Gluten Free HEAVEN!!!!

Tonight I was DYING for chocolate!!!! Rich, dark, mouthwatering chocolate! The kind you can only get at that fancy restaurant that you only eat at when you've won the lottery! That was the kind of chocolate I was in need of! Luckily for me...my cupboard was stocked with all kinds of goodness and, as a result, my tastebuds were blessed with the joy of this ridiculous dessert!!! Brace yourselves...the fat content is OFF THE CHARTS...but so is the flavor! Enjoy!!!!!

Flourless Chocolate Cake


1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for the pan
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for the pan
1 1/4 c. heavy cream, divided
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 large eggs
1 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. creme fraiche
1/4 c. confectioners' sugar

1. Heat oven to 350F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and dust with cocoa.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat the butter with 1/4 cup of the heavy whipping cream over medium-low heat until the butter is melted. Add the chocolate and stir until melted and smooth; remove from heat. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, and cocoa powder; whisk in the chocolate mixture.
4. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake until puffed and set, 35-40 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 1 hour. Run a knife around the edge of the cake before unmolding. 
5. Using an electric mixture, beat the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream, creme fraiche and confectioners' sugar until soft peaks form. Top the cake with whipped topping and your favorite berries! 

Serves 16 (8 PPV for my Weight Watchers fans)

Here Comes Summer: Turkey Kebabs

Summer is on its way my friends and good old MS (Martha Stewart) has once again hooked me up with an AMAZING recipe! The meat is seasoned with mint, garlic, red onions and feta cheese and then garnished with a simple tomato-mint-onion vinaigrette! Just imagine all of those flavors but with home grown tomatoes and fresh picked mint from the garden!

Turkey Kebabs in Lettuce Cups
(Adapted from Martha Stewart Every Day Food)


2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil (or less if you use an oil mister!)
1/2 small red onion, half thinly sliced and half grated
1 lb. ground turkey breast
1 garlic clove, minced
1 c. fresh mint, 1/2 chopped and 1/2 left whole
2 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
salt & pepper
1 c. grape tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp. red-wine vinegar
Butter lettuce, leaves separated, washed & trimmed

1. Set your grill pan on medium-high and get it heating. Lightly oil the grill pan. Soak the sliced onions in warm water for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, gently combine (use your hands!!!) grated onion, turkey, garlic, chopped mint, feta and 1/2 tsp each of slat & pepper. Divide mixture into 8 equal parts and make sausages shaped "kebabs". Spray girl pan once more with oil mist and put your kebabs on the "grill" until cooked through, 12 minutes, flipping once.
2. Drain sliced onions and toss with 1 tbsp. oil, whole mint, tomatoes and vinegar. Season with salt & pepper. Serve kebabs in lettuce leaves, topped with onion salad!

Serves 4
5 Points Plus Value (for my WW friends!)

A Gluten Free Purim

No...I'm not Jewish! But I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and I am teaching seminary this year! Seminary (if you don't know) is an early morning class designed for high school students that helps them get to know the scriptures better and this year we're studying the Old Testament! We decided early on that we would celebrate all of the Jewish holidays and this week is Purim! Yippee for Esther being brave and BOOOOOOO on Haman!!! If you want to know the harrowing details you can check out the book of Esther in the Old Testament...but let's just say that she risked her life several times to save her people.

As with every celebration...I have to make food! Today was no exception! I found a recipe for a lovely Purim brunch coffeecake and adapted it to meet my gluten free needs! The results...PURE GENIUS!!!!! This cake is moist and hits all of the happy places on your tongue! Happy Purim everyone!

Gluten Free Blueberry Purim Coffeecake

Batter:

2/3 c. sugar

1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened

2 tsp. lemon zest, grated

1 large egg, room temperature

1 1/2 c. gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur)

1 tsp. xanthan gum

2 tbsp. poppy seeds

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. sour cream

Filling:

2 c. fresh or frozen blueberries, washed and drained on paper towel

1/3 c. sugar

1 tbsp. gluten free all-purpose flour (I used King Arthur)

1/4 tsp. fresh ground nutmeg

Make batter:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a 9" springform pan.
2. In a bowl beat together the sugar and butter until fluffy.
3. Add lemon zest and egg and beat for 2 minutes on a medium speed
4. In another bowl mix the flour, xanthan gum, poppy seeds, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter mixture alternately with sour cream. The batter will be thick! Spread over the bottom of the pan.

Make filling & assembly:

1. In another bowl combine filling ingredients and spoon over the batter.
2. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar on top once cooled.
3. Serve warm or cold. Great with whipped cream.

A Butternut Squash Dream

The soup...before the immersion blender

Tonight I had the missionaries over for dinner. Actually, let me start at about 8:30pm last night...I was standing on the overlook at the Golden Gate Bridge and my phone rings. It's the missionaries..."I wonder what they need," I thought. They were calling me to remind me that I had signed up to feed them the very next day! OH DANG! What in the world was I going to feed them? I scoured my kitchen and came up with a frozen ham bone, some frozen cubed butternut squash, onion, celery, carrots, a bunch of apples and some salad fixings. I had a plan. I'd make some soup, a salad, biscuits and an apple crisp.

The soup was going to be a hodge podge of vegetables and flavors that I figured would work together. After smelling the deliciousness simmering on the stove all day I tasted the fruits of my labor and almost fainted! My mouth was full of this rich, smoky and deep flavored broth. It was amazing! Here is the recipe for a spectacular, almost vegetarian soup!

Butternut Cauliflower Soup

1 large ham bone

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

1.5 pounds chopped butternut squash

6 large carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

4 stalks celery, washed and roughly chopped

1/2 pound mushrooms, roughly chopped

1/2 head cabbage, roughly chopped

4 sprigs thyme

4 stalks flat leaf parsley

1 bay leaf

8-10 cups turkey or chicken stock

kitchen twine

1. In a large soup pot heat oil over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until onion is opaque, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add squash, carrots, celery, and ham bone. Pour enough stock over to cover the ham bone. Tie up the thyme, parsley and bay leaf with the kitchen twine. Bring it to a boil. Cover and simmer for 5-6 hours.

2. Remove herb bundle, ham bone and any meat bits from the broth. Add the mushrooms and cauliflower. Bring the soup back to a boil and cook until the mushrooms & cauliflower are soft.

3. Using and immersion blender, blend all of the vegetables until the soup is thick and smooth. If the mixture is too thick, feel free to add some warm broth.

4. Serve with a bit of parmesan cheese grated on top and some biscuits hot from the oven. Your family will swoon!

Serves 8

Here...fishy, fishy, fishy....

Ah...fish tacos!!!! Why they weren't a part of my childhood, I will never know, but as an adult I am FULLY in love with them! I love how fresh they are and how you can eat your fill and not be unhealthy. I love that you can use pretty much whatever fish you want and that you can get them from carts on the streets of LA! I love the sour bite of vinegar and the crunch of cabbage. Fish tacos are AMAZING!!!

I recently decided to make my own and after a complete FAIL of a first try I did a little research and came up with this recipe. Enjoy!!!

Fish Tacos

Makes 8 tacos

1 red onion, thinly sliced

About 1 1/2 c. red wine vinegar

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 pound flaky white fish (cod or catfish will totally work here!)

Salt

Corn tortillas

Sour cream (or Mexican creme)

Tomatoes

Shredded cabbage

Cilantro

2 limes, cut into wedges

Marinated onions:

1. Slice red onions and place them in a bowl
2. Pour enough red wine vinegar over the onions to cover them
3. Allow them to sit for at least 30 minutes

Seasoning and cooking the fish:

1. Mix olive oil, chili powder, cumin and a dash of salt in a small bowl
2. Cut the fish into slices about a finger's width wide
3. Place fish on a plate or platter and drizzle the "marinade" over the fish
4. Rub the mixture all over the fish and let sit for 20 minutes
5. Heat your oven to 350F
6. Line a cookie sheet with foil and spray with cooking oil
7. Place fish on cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes, just until fish is cooked through

Assemble your tacos:

1. Heat your tortillas
2. Load up your tortillas with all of the good stuff (fish, onions, cabbage, tomatoes, sour cream, cilantro...)
3. Squeeze a lime wedge over your tacos and eat!

Gluten Free Strawberry-Cherry Pie

If you're like me you LOVE summer fruit! I love all of the berries and the juicy nectarines and that sweet smell that doesn't exist in the produce aisle any other time of year! And if you're like me you LOVE making pies! I love the whole creative process of mixing random raw ingredients and creating something absolutely beautiful and delicious!!! In my quest to bake and eat gluten free I have finally started baking with some GF flours and the results were genius!!!!! This gem of a pie comes out with a flaky crust that reminded me of shortbread and a thick fruity filling that will knock your socks off! After sharing the pie with one of my friends family, her 10 year old son thanked Heavenly Father for the pie during his evening prayers! It's a GOOD pie!!! Here is my slightly adapted recipe for Strawberry-Cherry Pie from the fabulous Gluten Free Girl blog!

Gluten Free Strawberry-Cherry Pie

For the dough:

350g King Arthur All-Purpose GF Flour

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1/2 c. ice-cold water, plus a few splashes if needed

For the filling:

1lb. strawberries (as juicy as possible!)

1lb. cherries, pitted

1 tsp. almond extract

1/2 c. sugar

70g King Arthur All-Purpose GF Flour

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 large egg, beaten

Making the dough:

1. Cut the butter into one-inch cubes. Put them in the freezer for 15 minutes.
2. Put the flour and salt into a large food processor. Pulse them together until the flour is fluffy and aerated.
3. Add the butter cubes and pulse 10 times. Make sure these are good pulses! The flour and butter should look like a sandy mixture, with the butter chunks still visible.
4. Pour in the 1/2 c. of ice-cold water. Pulse five time. Look at the dough. If it still looks a bit dry, add a splash of water, not exceeding 1/4 c. The finished dough should look like curds of dry cottage cheese.
5. Pour the dough out onto a cool, clean surface. Gently gather all the dough together in your hands. Working quickly, take half the dough and make it into a ball, then flatten it into a plump disk. Wrap it in plastic wrap and let rest in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Repeat for the remaining dough.

Making the filling:

1. Take the tops off the strawberries. If they are super big then cut them into cherry-sized pieces. Pit the cherries and throw them into the bowl with the strawberries.Pour in the almond extract and toss the berries to coat. Put the sugar, flour and cinnamon on top of the fruit and toss gently with your hands.
2. Let the fruit sit while you roll out your dough.

Rolling out the dough and baking:

1. Get two pieces of parchment paper and lightly, VERY lightly, grease them with vegetable oil. You will roll out your dough between these guys! Don't try gluten free dough on a floured board! It's too delicate and it tears into a million pieces!
2. Preheat the oven to 425F.
3. Unwrap one disk and place between greased sides of parchment. Now get ready for some Zen rolling!
4. Pretend that the dough is the face of a clock. Roll out once at 12 o'clock, then lift the pin and roll at 12:10. Moving in "ten-minute" increment, roll out the pie dough to slightly larger than your pie pan. Be patient!!!! Think of this time as meditation time!!! Roll out the dough evenly.
5. Lift the top piece of parchment paper off (save it for your next disc of dough) and flip your dough into your pan. Carefully peel the parchment off of your dough...but if it rips just stick it back together! It can handle some manhandling!
6. Pour your filling into your lovely bottom crust and smooth it out so that it's evenly distributed in the pan.
7. Roll out the remaining dough. Lay it onto the pie gently. If the dough breaks...NO STRESS!!! Just pat the pieces back together! Tuck the edges into the crust and crimp with either your fingers or a fork.
8. Cut a few slits into the top crust. Brush the top crust with the beaten egg. Place the pie pan on a parchment lined baking sheet (to catch drips and random falling crust) and slide it into the oven.
9. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 375F.
10. Bake 45-55 minutes more until juices are bubbling out of the pie, the crust is browned and you hear a sizzle-whump when you putt your ear to the baked pie.

Waiting to eat your pie:

1. Remove the pie from the oven and place it on cooling rack (still in the pan!!!)
2. Let it cool for at least 2 hours so that the filling can set-up. If you rush it you'll have a GIANT mess!!!
3. Serve your pie on lovely little dessert plates and enjoy the tastes of summer!

Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 10pts. for 1/10 of the pie

Ah...Summer Salads!!!

I don't know about you, but I have been DYING from the heat lately! It has been blistering and today was no exception! Even as I type this at nearly 7:00pm it is 84F outside...ridiculous! To add to the fantastical sweat fest I'm having, I menu planned to roast a chicken tonight. Oh yes...I am a genius!!! So in my attempts to stay as cool as possible I whipped up a little summer salad with fruit fresh from the fridge to cool me off and help think of blissful winter days basking in the snow!!! Here's what I "cooked" up!

Watermelon, Orange and Feta Salad

Adapted from Everyday Food, Issue 84

1/4 of a small seedless watermelon, rind removed and flesh cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 large orange, pith and peel removed, divided into sections

1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced

2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped

2-4 teaspoons olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

1. On a platter or in a bowl combine first five ingredients and toss. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning.
2. Cover and refrigerate until just before serving. Serves 4.
3. Weight Watchers Points Plus Value: 2pts. per serving

Happy summer salads everyone!!!