The Gluti Girls...

Pancakes!

I received some pancake mix in the mail today. To be honest, I've never heard of this company. The name confused me a little.....Carbon's Golden Malted Pancake and Waffle Mix. Don't let the word malted worry you. That is just a name brand. There is no malt flavoring in the mix. This mix is certified gluten free. You can check it out here at www.goldenmalted.com.

I know this sounds weird, but I was in the mood for savory pancakes, even though there is a touch of vanilla and sugar in the mix. I caramelized some onions and added fresh rosemary and garlic. Oh, Thanksgiving in a pancake! I'll bet they are equally as good left without the added savory yummies and pour on them syrup. Making them is easy. Add only water, no eggs. They were fluffy and delish!

Parmesan Popover bites

I was given permission to share the recipe from the cookbook I reviewed by Robert M. Landolphi called Gluten Free Everyday.  I make these all the time and just love them so I am glad to be able to share the recipe with you! Enjoy!! 

Parmesan Popover Bites (print recipe)

Gluten Free Everyday by Robert M. Landolphi

2 cups tapioca flour

1 cup sweet rice flour

1/2 cup potato starch

2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cup milk

3/4 cup canola oil

4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Butter two 24 cup mini muffin tins.  

In a large bowl, combine the tapioca flour, sweet rice flour, potato starch, Parmesan cheese, and salt.  Stir with a whisk to blend.  Gradually whisk in the milk oil, and eggs.  

Pour the batter into a small pitcher and fill each muffin cup three-fourths full.  Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.  Remove from the oven and serve warm.  Makes 4 dozen.  

Cooks notes:  I have added shredded cheddar cheese to the tops.  Also things like olives, sun dried tomato, feta or different spices and seasoning to change the flavor according to what you are serving them with.  These are very versatile!

Store bought bread and pizza crust

When I was in California, I tried both a new bread and pizza crust.  The bread was made in Escondido, CA.  I found it at the local Jimbo's Natural Food store in Del Mar.  The company is called Gluten Not Included.  I really, really liked this bread.  I bought the plain and cinnamon raisin.  You can order the bread directly from their website.  I have not done this mainly because of the shipping cost.  They don't give any discount on their shipping.  I can go to Whole Foods here locally and get very good bread at about the same cost.  But, if you don't have access to really good bread where you live, this bread is well worth it.  

The pizza crust I tried is called Toovaloo.  Sammy's Woodfire Pizza uses Toovaloo crust for all their gluten free pizzas in their restaurant.  I loved this crust!  It's made with amaranth and flax so it's even healthy!  Upon returning home, I ordered 6 of these!  They give free shipping for any orders of 4 packages or more.  Got to love that!  I can't wait to get it!  

I think the worst thing about being gluten free is the bread.  I get tired of making it.   Up till now, I just didn't find any store bought bread I liked.  I really liked the Gluten Not Included, but can't get it local.  Right before leaving on our trip, I made a stop at our local Whole Foods.  Which for me isn't so local.  They finally carry the Gluten Free Bakehouse products which is a line of products made by Whole Foods.  They are all made in a dedicated facility so you know they are safe.  

I first tried the Sun dried Tomato Garlic bread.  Oh my.  It's good.  The day we flew on our trip, I toasted two pieces and put them in a ziplock.  When I got on the plane, I made a sandwich with it.  Even cold, after having been toasted, it was still good!  Last week when we were on the other side of town near the Whole Foods, I purchased a case of both the plain and Sun dried Tomato Garlic.  Whole Foods gives a 10% discount if you purchase a case.  You can't beat that!  

It's really nice to have good bread I can pull out of the freezer and make something with.  I like making it homemade, but sometimes I just don't have time!   

Dinner Party part 1

Welcome to my new blog site!  I hope you found me okay and have bookmarked the new location.  I have tried my best to get all of my old posts moved here.  It did not load all of my posts from Wordpress well.  I have to fix almost all of them.  Five of the most recent posts lost their comments.   But, I think it's all here!   I have some new things added that I didn't have on my old blog, so look around!  I will also be adding some new things in the future, like a recipe index and some other things I'm thinking about.  I have no clue how to get a picture up in my banner, so that will be a challenge as well!  

We have some friends by the name of Tony and Carrie that we like to get together and eat with.  We have known them for a very long time.  Last year, Carrie was brave enough to have us over to their home for dinner. She went to great lengths to make the entire meal gluten free, which I very much appreciated. 

Last night was our turn.  I had so much fun planning the menu.  I wanted to make everything I saw and it took me forever to make up my mind.  We like to eat one course at a time and with each course try a different wine.  Tony and Carrie are really good at pairing wine with food.  Steve and I are clueless.  However, that did not stop us!  

For the appetizer, I knew I was going to need some french bread to make bruschetta.  I have been playing around with a baguette recipe from Jacqueline Mallorca's book, The Wheat-Free Cook.  She has some really great bread recipes in this book and most of them don't require yeast.  Most do require dairy.  I really like her baguette recipe just as it is.  It has a wonderful flavor and the next day it is still moist and does not need heating to eat.  We like it use it for making sub sandwiches.  

Because this recipe calls for yogurt, and our son Bryan is casein intolerant, I have been experimenting with converting her recipe to dairy free.  I am trying to find something I can make him that he can take out of the freezer in the morning and take to work with him and make a sandwich.  With my converted recipe, some things I like better, like the loaf was just a tad higher and it had a nice crispy crust.  It worked very well for making bruschetta and the taste and texture on the day it's made is really nice.  The drawback is, on the second day, the loaf is a little dry and has to be heated to eat.  

Rice Flour Baguettes (print recipe)

converted from Jacqueline Mallorca, The Wheat-Free Cook

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees

1/2 cup white rice flour

2/3 cup almond flour

1/2 cup tapioca flour

3/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 cup mayonnaise

soy milk

2 egg whites

1. In a bowl, mix all dry ingredients together.  

2. In a liquid measuring up, place the 1/4 cup of mayonnaise.  Fill with soy milk to the 1 cup line.  Mix that together well.  

3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form.  

4. Add the mayonnaise mixture and 1/3 of the eggs whites to the dry ingredients.  Mix well.  This will seem a little thick.  

5.  Add the remaining egg whites to the batter and patiently fold until they are all incorporated.  This will take some folding.  Be patient and gentle.  

6.  Using a greased french bread pan and  an ice cream scoop, scoop the dough onto the pan forming long, even loaves.  You can use a rubber spatula dipped in water to smooth the loaves and shape them.  

7.  Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.  

The problem of the loaf being dry the next day might be fixed by adding more liquid to it.  In the original recipe, it calls for more liquid.  But, you will need to lay parchment paper on your french bread pan if you do this.  I was trying to avoid that so I added less.  I like all those little bumps you get from the french bread pan!  

Since this was my first attempt at converting this, I will continue to experiment with this recipe.  Let me know if you try it and any changes you make that make it better.  I added the mayonnaise because I thought it would get a good flavor and richness to the dough.  I have not been able to find a plain dairy free yogurt or I would have tried that. 

This is a picture of the sliced bread on my indoor grill.  I brushed them with oil olive and simply grilled them on both sides.  They worked prefect for bruschetta! 

 

 

In the next day or two, I will post my menu and the recipes for our dinner.  Check back!  

 

 

The Best Bread EVER!

 

Edit:  The bread machine I use is a Zojirushi.  I use the whole wheat setting at a time of 2:08.  Place all wet ingredients in the bottom of the pan, then the dry ingredients.  Make a well in the dry ingredients and place the yeast there.  If you don’t have a Zo, use the gluten free setting on your machine if you have that.  If not, contact the manufacturer of your machine to see what they recommend.  

This is the best gluten free bread I've ever had. Ever. Natalie, you are a bread genius. In the gluten free cooking world, we have gourmets, goddesses, girls and then there are queens. Natalie, you are the bread queen! 

This bread does not taste like it's gluten free. I could not stop munching on it! I broke all my carb rules for the whole week! But it was way worth it! I made it exactly like Natalie's recipe but I did it in the bread machine. I mixed all of my wet ingredients together and placed them in the bread machine. Then I mixed all the dry ingredients together minus the yeast and placed that on top of the wet ingredients. Then I put the yeast in on top of the dry ingredients. I didn't have a clue what settings to use so I used the same one I use when I make the Gluten Free Pantry bread mix. 

It was not as tall as the other types of bread I've made, but the flour is probably more dense. The flavor is wonderful!

   

Tonight I fixed Chicken fajitas from my menu. This recipe was featured in the March issue of Bon Appetit. It was so pretty I thought I should include some photos of how it turned out. 

Chicken fajitas with crunchy lime cabbage and avocado 

Bon Appétit | March 2008 

Servings: Makes 6 serving 

Ingredients 

6 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus additional for griddle 

2 garlic cloves, minced 

1 tablespoon chili powder 

2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices 

1 large red bell pepper, cut into 3/4-inch-thick strips 

1 large red onion, halved, sliced lengthwise 

3 cups thinly sliced red cabbage 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 

2 teaspoons finely grated lime peel 

6 to 8 fajita-size flour tortillas (I used corn tortillas to make the recipe gluten free) 

1 avocado, halved, pitted, sliced 

Preparation Whisk 3 tablespoons olive oil, garlic, and chili powder in large bowl. Add chicken, bell pepper, and onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat. Let stand 1 hour at room temperature or chill up to 4 hours. Toss red cabbage, cilantro, lime juice, lime peel, and 3 tablespoons olive oil in medium bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 350°F. 

Wrap tortillas in foil and place in oven until heated through, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place large griddle over 2 burners and heat over medium-high heat. Brush griddle with olive oil. Spread chicken on griddle and cook until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are browned, turning frequently with tongs, about 7 minutes Total. Divide chicken among warm tortillas; top with cabbage mixture and avocado slices.

 

The slaw part was really good and so pretty! The recipe did not call for it but I added jicama to it. Yum.