Sage Stuffing

Sage Stuffing

2 loaves gluten free bread (cut or torn into cubes)
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp pepper
4 tsp rubbed sage (this is what makes it SO good)
1/2 cup butter
1 ½ cups chicken broth
1 ½ cups chopped celery
1 ½ cups chopped onion

Cook onion and celery in broth and butter until soft. Combine dry spices and mix with the bread cubes (bread should be fresh and soft, not dry.) Fold in onion, celery and all the liquid and put in a 13X9 pan. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

The best Gluten Free Cookie I've EVER eaten!

(This is not my photo... but no joke, our cookies looked just like this!)

My friend Brynnley has a daughter with Celiac... she has been learning to cook gluten free lately. She said that she has discovered that brown rice flour tastes less dry, especially in baked goods. I've also read that same thing here and there on the web... plus brown rice flour is a whole grain, so we decided to give it a try :)

WOW... seriously... I made Alton Brown's GF chocolate chip cookies recipe and I can say hands down that I have never made, tried or eaten a better gluten free cookie. They are SO good, they taste just like regular chocolate chip cookies and they have such a good texture! These are seriously fabulous... and I just had to share this recipe:


The Chewy Gluten Free

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

Ingredients
8 ounces unsalted butter
11 ounces brown rice flour, approximately 2 cups
1 1/4 ounces cornstarch, approximately 1/4 cup
1/2-ounce tapioca flour, approximately 2 tablespoons
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 cup
10 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 1/4 cups
1 whole egg
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Once melted, pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.

In a medium bowl, sift together the rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca flour, xantham gum, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

Add both of the sugars to the bowl with the butter and using the paddle attachment, cream together on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.

Chill the dough in the refrigerator until firm, approximately 1 hour. Shape the dough into 2-ounce balls and place on parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet. Bake for 14 minutes, rotating the pans after 7 minutes for even baking. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on the pans for 2 minutes. Move the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely. Store cooked cookies in an airtight container.

***We have a cookie scoop that shapes them into balls for you and our scoops weighed 1 ounce, I could fit 8 on my cookie sheet like that and only had to cook them for 12 minutes, rotating the pans after 6 minutes... they ended up being a good size for us, but everyone's oven is different so you'll have to play around and figure out what works best for you :)***

Don't forget to use soy free chocolate chips if you are making these soy free :)

Oh and one more thing... Costco's Kirkland brand pure vanilla extract is gluten free... you'd be surprised how many are not because they use a wheat/barley based alcohol, I was excited to find that because we never use imitation vanilla, so it is great to find one that tastes really good in recipes and it is also gluten free!!!

Funeral Potatoes

Ingredients:

26 oz bag of frozen hashbrowns
1 cup milk
1 cup boiling water + 2 chicken bouillon cubes
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup light sour cream
4 oz (1 cup) shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sliced green onions
salt and pepper to taste
1/2-1 cup crushed corn chex

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. In cool pan whisk together cold milk and cornstarch, turn on heat to medium and whisk frequently until thickened. While cooking milk and cornstarch, boil water in microwave and add bouillon cubes, set aside. Once milk and cornstarch is thick, slowly add chicken broth and whisk until smooth. Add sour cream to sauce, fold together hashbrowns, cheese, green onions, salt and pepper and sour cream sauce mix until well combined, put in 13 X 9 glass baking dish (or if you are me, that's where you mixed it all together in the first place!) and top with crushed corn chex (it's traditional to do cornflakes on top, but they aren't gluten free so the corn chex works great as long as it's crushed!) Bake in the oven for 45 minutes.

These aren't as "saucy" as the full fat version, so if you find them too dry you can double the cream of chicken soup substitute for 2 cups of milk, 2 cups of boiling water and 4 bouillon cubes. No one complained here, and I feel better about this lighter version that we usually eat :)

Two thumbs WAY up Donuts ;)

We just made these donuts today... oh my, they were so good, they are cake donut, not a yeast donut, but with a good texture and flavor no one was complaining in our house :) Here is the recipe:

Donuts

2 large eggs
2 cups milk- add 1 tsp vinegar to sour (or use buttermilk)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter- melted
5 c. featherlite mix
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp nutmeg


Whisk together eggs, sour milk, and sugar. Add eggs and sifted dry ingredients. Let rest 15 minutes in the fridge. Roll out flat (about 1/2 inch thick) on a featherlight or potato starch floured surface and cut with cookie cutters. Cook in hot oil (350*) until golden brown. (The longer you fry them, the tougher the outsides become.)

Glaze:

4- 6 parts powdered sugar
1 part milk

Mix together, whisking to make sure there are no lumps. Dip doughnuts in glaze and then place on plate to let dry.

***Tips! Now we didn't have a cookie cutter, so we originally just tried to make little donut holes, big mistake, by the time they had cooked long enough to get the inside done, the outside was rock hard :( (luckily we only ruined three!) We rolled them out onto the counter and used our pizza cutter to cut them into little squares, they fried up beautifully and were so good... we also didn't use this glaze, we did a chocolate glaze (see below) and then when we ran out of that did a cinnamon and sugar roll (Saxon and LJ both thought that made it taste like a churro and now in hindsight we wish we had done more that way!)***

So anyhow, this was a major hit, good flavor and good texture :)







Here is the chocolate glaze courtesy of Alton Brown and Food Network:

Chocolate Doughnut Glaze

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup whole milk, warmed
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions


Combine butter, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla in medium saucepan and heat over medium heat until butter is melted. Decrease the heat to low, add the chocolate, and whisk until melted. Turn off heat, add the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Place the mixture over a bowl of warm water and dip the doughnuts immediately. Allow glaze to set for 30 minutes before serving.

To make soy free you would just need to use soy free chocolate and butter :)

Pizza Dip: Mom's Version

Pizza Dip: Mom's Version

8 ounces cream cheese -- softened
1 glob mayonnaise (about 1/3 cup maybe)
   salt -- to taste
   black pepper -- to taste
   garlic salt or powder -- to taste
   onion powder -- to taste
1 cup mozzarella cheese -- shredded, or more to taste
   pepperoni -- chopped, to taste

JILL'S VERSION INCLUDES:
    Ragu or other spaghetti sauce

Combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, salt, pepper, garlic, onion powder and cheese.  Put in a pie plate.  JILL'S VERSION: Jill likes a very thin layer of Ragu or other spaghetti sauce on it.  Top with chopped up pepperoni.

Bake in the oven until warm and browning on edges (that is Jill’s favorite part) or bake in microwave until warm throughout.

GLUTEN FREE AND SOY FREE DIRECTIONS:
Make sure cream cheese, mayonnaise, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, and spaghetti sauce are gluten and soy free.

Source: Mom

MOM'S NOTES:  A glass dish works for the oven or microwave, but is nice to just pop back in the microwave when it is cold or leftover.

White Pizza Dip

We have several versions of Pizza Dip rolling around in our family.  This is Wendy's version that Kurt loves.

White Pizza Dip

8 ounces sour cream
8 ounces ricotta cheese
1 cup mozzarella cheese -- shredded
1/4 cup pepperoni -- chopped
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 1/4 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/4 teaspoons Italian seasoning

Combine all of the ingredients in a shallow 1 qt. casserole dish.  Sprinkle with additional mozzarella cheese.  Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or heat in the microwave until bubbly.  Serve with French bread or tortilla chips.

GLUTEN FREE AND SOY FREE DIRECTIONS:
Make sure your sour cream, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, and Italian seasoning are gluten and soy free.

Source: Wendy

Recipe Roundup: Jen's Recipe Box

The following recipes were recently posted on Jen's Recipe Box:

Bahama Mama Tortilla Soup Copycat from Rumbi's Island Grill
Labels: Chicken, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Freezer Recipes, Gluten Free, Recipe Clones, Soups Sandwiches and Sauces, Soy Free

Jen's Gluten Free Gravy and Cream Soup Substitute
Labels: Dairy Free, Egg Free, Food Storage Recipe, Gluten Free, Soups Sandwiches and Sauces, Soy Free, Substitutes

Creamy Slow Cooker Chicken (Chicken and Rice)
Labels: Chicken, Crock Pot, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Soy Free