Gluten Free Menu Plan - Week of October 26th

Hi there; yes, I have a menu (of sorts) to present. I say "of sorts" because these are my thoughts at the moment.....and these are the dinners for which I have all the ingredients. :)

My life is a bit turbulent right now; I don't feel well, being in the midst of a lupus flare. I'm having other symptoms which are almost certainly NOT lupus (but I don't really want to know what's causing them....not just yet). This makes it difficult to know what I might be able to make on any given day. If I'm having a good day, I can make the Beef Enchiladas, which are a bit work-intensive. If not, well.....I'll make the Crockpot Beef in Pomegranate Sauce.

So here are the dinners I have in mind for this week, but I don't know which day I will make what, nor do I know for certain I will actually be able to make all of them. Note that both Eggplant Parmesan and Kay's Fish Pie are in the list again, because I didn't actually make the Eggplant Parm last week, and my DH requested Fish Pie again this week, even though we had it less than two weeks ago:

Crockpot Beef in Pomegranate Sauce

Eggplant Parmesan

White Chicken Chili

Kay's Fish Pie

Beef Enchiladas with grain-free "tortillas"
(I will post the recipe in the very near future)

Breakfast Quiche, Elana's Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

So what do I do if I feel REALLY bad one night and can't make any of these, you ask? Some of my "go-to" meals in that case involve super-easy quick meals or even meals involving boxes and cans (gluten free but with other grains, in most cases):

Scrambled eggs, bacon, homemade biscuits
Mrs. Leeper's Tuna Casserole, salad
Hot dogs and baked beans, salad
Hot dogs and Trader Joe's Macaroni and Cheese

OR.....in case of a real disaster (if I'm in bed or something), my DH can go out and get gluten free take out; Garlic Jim's gf pizza, or Old Spaghetti Factory's gf Baked Chicken and Pasta, or even a gf roasted chicken or two from Costco.

Well, sometimes we do that even if I'm NOT in bed! :)

Comment on gluten-free baked goods

Just an FYI....for any of you who are new to gluten-free baking: 90% of gluten-free baked goods are best eaten as soon as they are out of the oven and cool enough so that you won't burn your mouth.

OK, they're good for the first day....at least the first several hours.

But by the second day, there is a definite tendency for breads and biscuits, etc., to be dryer and less tasty. Re-heating does help, particularly with bread, which can be toasted and restored to a semblance of the "first day" taste.

I say 90% because there are a few exceptions to this rule, notably Elana's Chocolate Chip Brownies, which we actually left out on the counter, uncovered, for more than two days. They stayed moist and luscious for the entire time....amazing!!

You should really try that recipe!

More fun with grain free baking! (dairy-free too!)

As mentioned in the previous post, I'm experimenting with coconut and almond flours, attempting to replace all of the other gluten-free flours that I've become accustomed to using. Here is a very nice drop biscuit recipe (casein-free cousin to the garlic cheese biscuits) which uses both almond and coconut flours, as well as a bit of flax meal; my husband says they taste very much like Bisquick biscuits, only better.

I like the flavor and the texture of the almond-coconut flour combo.....I will continue to experiment! :)

Ingredients: (updated 10/26/09 and again on 11/26/09)

4 eggs
1/4 C coconut oil, melted
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 C coconut flour
1/4 C almond flour**
1 1/2 T flax meal
1/2 tsp baking powder
1-2 T agave syrup (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and coconut oil (and agave if using) thoroughly. Combine the salt, coconut and almond flours, flax meal and baking powder in a separate bowl, then stir into the egg-oil mixture, blending well.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for approximately 16-20 minutes (start checking them around 16 minutes), until beginning to develop golden-brown spots on tops. Makes 8 biscuits.

**Note: I am following Elana Amsterdam's suggestion and using ONLY finely ground blanched almond flour. Some almond flours on the market simply are not fine enough to give a good texture to baked goods. For example, Bob's Red Mill Almond Flour just doesn't work. The flour that I'm currently using is Honeyville's Blanched Almond Flour.

Another recipe I made recently was Elana's Chocolate Chip Brownies; I followed her recipe exactly, so you can click on the link above as I don't plan to publish her recipe here. :)



My family LOVED them! As you can see from the pictures, they look like luscious and decadent chocolate treats....but they are actually very healthy compared to most brownies out there.

Grain-Less Garlic Cheese Biscuits

I have been experimenting with coconut and almond flours lately, and have been trying to see if combining them makes any sense. Here is one recipe that turned out well; my family loved them!

Ingredients:

4 eggs
1/4 C coconut oil, melted
1/4 tsp salt
1 T garlic powder
1/3 C coconut flour
2 tsp flax meal
2 tsp almond flour**
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 C grated sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and coconut oil thoroughly. Combine the salt, garlic powder, coconut and almond flours, flax meal and baking powder in a separate bowl, then stir into the egg-oil mixture, blending well. Add approximately 3/4 of the grated cheese, reserving a little for the tops of the biscuits.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper; top with reserved cheese. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, until beginning to develop golden-brown spots on tops. Makes 8 biscuits.

**Note: I am following Elana Amsterdam's suggestion and using ONLY finely ground blanched almond flour. Some almond flours on the market simply are not fine enough to give a good texture to baked goods. For example, Bob's Red Mill Almond Flour just doesn't work. The flour that I'm currently using is Honeyville's Blanched Almond Flour.

Gluten Free Menu Plan - Week of October 19th

Yep, late again...sorry about that! Still trying to stay grain free though!

I've been dealing with a number of my own health issues lately, which have managed to complicate my life at work, of course. So I haven't been blogging much lately. :(

In any case, here is the menu for this week:

Monday: Eggplant Parmesan, green salad

Tuesday: Swiss Mushroom Omelettes, bacon, fruit

Wednesday: Salmon Croquettes (grain free version), green salad

Thursday: Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings (grain free version), steamed broccoli

Friday: Meatloaf (grain free version), mashed cauliflower "faux-tatoes", green beans w/ fresh dill

Saturday: leftovers

Sunday: Tilapia sauteed with mushrooms, garlic and white wine, green salad, Elana's chocolate chip cookies for dessert (from her cookbook).

Gluten Free Menu Plan - Week of October 12th

Here is the menu plan for this week; we'll see if I can follow it or not! :) It is basically grain-free; no rice or quinoa or any other gluten free grains. I'm trying to use only coconut and almond flour now, and Bruce Fife and Elana Amsterdam are my new gurus! The recipes with the asterisks (*) may be found in Elana's cookbook.

Cheryl at Gluten Free Goodness is hosting the Gluten-Free Menu Swap this week. Please check her blog for more wonderful gluten free menu plans!

Monday: Crockpot Chili, green salad

Tuesday: Roasted chicken, steamed broccoli, Elana's Pear Crisp* for dessert

Wednesday: Scrambled eggs, bacon, Elana's Almond Flour Drop Biscuits*, mixed fruit

Thursday: Broiled Steak with garlic and mushrooms in a red wine reduction, green salad

Friday: Grain free Pizza, green salad

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Kay's Fish Pie, gluten free brownies for dessert

Fabulous Gluten Free, Grain Free Pizza!

I'm still exploring the low-carb/grain free diet (which is a lot more restrictive than the gluten free diet!). I fully intend to start posting my menu plans again very soon, but since DH and I are in the process of transitioning to the grain free lifestyle, I haven't been terribly organized....yet. :)

Anyway, the other day I ran across a great recipe for pizza crust that used just cheese, eggs, coconut flour, flax meal, and baking powder! Of course, this will not work for those of you who are casein free, unless rice cheese or some other substitute can be used in the crust.

Here are a few pictures I took as I assembled the pizza:


First sauce and parmesan on the baked crust....next mozzerella, veggies, chicken meatballs, and pepperoni.


This last picture was taken after the pizza was completely cooked and ready to serve; it shows a cross-section of the crust (easiest to see if you blow it up by clicking on the image) so that you can see what the texture is like.


Bottom line: this is the BEST!!! My husband told me the first time I made it that it was the best pizza I had ever made.....and he is a true pizza fanatic!

Grain free pizza crust
(based on the recipe from the Tropical Traditions website):

Ingredients:

4 cups whole milk organic mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 large organic eggs
1/4 C flax meal
1/4 C coconut flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut 1 piece of parchment paper out for baking sheet.

Mix cheese, eggs, flax, coconut flour, and baking powder together until a sticky wet dough is formed. Spread with a spatula to 1/4 inch thickness on a baking sheet lined with one piece of parchment paper.

Bake for 22 minutes in preheated oven.

Remove from oven. Top with sauce, pre-cooked veggies or meats, and cheese. Return to oven for approximately 5 minutes to bake at 350, then put crust with toppings under the broiler on high for a minute (or less) until cheese is melted and bubbly. Slice and serve.

Notes on the changes I made: the original recipe served 2-4 (about one medium round pizza). I doubled the recipe to make a rectangular pizza in my 15 x 10 jelly roll pan so we would have plenty of leftovers. The original recipe calls for turning over the pizza crust half way through the baking process; I didn't find that to be necessary. The original recipe said to bake for 30 minutes total....my crust was too brown by 25 minutes the first time I tried it.

ENJOY!!