21 Day Fix Approved Mac and Cheese from Fixate

Who says you can't have your MAC AND CHEESE on a diet?  With Autumn's FIXATE cookbook you can!  This is an amazing recipe that your whole family will love -- with no guilt!

Taco Tuesday!

Tacos are my GO TO for a quick and easy meal.

Pre-heat oven to about 250.

Use ground turkey or extra lean ground beef to make it even healthier.  And I prefer to use a cast iron skillet so its full of flavor.

Use about 2 pounds ground meat and brown in the skillet (no oil necessary) at medium to high heat.

When brown, add in chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika or any other spices you like.  I also like to make it medium spicy so I add in gluten free Saz's barbeque sauce, Sriachcha and Goya chipotle sauce. Mix together well.

Add in cut up peppers and onions and saute.

Add in half a cup of chicken broth (not too much but enough to make a sauce) and reduce heat and cover.

Add corn tortillas to oven for about 5-7 minutes (until desired texture).

Serve with salsa and shredded cheese.

REVIEW: Lucy's Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's so great to see more and more products available for gluten-free folks like me, but I have to applaud Lucy's cookies, as they divine! They closely mirror those old favorites of mine and even my non-GF friends enjoy them - a VERY good sign as they are some of the pickiest eaters!

With their crisp crunch, sweet flavoring, and chewy chocolate chips, they surpass most gluten-free cookies on the market.

Lucky for me, I've been able to order these cookies from popular NYC online grocer FreshDirect as part of their new items from their gluten free store.  You can read more about this in my friend's blog about this addition to FreshDirect, where they have over 500 items GF!!

I've also seen these cookies at airports like LGA in NY (Delta terminal) and I always remember to pick up a pack on my way to various places, as it's easy to carry on, and tastes oh so good!! 

In addition to being gluten-free, they are also free from peanuts, tree nuts, milk or eggs, making them a great snack for those who may have other food restrictions. I can't wait to try the other flavors like sugar cookies, oatmeal, cinnamon, chocolate, ginger snap and maple!!

Gluten Free Passover: Almond Flour is the key!

This is one of my favorite holidays now being Gluten-free.  I used to dread this week, where we had to suffer and eat differently, but now many items are kosher for Passover AND gluten-free!  So we have much more variety to choose from!!

I did find the best Matzah at a reasonable price is Yehuda's GF Matzah where it tastes pretty similar and is not extremely pricey.  I've found it at Whole Foods and we've also ordered it online from Amazon.

The best gluten-free Matzah Ball Soup recipe is from Elana's Pantry or can be found in her book The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook, which uses almond flour instead of matzah meal.  This flour is great...really flavorful and actually tastes very close to real matzah balls!

I'm also experimenting this weekend to make a Spinach Pita that my family has made for years at the Seder.  Replacing the matzah for gluten-free matzah and the matzah meal with corn meal...we'll see how it goes!  If it's successful, I'll post the recipes and some pics.  Happy holidays!

Gluten free Christmakah: GF Lasagna, GF Potato Latkes and GF Chocolate Pudding Pie

This holiday season I spent the time with husband's family in the Midwest - Milwaukee to be exact.  This has got to be one of the most #glutenfree friendly cities around!  From high end restaurants like Roots to the Bradley Center's gluten-free kiosk, to an abundance of GF options at local grocery stores like Metcalfe's Sentry, Pick-N-Save and Outpost, I had no troubles finding good gluten-free eats.

Our Christmas/Chanukah dinner consisted of gluten-free lasagna and freshly made potato latkes.  However, these recipes take a lot of time...so if you are willing to devote the time, you will have some good rewards!  The potato latkes took about 2 hours from start to plate, but came out really good.

The best part was the dessert.  It was my first time making this pie, with a special recipe from my sister-in-law (recipe coming as soon as she emails it to me!) to make fresh creamy chocolate pudding with Kinninnick gluten-free graham style crumbs.  And I have to say wow - the guests loved it and especially made comments about how good the crust was!  The only thing I would have added would be some whipped cream to top it off.

Hope you enjoy these dishes.

Gluten-free lasagna

 

Gluten-free chocolate pudding pie (recipe coming!):

 
Gluten-free potato latkes

Gluten free ham (we just used one from the store and followed the directions for the glaze):

A total meal, with roasted carrots:

Gluten-Free Holiday Sugar Cookies

If you are looking for an easy way to make Gluten free sugar cookies for the holidays, check out Gluten Free Essentials Vanilla Sugar Cookie Mix.  I found this at The Gluten Free Trading Company in Milwaukee, WI - where my in-laws live - a few years back and I look forward to making these cookies every year!

All you need to make this mix is a stick of butter and 2 eggs.  The trick to doing this right is to chill the dough.  The recipe is on the back of the cookie mix bag.

I usually add a little bit more of GF Vanilla Extract as well to make it just a bit sweeter and to take away any grittiness which sometimes happens with all GF baked goods.

The recipe calls for the melted stick of butter to be mixed with 2 beaten eggs.  Then you add in the dry mix (I do this slowly and with a hand mixer) until it is all incorporated.  I then add the little bit more of Vanilla extract.

At this point, you can refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes, but it can go longer if you need to.

Then, pre-heat the oven to what it says on the package (I think it's about 375).  On a non-stick cookie sheet, lightly grease the pan and roll the dough into balls.  Place the dough on the cookie sheet, allowing room in between each for them to expand.  Cook for about 10-12 minutes.

When they come out of the oven, allow them to sit for about a minute.  Then gently use a spatula to lift them off the cookie sheet to a drying rack.  They will get a bit more brown during this time.

The mix should yield about 18-20 cookies. Let them cool completely before frosting with your favorite GF frosting!  I used Betty Crocker's vanilla (and it says Gluten Free on the label!!) with red and green sanding sugar.  Very festive and delicious!!

Braised Chicken with Mushrooms in a White Wine Sauce

I had an idea to make something with chicken drumsticks and thighs, and came across a braised chicken recipe in the Healthy Family Cookbook, that I modified for gluten-free.  It came out amazing...thanks to a bit of help from some Greek wine (from my honeymoon) and a little help from my husband!

You can cook this in a Dutch oven which makes cooking and clean up easy since it's all in one pot.  

I made this along with some spinach and re-heated the gluten-free stuffing we had leftover from Thanksgiving - the sauce was amazing with it!!  

GF Braised Chicken with Mushrooms in a White Wine Sauce

1 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken drumsticks and thighs, skin on.

         Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, minced

1 cup mushrooms sliced

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon herbes de Provence

2 tablespoons corn starch or GF flour

1 1/2 cups chicken broth or one package of Herb Ox chicken bouillon (make as directed on package)

1/2 cup dry white wine (or - in this case - Greek Muscat!)

2 bay leaves

1. Adjust the oven rack in the lower - middle position and heat the oven to 300 degrees.  Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.  Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add the chicken and brown on all sides, about 7-10 minutes.  If your chicken doesn't all fit in one round, do this in batches.  Transfer the chicken to a plate.

2. Pour off some of the oil and fat until about 2 teaspoons is left and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and mushrooms and cook over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the garlic, thyme, herbes de Provence, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Stir in the corn starch, a small bit of water and whisk for about 30 seconds.  Whisk in the broth and wine, scraping the bottom for any browned bits.

3. Stir in the bay leaves and add the chicken back to the pot, along with any chicken juices that may have accumulated.  Bring to a simmer, cover, and transfer to the oven for about 30 minutes.  Check on the chicken, rotate in the pot and continue cooking until the chicken is falling off the bone, about another 15 minutes.  

4. Transfer the chicken to a serving plate and tent with foil.  Finish off the sauce (if needed) by letting it rest for about 5 minutes, skimming off any fat, and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

5. Take off the heat, discard the bay leaves, and season with salt and pepper.  Pour sauce over the chicken and enjoy!