Tag: Naturally Gluten Free

Egg “Muffins”

I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, and I guess these are kind of like frittatas or omelets made in muffin tins. They’re very versatile in the fillings that you can put in them. I’ve done regular onions and green onions–I feel like the green onions provide a little bit of flavor without a slightly crunchy texture. I’ve done regular sausage and turkey sausage. I also do ham and cheese, with extra cheese replacing the peppers. Oh, and one time I cooked the peppers. I like that there weren’t slightly crunchy peppers in there like when you put them in raw, but the flavor didn’t seem as strong when it was cooked. I’ve also made these with cupcake papers, but so much of the egg muffin stuck to the paper that it definitely wasn’t worth it. FYI, sometimes there’s a little extra batter beyond the 24 muffins, so I just make 1-2 more in a greased ramekin with the leftover batter.

To Freeze: These egg muffins are wonderful to make ahead and eat for a few days from the fridge and then freeze the remaining. If I warm them from the fridge, I just microwave them for a minute. And when I freeze them, I generally put two in a sandwich bag (I don’t bother with fancy freezer bags because I know we’ll eat them quickly). If I microwave the frozen ones straight from the freezer, I put a paper towel around them (optional) and microwave them at 50% power for 2 minutes, then 1 minute on 100% power. But usually I take a bag out of the freezer the night before and put it in the fridge. Then in the morning, I microwave for 1 minute, then take a bag from the freezer to put in the fridge to thaw for the next morning.

And this one is naturally gluten free. I’ve even made it dairy free by leaving out the cheese and doubling the salt–I made a sausage, tomato, and green onion one that was great.

Make it a meal with:

  • Hashbrowns
  • Juice
  • Grapes or orange slices

Egg Muffins

  • Servings: 24
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Make ahead for a very easy breakfast.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. Sausage or Ham cubes
  • 24 Eggs
  • 1 c. Onion or Green Onion (about one bunch), chopped
  • 1 c. Bell Pepper, chopped (about 1 big red pepper) (or replace with extra cheese for ham and cheese muffins) 
  • 1 tsp. Salt
  • 1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
  • 1 c. Shredded Cheddar cheese (plus optional cheese to top)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° and grease a muffin tin. In a large pan, cook the sausage over medium-high heat until it’s browned evenly and crumbly. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Stir in onion, bell pepper, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. Add sausage and cheese. Grease muffin tins, then use a 1/3 cup (maybe a Tbsp. less) to fill each muffin cup, not quite all the way to the top. Optionally top with an additional small amount of cheese. Bake about 20-25 minutes, until a knife comes out clean from inserting into the muffins.


Chicken Salad (Loaded)

Chicken salad is great when served of course as a sandwich, but it’s also great with crackers or sliced cucumber. Chicken salad is a nicer sandwich than just lunch meat, but it can also be slightly boring. So we loaded it up with pecans and grapes to make it more exciting and delicious. Note that it does take a fair amount of time to get the chicken off the bone, as well as pulling the grapes off the vine, and chopping everything. But they make great sandwiches for picnics.

If you’re making this gluten free, it’s naturally gluten free as long as you use a new jar of mayo or one that’s dedicated gluten free (so you don’t get crumbs from previous sandwich making).

Make it a meal with:

Chicken Salad (Loaded)

  • Servings: 8-9
  • Difficulty: easy
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Great served with crackers or cucumber slices, or of course as a sandwich.

Ingredients

  • 1 Rotisserie Chicken, pulled to bite-size pieces (Sam’s Club’s is nice and big)
  • 2 Celery Ribs, diced
  • 1 bunch Green Onions, chopped
  • 1 1/2 tsp. Garlic Salt
  • Pepper to taste
  • 1 c. Mayonnaise (or new jar/dedicated gluten free jar)
  • 2 c. Grapes, cut in half
  • 1 1/2 c. Pecan Halves

Directions

In a large bowl, combine chicken, celery, and green onions. Sprinkle with garlic salt and pepper, then stir to combine. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Make a sandwich or serve with cucumbers or crackers.


Chili Lime Corn

We actually went looking for this recipe because Disneyland often has delicious-smelling corn on the cob. I can’t remember if we ever actually tried the corn at Disneyland, haha, but we found this recipe on Food Network and adapted it. Since then, we’ve made it a lot over the years.

You can top frozen corn with just the flavorings after microwaving (obviously it’s not 100% the same). And sometimes we’ll be short on time and we’ll boil the corn cobs beforehand and then grill for just a few moments–but the best flavor comes from letting the corn grill from raw. The original recipe called for grilling the ears in the husk, but we didn’t have good results with that–so we went to aluminum foil. And you generally only need one lime for this recipe if it’s large enough and juicy enough.

Sometimes the flavor is very subtle, so we’ve sometimes doubled the butter mixture for the corn. You spread it on with a spoon or pastry brush. Here’s what it looks like with a single batch:

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Chili Lime Corn

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Delicious flavors, but it usually takes longer to make than I think. Double batch for more flavor.

Ingredients

  • 4 Tbsp. Butter, at room temperature (you can melt if you’re in a hurry)

  • 1 1/2 tsp. Lime Zest

  • 1 Tbsp. Lime Juice

  • 1 tsp. Chili Powder

  • 1/4 tsp. Dried Minced Garlic

  • 1 tsp. Salt

  • 1/2 tsp. Pepper

  • 4 Ears of Corn, husked
  • (Aluminum foil for wrapping)

Directions

Preheat grill to medium. In a small bowl, combine butter, lime zest, juice, chili powder, garlic, salt, and pepper and set aside. Tear off a piece of foil for each ear of corn. Place an ear of corn on the foil, then spread butter mixture evenly on corn with a spoon or pastry brush. Wrap each ear in foil tightly, to keep juices in. Grill for 15-20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes.


Cilantro Lime Rice

I make this rice a lot as a side for taco salad, to go in fajitas, or of course to go with sweet pork burritos or salad. I usually end up getting the rice started to cook and then work on adding the rest of the ingredients–and by the time the 15 minutes of cooking is up, I finally have finished adding all the other ingredients. I think the zesting and juicing the lime takes the most time. But it’s still pretty fast and easy. And often instead of adding chicken broth, I’ll do a heaping 2 tsp. of chicken base with 2 1/4 c. water.

This recipe is adapted from melskitchencafe.com, which has lots of great recipes that you should check out–I’m just including it here for my convenience and because I don’t make any money off this blog.

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Cilantro Lime Rice

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Great with sweet pork, taco salad, and fajitas.

Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp. Butter
  •  1 1/4 c. Rice
  •  2 1/4 c. Chicken Broth (or 2 heaping tsp. chicken base with 2 1/4 c. water)
  •  1 scant tsp. Salt
  •  1/4 tsp. Pepper
  •  Juice and Zest of 1 Large Lime
  •  2 Tbsp. Cilantro, chopped
  •  1/4 tsp. Cumin

Directions

In a pan, melt the butter and add the rice. Stir, letting the rice and butter cook for 1-2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 15-16 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes (I’m usually in too much of a rush for this step). Fluff with fork and serve.


 

Cafe Rio Jalapeno Ranch Dressing

This dressing is amazing! And it’s easy because you just throw everything in the blender. It’s great on a sweet pork salad and also inside a sweet pork burrito. I adapted this from a recipe on The Recipe Critic. It often turned out pretty runny and not spicy enough (albeit still delicious), so I made some adjustments. I’m not sure if it’s 100% a Cafe Rio copycat, but I love it. Sometimes 2 jalapenos can be really hot, but I think I’d prefer a little too much heat in the dressing to basically none. Otherwise you might as well make plain ranch.

And this one is naturally gluten free.

Make it a meal with:

Cafe Rio Jalapeno Ranch Dressing

  • Servings: 10?
  • Difficulty: easy
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Use 2 jalapenos if you want it to have any heat (1 is usually very mild).

Ingredients

  • 1 packet Ranch Dressing Mix
  • 1 c. Mayonnaise
  • 2 Tomatillos, husk removed and cut in chunks
  • 1/2 bunch Fresh Cilantro (discard stems)
  • 1 tsp. Minced Garlic
  • Juice of 1 Lime
  • 1-2 Jalapenos with seeds, cut in chunks (2 if you want any heat)
  • Up to 1 c. Buttermilk for desired consistency (or 1 c. milk + 1 Tbsp. lemon juice) (or just use regular milk)

Directions

Place all ingredients except buttermilk in a blender and pulse until smooth and creamy. Then blend in milk gradually until you reach your desired consistency. Sometimes you won’t need to add much milk at all.


 

Pico de Gallo Salsa

If I’m going to have chips and salsa, I love to have pico. I love the fresh made salsa at Harmons and wish I had a recipe for it, but this is a pretty good recipe adapted from one on All Recipes. Just make sure you give it lots of time to sit, so it can absorb the flavors.

And this one is naturally gluten free, just like the tortilla chips you eat with it.

Make it a meal with:

Pico de Gallo

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Chopping takes a while, but it’s delicious and easy to come together.

Ingredients

  • 6 Roma Tomatoes, diced
  • 1 large Red Bell Pepper or 2 small Green Bell Peppers, diced
  • ½ White or Red Onion, minced
  • 3 Tbsp. Cilantro, chopped
  • 1 Jalapeno, seeded and minced
  • Juice of 1 lime (or 1/2 if it’s very juicy)
  • 1 tsp. Minced Garlic
  • 1 pinch Garlic Powder
  • Salt (quite a bit) and Pepper to taste

Directions

Stir all ingredients in a bowl, then cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours so flavors can meld.


 

Magic Shell (Any Flavor)

When I was growing up, my favorite dipped cone at Dairy Queen was butterscotch. But of course they discontinued it. And they don’t do cherry anymore either. But I’d heard that all you need to make Magic Shell is baking chips and coconut oil. And you know what? They’re right! It’s so easy! If you want to dip, just get a glass and make sure your scoops are secured well before dipping. Hurray for the return of my butterscotch dipped cones!

And luckily this one is naturally gluten free. But if you want to save it for future use, make sure everyone else only uses gluten free ice creams and cones in the dip.

Magic Shell & Dip

  • Servings: 6?
  • Difficulty: easy
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Fun and easy for summer

Ingredients

  • 1 c. Baking Chips (any flavor, like butterscotch, peanut butter, chocolate, mint chocolate, etc.)
  • 3 Tbsp. Coconut Oil (measured when solid or liquid)

Directions

Microwave the chips and oil for 30 seconds in a medium glass, then stir until smooth (microwaving 20 seconds more if needed). Allow to cool for a few minutes before topping your ice cream or dipping. For dips, scoop your ice cream and make sure it’s secure before turning upside down and dipping. Allow the excess to drip off, then flip rightside up again. Store excess at room temperature in a sealed container, then microwave and stir well before using again.

 


GF Pizza Crust

For basically every recipe, I prefer to have a gluten free version of the regular one. But pizza crust is just so different. Gluten is so integral to that stretchy, elastic dough. So I searched out a gluten free version. With gluten free, you basically always get a dough that looks more like Play D’oh or frosting, then you spread it out on parchment paper. I found this recipe on glutenfreepalate.com and am posting it here (slightly modified) so I don’t have to scroll through tons of pages of text and ads (and because I don’t make any money off this blog–it’s just so I have an electronic version of my own recipe book). If you’d like more details and pictures, make sure to visit their website.

In any event, this recipe is great because you don’t need to wait for it to rise. You can also bake a crust and freeze it to top later. Of course you don’t get fluffy, airy crusts, but it’s easy, chewy, and delicious, and you can make it as thick as you want. That’s one of the things about gluten free crusts–a lot of restaurants use the Udi’s crust, which is fine but thin–more like a really thick tortilla. So it’s refreshing to make it thicker. Here’s a picture of the thickness that I make (the black specks are extra basil on top):

Here’s an even thicker one:

Make it a meal with:

  • Green Salad
  • Root Beer

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

  • Servings: 1 pizza
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Chewy, easy, and delightful.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 c. Warm Water

  • 1 Tbsp. Sugar

  • 1 pkg. Yeast

  • 2 c. Gluten Free Flour with Xanthan Gum (like Bob’s Red Mill cup for cup)

  • 1 tsp. Salt

  • 1 Egg

  • 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

  • 1 tsp. Vinegar

Directions

Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 450°. In the bowl of a stand mixer, place water, sugar, and yeast, and let it sit for about 5 minutes or until it’s foamy. (Note: For measuring gluten free flour, always spoon into the measuring cup and level off with a knife instead of scooping out with the measuring cup.) Add the rest of the ingredients and mix with the paddle attachment on low speed for 1 minute. Using an oiled spatula, scrape the dough onto a sheet of parchment paper and use oiled hands to spread into your desired size and shape (about 10-12″). Place the parchment on the pizza stone and bake for 10 minutes or until slightly golden brown. Carefully remove from oven with the paper (remember parchment can get brittle and break easily after baking), then add toppings, return with paper to the stone, and bake for another 10-15 minutes until golden brown.


 

Buttercream Frosting

There are lots of buttercream frosting recipes out there. But I loved the frosting on Harmons cakes and celebration cookies. Luckily the Harmons chefs shared the recipe with me (which I’m sure has changed by now anyway), and I’ve used it many times. I’ve even used it as a base for flavored buttercreams as well.

And thank goodness this one is naturally gluten free.

Buttercream Frosting

  • Servings: 12?
  • Difficulty: easy
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Perfect for cakes or sugar cookies.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. Butter (aka 1 box)
  • 2 lb. Powdered Sugar (aka 1 large bag)
  • 1 Tbsp. Vanilla
  • 1/4 c. Water

Directions

Beat butter well. Slowly incorporate sugar. Scrape down, then mix in vanilla. Then mix in water. (For strawberry buttercream, replace the water with 1/2 c. fresh or frozen strawberries, pureed and strained.)


Muddy Buddies

I’ve always enjoyed Muddy Buddies, and now that I have celiac, I eat them a lot more because they’re naturally gluten free. We always seem to have Rice Chex around the house now, as well as the rest of the ingredients. I’ve even used milk chocolate chips, and it was still delicious. This recipe is straight from Chex itself, and it’s always a winner. Sometimes we’ll even put in seasonal M&Ms to add color and fun, like Valentine or Halloween M&Ms.

And of course this one is naturally gluten free. Just make sure your peanut butter jar is new or dedicated gluten free. And if you may have ever used the same measuring cup for flour as your powdered sugar, use a new bag.

Muddy Buddies

  • Servings: 8?
  • Difficulty: easy-medium
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Crunchy, chocolatey, and peanut buttery.

Ingredients

  • 9 c. Rice Chex
  • 1 c. Semisweet Chocolate Chips 
  • ½ c. Peanut Butter (new or dedicated GF jar)
  • ¼ c. Butter
  • 1 tsp. Vanilla
  • 1 ½ c. Powdered Sugar
  • (Optional: M&Ms)

Directions

Measure cereal into large bowl; set aside. Microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in 1-quart microwavable bowl, uncovered for 1 minute; stir. Microwave 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour chocolate mixture over cereal in bowl, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into gallon bag; add powdered sugar. Seal bag and shake until well coated. Add more powdered sugar if necessary.