GF/DF Corn Bread recipe

So...I wanted to make cornbread to go with my friends chili for our get-together this week.  I made some last year and it was okay, but nothing to make me go WOW. It was simply OKAY.  I have made really yummy cornbread for years and the idea that just because I am eating gluten free means I can't have good corn bread was just NOT okay in my book.  Ludicrous!  I am a FIRM believer that if you have a good recipe you can always make delicious food.

I decided to pull out my original recipe...my go-to recipe...for cornbread.  It's one I have altered and adjusted over the years, to my taste.

Gluten Free/Dairy Free Corn Bread

1 1/4 cup Featherlight Flour mixture
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
3/4 cup corn meal
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup almond milk (or other dairy free milk)
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 egg beaten

Grease an 8x8 or 9x9 inch square pan, or a round pie plate, or casserole dish.  Set aside. Combine dry ingredients in large bowl.  Mix well.  Stir in milk, oil and egg.  Mix just until moistened; making sure that any large clumps are broken up.  Pour batter into prepared pan.  Bake @ 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Or for glass or dark pans bake @ 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
These make great muffins too.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.  For dark pans: 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

This recipe came out moist and delicious!  I LOVE sweet cornbread, so if that's what you like you might enjoy this treat!  This tastes scrumptious with pumpkin butter spread onto it too!  Happy Fall!

Oh...the Featherlight Flour Mixture is as follows:

1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 cup tapioca starch
1 cup cornstarch
3 tsp potato flour

The original recipe comes from Bette Hagman's The Gluten Free Gourmet Bakes Bread book.  I altered it slightly to fit my needs.

Hummus

My new obsession...hummus.  I've had it a few times over the years and I have enjoyed it, but have always thought of it as a treat for a special occasion.  I'm not quite sure where that thought came from. Since I have recently started a gluten free/dairy free diet I am constantly on the look-out for foods that are delicious and fit the diet.  While at a recent Bridal Shower, I had hummus and was reminded of how yummy it is.

I started looking up recipes and talking about it.  This weekend we went to Kansas City to spend time with my husband's brother and his family and also attend the temple there.  While at the store with my sister-in-law I mentioned hummus and she showed me one she really liked.  I HAD to try it out.  It was so yummy!

Today, all I wanted was hummus. So, I got out the ingredients and began making it.  Find the original recipe here. I added parsley to the recipe because I found it on another page, but I can't seem to find the link anymore.  If I find it, I'll post it.

Hummus

·  1/4 cup (59 ml) fresh lemon juice or 3 Tbsp lemon juice

·  1/4 cup (59 ml) tahini

·  Half of a large garlic clove, minced

·  2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving

·  1 teaspoon kosher salt

·  1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 Tbsp parsley crushed

·  One 15-ounce can (425 grams) chickpeas

·  2 to 3 tablespoons water

·  Dash of ground paprika for serving

In the bowl of a food processor, combine tahini and lemon juice. Process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl then turn on and process for 30 seconds. This extra time helps “whip” or “cream” the tahini, making smooth and creamy hummus possible.

Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin and the salt to whipped tahini and lemon juice. Process for 30 seconds, scrape sides and bottom of bowl then process another 30 seconds.

Open can of chickpeas, drain liquid then rinse well with water. Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor then process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl, add remaining chickpeas and process for 1 to 2 minutes or until thick and quite smooth. Most likely the hummus will be too thick or still have tiny bits of chickpea. To fix this, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water until the consistency is perfect.

Scrape the hummus into a bowl then drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the top and sprinkle with paprika.
Store homemade hummus in an airtight container and refrigerate up to one week.

Now go...spread it on your bread instead of mayo or mustard...dip your veggie sticks into it...and scoop it with your favorite tortilla chips or vegetable chips.  

Traveling and eating Gluten Free/Dairy Free and food dye free can be a challenge!

We are going to visit family this weekend and need to be prepared with food for my lovely Gluten Free/Dairy Free diet and Littlest Miss's dye free diet. We discussed possible options with family and decided to go with tacos.  Therefore, today I am making myself some corn tortillas for the occasion.

I found a recipe here that is very simple and easy to follow.  

I have a flour tortilla press that is electric and does the same basic thing that a corn tortilla press does.  I covered the cold plates of the press with plastic wrap and pressed the dough in that.  You can also place your dough ball between the plastic wrap and press it down with the bottom of a small pot. (got that idea from a youtube video on making tortillas)

Then I placed the tortilla on a hot cast iron pan, that is dry; without any oil or butter.  Cook it for about 1 minute and then flip and cook for 30 seconds or so.  They seem stiff at first but if you put them in a linen cloth inside a glass dish they get nice and soft and PERFECT for tacos or any other meal.

I spread some dairy free butter on it and dribbled some homemade peach jam inside.  THAT was delicious.  Most of the time I DO NOT feel like I am going without or missing anything by doing this GF/DF diet. Instead, I am getting more creative.

Get creative with your food today!!

Gluten Free Cookie Dough Bites...YUM!

I seriously DID NOT think these would taste very good.  But, I was wrong.  So very wrong! These are yummy! I found the recipe here. They are SO good when they are warm and gooey; fresh out of the oven.  If they have a chance to get cold, you can place them on a paper towel and heat them for about 7-10 seconds, in the microwave, to make the chocolate chips gooey again. I will admit that they didn't last long in our house, since the batch only made 1 1/2 dozen.  Next time I will double the batch so it fits better in my Ninja blender...and lasts a bit longer than an hour. LOL!  My kids even liked the dough.  Littlest Miss was asking for thirds on her little spoon.  I wonder how these babies would taste with Ghirardelli Classic White chips.  My notes are un-bolded so that they stand out a bit from the original recipe. ;)

Gluten Free Cookie Dough Bites

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups canned chickpeas, well-rinsed and patted dry with a paper towel (I used the entire 15 oz can, so as not to waste.  Worked out just fine.)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (165 grams) natural peanut butter (can use PB2 from gym to make healthier, check your labels)(I used 2/3 cup of Skippy natural or Jif Natural)

1/4 cup (80 grams) honey (agave would be amazing too!)

1 teaspoon baking powder

a pinch of salt if your peanut butter doesn't have salt in it

1/2 cup (90 grams) chocolate chips (I used dairy free)

Directions

1.    Preheat your oven to 350°F / 175°C. Combine all the ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, in a food processor and process until very smooth. Make sure to scrape the sides and the top to get the little chunks of chickpeas and process again until they're combined.

2.    Put in the chocolate chips and stir it if you can, or pulse it once or twice. The mixture will be very thick and sticky.

3.    With wet hands, form into 1½" balls. Place onto a Silpat or a piece of parchment paper. If you want them to look more like normal cookies, press down slightly on the balls. They don't do much rising. (I scooped them with my Pampered Chef medium sized cookie scoop and then flattened them gently with my hand onto my baking stones. Worked great, was super duper easy, and took less time too!)

4.    Bake for about 10 minutes. The dough balls will still be very soft when you take them out of the oven. They will not set like normal cookies. (I left them on my baking stones for about 10 minutes before transferring them to the cooling rack.)

5.    Store in an airtight container at room temperature (or in the fridge) for up to 1 week.

Gluten Free and junk free barbecue sauce

Today I wanted to make the boneless ribs that I bought when they were on sale a couple of months ago.  They just sound good.  I have been eating gluten free for 2 1/2 weeks now and want to continue my journey to see the results.  I took out the barbecue sauce and read the label. Sure...it's gluten free...but not junk free.  I cringe every time I see high fructose corn syrup on a label. That the first ingredient on the list.  Great!  Bottled junk. 

I went searching online and found this recipe.  It's easy and I made a couple of modifications to make sure it is gluten free and to accommodate the fact that I didn't have everything on the list.  I may try it with honey next time.  Be sure to check out the recipe on the blog to see where I altered it.


Gluten Free Barbecue Sauce

INGREDIENTS:

1-1/2 cups Light Brown Sugar, packed {this step is crucial so the vinegar is balanced}

16 oz. can tomato sauce

1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

1/2 cup Water (optional)

1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce (Lea & Perrins in the USA is Gluten Free...check the label)

2-1/2 teaspoons Ground Mustard

2 teaspoons Paprika

1-1/2 teaspoons Kosher Salt

1 teaspoon Black Pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Measure and add all ingredients to a large bowl and whisk well until the sugar has dissolved and the spices are thoroughly distributed. Serve immediately or cover and store in fridge or freeze!

*NOTE* for a thicker sauce, simply omit the water. :)

Also, to keep this sauce high-fructose corn syrup free, use an all-natural or organic ketchup, but even better... make your own! 

I made 1/2 a batch this time, just in case it didn't turn out.  But I am pleasantly surprised!  It is sweet and tangy, just the way I like it!  I poured the entire amount over the boneless ribs in my crock pot.  I'll make potatoes and veggies to finish off the meal.  I can't wait to see how it turns out!

Have a fantastically wonderful day!

Gluten free meals can be tricky...or maybe not!

Thinking Gluten Free and Greek...

Gyros

1 small onion

2 Tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1 lb. ground turkey

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

2 tsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Finely chop onion.  Chop parsley.  Press garlic into mixing bowl.  Add onion, parsley, turkey, thyme, salt and pepper.  Mix vigorously until well blended.  Add oil to skillet; heat over medium-high heat for 1-3 minutes or until shimmering.  Form turkey mixture into four thin, rectangular loaves, about ¼ in thick.  Cook 1-2 minutes on each side or until browned.  Place skillet in oven and bake 6-8 minutes or until loaves are no longer pink. 

Yogurt sauce

½ cup plain yogurt

2 garlic cloves, pressed

1/8 tsp salt

2 Tbsp fresh Italian parsley

¼ cup fresh cucumber, finely chopped

½ -1  tsp lemon juice to taste

Fresh dill to taste

Mix in small bowl. Serve.

Featherlight Rice Flour Mix (Bette Hagman's The Gluten Free Gourmet Bakes Bread..with a slight change)
1/2 cup Rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 cup Tapioca flour
1 cup Cornstarch
3 tsp potato flour 

Gluten Free Pita Bread
2 1/2 cups GF flour
2 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 Tbsp olive or canola oil
1 cup warm water (105-110 degrees)

In large bowl combine 1 cup flour with the salt, sugar, and yeast. Add the oil and water. Beat vigorously for 3 minutes, then stir in the rest of the flour, along with the xanthan gum, 1/2 cup at a time. The dough will be a rough, shaggy mass that will clean the sides of the bowl. If the dough is moist, add a small amount of flour. Kneed for a couple of minutes in the bowl. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Divide dough into 8 pieces. Shape into balls on the counter, and cover with a damp linen towel or tea towel. Let rest for 30 minutes. Use the palm of your hand and flatten the dough. Finish with a rolling pin, flattening the dough into a 6" disk. Place each round on a square of foil and place directly onto oven rack. Bake for 5-8 minutes or until they are slightly golden at the edges. Let cool, place in ziplock bag to store. 

Have a wonderful, gluten free and tasty weekend!

Oh food dyes...

The sweet little angel’s eyes constricted, turning into tiny black dots. Her eyes glazed over and she began to scream.  The transformation was gradual; gradual enough so it took me a while to realize the cause.  She wanted me to pick her up, hold her, make it better, but when I reached for her she would arch her back and scream and squirm.  It didn’t feel good for me to touch her skin, or so it seemed to me.  She lay on the floor thrashing and screaming.  And I sat on the floor wondering what in the world was wrong.  I offered snacks; grapes, apples, nuts, bananas, raisins.  Nothing worked.  I offered a bath.  To which she shook her head.  I got up and went to my bathroom, since she didn’t want me to touch her anyway and she screamed harder; following me in her tantrum.  I came back and sat with her.  She stilled screamed, but I didn’t try to touch her.  I smiled at her every time she looked my way.  Somehow this seemed to calm her.  She tried to sit on my lap, but instantly her back arched and her arms flailed and she slid off my lap. 

She lay on her back, her bare belly facing me with its red scribbly marks all over her round tummy.  She had been coloring with a red pen at the table next to me and inevitably the pen ended up on her skin.  Red pen. On her skin.  Could that be it? The red dye in the pen? I got up and got out the baking soda, a small sippy cup of water and mixed 1/8 of a teaspoon into the water.  I put the lid on the cup and tried to offer the liquid to her.  She pushed it away.  Several times.  I finally had to force some into her mouth 3 or 4 times before she took it on her own. 

Gradually her pupils began to normalize.  She climbed onto my lap and lay there, stirring occasionally.  After a few more minutes I was able to touch her skin without her pulling away from me.  I rubbed her back.  The baking soda began to work through her system and she passed a little gas.  She smiled and it reached her eyes and she giggled.  Her eyes were clear again. 

The symptoms are not completely gone.  She still fusses for no apparent reason; but I KNOW the reason.  But she is sitting quietly watching Blues Clues.  I can breath and step into the next room.  The hour has passed, but I won’t forget.  The red pens will disappear. 

Food dye sensitivities are real.  And the sensitivities do not stop with food.  They can be caused by pens, markers, clothing and other fabrics too.  It makes me want to run out and buy everything in white!  LOL!