Clara's Thai Breakfast (Gluten Free Casein Free)

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. I love eggs, I love pancakes, I love bacon, I love bagels...what's not to love?

A few months ago my friend Clara shared with me one of her favorite breakfast dishes. Her mother is Thai and Clara grew up eating wonderful meals such as Laab, Masaman, and Panang. Meals that would be considered quite exotic in my neck of the woods!

One such meal is a basic breakfast of fried eggs over steamed jasmine rice with fish sauce.

Yes, fish sauce. I am a new convert to fish sauce. I have to admit fish sauce sounded very unappetizing to me at first, but after trying Clara's breakfast, I realized how delicious it was and that I had eaten meals with similar flavors such as the anchovy paste in homemade Caesar salad.

To make Clara's breakfast, I fry 2 eggs over easy, so the yolk is warm and runny, but the whites are very crunchy and crispy. Serve the eggs over steamed jasmine rice and sprinkle on a few drops of fish sauce over the meal. Don't over-do the fish sauce unless you REALLY like fish sauce! It can be "too" fishy if you use too much, but just a few dashes and you will love it!! I also sprinkle on a few black sesame seeds for color and crunch.

Clara also has an incredibly detailed post on her personal version of a Thai Breakfast vs. an Australian breakfast. I hope you'll visit her site today and try this wonderful, simple, naturally gluten free breakfast!

A Simple Salad and Lessons on Eating...

As you know, I just finished Meghan's fantastic Green Smoothie Cleanse program. I have learned so many things in the past 6 days. For instance at one point today I thought I was really hungry, I just wanted to munch on something... instead of instantly grabbing for a snack, as I normally would... I stopped and thought about why I was hungry.

Was I truly hungry? Was I thirsty instead? Was I bored?

I realized I had not had very much to drink so I decided to have a glass of water. After the water I wasn't hungry anymore. This revelation is a huge accomplishment for me.

Meghan is truly onto something when she talks about conscious eating. This one concept alone could change my life. I've always been a conscious buyer, being very aware of needs and wants... yet for some reason up until now I have never applied this towards how I eat. I know that you shouldn't eat when you are stressed, bored, or thirsty... and as simple as this is, I never truly understood how to put this into practice.

I love food. I always will... I can't deny that fact or try to change it. But I can change my relationship with food. How I eat, what I eat, how much I eat, and when I choose to eat. And for that Meghan, I will always be in your debt. I cannot thank you enough for your wisdom and encouragement! You have helped me to get on the right steps towards positive, life long healthy weight goals.

I am gradually adding whole foods back into my diet. Today I had a salad for lunch. It was the first time I had eaten foods in their whole form in 3 days. It amazed me how quickly a simple salad of all vegetables with an olive oil and vinegar dressing could fill me up! And it was so satisfying.




For dinner, I decided to make a large salad with some of my produce from the past three days. I had a salad of mixed greens with the following on top:

- 1 shredded carrot
- 1/2 an avocado
- 1/2 cup shredded red cabbage
- 1/2 an apple
- 1 stalk of celery, chopped
- 1/2 of a medium zucchini, julienned
- 1/4 of an orange, juice squeezed over the salad
- drizzle of olive oil
- drizzle of sesame oil
- drizzle of red wine vinegar
- sprinkling of black sesame seeds

This was a delicious, fast, and filling salad! It was beautiful presentation, and it was a dinner I felt great about eating. How often do you leave the dinner table with a true sense of healthy wellbeing? Tonight I felt that way. It made me smile!

For dessert? Yes I wanted something crunchy, or sweet... but decided on a simple fruit smoothie with a banana, homemade almond milk, and a few strawberries! It was simple and delicious and instantly curbed my sugar craving!! I can do this... I know I can!

Here's to your good health!

Green Smoothie Cleanse -- Day 5

Day 5 -- Green Smoothie Cleanse, Final Post

Dear Mr. Beet,
I tried. I tried you in my smoothie this evening and I'm sorry... I just can't eat you raw. I really tried and I love still you love cooked, but raw just won't cut it! But don't worry, we used your smoothie to give a nutritious boost to our newly planted azaleas, I'm sure they will reap from your nutritious benefits!!

Very Sincerely,
Carrie @ GingerLemonGirl.com

*********

It is the last official day of the Green Smoothie Cleanse! This is my last post in the series and I did it!! I made it through 3 entire days of all green smoothies! I feel healthier and I'm really glad I did this for my body... but I'd also really like something to eat.. something crunchy! ;-)

Three days was a great length of time for this cleanse! It's just enough time to allow yourself to stop bad habits and learn new healthy ones. Tomorrow I will have raw foods such as a green leaf salad with carrots, mushrooms, sunflower seeds, cucumber, and oil and vinegar for dressing. Thursday I'll add cooked vegetables back into the menu, and Friday I'll reintroduce healthy lean meats and whole gluten free grains in very small portions.

Today I wanted to make an all veggie V8 type smoothie for dinner, minus the tomatoes. And well, as you read above, it didn't really work out. In the colorful smoothie, I used a small beet with the greens, 2 shredded carrots, red cabbage, celery, spinach, kale, and parsley. I was a brave Ginger Lemon Girl and tried to chug it down... but soon gave up. I'm sorry. I just didn't like it. No offense Mr. Beet.

So instead of a V8 smoothie, I opted for something a bit sweeter. What can I say... sweets are indeed my weakness, but at least this would be a healthy, natural sweet treat!

I decided to use shredded carrots, an apple, a handful of peaches, and of course greens.

At the last minute I tossed in some cinnamon and some fresh vanilla bean and voila... a carrot cake smoothie! It's very tasty and just slightly sweet! The cinnamon adds a lovely hint of natural sweetness and I love the fresh vanilla!

Enjoy!



Carrot Cake Smoothie

2 carrots, shredded
1 apple, cored
1/2 cup frozen peaches
2 tablespoons soaked almonds
1 cup spinach
1 cup kale
1 cup collards
2 tablespoons gogi berries
1/4 cup coconut (I used whole pieces of fresh coconut)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 of a vanilla bean pod, seeds scraped from pod into blender
2 cups water
1 cup ice

Add all to blender and pulse until very smooth. Add more water if necessary. Serve immediately!

Many thanks to Meghan Telpner for her constant support, positive encouragement, and her wonderful green smoothie cleanse program and information. Please visit her site for excellent resources on whole foods nutrition and healthy living!

Green Smoothie Cleanse -- Day 4

Day 4 of the Spring Green Smoothie Challenge!

I have to say I'm proud of myself for sticking this out! We're halfway done! Tomorrow will be last full day of the cleanse and then I will take 3 days to slowly transition back to eating healthy meals.

This has been a great challenge to me in so many ways! I'm proud of what I have learned during this process and I'm proud of myself for having the discipline to stick with this program. It is 9 days total from the first day of transition to the last. I slowly entered into the program and I will slowly transition back to whole, nourishing, gluten free, dairy free, and soy free foods!




A few things I've observed while doing this program:

- I feel really healthy and I like that feeling!!
- I am learning what it means to be a conscious eater -- a true accomplishment for this girl who will eat when stressed, bored, or ill-at-ease.
- I have learned that I do not "need" a full course meal (especially for every meal) to make my tummy happy.
- I am learning how to recognize when I want a type of food simply because I have fond memories for it, not because it is healthy or good for my body.
- I am starting to enjoy exercising just for the sake of exercising, not necessarily to accomplish a forced goal!
- I feel like smiling more often when my body feels well!
- I have more confidence in myself and what I believe I can do!

***********

Speaking of conscious eating and comfort foods...

Tonight's smoothie is probably my absolute favorite so far in the program! On the way home I thought about the smoothie I would like to have for dinner. It's amazing the things your body will crave during programs like this ;-) ... do you know what I wanted all day today? A peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Heavy on the peanut butter, light on the jelly.

How could I make a smoothie that *might* taste similar? My favorite jam is strawberry, so I knew strawberries would go in. And with strawberries... a banana always makes a happy companion! For the "peanut butter" part, I settled on almond butter since we are not eating peanuts during this cleanse to avoid mold.

Here's my smoothie. Compared to other smoothies I have made so far, this one is very filling due to the high protein content of the almond butter. Feel free to adjust the amounts to suit your taste and calorie consumption!

Carrie's Strawberry Almond Protein Smoothie


2 cups collards
3-4 leaves romaine lettuce, stems removed
1 banana
1/2 cup strawberries
3 tablespoons almond butter
1 teaspoon bee pollen
1 cup almond milk
1 cup water
1 cup ice
*swirl of agave nectar -or- pinch stevia to sweeten, if necessary (I didn't need additional sweetness!)

Add all to blender and pulse until smooth. Serve immediately Makes around 1.5 pints depending on how much liquid you add. This is one smoothie I'll definitely be making on a regular basis!


Carrie's Notes:

- I was surprised at how well the collards are blended into this smoothie! The primary flavors are a mixture of strawberry, banana, and almonds, even though there are substantial greens! It was a nice break in the routine of very, very green smoothies!

- I loved added the bee pollen to this smoothie because it reminded me even more of peanut butter and jelly, or honey in this case! It's very healthy and a great source of natural sweetness!

- I bough very very ripe bananas at the grocery store today. I find that overripe bananas are wonderful in smoothies because of the serious natural sweetness! The lady in line behind me asked why in the world I would buy such ripe bananas! I told her that I peeled them, froze them, and added them to smoothies. She was genuinely delighted. She smiled and said, "Wow, I never would have thought to do that. What a smart shopper you are!" It made my day!

Green Smoothie Cleanse -- Day 3

Day 3... which is actually day 1 of the beginning of ALL green smoothies, for all three meals, for three consecutive days. I transitioned into the 3 day green smoothie cleanse by going from one green smoothie meal to today, 3 smoothie meals.

I have to admit yesterday was harder than today. I like to chew and crunch and munch. So the lack of these comfortable motions of my mouth were really missed by yesterday afternoon. Was it hard today? Well, a little, but I kept telling myself, this is only for 3 days. You can do anything for 3 days! Today actually went quite smoothly (pardon the pun) as a matter of fact! ;-)

For the occasion my steadfast old trusty blender died. Yes, it died. Just when I needed it consistently for about 6 days! So while I couldn't buy a Vitamix, I was able to afford a nice Kitchenaid Blender. I am IN LOVE with my new blender! The shakes are VERY smooth, ice crushed perfectly, and it makes me one happy little smoothie maker! I decided to go with a Kitchenaid because I use a KA stand mixer that has lasted over 12 years, and it's still working like it's brand new! I have high hopes for the quality of this blender!

I think I have decided I'm not extremely fond of parsley in a smoothie. My morning breakfast smoothie had parsley and it was quite strong tasting. I still finished it, but decided I would use other greens for the rest of the day!

Tonight's smoothie has a little bit of protein, a few tablespoons of pineapple, and my favorite greens: spinach and kale. It has been very refreshing way to spend Sunday evening! If you try it tell me what you think!


Gentle Evening Smoothie

1/4 cup pineapple
1 Asian pear
handful of grapes
1 tablespoon gogi berries
2 tablespoons soaked almonds
1 1/2 cups spinach
1 1/2 cups kale
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 1/2 cups ice
1 1/2 cups water
* add stevia or agave nectar for additional sweetness

Place all in blender and pulse until smooth. Serve immediately.

Are you making smoothies? Do you enjoy them? What kinds of smoothies or shakes do you make in your blender? Share with me in the comments!

Until tomorrow!

Green Smoothie Cleanse -- Day 2

GOOD MORNING!!!

How are you today?

Me? I feel GREAT!

It's Day 2 of the Green Smoothie Cleanse. The Cleanse actually starts officially on Sunday, but I've already started making and drinking smoothies and getting ready for the big day!!

Today I woke up, took a 20 minute walk in the gorgeous spring sunshine, and made my morning smoothie! It was such a wonderful start to the day! I feel refreshed, energetic, and ready to go!




My smoothie this morning was based on Meghan's morning smoothie from her Green Cleanse Program. If you still want to join in the cleanse, it is not too late! You can still join in the Spring Green Cleanse here. You will NOT be disappointed!! It's going to be the best $10 you have ever spent!! Meghan has a wealth of information on healthy living and you will learn SO Much more than simply how to make smoothies! I have learned so much already!! Come join the Spring Green Smoothie Team!!

This is the wonderful smoothie I created this morning, it was so refreshing, light, and delicious! I just want to share all this great raw veggie energy with you!! I hope you'll try it this weekend and then take a nice long walk in the sunshine!!

Here's to your good health!!




Carrie's Morning Power Smoothie
(Top 8 + Gluten Free)

2 tablespoons almonds (soaked overnight)
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon hemp protein powder (ground hemp seeds)
1/2 a small gala apple
1/2 cup green grapes
2 stalks celery
1-2 cups fresh spinach
pinch cayenne pepper
pinch stevia
2 cups water
2 cups ice

Add water, celery, apple, spinach, and grapes to blender. Blend until smoothie. Add remaining ingredients and blend until very smooth! Serve immediately or store in a glass jar in the very back of your fridge to keep cold and icy until serving! Enjoy!

I had no idea celery could be SO refreshing!! It was such a beautiful and healthy way to start the morning! I loved this smoothie!! Visit Meghan's site to learn about how you can make your own green smoothies!

************

Meghan also offered up a wonderful curried vegetable salad for dinner last night! She has done such a thorough job with this great program! I had no idea what to make for dinner last night that was all vegetable based! Meghan's homemade curry was fantastic! Even the picky husband ate his entire plate! I couldn't believe it!! Thanks Meghan!

Here's Meghan's recipe for this fantasic, simple, and veggie*full curry!! Enjoy!!
This recipe will be added to our meal rotation! We really loved it!

I'll keep you updated tomorrow on another yummy green smoothie from my kitchen!

Have a GREAT Saturday!!

Green Smoothie Cleanse -- Day 1

Meet Meghan, a beautiful, happy, healthy, gluten, & dairy free nutritionist! I found Meghan's blog via Ellen @ I Am Gluten Free. Ellen wrote about a 3 day "green smoothie cleanse" that she was participating in and I was very intrigued.

If you read my blog, you know I love meat...especially bacon. And that my friends, is not going to change... but I think every once in a while we do need to let our bodies recharge, refresh, and renew... eating a bunch of good raw vegetables and fruits in the form of a healthy, delicious smoothie is a great way to do that!

This spring cleanse is more than just a way of eating, it's a way to jump start daily exercise, prayer, and good health in general.

Basically beginning on Sunday, I will have three days in which I will eat "green" smoothies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with an AM and PM snack in between. The smoothies will be chock-full of wonderful green veggies such as:

• raw spinach
• mustard greens
• celery
• cucumbers
• cabbage
  
• fresh parsley
• kale
• mint

I am very excited about this 3 day veggie filled body cleanse! It will be a great time to refocus on becoming healthy both inside and out!

To work my way into the cleanse I am already eating at least 1 green smoothie a day. I am going to try to share the smoothies I have with you each day on this cleanse! I hope it will inspire you to try a green smoothie for yourself! They are really healthy and a fantastic way to add more fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet! Dust off your blender in the back of the cabinet and start making smoothies!

To get your started, here is Meghan's fantastic tutorial on how to create your own green smoothie!

I owe a HUGE thank you to my friend Clara of Six Food Intolerance Living for introducing me to smoothies a few weeks ago. She shared her recipe for a Kale and Pear smoothie, which started my current obsession with healthy, raw smoothies! Thanks Clara for helping me on my journey to good health!!

Here is the smoothie that I had as a dessert last night and for breakfast this morning. It is a little heavy with fruits, but since I'm working my way towards more green and less fruits it's a good start! It was absolutely delicious!

I made this smoothie last night so I would be prepared for today. To keep my smoothie "icy" I store it in the very back of my refrigerator on the first shelf. It stays icy and crisp for my morning breakfast!

photo courtesy of Chaotic Peace

Carrie's Morning Breakfast Smoothie
This smoothie is full of fiber, protein, green veggies, sweet fresh fruit, and lots of omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids from the hemp protein, chia seeds, and ground flax seeds. The sweetness of the fruit really shines through in this wonderful smoothie!
*Top 8 free (soy, casein, eggs, wheat, peanuts, treenuts, fish, shellfish, + gluten)

- 1 cup mustard greens (or kale if you prefer!)
- 2 cups spinach
- 1/2 cup italian parsley
- 1/2 cup grapes
- 1/2 an apple
- 1 small pear
- 1 banana
- handful of blueberries
- handful of blackberries
- 1 1/2 cups hemp milk
- 2 tablespoons hemp protein powder (crushed hemp seeds)
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar
- 3 cups ice

Overwhelmed? Don't be! I know it's a lot of ingredients, but trust me, you'll LOVE just tossing all of these wonderful fresh foods into the blender and making yourself a delicious treat!

To make my smoothies I add the liquid first (hemp milk in this case!), and add the greens. I pulse them on high until they are very smooth and then add the other ingredients and pulse again until smooth. Lastly I add ice and once again pulse until very smooth and serve immediately or store in the back of my fridge where the smoothie will remain icy until breakfast! I would love to have a vitamix one day, but this blending technique seems to work really well in my old, run of the mill blender!

Do you have any tips or ideas on how to make a delicious green smoothie??
PLEASE share with us in the comments below!
I can't wait to hear from you!!

Stay tuned for additional Healthy Green Smoothie posts through next week!

What's for Dinner Wednesday - Gluten Free Biscuits and Gravy

Linda, the author of one of my favorite gluten free blogs, "The Gluten Free Homemaker" has been hosting a weekly gluten free blogging carnival focusing on the theme of "What's for Dinner." I've been meaning to participate in Linda's event for quite some time! This week I just happened to have something perfect for "What's for Dinner" Wednesday.

My friend Clara inspired me a few weeks ago to make sausage gravy and biscuits. She mentioned making it for dinner on our Gluten Free Recipe Swap Group and it reminded me of a favorite childhood comfort food. My mother always made a milk gravy with using meaty, browned ground hamburger and flour as a thickener. I loved that gravy. It was simple, delicious, and filling. I honestly could not remember the last time I made mom's hamburger gravy (which we simply referred to as "gravy" growing up) and I decided to try and make it.

The challenge in re-creating my mom's gravy was finding a milk substitute and using something other than flour as a thickener. On Clara's good judgment I decided to use sweet rice flour as my thickener, and I chose to use a combination of unsweetened almond and hemp milk as the liquid for my gravy. It turned out delicious! This gluten free, casein free gravy is a super fast, easy, and comforting dinner!

We've made this gravy 3 times now and I think it's fast becoming a favorite comfort food once again! This gravy is lower in carbohydrates than gravy made with dairy milk, and we served this over gluten free, lower carb biscuits. I'll post the biscuit recipe soon, but until then, feel free to use my master mix biscuits (minus the cheese) or Linda's World Famous Drop Biscuits! They have RAVE reviews!! To make them casein free simply use coconut oil in place of the butter and almond or hemp milk in place of the dairy. They are light, fluffy, and everything a good biscuit should be!




Carrie's Hamburger Gravy
(Gluten Free, Casein Free, Soy Free)

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup almond milk (or regular milk)
1 cup hemp milk (or regular milk)
2 tablespoons sweet rice flour or cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt-free seasoning, such as SPIKE
1 teaspoon garlic granules, such as SPIKE
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (*optional)

In a heavy bottomed skillet, brown ground beef. Sprinkle sweet rice flour (or cornstarch) over browned ground beef. Stir to coat. Add almond and hemp milk, stirring or whisking with ground beef until thick and creamy. Add more milk if gravy is too thick. Add spices and let simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve over hot gluten free biscuits or toast! Enjoy!! Makes 4-5 large servings.


Carrie's Notes:
* Nutritional Yeast -- I added this ingredient to the gravy to add a "cheesy" type of flavor which we loved. While nutritional yeast doesn't taste exactly like cheese, it added the lovely deep flavors that cheese often adds to dishes!

*Add flavors that you like! Sage, thyme, even rosemary might add a wonderful savory touch to this gravy.

*I used hemp milk and almond milk, both of the products I use are unsweetened and therefore have very few calories and carbohydrates, they are great alternatives not only to dairy milk, but to non-dairy milk products with higher carbohydrate counts. Make sure to read the ingredients of non-dairy milk options, many have added sugar to sweeten them.

Gluten Free On a Budget (Part 1)

Being gluten free doesn't have to hurt your wallet. Well...okay, maybe a little! But there ARE ways you can learn to be gluten free on a budget!

If you missed my interview with Jenn of Frugal Upstate, Lynnae of BeingFrugal.net , and Amanda of Mrs. W's Kitchen, on Frugal Coast2Coast... No worries!! you can listen to the archived show right here:




Over the next few weeks I'm going to go over highlights from the show in more detail on how YOU can be gluten free without breaking your budget! I promise it's possible!

For the first post, here are what I consider some of my most frugal (and favorite) recipes! I hope you'll enjoy them!!

One thing that folks have to remember on a gluten free diet is that often the initial cost of SOME ingredients can be pricey, but these ingredients stretch and go along way!!

Breakfast/Bread Recipes:


Gluten Free Homemade Master Mix - All Purpose Baking Mix like Bisquick

Easy Quick GF Homemade Sandwich Bread

GF Pancakes made with Master Baking Mix

Grits Bowl

Sara's Baked Oatmeal

GF Whole Grain Banana Nut Muffins

GF Fresh Blueberry Muffins

Easy Homemade Gluten Free Bread






Dinner/Supper Recipes:

A complete frugal GF Thanksgiving dinner with recipes, grocery list, and game plan

GF/SF/CF "Cheese" Sauce (perfect for making a great macaroni and cheese, a cheesy casserole, etc...)

Gluten Free Clam Chowder (naturally Gluten Free and very pantry friendly)

Twenty Minute Turkey Chili (quick, frugal, and naturally GF)

Southern Tuna Salad (naturally gluten free, super easy, and usually in our dinner rotation)
cookies
Homemade Caesar Salad (My Dad's best homemade salad!)

Spaghetti Squash ( in place of pasta - naturally gluten free)

Spanish Tortilla (naturally gluten free, very frugal ingredients)

Creamy Chicken Tacos (super frugal and kid-friendly GF dinner!)

Nan's Skillet Dinner (naturally GF frugal dinner from my grandmother! -- one of my favs)

Stacey's Pork Chops (delicious quick GF Dinner)

Carrie's Sweet and Sour Chicken (Miss Chinese take out?? this quick easy GF recipe is the one for you!!)

Spring Chicken and Grits (with a grits tutorial)






Desserts:


BEST GF Chocolate Chip Cookies (one of my most popular and favorite recipes)

GF Double Fudge Walnut Cookies (a delicious variation of the chocolate chip cookies!)

Everyday Chocolate Cake and Carrot Cake (Gluten free and casein free -- Move over Betty Crocker!)

Sweet Potato Pie (My favorite classic naturally gluten free pie!)

Rich Chocolate Brownies (My GO TO brownie recipe! Especially for company!)

*****************

Enjoy what you've read here? Don't miss a single post! You can have Ginger Lemon Girl delivered straight to your email inbox! Simply fill in your email address below!

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Fresh Strawberry Pie Again!! (Gluten Free)

I have such amazing memories of being in the kitchen with my great-grandmother. Her best dessert is a fresh strawberry pie. I believe this is the only way you should make a strawberry pie!

Making this pie marks the beginning of spring for me. In eastern NC, spring seems to get here earlier and earlier each year. These beautiful berries were my first purchase from a local strawberry farm. Thankfully they will be selling them through May, so you can bet neighbors will be getting a strawberry pie or two this month!

Strawberry pie is actually a very simple pie to make. I try to make several gluten free pie crusts ahead of time and freeze them. That way, when it's strawberry season, you can just pull out your ready made pie crust, bake it, and you are ready to go!

Here is how to make my grandmother's strawberry pie:

Buy a quart of strawberries from a local farmer! If you are going to use them immediately rinse them off, and place them in the fridge. If you are going to use them later, DO NOT RINSE until you are ready to use them!!

Cut the strawberries into slices or quarters. I did a little of both!

Gather your ingredients for the strawberry gelatin, this is going to be the wonderful gooey stuff that holds the pie together! We'll use cornstarch, lemon juice, sugar, and plain ol' strawberry gelatin.

In a saucepan, mix together 1 cup of water, 2 tablespoons of cornstarch, and 3/4 cup of sugar. Let this mixture come to a boil for 3 minutes.

Take the thick-syrupy mixture off the heat and add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 3 tablespoons of strawberry gelatin. Mix together thoroughly.

Let this yummy sweet syrupy mixture cool for 5-10 minutes.

Grab your favorite pie plate!
Okay, you don't have to use this specific plate, but it sure makes it seem more authentic!

Here is my pie crust before prebaking. Make sure when you are prebaking the crust to use a fork and put holes in the bottom crust! This will keep your crust from bubbling and cracking. You can also place a sheet of foil over the unbaked crust and place pie weights or a bag of beans on top of the foil to weigh down the crust while baking.

Once your pie crust is completely cool. Spread about 4 tablespoons of cream cheese over the bottom. This will act as a shield against the pie filling and keep your crust nice and crispy!

Next, fold your strawberries into the cooled strawberry syrup/gelatin and pour this mixture into your crust. It will be a beautiful bright red! Refridgerate the pie for 2-3 hours before serving. This will allow the syrup/gelatin mixture to completely firm up and set.

Here is my second pie. I ran out of strawberries, so I added some frozen wild blueberries that I defrosted and rinsed.

Serve up this pie with a big dollop of whipped cream! Enjoy!!

My Great-Grandma P.'s Strawberry Pie
free of gluten and soy

printer-friendly recipe

1 quart strawberries, rinsed, patted dry, and quartered or sliced
1 gluten free pie shell, baked and cooled
1 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons strawberry gelatin (Jello)
4 tablespoons reduced fat cream cheese

Directions:
In a medium sized saucepan whisk together water, cornstarch, and sugar. Bring to a rolling boil. Continue to boil for three minutes. Mixture should be think and gel-like. Take off heat and stir in lemon juice and strawberry gelatin. Set mixture aside and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Warm cream cheese in a small bowl in microwave for 20 seconds. Spread cream cheese over the bottom of your cooled gluten free pie crust. This will act as a barrier between your pie crust and your pie filling to keep your crust crispy. Fold cut strawberries into the strawberry gel mixture and pour into pie shell. Refridgerate 2-3 hours before serving so pie will set. Calories do not count when serving strawberry pie! Serve with fresh whipped cream.