Life After Gluten

Ikea Love

2010-09-01T19:01:00.000-06:00

I'm new to Ikea. Denver doesn't have one yet, and we just discovered one near our new home in Texas. It reminds me of the 30 Rock episode where Liz tells her ex-boyfirend that they will never have an Ikea in Cleveland. "You can't deny the good people of Cleveland an Ikea!" Denver will have one in the next couple of years though, so no worries.

But I digress...

I was elated to discover that Ikea sells a bundle of almond torts that are naturally gluten free! They start at about $4.50 and go up near $5. They have flavors that include a raspberry cheesecake torte, blueberry torte, milk chocolate, dark chocolate and Daim. This last one is my favorite by a long shot, and it has Daim Swedish toffee bits in it . I think it's pretty similar to a Heath Bar. It totally rocks.

Not all of the flavors are that great. I didn't like the buttercream in one of the torts that they sold in the cafe. I didn't see it for sale in the Swedish Market section, but they had it available by the slice in the restaurant, and it was a simple almond cake with yellow buttercream. It was quite bland. The strawberry and blueberry are about middle ground for me, but I definitely enjoyed all of the chocolate ones!

A word of caution--check the boxes for "Gluten Free", as a select few of their cakes and torts are not GF.

I'll be keeping this in mind for our next party, and I won't have to make so many desserts!

New Triumph Dining Book!

2010-08-11T14:57:00.002-06:00

Have you heard about the new Triumph Dining Restaurant Guide that just came out? They are on their 5th edition now, and I consider it a must-have when trying to navigate gluten free dining. It has saved me many-a-time while traveling. Plus, now that we have moved to Texas, I have had to start all over in finding safe places to eat. Back in Denver, a lot of places were very aware and friendly about making sure they had something that could accommodate a GF eater. In the DFW area, well, not so much. I can't say enough good things about this book!

The Triumph Dining Gluten-Free Restaurant Guide is set up by state, so if you are in a new area (or an old area), you can find all sorts of places that will accommodate you. They have chain restaurants and small hole-in-the-wall places. This edition has added 1,511 more restaurants! There are now over 120 gluten-free menus from the nation’s most popular chain restaurants, a 50% increase from last year. This includes Wendy's, Chili's, Panera, and 117 other gluten free lists in the new guide as well.

As a sponsor, Triumph Dining has sent me a discount code for free shipping on your book, so if you want to check it out, you can get free shipping! Just enter coupon code MK958 in the shopping cart area.

This code expires August 25th, so jump on it!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

2010-08-09T22:01:00.000-06:00

So I bet you are just chomping at the bit wondering who won the giveaway, huh? Well I suppose I can tell you now :)

First off, since Olivia tried to cheat by adding another comment (haha), I had to take it out of the drawing. I made sure that everyone who had told me they are following me got 2 entries, and those who did not say they are following me got one entry. By my calculations, this totaled 20 entries. The winner is...

Papparoni!!!!

He said "We would probably use the $60 toward the purchase of a nice vacuum sealer for food, etc. We could buy food in bulk quantity and vacuum seal it for later consumption. Not only would we save money in the long run - but have fun too."

Well congratulations, and I hope you have fun with your new vacuum sealer :) Please contact me at meglutenfree (at) gmail (dot) com so that I can send you your gift certificate! Hooray!

Awesome Giveaway!

2010-07-31T20:55:00.000-06:00

I have a giveaway today...hooray!

Who wants to win a $60 gift card valid for over 200 CSN online stores, which include products like cookware (my favorite!), children's products, dining room sets and pet supplies? You do? Well then here we go!

All you have to do is tell me what you would buy with your $60 and why....that's all I want to know! You can get an extra entry if you follow my blog...just leave a separate comment for me telling me that you followed me (this includes all you folks who already do follow me)! Here's a link to see all of the stores you can shop at!

Now to the nitty gritty..... This giveaway is open to folks living in the US or Canada. You must spend all of your $60 in one order; you can't break it up. You can enter up through August 7th at 5:00pm Central Time. I'll pick a winner and post it up for all to see!

Make sure you come back to see if you won!

Professional Baker With Celiac

2010-07-29T11:24:00.007-06:00

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I was recently asked by a fellow Celiac baker if it is OK to bake with gluten as long as she stands at an arms distance from the mixer and washes her hands thoroughly afterwards.

I get asked this question very frequently, and I think it's a question that a lot of people have. I have spent a long time thinking about and researching the subject, and I think I have an answer.

I have learned that it supposedly not possible to absorb gluten through your skin. It's OK to touch something with gluten, however, once you touch your face, you are at a high risk for contamination. I myself don't like to risk it. I prefer to use latex gloves while working with gluten (I really try to avoid the situation at all costs though), and I throw them away once I've finished working.

Secondly, flour particles go airborne very easily. We have all experienced the explosion of flour when turning the mixer on too fast, or when patting our hands together and the flour puffs up in your face. It is so easy to breathe in gluten particles and get sick from them. If you must work with gluten, then I would recommend wearing a surgical-style mask. Nevermind looking good in the kitchen, right?! Ha!

So there you go! What do YOU think about this?

Which Recipe Takes The Cake?

2009-10-12T10:28:00.002-06:00

Please head over and vote for my recipe in the Marx Foods recipe Contest! My Homemade Chewy Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe has been selected as one of the favorite Marx Foods recipes! Please head over to their site and vote for my recipe!!

Click HERE to head over to the voting site!

Homemade Chewy Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-10-09T18:39:00.007-06:00

The other day, I blogged about a boxed chocolate chip cookie that I spiced up with some cinnamon and Marx Foods Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chile powder . I was thinking that it would be fun to develop my own perfect chewy chocolate chip cookie from scratch. Not only did I finally make the perfect cookie, but I spiced it up again! I am really excited about the final product. Hopefully you are, too!

These cookies are thin, chewy, and soft! We made them last night, and they are still soft today!

Homemade Chewy Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: approx (45) 3" cookies

8 oz unsalted butter, very soft

1/4 cup Sugar

1 1/4 cup Brown Sugar (preferably homemade, recipe follows)

2 Eggs

2 Tbsp Milk

2 Cups Rice Flour

1/4 cup Cornstarch

2 tbsp Potato Starch

1 tsp Xanthan Gum

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Marx Foods Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chile powder, or to taste

(directions for making chile powder can be found HERE)

3/4 tbsp Cinnamon, or to taste

pinch of Salt

1 1/2 cups Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars together until the mixture is thick and pale, and the sugar is dissolved. Add the egg one at a time, incorporating one before adding the 2nd. Add the milk. Whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl, and add them into the butter mixture slowly. Once the dough is cohesive, add the chocolate chips. Taste the dough to determine of you would like to add more spice.

Spoon the dough onto baking sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until slightly browned. Allow the cookies to cool on a cooling rack.

If you prefer to omit the spices to have a more traditional cookie, replace them with about 2 tsp of vanilla.

***Please note that pregnant women or the elderly should avoid tasting the raw dough, as it contains raw egg.***

*Homemade brown sugar is really easy to make! Pour about 4 cups of sugar into a food processor, add approx 1 1/2 tbsp blackstrap molasses and buzz the food processor for about 3 minutes, or until all of the sugar is coated and turns brown. Please feel free to add more or less molasses, depending on how dark or strong you want it.

Have You Heard?

2009-09-25T22:32:00.005-06:00

If you know anyone who is unexpectedly expecting, and is considering adoption, please let them know about us and our blog!

MarkandTiffany.wordpress.com

Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-09-23T20:00:00.007-06:00

Cookies are a very personal thing. Everybody has a favorite cookie. Is it thick or thin? Crispy or soft? Cakey or chewy? What kind of cookie is it? Sugar? Snickerdoodle? Chocolate Chip? I firmly believe that a person's favorite cookie is the one their momma made for them when they were little. I know mine is.

My mom made thin and chewy chocolate chip cookies. I've always loved them. I remember taking bites of them, with the chocolate chips gooing out onto my chin. I loved the slight crispness of the outside, and the tender inside. I loved the brown sugar taste, and the little bit of grit between my teeth that the small amount of white sugar provided. I can still remember the slight tang of baking soda, too.

Unfortunately, the cookies of my past are just that. In my past. I've tried to recreate them..."tried" being the operative word. I haven't found the perfect recipe yet. Every time I try, I end up with a thick, pillowy cookie. My husband loves them....and I hate them.

Enter Betty Crocker. Oh how I love that woman...whoever she is. Within the last few months, Betty Crocker (General Mills) has introduced a selection of gluten free goods. While I haven't yet tried all of the products, I have tried the chocolate chip cookie mix. I know what you are thinking. A mix? Really?....... Yup. It's true. I like it. A lot!

While they're not an exact replica of my momma's cookies, Betty's cookies come awfully close. They don't have the baking soda bite, and they are a bit thinner than the ones of my childhood, but they are beautifully chewy. I really like that.

So, to mix things up tonight, instead of making the cookies as suggested on the package, I decided to get a little crazy. I thought, "why not spice these puppies up?". So I did precisely that.

I have some really nice, organic chiles from Marx Foods. I have quite a few of them, and decided to make some homemade chile powder using the Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chiles. Marx has a step by step instructional page on how to make your own chile powder HERE. These guys are spicy, so be super careful not to inhale the powder...that isn't so much fun! I also used some quality cinnamon in them, which made for a really nice, complex cookie.

Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix

1 stick of softened Butter

1 large Egg

splash of gluten free Vanilla

2 pinches of Marx Foods Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chile powder

a few shakes of good quality Cinnamon

Method:

Follow the instructions on the cookie mix box. Add in the chile powder and cinnamon to taste. Taste the dough before adding too much spice, and add slowly, mixing and tasting again after each addition to make sure you don't go overboard. I like to have an immediate taste of cinnamon, with the slight burn and flavor of chiles after the initial taste. Bake the cookies according to the instructions on the box, however I do like to take the cookies out a minute or two early, so they stay softer. Be aware that the chile flavor tends to get stronger after baking.

Make sure to allow the cookies to cool on a cooling rack to firm up.

Eat, eat, eat! You can share too, if you want :)

Beet Street Article

2009-09-22T14:40:00.002-06:00

Be sure to stop by and check out my guest posting on Beet Street's Homegrown Harvest blog! They asked me to do an article on what the word harvest means to me. Check it out HERE, and find out a little more about them and what they are all about below!

Beet Street’s Homegrown Blog

Inspired by the Harvest Season, and our upcoming Homegrown Fort Collins program, we will be featuring the Homegrown Blog for the next couple of weeks. Look for daily stories, comments and recipies about community harvest, and cooking with local food. We are opening this special edition of the Beet Street Blog to our community, and will feature a different guest blogger everyday. Let’s celebrate the bounty of Northern Colorado!

Homegrown Fort Collins celebrates the harvest season and its contribution to community and local culture. The goal is to educate, celebrate, and enjoy food with a focus on local. The old adage, ‘you are what you eat,’ resonates stronger than a parent’s stern warning to their children. The harvest of a community in many ways reflects the essence of the community, and has been at the center of festivals throughout history. Beet Street’s Homegrown Fort Collins will help us take a closer look at what’s around and develop a stronger sense of place and appreciation for our local harvest.

Graham Crackers

2009-09-10T13:54:00.005-06:00

So my husband and I went camping a couple of weekends ago, and of course needed S'mores makins. We have a store nearby that sells delicious gluten free graham crackers, but they are darn expensive. Like almost a dollar per cracker. Since these crackers are not gold plated, I've decided I'd better make my own from now on.

The crackers I make are super tasty, and they look just like regular graham crackers! They are just a bit thicker (puffier) and I think have a softer, cakier texture than the glutenous store bought ones. I love them, and so does my husband! When you make these, you are welcome to sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on top or whatever!

These s'mores have chocolate, marshmallows, ice cream and peanut butter!
SO GOOD!!!

Gluten Free Graham Crackers

2 1/4 C Flour Mix
3/4 tsp Xanthan Gum
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 C packed Brown Sugar
Pinch Salt

7 Tbsp cubed Butter (must be butter-no margarine, and must be cold)

3 Tbsp Honey
1 tsp Vanilla
3-4 Tbsp cold Water

Mix together the dry ingredients, and using your fingers, work the butter in. The butter should end up being about pea sized or a bit smaller, just as if you were making pie dough. Add the liquid ingredients, and mix until you have a ball of dough. The dough will seem dry, but if you think it is too dry, then you can add a bit more water, 1 Tbsp at a time. Gather the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour, up to a day. This will allow the butter to chill, and the dough to absorb more moisture.

Preheat your oven to 325*.

Roll out the dough by placing it on a silpat or parchment paper the size of the baking sheet pan you will use. Lay plastic wrap over the top of the dough and roll it out to about 1/8"to 1/4". The plastic wrap over the dough will allow you to roll out the dough without sticking to your rolling pin. Try to roll the dough into a rectangle to fit your sheet pan.

Place the dough, still on the silpat or parchment paper, onto your baking sheet. Score the dough into squares with a plastic knife, so as to not cut through your silpat. If you want to add cinnamon sugar, now is the time to do so.

Bake your crackers for about 12-15 minutes, until they start turning a golden color. Once out of the oven and cooled a bit, break the crackers apart following your scored lines. Once cool, if you notice that they are still too soft, and you want them crunchier, you can put them back in the oven to toast a bit, similar to making biscotti. Watch them closely, so you don't burn them!

Voila! Graham Crackers!

Guest Spotlight: Margo from Off The Wheaten Path

2009-08-24T10:05:00.007-06:00

Today we have a guest spotlight: Margo from Off The Wheaten Path! She is my friend from Utah, who is an expert at keeping her family gluten free! She is excellent at feeding her family on the go, and making sure nobdy gets sick! I'm excited to have her here to teach us about quick and easy lunches.

Make sure to swing by her blog to check out my posting on gluten free baking science, flour combinations, and my favorite pizza dough!

The Problem With Lunch
By Margo!

There are three times most people eat during the day: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. And for folks with celiac's disease or a wheat intolerance, I think Lunch is the most difficult.Think about it: sandwiches, soups, leftover pasta salad, macaroni and cheese. Lunch is traditionally a pretty gluten-heavy meal. Oh, you can find ways to just leave out the bread, but have you ever tried to pack that stuff when you're going on an outing with your children? Or when you're traveling and don't know what's available? Or when you're trying to cut down on expenses by packing a lunch for work?

Here are a few options for eating lunch on the go.

Blue Diamond Cheddar Cheese Almond Crackers and Tribe Classic Gluten Free Hummus. I like to take ten crackers, spread one with hummus and top with another cracker, just like an oreo. They pack well in a ziploc. Pair these with a cheese stick and some fruit. Great for the zoo or an outing where you don't want to use utensils.

Smart and Delicious Teff Wraps with Roast Beef and Cheddar. Talk about easy. Just spread the wrap with whatever sandwich spread you like, mayo, mustard, horseradish even, layer on the meat and cheese and roll it up. I like to cut mine in half so they are easier to handle. You could also use a rice wrap from the Asian food section. You need to soften them with warm water before you roll them up. Pair these with your favorite flavor of greek yogurt and some baby carrots and all you need is a plastic spoon.

Lettuce Wrap with Turkey, Green Onion, and Asian Mayo. I know Asian Mayo sounds fancy, but it's just regular mayo with a little La Choy soy sauce and some garlic salt mixed in. These are great because you probably have all of those things in your refrigerator right now. Take a large piece of Romaine lettuce, spread with your mayo mixture, layer the turkey and place the green onion right in the middle. Roll up the lettuce. If your lettuce is really big, cut in half lengthwise. Secure with a toothpick if that helps keep it together until lunchtime. I like to eat these with Boulder Canyon brand Rice and Adzuki bean chips.

If you have the time to sit down and eat at a table (like in a cafeteria) I suggest making up some Perfect Pasta Salad and putting it in individual tupperware containers. You can get three lunch portions out of one recipe and the flavor tastes better when it's had time to chill in the refrigerator, making it a perfect option for those mornings when you don't have time to prepare lunch. This dish is great with a 123 Gluten Free biscuit. If you have access to a microwave, those are great heated up for about 15 seconds, just to warm them through. I like to make a batch of Decadent Chocolate Cake mix and make it into cupcakes. Then I frost it with Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting and freeze each one individually. Then, not only am I not tempted to eat the whole batch at once, I can just grab a ziploc baggie, throw it in my lunch, and by lunchtime it's defrosted and ready to devour. Yummy.

You can also take leftovers of Homemade Mac and Cheese, Potato Soup, Funeral Potatoes, or if you're at home, you can make Nachos Libre, or heat up a can of Progresso Chicken and Wild Rice Soup. I also like to make Grilled Cheese sandwiches with Kinnikinnick Brown Sandwich Bread or Grandpa's Kitchen Bread with Meunster cheese and a can of Amy's Chunky Tomato Bisque Soup and a can of Progresso Creamy Mushroom soup and 1/2 cup of Minute Rice mixed together. It makes a great Creamy Tomato Mushroom Rice soup. I also like Amy's Cheese Enchilada Meal. It's just the right size and heats in only 5 minutes.

Sometimes you don't have time to pack a lunch and you don't have a microwave. Or, you may go out to lunch with friends or coworkers. What should you eat then? As far as fast food goes, here is a great website reporting on gluten free fast food menus. Wendy's has saved me with their chili and fries more times than you can count. They also have some good salad options. Just check the salad dressing and make sure you order grilled instead of crispy chicken. Carl's Jr. has the lettuce wrap option on all their sandwiches. (A hint: order the Famous Star as a low carb wrap. It's a lower fat patty. The Six Dollar Burger Patties are SO fattening.) If it has a Green Burrito inside, you can also get a side of chips and salsa if that tickles your fancy. You can order several salads at Subway. And there's always a crispy shelled taco or taco supreme at Taco Bell. Here is an example of why you should always check restaurants out on Gluten Free Fox or Gluten Free Fast Food: I was under the impression that McDonald's fries were gluten free. In fact I ate some yesterday. However, THEY ARE NOT. In 2006 (where have I been? Happily eating fries, that's where...) McDonald's admitted they have gluten in their fries. Aaaugh! And the Chicken Breast filet is not safe, even if you order it grilled. So your best bet there is a plain hamburger patty and stop at Wendy's on the way back to the office.

If you're eating at more of a sit-down restaurant, Chili's has a Mushroom Swiss burger you can order without the bun that is great with a side of vegetables. Another good go-to at any restaurant is to order a Cobb Salad without the blue cheese and a vinaigrette dressing (careful of those creamy ones!) Pier 49 Pizza now offers a gluten-free crust, and some Chinese restaurants will make dishes with cornstarch breading on chicken and LaChoy sauce in the sauces. Always, always, always ask for a gluten-free menu or ask your server about ingredients. Don't forget to say no croutons on the salad! I'm sure lots of you have found other options. Leave a comment and let us know what you have found to eat for lunch that is gluten-free.

Keep your chin up, out there. Staying positive in the face of having to order weird food at a restaurant or packing your lunch every day is the key to staying strong on your gluten free diet. Together we will conquer lunch! Happy eating!

All Purpose Flour Blend

2009-08-06T16:08:00.002-06:00

Well, I've finally found a good GF flour combination I like. It's not necessarily all-purpose, because it can have a somewhat strong flavor in certain applications, but for most things, I really like it. It is Buckwheat and Corn Starch based, along with a few other ingredients. I've found that it makes the best cornbread I have ever eaten in my life, and it also lends a nice whole grain-like flavor to breads. It is not good in delicate flavored pastries, such as sugar cookies. The buckwheat is just too strong for that.

I'll give the corn bread recipe in a post within the next couple of weeks, and I am also baking some awesome cookies right now that I will post within the next day or so :)

GF Flour Combination

Good for breads, hearty cookies, etc.

3 cups Rice Flour (I like brown rice, but you can use white if you want)
4 cups Corn Starch or Tapioca Starch
2 cups Buckwheat
1 cups Masa Harina (Maseca)
1/4 cup Flax Seed (optional)

This makes a large batch of flour mix, so make sure to have a good sized canister with a lid. If you don't use flour mix a lot, you can either make a smaller batch, or keep it in the freezer to prevent it from going rancid.

Econo-what?! Plus A Recipe! or Economy-Shmeshmonomy

2009-06-26T20:42:00.014-06:00

Well it's been 6 months since I've posted. This is an abomination in the blogging community, I know!

I take my food very seriously, I consider it to be an outward expression of who I am inside. I share it with those I love to express my feelings to them. I create it to release whatever is in my heart; good, bad, happy, sad. It is how I deal. But what do you do when so much happens all at once that something you once loved feels like an added burden?

Earlier this year, I was secretly thanking my lucky stars that the troubled economy had somehow left us untouched. We both had jobs, we were financially comfortable, we were saving up for and anticipating adopting a child soon. Well, I certainly jinxed us because not too long after this thought, my husband was laid off due to shrinking profits in his company. Everyone tries to convince themselves that their job is vital to their company, that the company can't survive without their position. Unfortunately we were wrong when we thought this. The most difficult part about it was admitting that we could not continue our adoption efforts through it.

I never imagined myself being the primary income provider, but here I am doing it. Not just that, but I was able to pick up an extra job to provide a little more. During all of this, I have found that there isn't much time or desire for cooking and baking, and that makes me really sad. Working takes up so much of my time and effort now, and I have lost some interest in a lot of things I used to love. This can be a sign of either serious devotion (to job and family), or serious depression! I like to think that I am just so devoted, albeit a little depressed :)

Anyhow, we are coming out of the worst of it now. My husband was able to find a new job, and should be starting within the next couple of weeks! We are really excited for it, but I will still have to continue with both of my jobs due to a large pay cut with his new job. We are almost back on track with the adoption, and hopefully things can run smooth as butter! (Don't forget to think of us if you know of a baby in need of 2 awesome parents!...shameless self promotion :P)

Sooo, I hope that I can soon make room in my head and schedule to get some serious cooking done. It will be a smorgasbord of all that has been cooped up inside for the last 6 months! In the meantime, however, I plan on blogging a new recipe once a month. Once I am able to go back to just one job, it will be on like Donkey Kong. For reals.

And I hope this didn't totally bring you down :)

So, ahem, without further ado: A recipe!

Not just any recipe, but my favorite summertime muffin recipe. Not just any muffin! But my Surprise Jamba Muffins! Why are these my favorite? Well aside from tasting freaking awesome and smelling like a Jamba Juice, these puppies bake on the grill. Why is that so awesome? Because it's 90 degrees outside! Who wants to bake in the house? My house is already too hot without an air conditioner!

So get outside, fire up the barbie, and BAKE!

Here is the original post, along with the recipe:

You may wonder why I call these 'Surprise Jamba Muffins'. As you may recall, I have mentioned the dry heat we experience here in Colorado in past posts. As our house does not have air conditioning, or any kind of cooling system, I really hate to turn on the oven if I don't have to. Sometimes though, I really want to bake. I really want eat a tasty home made cookie or muffin. So what should I do? Bake it on the grill, of course! Surprise!

I started off with the idea of following a recipe, but then just ended up throwing random ingredients in. Once the batter was all mixed up, I couldn't get over how much the aroma reminded me of how Jamba Juice smells! I think Jamba Juice has more locations than just Colorado, so at least some of you know what I'm talking about...I hope :) At Jamba Juice, they are always squeezing fresh oranges. Add that smell with all the other fruit smells they have in there, and it smells sooo yummy! Well, my batter smelled just like that to me, so that's also where I get the name.

After baking these off, they taste not so "Jamba-y" and more fruity muffin-ish. They are some of the best muffins I have ever had, and much healthier than most other recipes to boot! I know this will be one of your favorites :)

Surprise Jamba Muffins

1/2 C Agave Nectar
1 C Coconut Oil
1 Egg
1 1/4 C Sylvan Border Farms AP GF Flour (or whatever flour mix you like)
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1 1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum
2 Tbsp Flax Seed
pinch of Salt
2/3 C Soy Milk (or any milk you like)
splash of Vanilla
zest of 1 large Orange
1 1/2 C fresh or reconstituted dried Cherries
a couple handfulls of sliced and toasted Almonds

Preheat your gas grill to 350* f (or your oven). It helps if you have a thermometer on your grill lid. Mix all ingredients except the cherries and almonds together, but do not over-mix. Mix until just combined. Gently fold in the cherries. Scoop into muffin tins lined with paper cups, sprinkle the toasted almonds on top and push them in a bit so they stick. Bake on the top rack of your grill, with the lid down, for 15-25 minutes- depending on your altitude. Mine took about 2o minutes.

To test for doneness, bop your finger on the top of a muffin, and if it springs back up, they are done. Or you can stick a toothpick in to see if it comes back out dry. Once out of the grill/oven, remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes.

A really great thing about these is that if you store them in a zip top bag, then they do not dry out for like 4 or 5 days (if they even last that long!). I gave out the muffins to random friends and family, and I got a great response from everyone! Even my glutenous (not the same as gluttonous, silly!) friends thought they were awesome! Success!!!

*Update

2009-01-07T15:01:00.003-07:00

The Dr's realized that my mom lost more blood than originally thought, so they gave her another transfusion today. The don't think she is bleeding internally anymore, so that is good. They expect her to be able to come home tomorrow! Yesss!

*Today (1/8/09), I was able to bring my mom home :) So happy! She is super tired, but doing well. She still had a fever this morning, so after some more antibiotics, she was allowed to leave. :) I will be leaving her with some gluten free recipes (for when she is able to stand long enough to cook), and, if she can be diligent in maintaining the diet, we might be able to find out if it increases her iron absorption as well as aiding in her digestion. I am excited to see what happens :)

A Gluten Free Experiment Update

2009-01-06T21:13:00.004-07:00

I really appreciate all of the interest and suggestions many of you have had on my experiment with my mom. It really has surprised me how many helpful tips and stories you have left for me. Thank you!!

Let me fill you in really quick on how things are going. The first couple of days I was here (in Utah), my mom cheated a bit. It is to be expected of course, especially when she was brought back some Fettuccine Alfredo from the Olive Garden. Who can resist that? (I can, hehe). She openly acknowledged that she was reluctant to try anything gluten free. She admitted that she doesn't want to like anything different, or anything she isn't used to. I knew that if she would just try the things I make her, that she would like them, and she has. She has liked it all! Even the GF french toast sticks with honey instead of syrup. She was skeptical about the honey, especially because she didn't think I brought her enough to dip in, but was happy to find she liked the taste better than the syrup and she didn't need a lot of it.

Now, I wish that I could say that she has continued on with eating my gluten free food, but I cannot. Since her release from the hospital last Thursday, she has been doing unbelievably well. I cannot believe how little pain she has experienced, and although she was resting a lot, and not moving around a lot, somehow she has now had a major complication. Last night she began to hemorrhage very badly, and we had to transport her to the hospital on an ambulance. She had emergency surgery last night, and we were all worried that she may not make it through. Fortunately, she is blessed to be resting in the hospital tonight, and she is doing much better. We are not out of the woods yet, because she had lost an estimated 2 units (approx 2 pints) of blood last night and had to of course have a transfusion. The Dr is concerned, however, because her hematocrit levels are still low, and she has a fever. If her levels are not back where they should be by morning, they believe she still may be hemorrhaging, and they will have to do an angiogram to determine where she is bleeding from. In this case, she will need yet another surgery.

I don't mean to go into more detail then you may be interested in, but since this record is for me as well, I would like to keep some detail. Because she is now on a diet regulated by the Dr, obviously he has not kept it gluten free. It would be interesting to see how a gluten free diet would help her increase her iron levels that she so desperately needs. My iron levels have significantly increased, and my symptoms of anemia have virtually disappeared because of my diet. I would love to see how it would help her, but in the hospital, that is not realistic, and it would take at least a month, if not more to see results of that. Maybe I can convince her to continue eating gluten free after I leave to see what happens.

As of now, I am scheduled to return home this Saturday, so I will continue to regulate her diet as soon as she is able to come home from the hospital. Depending on what the Dr says, I may end up extending my stay. In the mean time, I will update again, and let you all know how things are going and if she is interested in trying this out for the long term.

I am so grateful that she was blessed with a successful surgery, and a competent surgeon. Hopefully in the future, we can find a way to increase her quality of life, possibly with a gluten free diet, if she chooses to do so :)

Thank you all, again, for your support, stories, and suggestions! It means a lot to me, and my mom loves to read what everyone is saying!

My Mom: A Gluten-Free Experiment

2009-01-03T15:41:00.003-07:00

Right now I am in Utah taking care of my mom and grandma after my mom's recent surgery. My mom is caretaker for my grandma, so it is important that someone be here to take care of them. My mom has quite a number of health problems, and I really worry about her eating habits. After my Celiac diagnosis, my mom was tested as well, on my recommendation, with negative results. It confuses me that she has the same symptoms that I had, but was not diagnosed with it. I especially worry because her symptoms are what caused her to need this very invasive surgery in the first place. hmmm.....

After reading a lot of your stories of negative diagnosis, but positive results with the gluten-free diet, I am excited to see what happens after 10 days of feeding my mom (and grandma) gluten free. My grandma still eats her bread, but my mom pretty much eats only what I give her. And since I am the one cooking, she gets what I make :) (My how the tables have turned!) I hope this will help her, and that she will be able to learn how to eat healthier, and to make healthier lifestyle choices.

I'll keep my blog posted for myself and for those of you who might have an interest :)

Wish me luck! (Oh, and my mom is doing pretty well after her surgury!)

Daring Bakers Challenge: French Yule Log Entremet

2008-12-30T20:56:00.005-07:00

This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux. They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.

This month was quite a challenge for me. It wasn't hard to make, it just had a ton of steps and took 2 days to make. Generally, I only make this kind of entremet for paying customers. Fortunately, this was an easy challenge to make gluten free. It was also really great that I already had some of the components pre-made from things I had made earlier in the week. I always love that :)

A really nice addition to this challenge was that we were given multiple formulas for each component, so we were able to choose the flavors we wanted to highlight. I chose chocolate and almond :) Love it! So, without further ado, my Buche Du Noel (Yule Log)...

Recipe (quite a doozie!):

1) Dacquoise Biscuit I actually used French Macaroons for this, which are essentially the same thing, since I had already made them.
2) Mousse
3) Ganache Insert I used Ganache that I made earlier.
4) Praline (Crisp) Insert
5) Creme Brulee Insert
6) Icing I used more ganache to enrobe the cake instead of making glaze :)

The assembly will essentially be a Dacquoise Biscuit at the bottom, and the inserts inter-layered with mousse, with an icing finish.

Element #1 Dacquoise Biscuit (Almond Cake)

Preparation time: 10 mn + 15 mn for baking

Equipment: 2 mixing bowls, hand or stand mixer with whisk attachment, spatula, baking pan such as a 10”x15” jelly-roll pan, parchment paper

Note: You can use the Dacquoise for the bottom of your Yule Log only, or as bottom and top layers, or if using a Yule log mold (half-pipe) to line your entire mold with the biscuit. Take care to spread the Dacquoise accordingly. Try to bake the Dacquoise the same day you assemble the log to keep it as moist as possible.

Ingredients:
2.8 oz (3/4cup + 1Tbsp / 80g) almond meal
1.75 oz (1/2 cup / 50g) confectioner’s sugar
2Tbsp (15g) GF all-purpose flour
3.5oz (100g / ~100ml) about 3 medium egg whites
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar

1. Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner's sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).
2. Sift the flour into the mix.
3. Beat the eggs whites, gradually adding the granulated sugar until stiff.
4. Pour the almond meal mixture into the egg whites and blend delicately with a spatula.
5. Grease a piece of parchment paper and line your baking pan with it.
6. Spread the batter on a piece of parchment paper to an area slightly larger than your desired shape (circle, long strip etc...) and to a height of 1/3 inches (8mm).
7. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for approximately 15 minutes (depends on your oven), until golden.
8. Let cool and cut to the desired shape.

Element #2 Dark Chocolate Mousse

Preparation time: 20mn

Equipment: stand or hand mixer with whisk attachment, thermometer, double boiler or equivalent, spatula.

Note: You will see that a Pate a Bombe is mentioned in this recipe. A Pate a Bombe is a term used for egg yolks beaten with a sugar syrup, then aerated. It is the base used for many mousse and buttercream recipes. It makes mousses and buttercreams more stable, particularly if they are to be frozen, so that they do not melt as quickly or collapse under the weight of heavier items such as the crème brulee insert.
In the Vanilla Mousse variation, pastry cream is made to the same effect.
In the Mango Mousse variation, Italian meringue is made to the same effect. Italian meringue is a simple syrup added to egg whites as they are beaten until stiff. It has the same consistency as Swiss meringue (thick and glossy) which we have used before in challenge recipes as a base for buttercream.

The Whipped Cream option contains no gelatin, so beware of how fast it may melt.
Gelatin is the gelifying agent in all of the following recipes, but if you would like to use agar-agar, here are the equivalencies: 8g powdered gelatin = 1 (0.25 oz) envelope powdered gelatin = 1 Tbsp powdered gelatin = 1 Tbsp Agar-Agar.
1 Tbsp. of agar-agar flakes is equal to 1 tsp. of agar-agar powder.

Ingredients:
2.5 sheets gelatin or 5g / 1 + 1/4 tsp powdered gelatin
1.5 oz (3 Tbsp / 40g) granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp (10g) glucose or thick corn syrup
0.5 oz (15g) water
50g egg yolks (about 3 medium)
6.2 oz (175g) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1.5 cups (350g) heavy cream (35% fat content)

1. Soften the gelatin in cold water. (If using powdered gelatin, follow the directions on the package.)
2. Make a Pate a Bombe: Beat the egg yolks until very light in colour (approximately 5 minutes until almost white).
2a. Cook the sugar, glucose syrup and water on medium heat for approximately 3 minutes (if you have a candy thermometer, the mixture should reach 244°F (118°C). If you do not have a candy thermometer, test the sugar temperature by dipping the tip of a knife into the syrup then into a bowl of ice water, if it forms a soft ball in the water then you have reached the correct temperature.
2b. Add the sugar syrup to the beaten yolks carefully by pouring it into the mixture in a thin stream while continuing to beat the yolks. You can do this by hand but it’s easier to do this with an electric mixer.
2c. Continue beating until cool (approximately 5 minutes). The batter should become thick and foamy.
3. In a double boiler or equivalent, heat 2 tablespoons (30g) of cream to boiling. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until melted and smooth.
4. Whip the remainder of the cream until stiff.
5. Pour the melted chocolate over the softened gelatin, mixing well. Let the gelatin and chocolate cool slightly and then stir in ½ cup (100g) of WHIPPED cream to temper. Add the Pate a Bombe.
6. Add in the rest of the WHIPPED cream (220g) mixing gently with a spatula.

Element #3 Dark Chocolate Ganache Insert

Preparation time: 10mn

Equipment: pan, whisk. If you have plunging mixer (a vertical hand mixer used to make soups and other liquids), it comes in handy.

Note: Because the ganache hardens as it cools, you should make it right before you intend to use it to facilitate piping it onto the log during assembly. Please be careful when caramelizing the sugar and then adding the cream. It may splatter and boil.

Ingredients:
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar
4.5oz (2/3 cup – 1 Tbsp/ 135g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
5 oz (135g) dark chocolate, finely chopped
3Tbsp + 1/2tsp (45g) unsalted butter softened

1. Make a caramel: Using the dry method, melt the sugar by spreading it in an even layer in a small saucepan with high sides. Heat over medium-high heat, watching it carefully as the sugar begins to melt. Never stir the mixture. As the sugar starts to melt, swirl the pan occasionally to allow the sugar to melt evenly. Cook to dark amber color (for most of you that means darker than last month’s challenge).
2. While the sugar is melting, heat the cream until boiling. Pour cream into the caramel and stir thoroughly. Be very careful as it may splatter and boil.
3. Pour the hot caramel-milk mixture over the dark chocolate. Wait 30 seconds and stir until smooth.
4. Add the softened butter and whip hard and fast (if you have a plunging mixer use it). The chocolate should be smooth and shiny.

Element #4 Praline Feuillete (Crisp) Insert

Preparation time: 10 mn (+ optional 15mn if you make lace crepes)

Equipment: Small saucepan, baking sheet (if you make lace crepes).
Double boiler (or one small saucepan in another), wax paper, rolling pin (or I use an empty bottle of olive oil).

Note: Feuillete means layered (as in with leaves) so a Praline Feuillete is a Praline version of a delicate crisp. There are non-praline variations below. The crunch in this crisp comes from an ingredient which is called gavottes in French. Gavottes are lace-thin crepes. To our knowledge they are not available outside of France, so you have the option of making your own using the recipe below or you can simply substitute rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K for them. Special note: If you use one of the substitutes for the gavottes, you should halve the quantity stated, as in use 1oz of any of these cereals instead of 2.1oz.
If you want to make your own praline, please refer back to the Daring Baker Challenge Recipe from July 2008.

To make 2.1oz / 60g of gavottes (lace crepes - recipe by Ferich Mounia):
1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk
2/3 Tbsp (8g) unsalted butter
1/3 cup – 2tsp (35g) all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp / 0.5 oz (15g) beaten egg
1 tsp (3.5g) granulated sugar
½ tsp vegetable oil
1. Heat the milk and butter together until butter is completely melted. Remove from the heat.
2. Sift flour into milk-butter mixture while beating, add egg and granulated sugar. Make sure there are no lumps.
3. Grease a baking sheet and spread batter thinly over it.
4. Bake at 430°F (220°C) for a few minutes until the crepe is golden and crispy. Let cool.

Ingredients for the Praline Feuillete:
3.5 oz (100g) milk chocolate
1 2/3 Tbsp (25g) butter
2 Tbsp (1 oz / 30g) praline
2.1oz (60g) lace crepes(gavottes) or rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K I used Rice Chex *celebrates again that Rice Chex are GF*. I also added some homemade hazelnut praline from the July challenge recipe.

1. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
2. Add the praline and the coarsely crushed lace crepes. Mix quickly to thoroughly coat with the chocolate.
3. Spread between two sheets of wax paper to a size slightly larger than your desired shape. Refrigerate until hard.

Element #5 Vanilla Crème Brulée Insert

Preparation time: 15mn + 1h infusing + 1h baking

Equipment: Small saucepan, mixing bowl, baking mold, wax paper

Note: The vanilla crème brulée can be flavored differently by simply replacing the vanilla with something else e.g. cardamom, lavender, etc...

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (115g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
½ cup (115g) whole milk
4 medium-sized (72g) egg yolks
0.75 oz (2 Tbsp / 25g) granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean

1. Heat the milk, cream, and scraped vanilla bean to just boiling. Remove from the stove and let the vanilla infuse for about 1 hour.
2. Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks (but do not beat until white).
3. Pour the vanilla-infused milk over the sugar/yolk mixture. Mix well.
4. Wipe with a very wet cloth and then cover your baking mold (whatever shape is going to fit on the inside of your Yule log/cake) with parchment paper. Pour the cream into the mold and bake at 210°F (100°C) for about 1 hour or until firm on the edges and slightly wobbly in the center.

Tartelette says: You can bake it without a water bath since it is going to go inside the log (the aesthetics of it won't matter as much since it will be covered with other things)....BUT I would recommend a water bath for the following reasons:
- you will get a much nicer mouth feel when it is done
- you will be able to control its baking point and desired consistency much better
- it bakes for such a long time that I fear it will get overdone without a water bath
Now...since it is baked in a pan and it is sometimes difficult to find another large pan to set it in for a water bath, even a small amount of water in your water bath will help the heat be distributed evenly in the baking process. Even as little as 1 inch will help.
5. Let cool and put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to firm up and facilitate the final assembly.

Element #6 Dark Chocolate Icing

Preparation time: 25 minutes (10mn if you don’t count softening the gelatin)

Equipment: Small bowl, small saucepan

Note: Because the icing gelifies quickly, you should make it at the last minute.
For other gelatin equivalencies or gelatin to agar-agar equivalencies, look at the notes for the mousse component.

Ingredients:
4g / ½ Tbsp powdered gelatin or 2 sheets gelatin
¼ cup (60g) heavy cream (35 % fat content)
2.1 oz (5 Tbsp / 60g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50g) water
1/3 cup (30g) unsweetened cocoa powder

1. Soften the gelatin in cold water for 15 minutes.
2. Boil the rest of the ingredients and cook an additional 3 minutes after boiling.
3. Add gelatin to the chocolate mixture. Mix well.
4. Let cool while checking the texture regularly. As soon as the mixture is smooth and coats a spoon well (it is starting to gelify), use immediately.

How To Assemble your French Yule Log

Depending on whether your mold is going to hold the assembly upside down until you unmold it or right side up, this order will be different.
THIS IS FOR UNMOLDING FROM UPSIDE DOWN TO RIGHT SIDE UP.
You will want to tap your mold gently on the countertop after each time you pipe mousse in to get rid of any air bubbles.

1) Line your mold or pan, whatever its shape, with rhodoid (clear hard plastic, I usually use transparencies cut to the desired shape, it’s easier to find than cellulose acetate which is what rhodoid translates to in English) OR plastic film. Rhodoid will give you a smoother shape but you may have a hard time using it depending on the kind of mold you’re using.

You have two choices for Step 2, you can either have Dacquoise on the top and bottom of your log as in version A or you can have Dacquoise simply on the bottom of your log as in version B:

2A) Cut the Dacquoise into a shape fitting your mold and set it in there. If you are using an actual Yule mold which is in the shape of a half-pipe, you want the Dacquoise to cover the entire half-pipe portion of the mold.
3A) Pipe one third of the Mousse component on the Dacquoise.
4A) Take the Creme Brulee Insert out of the freezer at the last minute and set on top of the mousse. Press down gently to slightly ensconce it in the mousse.
5A) Pipe second third of the Mousse component around and on top of the Creme Brulee Insert.
6A) Cut the Praline/Crisp Insert to a size slightly smaller than your mold so that it can be surrounded by mousse. Lay it on top of the mousse you just piped into the mold.
7A) Pipe the last third of the Mousse component on top of the Praline Insert.
8A) Freeze for a few hours to set. Take out of the freezer.
9A) Pipe the Ganache Insert onto the frozen mousse leaving a slight eidge so that ganache doesn’t seep out when you set the Dacquoise on top.
10A) Close with the last strip of Dacquoise.
Freeze until the next day.

THE NEXT DAY...
Unmold the cake/log/whatever and set on a wire rack over a shallow pan.
Cover the cake with the icing.
Let set. Return to the freezer.
You may decorate your cake however you wish. The decorations can be set in the icing after it sets but before you return the cake to the freezer or you may attach them on top using extra ganache or leftover mousse, etc...
Transfer to the refrigerator no longer than ½ hour before serving as it may start to melt quickly depending on the elements you chose.

Daring Bakers: Pizza

2008-11-05T12:07:00.005-07:00

October's challenge was hosted by Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yums, in memory of Sher, who passed away in July. I really appreciate the opportunity all of the Daring Bakers had to remember Sher, and the contributions she made to the blogging community.

Now, the challenge to making this pizza crust was to learn how to stretch it by tossing it in the air. For all of us gluten free bakers, I know we were all thinking the same thing: Get Real! No gluten = falling apart. So this is a challenge where I did what I could, which was rolling and patting out the dough by hand. I made my favorite homemade sauce on the stove and moved right along.

The original dough recipe came from “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” by Peter Reinhart. Of course, I made plenty of changes to make it gluten free, but it is not so difficult. I also added some Italian herbs to the dough, just for kicks :)

We love pizza around here, so this challenge was nice, especially since it is something that I make on a semi-frequent basis anyhow.

Our toppings included Chicken, Onions, Spinach and Cheese.

Uno's Chicago Grill and Where Have I Been?!?

2008-10-30T14:54:00.003-06:00

OK, starting out, I promised that I would give my review of Uno's Chicago Grill. As I mentioned before, they have gluten free options a-plenty! The really nice thing is that not only can you find these options on their website, but they also have a nutritional info kiosk in their lobbies as well as having printed gluten free menus. The only disappointment I found with all of these resources is that they did not match each other. The printed menu did not match the kiosk, and the kiosk dis not match the website info. Needless to say, I was worried about weather my meal was truly GF or not.

I ordered the Mahi Mahi with the Mango Salsa along with steamed broccoli and mango nut rice. I have to say that everything was so good! I did suffer a little disappointment when I saw my husband's Chicago-style pizza, but he said he didn't like it a whole lot, so it made me feel better! LOL :) Maybe he just said it to be nice to me, but the look on his face sure didn't lie. They forgot the sauce on his pizza (how does anyone forget the sauce on a Chicago-style pizza??), and even when he did get the sauce, he just didn't like the flavors. Maybe the cook was just off that day. Anyhow, my fish was cooked perfectly, and the rice and veggies were delicious. The meal was light enough that I decided to try one of their GF dessert options. I went for the Strawberry Shake. After eating, I was feeling pretty good, so I was fairly certain that my food was GF, but once I drank the shake, I felt horrible! First of all, it tasted like fake strawberry. It tasted like the nasty strawberry flavoring from some candy that I would have loved when I was 8, but not now. I was not happy with it at all. I stood up and just felt sick to my stomach. I don't know what was in that thing, but it was not good.

I guess my conclusion with Uno's is that the food is pretty good, and expensive. But, I can make it all at home for much less cost and with a whole lot more flavor. And my strawberry shakes will have real strawberries in them, and I won't feel sick afterwards.

Results: Eat at Uno's at your own risk.

Nextly, you are probably wondering where I have been. Aside from at Uno's. Or maybe you haven't wondered. Either way, I'll tell you :) As most of you know, Celiac Disease can cause infertility in certain individuals. Apparently I am one of those individuals. Mark and I have been married for 3 1/2 years, and we wold just love to have little mini-me's running around. Unfortunately, my body cannot support a child right now, so we have decided to try alternate avenues. So I would like to announce that we are adopting (yessss!), and that is what we have been up to. We have been working on this since May, but just recently got super busy with it all. Neither of us have had much time to make a creative meal at home, let alone throw something from a can onto the stove. Most of our meals have come from a cereal box or from our neighborhood Chipotle. So I hope that none of you are offended that I have not been around to visit your blogs lately, and that my blog has been void of anything new. I hope to have some more time to blog soon, but we will see how everything goes :)

Oh, and if you happen to know anyone who is looking for an awesome couple to adopt their child to, please think of us!!! :)

Uno's Gluten Free Options

2008-10-15T10:59:00.004-06:00

As I was perusing the different articles on Health.com, I found an article entitled "America’s Healthiest Restaurants: Our List of the Best Casual Dining Spots". This website is a great resource for those who like to keep up on nutritional info, so I enjoy checking it out every so often.

Anyhow, I was reading the list of healthiest restaurants, and found this little blurb on Uno's Chicago Grill: "Another reason Uno’s is at the top of our list: You know what you’re eating. In the lobbies of most of the restaurant’s locations, there are Nutrition Information Centers that detail ingredients, fat and sodium contents, and calories and fiber of every item, in addition to gluten-free options."

How awesome is that!! I love that some restaurants are making this information more readily available, and a big high five to Uno's for providing Nutrition Centers in their lobbies for everyone to look through! Mark and I have decided to go scope our local Uno's out this weekend, so stay tuned for the review :) Yesssss!

Foodbuzz Publisher Community Launches

2008-10-15T10:33:00.001-06:00

LAUNCH OF GLOBAL FOODBUZZ BLOGGER COMMUNITY LEVERAGES REAL-PEOPLE, REAL-TIME POWER OF FOOD PUBLISHING

San Francisco – October 13, 2008: Foodbuzz, Inc., officially inaugurates its food blogger community with more than 1,000 blog partners, a global food blogging event and an online platform that captures the real-people, real-time power of food publishing in every corner of the world. At launch, the Foodbuzz community ranks as one of the top-10 Internet destinations for food and dining (Quantcast), with bloggers based in 45 countries and 863 cities serving up daily food content.

“Food bloggers are at the forefront of reality publishing and the dramatic growth of new media has redefined how food enthusiasts access tasty content,” said Doug Collister, Executive Vice President of Foodbuzz, Inc. “Food bloggers are the new breed of local food experts and at any minute of the day, Foodbuzz is there to help capture the immediacy of their hands-on experiences, be it a memorable restaurant meal, a trip to the farmers market, or a special home-cooked meal.”

Foodbuzz is the only online community with content created exclusively by food bloggers and rated by foodies. The site offers more than 20,000 pieces of new food and dining content weekly, including recipes, photos, blog posts, videos and restaurant reviews. Members decide the “tastiness” of each piece of content by voting and “buzz” the most popular posts to the top of the daily menu of submissions. Foodbuzz currently logs over 13 million monthly page views and over three million monthly unique visitors.

“Our goal is to be the number-one online source of quality food and dining content by promoting the talent, enthusiasm and knowledge of food bloggers around the globe,” said Ben Dehan, founder and CEO of Foodbuzz, Inc.

The Foodbuzz blogger community is growing at a rate of 40 percent per month driven by strong growth in existing partner blogs and the addition of over 100 new blogs per month. “The Foodbuzz.com Web site is like the stock of a great soup. The Web site provides the base or backbone for bloggers to interact as a community, contribute content, and have that content buzzed by their peers,” said Mr. Dehan.

Global Blogging Event

Demonstrating the talent and scope of the Foodbuzz community, 24 Meals, 24 Hours, 24 Blogs offered online food enthusiasts an international, virtual street festival of food and diversity. The new feature showcased blog posts from 24 Foodbuzz partner bloggers chronicling events occurring around the globe during a 24 hour period and included:

· Mid-Autumn Festival Banquest (New York, NY)
· The "Found on Foodbuzz" 24-Item Tasting Menu (San Francisco, CA)
· Aussie BBQ Bonanza – Celebrating Diversity (Sydney, Australia)
· The Four Corners of Carolina BBQ Road Trip (Charleston, SC)
· Criminal Tastes – An Illegal Supper (Crested Butte, CO)
· From Matambre to Empanadas: An Argentine Dinner (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
· A Sweet Trompe l’oeil (Seattle, WA)

“24 Meals, 24 Hours, 24 Blogs” captures the quality and unique local perspective of our food bloggers and shared it with the world,” said Ryan Stern, Director of the Foodbuzz Publisher Community. “It illustrates exactly what the future of food publishing is all about – real food, experienced by real people, shared real-time.”
About Foodbuzz, Inc.

Based in San Francisco, Foodbuzz, Inc., launched its beta Web site, foodbuzz.com, in 2007. In less than a year, Fooduzz.com and its community of over 1,000 exclusive partner food blogs have grown into an extended online property that reaches more than three million users.

Daring Bakers Challenge: Lavash Crackers

2008-09-27T21:31:00.005-06:00

This month's challenge was hosted by Natalie of Gluten A Go Go and Shel of Musings From The Fishbowl.

It's been a long time since I have made lavash crackers (think culinary school-5 years ago), and I had forgotten how easy and tasty they are! I'm glad to have had a reason to make them again, for they shall surely become part of my regular menu! I have listed the recipe and directions below, and the cool thing about it is that they are already gluten free, so I didn't even have to make any changes! Score!!

I made mine with 2 separate toppings: half with cinnamon-sugar and half with kosher salt. We were also required to make a dip that had to be gluten free as well as vegan. I only made one dip, which is meant for the cinnamon crackers. Technically, it's not even a dip, it is an icing. I just whisked together about 1/2 cup of confectioner's sugar with a splash of soy milk and about a tsp of vanilla. Easy shmeezy!

One thing I recommend is to use 2 silpats to roll the dough between if you have them, as wax paper really stinks to peel off of the crackers. I try to avoid wax paper at almost all costs. Also, gluten free dough hardly rises with yeast, so don't expect it to double in size, like the recipe says. It will still work just fine :)

On to the directions....

Here's a simple formula for making snappy Armenian-style crackers, perfect for breadbaskets, company and kids...It is similar to the many other Middle Eastern and Northern African flatbreads known by different names, such as mankoush or mannaeesh (Lebanese), barbari (Iranian), khoubiz or khobz (Arabian), aiysh (Egyptian), kesret and mella (Tunisian), pide or pita (Turkish), and pideh (Armenian). The main difference between these breads is either how thick or thin the dough is rolled out, or the type of oven in which they are baked (or on which they are baked, as many of these breads are cooked on stones or red-hot pans with a convex surface)...

The key to a crisp lavash is to roll out the dough paper-thin. The sheet can be cut into crackers in advance or snapped into shards after baking. The shards make a nice presentation when arranged in baskets.

Makes 1 sheet pan of crackers*

*1 1/2 cups (6.75 oz) gluten free flour blend (If you use a blend without xanthan gum, add 1 tsp xanthan or guar gum to the recipe)
* 1/2 tsp (.13 oz) salt
* 1/2 tsp (.055 oz) instant yeast
* 1 Tb (.75 oz) agave syrup or sugar
* 1 Tb (.5 oz) vegetable oil
* 1/3 to 1/2 cup + 2 Tb (3 to 4 oz) water, at room temperature
* Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt, yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need the full 1/2 cup + 2 Tb of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

2. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), and slightly tacky. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

4. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Lay out two sheets of parchment paper. Divide the cracker dough in half and then sandwich the dough between the two sheets of parchment. Roll out the dough until it is a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. Slowly peel away the top layer of parchment paper. Then set the bottom layer of parchment paper with the cracker dough on it onto a baking sheet.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way. If you want to pre-cut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

6. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).6. When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.

Grain Fed Meat

2008-09-14T12:02:00.002-06:00

I recently had someone ask me if it is safe for me to eat grain fed meat since the packaging doesn't specify what grains the animal eats. I had to stop and wonder, because in all of my research, I have never found anything talking about it. I don't know the answer to that question. I never even thought about it.

So my question for you today is if anyone knows if grain fed meat is safe for a gluten free diet. Please leave a comment and tell me your thoughts on this!

Shrimp Mac

2008-09-11T12:59:00.003-06:00

This is a fairly classic dish that is so easy to make, and super delicious. I'm not a huge shrimp eater, but my husband loves the little buggers, so I try to surprise him sometimes. They are a bit expensive here in Colorado (I'm sure you can figure out why), so they are definitely a treat in our home.

This is a basic recipe that you can change up to fit your liking. I almost never make the same thing twice because I always change the ingredients to go along with what we have around the kitchen and what we are in the mood for. Go nuts and see what you end up with!

Shrimp Mac

1/2 Lb of 41/50 peeled and de-veined shrimp

1 lb of GF pasta (we like the Ancient Harvest Quinoa Veggie Curls here)

2 Tbsp Olive Oil (Extra Virgin is nice)

1 small Onion, diced small

1 or 2 cloves of Garlic, minced

2 Cups Chicken Stock

1 Cup Milk

a couple of handfuls of Spinach

2 Tbsp Corn Starch mixed with water to form a slurry

about 5 slices of Bacon, cooked to a crisp and chopped into bite-size pieces

Parmesan Cheese, sliced with a vegetable peeler

Salt and Pepper to taste

any herbs you like, we used rosemary, thyme and oregano

Cook your pasta according to the package directions. In the meantime, heat up the olive oil in a skillet, add the chopped onion and begin to sweat it (not caramelize). Add the minced garlic and cook for just a minute or two, then add the chicken stock and milk. Simmer for a few minutes, and add the corn starch slurry to thicken. Add the spinach (fresh or frozen is fine) until it is completely wilted. Season with the salt and pepper, as well as with your choice of herbs. Add the shrimp in and let them simmer until cooked. They only take maybe 5 minutes tops, until they are pink and a bit curled. Over-cooking will make them chewy and rubbery.

Toss the pasta and sauce together, sprinkle the bacon and parmesan slices over the top. Voila, pasta perfection!

Arepa BBQ Sandwich

2008-09-01T11:47:00.005-06:00

During the summertime, my craving for BBQ sandwiches increases. This is my first summer eating gluten free, so it has been an adventure trying to convert all of my favorite recipes. I knew what I wanted, but was not feeling up to making sandwich buns. Enter the Arepa. This little puff of corn goodness is so easy to make, and is more than satisfactory in place of a bun. I used the same technique to make the Arepas that Shauna taught us, so I will not re-post a recipe for that, since she has done such a good job on it. The only change I made was instead of cooking them on a skillet or flat top first and then baking them in the oven, I just lightly oiled the outsides and popped them straight into the oven on a baking sheet. Super simple. I baked them for maybe 20 minutes...pretty much the time it took me to cook up the BBQ pork.

Arepa BBQ Sandwich

Technique for Arepas HERE

For the BBQ pork, I just took a pound or so of cubed pork and cooked it up with some sauteed onions, and added my favorite GF bottled BBQ sauce along with some salt, pepper and garlic powder for some extra spice. So easy! I then split the arepas with a thin knife and piled on the pork!! MMM, so tasty!

Daring Bakers Challenge: Ecliars

2008-08-31T20:42:00.001-06:00

I am sorry to the Daring Bakers that I ran out of time in August to make the little puffs of golden goodness that are Eclairs. I will absolutely make the September challenge, however :) On to September!

Toffee Studded Brownies

2008-08-07T10:46:00.006-06:00

My sister's brother in law was mistakenly diagnosed with Celiac recently, and upon discovering that he was mis-diagnosed, they decided to send me all of the special food they bought. I am super grateful, but I'm not sure why they didn't just keep it and eat it. It's not like gluten free specialty food is cheap. And it sure doesn't taste bad. They didn't even make me pay for it, either!

Either way, I was happy to take it and see what I could do with it all. They sent me a Whole Foods Brownie Mix that I wanted to mess around with, and I remembered seeing a Paula Deen Recipe for Symphony Brownies that looked so good! I decided that I would make my own toffee, complete with toasted almond slices to layer in the brownies. What a grand treat!

Toffee Studded Brownies:

So rich and delicious, it's quite obvious why we could only eat one at a time! Scoop some ice cream on top for a nice summertime treat.

Toasted Almond Toffee

1/3 C Water
1 1/4 C Sugar
2 Tbsp Butter (preferably unsalted)
A couple of handfuls of Toasted Sliced Almonds

On medium heat, combine the sugar and water then bring it to a boil. Wash the sides of the pan down with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing. Cook until you have reached your desired caramel color. Add in the butter and stir quickly to combine. Please remember that this mixture will be upwards of 300* and will burn you if you are not careful. Mix in the almonds quickly and pour onto a Silpat lined sheet tray. Once cooled, break the toffee into pieces.

Brownies

Follow the directions on the back of the box, or make your favorite homemade brownie recipe. Once the batter is made, grease up a square pyrex dish and line it with parchment paper. This is super important-do not skip the parchment paper!! Pour in half of the batter and smooth it out. Lay the toffee pieces over the batter in an even layer. Make sure to fill all of the empty spots with little toffee bits. Pour the 2nd half of the batter over the toffee and smooth it out. Bake according to the package directions. My brownies needed a little bit longer in the oven to bake through.

Once finished baking, let the brownies cool for a bit. Run a knife around the edges and flip out onto a cooling rack. Pull off the parchment and eat 'em up!

*Make sure when cutting to use a sharp knife to get through the toffee easily.

Daring Bakers Challenge: Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

2008-07-30T16:51:00.008-06:00

Although this challenge had a lot of time consuming components, it was much easier to convert to gluten free than the last challenge. I saw the challenge and had to sigh with relief! The only special item I had to finally break down and buy was a food processor. I have wanted one for so long, and I finally had an excuse to get one! Yippee!

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

The only ingredient I had to change was the small amount of flour in the cake. I also left the Xanthan Gum out (by accident!) as well as the alcohol (not by accident!). Everything else stayed the same. I do have to say that I didn't like the buttercream recipe. I have my standby Swiss buttercream recipe that I love, and this one didn't cut it for me. I also thought that the finished product was too sweet. I think I must like more bitter tastes, because everyone else who tried it loved it and thought that it had just the right amount of sweetness. I brought it to a church function, and everyone who tried it (non gluten free eaters), loved it!

We were also supposed to decorate the top of the cake with a beautiful piped design using the praline buttercream, but my house was literally 92 degrees, and the buttercream was separating inside my piping bag as I tried to make the design. Although, I could not use the buttercream on the top, I feel that I was able to elegantly substitute the design with a beautiful flower made from gum paste rose leaves, filled with toasted filberts (hazelnuts) in the center. I also used some leftover praline powder to mask the sides of my cake. It turned out beautifully and I may make it again with less sugar and my own buttercream recipe in the future.

This month, I am not going to post the entire recipe, but if you are interested in making it, the recipe originally comes from Great Cakes by Carol Walter.

New Award

2008-07-25T19:31:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Sandra over at Hey, I Can Eat That for the "You Make My Day Award"! Check her out, she's got some great recipes!!

Lemon Herb Chicken with Vegetable Brown Rice

2008-07-24T10:57:00.007-06:00

When times are hard, cooking becomes not only a talent or hobby, but a therapy as well. It allows you to plan and execute an entire meal while forgetting about your worries. All thoughts are on your food. Once complete, there is a certain satisfaction in seeing your food, tasting it and sharing it.

This meal was exactly that for me. Relatively quick to make and super tasty, it allowed me to focus on one goal--making dinner for my family, and to let all of my other stresses and worries aside for a few minutes. To me, cooking is a different world, a respite from life and its challenges. At the end, what a wonderful reward!

Lemon Herb Chicken with Vegetable Brown Rice

This meal is simple to make while also being refreshing on a hot summer's night. The lemon and herbs go beautifully together, while the veggies add a nice crunch. If you wish, you may shred the chicken from the bone and toss it together with the rice.

Chicken:

5 large pieces of bone-in Chicken, breast and thighs

1/4 C Olive Oil

Zest and juice of 1 large Lemon

Herbs: Thyme, Red Pepper Flake, Fresh Basil, Salt and Pepper-all to taste, and a couple shakes of your favorite chicken grill seasoning (optional)

Rice:

1 cup Brown Rice

1 cup Chicken or Veggie Stock

1 cup + 1 Tbsp Water

assorted veggies, I used Carrot, Zucchini and Onion--all diced small

Salt and Pepper to taste

If you have bone-in chicken with the skin still on, you may want to remove the skin. It's your call (I did). Set your chicken on a broiler pan, and broil them about 5 inches away from the heating coil for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. In a bowl, whisk the oil, lemon zest and juice and herbs/spices together well.

Begin the rice by bringing the liquids together in a medium pot to a boil, then add the rice, lower your temp to medium low and cover with a lid. Once the rice begins to soften, maybe after about 10 minutes, add the veggies to soften with the rice with the lid on. Once finished, stir in the salt and pepper.

Once the chicken is finished broiling, let it rest on the counter for a few minutes, then toss the pieces in the lemon herb sauce. Plate up the chicken over a bed of rice, and using a ladle, drizzle the rest of the lemon herb sauce over each plate.

Cozy up to the one you love, and enjoy the new window air conditioning unit you just bought...hehe!

Blogging Awards and NO Recipe??

2008-07-19T22:13:00.004-06:00

Hey everybody! Go visit Elle over at Elle's New England Kitchen...she is the 'bestest' ever!! Not only does she have a super rad blog, but she is so nice!! She was so kind as to give me the "I Love You This Much" award!

She also made a new award--the "Hard Working Food Blogger" award, which she has awarded to all of her readers. How super cool is that?!?

Anyhoo...It is now my turn to pass these along :)

For the "I Love You This Much" award--
1. Emilia at A Gluten Free Day
2. Lizzie at The Good Eatah
3. Melissa at Gluten Free For Good
4. MsC at My Sweet Cupcakes
5. and last but not least, my favorite Denverite: Steve at Gluten Free Steve

Then for the "Hard Working Food Blogger" award--
1. T .W. Barritt at Culinary Types
2. Kate at Gluten Free Gobsmacked

Technically, anyone can have the "Hard Working" award, but these two are my special picks, because they put so much work into their blogs, and they are some of my all time favorites. :)

You are all so great!!

Next...I have no recipe today :( Sorry. I've been working on a recipe for a while now that I am really excited to post, but alas, it still tastes gross. Haha! It's funny, but true. So, hopefully things will come together and I should soon have a new recipe up. Anyhow, I hope that my awarded bloggers enjoy those shiny new awards. Oh, and keep eating!!!

See you all soon!

Restaurant Review: WaterCourse Foods

2008-07-15T16:44:00.005-06:00

"WaterCourse Foods is proud to serve a 100% vegetarian menu. Our style of comfort food has won over the hearts and stomachs of people from all types of dietary backgrounds. The greatest compliment we hear (and we hear it often) is when a initially reluctant patron, who was dragged in by their spouse or kids, says they never thought they would eat vegetarian food and now WaterCourse is their favorite restaurant."

Last night Mark and I made the trip out to Downtown Denver to try out Denver's most popular vegetarian resaturant: WaterCourse Foods. I had heard nothing but good things ablout this restaurant for years, so we decided to give it a try. Visiting their website before heading out, I was comforted by their statement "We speak fluently about allergies, just let the wait staff know of your special requests". Their menu covers breakfast, lunch and dinner and is mostly comfort food, but very eclectic.

I was pleasently surprised that although they do not specify the gluten free items on their website, the gluten free items on their menu are clearly marked with a 'squiggle' next to the name. Yippee! Our server, Carly, was very pleasant and was well versed in the menu and what was what. I ordered the Polenta Crusted Portobello Cap, which was crispy and delicious, covered with a chipotle aioli served along side cooked carrot 'fries', brown rice, home made pico de gallo and sliced avocado. Every bite was delicious, and I was satisfied, but not over-stuffed at the end. Mark-o decided to step outside his (and my) comfort zone by trying the marinated Tempeh Scallopini dredged and fried in it's own mushroom gravy, served along with mashed potatoes and steamed chard. At first, Mark was unsure about his dish. His first comment was 'this tastes like earth'. I had to laugh at him and then try it out for myself. I dug in and was really surprised...it tasted great! I even offered to trade him plates, but he decided to stick through it. By the end, he was happily saying that the tempeh had grown on him, and he really enjoyed the nutty flavor and texture. The one thing he consistantly did not like was the steamed chard, which he said tasted bitter.

"Polenta Crusted Portobello Cap"

WaterCourse foods also has a full service bakery that supplies their desserts. On the website, it boldly states: "WaterCourse Foods Bakery has employed pioneers and scientists, dreamers and career bakers. In order to create a baking program that matched the innovativeness and quality of WaterCourse Foods Restaurant, we went through much trial and error to come up with the incomparable product we now offer. Our highly skilled and motivated bakery staff is the industry leaders in gluten-free and vegan baking".

We decided to take home one of their gluten free 'Scout Cookies', made from coconut and chocolate (and I think some nuts). It wasn't until I made the comment "this looks just like a Samoa girl scout cookie" that I realized that's the reason it is called the Scout! Haha! We got home and gave it a try. Eh...it was ok. I guess I was expecting the real girl scout cookie taste, which I did not get. Unfortunately, the flavors were a bit dull and muddled together. I never like to say the phrase 'for being gluten free and vegan, it was ok', but in this case, it fits. I want gluten free and vegan to taste better than the original. Sometimes I think my standards might be too high.

Anyhow, we love WaterCourse, and we will absolutely return. I highly recommend them if you are in the area!

Quick Little Ditty: Cool Broccoli Caprese Salad

2008-07-12T13:27:00.005-06:00

The other night, my family invited us over for pizza and root beer-our traditional Friday night celebration. I was asked to bring a salad, but I had very few 'salad' ingredients available to me. I don't like going to the grocery store on a Friday night-it's way too busy, so I threw together a few ingredients to make this wonderfully delicious salad. It was so easy to make, and consisted of things I had already in my fridge.

I sauteed up some frozen broccoli, just to take the bitterness out, then stuck it back in the fridge to chill. I then added some minced white onion, diced mozzarella, grape tomatoes, torn fresh basil leaves and drizzled balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Toss that together with some kosher salt and pepper, and voila! You have a lovely, quick, tasty salad! It went perfectly with our pizza, and the colors were beautiful.

I think that tonight for dinner, we will toss the leftovers with some quinoa and maybe a grilled chicken breast. It is so easy and versatile, who wouldn't want to try this?

Surprise Jamba Muffins

2008-07-03T11:58:00.006-06:00

You may wonder why I call these 'Surprise Jamba Muffins'. As you may recall, I have mentioned the dry heat we experience here in Colorado in past posts. As our house does not have air conditioning, or any kind of cooling system, I really hate to turn on the oven if I don't have to. Sometimes though, I really want to bake. I really want eat a tasty home made cookie or muffin. So what should I do? Bake it on the grill, of course! Surprise!

I started off with the idea of following a recipe, but then just ended up throwing random ingredients in. Once the batter was all mixed up, I couldn't get over how much the aroma reminded me of how Jamba Juice smells! I think Jamba Juice has more locations than just Colorado, so at least some of you know what I'm talking about...I hope :) At Jamba Juice, they are always squeezing fresh oranges. Add that smell with all the other fruit smells they have in there, and it smells sooo yummy! Well, my batter smelled just like that to me, so that's also where I get the name.

After baking these off, they taste not so "Jamba-y" and more fruity muffin-ish. They are some of the best muffins I have ever had, and much healthier than most other recipes to boot! I know this will be one of your favorites :)

Surprise Jamba Muffins

1/2 C Agave Nectar
1 C Coconut Oil
1 Egg
1 1/4 C Sylvan Border Farms AP GF Flour (or whatever flour mix you like)
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1 Tbsp Baking Powder
1 1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum
2 Tbsp Flax Seed
pinch of Salt
2/3 C Soy Milk (or any milk you like)
splash of Vanilla
zest of 1 large Orange
1 1/2 C fresh or reconstituted dried Cherries
a couple handfulls of sliced and toasted Almonds

Preheat your gas grill to 350* f (or your oven). It helps if you have a thermometer on your grill lid. Mix all ingredients except the cherries and almonds together, but do not over-mix. Mix until just combined. Gently fold in the cherries. Scoop into muffin tins lined with paper cups, sprinkle the toasted almonds on top and push them in a bit so they stick. Bake on the top rack of your grill, with the lid down, for 15-25 minutes- depending on your altitude. Mine took about 2o minutes.

To test for doneness, bop your finger on the top of a muffin, and if it springs back up, they are done. Or you can stick a toothpick in to see if it comes back out dry. Once out of the grill/oven, remove the muffins from the pan and let them cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes.

A really great thing about these is that if you store them in a zip top bag, then they do not dry out for like 4 or 5 days (if they even last that long!). I gave out the muffins to random friends and family, and I got a great response from everyone! Even my glutenous (not the same as gluttonous, silly!) friends thought they were awesome! Success!!!

Meme

2008-07-01T22:05:00.006-06:00

OK, so I dont usually like to do meme's, but I saw a great one done by My Sweet Cupcakes that is really fun so I decided to indulge a bit and do one myself. I think it is pretty neat :)

1. Madam Tiffany, 2. Macarons, 3. Gold all over the ground, 4. spotted or striped anywhy..fashion!, 5. who dey?, 6. When life gives you lemmons..., 7. Prenent un Bany. Taking a Bath., 8. Crème Brûlée from Berry Milk, 9. pop up, 10. Takidani Train Station 5 (re-do), 11. Friday Fun Socks (day 81), 12. Untitled

If anyone comes across this and wants to do one themselves, here's the rules:

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.

b. Using only the first page, pick an image.

c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name?

2. What is your favorite food?

3. What high school did you go to?

4. What is your favorite color?

5. Who is your celebrity crush?

6. Favorite drink?

7. Dream vacation?

8. Favorite dessert?

9. What you want to be when you grow up?
10. What do you love most in life?

11. One word to describe you.

12. Your flickr name

Stay tuned for a great recipe you wont want to miss...here on Life After Gluten. (Sounds like a soap opera, huh? [Like sands through the hourglass...]) LOL

Daring Bakers Challenge: Danish Braid

2008-06-29T09:00:00.001-06:00

This is my first month as a Daring Baker, and when I saw the challenge, I was more than a bit concerned. In fact, my first thought was 'Oh no! I can't make that'! But in fact I can, and I did! This month's challenge is hosted by Kelly of Sass and Veracity and Ben of What's Cookin.

The last time I made a laminated dough was when I worked at Restaurant Kevin Taylor in Denver as the assistant pastry chef back in 2004. That was pre-celiac days, and it was a long time ago. The last time I made specifically Danish dough was in pastry school in 2003. That was even longer ago! The only thing that saved me in this challenge is my professional training, and that I know the science behind this. It is a very technical and time consuming pastry to make, and each step must be followed perfectly or else you will end up emulsifying the butter into the dough and then it wont be flaky and tender. If that happens than whats the point in working so hard in the first place?

It is actually not as difficult as it seems, as long as you follow the rules and treat the dough very gently...it is gluten free! No gluten=easy tearing. Just treat it and braid it as you would if you were working with pie dough.

I changed my filling from the original recipe to go along with the fruit I had available in my kitchen, so you are welcome to do the same if you wish. Also, the changes I made to make this GF are in blue.

The one thing that I was a little bummed about was that it never really rose much. I proofed it in approx 90* temps for about 2 hours, and it didn't budge. That's gluten free bread for ya ;) Other than that, I am pleased as punch!

DANISH DOUGH

Makes 2-1/2 pounds dough

Ingredients

For the dough (Detrempe)

1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast

1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar

Zest of 1 orange, finely grated

3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

2 large eggs, chilled

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1- 2/3 cups Sylvan Border Farms GF All Purpose Flour

1- 2/3 cups Pamela's Wheat Free Bread Mix

1 tsp Xanthan Gum

1 teaspoon salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)

1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter

1/4 cup Sylvan Border Farms GF AP Flour

DOUGH

Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

BUTTER BLOCK

1. Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.

2. After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with Sylvan Border Farms flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky note and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

4. Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight (I didn't do this...again, there is no gluten to rest). The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. GF Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 2 days. Any longer than that, and the Xanthan Gum will make it dry as sand and tough.

APPLE MANGO FILLING

Makes enough for two braids

Ingredients

2 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch pieces

2 Mangoes, peeled cut from the seed and cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toss all ingredients in a large sauce pot and simmer until reduced into a thick caramely goodness :) Pour the filling onto a baking sheet to cool completely before forming the braid. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature, seal, and refrigerate.) It will cool faster when spread in a thin layer over the surface of the sheet. After it has cooled, the filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Left over filling can be used as an ice cream topping, for muffins, cheesecake, or other pastries.

DANISH BRAID

Makes enough for 2 large braids

Ingredients

1 recipe Danish Dough

2 cups apple filling, jam, or preserves

For the egg wash:

1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

1. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface (Sylvan Border Farms), roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. Place the dough on the baking sheet.

2. Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you've already made.

3. Spoon the filling you’ve chosen to fill your braid down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends. Be very gentle while braiding.

Egg Wash

Whisk together the whole egg and yolk in a bowl and with a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid.

Proofing and Baking

1. Spray cooking oil (Pam…) onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.

2. Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

3. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown. Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature. The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 day, or freeze for a couple of days.

Grilled Chicken Breast with Sauteed Peppers and Mozzarella

2008-06-24T17:00:00.002-06:00

It is quite hot and dry out here in my corner of Denver. For the past week now, we have been expecting 'scattered thunder storms', but they never seem to materialize in our neck of the woods (or plains, I should say). Along with our poor dead lawn, and our garden we are fighting to keep moist, we do not have any sort of cooling system in our home, aside from 2 ceiling fans; one which has never worked.

To combat the heat indoors, we decided last night to have a grilled dinner. This meal was fabulous, and I have to give my husband at least partial credit, because we came up with it together. It seems that our best and favorite recipes are almost always created together. One of us comes up with a starting ingredient, and then we alternate throwing things in. It seems to work out well; at least in this case it did!

Grilled Chicken Breast with Sauteed Peppers and Mozzarella

One of our favorite flavor combinations is basil, mozzarella and peppers. This recipe combines them into a fabulous and beautiful meal that no one could resist...unless your a vegetarian.

2 Chicken Breasts, butterflied, lightly rubbed with Olive Oil and salt & peppered on both sides
Red, Yellow and Orange Bell Peppers, or any pepper you like, sliced into strips
1/2 large White Onion, sliced into strips
1 or 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
Buffalo Mozzarella, sliced
Fresh Basil leaves

Fire up the 'ol Char-Broil and let it pre-heat with the lid down. If you have a side burner on your grill, use it to saute your onions and peppers in the olive oil with a cast iron skillet (or whatever you have). If you don't have a side burner, you can put the pan directly on the grill; just make sure to leave the pan's handle over the edge so that you don't burn your hand by touching it. While sauteing the peppers and onions, place your chicken on the grill and flip it to the other side about half way through. Your chicken is done when cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 160* to 170* f. Just make sure there is no pink inside--remember, I like you, and I would hate for you to get a nasty bug :) Once the veggies are sauteed and the chicken is finished cooking, place the chicken on a plate, lay the mozzarella along the top to begin melting, lay the veggies over the cheese and place a few basil leaves on top.

Voila, your ready!

Another idea is to use your food processor to make a sort of 'bell pepper pesto' by throwing peppers, onions, garlic and basil into the processor and whirling them up with a bit of EVOO. You can then stuff the chicken breasts with the mixture, along with the mozzarella. Use a wooden skewer soaked in water to 'sew' them shut and grill them that way. Either way, they are as tasty as can be ;)

Not-So-Red Velvet Meringue Cupcakes

2008-06-19T11:38:00.007-06:00

The other day was my husband Mark's birthday. One of his favorite cakes is a red velvet cake, so being the loving wife that I am, I decided to make it for him. I decided that it would be nice to make cupcakes instead because, well, I think they are cooler :) Cupcakes are better than full cakes. They are the perfect portion, and you cant argue with that. Cupcakes rock. I pulled all of my mis en place together and made sure to check the ingredients lists for anything questionable. The only item that I was unsure about was the red food coloring. I'm just not down with the Modified Food Starch, so I kicked it out of the recipe...hence the name "Not-So-Red".
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I wanted to make them special and a little bit different; something that he has never had before, so I thought it would be cool to incorporate a meringue disk inside the cupcakes. It's something that I learned in culinary school back in the day, and it is classic in a lot of European tortes to include meringue disks as a layer. Thinking about it a bit more, I decided that instead of splitting each cupcake to add a disk inside, I would use the meringue in place of the cream cheese frosting. I would make meringue "kisses" if you will. It was very simple, I measured the top of the muffin rounds with a corresponding round pastry cutter to find the right size. I then placed the cutter onto my silpat lined baking sheet and spooned the whipped egg whites into the cutter. I pulled the cutter off and used the back of a spoon to kind of mound a 'dollop' shape, or a 'kiss'. I then baked them off in a 200* oven until they dried out.

Once the cupcakes were baked and cooled, I cut the tops off to make a flat surface. I then spread just a bit of raspberry ganache on them, sort of as a glue if you will, and then I placed the meringues on the top. Voila! They turned out beautifully, and so delicious! It made for quite a nice dessert with different textures. Paired up with some ice cream and a few raspberries, it lightens it up quite nicely.

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Not-So-Red Velvet Meringue Cupcakes

CAKE:
2 whole Eggs, room temp
1/2 C Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 1/4 C Sylvan Border Farms GF All Purpose Flour
2 tsp Xanthan Gum
1/2 C Butter
1 1/2 C Sugar (or Agave/sugar substitute)
1 tsp Vanilla
1 C Buttermilk (or soured milk)
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp white Vinegar
1/2 tsp Salt

Preheat the oven to 350*. Sift together the flour, xanthan gum and salt. To make sure there is no lumps, it is very important that you don't skip the sifting part. Cream the butter and sugar together in a separate mixing bowl. Add the vanilla and then each egg, one at a time, until each is incorporated. Turning your mixer on low, add in the cocoa powder. Alternately add in the milk and flour, making sure to end on flour. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar, then add it into the batter. Mix thoroughly.

You will have enough batter to make 24 big cupcakes or 2- 9" cakes. You could also make 12 cupcakes and 1- 9" cake. Whatever combo you want :) The batter will be turbo thick...the vinegar has an effect on the eggs, and it begins to coagulate them fairly quickly, so be patient and work quickly while spooning them into your pans. Bake them for about 30 minutes or so. Depending on your altitude, it could take less or more time. I would check it after 20 or 25 minutes, and watch it after that.

*Cooks Note- If you have red food coloring that you would like to use, just mix a couple Tbsp in with the cocoa powder to make a paste and incorporate it into the batter as directed.

RASPBERRY GANACHE:
-recipe inspired by Ruth Lendrick, off of the Food Network site
1 1/2 # Milk chocolate
1 C Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2 C Raspberry Jam

Place the chocolate into a large glass bowl. Bring the cream up to scalding on the stove, while mixing the jam into it. Once scalding, pour the cream/jam mixture over the chocolate. Let it sit there, without stirring for about 3-5 minutes. This is to allow the heat from the cream to melt the chocolate without incorporating air into it, and will create a more glossy and fine appearance to your ganache. Using a rubber scraper (spatula), gently and slowly stir the ganache together. Work in small circles, and do not incorporate air. Refrigerate for about 20-30 minutes,basically until your cupcakes are cooled.

MERINGUE:
4 Egg Whites
6 Tbsp Sugar

Using a mixer, beat the whites and sugar together until medium/stiff peaks are formed. Proceed by following the directions in description above.

*Cooks Note: Humidity will soften your meringues, so it is best to eat these the same day, unless you live in Nevada and it never rains. Then they will last for a few weeks! :)

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Quick Little Ditty: Basil Cream Fruit Salad with Mango Crisps

2008-06-12T19:10:00.005-06:00

Sometimes I just want something quick, really good, light and refreshing to eat. I don't want to put a ton of time or effort into it, but I do want it to taste good. And I don't want to feel guilty about eating it either :)

This is the perfect recipe for a time like that. It is simple, quick, and super tasty. Use whatever you happen to have on hand, and it makes for a perfect treat. Sometimes I even mix fresh with canned. I'm talking about fruit salad, of course!

There is no right or wrong fruit to put in, just toss in what you have and what you like. My fruit salad happens to have fresh watermelon, orange wedges and cherries with canned (drained and rinsed) peaches and pears. On top, just a dollop of lightly agave-sweetened whipped cream and a chiffonade of basil. For a perfect sweet/tart crunch, sprinkle over some dehydrated mango chunks (Just Mango).

The perfect treat for a hot June day (or any day for that matter) !

Mango Creme Brulee

2008-06-06T17:05:00.000-06:00

You may be wondering where I have been. We did get back from Mexico in May, and you have read all about that already, yet I have not posted since. Well, I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I have been sucked into reading the Twilight series. And now I am addicted to those darn books! I had to finish them, no matter what or who else suffered. I didn't even create anything to blog about! This whole time, either Mark has made dinner, or I decided that cold cereal would suffice. I'm just as obsessed with this series as any teenage girl in this country is, except for that I'm 25, so I feel pretty lame.

Since I have been so out of touch and lazy, I decided to post an awesome recipe that I have been meaning to mention for quite some time. I promised Melissa at Gluten Free For Good forever ago that I would post this. This was back when she was talking about mangoes, so that says how long ago it was :) Anyhow, it is so easy and sooo delicious, and I'd be willing to bet that you will make this more than once.

Mango Creme Brulee

3 Mangoes, small diced

2 Cups Cream Cheese

1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt, strained through cheese cloth overnight

Juice and Zest of 1 large Lime

1 Tbsp Agave Nectar

2 tsp. ground Ginger

Turbinado Sugar (or just brown sugar)

Beat all of the ingredients together except for the mango and sugar. Once combined, fold in the mangoes. Divide between 3-4 ramekins or coffee mugs, whatever you have. Chill overnight with plastic wrap completely covering them. If you do not have time to chill overnight, at least chill for a few hours. Once ready to serve, sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the surface evenly and, using a torch, caramelize the sugar until bubbly and golden, but not black. Once cooled, serve!

For those of you who are dairy free, why not try silken tofu in place of cream cheese and yogurt?

Elle, give this a try with raspberries and lime! Let me know what you think!!!

Greetings From Mexico!

2008-05-30T22:05:00.000-06:00

Well, we have arrived back to good ol' Colorado safe and sound! Mark and I had a great time on our vacation to San Jose Del Cabo! Some of my special GF food made it through customs, and some did not; but all in all, I was not disappointed! Along with eating; we snorkled, went fishing (we caught Mahi Mahi!), shopped and sat on the beach!

I was worried that I might have to survive on Lara Bars, but thanks to my Triumph Dining Cards and the fact that Mexican food is commonly GF, I did alright! I discovered that the more touristy restaurants were more risky. The more authentic we went, the better off I was. (Of course I knew that before hand, though.) The day we got there was my birthday, and my best friend Shealyn brought along the Pamela's White Cake Mix and the Pamela's Sprinkle Frosting Mix to make me my favorite cake GF! How thoughtful is she! Nobody actually believes that my favorite cake is a boxed Funfetti, but it is true! This Pamela's stuff comes so close to the real thing, I wanted to cry!

I did end up having a problem with some chips that were fried in a common frier, but other than that, things went pretty well. Listed below are a few of the restaurants we went to and dishes I ate.

Marco Polo Restaurant (Inside the Royal Solaris resort)

I ordered the 'Tepid Provoleta with Thin Vegetables, Fine Herbs and Balsamic Glaze' which was a simple dish of sauteed veggies with broiled Provolone cheese over the top, Fine Herbs sprinkled a bit and a sweet Balsamic glaze. It was simple, but sooo delicious! Who wouldn't like eating a plate full of crispy melty cheese!

Second course for me was the simple 'Grilled Mahi Mahi over a bed of Parmesan Risotto and julienned veggies'. The name says it all, and it was sooo good.

Dark room, sorry about the picture!!

Desert was a 'Mango Creme Brulee' which was a bit disappointing. Before even starting the meal, I had the server and the chef both have a look at my dining card (it was a bit difficult since it was an Italian restaurant with Spanish speaking employees!), and they reviewed each of my selections to make sure they were ok. Well, I get the dessert, and the waiter says "by the way, it has a cookie on the bottom". I looked at him and said "I cannot eat a cookie"..."Sorry", he said. Well, at least he told me before I dug in!

We also ate at a place called Cactus Taco, which was a very authentic, off the beaten path kind of place. I am kicking myself for not having my camera at the time to take a picture! They were surprised to see us there, they kept looking at us very confused as to why we were there! We only saw Mexicans there, the menus were all in Spanish and only one employee spoke very little English...it was great!!! Fortunately, our friend Alison speaks Spanish well, and was able to help translate. All of their menu items contain strips of cactus in them, looking similar to strips of green peppers. A bit crunchy, too. I ordered the chicken cactus tacos the first day, and the chicken cactus combo plate the next day. They were so simple, but absolutely the best Mexican food I have ever tasted. Full of onions, cactus, jalapenos, chicken, etc with a little bit of authentic queso blanco over fresh made corn tortillas. In the center of the table, we got little bowls full of 3 different sauces. One was a pineapple salsa with habanero peppers (I couldn't handle it!), a milder pico de gallo and a very liquid guacamole. I noticed that all authentic taquerias have very liquid guacamole, only the tourist areas had chunky guac. I'll have to learn more about making this, it was really good! We also had some great homemade Horchata.

We were able to buy some concentrated horchata at the grocery store there, and somehow, we were able to get it past customs-- but only just barely! They almost confiscated it. I'm glad they let us have it, it is the best!

Most of our other meals we cooked in our kitchen ourselves. We did visit a buffet some days, but I had to be sooo careful there, so I didn't eat anything too exciting. I mostly ate tropical fruits with plain yogurt. I am not complaining, I cant get that fruit here for less that $3 each!

All in all, we had a wonderful time!

Do you have a recipe for homemade Horchata? I would love to try it!

Mushroom, Onion and Provolone Steak Sandwich

2008-05-16T23:44:00.005-06:00

Pretty much since early this year I have been craving a sandwich. Not just any sandwich, but a good sandwich. I wanted a sandwich with a substantial roll that tasted like real bread, not just a sub-par gluten free substitute.

Earlier in the month, my husband's grandma (my grandma in law??) who lives in Utah found a shop that sells a bread mix made by a small company near her home called Grandpa's Kitchen. I don't think that they even have a website. Just a small mom and pop operation doing all of the work from a small kitchen. Anyhow, she of course saw it and thought of me, so she sent it right out! I love that lady, she really is very sweet and thoughtful! Anyhow, I got it and gave it a try. It consists of Corn Starch, Potato Starch, Rice Flour, Tapioca Flour and Xanthan Gum. It is a very liquid dough once it is mixed up with yogurt, egg, vegetable oil, baking powder, baking soda, salt and yeast. I wasn't sure of how I was going to get a bun shape with such a moist dough. It is meant to be poured into a loaf pan. I thought for a while and had the idea to pour it into my french onion soup bowls- which are oven safe, and let the dough rise in there. It worked so well! I couldn't believe how high the dough rose just sitting there- and then with the baking soda and powder, it rose even higher. It was awesome! Once out of the oven, I split them and then toasted them up back in the oven. They were so dreamy! :)

Then all I did was saute up some mushrooms and onions, stir fry some thin cut steak strips in some oil, salt, pepper and garlic salt. I smeared some Spectrum GF Mayonnaise on one half of the bun, topped it with the steak strips, onions and mushrooms and then placed a slice of provolone on it. It was so simple and soooo tasty! It really hit the spot!

I'm not going to list a recipe because it is more of a method than an exact recipe. Use what you like for any kind of sandwich filler...I am just super stoked about these buns and how well they worked. They are soooo much better than the nasty buns from the store with those strange absorbent bead packs in them. Does anyone else think that is creepy and gross? I'm not down with that.

Anyhow, I am going to try to duplicate the bread mix. It has all very simple and accessible ingredients, I just need to experiment with the quantities of each flour/starch. I'll let you know how it goes when I figure it out :)

If you are interested in trying out the Grandpa's Kitchen bread mix, which can also be made lactose free, please email them at grandpaskitchen at gmail dot com.

More bread than anything else-- but really, who cares!!!

Colorado Chocolate Festival

2008-05-12T22:10:00.001-06:00

Saturday morning my husband and I made the drive over to my family's house to celebrate Mother's Day. The plan was to make Lemon Lovers' Ricotta Pancakes and Blueberry Sauce for brunch. We hadn't really planned anything after that, and decided to figure it out as we went. I had read about a chocolate festival happening in north Denver that day and had secretly planned to somehow trick everyone into going. ;) It didn't end up being very difficult...everyone was super excited to go! Somehow, I don't think I was the persuasive one...the mention of free chocolate would convince even the most stubborn person!

So after finishing up the dishes for my lovely step mom Rose, we piled into the 'ol family minivan and headed out. In my mind, I was picturing opening the doors to the Denver Merchandise Mart where the festival was held and being overwhelmed with the luscious smell of high quality melted chocolate. For those who have had the experience of entering a high quality chocolate shop where they make their own in house, you know the smell I speak of. Unfortunately that was not the case in this instance. We entered in the double doors and were immediately given free Pop Rock filled candy bars along with our $8 tickets. Well, I wasn't so sure about the 'unspecified starch' contained in these long chocolate nuggets, so I handed it over to my husband who can eat as much unspecified starch as his heart desires. Not only was this conference room filled with chocolate vendors, but there were also other vendors that had nothing to do with chocolate whatsoever. I'm not sure why they were there. It bugged me in fact. I did have to chuckle when I found that Denise Nickerson, the original Violet Beauregard in the old Willy Wonka movie was there signing photos. (Apparently she lives in Denver?)

Now I don't want you, my lovely reader, to think that I was disappointed. Oh no, it was quite lovely! There were plenty of booths with all of the chocolate samples I could want. The only problem was, of course, which ones were GF? Well I fully intended to find out, because there was no way I was going to refrain from eating free chocolate! Below are my findings:

Divine Organics Sacred Cacao
Raw Cacao Brittles
"Divinely decadent healthy chocolate"

This chocolate, sold by Transition Nutrition rocks! I loved it. The lady at the booth presented me with a taste of the raw macadamia nut brittle. I wouldn't necessarily call it a brittle in the sense of the kind that you eat during the holidays: nuts surrounded in a thick, crunchy caramel bed; because they are actually nuts and fruit enrobed in a bar of chocolate. Oh my golly though...I could taste the natural fruitiness and flowery essence that comes naturally when you eat true, minimally processed chocolate. It was a high percentage of pure dark chocolate, and the macadamias added a fabulous flavor. This aint no Hershey's bar!

Next up: Oliver Kita.....

"Buddha would want you to bite the head off so he could laugh from inside your belly" -Cat Stevens

Oliver Kita Fine Confections
"Objects of Desire"

This man's chocolates are sooooooo good! Just one problem. I discovered that the chocolate peanut butter truffle is NOT GF. Nope. I discovered this after the chef, Oliver Kita, told me that they were. No doubt about it, he said. Absolutely. So I ate one. Oh baby. I had never tasted one so delicious. I even went as far as paying $8 for a bag of 6 truffles. They were that good. I am still feeling the effects of the gluten, and I am so disappointed. I took a bite in front of him and stopped mid chew-"what are the crunchies?" I asked. "Oh, that is organic crunchy peanut butter inside. The crunch is the peanuts". So I ate more. I ate another when I got home and thought to myself, "this is not a peanut kind of crunch. This has to have something more". So, I did what any detective would do. I shoved my pinkie in the filling and dug. I knew what I was looking for, and I found it. Pate Fuilletine. Little crunchy goodies that pastry chefs add to candy to add that special crunch without getting soggy. They are comparable to mini corn flakes. I was so mad! What a waste of money. So much for asking the chef.

Next up: Izzybelle Chocolate Sauces.....

Izzybelle Chocolate Sauces
"The taste makes the difference"

Based in Castle Rock CO, Izzybelle is the product of 30 years refinement. And it shows. The sauces come in Original Chocolate, Toffee, Raspberry, Orange, Peppermint and Peanut Butter flavors. I looked through all of their ingredients, and as far as I can tell, they are totally GF. They use natural, organic and local ingredients as much as they can. Truly a delight. Forget Nutella. This is the stuff right here. All natural ingredients, nothing strange on the labels, really, really good stuff.

Well, although of course I tried many, many more chocolates, those were the best. Oliver Kita does use GF chocolate, and if you buy his chocolate Buddha or any other figurines, I'm sure you will not be disappointed! He uses very high quality ingredients, so please don't be deterred from checking out his web site!

Lemon Poppy Seed Almond Muffins

2008-05-08T21:40:00.001-06:00

I loooove lemon! Lemon truly makes me feel happy and springy. There is nothing like it to brighten your day, to add a skip to your step. Adding lemon to your muffins is doubly happy. My husband always jokes with me about muffins...he quotes me in a high pitched voice saying "all I want is a muffin"!

Truly, all I want is a muffin.

Lemon Poppy Seed Almond Muffins

1 3/4 Cup Sylvan Border Farms AP GF Flour

1 Tbsp ground Flax Seed

1 tsp Baking Soda

3 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Xanthan Gum

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Tbsp Poppy seed

1/4 Cup melted Coconut Oil

1/3 Cup Agave Nectar

2 whisked Eggs

1 Cup Plain Yogurt

Zest and Juice of 1 large Lemon

Splash of Almond Extract

Chopped Toasted Almonds (Optional)

Leftover Tart Lemon Pulp (click link for recipe)

Method: Preheat oven to 350 f. In separate bowls, mix the wet ingredients and the dry. Gently add the wet into the dry and fold in the toasted almonds. Using a lunch lady scoop, drop balls of batter into pre greased muffin tins. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown on top. De-pan and let cool slightly on a cooling rack.

Using a knife or the back of a spoon, spread chilled Tart Lemon Pulp over the tops to add a shine and a real zip of flavor. Don't skip this, it really makes a lovely finish!

*To quote The Sandlot..."and then, you stuff!" Enjoy! :)

Blogging With A Purpose Award

2008-05-05T22:10:00.001-06:00

I am so excited! Elle over at Elle's New England Kitchen has awarded me with such an honor, the Blogging With A Purpose Award! I started blogging for Celiac Disease because I wanted to be a part of a community where we all support and encourage each other. Most of the time, I feel like I take so much support and maybe don't give out a fair share in return. This truly means a lot, and I feel so flattered. Thank you so much Elle!

The rules of the award are this:
1)Pick 5 blogs that you consider deserve this award with their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribute to the blogger community, no matter what language.

2) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.

3) Each award-winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.

4) Post the rules.

I have chosen the following 5 blogs for the award:

1. Melissa at Gluten Free For Good. She is so inspirational, smart and 'snarky' at the same time!

2. Kate at Gluten Free Gobsmacked. We seem to be in very similar life situations, and she never ceases to make me smile.

3.The Good Eatah because she was the first to welcome me into the GF blogging community.

4. Gluten Free Steve for similar reasons; he is in my home town, and I feel he has welcomed me and helped me feel like a real part of the community.

5. Karina, the Gluten Free Goddess. Let's be honest...is she not the first GF blog we all came across? She is truly inspirational and witty. She really does 'blog with a purpose'.

Thanks to all of these talented and great people for making life for all of us more bearable and even fun!

Strawberry Spoom

2008-05-01T13:00:00.001-06:00

What is Spoom, you ask? Let me tell you!

Spoom is an Italian frozen dessert, similar to sorbet. In fact, it starts out as sorbet. I learned about this light as air dessert in culinary school. I never actually made it nor had I even tried it until this week. It's even hard to find any info or a recipe for it when searched in Google. So I made it up. I knew what is standard in making it, so I figured it out. Not bad! In fact...really good!

Think of it this way...Sherbet is essentially sorbet with dairy frozen in. Spoom is sorbet with whipped egg whites, or meringue frozen in. So think of sherbet, but a million times better and no dairy. And not strange fake lemon-lime gooey weirdness. That's it. Easy Shmeezy ;)

Strawberry Spoom

Sorbet Mix-

1 Cup Sugar

1 cup Water

1 Pound hulled Strawberries

Meringue-

2 Egg Whites

1/3 Cup Sugar

Method: Bring the sugar and water to a rolling boil to make a simple syrup. Refrigerate until cold. In a blender, puree the strawberries and enough simple syrup for your liking until totally blended. Taste it and see if you want more simple syrup. Strain through a mesh sieve if you don't like seeds. Refrigerate again.

Whip the egg whites and sugar together and bring to medium peak. GENTLY fold the two mixtures together. You do not need to fold until there is no white left...just fold it together a little bit. The ice cream machine will mix it well enough.

Freeze the mix following the directions on your machine. If you do not have a machine, you will need to do this a little differently. Just take the Strawberry/Simple Syrup mix and put it in a very large bowl in your freezer. Every 15-30 minutes or so, pull it out and whisk it like crazy. After it starts to freeze, whip up your meringue and GENTLY fold in the egg whites. It wont be totally the same as using a machine, but it should work.

In either case, keep your spoom in the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving.

The texture comes out flaky and light. I like to use strawberries that are super ripe...like you have to use them that day or they will be bad. Those have the best flavor for ice creams and sorbets.

Soft/Medium Peak

NOTE: This has raw egg whites...do not feed to young children or the elderly. Do not eat it if you are pregnant. Please be careful, I like you!

"Quite possibly the best pancakes I have ever tasted"

2008-04-28T18:39:00.006-06:00

During the week, I do some part time office work for my in-laws to earn some extra money and help them out with their home based business. My mother in law is usually home while I am working, so we are usually chatting about our latest recipe finds and food in general. Some days, more food gets made then work gets done :) The other day my mother in law found a recipe in our newspaper, The Rocky Mountain News for some great pancakes that neither of us could stop thinking about. The salad that we had made for lunch started out sounding good, but ended up being more of a disappointment as we continued to think about these pancakes.

Both of us ended up making them over the weekend--hers made following the recipe as she can have gluten, and mine with a few tweaks and changes to accommodate my diet. It was amazing to compare the two finished products...they looked and tasted exactly the same! I never thought I would be able to say this, but for a few moments, I actually forgot that I was eating gluten free.

My husband hates pancakes, but as we sat down and ate them, my husband with a surprised look on his face said "These are quite possibly the best pancakes I have ever tasted". Score!

Lemon Lovers' Ricotta Pancakes with Blueberry Sauce

1 Cup Sylvan Border Farm GF General Purpose Flour

1 Tbsp Agave Nectar OR 2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Salt

1 Cup Part-Skim Ricotta Cheese

1 large Egg

2 large Egg Whites

1/2 Cup fresh squeezed Lemon Juice

the zest of one Lemon

1 Tbsp Canola Oil + Oil for the pan

Preheat a skillet or electric griddle to medium heat or about 325*f. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and granulated sugar if you choose to use it. In a separate bowl, whisk together the agave nectar (if not using granulated sugar), ricotta, eggs, lemon juice, zest and canola oil. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry. The batter will be super thick. Using a lunch lady scoop (the ones with an ejector handle) or a spoon. Gently spread the batter out-it will be thick. Let it cook until golden on the bottom, then flip them. You wont see bubbles coming through to the top like you would making regular pancakes. Cook on the second side until golden brown. They will be super fluffy and light.

Blueberry Sauce

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice (fresh squeezed, of course!)

2 tsp Cornstarch

2 Cups Blueberries

1/3 Cup Sugar or 1/4 Cup Agave Nectar

2 Tbsp H2O

1/4 tsp Salt

Mix lemon juice and cornstarch, set aside. Bring blueberries, salt, H2O, and agave/sugar to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally. Stir in lemon/cornstarch and simmer until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.

Holy momma, these will knock your socks off!

For All You Dog Lovers

2008-04-19T23:03:00.000-06:00

This is our dog, Queso. Yes, his name is 'cheese'. In Spanish. A lot of my favorite bloggers have posted pictures of their dogs, and I love their pictures, so I thought I would show you our dog. He is bigger than this now, but this is one of my favorites! What a cutie! He is a mix between a lab and a corgi...we think. Don't ask how this happened, we don't know! I hope you dog lovers enjoy the pic!

Flourless Banana Zucchini Cake

2008-04-19T22:54:00.000-06:00

Last night I finally went through my food storage and pantry/spice cabinet to de-glutenize my kitchen. Yes, it is long overdue, but I just could not bring myself to lose all of this food! Food=money, and we are in short supply of that right now (stupid taxes!) I was able to give it away to friends who could use it, so that makes me feel a bit better. What also makes me feel better is that I don't have to keep track of what I can and cannot have. I can just grab anything out of the pantry and go! I have lots of room now to re-stock things that I can have. It is a good feeling. I think because of this, I was really, really in the mood to cook today. After I had my 1st bowl of Rice Chex (which are now GF...SCORE!!) since October 2007, I just started cooking like crazy! I also rode my bike for the 1st time this season because it was around 80* f today. Ah, warm weather and food, not much in life is better! Anyhow, I made a ton of food today, and I was feeling creative, so I wanted to try my hand at making something totally of my own creation. Nothing based off of any other recipe. I wanted to take my culinary knowledge and create something tasty.... I can totally do this no problem if I am allowed to use flour...like regular flour. This gluten free thing is a whole new world when it comes to baking and pastries!

This turned out really well, and I am really happy with it. It has a very nice texture...similar to a custard. It was really simple too. I would recommend serving this with a dollop of whipped cream. Not Chantilly cream-which is sweetened with sugar and usually has some vanilla. No, just plain cream whipped to a medium peak. The cake is sweet enough to hold it's own without added sugar.

Flourless Banana Zucchini Cake

1 Banana, mashed

1 small Zucchini, grated

2 1/2 Tbsp Coconut Oil, softened (Spectrum brand works for me)

1 whole Egg

1/4 Cup Agave Nectar

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 Tbsp Cinnamon

Splash of GF Vanilla

Sprinkle of Demerara Sugar (Sugar in the Raw)

Preheat oven to 350 f. Mix all ingredients together EXCEPT for the Demerara sugar. Mix well. Pour into a greased 6" cake pan with a parchment circle on the bottom. This will help to prevent it from sticking. Bake for approx 20-25 minutes or until it is solid and not jiggly. Check it after about 15 minutes just to be sure...I have a convection oven and am at a high altitude, so you will want to watch it a little because your baking time could be slightly different. Once out of the oven, sprinkle the demerara sugar over the cake and let it cool for about 10 minutes before de-panning. Eat up!!!

What is Celiac Sprue or Gluten Intolerance?

2008-04-17T12:39:00.000-06:00

I have had people approach me lately asking what Celiac is and why do so many people need to be on a gluten free diet? I have taken excerpts below from the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse to help explain the disease and how it effects people. The list of allowed foods and foods to avoid is not complete...it is just meant for an example.

What is celiac disease?
Celiac disease is a digestive disease that damages the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food. People who have celiac disease cannot tolerate a protein called gluten, found in wheat, rye, and barley. Gluten is found mainly in foods but may also be found in products we use every day, such as stamp and envelope adhesive, medicines, and vitamins.

When people with celiac disease eat foods or use products containing gluten, their immune system responds by damaging the small intestine. The tiny, fingerlike protrusions lining the small intestine are damaged or destroyed. Called villi, they normally allow nutrients from food to be absorbed into the bloodstream. Without healthy villi, a person becomes malnourished, regardless of the quantity of food eaten.

Because the body’s own immune system causes the damage, celiac disease is considered an autoimmune disorder. However, it is also classified as a disease of malabsorption because nutrients are not absorbed. Celiac disease is also known as celiac sprue, nontropical sprue, and gluten-sensitive enteropathy.

Celiac disease is a genetic disease, meaning it runs in families. Sometimes the disease is triggered—or becomes active for the first time—after surgery, pregnancy, childbirth, viral infection, or severe emotional stress.

What are the symptoms of celiac disease?
Celiac disease affects people differently. Symptoms may occur in the digestive system, or in other parts of the body. For example, one person might have diarrhea and abdominal pain, while another person may be irritable or depressed. In fact, irritability is one of the most common symptoms in children.

Symptoms of celiac disease may include one or more of the following:

gas
recurring abdominal bloating and pain
chronic diarrhea
constipation
pale, foul-smelling, or fatty stool
weight loss/weight gain
fatigue
unexplained anemia (a low count of red blood cells causing fatigue)
bone or joint pain
osteoporosis, osteopenia
behavioral changes
tingling numbness in the legs (from nerve damage)
muscle cramps
seizures
missed menstrual periods (often because of excessive weight loss)
infertility, recurrent miscarriage
delayed growth
failure to thrive in infants
pale sores inside the mouth, called aphthous ulcers
tooth discoloration or loss of enamel
itchy skin rash called dermatitis herpetiformis

A person with celiac disease may have no symptoms. People without symptoms are still at risk for the complications of celiac disease, including malnutrition. The longer a person goes undiagnosed and untreated, the greater the chance of developing malnutrition and other complications. Anemia, delayed growth, and weight loss are signs of malnutrition: The body is just not getting enough nutrients. Malnutrition is a serious problem for children because they need adequate nutrition to develop properly.

What is the treatment?
The only treatment for celiac disease is to follow a gluten-free diet. When a person is first diagnosed with celiac disease, the doctor usually will ask the person to work with a dietitian on a gluten-free diet plan. Someone with celiac disease can learn from a dietitian how to read ingredient lists and identify foods that contain gluten in order to make informed decisions at the grocery store and when eating out.

For most people, following this diet will stop symptoms, heal existing intestinal damage, and prevent further damage. Improvements begin within days of starting the diet. The small intestine is usually completely healed in 3 to 6 months in children and younger adults and within 2 years for older adults. Healed means a person now has villi that can absorb nutrients from food into the bloodstream.

In order to stay well, people with celiac disease must avoid gluten for the rest of their lives. Eating any gluten, no matter how small an amount, can damage the small intestine. The damage will occur in anyone with the disease, including people without noticeable symptoms.

Allowed Foods:
Amaranth, Arrowroot, Buckwheat, Cassava, Corn, Flax, Indian rice grass, Legumes, Millet, Nuts, Potatoes, Quinoa, Rice, Sago Seeds, Soy, Sorghum, Tapioca, Wild Rice and Yucca, Fresh Meat and Fish-frozen can have a glutenous coating to prevent sticking

Foods To Avoid:
Wheat-- Including einkorn, emmer, spelt, kamut
Wheat starch, wheat bran, wheat germ, cracked wheat, hydrolyzed wheat protein
Barley, Rye, Triticale (a cross between wheat and rye), Bromated flour, Durum flour, Enriched flour, Farina, Graham flour, Phosphated flour, Plain flour, Self-rising flour, Semolina, White flour, MSG, Modified Food Starch, Natural or Artificial Flavorings

Six Word Memoir

2008-04-17T10:47:00.000-06:00

I have been tagged by Elle from Elle's New England Kitchen to post a six word memoir about myself. This is pretty exciting....I love getting new readers AND playing games, so this rocks! The foodie blogroll has really helped with getting more readers, so I am super happy about that!

Rules: 1. Write your own six-word memoir.
2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you’d like.
3. Link to the person who tagged you in your post.
4. Tag five or six (choice is yours) more blogs with links.
5. Remember to leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play.

Anyhow...here it goes!

Playful
Artist
Sappy
Talkative
Rockabilly
Yummy

I tag some of my blogging buddies as well as some highlighted blogs from the blogroll:

The Good Eatah
Gluten Free Steve
Randomosity And The Girl
East Meets West Kitchen
My Plate, My World

Indian Rice Pudding

2008-04-13T22:49:00.004-06:00

This is one of my favorite recipes. It cooks in a jiffy, so it is perfect for last minute get togethers, yet it is homey enough to be comfort food. Eat it warm or cold, it is a treat for all!

*

*April in Colorado is usually our snowiest month, and this year seems to be no exception. I made this last week when I needed something to warm me up from the wet, heavy, snow-filled nights and again today to cool me off when it hit 65 degrees. *

*Indian Rice Pudding

3 Cups cooked rice (I prefer Jasmine rice)
1 Can (15 oz) Coconut Milk, 1st pressing
3 Cups Milk (I use soy)
1 Cup Sugar (white or brown...or both!)
2 Tbsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Ginger
1 tsp Nutmeg
Splash GF Vanilla
Large handful Currants, Raisins, or other Dried Fruit
Large handful toasted Almonds, slivered
Pinch of Salt

*In a large pot, cook rice according to package directions. Add the rest of the ingredients, and while whisking, heat it to just before a boil. Take it off of the heat while still a bit soupy.

*That's it. No joke. The rice will soak up the rest of the liquid over time.

*Eat it warm-soothing, relaxing, comforting
*Eat it cold-a great breakfast, dessert or midnight snack

*cooks note-change up the qty's of the sugar and spices to go along with your tastes. Use agave instead of sugar or brown rice instead of jasmine! Go crazy!

The Foodie Blogroll

2008-04-13T21:50:00.003-06:00

I wanted to let you all know that I have joined the Foodie Blogroll. What does that mean? It means that my blog will be linked up to other blogs who are also on the blogroll. This allows our Google status to go up, and it also allows for more visitors to the site. It is a community of Foodies, and I am excited to become more involved in their happenings! Scroll down a bit and look to the right of this page, and you will be able to view different blogs on the blogroll. You may just find your new favorite blog there! Yippee!!!

Tender Pork Chops with Herbed Two Squash Pasta

2008-04-08T18:09:00.000-06:00

I must say that I am quite proud of this dish...this is a new favorite! We didn't discover our love of squash until after my diagnosis. Since then, it has become a staple in our home, and we are always looking for new ways to use it.

This was a meal that made me dance around my kitchen, it was love at first taste ;)

*Please excuse my picture...our camera is broken, so this comes from my trusty camera phone

Tender Pork Chops with Herbed Two Squash Pasta

4 Pork Chops

1 medium Spaghetti Squash

2 Tbsp EV Olive Oil

1 medium Zucchini Squash, sliced into coins

1/2 White Onion, small diced

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1 Cup Chicken Stock

2 Tbsp Butter

2 Tsp Parsley

2 Tsp Rosemary

2 Tsp Thyme

2 Tsp Basil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 f. Cut the spaghetti squash lengthwise down the center and place both halves face down in a roasting pan half way full of water. Place in the oven for about 45 minutes or until a knife poked into the side slides out easily.

In the meantime, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until tender. Salt and Pepper both sides of the pork chops, add the stock to the sauteed onions, nestle in the pork chops and cover the pan with a lid. Turn down the heat to Med Low. Cook the chops low and slow until cooked to your liking. They will stay tender at a low temp.

Once the spaghetti squash is finished baking, pull it out of the oven and let it cool a bit until it is comfortable to touch. Pull out the pork chops onto a plate. Using a spoon, scoop out the seeds from the squash and discard them. Using the same spoon or a fork, gently scrape the spaghetti strands out of the squash skin. Turn up the heat on the pan with the sauteed onions to med high or so, and add the spaghetti and zucchini squash. Toss to coat, melting in the butter and adding the herbs, salt and pepper. Add the chops back in and you are set to go!

Snuggle close to your sweetheart and eat up! Pack the rest for a lunch your co-workers will be jealous of!

"Sopapillas" with Sweet Butter and Tart Lemon Pulp

2008-04-01T18:59:00.000-06:00

Tonight we had a mexican inspired meal, and I thought it would be fun to try my hand at GF sopapillas. You'll notice that I put that in quotations in my title. That's because they didn't turn out like a conventional sopapilla. They puffed a little, but not as much as one would expect.

They still tasted awesome!!! I actually really recommend trying these out! Let me know if yours puff up better!

"Sopapillas" with Sweet Butter and Tart Lemon Pulp

Zest from one large Lemon

Juice and pulp from the same lemon

1/2 cup Sugar

Splash of Water

1 tsp. Unflavored Gelatin

1 Tbsp Water

1/2 Cup of your preferred GF flour mix

1/2 tsp. Xanthan Gum

3/4 tsp. Baking Powder

Pinch of Salt

1/4 Tbsp. Butter

1/3 Cup Water

Oil for frying

For the Tart Lemon Pulp, add the first 4 ingredients to a sauce pan. Taste it and make sure you like the amount of sugar in it...you can always add more to make it sweeter. Bring it to a simmer and reduce it down by 1/4 or so. In the mean time, bloom the gelatin in a small cup with the remaining water. Once the simmering lemon is reduced a bit, add the bloomed gelatin. Whisk it a bit, and pour it into a bowl and chill in the refrigerator until cool. It should be thick, but still kind of liquid.

For the sopapillas, mix all of your dry ingredients together. Crumble in your butter like you would if you were making a pie crust. Add your water, a bit a time and begin to knead the dough together. It should be a tiny bit dry, but if you feel it is too dry, you can add a bit more water. It will all depend on your weather outside.

Begin heating the oil on the stove and bring it up to 400 f. Be oh so careful not to burn yourself! Pat the dough flat (1/2" thick) and cut into squares-whatever size you want. Fry for about 30 seconds on each side. Using a metal slotted spoon, remove from hot oil and drain on some paper towels.

Melt the sweet butter over the sopapillas and drizzle the cooled lemon pulp over them. It would also be attractive to sift some powdered sugar over them when plating them up.

cooks note-If you want your lemon pulp to be thicker, you can reduce it more or you can add more gelatin; thinner, you can omit the gelatin and stop once you have reduced by 1/4. If you are vegan and don't use gelatin, just squeeze more lemons and add more sugar and reduce it a lot more. It will become syrupy and the natural pectin in it will help to thicken it. You are also welcome to use store bought pectin as well.

Italian Polenta Skillet Pie

2008-03-31T18:59:00.011-06:00

Last night was cold and a bit snowy/rainy, so naturally we felt like snuggling up with some comfort food. We have a good amount of veggies hanging around, so we decided to go Italian pot pie style. I named it a skillet pie for obvious reasons...we have a cast iron skillet, but no pot. Cast iron feels a little more rustic to me, and helps with the whole comfort food feel.

Italian Polenta Skillet Pie

2 tbsp Olive Oil

2 Cups medium diced Zucchini

2 Cups medium diced Eggplant

3 Cups thick sliced Bell Pepper; red, yellow, green

1 small Onion, sliced

3 cloves Garlic, minced

1 tsp. Oregano

1 tsp. Parsley

1 tsp. Thyme

1 tsp. Rosemary

1 tsp. Red Chili Flakes

Salt and Pepper to taste

2 Cups Water

1 Cup Corn Meal

3 Tbsp. freshly shredded Parmesan Cheese

Lightly copped fresh Rosemary

3 Tbsp Butter

2 Cups Veggie Stock, Chicken Stock or Water

1 Tbsp Corn Starch or any thickener you want

Preheat oven to 350 f. In skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add veggies and saute until tender. Add seasonings, turn heat down to medium low and let cook down, stirring occasionally.

In a separate pot, boil water and add corn meal. Whisk constantly over medium low to medium heat until thick, about 5 minutes. Add cheese, rosemary, salt and pepper.

In another pot, melt butter and add most of the stock, reserving about 1/3 Cup and bring to a low boil. Whisk the corn starch and reserved cold stock together and add into the boiling stock/butter mixture. Add salt and pepper. Whisk until thickened, this should take less than a minute.

Pour sauce into the skillet over the veggies. Add some more butter for good measure ;) Spread the polenta over the top of the veggies, making sure to seal the edges completely.

Bake for 20 minutes or so, until the top starts to crisp and turn golden. Once out of the oven, sprinkle shredded parmesan, rosemary, salt and pepper over the top.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Cookies

2008-03-31T18:59:00.006-06:00

This recipe is inspired by The Good Eatah's Almond Banana Cookies. I didn't have any almond butter available, so I used natural peanut butter. I also added chocolate chips and substitted agave nectar for the brown sugar. This has become my favorite cookie recipe-it is quick to make and sooo delicious :)

I brought these to the Pinewood Derby as a refeshment (since I am a Cub Scout leader), and they were the hit of the party...nobody could believe that they were GF!

Thanks again to The Good Eatah, I hope you don't mind me posting this :)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Cookies

1 Cup Natural Peanut Butter (smooth or chunky)

4 Tbsp Agave Nectar

1 Egg, beaten

1 Banana

1 Tsp Baking Soda

Dash of Salt

1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven tp 350 F. In a mixing bowl, combine first 6 ingredients, mix well. Mix in chocolate chips gently. Spoon batter onto a parchment or silicone lined baking sheet, spacing them far enough apart to allow for spreading. Flatten each cookie a little and bake for 8-10 minutes.

*Cooks note--The 1st time I made this, I used a super ripe, black banana and it made for a very loose batter. They turned out great. The 2nd time I made them, I used a yellow banana and the batter was much tighter. They still turned out great. Either way, they are delicious, but I don't want you to freak if your batter turnes out loose. They will still be awesome :)

Thai Peanut Pasta

2008-03-25T17:38:00.010-06:00

This has evolved into Mark's favorite dish. There are a hundred different ways to alter this recipe to your liking...go nuts!

Thai Peanut Pasta

1 box Quinoa pasta, pagoda style (with little ridges)

1 1/2 C Natural Peanut Butter, creamy or chunky-whatever floats your boat

1 tbsp Canola Oil

1 C Broccoli

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1/2 small Onion, diced small

2 C Chicken Stock

1 tbsp GF Worcestershire (walmart has some)

1 tbsp GF Tamari/Soy Sauce

2 tsp Sesame Oil

pinch of Chili Flakes

3 Shredded Carrots

Salt and Pepper to taste

Boil a big pot of water, add the noodles and cook according to package directions. Sweat onion and garlic in the canola oil in a medium to large saucepan. Add chicken stock, peanut butter, worcestershire, tamari and sesame oil and whisk until combined...this may take a minute. Add a bit more peanut butter if the ingredients just won't combine. Let that sit on low and stir occasionally. Add chopped broccoli to the sauce and heat through. Add salt and pepper. If your sauce is thicker than you like, whisk in more stock.

Toss pasta and sauce together, garnish with a heaping portion of shredded carrots and a pinch of chili flakes.

A lot of times, we add cubed chicken and any extra veggies we can find. Homemade mango salsa totally rocks as a garnish as well. Also, we usually use thick cut rice noodles (A Taste of Thai brand), which are a bit more authentic, but Quinoa pasta has major protein :)

Strawberry Pavlova

2008-03-18T17:38:00.000-06:00

I created this luscious little ditty on a whim. We had guests coming, and I hadn't prepared like I was supposed to. I had some leftover meringue cookies and strawberries around, so naturally I thought of a Pavlova. Alas, no whipped cream to complete this classic dessert, so I used yogurt. It turned out delightful, and no one was the wiser!

Strawberry Pavlova

1 pint yogurt (vanilla, plain, strawberry...whatever you like)
2 Cups Strawberries, Sliced and macerated in sugar

About 35-40 Meringue Cookies (I happened to have some from the store, please don't slap my hand!)

If you would like to make your own meringues, please see the recipe below.

For the strawberries, sprinkle a good handful of sugar over them, gently coat all of the slices using a spoon and let sit for about 20 minutes until good and syrupy. Then simply pour the yogurt into the bottom of a decorative serving dish, top with the meringues, leaving a 'hole' in the center, and pile high as many berries as you can fit into the center. If you have some around, you are welcome to garnish it with some mint if you please. Also, some lemon zest would be lovely sprinkled on top.

This also works very nicely as individual desserts. Just make it as above, but in a fancy glass- say a martini glass.

Meringue Cookies
2 egg whites
1/2 C. white sugar
Splash of vanilla

Preheat oven to 200 f.
Using a whisk attachment, whip all ingredients until meringue reaches stiff peak. Pipe using a star tip onto a parchment lined tray and bake for an hour. Turn off oven and let cookies sit in oven for another 45 min to 1 hr. When the cookies are firm and crispy, they are ready to go!! Sometimes they will take longer to bake depending on the weather.

Cooks note: If it is humid outside, you will not be as successful in making meringues. Meringues like dry climates. Make these on a warm, dry day! Also try dipping them in chocolate...so decadent!

Apple Currant Cobbler with Sweetened Coconut Foam

2008-03-15T17:38:00.000-06:00

I figured I would post the recipe I made up which Mark and I had for brunch on Saturday. Nothing like cancelling out your workout right after you get home from it! :)

I start by making the topping and letting it simmer while I make the dough and par bake it. Once plated up, it would be equally as good with ice cream or whipped cream. I happened to have some leftover coconut cream in my fridge which I just foamed up with a bit of sugar and a hand mixer. I then drizzled it over each plate. Oh, and if you like toasted nuts, those would be really nice in this too. Just mix them in with the topping.

The biscuit recipe was adapted from Gluten Free Kitchen by Roben Ryberg.

Apple Currant Cobbler with Sweetened Coconut Foam

Biscuits...
1/3 C COLD Butter, cubed
1/2 C Potato Starch
3/4 C Cornstarch
1 3/4 tsp Xanthan Gum (GF binder-found at health food stores)
1 tbsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
2 tbsp Sugar
3/4 C Milk
1/2 tsp Salt
Preheat oven to 375. In medium bowl, blend all ingredients. Mix very well to remove any lumps. Remember, there is no gluten, so you don't need to worry about over mixing. They cannot get tough. Dough will be quite soft and sticky.
Spray nonstick spray in desired baking dish. I used a decorative deep pie dish. Transfer dough into baking dish, spreading out as best you can. It is meant to look rustic, so no need to be perfect. Par bake in oven for about 5-8 minutes. Just long enough to set the dough a bit and create a very thin crust.

Topping....
4 tbsp Butter
1/2 c. Brown Sugar
1 tbsp Cinnamon (adjust if you like...go with what tastes good)
pinch of Nutmeg
pinch of Ginger
pinch of Salt
3 medium Apples, cored and sliced. Peel them if you like.
handful of Dried Currants
handful of GF Oats

In a medium/large sauce pan, let the butter and sugar melt together. Add the rest of the ingredients and let it simmer while preparing the biscuit dough. You are welcome to add more butter or sugar if you want it more syrupy.

Once dough is par baked, pour the topping over the biscuit, covering the top evenly. Bake again for 10-12 minutes. You will know when to pull it out-it should smell really nice, and some of the apples will begin to brown.