged her way through endless cauliflower dishes, LOVES THIS.

‘Nough said.

Gluten Free Creamy Cauliflower Soup

1 large head cauliflower, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups water

2 Tbsp butter

2 ½ cups chicken stock, divided

2 Tbsp cornstarch

Salt and pepper, to taste

Dash of nutmeg

½ cup heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream)

In a large pot, place cauliflower, celery, onion and water. Cover. Bring water to a boil and cook veggies until tender. Puree veggies (with water) in batches in a blender until smooth.

In the same large pot (wiped clean), add butter and melt over medium heat. Add 2 cups of chicken stock and heat to just before boiling. In a small bowl, mix together remaining ½ cup chicken stock and cornstarch. Add to pot, stirring as you add. Continue to stir until the stock boils and thickens. Stir in pureed veggies, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Bring just to a slight boil. Remove from burner.

Add heavy cream and heat through (do not boil) on lower heat. Serve with a small sprinkle of grated cheese. Serves 8 (one cup servings).

Fuhgetaboutit!

There are certain things in my house that give me great joy… mostly because I can “set it and forget it”.

First, the dishwasher. I can remember, in one of our pre-kids apartments, mentioning to Tim that the sound of a dishwasher running in the evening was so relaxing, mostly because it was the sound of dishes being cleaned… without me doing them.

Second, the washer and dryer. When shopping, I purposely avoid buying any article of clothing with the wretched words “hand wash only” or “lay flat to dry” on the tag. I mean, really. The majority of women purchasing the clothing are most likely working full-time in the working world or working full-time in the home… or a happily retired lady who is way too busy with her social schedule. Either way, who has time to hand wash clothing? Any way you look at it, the washer and dryer are lovely things. You pop in your dirty stuff and an hour or so later you have clean, fresh clothing, towels and sheets!

Third, the slow cooker. Seriously now. 15 minutes or so of work in the morning and – voila! – a scrumptious, warm dinner waiting for you. One pot, no sweating over the stove or watching the oven to make sure you don’t burn dinner to a blackened crisp.

I usually utilize the slow cooker on those days when I know that dinner won’t even cross my mind until, at the earliest, Tim is walking in the door. Yesterday, I kept thinking about making a stew only to realize at 4:30pm that this particular recipe was an all-day slow cooker meal.

Note to self: CHECK THE RECIPE. EARLY.

So because of my goof, tonight’s dinner was Slow Cooker Beef Stew. Sure, it wasn’t one of those crazy days. Both Tim and I were home all day… but there was still great satisfaction in knowing that dinner was percolating away and I wasn’t doing a darn thing. At least not having to do with dinner.

Gluten Free Slow Cooker Beef Stew

1 ½ to 2 lbs cubed stew meat

¼ cup rice flour

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

1 bay leaf

2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

4 medium red potatoes, cubed

2 stalks celery, thinly sliced

1 onion, chopped

2 cups beef stock

Place the stew meat in the bottom of the slow cooker. Sprinkle the rice flour, salt and pepper and toss to coat the meat. Add the bay leaf, carrots, celery, potatoes and onion. Toss everything completely. Pour beef stock over everything. Set slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours. Remove bay leaf and serve. Serves 8.

Cheater!

Cravings. They are just not our friends, are they? You go along... doing your thing... eating right and feeling great when all of a sudden - WHAM! - it hits. Something comes to mind that you haven't eaten in ages and is a total no-no... whether it's because it's chocked full of gluten or it has more fat in it than you are supposed to consume in a week... or BOTH.

I mentioned in a previous post ("Chinese Food, My Way") that I love... love... love... Sweet and Sour Chicken. The only problem is that I just cannot justify the deep fried chicken in sugary sweet sauce. It just screams "guilty conscience". So, I don't eat it. I just dream about it.

Often.

I do have, however, a really yummy recipe for a much lighter version of my beloved S&S Chicken. The chicken isn't breaded and deep fried and the sauce is not as sickeningly sweet. It's a light, gluten free AND diet-friendly version that I go to when I'm really feelin' the craving for the evil version.

Get thee back, Chinese takeout Sweet and Sour Chicken!

Gluten Free Sweet and Sour Chicken

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/4 cup chicken stock

2 stalks celery, cut on the bias

1 onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup each yellow and red pepper, cut in strips

1/3 cup pineapple juice

2-3 Tbsp brown sugar

2 Tbsp rice vinegar

4 tsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp tamari sauce (or soy sauce)

3/4 cup pineapple chunks

Cut chicken in strips. In a large skillet brink the chicken and stock to a summer over medium heat. Add celery, onion and peppers. Cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. Mix together the juice, vinegar, brown sugar, cornstarch and tamari sauce in a small bowl until blended. Add to skillet and bring to a boil. Cook for about 2 minutes until thickened. Add pineapple chunks. Simmer for about 2 minutes until heated through.

Serve over rice. Serves 4 people.

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

It’s been raining here… a lot. 

People are posting things on Facebook like “there’s a river running through the store” and “gotta go round up two of every animal”. 

On days like these, I don’t want something elaborate for dinner. I also feel like anything remotely close to picnic fare would be completely inappropriate. It’s simply impossible to imagine oneself on a picnic when there is a deluge going on outside.

Rainy, dark days call for one thing. Soup. It’s usually a one pot meal, it’s comforting… and it doesn’t take a lot of effort to eat. Because, let’s face it. Rainy, dark days make a person rather groggy. (Or is that just me?)

So as I looked through the possibilities in my fridge today, I decided to pull out an ol’ stand-by for days like this. Broccoli Cheese Soup.

It’s warm, it’s creamy and it’s got your daily veggies, dairy and oil requirements covered for the day… and you’ll only dirty one pot. Not bad for a groggy girl.

What’s your rainy day meal? I’ll try yours if you’ll try mine!

Gluten Free Broccoli Cheese Soup

2 Tbsp butter

2 ½ cups fresh broccoli, cut into small pieces

¼ cup chopped onion

2 cups chicken stock

1 ¼ cup milk, divided

2 Tbsp cornstarch

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

¼ cup sour cream

In a big pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and stir until bright green and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add 1 cup of milk and heat through. In a small bowl, mix together ¼ cup milk and cornstarch. Add to the soup and stir until thickened. Remove pot from heat and add the cheese, stirring until melted and completely combined. Add salt and pepper, if needed. Add sour cream and stir to combine. Serve immediately. Serves 4-5.

Who Are You Calling Turkey?

I love the alternatives we have available to us today. Turkey, for example, is being used in so many creative ways. Besides the usual suspects of bacon and hot dogs, I’ve even seen turkey ham! Not sure, exactly, how that works considering that ham comes from a pig and turkey comes from, well, turkey… but I think sometimes it’s better to just not ask.

I was especially excited to give turkey bacon a try when it first appeared some years back. I bought it, brought it home and wasted no time in whipped up a few slices. As I fried the slices, I dreamed of crispy, salty deliciousness containing a quarter of the fat of its regular counterpart. I was most egregiously disappointed. It was flimsy, it was chewy.

It was nasty.

It was then that I hopped off the turkey bandwagon. Temporarily. It wasn't until I spotted turkey kielbasa one day that I decided to give it another try. So glad I did!

You have to be just a little bit more on the gentle side with it, but otherwise… it’s yummy. Hillshire Farms Turkey Kielbasa and Turkey Sausage are both gluten free!

Today’s recipe is a light, slightly sweet meal that is a snap to make. Try it – I think you’ll get on the turkey bandwagon, too!

Hey, listen. If you just can’t get yourself to like turkey for some reason, it’s OK. Go ahead and make this with regular ol’ kielbasa or sausage. It will still rock.

Gluten Free Turkey Kielbasa with Caramelized Onions and Apple

2 lbs turkey kielbasa or smoked sausage, cut into slices on the bias

2 Tbsp oil

3 onions, thinly sliced

½ tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

¼ cup butter

2 apples, thinly sliced

1 ¾ cups chicken stock

1 tsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp water

1 tsp sugar, optional

Over medium-high heat, heat oil in a large, deep skillet and add kielbasa or sausage. Brown the meat and remove from the pan to a plate. Lower the heat to medium-low and in the same skillet add the butter until melted. Add onions and cook until caramelized (about 10-15 minutes), using the butter and onion to deglaze the pan. Stir in the apple slices and chicken stock and bring to a brisk simmer.

In a small bowl, mix together the water and cornstarch until smooth. Add to skillet and stir until thickened. Add the kielbasa or sausage back into the pan and stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. If needed to balance flavors, add one tsp of sugar and stir to combine. Serve alone in a bowl or over buttered noodles or rice. Serves 6.

Shhhhh.....

I know. There are days when you just don’t feel like cooking. It’s a hot day or it’s a busy day or it’s just one of THOSE days. Doesn’t matter what the day is, the point is when a day like that comes around it’s good to have something in your arsenal that takes care of YOU, rather than you taking care of it.

You are looking for a dinner recipe that is your friend.

I have one of those. I’m even willing to share it with you. But there is a catch.

You must never, ever tell ANYONE sitting around your table how embarrassingly easy it was to make. If you do, it will unravel the very foundation that is the Secret Recipe Society. An entire underground network of women will essentially crumble into nothingness, leaving moms and wives with no choice but to frantically run about the kitchen, rummaging through cupboards to find something for dinner.

You don’t want to single-handedly be responsible for such a catastrophe, now do you?

Repeat after me: “I solemnly promise to neither admit nor deny the lack of difficulty in making the recipe below. If approached, I promise to skirt the issue completely, using every known tactic to avoid answering any questions. I also promise to accept, whole-heartedly, any accolades that are expressed from the recipients of this meal. I will only share this recipe with those I fully trust to handle the magnitude of responsibility needed to preserve and protect the Secret Recipe Society.”

You know, now I’m questioning whether I should have put this recipe on a public blog site. And who is that repeatedly knocking on my door?

Uh-oh.

Gluten Free Pulled Pork BBQ

1 can of Coke or Pepsi

1 2-lb pork tenderloin

1 bottle of BBQ sauce (I use Sweet Baby Ray’s Hickory and Brown Sugar)

Place the tenderloin in a slow cooker. Pour the can of soda it. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. Drain the liquid from the slow cooker. Shred the pork and return to the slow cooker. Add BBQ sauce and stir to combine.

Southern Roots?

There are times I’m sure that somewhere in my heritage there are Southern Roots. Not sure how that’s possible, logistically speaking, since my father’s side of the family is Italian and lives in New Jersey and my mom’s side is German/Irish/English and hails from Ohio. There has to be a little bit o’ southern in there, I’m sure of it. That would explain my love of all things cornbread.

Yes, I’m on that subject again.

I do love it so. Because of my love affair with cornbread, I look for any opportunity to incorporate it into my meals. Can you imagine my joy when I came across something called Creamed Ham on Cornbread? Oh joyous day! This is one of those “all-in-one” dishes… unless, of course, you feel overly ambitious and throw some side dishes out there, too! But in this house, to add side dishes would be downright wrong. The possibility of marring the loveliness on the tongue with other flavors would do this dish a disservice.

It wants to shine alone. And I, for one, am not going to allow anything to steal its spotlight. We have an agreement, Creamed Ham on Cornbread and I, to let it be the star of the evening when it is on the menu.

For the record, the food I cook does not literally talk to me… I just have a sixth sense about these things.

Call me the Dish Whisperer.

Gluten Free Creamed Ham on Cornbread

1 recipe for gluten free cornbread (cut the sugar to 1/3 cup)

2 Tbsp butter

1 tsp minced dried onion

½ tsp dry mustard

1 Tbsp cornstarch

1 ¼ cups of milk, divided

½ cup Colby Jack or Cheddar cheese

1 ½ cups diced ham

1 cup canned green beans

Make cornbread as directed (see link above).

In a large skillet, melt butter. Add dried onion and stir for 1 minute. Add 1 cup of milk and heat to a pre-boil. Add dry mustard and stir or whisk to incorporate.

In a small bowl, mix together remaining ¼ cup of milk and cornstarch. Add to heated milk and stir until thickened. Reduce heat to low.

Cut cheese into small cubes and add to skillet, stirring constantly until the cheese is melted. Fold in the diced ham and green beans and stir gently until ham and beans are heated through.

Serve creamed ham over a square of cornbread. Serves 4.

Sacrificial Love

If someone were to ask me to name foods I can live without… the top three on my list are probably the top three on my husband’s “Foods I Love” list. Steak, mushrooms, seafood. I can eat steak and sometimes I even enjoy it, but I have never craved it. Mushrooms, if mixed in with other things are virtually undetectable and therefore edible. Slap a large portabella mushroom on my plate, though, and it’s just not going to make it into this girl’s mouth. No matter how much I will myself to do it, it’s just not going in.

Seafood, however, will never cross my lips. It’s completely and utterly a psychological issue. They are creepy, crawly ugly things. We shove them in boiling water, toss them on a plate, crack open their exoskeleton and eat what’s inside. Personally, that makes my stomach turn. Repeatedly.

My husband, though, loves it. He practically trembles when we vacation in Chincoteague, VA because it means soft shell crab is on his menu at some point during the trip. I have ventured into the seafood realm far enough to make him some Balsamic Glazed Salmon… and even Shrimp Fra Diavolo for his birthday… but I must confess that I was slightly gagging while making both. (Which, in my mind, is just a testament to how much I love my husband. Right?)

Once in a while I’ll have a tender moment in Wegman’s Market when I feel sorry for my husband who has a wife who doesn’t cook some of his favorite foods. So I’ll grab some mushrooms and steak. This past weekend’s trip to the grocery store included one of those tender moments.

Hence, tonight’s dinner of Steak Stroganoff.

The beauty of this recipe is that it actually is two recipes in one. If you omit the very last ingredient (cream cheese) you have a lovely, slightly thickened mushroom gravy to pour over a perfectly grilled steak. Add the cream cheese and you have Steak Stroganoff!

My hubby thoroughly enjoyed his steak and mushrooms tonight. Do you think the fact that he isn’t sure when – or if - he’ll get this meal from his wife again may have made it even tastier for him? (Poor guy.)

Sacrificial love on both sides, isn’t it? He sacrifices some of his favorites for me… I sacrifice a settled stomach to cook things for him. *wink*

PS – I can’t conclude this post without telling you a scary truth: I really liked this meal. It was creamy and gentle and the steak was yummy. DON’T TELL MY HUSBAND.

Gluten Free Steak Stroganoff

1 (1 lb) flank steak

1 tsp oil

1 ½ Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp canola oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 lb baby portabella mushrooms, sliced

2 bay leaves

¼ tsp dried thyme, slightly crushed

1 ¼ cups chicken broth or stock

1 tsp cornstarch

¼ cup water (or chicken stock)

4 oz cream cheese

In a large skillet, heat the ½ Tbsp butter and oil on medium-high heat. Cook the steak for 2 minutes on each side until browned. Remove steak, place on a plate and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Lower the stove temperature to medium and add the remaining butter to the same skillet. Add onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, bay leaves and thyme and cook for 10 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer on lower heat for 5 minutes.

In a small cup or bowl, stir together the cornstarch and water (or broth). Add to the mushroom mixture in the skillet and turn heat up to medium. Heat until the liquid thickens.

STOP HERE FOR MUSHROOM GRAVY… continue on for stroganoff.

Add the cream cheese, stirring until it melts. Discard the bay leaves.

Cut the flank steak across the grain into thin slices. Add the slices into the skillet and cook for 5-7 minutes until the meat cooks through.

Serve over gluten free buttered noodles or rice. Serves 4.