GFCF Cream of Chicken Soup!

 

 

Tips: * Add Noodles if you want a thick chicken noodle soup!  

* Leave the skin on the chicken while you boil it.  The skin is easily removed after cooking.

Three Bean Chili

 The weather is changing and what better to warm our bellies than chili!  This is a simple, but yummy fast and easy dish.  We serve the chili with corn chips and a sprinkle of cheese (dairy free).

 

Tips:

* Adjust the heat for your taste buds.  The cayenne is going to give the most bite.

* I often add celery and carrots to my chili as well.  Shredding them makes them less noticeable!!

It Worked!!

 Our family loves treats as any family with little ones do, but when we had to change our eating habits a lot of our favorites weren't good for us anymore.  I have been playing around with the multiple ingredients that are required to match the texture and baking consistency of all purpose flour.  The thought came to me a few weeks ago though...can I make cookies with our gluten-free oats ground into flour????  I tried it today and it worked!  I won't say that it would work for all cookies, but we had success with our families favorite everyday cookies which was great.  I must say though that they are a bit more crumblier, but not enough to not make them and enjoy them!  They hold together quite well :)

Tips:

* If you aren't in need of a Gluten-Free Dairy-Free cookie then replace the four for all purpose and the Earth Balance for Butter!

Playing Catch-up

Life has been pretty busy as of late, but dinners have still been made.  Getting them up on the blog though is quite a different story!  Today I am trying to catch-up a bit though.  Enjoy!

 My husband enjoys a lot of flavor so I thought of him as I was mentally cooking this up.  The recipe is quite simple but the flavors are good.

 Tips:

* If you are a flavor seeker make two separate batches of the honey mustard sauce.  Use one for cooking and one for dipping the cooked pork chop into while eating.

 

 Tips:

* A tsp of cinnamon might be an added plus for your family.

* Use a hand mixer to combine all of the ingredients once they squash is cooked for a smoother puree. 

 Tips:

* If you don't have a loaf pan you can just form the meat loaf onto a sheet pan and skip the flipping step!  

* If you don't need your meat loaf to be GFCF I like to add 1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce or 2-3 TBS BBQ Sauce to our meat loaf.

* Corn Flakes also work if you don't have oats that are Gluten-Free.  

Brussel Sprouts You Will Eat!!

 Most kids will always tell you that they don't like brussel sprouts, but not mine!!  Today my kids picked them out at the store.  Remember that everything is better with bacon :) 

Tips:

* Make sure that you are liberal when you are cutting the bottoms off of your sprouts.  The bitterness will come out so that the yummy taste will stay in!!

* Make sure that the bacon is crispy and that you don't drain the fat, unless you plan on adding it back in slowly as needed.  The sprouts will not be greasy!

A New Twist on an Old Favorite!

 As I was starting dinner the other night and I realized I didn't have enough rice for the fried rice...what to do?  I looked in the pantry and saw the Quinoa sitting on the shelf.  Could I?  Would it?  Oh YES you can and you should :)  Quinoa is a great grain full of protein.  If you follow this recipe not only will you create a more healthy fried rice, but a tasty one as well :)

Tips:

*  When using Quinoa make sure that you rinse it in cold water to get all the bitterness out.

* If you don't have Tamari use Soy Sauce!

* You can use frozen or fresh carrots and peas.

Easy GFCF BBQ

*Tips

* Our family enjoys Udi's gluten-free buns.  They are dairy free as well!

*You can use any type of chicken your family enjoys.  If you use bone-in chicken add on a little more time to ensure the cooking process is complete.  The chicken should fall right off the bones for you!!

* Add or take away spice depending on your families preference.  The Cayenne is probably a good place to start :)
* You can make this sauce and use it to marinate and grill chicken, pork and beef as well :)

Did You Know?

 Our family has been over the moon excited about the new gluten-free Rice Krispies, using brown rice (which is better for you anyways) was the key!!  Not only has it provided a new choice beside the Chex cereals in the morning we can now enjoy our gooey treats again! 

 And play with our food!!

*I only use 5 cups of cereal so that they aren't hard, but gooey and don't cut your mouth.

What To Do With This Leftover Chicken???

 Do you ever open your fridge and see that leftover rotisserie chicken or fried chicken from dinner a night before and wonder what to do with it?  Chicken Salad is a great way to finish off the leftover meat that is usually no ones favorite pieces to eat.  Today I made a salad with fruit, but savory chicken salads are just as yummy!

Tips:

* Costco sells a GFCF rotisserie chicken.

Just Peachie!!

 I was talking to a friend yesterday and she was trying to create a few sweet recipes to add to her families diet changed menu.  Her family has a lot of food allergies and so often times the normal substitutions can even be bad for their family.  This got my creative juices flowing.  I looking in my fridge and remembered that I had just purchased some peaches...

 Tips:

* When mixing in corn starch always use cold water.

* Obviously you can use regular oats for this recipe.  If you are not worried about dairy you can use melted butter instead of the coconut oil.   

 *All purpose flour can be used instead of the ground oatmeal as well.

Tonight we topped our crisp with dairy free turtle ice cream.  The caramel went very well with the peaches :)  As the recipe states above though coconut whipped cream would be yummy as well!

101 Different Varieties

 There truly are a lot of ways to make granola.  Tonight I was playing on the idea of peanut butter and honey sandwiches.  I have been asked about substitutions for coconut oil and if you have an allergy canola oil would work just as well.  I like using the coconut oil for the added level of flavor (it is healthy too though)!   Obviously if your family isn't gluten free you can use any type of oats for this recipe as well.  I use organic peanut butter and the same holds true for that as well.  Use what you have in your home!!

 I enjoy parchment paper a lot.  I enjoy the less dishes to be washed thing, but also the double use of a funnel when the granola is done cooking. (see below photos)

Granola can not only be made many different ways, it can be eaten a few different ways as well.  Tonight dinner was warm granola right out of the oven topped with almond milk.  Tomorrow when I am making lunches I will place the granola into little containers for the kids to eat as a snack.  The final and I am sure most healthy way is as an ice cream topping!!  I am really of fan :)  I am sure that I will be adding to my granola collection so if this isn't up your alley make a request :)

"This is Yummy Sauce Mom!"

Tips:

*Purchase your chops at least an inch thick.

* You can stuff your chops with other greens besides spinach, bok choy etc.

*  You could also change up the cream cheese for ricotta or mascarpone.

 * Obviously you can make your own polenta!  By adding to the polenta though the taste becomes homade. 

* You can change this recipe and make it very creamy.  You can use real butter instead of substitute.  The Almond milk can be changed to heavy cream & last but not least add a 1/4 cup of shredded Parmesan or Cheddar cheese at the very end before turning off the heat!

Kid Friendly Red Lentils & Brown Rice

Tips:

* Kids love cheese!  We topped this with cheese and chicken tonight.
* Kids love to dip!!  Tortilla Chips are perfect for this dish.
* Be willing to change things for your pallet, make it your own!!
* Wash the rice and lentils before you cook them :)
* We use Organic Rice, Broth, Olive Oil, Peppers and Onions all from Costco!  Makes it cheaper :)

Happiness is Never Having to Say "Finish Your Oatmeal Again"!!!

Tips and tricks...
*You can use this same pancake recipe with regular flour, milk, oil and baking powder!
*This recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free :)
*Strawberries are the worst food when it comes to pesticides.  The strawberries seeds absorb the pesticides and take them to the core of the fruit.  If possible purchase organic or pesticide free strawberries.
* When buying coconut oil make sure it is unrefined
*Agave Nectar is a great natural sweetener that does not affect your glucose level!