Gluten Free Chinese Food

Now, before you get all excited and think that I am going to tell you how to actually make Gluten Free Chinese Food by yourself, just settle down and take a breath. I am not that good of a cook. But what I am here to tell you is that Gluten Free Chinese Food does exist. I know, it seems like the most elusive thing out there because of the brewed wheat, I mean soy sauce, that they use on everything. Never fear. There is hope!

There's a great Chinese food place in Sandy near to where I live called Joy Luck, and they informed me the first time I ate there a few months ago that they could make almost everything on their menu gluten free. I almost cried real tears right there in the restaurant. How is this possible? They batter the meat with cornstarch and use LaChoy soy sauce, which is the only gluten free soy sauce I have ever heard of. (If there's another brand out there, please let me know!) So I ordered something I hadn't had in six long years:

Gluten Free Ham Fried Rice. It was a revelation. The reason I am telling you about this experience is that there are restaurants out there that will work with you. If you go to a Chinese place all the time and you feel comfortable enough that you could talk to the owner, suggest these ingredients for one or two menu items to them and see what they say. Some menu items are already gluten free, like the Lemon Chicken at Joy Luck. It is cornstarch-battered chicken with a clear lemon sauce. Perfect. No menu haggling needed. Or the Walnut Shrimp (top), a yummy dish made with honey and cream. Or the Tangerine Chicken (middle). I don't even know what's in that one. It's spicy and sweet with the crunchy cornstarch battered chicken. The day I had Lettuce Wraps with gluten free chicken filling was reason enough for a happy dance. Now I suggest that restaurant to my friends when we go out to eat, because I can eat with confidence. And the food is delicious, no gluten necessary. So happy eating to you all, and now I'm going to go eat some leftovers.

Betty Crocker Taste Test

Somebody said to me today, "You must cook all the time." It's true. I dream about food. I think about food all the time. I'll get an idea for for a dish and have to try it right then, mealtime or not. It had barely been two hours since I had gotten home from the grocery store that I had to bake up the Betty Crocker Yellow Cake Mix and Betty Crocker Devil's Food Cake Mix to try it. I was hoping to catch them off their guard and be able to say Betty failed. But, instead, Betty triumphed.

The thing is, we all look to cake mixes to quickly get a cake ready for whatever reason. Period. It's an extra bonus if you make a tasty one. So points to Betty for making this mix easy and accessible. The instructions were easy to follow and there weren't any special ingredients necessary to add that I didn't already have in my kitchen. It mixed up like a regular mix, it baked up like a regular mix, I used regular Betty Crocker Milk Chocolate Frosting on it like a regular mix, and my husband ate a huge piece like a regular mix. About thirty minutes later, he asked, "Was that gluten free?" That is the ultimate litmus test: fooling a gluten-eater with gluten free goods.

Although there is a slight (and I mean slight) aftertaste to this yellow cake, it is overshadowed by the ease and availability of these mixes. And I made the Devil's Food Cake with sour cream instead of butter, and can we just say, moist? It is super yummy. And....$4.49! You can't beat that! I have been looking in all my local stores for a Gluten Free Pantry Decadent Chocolate Cake Mix for about a month now and am going to have to order one on the internet. But Betty came through with her grocery store mixes...easy, accessible, Betty. Happy Eating!

Gluten Free Crock Pot Cooking

Cooking in the crock pot has to be one of the great joys of homemaking. No checking to see if stuff is burning, no stirring, just put it in and go. It's perfect for people who work all day: put stuff in it in the morning and dinner is magically done when you get home. However, you can't use a lot of the traditional ingredients used in crock pot cooking. It seems everything calls for a can of cream of whatever soup. And those soups are so yummy that it seems like you will never ever find a suitable substitute for them. I've talked before about this soup, and it has got to be one of my favorites for cooking. Not only is it gluten free, but it has a much stronger mushroom flavor than Campbells Cream of Gluten soup, so I actually like the taste better. It's not the same, it's better. This recipe can be changed to put whatever components you have in your freezer or pantry. Basically it goes like this:

Brown your meat. (This is a sirloin roast. I don't like a lot of fat, although fatty roasts are better for crock pots because they add more flavor and softness to the meat as it cooks. So you have to choose: fat or flavor?)

Slice vegetables and put in bottom of crock pot. (Potatoes, carrots, celery, cabbage, anything but broccoli. Ewww.)Put meat on TOP of vegetables so the flavor can drip down onto them while cooking.

Pour soup over meat. (Complicated, I know.)

Put lid on and cook all day. (This could be 4 hours on hi or 9 hours on low. However long you need it to cook.)

Heat up some frozen veggies and you're done. Yummy soft meat with built in gravy over roasted flavorful vegetables all in one pot. It doesn't get much better than that.

Happy eating!

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Lunch with Me

So many days I find myself cooking for one. My kids are eating macaroni and cheese (which I am simply the chef of, not the partaker), or jelly sandwiches, or McDonald's. And I am left standing in the kitchen saying, "Now what?" It wouldn't be lying to say that lunch is one of my least favorite meals of the day. It always has been. I don't really even know why. Pictured above is a typical lunchtime menu for me. (Notice the cupcake is front and center.) There was a time long ago that this would not have filled me up and I would have been looking for a bag of chips to fill the hole after lunch. That's how I gained twenty five extra pounds. (I'm just putting that out there. No shame, it's what happens when you love and hate food at the same time.) Now I have embraced the more filling parts of lunch, namely adding nuts and extra veggies to my salad and eating a cupcake a day. Okay, not every day. But most days. I just made that sound like cupcakes are healthier than chips. You make your own choices, dear reader. I just make suggestions.

Usually if I am making a recipe for dinner with hamburger, I will just pull out a handful and pan-fry myself a hamburger with some of it at lunch, since it's defrosted already. I always buy the extra super lean, it's like 96/4 or 93/7. This way I feel like I'm eating protein instead of fat. I always add cheese. This is my rule. You don't get to have bread to put seasonings and stuff on, so just add that cheese and call it good. If you love ketchup, mustard, pickles, whatever, put it on there and eat it with your knife and fork. It's way less embarrassing to do this at home than at a public restaurant, by the way. Then I chop up a salad to go with it. This one is spinach, mushroom, mandarin orange, almond, and poppy seed dressing. Use just a teaspoon of dressing to keep the fat down and feel less guilty about your dessert. Then pull out one of your individually frozen treats and enjoy. This lunch can be varied in many different ways: use chicken or fish instead of hamburger, use romaine lettuce instead of spinach and add avocado and salsa. Whatever your individual tastes are, dress it up. It's protein and a salad with a small dessert. Basically, pretend you are on the Zone diet but you can eat sweets. Leave a comment: what are your favorite lunchtime basics?

Happy eating!

Homemade Applesauce

Applesauce is one of those things that you can really cozy up to when you are eating gluten free. It's naturally gluten free, you can use it in a variety of recipes, and it's pretty healthy. (It's got to be better than a Snickers, right?) I've made applesauce a few times, but I decided I wanted something that was just a little different, so this time I tried a secret ingredient.

The applesauce recipe I use is from the Holy Bible of Cooking, otherwise known as the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. If you don't have one, get one. The best thing about this book is that if there's a classic recipe you want to learn to make or you need to know what ingredients are in bearnaise sauce or you need to know how long to cook a roast, this book will have the answer. I've cooked from this book with my mom since I was a little kid, and I truly felt like I had arrived in adulthood when I got my own copy when I got married. But I digress.

I happened upon a bumper crop of Gala apples this weekend, and they were just at the peak of ripeness. I knew they wouldn't last more than a few days, so I peeled them, sliced them up, and put them in a big pot with some sugar and some pumpkin pie spice. Usually I just use cinnamon, but the pumpkin pie spice is a tried and tested combination. And it was the perfect complement to the apples. Make up a batch and try using applesauce instead of oil in your cookie or cake recipes. It's a little healthier and you still get a moist product.

Homemade Applesauce

from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook

3 pounds (9 medium) peeled, cored, and sliced apples

1 cup water

1/3-2/3 cup sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon (I used 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice)

(I also added 1/2 tsp lemon juice)

In a large pot combine apples, water, sugar and spice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover, simmer for 8-10 minutes or until apples are tender, adding more water if necessary. Remove from heat. Mash mixture with potato masher, blender (my choice) or food processor until desired texture. (I only pulsed once or twice--I like it a little lumpy.) Serve warm or chilled. Makes 4 1/2 cups.

Happy eating!

Gluten Free Carrot Cake Muffins

I remember back in the day when I thought I could eat wheat I would go to Mimi's Restaurant and eat all of the moist and yummy carrot cake they brought out with the bread plate for an appetizer. It is such a great combination of flavors; the walnuts, the raisins, the carrots, the spices. Then the tables turned and I thought sweet, moist carrot cake and I would never meet again. One day (years later, I must admit), I thought, I'm smarter than that! I can make my own gluten free version of that bread. It proved to be easier than I thought. First I turned to trusty Google Search and found several versions of the Mimi's recipe. (Mimi's, if you don't want your stuff copied, don't let the recipe get out on the web. I'm just saying. But I'm glad it was there.)

Gluten free baking is so tricky. You have to use several flours to replace wheat flour,because each flour has only one or two of the components of regular flour. Measurements and ratios can be hard on the middle-aged mom's brain, so I like to take the easy way out and use a mix whenever possible. That doesn't mean, however, that you have to just use the mix as is. I always feel free to jazz it up a bit and add whatever flavors or textures I like to my sweet baked goods. This dish was no exception. I used the Namaste Spice Cake Mix and then added some of Mimi's secret ingredients like crushed pineapple and walnuts. I used applesauce instead of oil to cut down on the fat intake. I added shredded zucchini and coconut because I wanted more veggie power. And what I came up with was a muffin that my five-year-old has eaten more of than I have.

Gluten Free Carrot Cake Muffins with Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting

based on Mimi's Restaurant recipe, tweaked and made gluten free by Margo Andersen

3 eggs

1 cup applesauce

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup molasses (optional)

1 Namaste spice cake mix

1 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1/2 cup shredded zucchini

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup crushed pineapple

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with paper liners. In a stand mixer, beat eggs, applesauce, water, and molasses, if desired, until combined. Add cake mix, blend. Stop mixer and add carrots, coconut, zucchini, raisins, walnuts, and pineapple. Mix until just blended, not too long or the goodies will sink to the bottom. Batter is runny, so use a 1/4 measuring cup to fill muffin tins. If goodies start to fall to the bottom while you are fillng muffin tins, simply stir the batter for a second to re-incorporate. Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Makes 24 muffins with enough left over for one mini loaf pan. Cook loaf for 40-45 minutes at 350. Cool on a wire rack until completely cool. Frost with frosting if using as a dessert. If not, use for a breakfast muffin. Freezes well.

Homemade Cream Cheese Frosting

1 pkg cream cheese

3-4 cups powdered sugar

Beat together softened cream cheese and sugar, adding one cup at a time until desired consistency. Place in a large ziploc bag and cut the end off one of the tips to make a pastry bag. Frost carrot cake muffins this way so the moist crumbs do not get into the frosting.

Happy eating!

Gluten Free Crusty Chicken and Creamy Provencale Sauce, or, How to Really Enjoy Sunday Dinner

There's always that question hanging in the air every night...what could I do with this chicken? Pretty much everyone has their own favorite ways of preparing chicken. Pretty much everyone eats chicken. And pretty much everyone gets tired of eating the same old chicken at some point during their lives. Yesterday I decided to try making chicken a new way with a homemade sauce that I was sure was culinary originality at it's best. But then I skimmed through my favorite cookbook and found out it was really Sauce Provencale with a little buttermilk added in. Oh well, great minds think alike, right? Of course, I was in total kamikaze cooking mode and forgot to take pictures of the ingredients until all the chicken was in the pan, so I only have this one of the aftermath. And the beauty of this chicken is you make it with only one pan. The good news just keeps on comin'.

Crusty Chicken and Creamy Provencale Sauce

For the chicken:

4 chicken breasts or chicken cutlets (cutlets cook in about 6-8 minutes, so be careful not to overcook)

1 cup Grandpa's Kitchen flour

1 beaten egg

1 cup Glutino Original crackers, crushed finely (I use a large ziploc bag and a rolling pin. Just let the anger out on those crackers.)

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 tsp italian seasoning

pinch salt

pinch pepper

1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil

Rinse chicken and pat dry. (Don't use frozen chicken, the batter won't stick.) Heat oil to medium heat in a large frypan. Put flour, egg, and cracker crumbs into three separate bowls or dishes, assembly line style. Add parmesan, spices, and salt and pepper to cracker crumbs. Mix gently to incorporate. Dip the chicken into the flour, coating evenly. Then dip into egg, then into crackers, coating evenly. Place chicken into oil. You should hear a bubbling, sizzling sound when it goes in. That way you know the oil is hot enough. Let brown on one side for 3-4 minutes, then flip with tongs. (You should always use tongs instead of forks when working with meat. If you pierce the meat, the juices run out and your meat is dry.) Let cook on the other side 3-4 minutes until brown. If chicken is not cooked all the way through yet, cover pan with lid and let steam for 5 minutes. Remove chicken from oil when cooked through and no pink is present.

For the sauce:

3 green onions, chopped

2-3 tomatoes, diced

1 clove garlic

6 button mushrooms, coarsely chopped or halved

1/4 cup chicken broth

1/8 cup white cooking wine

1/4-1/2 cup buttermilk

2 tsp cornstarch

Add the chopped onions to the oil from the chicken at med-low heat and let cook down for two or three minutes, until soft. Add the garlic, stir for just a minute. Add tomatoes and mushrooms. Let cook down for about three minutes, until soft. Add chicken broth, cooking wine, and buttermilk. Let sauce reduce down for 5-10 minutes until desired consistency. If desired, add 2 tsp of cornstarch to thicken sauce.

Happy eating!