gluten free zen
Taking The Stress Out Of Gluten-Free Grain-Free & Dairy-Free Living
Sweet Potato Biscuits
Sweet Potato Biscuits
*Makes 6 biscuits
3/4 Cup Cooked Mashed Sweet Potato
1/3 Cup Almond Milk (You will need about 3 Tbs. more when mixing the dough)
1 Cup Mama’s Almond All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup White Rice Flour
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
6 Tablespoons Dairy Free Butter
Line a baking sheet with parchment and pre-heat the oven to 425 ° or 400° for convection.
In a small bowl, whisk together the sweet potato and 1/3 cup milk. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with your hands until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the sweet potato mixture and fold gently to combine. If necessary add more milk 1 Tablespoon at a time until all the flour is moistened, but not too wet.
Sprinkle the work surface with flour. Turn dough out onto surface and knead lightly 2 or 3 times until the mixture comes together. Gently pat the dough out to a 1/2 inch thick round. Cut the dough into the shape you prefer. Gently re-pat the scraps out and cut more biscuits. Place the biscuits on the lined baking sheet and bake 12 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with butter and honey.
Pulled Chicken Sandwich with Spicy Sauce
Pulled Chicken Sandwich with Spicy Sauce
12 Boneless, Skinless, Chicken Thighs (seems like a lot but it’s not, they’re really small)
1 Medium Onion, sliced
1/2 Cup Rice Wine Vinegar
1 1/2 Bottles Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey Chipotle Barbecue Sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Cayenne Pepper (if you like it spicy)
Olive Oil
Gluten Free/Dairy Free Buns (I used Udi’s)
In a dutch oven drizzle about 2 teaspoons olive oil. Heat to medium and saute the onions until they turn golden and begin to carmelize. Remove from dutch oven and set aside. Drizzle the pan again with olive oil and brown the chicken thighs on each side in two batches.
Once they are browned on both sides, add the previous batch of chicken thighs in with the others and add the vinegar, barbecue sauce, cayenne pepper, and golden onions.
Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer for about 1 hour.
When the hour is up, test the chicken with two forks to see if it pulls apart easily. If not, add 10 more minutes of simmering.
When done, take two forks and carefully shred the meat. You can do it completely shredded or leave small pieces which is what I like to do. When it’s shredded too much, I feel it becomes stringy and I don’t care for that texture.
Serve with buns. You can also serve with a side of cole slaw or place the cole slaw right on top of the sandwich. So good!!
*Makes about 6 servings…although, we managed to eat it in 4. Once for dinner on Friday night, and then for lunch on Saturday.
Crepes with Clementine Goat Cheese & Mixed Berries
Clementine Goat Cheese & Mixed Berry Crepes
*These crepes are at their best when all ingredients have been mixed and allowed to mingle overnight*
Fruit Sauce
2 Cups Frozen Mixed Berries
About 1/4 – 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
Mix berries and sugar together in a small bowl and allow to thaw on the counter. Once thawed, stir, cover, and refrigerate over night.
Clementine Goat Cheese
1 Container Soft Goat Cheese
Zest of 2 Clementines
Juice of 1 Clementine
About 2 teaspoons Powdered Sugar
Place all ingredients in a small bowl and stir together until fully incorporated. Cover and refrigerate over night.
Crepe Batter
1 Cup Mama’s All Purpose Almond Flour
1 Cup Almond Milk
1/2 Cup Lukewarm Water
4 Eggs
1/4 Cup Dairy Free Butter Melted
1/8 teaspoon Sea Salt
3 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
Combine in a medium bowl and mix until smooth. Cover and refrigerate over night.
If your crepe technique is a little rusty, jump on youtube.com, there are plenty of tutorials.
When you’re ready to make crepes (they are good any time of day!), remove the batter, cheese, and fruit from the refrigerator and heat a crepe pan or medium-sized non-stick skillet on medium heat. Rub with butter. I prefer my pan on medium not medium-high because I don’t like my crepes browned. A lower heat is easier to control and then you’re not in a rush to flip. The flipping is a bit tricky…
Once the butter starts to sizzle, add a little under 1/4 cup of batter or so (depending on your pan size) and quickly swirl it around the pan to cover the entire bottom of the pan.
It only takes a quick minute to cook. Loosen the edges with a spatula and then flip in any way you’re comfortable. You can use the one-handed pan flip or use a long metal spatula, whatever works for you. It only needs to cook on the 2nd side for about 30 seconds or so.
If you’re making a lot of crepes, you can place them on a plate in between waxed paper and place them in the oven on warm until you are ready to use them.
Once you’re ready to eat, you can fill them with the fruit and cheese or put it on top, then sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Granola Bark
Granola Bark
Two 72% Organic Dark Chocolate Bars
Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Melt the chocolate bars in a double broiler or in a bowl over a hot pan of water. Spread chocolate in a thin layer onto the parchment paper (about 12″ long by 6″ wide or so). Sprinkle with granola. Place in a cool area to set up. Break up into chunks to eat.
Power Packed Breakfast Granola
Power Packed Breakfast Granola
Preheat Oven to 300°
5 Cups Old Fashioned Gluten Free Rolled Oats
1 Cup Sliced Almonds
1 Cup Raw Pumpkin Seeds, unsalted
1/2 Cup Sweetened Shredded Coconut
1/4 Cup Agave Nectar
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Cup Dried Cherries
1 Cup Dried Blueberries
In a large bowl add the oats, almonds, seeds, coconut, nectar, sea salt, cinnamon, and olive oil. Toss with two spoons until thoroughly combined. Spray a large roasting pan with oil or line a deep baking sheet with parchment and add the oat mixture spreading out evenly. Bake for 40 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes until oat mixture is golden and lightly crisp.
Remove from oven, pour into a large bowl. Add the dried fruit and toss with two spoons to disperse fruit evenly. Pour back onto the roasting pan or baking sheet to cool. Once it has completely cooled, store in an airtight container. It will keep for about 30 days if it lasts that long!
Double Chocolate Chunk Rum Balls
What’s better than a booze laden rum ball? A double chocolate chunk booze laden rum ball, that’s what.
Chocolate Rum Balls
(These need to snuggle up together in the refrigerator and rest for at least 5 days before serving.)
1 1/2 Cups Pecans, finely chopped
2 1/4 Cups Finely Crushed (I used my food processor) Gluten Free/ Dairy Free Dark Chocolate, Chocolate Chunk Cookies (Pamela’s) About 2 Boxes
1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 Tablespoons Dark Corn Syrup
1/2 Cup Dark Rum (I used Meyer’s Dark Rum)
Extra Powdered Sugar
Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix until fully combined.
Pour powdered sugar onto a dinner plate. Roll dough into teaspoon sized balls and place on plate of powdered sugar.
Sprinkle powdered sugar on the bottom of a medium-sized plastic or glass container. Roll rum balls around in the powdered sugar on the plate to cover and place in the prepared container.
Continue to do this with the remaining dough, layering parchment paper between each layer. Cover the container so it is airtight, and store in the refrigerator. Allow them to rest for at least 5 days before serving.
Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice
I
Pumpkin Spice Smoothie
About 1 Cup Almond Milk
About 1/2 Cup Pumpkin Puree
About 1 Tablespoon Sugar
About 1 Tablespoon Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
About 1/2 Banana
About 1 Heaping Tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
About 1 Cup Ice
Place all ingredients in order in a Vita Mix or heavy-duty blender and blend until smooth.
Pineapple Pick Me Up
Pineapple Pick Me Up Smoothie
*Makes 2 – 16 ounce smoothies
About 2 1/2 Cups Fresh Pineapple, diced
About 1/3 Cup Sweetened Coconut
About 1/3 Cup Toasted Pecans
About 1 1/2 Cups Unsweetened Almond Milk
About 2 Cups Ice
Place all ingredients in a Vita Mix or heavy-duty blender and blend until smooth.
Million Dollar Stuffing
Million Dollar Stuffing
Preheat Oven to 350°
2 Loaves Udi’s Whole Grain Gluten Free Bread (or your favorite gf bread, or homemade gf bread)
1 Package All Natural GF Bacon, partially frozen
4 Stalks Celery, sliced lengthwise and diced
1 Medium Sweet Onion, diced
3 Cloves Garlic, minced
32 ounces of Chicken Stock (home made or store bought, just make sure it’s GF)
Dairy Free Butter, about 2 1/2 Tablespoons
About 3 Tablespoons of Poultry Seasoning plus more for stuffing bird (or your favorite stuffing seasoning or fresh herbs, season generously!)
Sea Salt to Taste
Olive Oil
Slice and cube the gluten-free bread. The amount will depend on how many people you are serving, of course. I thought I would need three loaves but only ended up needing two.
Place the bread cubes on a baking sheet, drizzle generously with olive oil, sprinkle the poultry seasoning over the top, season generously with sea salt, and toss with fingers.
Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes, remove. Toss, then bake for another 15 minutes and continue this process until the cubes are browned and crisp on the outside with a little softness on the inside.
While the bread cubes are toasting, get the vegetables and garlic ready.
Dice the bacon and fry in a skillet until it is crisp on the outside but still a little chewy. Yes, the entire package! This isn’t “diet day” it’s Thanksgiving.
Remove the crisp bacon with a slotted spoon onto paper towels. Reserve 2 Tablespoons or so of the bacon fat to saute the onions, celery and garlic. Saute until the onions are translucent and the celery only has a slight crunch.
Place the toasted and seasoned bread cubes in a bowl, top with the sautéed veggies and bacon.
Add more poultry seasoning and toss. Season generously with sea salt. Pour 1 box of the chicken stock in a 4 cup glass measuring cup and add the 2 1/2 Tablespoons of dairy free butter. Microwave for about 2-3 minutes or until stock is hot and butter is melted.
Pour 1/2 of the heated liquid over the top of the other ingredients in the bowl and toss carefully until liquid is absorbed into the bread cubes. Repeat with the remaining liquid.
Drizzle olive oil in a nice baking dish and rub around the bottom and sides with a paper towel. (Or, stuff the bird)
Fill with the stuffing, cover with tin foil, and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes. This stuffing can be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated. When you’re ready to heat it, pour a little more chicken stock over the top, cover with foil and heat for about 30 minutes or until it is heated through in a 350 degree oven.
Banana Apple Muffins
Banana Apple Muffins
Preheat oven to 350°
3 VERY Ripe Bananas
2 Large Eggs
1/3 Cup Olive Oil
2/3 Cup Dark Brown Sugar, packed
1 1/2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 3/4 Cup Gluten Free Flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose)
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
3/4 of a Honey Crisp Apple, diced
*more brown sugar for sprinkling
Add the bananas, eggs, oil, brown sugar, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, flour, baking powder, xanthan gum, and sea salt to a mixer and mix on medium until incorporated (about 10 seconds). Scrape down bowl, mix for another 10 seconds. Do not over mix. Fold in the diced apples with a spatula.
Line a muffin tin (12) with muffin papers. Add the banana mixture, sprinkle with brown sugar, and bake for about 20 minutes or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
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