Happy Easter!

Tags

breakfast, cheeze, eggs, GF muffins, gluten free, Maker's Diet, mango, mushrooms, red pepper, stratta, vegan

Happy Easter Everyone! Jesus is Risen! Today, the culmination of our Christian faith has been fulfilled. Jesus conquered death and the tomb is empty! All for His intensely powerful love for us!

yum!

So today, after Mass, we had our Easter Brunch! It was filled with a delectable spread — both vegan, and meat friendly!

The Hubba-Hubba non-vegan stratta complete with bacon and LOTS of cheese!

For the non-vegans, there was an amazingly delicious stratta, which was my sis-in-law’s famous recipe. Some of the ingredients are: a stick of butter, cream of mushroom soup, a bag of cheddar cheese, and bacon! Yum! So decadent! There was also a Honey Baked Ham, and bacon.

look at that GF, Dairy-Free deliciousness

For the G-Free-ers, there was another stratta, which was healthy — made with GF bread, eggs, a little vegan cheese, and LOTS of fresh veggies! YUM!

melty cheeze, chewy mushrooms, and crunchy peppers!

Here’s what you need:

5 pieces of GF bread
4 whole eggs + 4 egg whites
splash of plain, unsweetened almond milk
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 can on green chilis
red pepper, diced
mushrooms, sliced
vegan Monterey Jack cheese

Saute your onion and green chilis in 1 tsp EVOO with salt and pepper. Spray a casserole dish with EVOO and tear your bread into pieces into the dish. Press them down a bit. Then, combine your eggs and milk in a bowl and whisk together. Stir in your cheese and all veggies. Pour over your bread. Cover with tin foil and refrigerate overnight.  Then, in the morning, sprinkle the top with a little more vegan cheese and a drizzle of almond milk, and bake for an hour at 350 degrees. YUM!

a plate full of goodness!

This stratta was so amazing because the bread had soaked up all the delicious egginess overnight, and the flavors all married together. The green chillies gave it a little flare, and the jack cheese definitely kicked it up a knotch. It was like a decadent, savory bread pudding! So decadently delicious, yet surprisingly healthy — made with half egg whites and veggies!

yum yum GF muffins! So incredibly moist and tender!

There were also delicious GF muffins. These were from a box mix ::sigh:: but so outstanding. GF baked goods are notoriously cakey, dense, crumbly, and chalky. But these! Wow! They were moist and delicious! Light and fluffy!

so moist and light! No one could believe they were Gluten Free!

My entire family was blown away by these muffins! The mix I used was Meredith’s Marvelous Muffins! It’s basically a blank canvas that you can turn into banana nut muffins, blueberry, carrot cake, zucchini muffins, anything really! So I made cinnamon raisin. I added about 3/4 cup raisins and 3/4 tsp cinnamon! And instead of using butter, I used canola oil (dairy-free). They were so good!

the fruit salad to end all fruit salads!

We also had a GORGEOUS fruit salad, with fresh berries, pears, green apples and honey crisp apples, mango, cantaloupe and bananas. Succulent! The apples were sweet and tart and incredibly crunchy! The mango was a little tart but sweet, the banana was creamy and rich, the blue berries and strawberries were so fresh and the pears were spicy and sweet while the canteloupe was sweet and refreshing. MMM!

look at that AMAZING fruit salad!

I made way too much, because my eyes are bigger than my stomach when it comes to fruit — but that’s ok, because we’ll have fresh snack access for the next few days :)

fresh pressed organic orange juice!

And we washed it all down with fresh-pressed, organic orange juice from our juicer! We juiced organic oranges with 1 lime and 1 green apple. It was mouth-watering fantastic! This was a spread fit for a king!

gorgeous stratta with fresh veggies and an OUTSTANDING gluten-free muffin!

This weekend has been so wonderful. It has been so great having the family all together. I haven’t laughed this hard in a long time! Everyone let loose and had a great time. We will cherish these memories forever. The delicious food was just icing on the cake of a fantastic weekend:)

The BEST GF Pesto Pizza & a CPB Krispie Bar :)

Tags

cheeze, chocolate, dessert, gluten free, Maker's Diet, mushrooms, olives, peanut, peanut butter, pesto, pizza, red pepper, tomatoes, vegan

Pizza is one of those foods that bring people together :) Super Bowl Parties, Friday Movie Nights, Birthday Parties, Bowling Nights, Elementary School Clean Classroom Winner Parties (remember the bribery?!), Poker Nights, Oscar Parties….the list goes on and on. Well, lets add to that list — because this AMAZING gluten and dairy free pizza brings both GF-ers, and non-GF-ers together with its fantastic crust!

I served it with tasty marinara sauce!

Well let me just say, this crust did not taste gluten free.  The texture, the flavor, the crunchiness and chewiness made this crust 100% delicious.  I will go so far as to declare that I am no longer looking for a crust recipe — this is my #1. The outside of the crust was that crunchy, golden texture that everyone loves. Then the center maintained that crisp-chewiness. It was not at all dense, crumbly, cakey, or sandy like most GF crusts. Just good.

that's my mom and I from the 80s in the back:)

I’ve made this delectable pizza before, but I’ll refresh your memory!

It was pretty easy to make…in fact, this was more like making a quick bread batter than dough.

happy tummy pizza!

This makes enough for one medium-ish pizza–it fed 3 people. If you’re feeding 4, you’ll definitely want to double the recipe and make 2 pies. We made ours in a stand mixer, but a hand mixer would work just fine. Here’s what you’ll need.

1 cup tapioca flour
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup GF AP flour mix (I used Bob’s Mill)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 Tbsp light brown sugar
1 cup warm water (not boiling, but warm)
good pinch of sugar
3/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 Tbsp olive oil (You can use 2 Tbsp, but my tummy only likes 1)
1 beaten egg
1/8 tsp apple cider vinegar

under a blanket of vegan cheese!

Here’s what you do: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add all the dry ingredients and sugar to your mixer and mix them all together. (Use a hand whisk to make sure they are well incorporated). Then proof your yeast in 1 cup of warm water with a good pinch of sugar. It will foam–let it sit for about 10 minutes.  While the yeast sits, combine your beaten egg, oil, and vinegar in a separate bowl. Then, with your mixer on low, slowly pour in your yeast water, and egg mixture. Beat for about a minute on medium until it becomes smooth and batter-like.

Then, pour your batter onto a parchment-paper-sprayed-with-olive-oil lined pizza pan. (That was a mouthful!) Using a silicone spatula, spread it out until it is nice and thin. Then, let that sit by the oven for about 15 minutes.

olives and mushrooms and peppers, oh my!

Bake it for 10 minutes, then take it out, spray it with EVOO, and return it to the oven for another 15 minutes until it is golden — keep your eye on it! You now have the most amazing pizza crust to top with whatever your heart desires! Put your toppings on and pop it back in the oven until the cheese melts.

gorgeous emerald pesto on an outstanding crust!

Here’s how I topped it — WITH VEGAN PESTO!

1 cup fresh basil
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
2 garlic cloves
juice of half a lemon
1 Tbsp EVOO
3-4 Tbsp water
salt to taste

Whirl those in the food processor until you get your gorgeous, emerald, creamy pesto!

refreshing and fantastic pesto

So the pizza had a pesto sauce instead of a red sauce.  This was the absolute correct decision. Then I topped it with:

1 onion, 6 sliced mushrooms, 1 red pepper — all sautéed together with 1 tsp EVOO, 2 grated garlic cloves, S & P.

sliced kalamata olives, chopped sun-dried tomatoes

Veggie Shreds Mozzarella Style Vegan Cheese

Oh. My. Gosh. This was AMAZING! The crust texture was phenomenal: crunchy but a little chewy, and sturdy enough to hold the toppings! The pesto was packed with fantastic basil and garlic flavor — so bright and lovely! The olives were salty, while the sun-dried tomatoes were intensely sweet. The mushrooms were earthy, while the red peppers were sweet and crunchy. All combined to pizza perfection :)

SO good!

Finally, I rounded out the meal with CPB Krispie Bars! CPB, for those of you who aren’t as obsessed as myself, stands for Chocolate Peanut Butter! This is my go-to dessert flavor combo. These bars weren’t outstanding…they were just ok. They tasted great, but the texture was lacking….welcome to the world of GF experimentation!

Gluten and Dairy Free!

I beat 2 egg whites with 1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar and 1/4 cup sugar until they formed stiff peaks. Then, I sifted in 1 cup of powdered sugar and 4 cups of Rice Krispies cereal. I put it in an olive-oil-sprayed baking dish and baked it for 15 minutes at 325. I then drizzled a mixture of semi-sweet, dairy-free chocolate chips, peanut butter, about 3/4 cup of powdered sugar, almond milk and vanilla extract. I warmed it in the microwave so I could melt and stir it, so it could drizzle.

not fantastic, but delicious

These were just alright — the texture just didn’t blow me out of the water. What happened – I think – is that the very porous krispies absorbed a lot of the egg white mixture, making them very hard to chew. My jaw got a workout eating that bad boy!! I enjoyed it, but will probably stick with vegan marshmallows in the future!

Oh well, a tasty mistake! The pizza definitely made up for it!

Let this healthy and delicious pizza bring G and G-Free together!

Gluten Free, Vegan Skyline Chili!

Tags

brown rice, cheeze, chocolate, gluten free, lentil, Maker's Diet, mushrooms, pasta, skyline chili, spinach, tomatoes, vegan

Well, the Bearcats lost last night. Big let down…but I decided to still celebrate Cincinnati with GF Vegan Skyline Chili!

Gluten Free, Vegan Skyline Chili!

Skyline chili, or Cincinnati Chili, is an institution in Cincinnati. People around here LOVE Skyline, and will eat it in any form.  Classically, you eat a “3-Way”…which is spaghetti, chili, and a mound of finely shredded cheddar. Then, there’s the “4-Way”, which adds kidney beans, and the “5-Way”, which adds chopped white onions. The next traditional way to eat Skyline, is a Cheese Coney…a hot dog with chili and a mound of cheddar. There’s also Chili Cheese fries, and sandwiches. You name it.  The last way, which might be my favorite, is Skyline Dip…which you make at home with the canned chili they sell at the grocery store. Picture this: a layer of cream cheese, chili, and a bag of shredded cheddar, baked in a casserole dish until melty and golden — eaten with tortilla chips or fritos. Yes, this is the glorious institution that is Skyline Chili.

wow, yum!

So just what is so special about it? — The blend of spices — here’s a hint…cinnamon and cocoa powder!! Its has hints of a mole sauce, but it is just indescribably delicious. And you know when you’re eating Skyline.

mmmmm! Cincinnati chili!

So how do you take this amazing meat sauce and make it vegan?? Lentils! The fabulous, forgotten legume stands in perfectly for the meat — it is hearty, chewy and delicious. So here’s the recipe.

1 onion, diced
1 green or yellow pepper, diced
1 small garlic clove, minced
3 cups veg stock
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 8oz can tomato sauce
*optional–dash Worcestershire Sauce–not vegan
1 cup dry lentils
SPICE MIX:
1 T chili powder (less if you don’t like spicy heat)
1/4 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp ground cloves
pinch of nutmeg
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa
pinch of sugar
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cinnamon
1 bay leaf

In a large pot, saute your onion and pepper in 1 1/2 tsp EVOO, salt and pepper. After about 3 minutes, stir in your garlic clove. After another minute or so, stir in your spice mix. Coat the veggies for about 30 seconds and then add in the rest of the ingredients. Bring it to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer, and let it cook partially covered for about 35 minutes, or until the lentils are tender, stirring occasionally. YUM! Serve over GF spaghetti with shredded cheddar — dairy or non-dairy!

Zesty Spinach and Mushrooms!!

With this, I made my delicious, zesty spinach and mushrooms. This is my family’s favorite vegetable that I make. Here’s what you do.

1/2 onion, diced
3 small garlic cloves, minced
6 button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 – 1 cup frozen green beans
splash of white wine
1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard dissolved in 2-3 Tbsp water

Saute 1/2 onion and 3 small garlic cloves in 1/2 tsp EVOO, salt and pepper. After they soften, add in your mushrooms and let them release their moisture. After they cook down, add in a splash of white wine, and let that reduce. Then stir in your frozen green beans. Finally, add your spinach and wilt it by stirring in your dijon mixture. YUM.

healthy, and packed with flavor!

This meal was so, so amazing. For someone who hasn’t been able to enjoy Skyline, because it’s not gluten-free or vegan, this was a phenomenal moment. Sheer food bliss. :) And not just for me! My dad said that this meal was in the top 5 of what I make! It tasted just like Skyline! — just maybe a little spicier. And you didn’t miss the meat! The texture was so hearty and chewy. The only thing I did miss, was the huge mound of light-as-air, finely shredded cheddar cheese. Vegan cheese just didn’t quite cut it :) My parents got the real deal cheese though!

I hope this recipe can bring some joy to GF-ers, or non-meat-eaters that dream of being able to eat Skyline once again:)

GF Mexican Lasagna and Tulips!

Tags

avocado, brown rice, cheeze, cilantro, gluten free, goat cheese, lasagna, Maker's Diet, mexican, olives, red pepper, tomatoes, vegan

Valentine’s Day may be over according to the calendar, but at our house, it is just starting to bloom! Literally! The beautiful tulips from my dad absolutely exploded overnight! Look at how beautiful! How lucky am I?!

the blooms have arrived!

In other news, tonight’s dinner was out of control delicious. We’re talking 10 outta 10!

look at those delicious layers!

Mexican Lasagna: sautéed peppers and onions layered between tortillas then topped with guacamole. YUM!!!

So here’s what you need:

1/2 red onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

can of diced tomatoes, drained

palmful of cumin and chili powder

chopped cilantro

green onion, diced

kalamata olives, sliced

organic salsa

3 brown rice tortilla shells

grated goat cheese

2 avocados, mashed with lime juice and salt

decadent avocado dollop

Take 2 avocados and put the “meat” into a bowl and add lime juice and salt.  Smash with a fork until creamy. Then refrigerate.

Next: sautee the onions -seasoned with s&p- in 2 tsp EVOO until tender. Then add the garlic and peppers. Cook about 5 or 6 minutes until they’ve softened a bit. At this point, add the cumin and chili powder. After they’re a bit more tender, stir in the drained diced tomatoes. Check seasoning and adjust accordingly. Let cook for another 5 minutes, turn off the heat, and stir in some chopped cilantro. This is now your filling for the lasagna.

Spray a round casserole dish (or dutch oven) with olive oil spray. Put 1/4 c salsa in the bottom and spread around. Place 1 tortilla on top. Cover with 1/2 the veggie mixture. Top with tortilla. Cover with remaining veggie mixture. Top with final tortilla. Spread with 1/4 cup salsa. sprinkle with grated goat cheese (we used raw Old Kentucky Tomme). Sprinkle that with 1/2 the chopped green onion.

Put it –covered– in a 350 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes–we’re just heating it through and melting the cheese. Uncover it for the last 5 minutes and then pop it under the broiler for 2 minutes to get it brown and bubbly:) Sprinkle with olives, more green onion, and cilantro. Top each serving with a dollop of mashed avocado and ENJOY!

almost too pretty to cut...almost :)

I served it with broiled grouper….amazing!! This fish was so fresh and so delectable, thanks to Lobsta Bakes: the FANTASTIC local fish monger that flies in the day’s fresh-catch all the way from his father’s fishery in Maine! All wild, ocean caught, never frozen, fresh fish.

I mean, come onnn

This was so delicious. My mom said I should open a restaurant and serve this. I was a little “gung ho” on the portions…so my dad was the only one who was able to clear his plate :) We were close though!

The flavors in here were outstanding. The cumin and chili powder gave this dish a subtle, spicy, warmth. I was a little nervous about using goat cheese in the dish, as cheddar or monterey jack are the norm with Mexican cuisine. (Raw goat’s milk cheese is the ONLY dairy allowed on The Maker’s Diet). But here’s the fascinating thing: the tang from the goat cheese actually mimicked the flavor of sour cream! Do not fear the goat cheese!! :) And then the avocado…need I say more? And finally, the textures were just phenomenal…the tortillas got nice and soft and chewy; there was a little crunch from the veggies, and from the outside crispy edge; and then the smooth creaminess from the avacado.

As I’m writing this, my mom just came in and said, “Gosh, Care, that meal you made tonight…wow.” I guess that says it all. Until next time!

A Gluten Free Superbowl!

Tags

avocado, brown rice, carrots, cheeze, cilantro, gluten free, goat cheese, guacamole, Maker's Diet, mushrooms, olives, pizza, red pepper, tomatoes, vegan

Superbowl Sunday.  One of the busiest pizza-ordering days of the year. While the nation is gearing up for a great game with dangerously delectable nibbles, I was making gluten-free, healthy goodies.

Dinner and a snack. That sounded good. For a game time nibble, I made my UNBELIEVABLE guacamole. I served it with corn chips, brown rice chips for me (no corn right now) and veggies.

yumm

Just a word of warning. If you make this guac, you WILL become addicted. I mean, you will make it again tomorrow. Its THAT good.

2 ripe avocados

1/4-1/2 red onion

1 clove minced or grated garlic

1 tomato, seeded and diced

cilantro, chopped

juice of 1/2 a lime

salt

In a bowl, mash the avocado and immediately salt and squeeze lime juice over it. (This prevents browning). Stir in the rest of your ingredients, except for the tomatoes.  Fold them in at the very very end so that it doesn’t water the guac down and turn it red. Refrigerate for an hour, or serve immediately if you just can’t wait!

For dinner, we made gluten free, vegan pizza! (with raw goat milk cheese, so its not truuuuly vegan).

gluten free *almost* vegan pizza!

I sautéed onions, mushrooms and garlic; and then I built my pizza.

I used Udi’s pre-made GF pizza crust and it was GREAT! SO convenient, and great texture and flavor. I put organic tomato sauce with salt and pepper as the base. Then, I sprinkled chiffonade basil over it. I covered it with my onion and mushroom mixture. I also added red bell pepper. I sprinkled chopped sun-dried tomatoes and kalamata olives. Finally, I blanketed the entire pizza in Veggie Shreds Mozzarella Cheeze and shredded goat cheese. I baked it for 5 minutes in a 350 degree oven until the cheese melted. SO DELICIOUS.

mmm mmm good!

Just a note on goat cheese.  Dairy is something to be avoided at all costs when you have ulcerative colitis.  However: raw, unpasteurized goat’s milk cheese is okay. It is on the Maker’s Diet and offers calcium, protein and is y-u-m-m-o! We used Old Kentucky Tomme goat cheese, which is raw, organic, and made at a local farm in Indiana.

GO Giants!

Gluten Free Vegan Pizza from Scratch!

Tags

brown rice, cheeze, gluten free, Maker's Diet, mushrooms, olives, pizza, tomatoes, vegan

Pizza gets such a bad wrap nowadays. Seen as a “diet killer” and junk food.  Well I’d like to debunk this pizza myth.

Pizza is actually a nutrition powerhouse IF you eat a sensible pizza in proper portions! *read: no meatlovers’ deluxe* The pizzas I like to make and eat are low fat, bursting with veggies and flavor, and super yummy!

Enter the Veggie Love Pizza Pie!

Veggie Love

Lets start with the crust: you can buy fantastic GF pizza crusts at the store, and I would definitely recommend that if you’d like a delish meal in a snap. But tonight…I felt daring :) Bring on the Gluten Free flours!!!!

Crust:

Start out:

2 1/4 t of active dry yeast

1 cup of warm almond milk

1/2 t sugar

Combine those three into a bowl and let stand for 5 minutes.

In the meantime, combine:

3/4 cup brown rice flour

1/2 c cornstarch

2 t xanthan gum

1/2 t sea salt

1 t dried Italian seasoning

Put those in a food processor and with the processor turned on, pour the next 2 ingredients through the chute.

1 T EVOO

2 t apple cider vinegar

Process for 30 seconds and then add about 1/4 cup (+/-) of brown rice flour until the mixture becomes “doughy.”

Then place the dough on a parchment paper lined pizza pan and with oiled hands, spread the dough out to the edges. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes or until the crust is almost golden. (Our was thick and so we baked it for about 20). When it comes out, brush the edges with EVOO.

**My notes: this was a great crust, but when we were making it, we thought it was going to be horrible…but don’t let the consistency scare you! When it comes out of the food processor, it will be HOT and it is super hard to get it to spread out…oiled hands are clutch in this situation.

Toppings:

While our crust was baking, I sautéed some onions and mushrooms in 1 t EVOO until tender.

I spread the crust with organic canned tomato sauce (no salt added). I sprinkled sea salt, pepper, a touch of oregano and fresh basil on that; topped it with the onions and mushrooms, diced tomatoes, olives, sun-dried tomatoes and some non-dairy cheeze! Don’t let that scare you! Daiya cheeze it actually quite wonderful, and it melts pretty well! Pop the pizza back in the oven just until the cheeze “melts”…less than 2 minutes!

This pizza is super nutritious, low fat, and so much fun to eat! We devoured this beauty while watching our Packers get whooped by NY :(

Until next time….C

 

Gluten Free Vegan Mac and Cheeze!

Tags

brown rice, butternut squash, cashews, cheeze, gluten free, Maker's Diet, mushrooms, mustard, pasta, spinach, Ulcerative Colitis, vegan

One of the things you crave when you eliminate dairy from your diet is…CHEESE. The comfort and richness of cheese that just warms the belly and soul.  However, for people with Ulcerative Colitis, dairy is a big “no no” as it inhibits healing of the intestinal lining. But enough about that…lets talk CHEEZE!!

This cheeze gets its creamy and satisfying texture from ground up cashews and…butternut squash!! Sounds super crazy and not very likely to be a winner, but oooh, quite the contrary.  This was a two thumbs up recipe. It had that deep belly satisfaction that shoots warmth through your entire body. The texture was much like…dare I say…Stouffers?

mac and cheeze pleaze!

This fabulous recipe I found from Oh She Glows. In her recipe, she uses Earth Balance, or margarine. I’m trying to stay clear of processed, unhealthy ingredients like margarine, so I used her cashew based cheeze sauce found here and then added in the roasted butternut squash and almond milk. This was seriously so yummy.

I toasted up some GF bread crumbs with parsley and 1t EVOO. mmmmm

Enjoy this treat for your taste buds and tummy!

 

Let the Adventure Begin!

Tags

avocado, beans, brown rice, cheeze, cilantro, gluten free, guacamole, mexican, olives, red pepper, tomatoes, Ulcerative Colitis, vegan

I grew up in Ohio: read: meat and potatoes.  My father has been on the Atkins diet for several years. Needless to say, when I was forced to come home because of my current UC flare and was eating a gluten free vegan diet, they were less than thrilled about eating “rabbit food.” But, they were so supportive, that they decided to eat what I was eating.  This propelled me into my culinary conquest: If I was going to subject my parents to a gluten free, vegan diet, I was going to make sure they were eating REALLY GOOD food.

My other stipulation: everything had to be really easily digestible and organic.

I decided to ease them in with some good old Mexican Happy Tummy Casserole.

Happy Tummy Mexican Casserole!

Bottom Layer: Cup of brown rice cooked in vegetable stock.

4th Layer: Put 1 can organic black beans (drained and rinsed) into the food processor with the juice of 1/2 a lime, 1/2 an onion, 1 garlic clove, a handful of cilantro and 1/2 t of cumin. Pulse 3 or 4 times to break down beans slightly. Spread over rice.

3rd Layer: Veggie Shreds Cheddar flavor.

Put under the broiler until you see the cheeze “melt”

2-1 Layer: Top the cheeze with diced tomatoes, green onions and sliced black olives.

Serve with a dollop of my Rockin’ Guacamole and organic, non-GMO corn chips and enjoy!

Rockin’ Guacamole:

2 avocados

1/2 onion

1 clove of garlic

juice of 1/2 a lime

de-seeded diced tomato

chopped cilantro

salt

Put the avocado in your serving bowl and squeeze the lime juice to prevent browning. With a knife cut it to form chunks. Then with the back of a fork, mash till desired consistency (I like chunky). Add remaining ingredients, minus the tomatoes, and incorporate. Finally, gently fold in the tomatoes. Serve immediately or chill for an hour in the fridge!