GLUTEN-FREE HOLIDAY BAKING

December 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The holidays are here and I’m in the mood for baking cookies!

This is my favorite time of the year for baking. Sometimes I need to reign myself in so I don’t overdo it. After all, who is going to eat all those cookies in a 2-person household?

Fortunately for me, my husband has quite the sweet tooth, and he’s only too happy to sample what I bake.

This year, however, I’ve decided to cut back on the excess of sweet treats – a bit of a challenge, given the holiday tradition in my family which goes back to our German roots.

This tradition involves an individual plate of Christmas cookies – yes, every member of the family gets their very own plate of cookies on Christmas morning, to eat as they choose.

Growing up, this was often the most exciting part of the holiday!

My mother would assemble the cookie plates on Christmas Eve, and we weren’t allowed to see them until morning. We even had special, Christmas themed holiday plates – just for the occasion.

As an interior designer, I understand how the needs of our families often change over the years, and our traditional way of doing things evolves – as new ideas present themselves.

Or, as so often happens in our homes, we simply want to ‘freshen’ the look.

Which is why, I’ve decided to make two changes this year:

  • The first, is to bake less.
  • The second, is to switch from paper Christmas themed plates to a more eco-friendly, re-usable choice – fine china. (Mostly because said paper plates, which have been re-used year after year, are looking a little ragged around the edges).

One thing, however, will never change, and that is my homemade Lebkuchen cookies – which I bake every Christmas.

For anyone not familiar with Lebkuchen, it is a German honey-spice cake – a thicker, chewy cookie filled with traditional Christmas spices like cinnamon and cloves.

In my pre-gluten-free days, we always had store-bought Lebkuchen.

However, years ago I came across this recipe from Sunset magazine, and I have faithfully baked these cookies every year since – to serve alongside the store-bought version.

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Avocados, Chocolate & More

December 9, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I just had to share an amazing new recipe that I came across, one that features the unusual combination of avocados and chocolate!

The recipe is for an Avocado Chocolate Pudding, created by nutritionist Michelle Babb, of Eat, Play, Be – a Mind-Body nutrition practice located in Seattle.

I made this luscious chocolate pudding earlier today, and I can tell you that the taste is incredible – creamy, chocolaty and velvety-rich, just like you’d expect chocolate pudding to be.

Yes, the ingredients are unconventional.

But that’s what I love about it! Plus, it is sugar-free, relying instead on a sugar substitute such as agave nectar or maple syrup.

I, for one, am trying to cut back on my sugar consumption this holiday season. I’m challenging myself to bake less, and stick with a few favorite recipes that can easily be converted to a gluten-free treat that is also low in sugar.

Of course, you can certainly create a perfectly lovely gluten-free pudding using traditional dairy or cream, and refined sugar.

I’m just saying there are alternatives.

If you’re looking for something a little different to tickle your taste buds, I think this tasty treat will likely satisfy your cravings.

Next week, I promise to share some of my own favorite holiday recipes. Meantime, I’ve been invited to two holiday parties this week alone!

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Soup’s On

December 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and sincerely hope that you were able to overcome any challenges in making your feast gluten-free.

By the time you read this, chances are the turkey leftovers will long since have been eaten.

But that’s OK.

I’d still like to share with you my very simple recipe for home-made chicken stock. If you can even call this a recipe.

Yes, it’s that simple!

Of course, this works just as well for turkey or any kind of bird.

I think chicken stock is incredibly easy to make yourself, although at times less convenient than store bought. The best part is that it is absolutely Gluten-Free.

And you won’t have to worry about reading labels!

Seriously, though, all you really need to pull this off is a chicken carcass or two.

Whenever we have a roast chicken for dinner, I remove the extra meat before storing the leftovers in the fridge. I also save the bones in a separate container.

Next morning, I toss the bones, some water and a few seasonings into my crockpot, and let the slow cooker do its thing for the rest of the day.

That’s the beauty of a slow cooker – it really frees up your time for work, or play, and you don’t have to do another thing for six to eight hours, or until the food is done.

In this crazy, hectic world we live in, what could be better than freeing up some of your time?

 

HOME-MADE CHICKEN STOCK

Bones & carcass from 1 Chicken

6 cups water

1 carrot, cut into chunks (or a small handful of baby carrots)

1 or 2 celery sprigs, optional

1 bay leaf

5-6 whole peppercorns

 

You can dig around in your vegetable drawer and choose some other add-ins, such as:

Onion, cut into chunks

Root vegetables, cut into chunks

 

Toss everything into the ceramic pot of your slow cooker, and set the timer for a minimum of 6 hours. Depending on the brand of slow cooker, you might need a little more time to really bring out the flavors.

Alternatively, you can replicate the exact same recipe in a pot, on the stove. Bring to a boil, and then simmer for 1 ½ – 2 hours.

When done cooking, set a large sieve inside an equally large bowl and pour the soup stock into the sieve. The point is to catch all the loose vegetables, peppercorns, etc. so you have a clear broth.

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Giving Thanks

November 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Oh my, to think that Thanksgiving is just a few days away. 

On the chance that this might be your first gluten-free Thanksgiving, this weeks’ article is designed to give you some peace of mind as you plan your annual feast.

If you happen to be new to the gluten-free lifestyle, you might be tearing your hair out right about now, perhaps even telling yourself that the holidays are such a huge challenge – how will you ever get through it?

Well, this is true. It might very well be a challenge.

In the weeks to come, your senses will be assaulted with treats of every kind, beginning with the Thanksgiving turkey and all the traditional side dishes.

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BREAKING THE FAST

October 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Not sure where to begin?                             

Why not start at the beginning?

After all, doesn’t every design project begin that way?

This is commonly referred to as the foundation – or blueprint – for what is to follow, typically a Floor Plan, or my clients’ Wish List.

Of course, the foundation of your day – and your gluten-free lifestyle – is your first meal of the day – Breakfast.

Maybe you’ve always eaten breakfast, or maybe this concept is new to you. Perhaps you’re one of those people who never eats first thing in the morning, or before noon.

I recently heard a nutritionist talk about the value of starting one’s day off right, by eating a regular meal. She addressed the common dilemma of “But I don’t eat breakfast” – suggesting that you start small, that it’s really just a matter of changing your mindset.

Mindsets are powerful.

This is why, for most of us eating a Western diet – consisting of cereal, or eggs and bacon with a side of toast – might question what choices we have when eating gluten-free.

The answer is there’s still plenty to choose from – beginning with a great selection of gluten-free cereals.

That’s fine if your preferred first meal of the day is cold cereal with milk, or hot cereal such as gluten-free oatmeal or buckwheat.

Beyond that, I’m going to challenge you to think outside the box.

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HUMMUS FOR ALL SEASONS

October 7, 2011 By 2 Comments

I can hardly believe that Autumn has arrived.           

Already, I’m noticing that daylight starts to fade by early evening. We’ve entered that time of year when we like to hunker down and enjoy the warmth and comfort of our homes.

When I look out the window, I see the spectrum of Fall colors everywhere – gold, and vivid orange and yellow.

Squashes and pumpkins adorn the Farmer’s stalls and are piled high outside my neighborhood grocery store.

Yet, for some reason, part of me is still in summer mode, thinking of salads and warm weather menus, and day dreaming about this years’ vacation in the wine country of eastern Washington – an area where it’s just about impossible to drive half a mile without passing a winery, there are so many of them.

Now, I am not a wine expert, not by any stretch of the imagination.

I’m someone who is content to enjoy a glass of wine when the occasion calls for it, and that’s about it.

I recently learned that some vineyards use gluten as a clarifying agent during the wine-making process. I already knew that egg whites are sometimes used, but had never heard about gluten.

This was an eye-opener for me.

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