Corn-free Corn dogs

I love how, some days, inspiration comes from the wierdest places.

That did not happen today. Today I found inspiration from the same place women have been getting inspiration from for the past 50 years.

The grocery store.

A couple of days ago, I was shopping and found my favorite brand of hot dogs were on sale!!

Now, I know some of you out there have problems with hot dogs. I don't. I love them. However I only buy the really good brands such as Jennie-o or Hebrew National (they answer to a higher authority, haha). Another option is going through a specialty meat store and buying sasauge or by ordering online at a organic meat store. My favorite is Blackwing Meats.

So I saw these hot dogs on sale, and immediately started craving corn dogs. I wasn't, however, craving corn, gluten, or something deep fried. So I started thinking about ways to adapt this recipe into a healthier alternative.

The dough is crunchy on the outside, but chewy inside. If made smaller these would make great party hors de' ouvers! Make sure to serve with a lot of mustard, which is my favorite condiment.

Corn-free Corn Dogs

2 c. Rice Flour
1 c. Tapioca Starch Flour
1 c. Garbanzo Bean Flour
4 tsp Sugar
4 tsp Xanthan Gum
4 tsp Yeast
1 tsp Salt
4 Eggs
1 tsp Cider Vinegar
4 Tbs Olive Oil
1 c. Milk, rice or dairy
1 pack Hot Dogs

1. Combine dry ingredients.
2. Add wet ingredients.
3. Mix until combined with a spoon.
4. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead a couple time, until smooth.
5. Form into a square.
6. Cut in half, then cut into 10 pieces each.
7. Roll each peace into a 3 inch long 1 1/2 inch wide strip.
8. Cut hot dogs in half, or whatever size best fits the dough.

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Let "dogs" rise on a warm oven for 14 minutes.
3. Bake for15 minutes or until completely cooked all the way through and golden brown.

Check this and other recipes out at Simply Sugar and Gluten Free

Gluten-free cardamom "Cinnamon No-Rolls"

Oh my Goodness! Today I discovered something extremely delicious in my local Starbucks. My family and I went in to get a delicious beverage this afternoon, and what was waiting for us there? Low and behold, three bushel baskets full of healthy, organic, gluten-free snacks! They had two kinds of chips, three kinds of cookies, two fruit purees, and fruit leathers. But my favorite was this bad boy:

A Gojiberry Granola from Two Mothers in the Raw. It was delicious!!

Sorry. I meant to save you some, but it was just too good.  

I was thrilled to see that it's completely organic. Plus, as a bonus it is made with millet and buckwheat. Great alternate grains for a rotation diet. Another awsome ingredient is Goji berries. If your not familiar with Goji berries have been used for 6,000 years by herbalists in China, Tibet and India to:

• protect the liver
• help eyesight
• improve sexual function and fertility
• strengthen the legs
• boost immune function
• improve circulation
• promote longevity

Goji berries are rich in antioxidants, particularly carotenoids such as beta-carotene and zeaxanthin. One of zeaxanthin's key roles is to protect the retina of the eye by absorbing blue light and acting as an antioxidant. In fact, increased intake of foods containing zeathanthin may decrease the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of vision loss and blindness in people over the age of 65.

Oh yeah, baby. Healthy and delicious. Two of my favorite words.

This bar is crunchy, chewy, and slightly sweet.
Oh, btw, they also carry the Blueberry flavor. Well, at least mine did.

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Many of you out there are suffering with multiple allergies. If you are, I'm sure your familiar with the reality of "losing foods", essentially figuring out foods you've been eating regularly are giving you a reaction. When this happens you can feel lost or hopeless. Mostly though, you feel hungry. You want to eat what you used to eat, but now of course you can't. Well, I have a suggestion for you. Recently we found out that a member of my family is allergic to cinnamon. Unfortunately, until you can no longer have it, you don't realize how many foods contain cinnamon.

Have you ever read the book "If you give a mouse a cookie"? I'm certain most of you have. Remember when he gives the mouse a cookie, and the mouse wants a glass of milk to go with it, and then on-and-on with one more asinine whim after the other? Well, thats kind of how my brain works. Because you see when I think of  cinnamon I think of breakfast, which makes me think of pastry, which in turn makes me think of cinnamon rolls. But of course to have cinnamon rolls you must have cinnamon. Oh, contrer. There is a plethera of spices out there for you to mix-and-match with. My favorite is cardamom. Cardamom adds a nice floral, earthiness to the "Rolls", an earthiness you miss with just brown sugar. Gluten-free cinnamon rolls have always given me . . . difficulty. The rolling, and rising, and bowing, and scraping. Bluch. Too much work. My favorite wat to make "Cinnamon Rolls" is to make it more like "Cinnamon No-Rolls" haha. Try it. Tell me what you think. You know I crave the comments.

Gluten-free Cardamom "Cinnamon No-Rolls"

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 c. Canola Oil
2 eggs, cage-free and organic
1 c. Fat-free Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Dry  Ingredients:
2 c. Brown Rice Flour
1 c. Tapioca Starch Flour
3 tsp Xanthan Gum
1 c. Sugar
4 tsp Corn-free Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt

Spice Topping:
1 c. Brown Sugar
1/4 c. Brown Rice Flour
3 tsp Cardamom
4 Tbs melted Spectrum Shortening

1. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Combine wet ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Mix the dry and wet together. Use a large wooden spoon for this, because it will get really thick and sticky.
4. Scoop half the mixture into a 8x8 square pan and spread until its pretty level.
5. Melt shortening in a measuring cup, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix with a fork until a nice crumble forms.
6. Spread 3/4 of the spice mixture over the batter.
7. Use an ice cream scooper to scoop batter onto the crumble. Only fill the scoop up half-way, and make sure to distribute the scoops evenly over the crumble mixture. They should look like islands in a sea of crumble mix. Sprinkle the rest of the crumb mixture over the "islands".
8. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes. It should be golden brown on top, and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
9. You can also bake these in small bundt pans. Thats what I did for the picture above. Just make sure to layer the batter with crumb topping and bake for 15- 25 minutes.

As Posted at Gluten-free Homemaker's Wednesdays.

Edens' Gluten-free Sorghum pancakes

Today I am going to show you something cute first, then a recipe:

Okay, you've seen pancake Mickey Mouse, pancake happy faces, even pancake hearts, but I bet you have never seen a pancake . . . OWL!

My sister Eden made our little sister Emma this pancake owl for breakfast the other day. I thought it was sooo cute, I had to post it.

The pancakes are these delicious Spicey Sorghum Pancake that are actually crunchy instead of fluffy. They are cooked up in a little more oil then typical pancakes, but this makes the edges nice and crisp. We like to dip them in a warm fruit puree, instead of dousing them in syrup. Oh, they are so scrumptious. The dipping is fun for young kids too. It's kinda of like those french toast sticks they used to sell, except waaay better for you. Wow, french toast sticks, that takes me back to the 90's.

Anyhow, what Eden likes to do with this batter is make it up ahead of time and freeze individual servings in baggies. That way you don't eat to much at one time. Because trust me, you could definitely eat a plate full of these. Without trying.

Edens' Gluten Free Sorghum Pancakes
 1 c. Sorghum Flour
1/2 c. Potato Starch
3 Tbs Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1/8 tsp Cloves
1 egg, cage-free organic please
1 c. Buttermilk or Rice milk
1 Tbs Canola Oil, plus more for cooking

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Heat some oil in a pan.
3. Pour oil in finger shapes (best shape for dipping)
4. Once bubbles form on the top of pancakes, then flip over.
5. Serve with warm sweetened fruit puree. I like strawberries or rhubarb.

Gluten-free Pound Cake

The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the air is warm. What does that mean? It means that daylight saving time is over!! Hooray! Lets jump for joy!

For most of the US (except Arizona and Hawaii) we have suffered these past months. Dark afternoons and dreary mornings, but not anymore. Now is the beginning of spring. Even if some of you out there can't see it or feel it yet, you will. I promise, and once you do, your going to want to make this dessert.

Years ago, my mom used to make this trifle with pound cake and Jell-O Instant Pudding. Oh my goodness. I loved it. Everytime I have it, I think of Summer. Nowadays, however, we of course can't have gluten, so I searched for a gluten free pund cake recipe. I searched and searched and baked and baked. Nothing worked. The cake was either too dry, or too flat, or it fell in the middle. Then, one day I made cinnamon bread with a recipe I found on a really obscure little site. I had to add an egg and change some other stuff, but once I did it turned out amazing! The bread-part tasted like an old-fashioned donut.  I decided to try to make a pound cake out of the bread. Now we can recreate my most favorite dessert without gluten. Yes!

This dessert is not Dairy-free. Sorry, but if you are not allergic to Lactose, you can layer this with Kozy shack pudding which is Gluten and soy free.

Gluten-free Buttery Pound Cake
Dry ingredients:
2 c. Brown Rice Flour
1 c. Tapioca Starch Flour
3 tsp Xanthan Gum
3 c. Sugar
4 tsp Corn-free Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt

Wet ingredients:
1/2 c. Canola Oil
1 c. Fat Free Milk
2 eggs, cage-free organic
1 tsp Vanilla
2 tsp Imitation Butter Flavoring

1. Combine the dry ingredients.
2. Combine the wet
3. Add the wet to the dry and mix weel with a wooden spoon. This batter will be very thick.
4. Pour into a bread pan sprayed with cooking spray.*
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 45-50 minutes. After 30 minutes cover with tin foil if you don't like it very dark.

*Most cooking sprays contain soybean oil. I use Pam Grilling spray which only has canola oil.

We layer this with strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

For the pudding:

Prepare Jell-O Instant Sugar-free Pudding as directed. Then mix with half a container of Cool whip.

Layer pudding, pound cake, and berries. Here is what ours looks like:

Check this and other recipes out at Gluten free Homemaker.

wow

I forgot. I wanted to show you guys one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

I was washing purple kale the other day for kale chips, and while the leaves were drying, I was struck by how gorgeous they are.

Look at the delicate little leaves?

They were like the size of my thumb nail.

I know it sounds wierd, but don't you just want to roll around in that color?

Just let it wash over you?

Look at how delicate the leaves are?

Ouy Vey.

Okay, I promised myself that no matter what, I would post the good recipes and the bad recipes on this site. So here it goes.

Yesterday I was scrolling through some recipes on Foodbuzz and found this delicious sounding recipe for Spaghetti Carbonara. I was thrilled. Eggs, bacon, and pasta?! I'll take two. Seriously, I was craving this recipe. I've always loved spaghetti, fettucini, angel hair, basically any pasta I could twirl on my fork. There was always something about that twirling action that really answered something inside me. Anyhow, I get to work making this recipe. It only took about 30 minutes, and that includes boiling time.

 I make my sauce and pour it into my pan, but I notice it looks a little  . . . runny.

So I turn the heat to low and just let it thicken up a lil bit. Once it's to the right consistency I put the lid on and turn off the stove.

Or so I thought.

After finishing the other components of my lunch, I remove the affore mentioned lid, reach in with my tongs and scoop out my thick Spaghetti Carbonara.

Ha. I wish.

What I really found is that my egg sauce had now scrambled and stuck to the sides of the pan. Moving the pasta only made it look worse. It was lumpy, soft, and slightly resembles chow mein.

Apparently, I had never turned the stove off, and it had continued cooking.

It tasted awful. Lumpy and eggy. Yuck!

Needless to say, I will be waiting awhile before I make this again.

I was even taking pictures to show you all how it went. See?

I don't have any after pictures.

Bison Meatballs with a Cranberry White Wine Sauce

Oh my goodness! I am seriously plotzing! I have been looking at all of my favorite stores for Cage-free Organic eggs to cook with. I found some at Costco but they were $4.79 per 18!! This is very expensive for me, especially for the amount of eggs I use for my baked goods. Next, I was shopping at Smart & Final and found a Land O'Lakes brand Cage-free vegetarian fed eggs for $2.99 a dozen, better, but still a little pricey. Then I looked at my local Trader Joes and found Cage-free Organic eggs for $2.79!! Perfect! I am so excited to start baking with them!

Buy it here!

I have been slightly obsessed with the "Food with Integrity" movement; pretty much ever since I saw the movie Food, INC. Have you seen it? It completely opens your eyes about where your food actually comes from. For example, did you know approximately 10 billion animals (chickens, cattle, hogs, ducks, turkeys, lambs and sheep) are raised and killed in the US anually? Nearly all of them are raised on factory farms under inhumane conditions. These industrial farms are also dangerous for their workers, pollute surrounding communities, are unsafe to our food system and contribute significantly to global warming.

These factory farms cram egg-laying hens into cages so tiny they can't even spread their wings. Because the chickens are now being grown in half the time that chickens did 30 years ago, their bones have not been able to keep up with the rest of their body, so they can only walk a few steps without having to rest.  Breeding pigs and veal calves are stuffed into cramped individual cages barely larger than their bodies. They can’t walk or turn around. But you can help free animals from these cruel cages, by supporting local farms, buying organic free-range meats, and joining your local CSO.

Another huge problem with the food today is that some of our most important staple foods have been fundamentally altered, and genetically engineered meat and produce have already invaded our grocery stores and our kitchen pantries. Think about it. How many times have you seen "High fructose Corn Syrup" on a nutrition label? Or cornstarch? Modified food starch? Corn syrup? These products are everywhere you look in the grocery store. Because of the prevalence of foods such as wheat, corn, and soy in our food, we as people have started to become allergic to these staples.

Now normally I try to only talk about food on this blog, but this issue is so important. We all need to really see where our food is coming from. We also need to see what our food is doing to our bodies.

Please watch the movie. It truly changed my life.

Now, I am going to show you a recipe that incorporates all that we just talked about. Trust me, they taste great!

 Bison Meatballs in a White wine and Cranberry sauce
For Meatballs:
2 lbs Organic Free-Range Bison Meat
2 slices Gluten Free Bread, made into crumbs ( I bake my own, but you can use Trader Joes Brown Rice Bread)
2 Cage-free, Organic Eggs
1 tsp Salt
Pepper
1 Tbs Minced dried onion


For Sauce:
1/2 c. Cranberry Sauce (recipe below)
1 c. White Wine ( I use a chenin blanc)
1 Tbs dried Thyme
2 c. Beef Stock or Turkey Stock

1. Combine the meat, bread crumbs, egg, onion, and salt. Mix in a bowl just until combined. It's easiest to use your hand for this.
2. Scoop out, and roll meatballs between your hands. They should be the size of Golf balls. Place on a parchment paper covered baking sheet.
3. Bake at 425 degrees for about 10-12 minutes, or until done inside.
4. While meatballs are cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in your Croc-Pot.
5. Place cooked meatballs in the croc-pot with the sauce. Cook on high heat for about 6 hours. Serve warm with Quinoa.

Cranberry Sauce

1 16 oz package Cranberries (Frozen or fresh)

Enough water to cover

Put cranberries and water in pan. Cook until berries burst and it starts to thicken. Then use a hand blender to break down most of the skins and seeds, and strain into containers.

Check this and other recipes out at The Gluten-free Homemaker