Vanilla Ice Cream

I had the great pleasure of coming across a Donvier Premier Ice Cream Maker at the thrift store.  Happy to announce that this little hand crank ice cream maker is going to save me thousands.  No, it's going to save me millions of dollars in store bought ice cream.  

This ice cream recipe is no cook, and no eggs.  I just poured the ingredients into a big quart sized mason jar, shook it up, and into the ice cream maker.  In 20 minutes I had fresh, real vanilla bean ice cream.  If you find a Donvier, by all means do yourself a favor and buy it!

Vanilla Ice Cream (no cook!)

Ingredients:

3 cups half & half

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

(Scrape a vanilla bean if you want specks!)

Pinch of salt (don't omit this!)

Mix all ingredients, and pour into your prepared ice cream maker.  Turn it on or crank away, until you have ice cream.  

It's not ready yet though!  

Transfer the fresh ice cream to a container, cover and freeze for 4 hours or overnight (For best results, I recommend an overnight freeze!) 

Scoop and enjoy!

Now go, and make your own ice cream!

Ketchup (v)

I use ketchup mostly to make other things, like barbecue sauce.  Most store bought ketchup makes me itch, so I just make my own.  It's a lot better, I think.  It's inexpensive and fresh tasting. 

Ketchup

Ingredients:

1 small can tomato paste*

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 Tablespoon dry mustard

2 Tablespoons molasses

1/8 cup water

1/8 cup white vinegar

Salt to taste 

Mix well = ketchup.

* to get all of your tomato paste out of the tin easily, open both ends of the can. Remove the bottom lid and carefully use the top lid to push the paste through the tin down out through the bottom into a bowl.  Discard other metal lid and voila!  All of your tomato paste in your mixing bowl. I learned this trick when I worked at The Grain Dance Bakery and I was in charge of making the pizza sauce.  Opening 20 tins of paste was a cinch using this technique!  

Gluten Free Egg Noodles

I have become mildly obsessed with homemade noodles lately.  I started off by making fettuccini noodles, and it sparked my interest to make good old fashioned egg noodles. These are awesome, and they will be amazing rolled out into dumplings and traditional wide flat egg noodles. I use an Atlas pasta machine.  For egg noodles, I use the thickest setting to roll out the dough.  I like a good thick noodle that I have to chew on.  I then use the fettuccini setting, but this weekend I'm going to make hand cut noodles and dumplings.

Gluten Free Egg Noodles

Ingredients:

1/2 cup tapioca starch

1/2 cup potato starch *plus more for kneading and rolling

4 teaspoons xanthan gum

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

3 large eggs

1 Tablespoon peanut oil

Mix together the dry ingredients.  In a seperate bowl whisk together the eggs and oil and as to the drys.  Mix well, dough will be really sticky.  Use potato starch to cota your hands, then grab the dough ball and knead with potato starch until smooth and cohesive.  Cut into four sections to roll out. 

Roll each section out as thin as you like your noodles/dumplings.  Cut and set aside whole you make the rest of the noodles.  

Cook in salted boiling water immediately, or let air dry slightly and store in an airtight container in the fridge, or, freeze for later use. 

This is a versatile noodle, and will lend itself well to any dish you may create with it.  Experiment with different oils- I used peanut because I wanted to make am asian dish with the noodles.  It worked so well I just keep using it no matter what I make.  

Enjoy, and happy noodling!

Hot Buttered Rum

Kraken Spiced Rum is gluten free, and I couldn't be happier because this hot buttered rum just won't do without a good spiced rum.  I love Kraken because it's delicious, with tones of vanilla and nutmeg, it's perfect for this hot toddy!  Get yourself a special glass for this winter warmer!

Ingredients:

2 shots of good spiced rum

1 tbs. Pat of unsalted butter at room temp

Nutmeg, cinnamon and clove-a small pinch of each

1 teaspoon brown sugar (I used a tablespoon!)

1 teaspoon good vanilla

Hot water

Put the butter sugar vanilla and spices in the bottom of a glass (be sure your glass can handle hot liquids safely!) put a little hot water over the butter and sugar and stir to dissolve.  Add the rum, stir, and top with hot water to fill your glass.  Throw a cinnamon stick in for good measure and enjoy!

Pork Roast with carrots and potatoes

I made the mistake of buying pork sirloin instead of a beef cut for making a hearty and fulfilling pot roast dinner in the crock pot.  I was determined though, and I made it work.  It was reminiscent of the pot roast that filled the house with wintry delights. It worked.  Just like pot roast, only, it's a pork roast!

Ingredients:

For my recipe, I used two 4# roasts.  Put them in the crock pot on top of a bed of chopped onions and peeled and chopped potatoes and carrots. 

Make a broth and pour over everything:

1cup hot water

3Tbs vinegar

2Tbs sugar

2Tbs tamari

1Tbs ketchup

1-2Tbs hot sauce 

Salt and fresh black pepper to taste

Garlic powder to taste

Cook on low for about 8 hours or more to be sure all the veggies are tender.  Keep checking for doneness.  I think ours cooked for a good slow 15 hours.  It was well worth the wait, and we cooked it again the next day for another five hours at least. The meat was do tender and the broth was divine.  Keep adding water if you are going to cook it for over 8 hours. I added about 2 cups of water as it cooked down.  I didn't want it to dry out, and it seemed like a perfect solution.  

Enjoy!

GF Pie Crust

Use this recipe for sweet or savory pies.  This was my first try at a gluten free crust, and super pleased with the results.  Buttery and flaky but still a substantial crust.  These little muffin tin pie crusts ended up as French silk pies 

I can't wait to make fruit pies, pumpkin pie, pecan pie and chicken pot pies!  

For now, Pie Crust:

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup rice flour (you can use a blend of different rice flours, I used just brown rice flour.)

1/2 cup tapioca starch

2 Tablespoons sugar (for sweet pies;omit for savory pies)

Pinch salt

1 cup butter cut into pieces

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup cold water

Cut the butter into the flour mixture, using a pastry blender, fork, or food processor. Cut all the butter in until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add water slowly until dough forms a cohesive ball.  Divide dough in half and cover.  Chill for at least one hour, and keep dough in the fridge when not roung it out.  

Roll out one section at a time and transfer to pie plate.  Prick holes into the bottom surface of the dough. You can pre bake the crust at 350 for 8-10+ minutes, depending on size.  Watch it so it won't burn! Or fill with your favorite filling and follow your pie directions.  Watch the edges and cover with foil if browning too quickly.  

Happy pie making!

GF Pierogi

I woke up wanting pierogies, so I made some.  They turned out perfectly, just like a traditional pierogi.  

Ingredients 

Dough:

1/2 cup sour cream

2/3 cup milk

Pinch salt

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

2 1/2 cups any gluten free flour blend.  For this recipe I used Bob's Red Mill biscuit and baking mix

Blend well and let rest for five minutes.  Roll into rounds, fill, and pinch edges to seal.  Drop into boiling water for a few minutes, until done.  Remove from boiling water and top with freshly ground black pepper.  Let sit for a few minutes before serving, or pan fry or broil before serving. These are excellent the next day heated up in the toaster oven, topped with cheese!

Filling:

Boil 1# potatoes, peeled and chopped.  Drain and mash with one onion, sautéed in butter, add 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup milk.  Add salt and pepper to taste, mash until smooth and creamy.

Crock Pot Chicken Tikka Masala

I'm kicking myself for not finding this recipe sooner in life.  If you only need one reason to own a slow cooker, this is it. 

Ingredients:

3-4 pounds boneless chicken cut into pieces

1 onion chopped

5 cloves garlic minced

5 fresh tomatoes, chopped and smashed with your hands 

2 Tablespoons garam masala

1 Tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

cayenne to taste

2 cups plain yogurt

1cup heavy cream - 1/2 cup for now, 1/2 cup for when it's finished cooking

3 Taespoons arrowroot

Fresh lemon & cilantro

Coat the chicken pieces with the spice mixture, then stir in yogurt to coat.  Cover and refrigerate for a few hours to overnight.

Put into the crock pot with 1/2 cup of the heavy cream.  Stir well and set the temp:

HIGH - 8 hours

LOW - 4 hours

Just before serving, stir the arrowroot into the remaining 1/2 cup of cream, and add to the crock pot stirring to combine.  

Serve over hot basmati rice, top with cilantro and a fresh squeeze of lemon.

Just as good as a fine curry take-out, even better because it's made at home. 

GF Homemade Pasta

Homemade pasta is easy.  Seriously easy!  I'm not sure that I will ever buy a prepackaged dry gluten free pasta ever again.  There is nothing like fresh pasta, and I can't wait to experiment with this recipe to make all sorts of yummy noodles like lemon pepper fettucini, wide onion and dill egg noodles, I'm even going to try to get this thin enough to use for lasagne and manicotti.

I have an atlas pasta machine, which makes the task even easier burn you don't need one: all you need is a rolling pin and a sharp knife.

Have fun!  

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup rice flour

1/2 cup tapioca starch

1tsp xanthan gum

4 eggs

Pinch of salt

Whisk together the dry ingredients.  Add eggs using a wood spoon.  Mix then knead with your hands until cohesive and smooth.  Diverse dough into four equal parts.  Take each part and squeeze it into a ball... It will take a little muscle to get the ball to form.  Don't give up- it WILL form into a ball.  Do this with each section, and cover them with a damp towel.  Work with one ball at a time.  Roll out or put through pasta machine until thin.  I put mine through 4 passes with the Atlas machine.

After you have reached the desired thinness, time to cut into noodles!  Use a ruler and a sharp knife to make linguine style noodles.  If using the Atlas machine, just run it through the thickest noodle setting (fettucini).  I haven't tried the spaghetti setting yet, but will try soon enough. 

Let the fresh pasta sit for about 10 minutes to dry out a not, then cook in boiling water for a few minutes.  Depending on how thick your noodles are will dictate how long to boil your pasta for.  Drain and serve with your favorite topping.  These noodkes are do tasty just on their own, I believe the possibilities may be endless!

GF Gingerbread

Real gingerbread.  Moist and spicy, this satisfies my need for gingerbread in the deep winter months.  I made this for Christmas, and will be a tradition for sure!  

Gingerbread 

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 cup molasses

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla 

1 egg + 1 egg white

Mix together:

1 1/2 cups + 2 Tbs. Almond flour

1 Tbs coconut flour 

1 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat over to 350. 

Mix together the wet ingredients in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, mix thoroughly the dry ingredients.  Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and blend at medium speed until well combined. 

Bake in an pikes 8x8 pan for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  

 Cool for a few moments before serving.  To butter or not to butter; that is your discretion. 

Gluten Free Shortbread

I recently purchased a package of gluten free pecan shortbread, delicious, no doubt, but I knew I could do better at home.  So can you.

GF Shortbread

1 1/3 cup rice flour 

1/2 cup rice flour

1/2 cup arrowroot

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. xanthan gum

2 sticks butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. vanilla 

Preheat oven to 300.

In a small bowl mix together rice flour, arrowroot, salt, baking powder & xanthan gum.  Stir together & set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine softened butter, sugar & vanilla.  Cream together with electric mixer.  Slowly add and mix in the dry ingredients, blending completely.

Once mixed, it will look like crumbs and you will wonder how in the world it will become cookies.  If you've never made shortbread, it's like magic how it all comes together.  Trust me, it will!

Once mixed, you can add various ingredients to make different types if shortbread.  For pecan, I added about 1/2 cup of finely ground pecans to the mixture, stirred it in completely and they turned out perfectly.  

Yum Yum Suggestions:  

•1/4 cup finely ground nuts, pecans, walnuts, almonds, cashews; whatever you like.  If adding almonds, substitute 1 tsp. almond extract for the vanilla extract

•1/4-1/2 cup chopped milk or dark chocolate, increase vanilla extract to 2 1/2 tsp

•1/2 cup chopped dried cherries, substitute 1 tsp. almond extract for the vanilla extract 

•1/2 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut 

After mixing in desired ingredients, grab a handful of the crumbly mixture and squeeze it into a flat ball, sort of like a hamburger patty.  Don't try to roll out all of the dough at once.  It will crumble apart and leave you super frustrated!  Take it in small batches, a couple of handfuls at a time.  The goal is a compressed patty that you can roll out without it falling apart.  

Carefully press it together, pressing in around the edges to keep it from crumbling apart.  Place the dough patty on a floured surface to roll out on.  

Flatten the patty with your hand and then roll out to about 1/4" thickness.  I turn the dough to roll it out in every direction.  I also keep compressing in the sides, as to not get the edges too crumbly.  

Roll to about 1/4" thickness then cut into desired shapes (I used small round cookie cutters).  Bake at 300 for 30 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Corn Souffle

Gluten free, of course, this was supposed to be a Christmas dinner dish but we never got around to making it, until after the new year.  We were so pleased with the outcome, it has become a regular in our kitchen!

Mix together in a large bowl:

3 beaten eggs
1 Tablespoon sugar
black pepper
1 can cream style corn
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (cheddar or monterey jack)
1/3 cup  milk, cream, or half & half

Stir everything until well combined.
Pour into a baking dish, bake at 350 for 55 minutes

The original version is amazing, but we have made tons of variations to this dish.  The last time I made it, I mixed in a can of drained and rinsed pinto beans, and layered in corn tortillas.  I also added a handful of cilantro and a few chopped green onions.  This is an extremely versatile dish.

You can also add up to 3 Tbs. Gluten free baking mix/biscuit mix or flour blend if you prefer a thicker souffle.