Stuffed Poblano Peppers July 28, 2017

I was having a craving for stuffed peppers. And ever since we’d visited my brother in law in Texas at the beginning of the summer, and I saw a recipe for stuffed poblano peppers in a magazine, I didn’t just want any old peppers. Of course, those were stuffed with chorizo (which I’ve never found a safe version of) and smothered in cheese, but I could have them stuffed with SOMETHING, couldn’t I? So I started looking at recipes, and blended the cooking method of one, with the ingredients of another, then skipped a bunch of ingredients, substituted a lot of others, and viola, something new, and delicious. Of course my family all stuck their noses up at it, so I got to eat them all! Even better.

4 poblano peppers

1 cup brown rice

2 1/2 cups homemade chicken broth

1/2 cup chopped kale

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. minced Vidalia onion

1/2 of 6 oz. can of tomato paste

3 ears fresh corn (boiled for 5 minutes), then cut off cobs

1 15.5 oz. can of Goya black beans

1 tsp. cumin

1. Cook brown rice in chicken stock according to directions (I figured the chicken stock would add more flavor to the filling).
2. Preheat oven to 350F.
3. In saute pan, heat olive oil. Add onion, corn, and kale. Cook until tender. Add cumin, tomato paste, black beans, and rice. Stir to combine.
4. Cut tops and split poblano peppers in half lengthwise. Remove filaments/seeds out of poblano peppers.
5. I lined a 11″ x 17″ brownie-type pan with foil (to make clean up easier), then laid out peppers. I dumped the filling on top. There was way too much filling for the peppers, so some was inside the peppers and some was between the peppers, which didn’t really matter since I’d lined the pan. Cover pan with foil.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour.

I didn’t try freezing them (I’ve been eating the leftovers for 2 days, but I imagine that they’d freeze well).

 

Anise Cookies November 26, 2016

1/2 c. Soy-free Earth Balance  

3/4 c. sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 3/4 c. gluten-free flour blend (I use Pamela’s)

1 Tbs. crushed anise seeds

1/2 tsp. baking powder

pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together. Put down a sheet of wax paper about 12″ long (standard width). Plop the dough along one side, and roll up so that you have a tube of dough. Chill in refrigerator for about one hour. Take dough out of fridge and remove from wax paper. Cut into slices 1/8″ – 1/4″ thick (I made one sheet of thinner slices and one sheet of thicker slices). Place on insulated baking sheet, leaving about an inch between cookies. Bake in preheated 350F oven for 11-13 minutes.

I liked the thinner ones dipped in my tea, because they were crisp. The softer ones were good for just snacking on. I’m keeping in an air-tight container and so far they’ve lasted 2 days (because my kids don’t like anise!).

 

Olive Spread (Muffalatta) June 11, 2016

1 cup green olives with pimentos

1/2 can black olives (we like Black Pearl brand)

1 Tbs. capers

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced

1 Tbs. Vidalia onion, minced

1/4 c. roasted red pepper

1 Tbs. dried parsley

2 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar

salt & pepper to taste

3 Tbs. olive oil

Put everything but the olive oil in a food processor, and pulse until it is all minced. Place in bowl, pour olive oil over it, and mix to combine. Chill for at least 4 hours before using, to blend flavors.

We like to put it on sandwiches. My favorite is just putting about a teaspoon in some Boar’s Head pastrami turkey thinly sliced deli meat, and rolling it up.

Pancakes May 21, 2016

This recipe comes from our friend Keith, but as usual I’ve had to make some modifications to de-gluten and de-dairy it (sure, those are real words, at least they are in my world).

1 1/2 c. Pamela’s gluten-free flour blend

2 1/2 tsp. safe baking powder

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1 Tbs. granulated sugar

1 flax or chia egg

1 1/2 c. So Delicious unsweetened coconut milk (may need a little more if it’s too thick)

3 Tbs. soy-free Earth Balance, melted

Mix ingredients together until combined. Fry on griddle on both sides. We serve with bacon or Jones sausage, and real maple syrup.

 

Spinach Salad Dressing

My mother-in-law makes this dressing, which I modified a little due to my intolerance of garlic. Her spinach salad has spinach, diced orange and sliced strawberries on it. Yum!

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. paprika

2 Tbs. minced Vidalia onion

1/2 c. olive oil

1/4 c. balsamic vinegar

pinch of salt

pinch of cloves

Combine all ingredients. Shake well.

 

German Potato Salad

My son loves potatoes . . . and bacon . . . and he’s a teenager, so he’s a bottomless pit. He loves German potato salad.

9 potatoes

6 slices bacon

3/4 c. minced Vidalia onion

2 Tbs. Pamela’s gluten-free flour blend

2 Tbs. sugar

2 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp. celery seed

1/8 tsp. black pepper

3/4 c. water

3/4 c. apple cider vinegar

Cook potatoes. Drain.

Fry bacon. Remove from pan. Fry onions in bacon grease until tender. Combine flour, sugar, salt, pepper, celery seed, water and vinegar, and put in pan with the bacon grease and onion. Bring to a boil. Add potatoes and bacon. Stir to coat. Serve warm.

Refried Beans

When I had to go garlic free, I could no longer have a lot of prepared foods that had been safe on my no-gluten, no-dairy, no-soy diet. One of those things was refried beans, so I learned how to make my own.

1 Tbs. bacon grease

2 Tbs. minced Vidalia onion

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

pinch of salt

pinch of onion powder

pinch of oregano

1 15-oz can of black beans or kidney beans

1/4 c. chicken broth (homemade)

Fry onion in bacon grease until tender but not brown. Stir in everything else. Cook 5-10 minutes. Mash with potato masher.

Meringue Cookies

My mother always made these when we were kids. I leave out the artificial coloring and sprinkles that she always put in them, but otherwise it’s almost the same. A batch lasts less than 24 hours in our house. Unfortunately it’s not safe for egg-free people.

3 egg whites

18 tsp. cream of tartar

dash salt

1 1/2 tsp. red wine or apple cider vinegar or 1/8 tsp. cream of tartar

2 tsp. safe vanilla

3/4 c. beet or cane sugar

Beat egg whites with electric mixer (using wire whip if stand mixer) with the vinegar or cream of tartar and the salt until double in volume. Beat in vanilla. Sprinkle in sugar one tablespoon at a time, beating constantly. Meringue should stand in firm peaks (usually takes about 10 minutes to get all sugar incorpoated). Drop by teaspoons onto parchment lined insulated baking sheet. Bake in preheated 275F oven for 30 minutes. This recipe does not work on a humid day!!

Candied Bacon

Sure, we love bacon over here. Who doesn’t? So I thought I’d jump on the candied bacon craze. I looked over 5-6 recipes and combined and changed them.

Combine:

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp. black pepper

Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Cover bacon with sugar-spice mix on both sides. Lay out on file. Bake in preheated 350F oven for 20-30 minutes.

 

Grandma Murphy’s Rice Pudding

I know, I know, I already have two recipes for rice pudding. What can I say? I love rice pudding. And no, Grandma Murphy is not even my grandma! This is a friend’s grandmother’s recipe, which I’ve modified to be safe for me (but not my son, since it’s got eggs in it).

4 c. So Delicious unsweetened or vanilla rice milk

2/3 c. jasmine or basmati rice

3/4 c. sugar + 2-3 Tbs. sugar

1 Tbs. soy-free Earth Balance

3 eggs (separated)

1 Tbs. gluten free vanilla extract

In a heavy saucepan, combine coconut milk, sugar, rice, and soy-free Earth Balance. Cook on low for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Test rice to make sure that it’s tender/cooked. Turn off.

Separate 3 eggs. Put egg whites into a stand mixer (or use a bowl and a hand mixer). Beat the whites until stiff, adding 2-3 Tbs. sugar, so that it looks like meringue.  Yolks should be in a bowl. Temper eggs by putting a little of the rice mixture in at a time and stirring. Then add yolks/rice mixture back into the pudding. Turn the pudding back on and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add vanilla. Turn off.

Preheat oven to 350F. Fold egg whites/meringue into pudding. Put in the oven to brown the meringue (keep a close eye on it; it will be less than 10 minutes).