mom's chicken and rice

 i am going to add a bunch of old recipes i have on yellowing paper to preserve them in an easily accessible format, and many i will not have made alterations to yet. this is one of them. i plan to attempt it at some point, because i loved this growing up. the lipton soup mix is the hard thing to sub. 

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

6ish pieces of boneless chicken

1 cup rice

2 soup cans of milk

1 pack dry lipton's onion soup mix

combine all but chicken and soup mix in a 9x13 pan. add chicken. sprinkle dry soup mix on top, making sure chicken pieces get some on them. cook @ 350 for 1.75-2 hours, or until brown on top.

corn pudding or casserole

 this was an experiment in making it gluten and dairy free. so.  attempt 1:

1 pack king arthur gf honey cornbread

2 cans creamed corn

2 cans corn, drained (i used the short, sort of dry pack shoepeg corn)

12ish oz of df sour cream or plain yogurt. I used almond yogurt, and am a little dubious but we'll see

3 eggs, beaten

6 T df margarine (earth balance is an excellent sub)

mix, pour into ungreased 9x13 pan and bake @350 for 1 hour

cole slaw

 6 cups shredded cabbage

1 cup shredded carrot

 1 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

Salt and pepper to taste 

Directions

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. mix well. best if left to rest in the fridge for at least a couple hours. 

Single serve fried rice

 Margarine as needed

1/3 c frozen mixed veg 

1 large egg

1 cup leftover rice 

1 T gluten free soy sauce

S&P to taste

Heat nonstick pan over medium-high heat, melt ~1 T margarine, and add veg and s&p to taste. Once the veg has thawed and started to soften a bit, add a little more margarine(~1tsp) and the egg and stir it up to scramble it.  Stir while the egg cooks.  Add rice and a little more margarine (~1 tsp).  Stir well and break up the clumps of rice. Keep stirring until the rice is separate and softened.  Add ~ 1 T of gluten free soy sauce and stir well.  Taste, and adjust s&p or soy sauce if you need a little more for your preference. 

GK’s notes:

Ok, first, I improvised this dish, so I’m  estimating the amounts of margarine, veg and soy sauce I used. I didn’t actually measure them. The rice was from an 8 oz to go container from a restaurant. And I used margarine because I had some. I would prefer butter. 

But this can be made dairy free easily if you use earth balance margarine. And soy free if you use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce. Omit the egg for egg allergies, but that will affect the amounts of sauce and seasoning you need, so bear that in mind. 

Spanish rice casserole

I started with a box of Lundberg Spanish style Quinoa and rice, but I am a big fan of one-pot meals, so I just wanted to add stuff to the box mix and have a dinner.  Kind of like a kludged hamburger helper.
So I added zucchini, onion, tomato, black beans and additional seasonings and made this casserole style dish!  It turned out great!

1box Lundberg Spanish style Quinoa and rice
1 zucchini, chopped
1 can diced tomatoes with juice
1 onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 T minced garlic
2 tsp chili powder
3/4 tsp oregano
1tsp cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
1 T bouillon
Juice from tomatoes plus enough water to make the 1 3/4 c of liquid called for on the box of rice and quinoa
3 T butter or margarine

Sautée the chopped onions and zucchini in butter  or margarine till they are translucent (or mostly so)
Add garlic and cook a few more minutes.  Add the beans, tomatoes and seasonings, and let the temp come back up.  Add the liquid and rice box packets, stir and mush the box seasonings (they likely clumped in the box).  Cover and simmer for 30 minutes to let the rice and quinoa cook.
Taste and adjust s&p as needed.


I added extra seasonings on top of the stuff from the box because i figured I added a lot more mass, it would overwhelm the seasonings.  And I added bouillon just because I usually do when this kind of recipe calls for water--it has more depth of flavor.

Orange pudding cupcakes

This recipe is from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.  

It is one if my favorite things in the world.  

Pudding ingredients:

3/4 c plain soy milk

1/2 c fresh squeezed orange juice

3 T tapioca, corn or arrowroot starch

1/4 c plus 2T granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/8 tsp turmeric for color, optional

1 tsp finely grated orange zest

Cupcake ingredients:

1/3 c canola oil

1 egg (optional, see below)

3/4 c granulated sugar

3/4 c plain *milk

1/2 c fresh squeezed orange juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/3 c ap flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1T finely grated orange zest

Directions:

Pudding:

1. Whisk together the soy milk, orange juice, tapioca starch, sugar, vanilla, and turmeric in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan.  Cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes until the mixture is warm and steamy, whisking occasionally.  When the mixture is warm, you will need to reduce the heat to low and stir continuously for 5 minutes as the mixture thickens.  Use a fork at this point, because the pudding will be too thick for a whisk.  When mixture is sufficiently thick and pudding-like, turn the heat off and fold in the orange zest, mixing for another minute.

2.  Transfer pudding to a bowl and let cool off the stove for 10 minutes, until it stops steaming.  Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.  It will continue to thicken as it cools.

Cupcakes:

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tin.

2.  In a large bowl, combine oil, egg, if using, sugar, *milk, juice and vanilla, plus 1 T of the flour to help emulsify the liquid ingredients.  Mix until combined.

3.  In a separate bowl, sift together remaining flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in three batches, mixing well after each addition, until smooth.  Fold in the orange zest and mix to distribute.

4.  Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 of the way.  Bake for 20-22 minutes; the tops should spring back when touched.  

5.  Cool completely before filling with pudding.

To assemble: 

1  Fit a pastry bag with a wide piping tip. Fill the bag with pudding.  

2. Use a finger (or butt end of a chopstick) to poke holes in the top of each cupcake.  Fill each cupcake with as much pudding as you can (without causing a cakequake).  Use your finger or a knife to remove any excess pudding from the tops of the cakes.

Orange buttercream frosting:

Ingredients:

1/4 c shortening

1/4 c margarine, softened

2 c confectioner's sugar

2 T orange juice 

1 T finely grated lemon zest

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

In a small bowl, cream the shortening and margarine until well combined.  Add confectioner's sugar in roughly 1/2 c additions.  After each addition of sugar, add a splash of orange juice and beat well with a mixer on medium speed.  Add vanilla and beat for another 3-5 minutes until smooth, creamy and fluffy.  Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

GK's notes:

I no longer need to be egg free, and while I have always had good luck making great cakes with these recipes, I tried adding an egg with the liquid ingredients.  I like it much better!  The cakes get taller and have a better crumb.  

And of course, any shortening, margarine or butter will work fine for any buttercream recipe.  The authors of the book are vegan, and use nonhydrogenated  shortening and dairy-free Earth Balance margarine.  But butter and Crisco will be the same, or all butter, or all shortening.  Honestly, it makes little difference.  And if you want truly WHITE icing, so your little bits of zest show, try all shortening and clear, artificial vanilla.  

The original recipe calls for orange marmalade and chocolate ganache for a topping.  I loathe orange/chocolate combo, so I refuse to do this.  If you like it, you can find your own chocolate ganache recipe.  :P  

And I tried to make a sweetened version of marmalade, a sort of marmalade glaze, and it was still kind of gross.  I just don't think marmalade is sweet enough for this recipe.  Previously, I made orange buttercream icing, and that makes this one of the most amazing and special desserts ever, so I'm giving you that recipe instead.  Please don't bother with the marmalade.  Yuck.

For the pudding, you can use soy or cow's milk, but other milks won't set up right.  But for the cupcake, any milk that is safe for you will work, though thicker ones are better.  Soy, cow's, hemp, flax.  These will work better than rice or almond.  But rice or almond will also do just fine.  

Lime Curd Cupcakes:

I was just given a recipe for homemade lime curd, which makes me want to try a lime version of this.  

I haven't done it yet, but it seems simple enough:  just replace every instance of "orange" in the recipe with "lime", use the lime curd recipe instead of the orange pudding recipe, and the lime buttercream recipe below, instead of the orange one.  I think it's gonna be great!

So here's the curd link:  http://www.crazyforcrust.com/2014/07/lime-curd/

And here's a lime buttercream icing recipe from VCTOTW.

Lime Buttercream Frosting:

Ingredients:

1/2 c shortening

1/2 c margarine

3 1/2 c confectioner's sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 c lime juice

1 tsp finely grated lime zest

Directions:

Beat the shortening and margarine until well combined and fluffy.  Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes.  Add the vanilla and lime juice, beat for another 5-7 minutes or so until fluffy.  Add the zest and mix to distribute.  Chill until ready to use.  

Tater tot casserole

1 lb ground meat
Onion
Red pepper
1/2 box imagine brand sweet pea soup (or any soup that suits you!)
1 1/2 c frozen chopped broccoli
1 package Daiya pepper jack shredded vegan cheese
Most of a package of tater tots
Mrs dash
Salt

Put meat, onion, and red pepper in a pan and sauté until meat is browned and veggies soft.  Add frozen broccoli (give it a minute or two on the stove to melt the broccoli), mrs dash, salt and 1/2 box of sweet pea soup.

Put mixture in 9x13 pan.  Spread out.  Cover in cheese.  Put tots on top of cheese in a single layer.  

Bake for 45 minutes at 400 degrees.

Breakfast sausage

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. ground pork
1 tablespoon brown sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon dried thyme

3/4 teaspoon dried sage

1/8 teaspoon marjoram

Mix together and you can allow to sit or not, and turn into patties and cook, or cook as crumbles and turn into sausage gravy.

Sausage gravy

3 T oil (or if using sausage, 2 T)

5 T gf ap flour

2 tsp corn starch

2 1/2 c *milk

S&p to taste

Additional sage, if desired

Add the oil to your cooked, crumbled sausage in the sauce pan.  Add the flour and starch.  Cook for a couple of minutes, to get the flour nice and sticky.  Add the milk and seasonings. Cook and stir until gravy is thickness desired.

Broccoli quiche

2 T cold bacon fat
1 med onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
2 c chopped broccoli
1/2 c chopped, frozen spinach
2 9-inch pie crusts
1 1/2 c shredded cheese
4 eggs
1/2 c milk*
Salt and mrs dash to taste (I was pretty liberal with them!)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Divide cheese in half and layer on the bottom of the crusts.
3. Over medium-high heat melt bacon grease in a saucepan. Add onions, garlic and broccoli.  Season with salt and mrs dash.  Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables start to soften.  Add spinach.  Cook till soft.  Spoon vegetables into crusts on top of cheese.  
4. Combine eggs and milk. Season with salt and mrs dash.  Pour egg mixture over vegetables and cheese.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until center has set.

Notes:  I use Wholly Wholesome gluten free pie crusts, which are a little delicate, so I put foil over the edges for the first 20 minutes and remove it for the last 10.  I used so delicious brand coconut milk beverage this time because I had some given to me.  Normally I'd choose Silk soy milk, but this turned out just fine!  Daiya is my cheese of choice, because it tastes good and melts nicely.  And it's actually dairy free!  Many "vegan" cheese have casein or lactose in them.  Grrr...

Old Fashioned Apple Fritters recipe

I was super excited about these treats.  The recipe calls them fritters, but really they're more like doughnuts or funnel cake than any apple fritter I've ever had, especially with the powdered sugar on them.  I lost gluten around the same time as my son (2008), so that's how long it's been since I had a funnel cake.  :(  These are every bit as good, if not better, because I LOVE that hit of apple and spice.  We just splurged on a frier--I got a Kitchen Kettle instead of a Fry Daddy because it looked more versatile and was much cheaper.  It worked well to fry them in, and seemed to do a pretty good job maintaining the right heat.  The fritters are amazing, and a GREAT way to get some fruit in kids (I know, not healthy...*sigh*) because my kid and the neighbor kid LOVE them, too!  :D


Ingredients:

2 c. gluten free all-purpose flour (I like Bob's Red Mill)
¼ c. sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 flax eggs
1 c. milk*
4 med. apples, peeled and cored
2 quarts oil for deep frying
½ c. powdered sugar for dusting


Directions:

Slice apples into rings, approximately 1/4-1/2” thick. Set aside.
Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl. In separate bowl, beat together eggs and milk. Slowly stir milk mixture into flour mixture and mix until smooth.
Heat oil to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) in a deep frier or heavy bottomed pot or skillet. Dip apple slices into batter and drop into hot oil to fry. Turn each apple slice once, and fry until golden. Drain on paper towels, and dust each fritter with powdered sugar.

GK's notes:  My husband made these, twice (and OMG are they good).  He used rice milk once and Silk brand soy milk the second.  He says if you use rice milk, the 2 cups is fine, but you'll need a little more soy milk to make it thin enough, because the soy milk is thicker.  He uses one of those spiral cutting, peeling machines, so his apples are a bit thinner than the original recipe called for, but it's still very good.

Barbecue Roast

This recipe is from Wheat-Free, Gluten-Free Cookbook for Kids and Busy Adults by Connie Sarros.
My SON made this.  He's 9.  He had supervision from dad, and dad cut the meat and put the dish in the hot oven.  Otherwise, it was all the chitlin.  It was DELICIOUS!  I had little idea of what to expect, since the sauce gets made with the beef...but it turned out so well. 

Ingredients:

2 T cider vinegar
2 T brown sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
1 1/4 c ketchup
2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 T dried onion flakes
1/4 c chopped green pepper
1 c water
1 2 lb boneless chuck roast

Method:

Preheat oven to 350*
In a medium bowl, stir together vinegar, brown sugar and cornstarch.  Add the ketchup, chili powder, salt, pepper, onion flakes and green pepper.  Stir in the water.  Pour half of this mixture over the bottom of a roasting pan.
Cut the roast into six serving pieces, then place in the roasting pan over the sauce.  Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the roast. 
Cover the pan with foil and bake for 3 hours, or until the meat flakes easily with a fork, adding more water as needed.


That's it!  We didn't ever check the meat, and one section of the sauce got dried out a bit, so I would recommend checking it at least once or twice during cooking, to stir/add water if needed.  But the meat came out ridiculously tender, and the sauce is delicious and so rich!  We used special corn, gluten etc. free ketchup, and tapioca starch instead of corn.  Those are the only changes we made to the recipe.

Snickerdoodles

The men in my life are HUGE fans of snickerdoodles.  The ones we've been buying from the store cost almost $4 for two big cookies.  I found Martha Stewart's recipe, http://www.rachelleb.com/2009/02/23/martha-stewarts-snickerdoodles/,  and thought I'd give it a go.  We were seeing if duck eggs would be a thing the chitlin could eat, being as some people with chicken egg allergies seem to tolerate them.  Nope.  The recipe was REALLY good, though, with our Bob's and the duck eggs, so I thought I needed to try it with some flax gel and guar gum, instead, because the chitlin still deserves delicious cookies, even if he can't have eggs.  Or maybe because he can't have eggs.  Anyway, I am happy to report that the recipe is still quite wonderful vegan, so here's my version.

Makes 20 cookies



2 3/4 cups Bob's Red Mill all-purpose gluten-free flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter flavored shortening (I use Spectrum brand), room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 flax egg replacers*
1/2 tsp guar gum**
- – -
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350F. Sift together flour, baking powder, guar gum, and salt into a bowl. Put shortening and 1 1/2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in flax eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.
Stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into 20 (1 3/4-inch) balls; roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
Bake cookies, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days, and they freeze very well.

GK's notes:  Ok, * flax egg replacer recipe:  3 T very hot water, 1 T ground flax seed.  Allow to sit for a few minutes, to gel.  That's it!  ** It's possible that the guar gum is unnecessary--I will try it another time and come modify the recipe if needed.  I thought it might be handy, because a lot of this kind of cookie gets very crumbly if it doesn't have eggs.  Turns out it's a pretty chewy cookie, so it may not need it.  When I first started baking, I put xanthan gum in everything, because most gluten-free recipes call for it.  But I forgot it one time, when making cupcakes, and couldn't tell a difference, so I rarely bother anymore, and my baked goods usually come out pretty well without it.  Xanthan gum is no longer a good choice for us anyway, because it's made using corn, so IF I use a gum, now I use guar, which isn't quite as effective as xanthan anyway.  However, the texture of these cookies is nearly indistinguishable from the ones I made with duck eggs, so as far as I'm concerned at this time, the recipe is great!

Bran Muffins

UPDATED
So the whole duck eggs did not work out--the chitlin started rashing out after a few days of trying them.  However, we are on a new experiment--this time with official backing!  We are participating in a clinical trial where, after some months of allergy sublingual drops, he's to try the foods he was taking drops for.  Chicken egg white is one of his foods, so I've been using egg white to make baked goods.  So far, so good--he hasn't rashed out from baked egg white yet.  Cross your fingers for us.
This is the third time I've made this recipe, and I think it's great now, so I'm just going to edit the one I had up here to the new, improved version that includes chicken egg white only.  It's a good recipe, and I wouldn't be ashamed to serve these to anybody!

(Old text:  This is an experimental recipe for us, to see if my chicken-egg allergic boy can tolerate duck eggs.  So far, so good, I think...it usually takes a couple of weeks to find out.  In the mean time, we are sure enjoying having eggs again, however briefly it may be.  I still want to try these with real (rice, for us) bran, in addition to the quinoa flakes, even though the quinoa flakes made it SO delicious.   And I bet the chopped apricots and/or apples would be great, too.  I look forward to playing with this recipe more in the future.  I also think chopped sunflower or pumpkin seeds would not go amiss in there.

I was going to put the original recipe, and then my alterations, but I just can't.  It irritates me too much.  The stupid red, plaid cookbook from Better Homes and Gardens REALLY likes to drop surprise ingredients like salt and water into the instructions, without having listed them in the ingredients section, which irks the crap out of me.  Here's my version (it's better, anyway):)

1 1/4 c quinoa flakes
1 c Bob's Red Mill gluten free ap flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c applesauce
1/2 c *milk
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c egg white (or 1 whole egg, if that suits)
1.5 T oil
1/2 c raisins, snipped dried apricots or snipped dried apples

Spray bottoms of muffin cups with nonstick spray coating.  Set aside.  In a mixing bowl, combine bran, flour, baking powder and baking soda, and salt.  Make a well in the center of the dry mixture; set aside.
In another bowl, combine the applesauce, milk, maple syrup, brown sugar, egg and oil.  Add applesauce mixture all at once to the dry mixture.  Stir to combine.  Fold in raisins.
Spoon batter into prepared cups.  Bake in 400* oven about 20 minutes or until golden.  Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, remove from cups.  Serve warm.

I have been having trouble with muffins (especially egg-free ones) being too dry.  I've been experimenting a bit, and having remembered that brown sugar is hygroscopic (absorbs moisture from the air), AND thinking this recipe wouldn't suffer from being a smidge sweeter, I thought I'd add a little to the recipe.  Also, we found the honey flavor to be good, just overwhelming, and ds not really liking honey, we subbed in maple syrup for the honey.  Since I was adding 1/4 c brown sugar, I reduced the maple syrup a tiny bit to 1/4 c from 1/3 c, so the extra brown sugar wasn't too much sweetness.  It turned out well.  I also added a little extra oil.  This was originally a wheat bran muffin recipe, and was some lame-o diet thing, all free of egg yolk and light on oil.  Blech!  Lol!  So, I don't really care about dieting, and just want a lovely, palatable muffin, so I added a little more oil back in.
Interestingly, this was meant to have bran in it, which I'm sure gave it a nice toothsomeness, but I really, really like the crumb with the quinoa flakes.  The end result is a moist, somewhat dense but tender crumb that just is exactly what you want for a hearty, satisfying snack or breakfast.

Tuna Casserole

2-3 T butter-flavored shortening
4 T canola oil
1 (8 ounce) package uncooked pasta (tinkyada or Trader Joe's brown rice pasta are excellent)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped (optional)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (bob's red mill ap gluten free)
2 cups *milk
salt and pepper to taste
2 (6 ounce) cans tuna, drained and flaked
1 head broccoli, chopped small
1 cup garlic jalapeno havarti flavored Daiya

(3 tablespoons bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter-flavored shortening, melted,
a little additional cheese, optional)


Directions

If you want a crispy crumb top, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a medium baking dish.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta, cook for 8 to 10 minutes, and drain.
Melt 2 T butter-flavored shortening in a skillet over medium-medium-high heat. Stir in the onion, celery, if using, peppers, and broccoli, and cook 5 minutes.
Add garlic, continue to cook and stir about 5 minutes, until veggies are tender.
Add 4 tablespoons oil to veggies, add flour and stir until thick.
Stir in milk, and continue cooking 5-10 minutes, until sauce is smooth and
slightly thickened. Season with salt and pepper (or salt and Mrs. Dash--I love that
stuff!). Stir in tuna and cheese, breaking up tuna as needed, and stirring to melt
cheese.
Add cooked noodles and stir.

To make the crispy crust, transfer to the baking dish. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons
butter in a small bowl, mix with bread crumbs, and sprinkle over the casserole.
Top with a little additional cheese.
Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly browned

GK's notes:  if you want to make the crispy crust, make the noodles al dente.  If not,
go ahead and cook them to the doneness you like, and as soon as all the food is
combined, you're good to go!
I use rice milk and Daiya, but any milk or cheese will be great.
Also, honestly, the veggie combo is totally up for grabs.  The original recipe calls for peas and mushrooms.  I will NOT eat mushrooms, and didn't have any peas, though peas are truly delicious in this.  I had broccoli and red peppers, so that's what I used, and it turned out great!  Use what you have, or what you like.  Just make sure to use about 3-4 cups of veggies (I'm including the onions in this amount, because I know some people don't like onions, so make sure and replace them with something if you don't use them!), and this is a pretty healthy meal.  If you do use different veggies, your cooking method may  need to be altered.  Like, I wouldn't saute the peas--they could just go in the sauce for a few minutes before you add the noodles/cheese, but mushrooms would want a little saute.  Use your judgment!

cheeseburger soup

I got (and adapted) this recipe from a cookbook.  I can't remember the book name, so if anybody knows where I got it, please let me know--I mean no thievery. 

Ingredients:
2 c potato, cut into even pieces
2 T oil
1 lb ground beef
1 cup onion, cut up
1 cup bell pepper, cut up
1/2 c ap, gluten free flour ( I used Bob's)
1 T italian herbs
1 T salt
pepper
pinch cayenne
1.5 quarts beef broth
@2 c *cheese*

Directions:
In a large saucepan, put the potatoes and enough water to cover them by about 2 inches.  Bring to a boil over high heat.  Lower the heat to medium/high and simmer about 15 minutes.  Drain, return to pan and cover to keep warm.
In a large stockpot,  heat the oil over med-high heat. When hot, addt he beef and cook, breaking up the meat, until the beef begins to brown.  Add the onion and bell peppers and cook, stirring, for another few minutes.  Add the flour and spices.  Cook, stirring, until well mixed and thickened--2-3 minutes.
Add the broth, lower the heat to medium, and cook, stirring until heated through.  Add the cheese, stirring until melted and the soup is creamy.  Add the potatoes, and cook until warmed through.

GK's notes:  I use Daiya cheese, and I use about half cheddar and half pepper jack.  The original recipe called for stuff like jalapeno peppers and two whole pounds of meat.  That was waaayyy too much for my family, and I never have hot peppers around, so I use spicy cheese and a dash of cayenne to spice it up.

Squash with cranberry stuffing

Ingredients

• 2 medium acorn squash*
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons butter flavored Spectrum brand shortening
• 1 medium tart apple, peeled and diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 cup Pacific brand jellied cranberry sauce

Directions

• Cut squash in half; discard seeds. Cut a thin slice from the bottom of squash halves so they sit flat. Spritz with oil and place squash hollow side down on a cookie sheet. Cover and bake at 400° for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a small skillet, saute celery and onion in butter flavored shortening until tender. Add the apple, salt, lemon juice and pepper. Cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat until apple is tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in the cranberry sauce.   Cook for a few minutes until the sauce thickens a bit.
• Turn squash halves over; fill with cranberry mixture. Cover and bake 10-15 minutes longer or until squash is tender. Yield: 4 servings.
  
  Ugh.  I'm not good with formatting.  Ok, the original recipe called for acorn squash.  I had one, but it wanted two.  I also had a large squash of mysterious kind (it may have been a blue hubbard squash).  I had never seen such a squash, and had no idea what it would be like, but it was of approximately the right shape for the dish, and the right amount of food--it would surely be ok, right?  lol!  Fortunately, it worked perfectly, so I'm going to be brazen and say that I think just about any squash would work in this dish.  Two acorn squash, one hubbard squash, a butternut squash...whatever floats your boat!  Ok, maaaybe not spaghetti squash.... It was pretty simple to make, and so delicious--the tart cranberry offset the rich squashy flavor so nicely!

Fish Chowder

So our basement dehumidifier shorted the outlet that our freezers were plugged into, and we had to emergency eat a whole bunch of food.  Fun.  So we had a bunch of fried fish, but there's only so much fried anything you can eat, right?  I thought maybe some fish chowder sounded good.  Found a recipe with only one thing I *had* to sub, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  Here's my version, which the hubby and I thought was pretty darned good.  Finally, toward the end of his bowl, the chitlin conceded that he thought it was pretty good, too, though he's been known to speak less than truthfully about my food, cause he thinks I'm delicate or something.  =P

Ingredients:

• 1/2-1 lb fish fillet 
  2 tablespoons oil1 medium onion, sliced1/2 cup celery, diced
  2 cups raw potatoes, diced
  1/2 cup carrot, sliced
  2 cups vegetable broth1 teaspoon salt2 teaspoons old bay or seasoned salt1 cup milk (dairy or non)

Directions:

1. 
   
   Cut fish into bite sized pieces.  Melt margarine in large saucepan and cook onion and celery until onion is tender and translucent. Add potatoes, carrots, broth, salt and old bay.  Cover and simmer 10 to 15 minutes until vegetables are tender.  Add fish and cook 10 minutes longer. Add milk.  Reheat, but do not boil.  Serve hot, with freshly baked home made bread or rolls and butter if you like.
   
    
   
   The original recipe called for water instead of broth and pepper instead of old bay, but I thought that sounded boring (YAWN), and didn't regret the changes.  Just be aware that if you use broth, it will NOT be that beautiful, snowy white you might expect from chowder.  If you use non-dairy milk, it probably won't be anyway.  We used rice milk, so it was also not terribly creamy or thick.  I might try coconut milk one of these days, but that might require some curry powder, too...
   I didn't specify what kind of fish to use, because I'm doubtful it matters a lot.  If you like the fish taste a lot, use a stronger tasting fish.  If you don't, use cod or tilapia and it doesn't taste very fishy at all.  The original recipe called for cod, but tilapia is what I had on hand.  Also, it called for a whole pound, but I only had half a pound.  We thought it was actually just the right amount of fish, but if you LOVE your fish, go for the whole pound!  =)
   
   
   

Apple butter

Ingredients

    5 1/2 pounds apples - peeled, cored and finely chopped
    4 cups white sugar
    2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
    1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
    1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

 Place the apples in a slow cooker. In a medium bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples in the slow cooker and mix well.   Cover and cook on high 1 hour.   Reduce heat to low and cook 9 to 11 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown. Puree with a stick blender.   Continue cooking uncovered on low at least 1 hour--probably 2. Let cool in crock pot to room temperature.  Stir with a whisk, if desired, to increase smoothness.  Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate or freeze.




GK's notes:  I was very unsure of this recipe--it smelled so strongly of cloves the whole time it was cooking, I was sure it was ruined.  Nope!  It turned out amazingly delicious.  It was as good as or better than the best apple butter I've ever had.  I even forgot to mix the dry ingredients--I just dumped stuff in as I measured, and it turned out fine.  I don't think that step matters much, because you stir occasionally as it cooks, so it will get all mixed up.  The sugar liquifies, and the apples release juice, so after a couple of hours, it is REALLY liquidy/soupy, but it's ok.  You blend it, and let it steam a while at the end, and it turns out just right.  Nice and thick and delicious.  =)

Coconut Lime Cupcakes

The original recipe for these is from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romano.  I make a few changes to make them safe for our food allergy requirements.  I'll post the original method,  and then list my changes.  In general, I have found these recipes to be so forgiving and flexible, I've been able to change pretty much anything I need to to make them safe, and they still turn out delicious!  The vegan community has saved our lives in this regard, especially and particularly Isa Chandra Moskowitz.  Her cookbooks and recipes are amazing, and I wish we could eat more of her food--but being nut, soy and gluten-free, a lot of vegan food is off-limits for us.  Fortunately for us, cupcakes are quite safe!

Coconut Lime Cupcakes

1/3 c coconut oil
3/4 c granulated sugar
1 c coconut milk
1/4 c soy milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 T lightly packed finely grated lime zest
1 c ap flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 c unsweetened coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cupcake pan with liners.

Get all your ingredients/tools out and ready  to go ahead of time, as this makes it easier to work with the coconut oil at the right temperature.

Melt the coconut oil in a medium bowl.  Mix in the sugar, then add coconut milk, soy milk, vanilla, coconut extract, and lime zest.  Combine well.

Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Mix until smooth.  Add the coconut and mix to incorporate.

Bake for 23-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

Lime buttercream frosting

1/2 c shortening
1/2 c margarine
3 1/2 c confectioner's sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 c fresh lime juice
1 tsp finely grated lime zest

Beat the shortening and margarine together until combined well and fluffy.  Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes.  Add the vanilla and lime juice, beat for another 5-7 minutes or so, until fluffy.  Add the zest and mix to distribute.

Ice the cupcakes generously, and roll in flaked coconut.  Place a decorative lime slice on top.

All right.  Those are the instructions as written.  Seriously, these are so flexible.  I didn't have any coconut extract, or enough shredded coconut, but I had coconut flour, so I subbed some in for the regular flour to increase the coconut flavor, and added it to the cup of shredded coconut to make up a full cup.  *shrug*  It worked!  Also, I have to use gluten-free flour, so our ap flour was Bob's Red Mill ap gluten-free flour.  I can't use soy milk, so I just used 1 1/4 c coconut milk (the full-fat, out of a can kind, not that crappy coconut milk "beverage").  Also, I didn't have any limes, so instead of lime zest, I just used a teaspoon of RealLime lime juice.  Again, it worked.  The cupcakes came out great!

I learned something about baking when I made these.  I had 8 of the cups filled when I noticed I hadn't gotten the bottom stirred in well enough, and there was still quite a bit of dry ingredients unmixed-in down there.  I just went ahead and stirred it in to the last bit, and put that batter in the last 4 cups.  Those cupcakes rose much better than the others.  Turns out you do need to have a minimally-thick batter to make the cupcakes rise appropriately.  I kind of thought this was the case, because if I follow regular recipes as written with my gluten-free flour, the batter is too thin, and the cupcakes come out concave.  I have been boosting the amount of flour in cupcake recipes for a long time, but this was the proof I needed to be certain that that was the difference!

So, the way I normally make these is basically the same, but all coconut milk and 1 1/3 c flour.  I do recommend replacing a small percentage (like 1/4 cup or so) of your flour with coconut flour--it actually makes for a lovely texture, as well as adding to the coconut flavor.  Also, I only use shortening (Spectrum brand) in the frosting, because there aren't any safe margarines for us.  It's just fine--in fact, I think I like it better than with a "butter" flavor.  Also, we usually halve the icing recipe--Isa apparently LOVES frosting.

Tuna Casserole

8oz pasta
1/2 an onion, diced
1 T garlic, diced
1 1/2 cup frozen peas
3 oz butter/sub
5 tbsp flour
1 cup beef broth
1/2 c water
1 cup milk/sub
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese/sub
2 cans tuna, drained and flaked
Panko bread crumbs, sautéed in butter until beginning to brown

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Cook spaghetti as directed on package.  Drain and rinse with cold water.  Set aside.  Melt butter in a large saucepan and add onions.  Sauté for a few minutes until beginning to soften.  Add garlic, and saute another minute or two.  Add peas.  Sauté for another minute or two.  Add in flour and cook for a further two minutes.  Slowly stir in the broth, then the milk.  Bring up to a boil until thickened, then remove from heat.  Stir in tuna and cheese. Season with salt and Mrs. Dash.

Add pasta to the pot and stir to coat.  Place in buttered casserole dish and sprinkle the breadcrumbs and a little additional cheese on top.  Bake for ten to fifteen minutes until top is golden.  Alternately, you can skip the bread crumbs on top and just top with additional cheddar cheese, which I like to do often.