Christmas Goodies

I know, I promised you a post about Christmas goodies... and I intend to share some with you, but they will probably be more like New Year's goodies.  This year, more than ever I feel like I'm just not ready for Christmas.  It feels like it should be in two weeks, not two days.  I haven't even made lots of Christmas goodies this year.  What have I made?  Some awesome Mini peppermint patties, some almond chocoroons (I shared that recipe last year), caramel popcorn and a really yummy Cranberry Chex Mix.

So look for a post sometime between now and New Year's.  I promise I will post recipes as soon as I come up for air! 
Happy Eating and Merry Christmas!

What to do with Turkey Leftovers

I love having leftover turkey, there are so many things to make using it.  The ever popular turkey sandwiches (and yes, we can still have them, just use gluten free bread), turkey soup, turkey divan (still working on making that one gluten and dairy free) and my favorite turkey salad.  Growing up, I cringed when I heard the words turkey salad or chicken salad.  In my house, it meant something similar to tuna salad (the meat was ground up) and not nearly as tasty.
The first time I tasted this version of Turkey salad I was in the hospital waiting to be released a week after major surgery.  Sounds promising, right?  Hospital food.  It wasn't only hospital food...it was AWESOME hospital food (although you didn't get very much).  I told my mom to try some and she politely refused saying it was my lunch, but I told her she had to try it so she did and was as impressed as I was.  Simply divine.  I waited years to find a recipe similar and I finally did five years later in a Taste of Home magazine.  I made it and again was so happy with the flavor.  Unfortunately, I don't always keep track of magazines and haven't seen the recipe since, so I had to make this one up with a few changes to the original taste.  The salad I had in the hospital had slivered almonds and maybe cashews?  It's been a long time, obviously.  I tend to put whatever nut I'm in the mood for in this salad.  Almonds are great, cashews, too.  I don't think I'd like it with peanuts, but I see potential for using macadamia nuts.  Right now, I'm using toasted pecans...yum!
Enjoy your leftovers and next time we'll talk about Christmas goodies.
Happy Eating!

Happy Thanksgiving and Beyond...

I hope you had a very lovely Thanksgiving.  Sorry, I left you hanging about mashed potatoes and cranberry relish.  Hopefully, you managed without me.  Mashed potatoes are, of course, quite simple to make dairy and gluten free.  I use Earth Balance soy free instead of butter and rice milk or coconut milk instead of regular milk (or a combination of the two) and salt and pepper to taste.  Simple!
As for cranberry relish, that is a recipe that my grandma made every year and then my mom made it and now I make it.  The original recipe called for 1 bag of cranberries, 2 apples,cored, 2 oranges, juiced and you run all this through a food grinder.  I am food grinder challenged (no good spot to set one up in my kitchen) so I make all this in my food processor on mince and usually, in batches.  Then, I mix it all together with 1/4- 3/4 c. sugar (it depends on the tartness of the cranberries and the sweetness of the apples and oranges...it's all to taste).  This year, I only used one orange and two medium apples...my orange was huge!
Anyway, just wanted to make sure you had those recipes!  My next post will be talking about using leftover turkey (or chicken) so check back soon.  Then, I will be starting a series for Christmas cooking gluten and dairy free.  Until next time...
Happy Eating!

Pumpkin Pie

Oh, how I love pumpkin pie!  This is my "must have" dessert for Thanksgiving.  No other pie will do!  My mom always was the one to bring these for Thanksgiving and they were always a slice of homemade deliciousness. Yum.  We've always used the Libby's Canned pumpkin and the recipe on the side, so when it was time to make my pie last year, I knew what recipe I wanted to use, I just needed to find some substitute for dairy and find a gluten-free pie crust.  The pie crust was simple, I used a bag of Pamela's Products Wheat-Free & Gluten-Free Bread Mix, 19-Ounce Packages (Pack of 6).  The recipe was on the bag, but I know that there are several versions at the Pamela's website, I linked one for you, just click on Pamela's to get there.
This year I'm trying out the Gluten Free Mama Pie Crust Mix, it uses some almond flour, so it definitely isn't for anyone with a nut allergy.  I'm making my pumpkin pie tomorrow night, so I'll try to capture some pictures of it to share.
As promised, my next post will be talking about mashed potatoes, cranberry relish and dinner rolls.  Check back soon as that will be the conclusion of my Thanksgiving series, but I plan to start a Christmas series next and for those cold days ahead, I'll be posting a recipe for a dairy free hot cocoa mix.  Until next time...
Happy Eating!

Green Bean Casserole

Just typing the title brings back memories of so many Thanksgivings with my family.  Green Bean Casserole was always what my aunt Gail brought for Thanksgiving.  My mom always made the pumpkin pies and she never touched the Green Bean Casserole, she didn't like it.  My brother and I, on the other hand, loved this stuff and still do to this day.  It isn't quite Thanksgiving without it, but last year it looked like I might have to forgo this ultimate Thanksgiving side dish.  I was determined not to go down without a fight, so I started searching the internet and found several gluten free blogs that had recipes for GBC (sorry, I just had to abbreviate).  None were exactly what I was looking for, but I adapted them and the casserole turned out fabulous, better than the original.  Try  for yourself and see what you think...Green Bean Casserole with French Fried Onions.
Here's the link for the Cream of Mushroom Soup, I shared it earlier when I made Sausage Green Bean Casserole.
So now you're set for the best Thanksgiving side dish.  Come back soon, I'm going to share my pumpkin pie recipe in my next post and then we'll talk about mashed potatoes, cranberry relish, rolls...etc.  Boy! This post is making me hungry!  Until next time...
Happy Eating!

Dressing/ Stuffing...Whatever!

So, onto dressing, which is, of course the same as stuffing but it isn't stuffed and is instead baked in a casserole dish.  At least, that's how I differentiate between the two.  My sweet husband read my last post and wondered if I was going to share my ranch dressing recipe.  I thought he was cute and honestly, if you don't cook (and maybe even if you do) the terminology is sometimes confusing.  So, to be clear, this is a bread dressing (or stuffing, either term works, but I never stuff it in a bird, it gets too mushy and you run the risk of salmonella, which is not what you want to give your guests!)
The recipe I use is out of an old Betty Crocker cookbook, although we did tweak it a little even before we had to change it to make it gluten and dairy free.  Last Thanksgiving I did something to this dressing that I'd never done before due to a lack of time, I made it the night before and put it in the fridge overnight.  I didn't think anything about it until I made some dressing this summer (I know..but in my defense, it was cold this summer) and it didn't taste quite the same.  I thought about it and realized the only thing different was I hadn't let it sit in the fridge overnight.  So, I am definitely making it the night before this year...I want that great flavor again!
So, I have pulled out the 1970's version of Betty Crocker (I do own 3 of "her" books 1950's, 1970's and 1990's) it's the same one my mom has, so I'm rather partial to it.  As I'm looking at the recipe, I see that it's called Bread Stuffing.  Whatever!  My version isn't really in the book anyway, the casserole version, but thankfully, I know that part well.
If you're ready to make the recipe, just click on the name (Thanksgiving Dressing/Stuffing) and it will take you to the document.  I'm nice like that, you know, thinking of you and making it easier for you to print the recipe. Sorry, I don't have a picture, I'll try to take some pictures of all the yummy Thanksgiving food this year!
Look for my next post.  I'm going to share how to make Green Bean Casserole (and yes, it will have gluten free French Fried onions).  Until next time...
Happy Eating!
P.S.  A little side note about what gluten free bread I use:
I use  Pamela's Products Wheat-Free & Gluten-Free Bread Mix, 19-Ounce Packages (Pack of 6) for the bread.  I make it in my bread machine at least a day in advance.  And, um..I tweaked the recipe for the bread just a little bit.  I add : 2 eggs, 1/4 c. olive oil, 3/4 c. warm rice milk, 3/4 c. warm water, bread mix, 1 t. sugar, yeast packet from mix + 1/2 t. yeast.  Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bread machine and stir in any flour that hasn't been mixed when the machine gets to the first rest cycle.

Beyond Survival: Enjoying Your Holiday Gluten and Dairy Free

Well, I'm finally back from that "little cold" I had.  Turns out, it was pneumonia.  Now that I'm on the mend it's time to start thinking about the holidays, starting with Thanksgiving.  This year will be our second Thanksgiving without gluten and dairy.  Last year, it took a lot of research, but I was able to enjoy all my favorite Thanksgiving food (and I do mean all).  I enjoyed turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry relish and pumpkin pie.  Yes, it meant I practically catered Thanksgiving even though we were celebrating with family, but it was so worth it.  In fact, my dressing turned out so wonderful that my MIL commented it was the best she'd tasted and I didn't bring much home in spite of the fact that there were two other gluten versions being served!
So, I thought that a little series sharing my favorite Thanksgiving recipes (with my makeover for them) might be just the ticket, especially if this your first holiday season without gluten or dairy.
First, a little advice about the turkey.  Turkey sounds safe, right?  After all, it's just meat, right?  Well, not exactly.  Read, read, read your label (and if you're buying a frozen one, you might want some gloves so you can read the label).  Make sure there aren't any gluten ingredients listed.  I checked the Butterball website and according to them unless it's a stuffed turkey, it should be gluten free (but read the label).  Also, yes, it will be a problem if someone else is cooking your turkey and wants to stuff it with gluten filled stuffing, there will be cross-contamination and that can cause you some misery.  Natural turkeys seem to be the safest, but they aren't going to be on the great Thanksgiving sales, but it's worth the cost if you don't feel miserable after eating it.
Okay, that's enough advice for today.  My next post will share my dressing recipe ( would you be surprised if I told you it's the same one my family has been using for years?).  Of course, I tweaked it (that's what I do!).  Until next time...
Happy Eating!