The GF Sweet Tooth

Ok, first of all, sorry for my absence! Second of all, sorry for neglecting your sweet tooth! Today I'm going to post two of our favorite sweets that we make with a GF cup for cup flour blend and two of our favorite goodies that are GF from scratch! 

WARNING: just because they're GF and mostly natural ingredients does not mean they're healthy (so don't eat too many in a short period of time unless you plan to work out while doing so)!

CUP FOR CUP RECIPES:

Zucchini Bread
3 eggs
1 cup of coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
2 cups of turbanado sugar (white sugar ok too)
2 cups grated zucchini (about 2-3 med. zucchini with skin on)
2 tsp GF vanilla extract
3 cups GF flour blend (I like Namaste or GF Creations Bakery)
3 tsp found cinnamon 
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp GF baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1/2 cup dried cranberries (optional)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour two 8x4 in loaf pans with GF flour. 
In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and frothy. Mix in oil and sugar. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. Combine flour, cinnamon, soda, baking powder, salt, nuts and cranberries, stir into the egg mixture. Divide batter into prepared pans. 
Bake for 60-70 min or until done. 

Peanut Butter Cookies

2 Tbsp GF All Purpose Baking Flour (I use Bob's Red Mill For this recipe)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract 
1 slightly beaten egg
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup of peanut butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix ingredients together and roll into 1 inch balls and bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for approx. 8 minutes. Makes about 24 cookies. 

SCRATCH RECIPES:

Frosted Lemon Squares

1 1/2 sticks butter (we use DF butter)

3/4 cup bakers sugar (basically super fine sugar but NOT powdered sugar)

2 eggs
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour (also known as tapioca starch)
1 1/2 tsp GF baking powder
1 tsp xanthan gum
Frosting Ingredients:
Freshly shredded rind and juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup superfine sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Put the butter, sugar, eggs, flours, baking powder, and xanthan gum in the bowl of a food processor (blenders work too!). Whiz together for a few seconds to amalgamate. Spread the mixture evenly in a well greased Swiss roll tin 10x7in, and bake for 25-35 minutes or until pale golden brown. 
Meanwhile mix all the ingredients for the frosting in a bowl. As soon as the biscuits are cooked, spoon a little of the frosting over the top at a time, allowing it to soak through before pouring on more. Leave to cool in the pan. Cut into squares. 

For the last scratch recipe check out my friend Holly's GF Vegan Apple Muffins From My Plant Based Family, they are to die for!!! While you're there, check out some of her other yummy recipes!

Well, there you have it! Enjoy, share and be blessed!!!

Swapping Sweets for Strep

Blog friends, I dislike doing this to you again, but I had a sick kiddo with strep at the beginning of the week, which is when I do my blog prep. I really wanted to give you more than two recipes this week, so I'm going to pass on posting a lame post with only one GF goody for you to try. Next week I promise (scouts honor!) to bring you my favorite GF baking tips with 4 recipes. 2 that are yummy GF cup for cup recipes and 2 "from scratch" GF recipes!!! They will be keepers!

Thanks for understanding and staying with me even though I don't post daily. I appreciate you taking the time to stop by once a week. I truly hope that being gluten free is becoming or already is a blessing in your life! See you next week, until then, be blessed!

Dinner Ideas Anyone?!

Sorry for my unexcused absence last week! I went to Williams, AZ for a Women's Retreat with my church. It was a spiritually refreshing time and physically enduring fun as I climbed to the top of a 6 1/2 story rock wall 4 times, ran 3.5 miles out in the wilderness and did a yoga class. That is my idea of a weekend away from the kids and hubby, I would honestly be bored at a spa! Lol!

Anyways, last time we met I promised some of our favorite recipes, which I will give you today. But, first I want to share with you two of my favorite blogs for GF recipes! Www.glutenfreeonashoestring.com has AMAZING and simple recipes. I also have her cookbook and have been told many times that the meals from her book are "keepers"! Also, a friend of mine has blog that is plant based but has a lot of GF versions. She has an amazing recipe for Breakfast Quinoa which has replaced instant ostmeal in our house. Not to mention tons GF baked goods! You can find her yummy goodness at www.myplantbasedfamily.wordpress.com. I have also found lots of great recipes on food networks site as well as allrecipes.com.

You'd be surprised how many meals/recipes could be modified so they are GF. It's as simple as swapping out the flour with GF all purpose baking flour or corn starch. Or brown rice spaghetti pasta instead or regular. What about grinding up the heels of your GF bread to make bread crumbs for meatloaf and meatballs. We've even crunched up corn checks to coat chicken for that country fried chicken affect.

Being GF does NOT mean eating boring tasteless food. If anything it's opened us up to healthier more flavorful food. Here's two of our favorites right now...

Italian Style Turkey Meatloaf

21/2 lbs of Italian seasoned ground turkey ( read to make sure the brand used GF seasoning)
1/2 cup GF bread crumbs (throw two heals of GF bread in toaster then food processor or blender and viola! Way cheaper than buying GF bread crumbs at the store.)
1 egg
1/2 cup marinara sauce
1 clove garlic minced
1 tsp Italian seasoning ( I made my own blend from allrecipes.com to be sure it was GF, if you already have Italian seasoning in your cupboard, just be sure to read the label)

Mix all in large bowl

Spray a 9x13" pan with Pam. Form meat mixture into a loaf. Spread with an additional 1/2 cup marinara sauce.

Bake in 350 degree oven 1 hour or until internal temp is 165 degrees. Let stand 5 min before serving.

You can serve this with mashed potatoes and veggies, spaghetti squash and a little marinara on top or make the meat mixture into meatballs to serve with brown rice pasta and sauce. Delish!!!

The next is a MUST HAVE with kids...

Ultimate Chicken Fingers

3/4 cup Bisquick GF mix (I haven't tried this recipe with all purpose GF flour, but I think it'd turn out the same)
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/8 tsp pepper (optional)
3 boneless skinless chicken breast cut into strips
2 eggs slightly beaten
Vegetable spray (Pam or its equivalent)

Heat oven to 450. Line cookie sheet with foil; spray with cooking spray.

Stir Bisquick mix, paprika, garlic salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Dip chicken into eggs, then coat with Bisquick mixture, place on cookie sheet; repeat until all strips are coated on both sides. Spray chicken with Pam.

Bake 12-14 min until no longer pink.

We like to eat them with Ore-Ida brand crinkle cut fries since they're GF and cheap if you buy the big bag at Costco, and of course some carrot sticks or cucumber slices to balance out the meal.

I have plenty more recipes to share but my thumb is getting tired since this entire blog post is coming directly to you from my iPhone! So how about next week I share some yummy baked goods recipes and tips? You might want a cookie near by when reading because you'll probably start craving one other wise. But, until then, as always, be blessed!

Xoxo- me!