Posted in Breakfast, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Soy Free

Pancakes that Perform

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 TBSP ground chia (or whole psyllium husks or 2 ripe smashed bananas)
  • 1/3 cup filtered water (omit if using bananas)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 TBSP Baking Powder
  • 1/4 cup Coconut Sugar
  • 6 to 7 TBSP coconut oil (melted) or olive oil
  • 3 1/2-4 Cups Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Baking Flour (can also use Teff flour)
  • 2 1/4- 2/1/2 Cups Coconut Milk
  • (optional) Cinnamon to taste

DIRECTIONS:

  • Tip a large mixing bowl on it’s side and add the chia and water. Whisk and let it gel. Once it is firm, set the bowl down flat.
  • On the other side of the bowl, add salt, baking powder, and sugar.
  • Add in the oil and whisk everything together.
  • Add flour and milk and whisk together until thick yet pourable.
  • Ladle on to medium heat, greased, griddle by 1/4 measuring cup.
  • Cook until bubbly, then flip. Continue cooking until light brown on both sides.
  • Serve with butter, organic maple syrup, organic jellies, or whatever you like.

DISHING ON THIS DISH: This recipe will feed two hungry kids, Dad, and enough for Mommy. What I really love is making a huge batch the night before. Stored and covered, in the fridge, it’s a huge time saver in the morning.

WHAT’S IN THE CUPBOARD: Pancakes seem so easy, but they can be really tricky! For example, this recipe does not work with Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour Mix, but works great with Bob’s Red Mill All Purpose Baking Flour, King Arthur’s Gluten Free Baking Flour or any mix of both, but 3 cups Bob’s and 1 cup KA is the best. I’ve also used Teff Flour as a sub which works great mixed in or on it’s own. I’ve even added coconut flour to the mix in a pinch, which worked. In addition, 2 ripe bananas, smashed sub great for the chia seed OR use chia and bananas for extra flavor and extra volume. Whole psyllium husks can also sub for the chia and make fabulous pancakes.

Posted in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Main dishes, Meat, Nightshade Free, Soy Free

Meatloaf

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs organic beef
  • 1/4 cup chia seeds
  • 1 cup filtered water
  • 1/2 cup fresh pureed Butternut Squash
  • 3 slices gluten free bread, diced into small squares
  • 1 tsp each thyme, rosemary, basil, salt, pepper (all to taste and to allergies)
  • an extra 1/2 cup of fresh pureed Butternut Squash for topping (if desired)

DIRECTIONS:

  • Tip a large mixing bowl in order to add the chia seeds on the side of the bowl.
  • Whisk in the water and let the ‘chia eggs’ gel. When the chia mixture is firm, set the bowl down on its bottom. ( I do this to avoid having to use/wash an extra bowl to mix chia eggs)
  • Mix in 1/2 cup of fresh pureed Butternut Squash.
  • Add all seasonings.
  • Add the diced bread. Mix well.
  • Add in the beef and continue to mix well, probably with hands.
  • Bake at 375 for 1 hour.
  • Spread on topping and bake 20 minutes more.

DISHING ON THIS DISH: Kind of funny, but I switched phones while starting this blog and so many photos of my dishes were on my old phone. I wasn’t able to email them to myself (without swapping SIM cards) so I figured I’d take a pic of my pic. I forgot to edit out my cell phone. Oh well. The meatloaf is absolutely as good as it looks. Enjoy!

Posted in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nightshade Free, Soy Free

Pizza with Garbanzo Bean Crust and Butternut Squash Sauce

Garbanzo Bean Crust

Ingredients:

  • about 2 1/2 cups garbanzo bean flour
  • 1/2 Tbsp Sea Salt (to taste)
  • 1 tsp coriander ( or pepper)
  • 3 tbsp olive or grapeseed oil or safflower oil
  • 1 1/2 cups (approx) water. Add water until consistency is a little thinner than pancake batter. Should be stirrable and pourable. It won’t be thick like bread dough but it won’t be water thin, either.

Instructions:

  • Heat oven to 450 degrees while the batter rests.
  • Pour another 2 – 3 TBSP grapeseed oil into cast iron pan. I like using a round one for pizza, but a rectangular can be used also. 
  • Put pan with just oil into 450 degree oven for about 6 minutes to heat the oil. 
  • Carefully remove pan, then pour the batter into it.  A nice hot pan will ensure a crispier crust.
  • Bake 20 to 25 minutes. Remove and turn oven down to 350.

Pizza Sauce – pureed Butternut Squash

  • Bake a butternut squash at 375 for about 45 minutes. Let it cool a bit.
  • Scoop the flesh out of the peel and put it into a food processor.
  • Add a bit of water and mix.
  • Add enough water to make it the consistency of a pizza sauce that you desire.
  • Add seasonings such as garlic, rosemary, thyme, basil, salt, pepper as desired.

***You could also use beets. Boil them and puree as above. Add desired seasonings.

Add Toppings to Pizza and Sauce

  • Let bread cool a bit after it’s done baking.
  • Ladle your pizza sauce onto the crust.
  • Add desired toppings: hamburger, organic turkey pepperoni, home-made sausage, veggies of any kind, olives, Daiya Mozzarella Cheese.
  • Return pizzas to 350 degree oven. Bake 15 minutes.
  • Remove, slice with pizza cutter, and enjoy!

NOTE: Measurements are approximate. I’ve made this so many times that I throw it all together by feel. Experiment and get the right thickness and crispiness of crust that you want for your pizza. This recipe is super flexible! Bread can be made thick or thin – just adjust water and adjust baking times.  We also use this bread for snacking and sandwiches.

DISHING ON THIS DISH:
We don’t do well with nightshades which excludes tomatoes from our diet. I use butternut squash as a great alternative to tomato sauce in pizza, ketchup in meatloaf, and it’s fabulous as a pumpkin alternative in bread and pie too!


Posted in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Kids Meals, Main dishes, Meat, Nightshade Free, Soy Free

Veggie Meatballs

  • Ingredients:
  • 1/4 cup ground chia seed
  • 1 cup warm filtered water
  • Vegetables to grind up in processor, or Ninja (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, kale, spinach, onion, rutabaga, are some ideas. Use whatever you like!)
  • 1 cup of quinoa flakes
  • Sea Salt (to taste)
  • Seasonings (to taste) I like fresh parsley, basil, rosemary, and thyme.
  • 2.5 pounds of organic beef or turkey

Directions:

Using a blender, food processor, or Ninja, grind up

  • – 1 head of cauliflower and some broccoli
  • – 2 to 3 med. rutabagas or carrots or any other veggie
  • – 2 to 4 kale leaves, several spinach leaves, OR any variety of veggies you prefer.

In a large mixing bowl:

Tip the bowl sideways to add 1/4 cup chia seed and 1 cup warm water. Use a wire whisk to mix up chia seed and let it firm up or ‘gel’ ( also called gel eggs or chia eggs.) It won’t take long to gel and you can set the bowl down on it’s bottom.

Add the seasonings and salt and whisk into your chia eggs

Add the ground meat and mix well with a large spoon.

Add the ground veggies. Mix with spoon.

Add the quinoa flakes. Mix with spoon or hands.

Shape into Meatballs of preferred size and bake in casserole dishes or on cookie sheets at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour.
DISHING ON THIS DISH: We don’t eat noodles from a box. These meatballs are fabulous with spaghetti squash!

Posted in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Kids Meals, Main dishes, Meat, Nightshade Free, Soy Free

Chicken Nuggets that Really Work

Gluten, Dairy, Egg free Chicken Nuggets  – fry or bake
Ingredients: 

3/4 cup King Arthur gluten free flour
2 tsp each of parsley, rosemary, thyme, basil (or to taste)
2tsp Sea Salt (or to taste)
2 lbs organic chicken breasts cut into 1 inch cubes or use full tenderloins
Coconut oil to fill frying pan up to about 1/8 inch (olive oil, grapeseed, or safflower)I

TO FRY:
Mix flour and seasonings in a bowl or 2 qt size baggie.
Add cubed chicken and coat well. 
Fry on medium heat and rotate as needed, until crispy-brown.
Drain on paper towels and serve. 

TO BAKE:
Just spritz a little bit of oil onto the nuggets before baking. 
Bake in single layer at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.  
I used a small convection oven for this, so bake times might vary.

**If you have allergies to seasonings, flour and sea salt alone tastes great.

**Add chili pepper and cayenne pepper if able. Yum!

Dishing on this dish: I was so frustrated trying all kinds of recipes to make chicken nuggets. I really gave up for a couple years. One day, I happened across a recipe that I thought would be so easy to switch up to an allergy free recipe for chicken nuggets and voila, this recipe was born.  As a bonus, this recipe is super fast to make whether baking or frying. Make extra! Your kids will gobble these right up.  If I have left-over flour mix, I store it in the fridge and use it up the  next day.