Monthly Archives: January 2014

Guilt Free Cheese Sauce

During the summer I lead a kitchen for Camp Celiac. Feeding 200 kids gluten free and kid friendly food on a budget can be a challenge. Well one day I has making a good cheese sauce for some pasta and the kids could not get more excited. Even the non gf councilors were taking sauce to go. At home I want to make a skinny version and cut the fat and calories. With super bowl time around the corner this will sure be a hit.

Ingredients:

2 Tbs Light Butter

1 1/2 Tbs GF All Purpose Flour

2/3 Cup Low Fat Cheddar Cheese

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Sugar

1/2 Pepper

1 Cup Skim Milk

1 Hot Pepper Diced (optional)

1/2 Salsa (optional)

Make this right following the process is important. Start by melting the butter in a sauce pot. Once melted add the flour and stir with a whisk until combined. After this cooks for a few seconds it’s time to add the milk.  Over medium heat whisk the milk and flour until smooth and milk begins to bubble. Now add salt, sugar and pepper. Mix together can the. Add the cheese slowly continue to whisk as you go. After a few minutes cheese will melt and start to mix in well with milk. Low heat and cook until well combined and sauce begins to get think. This will not take long but continue to whisk to prevent cheese from burning on the bottom.  Serve hot with chip or veggies. Enjoy!

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Apple Cider Salad

I think living gluten free automatically makes you a salad expert. It is common that salads are sometimes the only option eating out at places on the run. I have a pizza place not far from me that make one of the best salads in town so I absolutely had to replicated it.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 lb Spring Mix

1 Apple sliced into thin slices

Candy walnuts (make sure gf)

4 oz Blue cheese or Gorgonzola

1/3 Cup Dry Cranberries

2 Celery Stalks thinly sliced

 

Dressing:

1/4 Greek Yogurt

3 Tbs Apple Cider

1 tsp Balsamic

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

In a small bowl whisk at the dressing ingredient together and set aside.

In a large salad bowl toss greens, cranberries, apple and celery together. When your ready to serve add a few tabel spoons of dressing at a time and continue to combine. Top with nut and cheese.

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Roasted Branzino

Branzino is the one of the most wonderful fishes available. You can often find it as a special in many restaurants. Normally comes whole from the grill. Randomly on a Monday night I was craving a good meal so I ran to market and got two beautiful Branzino’s and came up with a quick recipe for a very special weeknight meal.

 

Ingredients:

2 Whole Branzino Fish that have been de-scaled, insides removed and rinsed well.

1 Lemon

1 Onion

1 Bunch Parsley

2 Tbs Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

 

Start by using a knife and making sure the fish is sliced well inside. You may need to cut a little deeper in the tail and head. Then sliced onion and lemon into rounds. On a large foiled and oiled baking sheet lay down all the onion pieces and hand full of parsley. Take each fish and oil the outside well. Then sprinkle with salt and pepper all over. Place the fish on top of the parsley and onions.  Inside each fish gently lay 2 lemon round and a few springs of parsley. Bake at 425 degrees of 30 minutes. Then place under broiler for a few minutes to make the skin nice and crispy. Serve the fish whole with a side of steamed veggies.

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Guilt Free Mushroom Gravy

I work in a town called Kennet Square PA which is also known as the mushroom capital of the country. Everything around town is mushroom themed. They even have an annual mushroom festival and mushroom ball drop for new years. Well I  was given a blend fresh very selective mushrooms and decided to be creative. Jay loved porcini sauce so I wanted to make a less guilty version.  He had it over gluten free pasta and loved it.

Ingredients:

4 Tbs Butter

1 Tbs Olive Oil

½ White Onion  (sliced)

4 Cloves Garlic (sliced)

1/3 Cup Chopped Parsley

½ Cup White Wine

1 Tbs Corn Starch

½ Cup Fat Free Half and Half

¼ Cup Skim Milk

1 ½ Pound Mushrooms ( I like to mix up different kinds)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Start by sautéing onions and garlic in oil and half the butter.  Once they start to brown and become translucent chop mushrooms and add to pot. Cooking over medium heat add the remaining butter. Add salt and pepper to taste. Next slowly add the wine, stir and increases heat a bit.  Add  half and half and skim milk, bring to a simmer. Place corn starch in a bowl  and water a small amount of hot water, mix well to make a slurry.  Add the slurry but avoid any clumps of corn starch that may have formed.  Stir mixtures, low heat and cook with lid on for about 5 minutes. Then remove lid, add parsley and stir. Cook an addition 5 more minutes and then serve hot on pasta or rice. Enjoy.

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French Toast Casserole

French toast casserole makes an easy brunch item to feed a crowd. Plus gluten free bread seems to work better then others. Feel free to customize it, add some fruit, chocolate chips or what ever you would like.

Ingredients-

1  Large Loaf 40 oz Gluten Free Bread (Cut in-to cubes)

8 Eggs

3 Cups Whole Milk

2 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 Cup White Sugar

2 tsp Vanilla

2 Tbs Maple Syrup

1 tsp Salt

Topping –

1/3 Cup Butter

1/4 Brown Sugar

2 tsp Cinnamon

In a large bowl start by whisking milk, egg, vanilla, maple syrup, white sugar and salt together. Add the bread cubes and mix together well but gently with out breaking the bread. Allow mixture to rest for an hour. Pour into large, well sprayed casserole dish. You can either cook right away or wrap it up and place in fridge. When ready to bake mix softened butter, sugar and cinnamon together by hand and place dollops of the butter mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. Until top is golden brown and no liquid remains. Serve hot with a side of syrup.

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Creamy Chicken and Rice – guilt free and dairy free

Being gluten sensitive causes all kinds of stomach issues. Does not matter how careful I am I still get sick once in awhile. When I do get sick I try to stick to a bland diet for few days to help clear it up. I try to come up with fun things that are super safe and wont irritate my stomach anymore. I came up with this recipe on a whim and it was great.

Ingredients-

1 Small Chicken Breast

1 Gluten-Free Chicken Broth Cube

2 Cups Water

1/2 Cup Dry Rice

1 Cup Fresh Baby Spinach

Pinch of Salt and Pepper

Start by sprinkling the chicken with salt and pepper and baking in the oven at 450 degrees until cooked all the way threw. While chicken cooks place rice in pot and add 2 cups water and broth cube. If you cant find the gluten free chicken cube then substitute water and cube for 16 oz of chicken broth.  Heat liquid and rice to a boil and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes and mix every few minutes until most of the water is absorbed and rice is soft. Then cut add baked chicken into small piece and add to rice. Finally toss in the spinach and mix well. Cook for another minute until spinach is wilted. Serve hot with some cracked pepper on top.

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Adobo Chicken

I have recently been trying to re-create a lot of traditional Philapino dishes gluten free. The most classic of all is adobo. You can use this recipe on almost any protein to make a great meal.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Pound Chicken Thigh
1/2 Gluten Free Soy Sauce
1/2 White Vinegar
1/2 Water
1 Onion
2 Cloves Garlic
3 Bay leaves
1 tsp Pepper
1 tsp Pepper Corn

Start by browning meat lightly on both sides. Remove chicken and place aside. Add chopped onion an garlic and brown in a well sprayed pan until translucent. Add remaining liquid ingredients and mix well to form sauce. Bring liquid to a boil and then reduce to simmer. Place chicken and remaining seasonings in sauce and cook at a low simmer for 20-30 minutes. Cooking time will depend on cut and thickness of meat. Cook until sauce reduces about half. Serve hot with rice. Enjoy!

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Elvis Pie

This recipe is something I have evolved over time. It started with my addiction to ice cream cake and wanting to recreate it at home. Then I started playing around with the different options to make it at unique.

I like to make the filling out of a homemade banana ice cream but if you don’t have an ice cream machine then you can easily use any store bought flavor. Chocolate would go great.

Ingredients –

Base-

1 Cup Peanut Butter

1 Egg

2/3 Cup Sugar

1 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Vanilla

1 Pinch Salt

Ice Cream –

1 Banana

1 Cup Full Fat Yogurt

1 tsp Vanilla

1 Cup Whole Milk

1/3 Cup Sugar

Topping-

1/2 Tub Cool Whip Defrosted

1 Tbs Coco Powder

Start by making the crust. In a bowl combine all the crust ingredients. Mix until dough forms. Press dough into the bottom of a deep pie pan. Bake at 350 degree for about 10 min. Watching to avoid burning.

If making the ice cream – While crust bakes combine all ice cream ingredients in a blender until smooth. You should heat the milk and sugar first to dissolve and then chill it but I never seem to be patient. Once blended pour into ice cream machine as directed by machine instructions.

One crust is done cool it in the fridge of freezer while the ice cream is in the machine.

Once crust is cool and ice cream is done. Pour ice cream in the crust and place in freezer for an hour. When ice cream is firm top with cool whip in an even layer around the pie. Dust the top with coco powder and return to freezer for an hour for pie to set hard.

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Mexican Pulled Chicken

I love coming up with fun recipes that are easy to make and can be used many different ways. This is a party recipe for sure.

Ingredients:

1 Jar of Salsa

2 Pounds Skinless and Boneless Chicken Breast or Thighs or a Combo of Both

1/2 Chopped Cilantro

1 tsp Salt

1 tsp Pepper

Start by seasoning chicken in a bowl with salt and pepper. Then place chicken, cilantro and salsa all in a slow cooker on low for 7 hours. Remove lid, stir and continue to cook uncovered for an hour to help reduce some liquid. Last, remove chicken and and shred with two forks. Serve with remaining sauce as sliders, taco filling, over rice or any veggie . Enjoy

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Happy New Years! 2013 In Review

I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone for all the support over the past year. Everyday I continue to do everything I can to support the gluten free community.

I wanted to share a recent TV appearance I made. Check it out and let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRgfE-pn9DE

I got a great review of the impact my site has made in the past year and I wanted to share.

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2013 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 20,000 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 7 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.