gluten free zen
Taking The Stress Out Of Gluten-Free Grain-Free & Dairy-Free Living
Meatloaf For Two
Meatloaf For Two
* Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1 pound of Organic Hamburger
1 Organic Egg
2 Tablespoons of Organic Onion, chopped
1 Tablespoon of Dried Organic Basil
1 Tablespoon of Dried Organic Oregano
1 teaspoon of Your Favorite Seasoning
2 Tablespoons of Barbecue Sauce
1 teaspoon of Kosher Salt
4 Grinds of Fresh Pepper
4 teaspoons of Organic Tomato Paste
Bragg’s Sprinkle Seasoning
Place all ingredients in a large bowl.
Mix with one hand until thoroughly combined. Not too much! I like my meatloaf light and fluffy. If you mix it too much it will be dense and have a weird texture.
Spoon it into oiled ramekins, pat down, and smooth with the back of a spoon.
Top each meatloaf with 2 teaspoons of tomato paste and spread with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with Bragg’s Seasoning.
Place on a baking sheet and cook in a preheated oven for 50-60 minutes.
I served mine with smashed potatoes and pan gravy. You can either eat it right out of the ramekin, or take it out and slice it like I did.
For the smashed potatoes:
Organic Red Potatoes
Almond Milk
Earth Balance Soy Free Butter
Salt
(The amount will depend on how many people you’re cooking for.) Boil and drain the potatoes. Mash by hand with a potato masher. Warm milk and butter and slowly mash/stir into the potatoes. Salt to taste.
For the pan gravy:
Earth Balance Soy Free Butter
Mama’s All Purpose Gluten Free Flour
Organic Beef Broth
Kosher Salt
Bragg’s Organic Sprinkle Seasoning
Heat the beef broth. Place butter and flour in a pan and whisk to create a roux. Slowly add the beef broth whisking the entire time until the gravy is to the consistency you want it. Season with salt and Bragg’s seasoning.
Wild Blueberry Bars with Orange Glaze
The crust on these bars is like a chewy candy bar and the middle is soft and slightly custard like. The orange glaze over the top…tart and sweet and marries perfectly with the coconut and blueberries. Enjoy!
Wild Blueberry & Orange Bars
For the crust:
1 1/2 Cups Mama’s All Purpose Almond Flour
1 Cup Sweetened Flaked Coconut
1/2 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Solid Coconut Oil
1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pulse all of the crust ingredients in a food processor until combined.
Press mixture into the bottom and 1/3 up the sides of a well oiled 9×13 inch pan.
For the filling:
1 Cup Mama’s All Purpose Almond Flour
3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1/4 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
3/4 Cup Earth Balance Soy Free Non-Dairy Butter Spread
3 Eggs
1 1/2 Tablespoons Freshly Grated Orange Zest
1/4 Cup Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
1 1/2 Cup Wild Maine Blueberries
In an electric mixer, beat the flour, sugar, salt, xanthan gum, and butter until combined. Add the orange zest and orange juice. With the mixer on medium, add the eggs one at a time until combined. Scrape down bowl and mix on medium for two minutes until light and fluffy, similar to cake batter. Fold in the blueberries. Pour batter over crust.
Bake for 40-50 minutes (I use convection) covering with foil after the first 25 minutes. Bars are done when top is golden and middle is set but still a tiny bit jiggly. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before frosting with glaze.
For the glaze:
1 Tablespoon DF Butter, melted
Zest of 1 Orange
Juice of 1 Orange
About 1 (overflowing) Cup of Powdered Sugar
Stir well to thoroughly combine. Spoon over bars and spread carefully. Allow bars to cool completely before cutting.
Grilled Peach Cocktails
Grilled Peach Cocktails
2 Fresh Ripe Organic Peaches, peeled and sliced. plus 1 more for garnish
1 1/2 Tablespoons Dark Brown Sugar
Juice of 2 Limes
1/2 Cup of White Rum
1 1/4 ounces Maraschino Liquor
6 ounces of Cold Peppermint Herbal Tea
2 Cups Ice
Toss the peaches gently in the brown sugar.
Grill the peaches on a very hot grill. Not too long, just long enough to slightly caramelize the sugar and leave a few grill marks.
Remove from grill.
Place the peaches with juice and sugars, and all remaining ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Makes 4 eight ounce cocktails.
Mud Pie Ice Cream Pops
Mud Pie Ice Cream Pops
*Makes 8 Pops
1 Pint Salted Caramel & Chocolate ~ Coconut Bliss Ice Cream
1 Pint Naked Coconut ~ Coconut Bliss Ice Cream
About 1/2 Cup Roasted Salted Peanuts, roughly chopped
About 8 Tablespoons Crunchy Peanut Butter
3-4 oz. Dark Belgian Chocolate, I like to use Trader Joe’s
6 Glutino Chocolate Vanilla Cream Cookies, as close to Oreos as you’ll ever get!
8 Wide Popsicle Sticks, found mine at Michael’s Craft Store
5 oz. Dixie Cups
Place the cookies in a zipper plastic bag and roll over them a few times with a rolling pin and pour them onto a plate or into a bowl. Roughly chop the peanuts and dark chocolate. Take the lids off the ice cream and allow to soften for about 15 minutes. Remove the lid from the peanut butter.
Set up an assembly line and begin layering everything in the Dixie cups. I layered mine in this order: salted caramel ice cream, peanut butter, cookies, naked coconut ice cream, peanuts & chocolate, naked coconut ice cream, and then sprinkled the tops in a variety of cookies, chocolate, and/or peanuts.
But of course, you can layer yours however you wish!
I missed the chopped peanut and chocolate chunk layer photo…but you get the gist.
Once you’ve made it to the top, sprinkle with whatever you choose and add the stick. Don’t slide the stick all the way to the bottom of the cup or you’ll get a mouthful of stick on your first bite.
Cut a piece of foil, I tore off small strips and cut them in half and then made a little snip in the middle to fit over the stick. Slide it over the stick, wrap it somewhat snug around the Dixie cup and place in the freezer.
Allow to set overnight or at least 6 hours.
Once they’ve set, remove the foil carefully and snip two sides of the cup with kitchen shears and tear off the cup.
Brazilian Iced Coffee
Brazilian Iced Coffee
Makes 3 Cocktails
1 Cup Strong Coffee or Espresso, chilled
2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
6 Tablespoons of Canned Coconut Milk
2 Ounces of Dark Rum
1/8 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
Cinnamon Sticks for Garnish
Open canned coconut and whisk the liquids and solids together in a bowl, set aside. Pour the coffee and sugar in a measuring cup and stir until sugar is dissolved.
Fill three rocks glasses with ice.
Fill a cocktail shaker 1/2 full with ice. Add the coffee and sugar mixture, coconut milk, rum, and cinnamon. Shake until shaker is cold and frosty. Pour into tumblers and garnish with cinnamon sticks.
Hot & Spicy Pickle Juice Bloody Mary
Hot & Spicy Pickle Juice Bloody Mary
*makes one Bloody Mary
Fill glass half full with ice
2 ounces Ciroc Vodka
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
1.5 ounces Spicy Bread & Butter Pickle Juice
Dash of Worcestershire Sauce
Dash of Tabasco
Dash of Kosher Salt
Few Grinds of Fresh Pepper
Fill to top with 100% Tomato Juice
Garnish with slice of lemon, celery, pickled beans, & hot chili peppers.
Cheers!
Chicken Liver Pate (Terrine de Foies de Volaille)
Chicken Liver Pate with Caramelized Apples & Onions
About 1 Pound of Organic Chicken Livers, drained
1 Medium Sweet Onion, diced
3 Generous Tablespoons of Bacon Fat
1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
A Few Grinds of Fresh Pepper
2 Bay Leaves
About 1/3 Cup Dessert Wine (I used a late harvest Semillon)
1 Granny Smith Apple, diced skin on
1 Medium Sweet Onion, sliced thinly
1 Generous Tablespoon of Dairy Free Butter
Small Pinch of Kosher Salt
Sauté the diced onions and bay leaves in the bacon fat until the onion is translucent.
Add chicken livers, salt, and pepper.
Cover with a splatter guard and sauté until browned, about 8 minutes or so. Deglaze with the wine and reduce by about half. Set aside.
Lightly caramelize the sliced onion and apple in the butter and salt. Cooking on medium low it will take about 20 minutes or so. Set aside.
Remove bay leaves from liver mixture, add to food processor. Blend until smooth. Season to taste.
Serve with toasted bread or crackers topped with the apple/onion saute.
I sliced gluten free french bread, buttered it (non-dairy) and toasted it under the broiler on each side.
I spread the pate into different ramekins. It will last in the fridge for two to three days and can also be frozen for use at a later time.
King Crab Salad with Creamy Avocado & Dill Dressing
King Crab Salad
*Makes 2 large personal sized salads.
2 Handfuls of Organic Baby Spinach
1 Head of Organic Romaine Lettuce, sliced
A Few Slices of Organic Red Onion, thinly sliced
1 Organic Tomato, chopped
1 Organic Avocado, chopped
2 Medium Organic Carrots, grated
Juice of 1/2 Organic Lemon, for drizzling over the avocado after it’s on the salad
About 1 1/2 Cups King Crab, chilled
Gluten Free Croutons
Divide the first 7 ingredients between two plates. Top with the crab (I pulled mine apart into bite sized pieces), sprinkle with croutons. Top with Creamy Avocado & Dill Dressing.
Creamy Avocado & Dill Dressing
*Makes about 1 Cup
1 Organic Avocado
1 1/2 teaspoons of Organic Dry Dill, you can use fresh if you have it
1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
1/4 teaspoon Granulated Sugar
Juice of 2 Organic Lemons
1/4 Cup Olive Oil Mayonnaise
1/4 Cup Unsweetened Organic Almond Milk
2 or 3 Grinds of Fresh Pepper
Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
Oven Fried Zucchini with Homemade Pizza Sauce
I would change two basic things the next time I make it:
#1. I would dip the zucchini in dairy free butter instead of almond milk prior to breading.
#2. I would spritz the breaded zucchini lightly with a good olive oil before placing them in the oven.
If you want to keep it healthy you can just follow the recipe below and it will taste just fine. But I think that the butter and olive oil would add more flavor and moisture to the breading so it would crisp properly. And keep in mind that although the addition of butter and olive oil will increase the fat content, it’s not by much. Certainly not as much as if you were to deep fry them.
Oven Fried Zucchini
1/2 – 3/4 Cup Gluten Free Breadcrumbs
1/4 Cup Dairy Free Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
Several Grinds of Pepper
About 1/4 Cup Almond Milk
1 1/2 – 2 Medium sized Zucchini, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
Non Stick Spray
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with tin foil and spray an oven safe cooling rack with non stick spray. Lay the cooling rack on the baking sheet covered with foil.
Combine all of the dry ingredients in a shallow baking dish and stir to combine.
Pour milk into a cereal sized bowl. Dip the zucchini slices in the milk and then dredge well in the breadcrumb mixture. Place each slice on prepared cooling rack, don’t allow sides to touch.
Bake for 35-40 minutes until lightly browned, outside is crisp and middle is tender.
There’s so many different ways you could make this. You could add Italian seasonings to the breading mixture and dip them in a meat sauce. You could add Mexican seasonings and dip them in a spicy chipotle mayo, you could add fresh herbs and dip them in a lemon vinaigrette…
*Don’t stack them while hot like I’ve done for this photo. The steam will make them soft. If you’re serving them to a crowd, allow them to cook just a bit longer to become extra crisp and then you should be able to place them on a platter without them becoming soft. If you’re just serving them to your family, leave them on the rack and family can help themselves.
Homemade Pizza Sauce
I don’t have a written recipe for this sauce, I just wing it each time. So I’ll give you my basics and then you can add your own flair.
Canned Fire Roasted Tomatoes
Canned Tomato Paste
Sun Dried Tomatoes
Dried Basil (or fresh if I have it)
Dried Oregano (or fresh if I have it)
Minced Garlic
Kosher Salt and a Little Pepper to Taste
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until somewhat smooth.
Cinnamon Blueberry Belgian Waffles
Cinnamon Blueberry Belgian Waffles
**1 3/4 Cups Artisan Flour Blend
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
2 Eggs, separated (whites whipped to stiff peak)
1 3/4 Cups Almond Milk
1 1/2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla
1/2 Cup Dairy Free Butter, melted
1 1/2 Cups Frozen Blueberries
**I substitute the cornstarch with arrowroot flour, make sure you read the substitution directions – Or you can substitute the Artisan Flour with Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour
Preheat Waffle Iron. Mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium-sized bowl. Add the egg yolks, almond milk, and vanilla and stir until combined. Add the melted butter, stir to combine. Whip the egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form, carefully fold the whites into the batter. Fold in frozen blueberries.
Cook according to your waffle maker’s instructions. I cook mine until there is no longer steam coming from the waffle iron. I like them lightly crispy on the outside.
Top with dairy free butter, pure maple syrup, and blueberries.
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