Archive for Gluten Free
Why I’m Thankful to Know How to Cook Gluten Free (Plus 115 Healthy Gluten Free Recipes)
Posted by: | CommentsMy family eats gluten.
I buy wheat in abundance and grind it several times a week to make flour for our baking needs. We eat regular oats frequently, and the occasional barley or rye. We experimented with eating gluten free a couple of years ago to see if it would help our son’s eczema. (It didn’t.)
But thanks to that experiment and the time I’ve spent learning from my friend Kim (who has been cooking gluten free for several years and who helped me put these books together) – I am well informed about how to prepare gluten free foods. I know how to keep food safe for those who can’t have gluten. I have in my head a big list of food options that are gluten free. I have many foods on hand in my kitchen at all times that are just fine for serving to the gluten sensitive. It’s really not difficult.
I really hadn’t thought much about the importance of having gluten free recipes and knowledge until last week.
We had invited some college students over for a meal after church. On Saturday, I had prepared in advance two big dishes of Italian Pasta Bake, and a double batch of Whole Wheat Butterhorns. The next morning, right before we left for church, Asa came down and said, “Mom, you know what I just realized? I remember from camp that one of the girls coming over today can’t have gluten or dairy.”
Umm…Italian Pasta Bake and Whole Wheat Butterhorns are both very full of gluten and dairy. I knew that at least she could eat the salad and green beans I had planned to go with our meal. But what else? And with that thought in mind…we headed off for church.
We caught the young lady after worship to let her know we were so glad she was coming and we asked about her food sensitivities. She told us not to worry about her and assured us that she was used to not eating when she went places and that she’d just come hang out.
Oh nonononono. Not at my house. I aim to please! Thou shalt not eat a meager little salad and a few green beans when dining at my table if I can help it.
Without even having to try, and because I had Tinkyada rice pasta on hand (yay!), I was able to quickly throw together a gluten free, cheeseless Italian Pasta Bake for her while I was tossing the salad and baking the rolls. I was very careful not to cross contaminate any of the foods (because Kim taught me well). I loved being able to present her with plenty of food that day so that she didn’t have to just sit there and watch us all eat.
That’s just one story to explain why I am so thankful to know how to cook gluten free foods. I can’t tell you how often this knowledge comes in handy. We’ve got friends coming to stay with us for several days this summer who can’t have gluten. When we were in Denver last month, staying with someone who couldn’t have gluten, I was easily able to help cook. Our boys have a gluten sensitive friend who has come over for a birthday party and I was able to have food for him. I made gluten free food when I hosted bunco because one of my friends in the group has Celiac. And on and on it goes. It is not hard to cook gluten free food once you know for sure which foods to avoid.
In preparation for our guests this summer, I recently took the time to update my Gluten Free Recipes page. Would you believe that 115 of the recipes on my site are naturally gluten free?? Naturally – as in, that’s how I make those recipes on any given day when I’m not thinking about gluten or non-gluten. There are no special ingredients or products needed. You can make many gluten free recipes with the ingredients you already have in your kitchen!! I love this.
Check out my Gluten Free Recipes page, and bookmark it or pin it so that you have easy access to it. Then you will also be well prepared to serve food to someone who can’t have gluten. Feel confident, knowing that many, many regular pantry and refrigerator staples are naturally gluten free. My page of 115 recipes proves it!
How comfortable do you feel preparing gluten free foods? Have any gluten free recipes to share?
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Sweet Pepper Fritata
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I can’t decide which I like best about this dish: looking at it…or eating it. I love that the red and green peppers make this fritata look festive for Christmas. This is very easy to make and can be put together ahead of time and baked just before serving. If you want to add a little extra protein, throw in some leftover cooked chicken or sausage.
Sweet Pepper Fritata
1 small onion, chopped
3/4 cup chopped green pepper
3/4 cup chopped red pepper
2 Tablespoons butter
5 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Saute onion and peppers in the butter for 5-7 minutes or until veggies are tender and your family comes running into the kitchen to see what smells so good. Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients in a bowl. Stir sauteed vegetables into egg mixture. Pour into an ungreased pie dish. Bake in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle of the fritata comes out clean. Serves 6-8.
Which would you rather do – look at this, or eat it? Or maybe you could just really enjoy looking at it while you eat it. ;)
(Be sure to leave a comment on this post for a chance to win one of four $10 gift certificates to the Heavenly Homemakers Shop, as a part of our Christmas Brunch!)
Gluten Free and Holiday Hospitality eBook Sales!!!
Posted by: | CommentsThe winners of our new eBooks are:
1) Jen: Theconnellys@
2) Erin Owens: jesseexecair@Jen and Erin, email me and tell me which of our new eBooks you’d like!
As we launch these new eBooks for sale, we’ve made them available for a limited time for only $4.50 each! Plus, with the holidays coming up, we’ve got a great sale going on with our Holiday Hospitality eBooks!! Take note of the special package prices noted below. Here are all the details!!
Casseroles, Soups and Stews eBook and Sweets & Treats eBook are full of easy to obtain, whole food ingredients. They are ready just in time for the holidays, and as an added bonus for those of you who need it, all of these recipes are gluten free! (A big thanks to Kimberlee, my friend and local gluten free expert, who provided most of these recipes and helped put together these new eBooks!!)
Read the table of contents of each book by clicking on the following links: Casseroles, Soups and Stews; Sweets and Treats
Gluten Free Casseroles, Soups and Stews eBook
Regular Price $6.95
$4.50 (limited time only)
Gluten Free Sweets and Treats eBook
Regular Price $6.95
$4.50 (limited time only)
In an effort to provide you with a great deal on loads of healthy (and gluten free) recipes, we’ve combined all four of our GF eBooks into a package at a special price! This package will normally be $19.95 for all four eBooks, but through Friday, November 4 – you can grab this package for only $15.00!!
Gluten Free eBook Package
Regular Price $19.95
$15.00 (limited time only!)
Also, on sale now are our Holiday Hospitality and Holiday Hospitality for Kids ebooks! Buy them each for $4.50 or as a set for only $7.00!!! (You’ll find my Homemade Dinner Roll recipe in the Holiday Hospitality eBook, which is a highly requested recipe. I realize that kind of flies in the face of all this Gluten Free talk, but hey, we’re trying to meet all kinds of needs on this site!!)
![hospitalityebookcover[1]](http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/hospitalityebookcover11.jpg "hospitalityebookcover[1]")
Holiday Hospitality (more details about this eBook here)
Regular Price $6.95$4.50 (limited time only!)
![hospitalityforkidscover[1]](http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/hospitalityforkidscover11.jpg "hospitalityforkidscover[1]")
Holiday Hospitality for Kids! (more details about this eBook here – your kids will love it!)
Regular Price $6.95$4.50 (limited time only!)
Holiday Hospitality and Holiday Hospitality for Kids eBook Package
Regular Price $12.00$7.00 (limited time only!)
These sales end at midnight Friday, November 4, 2011.
Coconut Flour Brownies (Gluten Free!)
Posted by: | CommentsI decided to follow my “What Kind of Wheat Flour is Best?” post with a gluten free recipe. Talk about swinging from one side of the pendulum to the other, huh? I’m either trying to be accommodating – or keeping you forever on your toes with what to expect when you check in here. ;)
Beth emailed this recipe to me, saying she found it on the Azukar Coconut Flour package that I’d posted a deal for recently. (The deal is still good, by the way!) I tweaked the recipe slightly by replacing the regular sugar with sucanat. Also, you could add chocolate chips if you’re feeling the need for a major chocolate fix, or chopped nuts if you’re feeling nutty. Personally, I can always use a chocolate fix, and nutty as I am, I don’t care for chopped nuts in my brownies.
Coconut Flour Brownies
1/3 cup melted butter or coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup sucanat
6 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)
Stir together melted butter (or oil), cocoa and sucanat. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing well. Stir in coconut flour, stirring until all ingredients are well combined. (Coconut flour likes to clump together a little bit – I find a whisk usually helps smooth out the mixture as I stir.) Fold in chocolate chips and/or nuts if you choose.
Pour into an 8×8 inch baking dish. Bake in a 350° oven for about 30 minutes.
Whether or not you need to eat a gluten free diet, I really recommend that you check into using coconut flour every once in a while. It’s a very healthy flour. Read more about why I love coconut flour.
What have your coconut flour experiences been like so far? Are you a nutty brownie sort of person, or simply just…nutty?
Raw Cookie Dough Bites (somebody stop me from eating them all!)
Posted by: | CommentsI happened upon this Raw Cookie Dough Bites recipe today over on The Nourishing Home. Since I had all the ingredients and since the thought of eating cooke dough bites made me very happy, I decided to surprise the boys and make these for a snack.
My goodness these things are good. They took just a few minutes to put together, plus they are packed full of goodness. What an awesome, healthy snack to have on hand!
Best of all, for those of you with food allergies, these are egg, dairy and gluten free!!! (Sorry nut allergy friends, these do have nut butter.) They call for ground flax seed, which I ground in my food processor. And they call for coconut flour, which is one of my new loves. I used my mini soy free chocolate chips and found that these little bites are super addicting. I decided you needed to know about these so that you could also become addicted. Wait – that’s not what I meant. Really, I just wanted to share a new, great snack recipe idea with you because I’m nice and helpful like that. Yes, that’s it.
You’ll find the recipe for Raw Cookie Dough Bites here. Warning: It’s hard to eat just one. Or two. Or four.
It’s a good thing these are full of healthy ingredients. ;)
Hey, hey! I just peeked over at Amazon and found that the Azukar Coconut Flour is back in stock and still being offered for a great price! These bags always seem to be snatched up quickly, so act fast if you’re interested.
Azukar Organics Natural Coconut Flour 32 ounce bags (3 count)…
$17.65 with subscribe and saveAzukar Organics Natural Coconut Flour 16 ounce bags (6 count)…
$19.61 with subscribe and save.These are excellent prices for coconut flour!
Coconut Flour Cheddar Drop Biscuits
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At a recent youth event, my friend Lisa mentioned something about her Coconut Flour Cheese Biscuits. I immediately dropped my plate and fork, leaped over the couch to the other side of the room and tackled her onto the floor, begging her to please share her recipe.
Of course you know I’m kidding.
Her name is really Louanne.
Okay no, I’m kidding again.
Her name really is Lisa and when she mentioned her Coconut Flour Cheese Biscuits I didn’t actually drop anything or leap over anything or tackle her. I’m not that crazy.
Yes, kidding again. You all know I’m crazy.
But still, she was nice enough to give me her recipe without all the drama. The drama is what I felt inside when I heard that she had a new great coconut flour recipe to offer.
So here, without any shoulder shaking, leg grabbing or tearful pleading is my friend Lisa’s awesome recipe:
Coconut Flour Cheddar Drop Biscuits
¼ cup coconut oil or butter, melted
1/3 cup sifted coconut flour
4 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
Blend together eggs, coconut oil or butter, salt, and onion powder. Combine coconut flour with baking powder and whisk into batter until there are no lumps. Fold in cheese. Drop batter by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. For a cheesier biscuit increase cheese to ¾ cup.
This recipe makes about 10 biscuits.
If you’re curious, here’s a post I wrote explaining more about why I love coconut flour. And also, one of my readers just let me know that this great deal for coconut flour is back up and running. How very thoughtful of them to re-stock five minutes before I posted this recipe. :)
Disclaimer: No friends were harmed during the acquiring of this recipe.
Have you tried coconut flour yet? Do you love it?
Announcing!!! Heavenly Homemakers new Gluten Free Summer eBook! (Plus a Giveaway)
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Okay, first…for all you NON-Gluten Free people out there – don’t stop reading this post before you even start reading!! (By the way, all of us who are ”non-gluten-free”, shall we just call ourselves Gluten-Full?)
Even if you can eat gluten, I think you still may be interested in this new ebook. Let me just say…there are Chocolate Mint Truffles involved. Who said truffle (and salad and dip) recipes were only for the Gluten Free among us? :)
The beauty of this newest ebook here at Heavenly Homemakers is that every single person can enjoy it and benefit from its tasty summertime recipes…but we wanted to make sure that all of you who need to eat a gluten free diet will know that all of these recipes are safe and healthy for you too!!
I’ve teamed up with my friend Kimberlee again, who is sweet, fun and also a gluten free recipe expert! She’s been feeding her family a gluten free diet for eight years and her kitchen is overflowing with excellent recipes. Because our Gluten Free and Good For You ebook was such a hit, I asked Kim to help us all out with her best tasting (and healthy) summertime dishes.
And again, just like with our Gluten Free and Good For You ebook, all of these recipes call for normal, everyday ingredients. I wanted to be sure these were recipes that could be used by everyone at anytime, so that none of us have to turn somersaults to find ”special gluten free” ingredients many of us have never heard of.
This way, even if you aren’t used to cooking gluten free foods exclusively, if you are hosting someone or feeding someone who requires a gluten free diet, you’ve got some great recipes that you know will be safe for them to eat! I love the idea of making hospitality toward our friends or family with this food sensitivity a simple possibility!
Gluten Free Summer will go on sale in the Heavenly Homemakers Shop next week, after my hunky editor (yes, that would be Matt) finishes going through it with a fine tooth comb.
In the meantime, we’ll be giving away three copies of Gluten Free Summer ebook. It contains 35 recipes for cool summertime salads, dips, lunches and suppers, beverages and treats…for the gluten free and the gluten full among us. :)
Want a chance to win a copy? Leave a comment here on this post for a chance to win! I’ll draw three random winners on Wednesday, May 11.
Healthier Cheese Dip – a Velveeta and Rotel Recipe Knock Off!
Posted by: | CommentsToday, I have written a very heart felt letter to my friend, Velveeta. I hope you don’t mind that I shared it. It’s rather personal, so I hope no one feels embarrassed to read my inner-most thoughts. I’m sure that my friend Velveeta is a friend to some of you too. Truly, if I would have had a daughter, I would have named her Velveeta in honor of my friend.
Okay, totally not really. But still.
Dear Velveeta,
I dearly love you. I grew up eating you and some days, I really miss you. I often visit you in the store, just in case you miss me too. Have you seen me there, lingering by your shelves?
What exactly are you made of anyway? Wait – don’t tell me. I don’t want to know. Reading your label makes me queasy, but when I mix you with a can of rotel, I could gladly grab a bag of chips and eat half the bowl. You are delicious. You are comfort food. You are memories from my childhood. And for goodness sakes you taste incredible alongside a cold glass of Pepsi.
But you are “processed cheese food”. What in the world does that mean? No wait - really – don’t tell me. I don’t want to know. I just want to eat you in ignorance so that I won’t know the full effects of what something such as you can do to the insides of my body.
But alas, since my family began Our Healthy Eating Journey a few years ago, I chose to give you up. I have a new friend now that has a striking resemblance to you, but one that doesn’t make me feel so sick inside.
Those were some good times we had together – you, me and the Pepsi. Please know that I’ll hold the memory of you forever in my heart.
Insanely Yours,
Laura @ Heavenly Homemakers
Well, now you know. Velveeta-Rotel chip dip and I go way back. I miss her. I love her. But there’s a new kid in town, one that is made from real food that I can trust not to turn my gut wrong-side-out. I’ve been tinkering with this dish for the past couple of years and my family loves it! It’s not quite as thick as the Velveeta-Rotel dip, but I would imagine that the ingredients that make that one thick are ingredients you and I don’t know how to pronounce. Just lean over the bowl when you eat this. A little dip running down the chin never hurt anyone.
Healthier Cheese Dip
1 pound ground hamburger meat (seasoned with Homemade Taco Seasoning if you like!)
2 cups salsa
1 cup cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Organic Corn Chips
Brown hamburger meat and season if desired. Stir salsa and cream into the meat, stirring constantly while heating on medium heat for about three minutes. Remove mixture from heat and add shredded cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve with Organic Corn Chips. (You can stir in 1/2 cup sour cream or 3 ounces cream cheese if you’d like.)
Don’t leave me hanging. I must know if you are friends with Velveeta too. Do you love her with Rotel? And tell me, is Velveeta a lovely name, or what?
Again, totally not really.
Coconut Flour Banana Muffins
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve been having so much fun playing with this Gluten Free/Dairy Free Muffin recipe! We’re on the home stretch of the Gluten Free Experiment we’ve been conducting at our house (more on that soon), but I guarantee you we’ll continue to make these muffins and all the fun variations I’m coming up with whether we’re gluten free or not. What a healthy little muffin (that just so happens to taste like cake).
Coconut flour is high in fiber, high in protein, making it a wonderful addition to your diet. I find coconut flour at Tropical Traditions or Amazon. I’m so in love with this stuff that I might just write a post all about it someday soon.
I don’t recommend substituting whole wheat flour in this recipe. Coconut flour and wheat flour are not created equal. If you want a Whole Wheat Banana Muffin recipe, check out this one! We love it!
Coconut Flour Banana Muffins
1/2 cup Coconut Flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 eggs
4 Tablespoons Coconut Oil, melted
1/4 cup honey
2-3 ripe, mashed bananas
1/2 cup nuts (optional)
Mix all ingredients together, then pour batter into a well greased (or paper lined) muffin pan. Bake at 350 for 15-25 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.
I never put nuts in muffins because 5 out of 6 of us don’t care for them in our baked goods. How ’bout you? Are you a nutty kind of person? (I really mean to ask if you like nuts in your muffins…not if you consider yourself to be nuts, but feel free to answer according to how you’re feeling today.)
Mini Crustless Breakfast Quiches
Posted by: | CommentsYou know how I mentioned that we go through a lot of eggs at our house? Six dozen last week to be exact. This week I was able to get my hands on 11 dozen farm fresh eggs and I am so very excited. It’s obviously the simple things in life that make me happy…proven by the fact that having 11 dozen eggs available this week for my cooking pleasure has made me almost giddy.
What do we do with all those eggs you ask? Well, there are six of us, five are male and four of those five male people can’t seem to get enough food right now. We also have extra people eating at our house quite often, so our six turns into eight or more on just about any given day. I bake a lot, so I stir them into whatever I’m baking. We easily go through an entire dozen for breakfast if I’m making scrambled eggs or a casserole, and more than a dozen if I make crepes. These Coconut Flour Muffins are incredible…and they take up quite a few eggs. And, I often put eggs in our smoothies or “milkshakes” for added protein and nutrients. (Again, let me reinforce that we ONLY eat them raw if they are organic, free range, farm fresh…otherwise I’m afraid of them.)
If I have lots of eggs available to me, I go for it and I don’t hold back! Eggs are brain food. I pay between $2.00 and $2.50 for a dozen farm fresh eggs, depending on my source. For the quality of eggs I’m getting, I consider this to be a great price. So even though we go through a lot of eggs…what an economical source of nutrition!!! How else can I feed my family an entire meal for just over $2.00??? (Okay, yes, they eat fruit and stuff with their eggs…you see my point though, right?)
If you haven’t tried our Easy Breakfast Casserole, please go get yourself some eggs and try it. It’s the simplest little breakfast casserole I’ve ever made and my family eats the whole pan. Actually…they don’t eat the pan. Hungry boys though they are, they do have their limits.
I have now adapted the Easy Breakfast Casserole recipe to become an easy, make-ahead Mini Crustless Breakfast Quiche recipe. You can make these and serve them fresh, or you can bake them the night before and re-warm them in the oven the next morning for breakfast. You can even bake them and freeze them to have available for future grab and go meals. You can make them for lunch or brunch. These little quiches are super versatile!
Mini Crustless Breakfast Quiche
12 eggs
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup shredded cheese (I use white cheddar, but you can use whatever cheese you want!)
Begin your quiches by whisking together the eggs, cream, salt and cheese in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle in any “add in” ingredients you wish (a total of 1 cup of add-ins). Stir them around with a fork. Scoop mixture into 24 well buttered regular sized muffin tins. Bake in a 350° oven for 20-30 minutes, or until the middle of each quiche doesn’t jiggle.
Add In Ideas:
Cooked sausage (I have a wonderful recipe for turkey sausage here.)
Chopped ham
Chopped and cooked bacon
Leftover baked potatoes, cut into chunks or shredded into hashbrowns
Sauteed veggies
Raw spinach
Cooked chicken
Taco seasoned meat
Obviously, you can cut this recipe in half to make 12 regular sized muffins sized quiches!
I’m curious, just because I’m fairly certain some of you might be shocked about our egg consumption…how many eggs does your family go through in a week?
This recipe is gluten free! I’m planning to add this little Gluten Free button to all of the Heavenly Homemakers recipes that are naturally Gluten Free, so you’ll know with one quick glance!
