Smiles

I know it is not Easter but.....

2011-02-26T11:41:00.000-08:00

It is the year of the Rabbit!

Bunny Cakes
Light, fluffy, spongy, heaven. Not like any gluten free treat I have made before.
To make these you will need a little knowledge about origami.
Makes 24, 1.5 inch square mini treats.
First you will need to make 24 of these origami bunnies out of 6 inch square parchment paper (NOT waxed paper)
Then you will need:
4 oz soft Cream Cheese
2 T Dark Rum
2 T Milk
2 T Veggie Oil
3 large Eggs
1 t Vanilla
1 t Baking Powder
1 t Xanthan Gum
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Sorghum blend*

Method:
Pre-heat the over to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, add warm water, in a bowl that is just smaller than the first add the cream cheese and the rum. Blend with a hand mixed until fluffy. Then add the milk, oil and vanilla. You can now remove the bowl from the warm water. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and sugar until well blended. To this add the flour, baking powder and xanthan gum. Add the flour/egg mixture to the cream cheese/milk mixture.

In a clean, new squeeze bottle pour the batter. I guess you could use a piping bag but I had the best control with the squeeze bottle.

Now you are going to fill the bunny ballons to about halfway. There is a crease in the middle of the bunny so it is a good mark to fill to. Be careful not to make a mess. If batter gets on the outside of the bunny, it could burn in the oven and leave a dark spot. This is where the squeeze bottle tip comes in handy.

Place the bunnies on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

To enjoy these tasty treats just unfold the wrapper.

Yumm!!

*Sorghum Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorghum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together

Potato Pancakes: Gluten Free

2011-02-24T23:23:00.000-08:00

Tasty leftovers!

When my honey cooks he cooks for an army, even though it is just the two of us. Well, he made dinner the other night which included mashed potatoes. He makes them with a little milk, butter, salt, pepper and a few cloves of garlic. Needless to say we had leftovers. I hate wasteing food, so I set out to make something from them. Potato pancake is what I came up with.

Ingredients:

1 cup Mashed Potatoes

1 Egg

1 t Onion Powder

1 T GF Flour (I used Bob's Red Mill, but plan rice flour or corn starch could be used)

Olive Oil

Method: Mix together the egg, potatoes and onion powder. Add the flour a little at a time until the batter is a little thicker than regular pancake batter. Heat a small saute pan on medium to high heat, add enough oil to slick the pan, then add a scoop of batter. Cover the pan for 3 minutes or until the bottom is golden. Flip the cake and cover for 3 more minutes. If you spray the spatula with a little spray oil it will get under the cake easier. Serve with sour cream and chive, but I like them plan.

This is a pretty plan recipe, perfect to personalize. You could add chopped bell pepper, cubed ham, cheese, etc.

Gluten Free Butternut Squash Bread

2010-10-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

Tasty goodness. Our CSA delivery brought us a medium size butternut squash and some walnuts, what better to make than spice bread!

Before you start the bread you are going to want to prepare the squash.

Take your medium size squash, cut it in half and clean out the seeds. I cut off the neck first and then cut the pieces in half. Place the pieces in a 9"x13" Pyrex cut side down and fill with 1/4" water. Place in a 450 degree Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes or until the squash is just a little tender. Then peel and shred the squash. I used a veggie peeler and then I used the vegetable shredder attachment on my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer. You will have extra squash, my plan is to make 2 batches of bread to use it all.

Ingredients
1 cup Flour Blend*
1/2 cup and 1 Tablespoon Tapioca Starch

1 1/2 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
2 teaspoons Pie Spice (or 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/4 tsp ginger and 1/4 tsp clove)
1 Egg
1/2 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 cup Butternut Squash, shredded
1 cup Walnuts, chopped (optional)
Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Use either one standard loaf pan on 6 mini loaf pans and spray with cooking spray. Mix together the squash, egg, oil, sugar and vanilla, I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, 1/2 cup starch, xanthan gum, salt, baking soda, baking powder and spices.

Slowly add the flour mix to the squash mix and blend well.

If you are using walnuts mix them with the 1 tablespoon of tapioca starch, this keeps the nuts from sinking to the bottom of the bread while cooking. Add the nuts to the batter mix.

Now pour the batter into the prepared pans and with a wet finger or spatula smooth the tops of the loafs. Bake in preheated oven for 50-70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

*Flour Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorghum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together

Gluten Free Biscuits

2010-10-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits

Great for mini sandwiches, breakfast, with chili and so much more. These turned out fluffy and not crumbly. Perfect!!

Ingreadents:
3/4 cup Flour Blend*
3/4 cup Potato Starch
4 teaspoons Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
2 teaspoons Xanthan Gum
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Butter (shortening, Crisco or real butter)
2/3 cup Buttermilk (quick buttermilk**)
Rice flour for dusting
Milk for brushing

Method: Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Blend together the flour, potato starch, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt. I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment but you can use a food processor or by hand. Blend in the butter until it resembles course cornmeal. Slowly add the buttermilk until the mix is just moist. The mix will be sticky. Dust your surface with rice flour. Drop the dough onto the surface and with a floured hand pat the dough into a 1 inch thick round. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray and dust with rice flour. With circle cutter, cut out your biscuits and place on the prepared cookie sheet. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little milk. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until light golden crust, turn the pan halfway through baking. Makes 12.

*Flour Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorhgum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together.
**Quick Buttermilk- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar and enough milk to equal 2/3 cup of liquid, set aside for 10 minutes so it will thicken a little.

Chicken Stock

2010-09-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

I hate wasting food. I always feel bad throwing out the chicken carcass after dinner. My dad has made stock out of the chicken carcasses before so I though I would give it a whirl.I really just took whatever I had in the fridge and added it to the stock. I used flavors I like and use often.
Ingredients:
One chicken carcass (I made roast chicken for dinner so I used the body from that and the dripping in the pan)
1/2 medium Yellow Onion, cubed
1 medium Gala Apple, cubed
1 small Orange
2 Carrots, in half
2 tsp Black Pepper Kernels
2 tsp Coriander Kernels
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Herbes de Provence
Method: Add all the ingredients to a stockpot with enough water to cover. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes. Skim off any fat particles. Simmer for another 3 hours or until flavors have developed to your liking.

Bean Soup

2010-09-26T15:34:00.000-07:00

Yummy Goodness

Gluten Free Dairy Free Bean Soup

~I didn't want to start with dried beans so I used canned.

15 oz can Cut Green Beans, drained
15 oz can White Beans
15 oz can Garbanzo Beans, drained
15 oz can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
15 oz can Pinto Beans
15 ox can Kidney Beans
4 medium Tomatoes, diced
1/2 medium Yellow Onion, diced
1/2 medium Red Onion, diced
4 Garlic Cloves, diced
1 lb Ground Turkey
8 oz cubed Bacon
1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp Cumin
2 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
Salt and Pepper to taste
Optional Jalapeno Pepper Slices

Method: Brown the turkey in a skillet. In a stockpot, saute the garlic, onion and bacon cubes. Once the turkey and bacon/onion are fully cooked and the turkey to the stockpot. Add the white, pinto and kidney beans with the liquid in the can included. Add the drained green and garbanzo beans. Add the drained and rinsed black beans. Add the tomato. Give it all a big stir and add the brown sugar, paprika and cumin. All the mix
to simmer for at least 2 hours, but it could be served as soon as everything is heated through.
Enjoy!

Pickled Veggies

2010-09-06T14:47:00.000-07:00

The CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) we are a part of delivers awesome veggies. Sometimes we have so much that we don't know what to do with it. I decided it would be nice to make some pickled veggie mix. I like to put it on salads and sandwich wraps. This recipe does not require any canning processing and will keep in the fridge for 1 month or so.
Ingredents:
6 cups water
1 1/2 cups white vinager
1 cup apple cider vinager
1/3 cup salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon coriander
1 Tablespoon black pepper kernel
1 teaspoon celery seed
4 cloves garlic (I used one big elephant garlic clove rough chopped)
2 bay leaves
Whatever veggies you have on hand, I used 3 medium pattypan squash, 2 medium bell peppers, 1 cucumber and 1/2 medium onion, this was enough to fill seven 1/2 quart jars and still had liquid left over to pickle more.
jars and lids
Method:

Cut the veggies to 1/4 inch x 1/2 inch slices, and long enough to fit in your jars. I used a mandolin slicer.
In a large pot, bring the water, vinegars, salt, sugar, pepper, coriander, celery seed, bay leave and garlic. Boil for 10 minutes. Allow to cool.
Take the cut veggies and pack them into your jars. Ladle the cooled liquid into the jars, enough to cover the veggies. Make sure the veggies are stuffed enough not to float. Screw the lids on the jars. Store in the refrigerator for 24 hours before serving.

Apple Spiced Gluten Free Mini Muffins

2010-09-02T19:29:00.000-07:00

Yum!!
Ingredients:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 Tablespoons potato starch
2 Tablespoons water
1/3 cup veggie oil
1 1/2 teaspoons apple pie spice mix
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup GF flour mix (I used a sorghum blend*)
1/4 cup tapioca flour
Method:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare the mini muffin tray with a light spray of cooking oil. I am using a hand mixer, but this can be done in a stand mixer if desired. Mix together the sugars and applesauce. In a small bowl, mix together the potato starch and water. This will act as the egg. If you choose you can use 2 eggs instead. Add the potato starch mixture or eggs and the oil to the sugar/applesauce mix. Blend until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder and soda and the pie spice. Add the flour mixture to the applesauce mixture. Drop tablespoon fulls into the prepared mini muffin tray. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

*Sorghum Blend
1 1/2 cups sorghum flour
1 1/2 cups potato/corn starch
1 cup tapioca flour

Jam Filled Gluten Free Muffins

2010-09-02T19:05:00.000-07:00

First off, sorry I haven't posted in a really long time. I had a personal crisis and needed to focus on myself and my husband.
Anyway, I present you with a tasty morning treat.

Ingredients:
1 cup GF flour mix (I used Bob's Red Mill All Purpose)
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter (or veggie shortening)
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk (cow, soy or rice)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Your choice of jam (I used my homemade peach jam)
1 cup powdered sugar
1/8 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare 12 standard muffin tins, I used cupcake papers or you could grease the tins. Cream together the sugar and shortening. Add the eggs, milk and vanilla, blend until smooth. In a separate bowl mix together the flours, salt and baking powder. Add the flour mix to the egg/sugar mix. Blend until smooth. Spoon batter into the prepared tins to 2/3 full. Then drop 1 teaspoon of jam into the middle of each cup. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The tops of the muffins should have some spring to them when they are finished cooking.
For the glaze mix together the orange juice, powdered sugar and vanilla. Once the muffins are completely cool, dip the tops of each muffin in the glaze.

Starting the Garden

2010-06-08T13:15:00.000-07:00

It has been just over a year since we moved into the house. The yard is huge and a little overwhelming. The trees are budding with fruit. I am ready this time to harvest it all and get it taken care of before it drops off and rots. Now what to do with the empty garden beds? I don't want to get too far in that I can not take care of it all. So I decided on green beans, english peas and edemame beans, maybe tomatoes. I started the seeds today. I like to start in glass jars, not pete pots, so you can see the progress of the seedlings.

Pretty simple- half pint canning jar and a wet paper towel with the seeds pressed against the glass. Put it in a sunny, warm window and keep the towel moist. Wait till the seedlings are 4-6 inches long and plant in the garden. These should sprout in 10 days and produce edible food and 60-70 days. I hope the soil stays warm and all goes well. I hope to keep this an organic garden.

I hope I can get some tomato plants from my father-in-law, he has a gift with plants.

Gluten Free Chex Mix

2010-04-15T14:37:00.000-07:00

Tasty goodness!!

For years and years before the gluten free diet change, I LOVED LOVED LOVED me some Chex Mix! All flavors anytime of the day. Now, I long for Chex Mix to make a gluten free variety. I don't see this happening anytime soon so I set out to make my own.
Ingredients:
4 cups Rice Chex (I use the generic store brand)
4 cups Corn Chex (I use the generic store brand)
1 cup Roasted Peanuts (or any nut will do fine)
3 cups Gluten Free Pretzels (I use Ener-G)
1/4 cup Gluten Free Margarine (I use Country Crock)
2 Tbsp Gluten Free Worcestershire Sauce (I use Lea and Perrins)
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Onion Powder
1/2 tsp White Pepper, ground
For spicy flavor add 1/4-1/2 tsp Cheyenne and 1/2 tsp Paprika
Method:
FYI: I do not have a big enough mixing bowl to do this so I use a stock pot.
Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix together the chex, peanuts and pretzels. In a separate bowl, mix margarine, worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, white pepper and cheyenne and paprika if using. Microwave the margarine/spice mixture until the margarine is melted. Pour 1/4 of the melted mixture over the chex mixture, stir, pour a little more, stir, pour a little more, stir, pour the rest, stir. Microwave mix for 2 minutes on high, I think this helps the sauce get inside the chex and not just sit ontop of the chex. It is ok to microwave in 2 batches, I had to. Pour out microwaved mix onto 2 foil covered baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes, stir and rotate sheets and bake for 20 more minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheets. Store in an airtight container or large ziplock bag.
Enjoy!

I Love My Sisters

2010-04-12T18:07:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, while shopping for bridesmaids dresses for my middle sister's upcoming wedding, I was given a pretty cool gift.

FABRIC SAMPLE BOOKS!!!!
The middle sister (that is getting married in July) works in the design library at Sac State, so she scored these leftovers just for ME!

These fabric pages have so much potential.

DH helped me rip the bindings off of the books to spare every bit of fabric. A few pages became these.

My sisters are pretty great.

Recipe Review: Gluten Free Sugar Cookies by Carol Fenster

2010-04-11T13:33:00.000-07:00

My mom bought me the cookbook 1000 Gluten Free Recipes by Carol Fenster shortly after I switched to a gluten free diet. The same day I made the Pamela's Chocolate Chunk Cookies I also made some thumbprint cookies using the sugar cookie recipe from this cookbook on page 419 and homemade jams.
I followed the recipe for the sorghum flour mix and then made the cookies. Instead for rolling the dough balls in sugar, I just put them on the cookie sheet. After baking for about 10 minutes, I used the back of a spoon to make a bowl shape in the middle of the cookie and filled that bowl with a teaspoon of the jam from the other day. Then returned the cookies back to the oven for 5 more minutes. The cookies taste fantastic! Kind of like a whole wheat flavor, the texture was soft and moist. The jam flavors fit perfectly. A perfect cookie for my morning cup of chai latte.

Product Review: Pamela's Products Gluten Free

2010-04-11T11:20:00.000-07:00

I have been dreaming about cookies lately. After the gluten free diet change I have not been able to find a decent cookie store bought cookie. After a trip to Whole Foods, I came home with a bag of Pamela's Products Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix, hoping that it will be tasty and satisfy my cookie cravings. I followed the directions on the package. Increased the baking time by 5 minutes. They came out super tasty!! Crispy around the edges and soft in the middle. MMMmm! Even my he-man of a husband liked them. I give it 5 stars, something that I will keep in the house all the time.

OOOh, here is a picture of the finished cookies. The do bake to a dark color, that is because there is coco powder in the mix, making it extra chocolaty.

Chicken and Green Beans in a White Wine Sauce

2010-04-06T19:51:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite dishes to make is chicken breast and green beans in a white wine caper sauce. Green beans are one of the only cooked veggies my honey will eat.

Ingredients:
4 Chicken Breasts
6 cups cleaned and snapped Green Beans
3/4 cup and 2 tsp set aside Corn Starch
2 tsp Ground Pepper (I like White Pepper)
1 tsp dried Thyme
1 tsp dried Rosemary
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/4 medium Onion, diced
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
3 Garlic Cloves, diced
3 Tbsp Butter
1/4 cup Capers, drained
1/4 cup Cold Water
2 1/2-3 cups White Wine NOTE: if it is not good enough to drink it is not good enough to cook with
Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large ziplock bag, add the chicken breasts and the herbs. Then add the corn starch to the bag, zip it closed and shake away, coating the chicken in the herbs and corn starch. In a large skillet heat the olive oil. Shake off the extra corn starch and place each chicken piece in the heated skillet. Evenly brown each side of the breast and place in the oven on a cookie sheet covered with foil (for easy clean up) until internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, in the same skillet the chicken was browned in over medium heat, add the white wine, garlic and lemon juice. Use the liquid to deglaze the bottom of the pan. Add the green beans, onions and garlic and cover. Cook till beans are just about done and remove the beans from the pan. Add the capers and butter to the pan. Mix the 2 tsp corn starch and the cold water, once mixed add it to the pan. Bring the sauce to a boil. Once the sauce has thickened enough to your liking, remove from the heat. Assemble the plate as follows: Chicken and beans and ladle the caper white wine sauce over all of it.

Jamming

2010-04-06T15:39:00.000-07:00

So when my husband and I bought our first house in April of 2009, it had quite a few fruit trees already planted. The peaches bloomed and ripened the best of all of them. Having buckets and buckets of peaches and not knowing what to do, I called my mom. She said slice and peel the ripe ones and put them in freezer bags, freeze them until she can visit from to teach me to make jam. 6 freezer bags full of peaches have been sitting in my freezer since then. I convinced my mom and baby sister to come down and stay a few days to make jam. Oh, and baby sister is also getting her graduation pictures taken by Jessica at Sweet Pea Photography

There are lots of ways to make jam and this way is ours. This is the directions to make one batch of jam, we will be making multiple batches of jam. This will make a chunky tasty jam and not a clear jelly.
DISCLAIMER: This process is a HOT one. Be careful! You are making a HOT fruit syrup it can burn you. Even the most experienced jam makers still get burned from time to time.

To begin you will need some specialty items:
A steam canner pot
Canning jars (we are using 6 half pint jars)
canning rings and seals
Jar funnel
A box of SureJell fruit pectin (1.75 oz box)

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups of Peach Pulp and Juice (just so you know, I am lazy and didn't peel all of the peaches, it will just give it texture and will not effect the finished product in a negative way)
3 cups of White Sugar, with 1/4 cup set aside
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Butter (to cut the foam, if foam does form it can be skimmed off or stirred down)
NOTE: Please measure everything before beginning.

Wash the rings and seals, then put them in a pot of water, bring to a boil. Leave covered and take off of the heat. Sterilize the jars in the dishwasher, leave them in the dishwasher until you are ready to fill them DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR! Set up the steam canner by filling the bottom part (the small pan) with water, put the grill on and the lid (the large part) on the stove and bring to a boil.

In a stockpot place the fruit pulp and juice, mix in the box of SureJell, the 1/4 cup of sugar and add the butter. Place pot on the stove and bring to a rolling boil (a boil that can not be stirred down), stirring often with a wooden spoon.

Add the remaining sugar. Bring back to a roiling boil, stirring often. Once at a roiling boil, cook for 1 minute.

With tongs pull out seals and rings for the jars and replace the lid of the pot, to keep the remaining seals and rings warm. Pull jars out of the dishwasher and close the door, to keep the remaining jars warm.

Ladle hot fruit mixture into jars. Wipe down the jar rim and place the seal and ring, screw down the ring to just tight. Place the jars on the grill of the steam canner (at a boil), starting in the middle and circling outward making sure not to have the jars too close together. If the jars are placed too close they can break.

Replace the lid of the steam canner and once steam starts coming out from under the lid set timer for 10 minutes. When timer is up, turn off heat and wait till steam stops coming out from under the lid. Remove the lid and make sure that all the seals have popped down and wait 1 minute. With a towel, take the jars off the grill one at a time. Wipe off the water that has collected on the jars and tighten the rings. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN! Place jars on a trivet or folded towel to cool, leaving space between each jar. Allow the jars to cool over night before storing in a cool dark place.

I also had some some strawberries to jam. The method is the same, but measurements are different.
6 cups Strawberry pulp and juice
4 cups White Sugar with 1/4 cup set aside
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Butter

NOTE: Strawberry tends to foam even with the butter, so the best thing is to skim off the foam with a metal spoon. The foam is pretty tasty on toast.

Ravelympics

2010-03-29T08:45:00.000-07:00

Long time, no post!!

So, Ravelympics is a yarn crafty Olympics type thing, hosted by the fabolus site Ravelry.

You pick a team and pick events to enter. You make a project in the same time frame as the real Olympics and post said project to the site. In return you get awesome blog badges. Well here are mine.

I am a....

My Teams

Team Pibble Pride and The Flaming Hooks

Medals(badges) Won

For a kitty cuddle blanket

For some baby photo props commissioned by Sweet Pea Photography

For a lovely shrug with a crossed back

For an awesome latias shawl

For a cute little flower cuff

A simple pair if fingerless mits

For some flower headbands going to Second Sister

For finishing a tunic I have been neglecting for awhile

For taking apart some neglected and unloved projects

I only could not finish one project

A large lace weight shawl. I was just too many more stitches and my wrist was killing me.

Valentine Waffles!!!!!

2010-02-14T14:43:00.000-08:00

It is Valentine's day and dh and I have no money. I woke up and found these in the kitchen.

DH clipped them from the bush out front, they are lovely and smell nice.

We decided to make waffles for breakfast. I love waffles!! I am always in search of the perfect waffle. Well after the gluten free switch, waffles are out of the question. But now I have put together a decent gluten free waffle recipe. Makes six 4inch square waffles
Ingredients:
11/2 cup Gluten Free flour mix (Bob's Red Mill All Purpose)
1 T sugar
2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 T cinnamon
1 large egg
1 t vanilla
3/4 cup milk(cow, rice or soy)
1 T oil
spray oil for waffle grill
Method:
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Mix together all the wet ingredients.

Mix the wet stuff into the dry stuff and blend well.

Now let the batter sit for 5 minutes. During that time, heat up the waffle grill. Give the grill a quick spray with spray oil. Pour ~1/4 cup of batter on each side of the waffle grill.

Close and wait 4 to 5 minutes, or until the waffles are just a little crispy in the edges. I like them extra crispy so I wait 5 to 6 minutes. Pull off and serve.

I like mine with cinnamon sugar butter(1T soft butter, 1t sugar, 1t cinnamon mixed together), DH likes his with regular syrup. To complete our breakfast we had his and hers Organ Chai

Enjoy!!

My version of Baingan Bharta

2010-02-10T17:49:00.000-08:00

Baingan bharta is a traditional North Indian dish of spiced, roasted and mashed eggplant. Awhile back, I was working at a bank with some really great ladies. They ordered some Indian food, naan, grill fired chicken, and baingan bharta. It all was fabulous. I can make naan and grill a mean chicken but I was nervous to try to make the baingan bharta. Here is my attempt.

Ingredients:
2 eggplants, roughly a pound
4 Roma tomatoes
1/2 Yellow onion, diced
4 T Olive oil
4 Whole garlic cloves
4 minced garlic cloves
2 t Cumin
1 t Chili powder, add more for spicier
2 t Paprika
2 t Coriander seeds, roughly crushed
Salt and Pepper to taste
You will also need a large sauce pan, a 9x13" baking dish and a stick blender
Method:
Preheat oven to 400 Fahrenheit. Peel and rough chop the eggplant, place in the baking dish with the whole peeled garlic cloves. Add 3 T of olive oil and toss to coat. Add all of the spices, salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

Place into the oven for 15 minutes. Flip the pieces and back into the oven for 15 more minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Mean while, take the tomatoes and over high heat of a gas stove (or grill) char the skins then plunge into cold water to remove the skins.

Chop the skinned tomatoes. In the sauce pan, add the last tablespoon of olive oil, diced onion and minced garlic, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until onions are soft, then add the chopped tomatoes.

After the eggplant come out of the oven, add it to the sauce pan of onion and tomato.

With the stick blender (or potato masher) mash the mix to a chunky salsa texture, finer if you wish.

Continue to simmer over medium/low heat till flavors are well blender, about 15-20 minutes. Serve with naan or pita bread.

I was trying to make gluten free flat bread to serve with it but the recipe failed miserably, I need to do some more research.

Product Review: Pamela's Products Gluten Free Break Mix

2010-02-10T13:57:00.000-08:00

I have been missing pizza since I switched to a gluten free diet. I went out looking for a gluten free frozen pizza and found nothing. I figured out that I will have to make my own. After a trip to Whole Foods, I came home with a 19oz pack of Pamela's Gluten Free Bread Mix. I checked out their website and found the recipe for pizza dough. I followed the one for a crunchy crust. I also added corn meal to the baking sheet to help my the crust even more crunchy. The recipe made 3 large pizzas. On one we put Trader Joe's Pesto Sauce and cheese, the other was tomato mushroom sauce with cheese and pepperoni and the last was tomato mushroom sauce with cheese. I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the finished product because my honey and his friends jumped on them as soon as they came out of the oven. If a group of men who avoid eating healthy food at all costs will eat it and enjoy something like this, that is saying something in my book. I give this mix 4 Stars, something I will definitely buy again.

Product Review: Oregon Chai Original

2010-02-10T13:38:00.000-08:00

First off, I have never had a chai latte. I was looking for a morning warm drink that was not coffee. Lately, coffee has been upsetting my tummy. So on a whim at Wally World I picked up a box of Oregon Chai Original. It is gluten free. I followed the directions on the package. Boil water, mix in cup and I added a splash of cold milk to cool it enough to drink. It was lovely. Slightly spicy, lightly sweet, a lovely everyday delight. I am not sure what chai latte is soposed to taste like, but this product is super tasty and worth the $4. I give this mix 4 Stars.

Gluten Free Taco Bake

2010-02-02T10:44:00.000-08:00

So recently, in an effort to solve my tummy problems, my doctor recommended that I try a gluten free diet. Today is day 3 and everything is going good. I love all-in-one pan dinner, taco bake is a popular dish in my house. I made some changes to my regular recipe to make it gluten free. The recipe is heavy on the garlic, if you don't like garlic as much as I do you can use less.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground turkey

1/2 medium onion, diced

1 medium bell pepper

1/2 cup frozen corn

4 cloves garlic, smashed/minced

4 Roma tomatoes, chopped

1 T chili powder

1/2 t cumin

1 T paprika
Red pepper flake to taste

1 cup water

Salt and pepper to taste

1 packet of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Mix

1 1/2 cup milk

2 eggs

1/3 cup veggie oil

Tools:

Cast iron skillet

9"x9" pyrex baking dish

muffet tin, greased

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Brown the turkey in a medium heat skillet with just a touch of oil. Mix together the dry ingredients(chili pepper, cumin, paprika, red pepper flake) and set aside. Drain grease and remove from pan, set aside. Turn the heat to low.

In the same skillet, cook onion, bell pepper and garlic till the onion and bell pepper are soft, salt and pepper to taste.

Add the turkey back to skillet. Add corn and tomatoes. Add the dry mix and the water to the skillet. Simmer untill most of the water is gone, about 10 to 15 minutes.

With a strainer spoon, move the mixture to the 9"x9" pyrex baking dish.

Dump the cornbread mix into a bowl (I use my kitchenaid mixer). Add milk, eggs and oil. Blend on medium until no more dry is visable. Blend on high for 30 seconds.
Pour about half of the bread batter on top of the meat mixture.

pour the remaining batter into prepared muffin tin 1/2 the way full. I got about 8 muffins.

Bake on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

I like to serve with sour cream and shredded cheese.

For an awesome variation: add 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese to the bread batter.

Sideways Scarf

2009-12-03T13:24:00.000-08:00

Sideways Striped Scarf
In an effort to use up the last 150g of some NaturallyCaron Country yarn, I made this skinny stripe scarf for my sister.

By using different colors combined with different heights of stitches, creates varying widths of color stripes.

Items needed:
approximately 150g total of sport weight yarn in 3 colors (A, B, C)
4.00/G hook

Stitches used:
ch/chain sc/single crochet
hdc/half double crochet
dc/double crochet
Notes: Joining new colors with out a slip stitch~In order to avoid having to slip stitch the new color on to the work and having a chain to start, I join new colors as follows~ Tie a slip knot, place hook in the loop, preform indicated stitch in beginning stitch. If the row begins with a sc: insert hook into stitch, draw up loop, yarn over draw through both loops. If the row begins with hdc or dc: yarn over, insert hook in stitch, draw up loop, yarn over, draw through 2 loops(for hdc, draw through all 3 loops), yarn over, draw through remaining 2 loops.

To be honest, I didn't count the chains to start the scarf. I just chained multiples of 10 till it was long enough to wrap around my neck with about 18" on either side hanging.

To begin:
chain enough to feel comfortable
Row 1) With color A, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 2) With color B, hdc in all stitches, end off
Row 3) With color C, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 4) With color A, dc in all stitches, end off
Row 5) With color B, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 6) With color C, hdc in all stitches, end off
Row 7) With color A, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 8) With color B, dc in all stitches, end off
Row 9) With color C, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 10) With color A, hdc in all stitches, end off
Row 11) With color B, sc in all stitches, end off
Row 12) With color C, dc in all stitches, end off
repeat rows 1-12 until desired width. This stitch pattern can be used for blankets as well.

Enjoy!!

Crochet Christmas Ornament

2009-11-26T11:48:00.000-08:00

Lacy Crocheted Christmas Ornament
This is an idea that can be adjusted to any shape ornament.

Materials:
Size 10 Thread
1.75 mm Hook
Yarn Needle
2.63" Round Glass Ornament

Special Stitches:
dc2tog~Yarn over, insert hook into space specified, yarn over, draw up 1 loop, yarn over, draw through 2 loops on hook, yarn over, insert hook into same space, yarn over, draw up 1 loop, yarn over, draw through 2 loops, yarn over draw through remaining 2 loops.
:::For personal use only, Please:::
Here we go::
Round 1) Make sliding ring, ch2, dc in ring, ch2, (dc2tog in ring, ch2)x7, slip stitch in the top if the first dc, not the beginning chain, pull sliding ring closed
Round 2) Slip stitch into the ch2 space, ch2, dc in same ch2 space, ch2, dc2tog in same ch2 space (dc2tog, ch2 in next ch2 space)x7, slip stitch in the first dc
Round 3) Slip stitch into ch2 space, ch2 dc in same space, ch2, dc2tog in same space (ch1 dc2tog ch2 dc2tog in next ch2 space)x7 ch1, slip stitch in the first dc
Round 4) Slip stitch into ch2 space, ch2 dc in same space, ch2, dc2tog in same space (ch2 dc2tog ch2 dc2tog in next ch2 space)x7 ch2, slip stitch in the first dc
Round 5) Slip stitch into ch2 space, ch2 dc in same space, ch2, dc2tog in same space (ch3 dc2tog ch2 dc2tog in next ch2 space)x7 ch3, slip stitch in the first dc
Rounds 6-9) Slip stitch into ch2 space, ch2 dc in same space, ch2, dc2tog in same space (ch4 dc2tog ch2 dc2tog in next ch2 space)x7 ch4, slip stitch in the first dc
~At this point you would want to weave in the beginning thread tail and fit the ball into place and crochet around it. Pictured here
Round 10) Repeat round 5
Round 11) Repeat round 3 (yes, round 3)
Round 12) Repeat round 2
Round 13) At this point it is going to be super tight, sc in each ch2 space and between each set of dc2tog(the sets that look like Vs) 16sc total.

Finish off and weave in ends.
Note: If it is possible to remove the metal top of the ball, do so before round 13. After weaving in ends replace the top, pushing the teeth of the top into the thread.

If there is any errors please drop me a note.
Good luck!!

Lets make something!!

2009-07-08T17:21:00.000-07:00

I feel stressed. the sept wedding is coming up fast. my family is freaking out. i need a hug. i think i am going to work on christmas stuff. baby sis is getting a hooded scarf if i like the way it looks when it is finished. i am using a pattern for the book Contemporary Crochet wish me luck!

BFN

2009-06-30T07:02:00.000-07:00

this is the first BFN since we decided to TTC, and boy are the cramps terrible. the food thing has been going ok. had a few slips the last few days. i thought it might have been a pregnancy but it was PMS, i was almost 2 weeks late. anyway, i just stumbled across this how odd. potty training from birth. it is a interesting idea, but i dont think i could get dh on board. it is hard enough to get him into the idea of cloth diapers. he had no idea that there was an option. i am just not into putting all the nasty diaper garbage into the landfill. i think i can handle the extra laundry. as far as cloth diapers go, i think i am leaning toward the all in one style. they are designed with a wet proof outer so there is no need for a diaper cover, put there are sure some cute ruffle butt covers out there. moving on i will have some crochet patterns up soon. after the move, my sketch pads have disappered. once they have been found i will put the pics and pattern up. you can checkout my flickr page. i am always down to do a custom piece.

The Kid Graduated

2009-06-21T13:47:00.000-07:00

For my cousin, Jaye Sean, the idea of graduating was always a little questionable. well yesterday he did it. her graduated. so we had a party at his mom's house. Lots of food, lots of people, lots of music and lots of family awkwardness. Started with my sister's boyfriend. he continued to tell the whole damn party that i was pregnant over and over again!! for the record-i am not pregnant, i hope to be, but as of right now i am not- and in between the comments about my pregnancy he had to pick on me being unprepared for the wedding in september. dh didn't come with me, he had to work. if he had been there i doubt that he would stand for sisters bf bull shit. i couldnt wait to get out of there. well i loved seeing my parents and my sisters but sfb was a really ass this time around.

food wise: yesterday: cruosant, a hamburger, chips and fruit salad, tritip, broccoilli, half a baked potato, and mushrooms

today:pb&j, tuna sandwich, necturine, pretzels, red sauce pasta

The Stray

2009-06-19T07:04:00.000-07:00

So, when we moved in there was a stray tabby cat in the backyard. not a problem for me. i figured that she would leave when we started living there. well, not the case. she had 2 orange babies under a bush in the backyard. we found them while DH was watering the yard. they were older and able to survive without mom. so i took them in and found a rescue to take them and get them adopted. that resuce AFRP gave us a trap to catch the mom and they will pay to get her spayed, we just had to do the transport to the vet and pick her up again to release her. yesterday we trapped the stray and now i am taking her to the vet at 8:15a. i am ready to not have the possibility of more kittens in our yard. there is so many unwanted animals out there now. i need to do my part and help them out.
people are so irresponsible to have an animal that is loose and not fixed.

____________________________________________________________________

on the menu today:
some fruit and a pb&j

raman with vegies and leftover steak Changed my mind, i had 2 small steak wraps and a nectarine

chicken, rice and green beans

Gotta get healthy

2009-06-18T15:06:00.000-07:00

So DH and i are thinking about having a baby, and with that i know i need to be heathier. so the plan is to track the things i eat. hopfully that will also lead to some weightloss. starting today...

so far i have had a baja beef chalupa and a soft taco supreme, and shared a dr pepper with dh. we just grabbed something to have after we went to SSA to change my name. dinner will be thin cut tritip, white rice and salad. but right now i am gonna have a mushroom turnover thing.
i was looking for a diaper service here and i can't find any good information. i hate the idea of putting all that plastic diapers into the landfill. and if my babies are like i was, my skin was way too sensitive to have the desposable diaper one. so we will see how long i will keep up this healthy thing :)

Welcome!!

2009-06-17T08:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome,
I am Manda. I am recently married (June 5th) to the man of my dreams, we just bought a house and relocated 2 hours away from where we were living before.

We have three 12 week old kittens
Juno

Hera

Calypso

And 3 chinchillas, 7 month old Persephone(white mosaic), 4 week old Apollo(white mosaic) and Artemis(ebony). There is not good pictures of them yet. We adopted Persephone and had no idea she was pregnant, 4 weeks ago she popped out 2 babies. I went into the studio to check on her and there were 2 extra tails in the cage. In about 6 weeks we will need to find Apollo a home so he won't get the girls pregnant.

This is my blog, a catch all of sorts, I do not have the stamina to maintain multiple blogs for my different endeavors. I live spherically, in many directions. I am an artist of many mediums, paint, charcoals, paper, crochet, knit, dance, sewing, origami, beads, I am just all around crafty. I will update the best I can, we will see how this new endover goes.