The BEST Gluten-Free Brownie Mix

Ok ... I'll admit it.  I'm a chocoholic and I adore brownies.  Until now, I have been unimpressed with the GF options out there.  Today I found Krusteaz Gluten Free Double Chocolate Fudge Brownie Mix at Costco, and I am in love!  They are moist ... oh, so moist ... on the inside, with that flaky, almost crunchy exterior.  Total chocolate heaven.  Go get some.  Now.

Crock-Pot Beer Chicken

I saw this recipe on Pinterest about a year ago, but wasn't sure about trying it because of the beer issue.  Conventional beer has gluten.  (sad face)  Since I discovered a descent array of gluten-free beers at Total Wine, I've been experimenting in the kitchen with them.  For this recipe, I used Bard's sorghum beer.  The sauce it made was delicious! Serve over rice with a side of broccoli, and you've got an amazing meal with very little effort.

Ingredients:
1 bottle of your favorite gluten-free beer
1 pound (more or less) chicken tenders
1 Tblsp. organic extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper to taste
1 tsp. dried oregano

Follow these directions carefully (wink):
1.  Put chicken tenders in the bottom of a slow-cooker/crock pot.
2.  Pour beer over the chicken.
3.  Add pressed garlic.
4.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and oregano.
5.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours.

I'm willing to admit that my kids weren't crazy about this.  It was probably the beer.  But my husband and I loved it.  I'm thinking this would be a great recipe to try with a brisket.   Let me know through your comments what combinations you try.

Parmesan Chicken

My family loves crispy fried chicken, so I am always trying new ways to give them that delicious flavor they want without all the greasy, artery-clogging bad stuff that goes along with it.  Baking in a small amount of olive oil is a great option.  Adding flavor to a very thin coating that replaces the deep-fried skin makes this a delicious treat
.

Ingredients:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound total)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup organic, milled flax seed
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
2 Tblsps Kirkland Organic No-Salt Seasoning
1 Tblsp olive oil

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut the chicken breasts into 2 oz. portions.  Place the pieces in a bowl and pour the buttermilk over the top.  Allow the chicken to stand in the buttermilk for about 20 minutes.

In a shallow dish, combine the Parmesan cheese, flax seed, and seasonings.

Add olive oil to a cookie sheet or baking pan and spread it evenly.  Remove each piece of chicken from the buttermilk and dredge in the Parmesan cheese mixture to coat evenly.  Place the pieces on the cookie sheet so they are not touching.

Bake for 15 minutes.  Turn each piece and bake for 7 to 10 minutes longer.

Serves 4.   284 cal per 4 oz. serving

I served this dish with steamed broccoli and slices of kiwi.

Chocolate Zucchini Snack Cake

Sometimes I have to resort to trickery to get my children to eat their vegetables.  Zucchini is one of those green things they refuse to touch, but I haven't given up trying.  Today I created these devilishly yummy treats for them to eat after school ... and they LOVED every bite!  No, I did not enlighten them about the contents.  It's going to remain my little secret until the time is right to divulge that information.  Perhaps in about 15 years.

This is really sort of a theme and variations on the pumpkin bread recipe I use.  It's a great basic formula that is easily tweaked to change for the seasons or whatever you have available in your kitchen.  You and I can thank my mother's 50 year-old Betty Crocker cookbook, and several revised copies, for that one.

The experts at Unrefined Bakery turned me onto quinoa flour. It has the perfect texture for baking delicate breads and cakes.  However, the taste can be a bit overpowering, so you want to use it with other flours to make sure you achieve the flavor you are looking for.  Thanks for that tip, Taylor!

And, here we go ...

3 cups shredded zucchini  (wash it and shred it in the food processor or with a cheese grater) - lightly pack it into the measuring cup
2/3 cup stevia granules
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup grape seed oil
2 tsp. vanilla
4 eggs

Mix the wet ingredients with an electric stand mixer (or a hand mixer, if that is what you have)

In a separate bowl combine the following:
1/2 cup ViShape shake mix (see my ingredients list in the right side bar)
1/2 cup quinoa flour
1 cup gluten-free oats
1 cup brown rice flour
4 Tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup gluten-free chocolate chips (optional)

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, then beat for about 1 minute on medium speed.

Grease the bottoms of a muffin tin.  Fill each muffin mold to about 3/4 full.  Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees F.  Remove from pan immediately and allow to cool on a rack until they reach room temperature. 

Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.  These will freeze well.  Yield:  2 dozen individual snack cakes.

Butternut Squash Muffins

Squash of just about any kind is an excellent source of moisture and texture for baking, as well as providing wonderful nutrients.  I prefer using fresh squash whenever possible, and this is the time of year to stock up.  What else are you going to do on a beautiful fall day?

To prepare the squash to use in a bread or cake recipe, start by washing the exterior and scrubbing it well.  Even organic squash is going to have dirt on it, and you don't want that getting into your final product.  Next, slice it in half and remove the seeds at the base.  (Save them and plant them in your garden!)  Turn the slices cut side down into a baking dish, adding water to about an inch in depth.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes, until the squash is soft all the way through. Poke it with a fork, if you aren't sure.  Remove the pieces from the water and allow them to cool completely before scooping the flesh from the skin.

Place the squishy squash pieces into the bowl of a food processor and blend until smooth. This may take a few minutes, depending on the speed of your blade.  You may have to scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally to ensure that all of the pieces are processed evenly.

You can freeze squash for about three months if it is double bagged.  It also makes great baby food.

The following is based on the pumpkin bread recipe I posted last week, with a few changes that sounded yummy.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the following mixing well after each addition:
15 ounces cooked butternut squash
2/3 cup Stevia
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup grape seed oil
1/3 cup coconut oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 large eggs

In a separate bowl, combine the following:
1 1/2 cups Namaste Foods Gluten-Free Perfect Blend Flour
1/2 cup  ViShape Shake Mix
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup almond meal
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and beat until well blended.

Spray muffin tins with your favorite oil or use muffin liners.  Fill each cup 2/3 of the way with the batter.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes in the center of the oven.  Allow to cool in the muffin tin for 5 to 10 minutes before removing.  Finish cooling on a rack.

Yield:  24 large muffins

Unrefined Bakery in Frisco - You Gotta Try This Place!

I have discovered heaven on earth, and it's in Frisco, Texas!

Unrefined Bakery is the brainchild of a local mother and daughter who battle the same food allergies and Celiac disease that my friends and I do.  Their bread is as good as - if not better than - any wheat or multi-grain bread I've ever tasted.  It is soft and full of flavor that is missing in so many gluten-free breads. I tasted it and fell immediately in love!

They had me at "gluten-free", but then I read more about them and knew that these are good people making good food.

Their baked goods are:
*  100% gluten-free
*  100% soy-free
*  99% corn and dairy-free
*  80% egg-free
*  non-gmo
*  organic

They use only unrefined sugars for sweetening, as well as heart healthy fats that impart deliciousness and the mouth-feel you would expect from the finest ingredients.

And they have fantastic organic, fair-trade, coffee that rivals the chains on every street corner.  I think I may have just found my new favorite hang-out.

On the left is the Loaded Monkey Cupcake - banana cake with chocolate ganache center and peanut butter frosting.  On the right, the Triple Chocolate Cupcake.  Both are moist and exquisite!  The flavors are so good because the ingredients are top-notch.  Worth every penny, savor every bite!

They have frozen cookie dough you can take home to bake your own fresh cookies for a special after-school treat for the kids.

I'm telling you, I wanted to cry as I tasted everything they would let me try.  Co-owners, Anne and Taylor have hit the mark. Amanda, the General Manager at the Frisco location, is an absolute sweet-heart.  Go see them and let them put a smile on your face.

You can find them on the web at www.unrefinedbakery.com.

Namaste Foods Gluten Free Perfect Flour Blend

I found this flour blend at Costco last week and had to try it.  The flavor is very good and it incorporates into a bread recipe well.  I used it in pumpkin bread first.  There was no difference in the taste as compared to the same recipe made with wheat flour.  My kids loved it!  Then I made a pizza crust with it.  The flavor was excellent, but the crust was tough.  Right now I don't know it that was necessarily a problem with the flour or the other ingredients in the crust recipe, so I'll reserve my opinion on this until I have tried it with a different pizza crust formula.

The weight of the flour makes it a good all-purpose blend that should work well in most recipes.

The package touts the following benefits for those of us battling Celiac and other food allergies:
*  Allergen free facility
*  All natural
*  Whole grain brown rice
*  Vegan
*  Wheat and gluten free
*  No GMO ingredients
*  No preservatives
*  No potato
*  No corn
*  No casein

The "all natural" claim is meaningless, but all of the others provide helpful information.  I especially like that there are no genetically modified ingredients.

So, what does it contain?  Here's the list:
sweet brown rice flour, tapioca starch, arrowroot powder, sorghum flour and xanthan gum.

I'm a little perplexed at the claim that it has no corn, since the process of making xanthan gum involves using corn syrup as a growth medium.  You will know best if xanthan gum is something you must avoid.  Be aware that it is in this product.

I paid around $7 for this five pound bag and consider that to be an excellent price.