GFCFSF Dairy Recipes

I was searching for a GFCFSF cream cheese recipe last night and found this site: Cassidy's Craveable Creations.

Cassidy has recipes for GFCFSF cream cheese, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, whipped cream, sour cream and much, much more.

This is the page where all of the above recipes are listed.

I hope you are as happy about these recipes as I am! There are so many recipes that I have not been able to prepare because of the presence of soy in grocery store substitutions for these items.

Thank you Cassidy!!

Gluten Free Flours for Cakes

I was looking at referrals for this blog the other day and noticed that someone was searching for information about using GF flour mixes in cake recipes. I have used Carol Fenster's gluten-free flour mix for cakes and it works very well. Her cake recipes also call for leavening ingredients such as baking soda and baking powder as well as xantham gum and guar gum at times.

This morning I saw a link to Gluten Free Baking's Conversion Chart and thought I would share it here. I hope you find it helpful. Happy GF Baking!

Old Fashioned Creamed Corn

2 10 ounce pkgs. frozen organic corn
3/4 cup water
2 tablespoons GFCF margarine (we use Earth Balance soy free)
salt
pepper

Bring water, corn, GFCF margarine, salt, and pepper to a boil in small saucepan. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Scoop 3 cups of the corn out of the saucepan and pulse in food processor for about 10-15 seconds. Add to remaining corn in saucepan. Stir. Cook for an additional 30 minutes on low heat, stirring frequently. Serves 4-6.


~ I have only recently purchased a food processor so this might be a "duh" recipe for many of you. I have missed creamed corn so much since we switched to organic (which means No GMOs) foods and beverages. I purchased organic corn on the cob several times in an attempt to make creamed corn but no matter what I tried (organic cornstarch mixture included), I could not make the corn creamy. So, about 45 minutes ago, it occurred to me: Use the food processor! I bought the food processor to shred organic squash so that I could cook it like hash browns, but it is now also my corn creamer. Love it! ~

Cream of Celery, Chicken, and Mushroom Soups

GFCF Cream of Celery Soup

1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 tablespoon GFCF margarine
1/2 cup GFCF milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon GFCF chicken boullion powder or paste
salt
pepper

Season celery with salt and pepper and saute in margarine over low heat until tender. Add milk, cornstarch, and boullion. Increase heat to boiling, whisking constantly until thickened. Remove from heat.

GFCF Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 cup cooked chicken, finely chopped
1 tablespoon GFCF margarine
1/2 cup GFCF milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon GFCF chicken boullion powder or paste
salt
pepper

Season chicken with salt and pepper and toss in melted margarine over low heat until heated through. Add milk, cornstarch, and boullion. Increase heat to boiling, whisking constantly until thickened. Remove from heat.

GFCF Cream of Mushroom Soup

6 baby portobello muchrooms, chopped
1 tablespoon GFCF margarine
2 teaspoons exra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup GFCF milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon GFCF chicken boullion powder or paste
salt
pepper

Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and saute in margarine and extra virgin olive oil over low heat until done. Add milk, cornstarch, and boullion. Increase heat to boiling, whisking constantly until thickened. Remove from heat.

Fried Okra

1 bag frozen cut okra (not whole pods)
1/2 cup (or more, if needed) Bob's Red Mill GF Cornbread Mix
salt
pepper
oil for deep frying

Place frozen okra in a large shallow bowl and allow to partially thaw (just until the pieces are moist) at room temperature. Toss with BRM GF cornbread mix, salt and pepper to coat. Carefully place coated pieces into hot oil and cook until golden brown. Drain. Salt to taste.

~ I would venture to guess that you could moisten fresh cut okra with water before tossing with the CB mix, or even coat fresh cut okra with an egg mixture before coating with the CB mix. ~

Better Battered Cubed Steak

Cubed steaks
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Pepper
GFCF Flour Mix
Oil

Cut cubed steaks into strips in the opposite direction that they were cubed. Season on both sides with Lawry's Seasoned Salt and pepper. Coat with flour mix on all sides. Cook in heated oil until done, turning strips as necessary.

~ Cutting the steaks into strips - against the grain - makes them so much more tender! ~

Flour Mix Update

I am now using Carol Fenster's Sorghum Flour Blend mix exclusively for all recipes that call for flour: Carol's Gluten-Free Flour Blends

I use Sorghum Flour Blend (#3) and I omit the 4th ingredient.

This blend, minus the 4th ingredient, is featured in the Carol Fenster's 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes cookbook that I purchased in September 2009.

Strawberries, Fruits & Veggies Info.

Environmental Working Group's list of 47 fruits and veggies, ranked by pesticide load:

List


Tips


Non-Organic Strawberries Alert

Udi's Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread

Oh my goodness! I learned about this bread a few weeks ago from MaconMom on Twitter and recently I found out that our favorite health food store carries it.

What can I say about this bread without sounding silly and ridiculous?

This bread made me cry happy tears. I just had two small ham sandwiches for the first time in months that didn't make me reconsider sandwiches as a meal option. THIS BREAD is so soft and delicious and not spongy.

Once again, our life regains a little more normalcy. First it was Carol Fenster's recipes, and now it is this bread.

I told the clerk at the store that I would see them in a month (I purchase enough food to last a month because they are quite a distance from us) unless the Udi's bread was as good as everyone said. I told him we'd be back for more if it was (I only purchased two loaves). He laughed and said, "OK then, we'll be seeing you soon."

No doubt.

Udi's Gluten Free Products

Udi's Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread

Where to Find Udi's Products in Your Area

I also purchased a package of Udi's Lemon Streusel Muffins. We will try those tomorrow and I will post a review.

This is the best GFCF sandwich bread I have ever had. God Bless Udi and MaconMom and Yvonne's.

Better Than Boullion Organic Bases

Better Than Boullion Organic Chicken Base and Organic Beef Base are so good, so full-bodied, so cooked-all-day-long delicious, I may never go back to GFCF boullion packets again!

Better Than Boullion Try them. :)

I have seen both the chicken and beef base jars at Publix and Kroger, as well as our favorite health food store.

Here is their Frequenty Asked Questions page.

Favorite Thing ~ Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread

Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread is absolutely divine. It has the buttery flavor Fleischmann's unsalted margarine does not have and it is not as concentrated as Ghee. And, unlike Ghee and Fleischmann's, Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread is delicious when spread on your favorite foods - like muffins, or GFCF bread, or biscuits, or waffles.

GFCF Whipping Cream

TACA Whipping Cream Recipes

GFCF Diet Whipped Toppings

Mimicreme

Mimic Creme does not whip, but works well in recipes that call for whipping cream that is not to be whipped for the recipe. The manufacturers of Mimicreme will be releasing a new Product, "HEALTY TOP"™ in the next few months. According to their website, "Healthy Top (tm) will be a whip-able, non-dairy cream based on almonds and cashews", just like MimicCreme."

GFCF Buttermilk

For one cup of buttermilk:

1 cup GFCF milk (soy, rice, almond)
1 tablespoon vinegar

Mix well and let stand for 10 minutes.

{When I first discovered that, YES, one can make GFCF buttermilk, I sang "Hallelujah!" It is a very important ingredient in the South.}

How I Use Ghee With Margarine

Both of my grandmothers lived on farms. One churned fresh milk and made delicious butter. I was so disappointed in GFCF margarine because it lacked the buttery taste I have loved and cooked with all of my life.

When I first purchased Ghee as an alternative to GFCF margarine I was delighted to find that it did have a very buttery flavor, but I was put off by the overly concentrated butter flavor it brought to my recipes. My solution? I use both GFCF margarine and Ghee in recipes that call for butter or margarine. For example: If a recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of butter or margarine, I use 1 teaspoon GFCF margarine and 1/2 teaspoon Ghee. If a recipe calls for one stick of butter or margarine, I use 1/2 stick GFCF margarine and 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) Ghee. And so on. And now our GFCF life is light and buttery again. :)

(If you missed our previous discussion about Ghee vs. GFCF margarine, you can find it Here.

Homemade Flour Mixes ~ Totally Worth It

Since our family went gluten-free on August 1, I have been using pre-packaged GFCF flour mixes: Bob's Red Mill Baking Mix and Bob's Red Mill Biscuit mix instead of homemade GFCF flour mixes. It wasn't until I tried Pamela's Gourmet GF cookies that I realized the unique (metallic ?) taste in BRM Mixes is so unnecessary. I can only surmise that this unique taste comes from the ground beans they use. I looked at the ingredients list on Pamela's GF cookies and noticed there are no bean flours, but rather combinations that include rice flours instead.

I did more research at TACA and was surprised to see that one of the contributors for the flour mix recipes page thinks rice flours (used in Bette Hagman's Feather Light recipe and Pamela's GF cookies) are gritty.

To me, regular flour seems very "light" so I decided to make a combination of Bette Hagman's Feather Light and the recipe the Taca author preferred - GF Flour Mix II. I omit the almond flour simply because it is so expensive.

Today I made my first from scratch recipe using my combo flour mix and it is just leaps and bounds better than Bob's Red Mill mixes, in my opinion. There is no weird taste or aftertaste and I detected no grittiness at all. I remain grateful to Bob's Red Mill mixes for helping me get started on this GFCF journey, and for also giving me that nudge I needed to actually make a flour mix. For, once I tasted Pamela's cookies, there was just no going back.

I must stress the importance of adding xantham gum to your recipes that call for GFCF flour, unless you want a cake that does not rise. I also noticed that cake recipes, instead of calling for 1 teaspoon of baking powder (for example), call for 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder AND 1/2 tsp. of baking soda.

I will edit the recipes I have posted thusfar to include flour mixes.


*** Update: November 20, 2009 ***

I am now using Carol Fenster's Sorghum Blend Flour Mix recipe exclusively for all recipes that call for flour: Carol's Gluten-Free Flour Blends

I use Sorghum Flour Blend (#3) and I omit the 4th ingredient. This blend, minus the 4th ingredient, is featured in the Carol Fenster's 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes cookbook that I purchased in September.

GFCF Pastas

Today I would like to take a minute and share my thoughts about GFCF pastas. I would love it if you would share your thoughts about it, too. I am not sure I have this GFCF "thing" down when it comes to pasta (or bread), to be honest.

First let me say (probably again) that I love, love, love pasta. There is hardly anything better to me than pasta simply cooked in chicken broth, or just cooked pasta tossed with butter and garlic salt. It's like bread - just add butter --> HAPPY.

The first GFCF spaghetti style pasta I tried was made from corn and I used it in a spaghetti carbonara recipe. It did not taste good and it seemed to dissolve in my mouth. Other than the dissolving thing, perhaps this pasta would be better in something like a chili-mac recipe? Corn + Chili = Yummy.

The second pasta I tried was organic brown rice pasta, in elbow macaroni style, with chicken and chicken broth. At first there was a distinct very slight bitter taste but it was gone the next day when we ate more as leftovers.

I tried the organic brown rice in spaghetti style in traditional spaghetti and it was just simply gross. I did forget to toss the spaghetti in (gfcf) margarine and garlic salt before I added it to the sauce. Maybe that is where I went wrong? A nice Italian lady told me organic brown rice pasta is the pasta her family prefers.

Lastly, I tried the rice-potato-soy pasta, spaghetti style, again in traditional spaghetti. I did toss it with gfcf margarine and garlic salt before I added it to the sauce and it was pretty darn good. Not exactly like non-gfcf pasta, but much better than corn or brown rice pasta. I found this pasta at Kroger - the brand is Bionaturae: http://www.bionaturae.com



I would love to know what you guys think about all the different gfcf pastas and combinations with different foods for different recipes that you have tried.