Pumpkin Bread

I love pumpkin bread. To me there is nothing that says "here comes fall" like a nice warm piece of pumpkin bread and a cup of hot tea on a chilly day. This was the perfect fix for a whopper of a pumpkin craving I had the other day. The best part about this recipe (other than the fact that it tastes uh-mazing) is that it makes 3 loaves at once. Perfect for gifts or to freeze for later! I personally plan on making this again ASAP. The husband after saying "This is GLUTEN FREE??" described it as "A cool autumn day in my belly." He's so silly...but seriously it is. The original recipe called for oil but I substituted unsweetened applesauce and it worked awesome! Can't wait for you to try it!

What you need (for 3, 8 x 4 inch loaves)

- 2 1/2 C white rice flour
- 1/2 C cornstarch
- 5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 4 eggs
- 1 C applesauce
- 1/2 C orange juice (no pulp)
- 3 C granulated sugar
- 1 Can pumkin puree (not pie filling!)






Directions

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray your loaf pans. Set aside

- Combine all the ingredients up through the xanthan gum in a stand mixer (I've been borrowing my mom's for a few weeks now...sorry mom I'll bring it back one day I promise!)

- In a separate mixing bowl, combine the eggs, applesauce and orange juice. Add in the sugar and canned pumpkin and whisk together well

- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk together until smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides a couple of times.

- Separate the batter into the 3 loaf pans evenly.

- Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean

- Serve warm! I had 2 pieces the day I made these. The first one I had plain and it was great. The second piece I added cream cheese and a cup of tea. Add in the rainy drizzle outside and it was a perfect afternoon treat! YUM!

- Such a delicious fall treat! Next time I'll add some pumpkin seeds on top of the batter before baking!

I have some exciting posts coming up in the next few weeks. A freezer cooking day, gluten free cinnamon rolls and the VanLue family Thanksgiving just to name a few! Keep checking back!

Husband in the Kitchen!

The husband and I try to have a date night every week. Sometimes we go out and sometimes we stay in, but we always try to schedule out time for each other each week. Our hope is that by making it a habit now, early on in our marriage, that it will be something that we continue to do in the years ahead. A while ago my husband mentioned that he wanted to be responsible for cooking dinner at least one date night per month. Well I wasn't about to turn down that offer! The first time he made dinner he did an awesome job following my jambalaya recipe (you can find it here). I had to talk him through a couple of things, but for the most part I got to sit and relax...score! This time around he made what I ended up calling Red Beans & Rice with Sausage. It was yummy and he did it all on his own! I was allowed to take pictures and brag about him on the blog. Can't wait to see what he makes next!

What you need

- 1 lb chicken sausage (spicy is good!)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1/2 green bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 C cooked brown rice
- vegetable, chicken or beef broth
- salt and pepper to taste
- cajun seasoning, or red pepper flakes





Directions

Having fun in the kitchen! Don't worry, I sat down and let him work after this!

- Slice sausage into rings

- Heat 1 T of coconut oil in a large pot. Add sausage and begin to brown

- While the sausage is cooking, dice up your vegetables

- When the sausage is browned add the vegetables and cook about 5 minutes

- Add a palmful of salt and pepper

- Add in the drained red beans and stir

- Add in 1/4 tsp cajun seasoning or red pepper flakes

- Add in the rice and a little bit of broth and stir well

- That's it! I topped mine with some sliced green onion

- It was great! Thanks honey!

Melt in Your Mouth Chicken

This was one of the easiest chicken recipes I've ever made! You may have seen this pin floating around Pinterest lately (which is where I got it from) and it definitely did not disappoint! The husband really liked it as well! Next time I will add a little garlic powder to the mix. Hope you enjoy it too!

What you need

- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 C greek yogurt (original recipe called for mayonnaise but I didn't want the calories)
- 1/4 C grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper

*Yep that's all you need! Easy!!

Directions

- Combine the yogurt, cheese, salt and pepper in a bowl

 - Stir well until mixture is fairly smooth

- Spread mixture evenly on the top and sides of the chicken breasts (I topped ours with a little more parmesan cheese)

- Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes and the top of the chicken is golden brown

- I served this with quinoa/rice and green beans. It was awesome and the husband asked to have it again! Score for the wife!

Chicken Noodle Soup

Well, I've officially brought fall into my house. Now in Florida we don't really have a true fall season, so I have to do some manipulating in order to get my brain to think that there is a bit of chill in the air. The other night there was a slight breeze and it actually felt "nice" outside so I knew what I had to do. I lit my pumpkin spice candle, turned on some Frank Sinatra and made chicken noodle soup. And it just so happened that I was battling a really sore throat so soup was definitely a good decision. The husband really liked this version of chicken noodle soup, although he did say that he isn't use to all the vegetables. Interpretation: he likes Campbells canned chicken noodle soup. You know the kind I mean. With the incredibly salty chicken broth, the straight noodles and the itty bitty pieces of a tastes like chicken substance. Yuck. This was super easy, start to finish in about 30 minutes, and gave us leftovers for the week. I don't think the husband will ever eat Campbells again!

What you need

- 1 small onion, chopped
- 4 small red potatoes, cubed
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- fresh herbs (I used rosemary and basil)
- 1 cup cubed chicken
- 1/2 T poultry seasoning
- 2 cups gf short pasta






Directions

- Heat a bit of coconut oil in a large pot. Add the onion, garlic and potatoes and stir.

- Add the celery and carrots and cook for 2-3 minutes

- Add in the chicken broth, herbs and poultry seasoning. Simmer for 15 minutes

- Add in the chicken and pasta. Cover the pot and allow the noodles to cook.

- I used these cute little corkscrew quinoa noodles and they were great!

- Taste the soup and add more seasoning if needed. Top with some parmesan cheese and serve with garlic bread!

Pasta, Bread and Snacks...oh my!

It's been a while since I've done a post about products I like. So as you might suspect, this is a post about products I like! For those of you who may be new to gluten-free living, I know how easy it is to feel overwhelmed and what a struggle it can be to find replacements for things. A lot of people don't realize how hard it is to find gluten-free items that don't taste like cardboard or that aren't filled with tons of sugar and fat. These products are ones that I've been using for a while so I trust them. I'm know there are other kinds out there, maybe even better than the ones I use, but once I found something that I liked (and even more importantly that the husband liked) I stopped looking. This is a list of simple staples that I always try to keep on hand so that I'm never caught in a pinch come lunch or dinner time. I hope it helps you and gives you some products to try!

Pasta
We eat pasta at least once a week. With my work schedule I need easy and simple meals 3 nights a week that take 20 minutes or less. Pasta is always a great choice for us. We both love it and it's easy to make meatless pasta dishes if you're trying to reduce your meat intake (which we are!). We usually have Spaghetti once a week (usually Monday nights) and Broccoli Alfredo another night.

For spaghetti I use Ancient Harvest Quinoa spaghetti style noodles:

These noodles are really great for spaghetti. They hold up well, but you just want to be careful with the cooking time. If you cook them too long they can start to get mushy and fall apart a bit. A great thing about these noodles is that they are made from quinoa so they are full of protein, which is especially good if you are making meatless spaghetti. I like these better than the long rice noodles.

For the alfredo pasta and most other pasta dishes I usually go with Tinkyada Brown Rice Penne:

This pasta has awesome texture. In addition to the broccoli alfredo I've also used it in most of my other pasta dishes. The husband really likes this kind as well. Again, as with most rice pastas you want to make sure you follow the recommended cooking time since the texture will change if they are under or over cooked. 

Bread

I actually don't eat bread very often. Occasionally I'll have a piece of toast with dinner, but I rarely make sandwiches for myself anymore. I usually keep a loaf of Udi's whole grain GF bread in the freezer and I can make it last a while. The pieces are smaller than regular bread...ok they are much smaller but if you're trying to cut carbs then that's actually a good thing!

I also really like Udi's plain bagels. I keep them frozen and then thaw them out for 30 seconds in the microwave, and then toast them and top with cream cheese or jelly. They can be a little dry if you toast too much, but when you are really craving a bagel and "schmear" that is easy to overlook!

Snacks

I think snacks can be some of the hardest things to adjust to when going gluten-free. At least it was hard for me! I'm definitely a salty over sweet kinda girl so not being able to have pretzels, cheezits and wheat thins anymore was devastating! Although I've tried to get away from most conventional snack foods like crackers and chips, I still get cravings for something crunchy and salty. Here are some great gluten-free snacks that I have come to love. 

I love these multi-seed crackers. I have featured them before on the blog. They sell them in bulk at Costco but also smaller bags at Publix and Whole Foods. I like them plain, with hummus, or with some cheddar cheese. YUM.

These rice chips are fantastic. They have multiple flavors and they are rice, not corn. I've only seen small bags at Publix but they do go on sale every once in a while. The husband likes these too!

I really like these veggie straws. They are made from potato, spinach, and tomato and are lightly salted. I like them just as much as chips (but the husband doesn't). These are also sold in bulk at Costco in individual bags which are great for lunch boxes and picnics!

These are my second favorite crackers. They are on the expensive side because of the ingredients, but they are delicious! They come in a variety of flavors, are pretty much available at all grocery stores and definitely satisfy my salty craving. I like eating these plain but are good with hummus or any other kind of dip also.








Some other natural snacks that I enjoy are:
- Celery and peanut butter
- Rice cakes with nutella and bananas
- Carrot sticks and hummus (try my red pepper hummus)
- Trail mix
- Granola  (find my recipe here)
- Any fresh fruit (We get Orlando Organics fruit delivery every other week. They are awesome!)


I know this post is long, but I wanted to be thorough in my suggestions! Do you have any favorite gluten free products that you use? I would love to hear them!

I promise I'll have some recipes coming up soon! Chicken Noodle Soup, Melt in your mouth Chicken, and Dirty Rice with Sausage are just a few in the lineup...not to mention some yummy apple recipes just in time for fall!

Penne a la Betsy

As I mentioned in my last post, the husband loves shrimp. This is another fabulous shrimp recipe from the Pioneer Woman that I have made many times. This was the first time that I made it with gluten free pasta though and it was terrific! This is a really good company meal as well (in fact I will be making it again tomorrow night when we have friends over!) I've substituted chicken for the shrimp or you could leave out meat all together and add some vegetables like zucchini, eggplant and peppers. Yum!

What you need:

- 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 lb GF penne pasta
- 2 T butter
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 C white wine (you can sub broth)
- 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
- 1/2 C heavy cream
- Fresh parsley
- Fresh basil
- salt and pepper




Directions:

- Cook the pasta until al dente, drain and set aside

- Heat 1 T of butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shrimp and cook until they just start to turn pink. Do not overcook them! Remove and let cool.

- Dice your onion and mince your garlic

- Add to the same skillet you used to cook the shrimp and add a bit more butter and olive oil if needed. Cook until the onions begin to turn translucent and the garlic is fragrant

- Add in the white wine and stir the bottom of the pan really well to scrape up the browned pieces. Let the wine cook for a few minutes stirring occasionally. If you aren't a wine person or prefer not to use it, you can substitute the same amount of chicken broth.

- After the wine has cooked down a bit, add in the can of tomato sauce and stir well

- Add in the heavy cream and stir

- As the sauce simmers a bit, chop up the cooled shrimp into bite sized pieces and add to sauce

- Add some salt and pepper. Chop up some fresh parsley and fresh basil and add to sauce. I ended up using about 1/8 C of each herb. Using the fresh herbs really finishes out the dish and adds great flavor so don't skip them!

- Add in the pasta and stir to combine everything. Top with some grated parmesan cheese if you have it and enjoy! As I mentioned before, this is really yummy with chicken as well!