Book Review: The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide, Part 2

Title: The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide, Part 2
Authors: Iris Higgins and Brittany Angell
Publisher: Triumph Dining, Inc.,
Copyright: 2012

Earlier this year a dear friend of mine, Iris Higgins the author of the website "The Daily Dietribe" asked me if I would like to try a few recipes from one of her new books, "The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide, Part 2." I was delighted. Iris is a registered hypnotherapist with a master's degree in psychology and is working on her second master's in nutrition.

Iris is also a passionate writer with a love of living holistically. Adding to her list of accomplishments, Iris also has a private wellness coaching practice in which she helps women to have a healthy relationship with food, with their bodies, and with their emotional, physical, and spiritual health.

And on top of ALL of that? Iris somehow finds the time to create recipes of all sorts! Iris' new cookbooks are published by Triumph Dining. They are entitled, "The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guides Part 1 and Part 2." Iris along with her co-writer and co-recipe developer Brittany Angell (author of Real Sustenance) studied and experimented with 12 different gluten-free flours to learn about their properties and how they worked best. Then they both worked tirelessly to develop a number of recipes for each gluten-free flour.

One of the recipes I have tried so far are her basic Brownies. The brownies are very simple and are made with a new gluten-free flour called cassava flour. Cassava flour is made from the same plant as tapioca starch.  I made the brownies in a round glass pie pan for dessert one night last week. WE LOVED them! My inlaws had no idea they were gluten-free! They were gooey and rich and super crispy on the outside. The brownies were perfect with coconut milk ice-cream! 

The next recipe I tried from Iris' book was her Yeast-Free, Vegan Sandwich Bread.

This bread is simply amazing. I truly don't know how else to describe it. I have tried for YEARS to create a yeast-free bread that tastes like a normal sandwich bread. A yeast-free bread that doesn't crumble when it's cut, that is sturdy, yet pliable. That just tastes like good sandwich bread...and Iris' recipe nails it, plain and simple.

I have several friends who cannot tolerate yeast and I love baking egg-free (mostly because it's cheaper) so personally to me, this recipe alone is worth the cost of the book!!

This recipe uses sorghum flour, teff flour, and potato starch. It is a super light, fluffy bread and it contains a secret ingredient to give it structure and a texture that is incredibly similar to yeast bread.

It's seriously easy to make and I think this bread is my new weekly sandwich bread. I love that it doesn't use eggs and it's a high fiber, "normal" sized loaf of bread.

The cookbook is not only chock full of great recipes, but also handy baking tips, interviews with gluten-free baking experts, research on gluten-free flours, etc...

Basically this book along with the first, are both THE ESSENTIAL books you need to learn about the most useful gluten-free flours and the best ways to incorporate them into your everyday baking. There aren't many books that I would recommend to people who are learning how to bake gluten-free... but these books? Get them. Use them. And have a whole lot more fun baking gluten-free!

Iris...you're a genius girl. Simply genius! And those pastry tarts... I'm so making those next!

The only Pinterest idea I've used so far...

I love Pinterest and can spend hours looking at awesome ideas which I would absolutely never use (due to time, cost of materials, or because I'd rather be reading a book or cooking... lol)

But when I was cooking on Sunday evening... I remembered this little Pinterest tip...

Just use an old clothing (usually a skirt or pants) hanger with clamps to hold a magazine or cookbook (or as I have here, a print-out of a soon-to-be published cookbook) at eye level while prepping food and recipes in the kitchen... just awesome!

This Week's Menu - Slow Cooking on Sundays

I just started a new series on the blog entitled, "How to be gluten-free on a TIGHT budget" on my first post, I shared a recent shopping trip. We spent $42.77. 

Here's what we got: 

I know, the english muffins are NOT gf... those are hubs -- he has breakfast
"McMuffin" sandwiches every day during the week.
Those waffles though definitely ARE GF and after the BOGO sale + a coupon
they were .89 a box! :-) 

The grocery items were what I needed to make the recipes on our meal plan for this week. I've gotten into the habit of cooking on Sunday nights or Monday nights (whichever is easiest) and I cook for the entire week: breakfasts, lunches, dinners, (and what I hope to incorporate this month) afternoon snacks. 

One of the keys to cooking everything one night a week is using my slow cookers. Newer slow cookers cook hotter and faster than older ones (especially on high heat), so I can cook as many meals as I have slow cookers and in 3-4 hours they are all cooked and ready for the week ahead. 

Most of the meals I made this week are from my upcoming slow cooker cookbook! 

This Week's Menu: 

Dinner & Leftovers for lunch each day: 

• Saturday (We had a family cookout!) -- grassfed burgers, french fries, broccoli salad, cooked apples, AWESOME GF brownies (from The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide, Pt. 2) and ice-cream
• Sunday -- Leftovers
• Monday -- Slow cooker swedish meatballs with gravy (pg. 71 from "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook) & gluten-free toast served with a caesar salad
• Tuesday -- Skillet meal of sauteed yellow squash, onions, carrots, and sausage
• Wednesday -- Slow cooker barbecue chicken & white beans (pg. 245 from "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook) served with green beans and sweet potatoes
• Thursday -- Slow cooker meal of sausage & spinach quinoa (pg. 253 from "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook) served with a green salad
• Friday, Saturday, Sunday -- weekend cooking with friends! Happy Labor Day! 

Breakfasts:

• For Carrie -- soaked oatmeal (I'll post about this soon!) with dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, and chia seeds + 1 fried egg and 1 slice bacon (made enough for each morning at work this week.) 
• For Michael -- a homemade "McMuffin" each morning -- made from one english muffin with a fried egg, 1 slice of turkey bacon, and 1 slice of cheese. He's hooked on these, but says he has a much better day when eating these than Poptarts... go figure.. lol

Check out hundreds of more menus at Org Junkie.
For specifically gluten-free menus, check out the roundup at Angela's Kitchen today!

What "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook" is all about

My new cookbook, "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook" will hit the bookstore shelves and your favorite online stores like Amazon, Books-A-Million, and Barnes & Nobles in less than two months (on October 18th, 2012.) I'm SO SO SO very excited about this and I would love for this book to be shared with every gluten-free family on the planet! (Okay, that might be a little extreme, but I can dream right? lol) The book will be available initially as a paperback, but e-book formats will be available as well (soon after publication, if not immediately after!)

"Hot Chicken Buffalo Bites" from "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook"
This photo is from Sarah of Celiac in the City, she tested many recipes for me
including this one! 

A Few Highlights:

• The book contains (of course) 300+ gluten-free recipes and nearly EVERY recipe can be adapted to be casein/dairy-free as well if it's not already listed as dairy-free! All, but a very few were tested using dairy-free ingredients such as almond milk and daiya cheese (even if it's not listed as such!) so rest assured this book super helpful for those with multiple food allergies and intolerances!
• The book contains about 40% "whole foods" recipes -- meaning over 125+ recipes in the book are for naturally gluten-free foods like fresh vegetables, meat, chicken, eggs, rice, potatoes, etc... all things are generally frugal options in the grocery store and make very healthy meals!! 
• There are also gluten-free "quick food" options using helpful and easy-to-find convenience ingredients such as gluten-free pasta, canned vegetables and fruits, etc... 
• There are GLUTEN-FREE, DAIRY-FREE BAKED GOODS included in this book! YES! You can make homemade gluten-free BREAD AND CAKE in your slow cooker!
• The book contains chapters for kid-friendly foods AND recipes that use 5 Ingredients or Less (not including salt/pepper)... super easy, kid-approved meals for every day of the week! 

Once I get 3000 "likes" on my GingerlemonGirl.com facebook page, I will be giving away 2 copies of "The Everything Gluten-Free Slow Cooker Cookbook" along with a brand new 4 quart slow cooker (my favorite size!)

My Favorite little red 4 quart slow cooker! You'll get a chance to win this soon!
I just need 3000 likes on my facebook page! Can you help me share the link? 

A Handful of Recipes From the Cookbook: 

• Gluten-Free Cornbread
• Blueberry French Toast Casserole
• Swedish Meatballs with Gravy
• Fingerling Potatoes with Herb Vinaigrette
• Comforting Chicken and Rice Soup
• Lone Star State Chili
• Easy Italian Spaghetti
• Tamale Pie
• Chicken and Gluten-Free Dumplings
• Rotisserie-Style Chicken
• Meatloaf-Stuffed Green Peppers
• Spiced Apple Cider Turkey
• Simple Tomato Soup
• Cheesy Toast Casserole
• Slow Cooker Yeast/Sandwich Bread
• Creamy Hot Fudge Sauce
• Maple Pumpkin Spice Lattes

Intrigued? You can PRE-ORDER the book now at the lowest price on Amazon! It's currently less than half the retail price!! Please share with your friends and family!! 

Review: Zema's Madhouse Gluten-Free Foods

A few months ago Jill Motew, founder of Zema's madhouse foods contacted me and asked if I'd like to try some her products. I told her I'd love to try the pizza crust. So Jill sent me a super cute package of Zema's Gluten-Free Rosemary-Millet Focaccia & Pizza Crust Mix.

Then life went a little haywire for me and I didn't get to try Jill's mix until a few weeks ago.  We tried it one afternoon when I got home from work late and I didn't have anything planned for dinner.

Jill's mix is super healthy and contains lots of whole grains and healthy seeds like millet & chia. She doesn't use any gums in her mix, so it was very wet dough (compared to other gluten-free pizza doughs I've tried.) One thing I really liked about Jill's mix was that it contains enough mix to make a LARGE pan of pizza or focaccia. We used a 9x13 pan and the batter made a really thick dough.

Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of the dough, but it made a very thick crusted pizza. Over the past 5 years of being gluten-free my taste buds have changed and I now prefer a thin (almost cracker-like) crusted pizza, so for me personally, I think I would have enjoyed this mix more as a thick, chewy bread stick or garlic bread as opposed to a pizza crust. But if you're a fan of a very thick-crust pizza, Jill's mix is for you!! The pizza made a very filling dinner and we had plenty of leftovers to stick in the freezer to take for lunches at work!

I love Jill's simple packaging and her food philosophy. The company strives to use healthy whole grains, no refined sugars, and they are free of most food allergens! Go Zema! If you want to support a family owned business that believes in super healthy gluten-free living, please check out Jill's great company!

Raleigh, NC Gluten & Allergen-Free Expo 2012

On Sunday August 12th I attended the first Raleigh, NC Gluten & Allergen-Free Expo. There were over 30 vendors (myself, included), cooking demonstrations, door prizes, an appearance by Mrs. Shannon Ford, the winner of Mrs. USA 2011, and around 750 attendees. It was a fantastic event organized and headed by Mrs. Nikki Everett, owner of ECHO Event Solutions and founder of the Charlotte ROCK Gluten-Free Support Group.

Gluten-Free Expo Director Nikki Everett with
Pam King from the Maryland Center for Celiac Research
at the Charlotte GF/AF Expo earlier this year.
Photo courtesy of Jeff SanGeorge/Gluten-Free in NC

Nikki became aware of the needs of the gluten-free and celiac population when her daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2008. Nikki immediately started a local gluten-free support group and in the same year organized and began the first Charlotte, NC Gluten & Allergen-Free Expo. The expo was an instant success and Nikki immediately started planning for more events. Eventually more and more people asked her for events closer to where they lived in other parts of the country. Nikki eventually quit her job as a hair stylist and began a company called "ECHO Event Solutions" and started planning additional gluten-free & allergen-free expos around the country in places like Omaha, Nebraska and New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Raleigh Gluten & Allergen-Free Expo took place from 2:30pm - 7:30pm on Sunday August 12th at Cobblestone Hall in downtown Raleigh. The facility was a beautiful old building surrounded by the cobblestone streets of the quaint downtown. Around 750 attended the event and had the opportunity to try many different gluten-free foods and beverages from companies all around the US.

I love that we are wearing similar patterns! We're that much alike! haha!

One of my favorite parts of the Expo was FINALLY meeting my friend Debbie, author of the lovely (and locally NC) blog "The Gluten-Free Dish." Debbie is so inspiring. She cooks and bakes the way I want too (and am learning too) -- grain-free, low glycemic, low inflammation, with limited natural sugars (and no white sugar). I love her for her honesty, for her incredibly kind & loving heart, and her genuine faith. She's an amazing person and I'm so grateful we finally got to meet in person and give each other a big hug.

I was also thrilled to finally meet Jenni, the author of another local and absolutely adorable gluten-free food blog called "A Spoonful at a Time." (I so want those measuring spoons Jenni!!! lol) Jenni was actually at the Expo representing Triumph Dining, an awesome company which helps folks figure out which foods are gluten free at restaurants and grocery stores by offering print shopping guides, restaurant translation cards, and even a new shopping app for your smart phone. She had a very busy day selling Triumph's new gluten-free baking guides, written by Iris Higgins and Brittany Angell (more fellow gluten-free bloggers of awesomeness!) The baking guides SOLD OUT and Jenni did a fantastic job representing Triumph!

Another highlight of the day was spending some time speaking with Mrs. USA 2011, Shannon Ford. Shannon is a new representative of Nerium, International. Nerium is a gluten-free, anti-aging facial cream that has produced absolutely stunning results on wrinkles and fine lines and has truly shown to be a unique and effective product in the evolution of skincare. Shannon was very excited about being a new representative of the product and has some very exciting offers if you sign up to be a preferred customer through her Nerium website. I am hoping to try this product soon, as I'm not a big fan of make-up, but I am a true believer in taking good care of your skin. And I have to say Shannon was so incredibly nice, down-to-earth, and easy to talk too! I was thrilled to talk about our paleo lifestyles and now if only I could take up her exercise habits!

Visit Jeff's website: GlutenFree in NC 

I also had fun speaking with Jeff SanGeorge, a genius of social media marketing, fellow gluten-free blogger, and owner of a fantastic and comprehensive gluten-free resource for all North Carolinians: Gluten Free in NC! Jeff's website highlights gluten-free resources in every region of North Carolina from the mountains to the coast. If you are new to the area or trying to find resources for a trip or for gluten-free friends and family, please check out Jeff's incredible site. Jeff also is also the leader of a local gluten-free support/meetup group in Greensboro, NC. I think I'm going to have to crash one of their meet-ups sometime soon since the Greensboro Earthfare (and all the gluten-free goodies they sell) is/are absolutely AWESOME!

Next to our booth, Caper a local volunteer with NC FACES shared tons of information about food allergies and how to bring awareness to friends, family, schools, and restaurants. Caper was an absolute joy to speak with throughout the day. Both of her children have severe food allergies, so she knows first hand how important it is to spread awareness. NC FACES has an annual walk to raise funds and awareness for food allergies in children. This year the walk will be held at Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary, NC. For more information on how you can participate in this year's walk, please visit the NC FACES website: http://www.ncfaces.org/faanwalk. I am planning on being there and joining in. Food allergies in children is no laughing matter and the more ways we can bring about awareness the better!

My sweet friend Nancy, a member of our local
Gluten-Free Support Group made the awesome
pumpkin bread I was able to share with attendees!
Thanks Nancy!! Here's her recipe! 

I wish I could remember share about all the amazing people I met and all the incredible vendors who attended this year's first Raleigh GF/AF Expo! For more information on the event (and I certainly hope you will join us next year if you're in the area!) and a complete list of the vendors and their websites please read more at Nikki Everett's event page & blog.

This cracks me up.. yep.. that's me! Cindy Blye certainly
captured an interesting expression on my face as I'm leaning over
my vendor table... thanks Cindy! lol
But the hottie to the right there, hubs of course helping me out! 

Lastly, here's a great write-up of this year's Raleigh GF/AF Expo on The Examiner.com -- written by journalist Cindy Blye, Raleigh's Healthy Food Examiner.

Did you attend this year's event? What are your thoughts? What was your favorite vendor? What would you like to see at next year's event? Please share your thoughts below and I'll make sure to send them along to Nikki!

more fun pics from Cindy! lol!!
That was good beer though! We had the raspberry flavor!

Eastern North Carolina Chopped Turkey Barbecue Recipe

While I grew up in the foothills of southwestern Virginia, I've become an eastern North Carolina girl through and through. I realized about a year ago that I had now lived in coastal NC, longer than I had lived in Virginia growing up (how time flies).

One of the first foods I ever tried when I moved to eastern NC was chopped pork barbecue. It's one of the most popular foods at locally owned restaurants all around the North Carolina region. In eastern NC, the sauce is primarily a vinegar-based sauce, while if you head to western NC (or states west of NC) the main sauce seems to be a sweeter tomato-based sauce.

I personally prefer the savory tartness of the vinegar sauces. The vinegary sauce, combined with the slightly sweet (and very simply made) coleslaw makes for an incredible taste combination that I often crave.

The picture above is actually what you'll get if you head to Ayden, North Carolina for some barbecue at The Skylight Inn. You have 4 menu choices... chopped barbecue, cornbread, and coleslaw -OR- you can get that barbecue on a sandwich if you're not a fan of cornbread (but oh you should be!) That's it folks. It's simple straight forward food. Michael and I are huge fans of Skylight Inn and while you won't find much else in Ayden, NC...that wood-smoked barbecue is completely worth the drive. (And guess what? Their cornbread? It's gluten-free! The owner told me it was only made with cornmeal, salt, and water... I tell ya... it's good stuff!) And just a tip... BRING CASH... they don't accept debit cards!!

After our last trip there I decided I was going to try to make barbecue at home, but I wanted to try it with turkey legs. Turkey legs are a great source of cheap protein. You can get 3-4 pounds of turkey legs for about $1 a pound.  I only had to make one batch of this chopped turkey barbecue to declare it a winner. It's the most ridiculously easy recipe you'll ever make and if you're a fan of the hearty chopped pork barbecue, (while I don't know the exact numbers) I'm pretty sure this version is a bit healthier and definitely just as delicious!

Eastern North Carolina Chopped Turkey Barbecue
Free of gluten, soy, dairy/casein
Created by Carrie of Gingerlemongirl.com
Makes: a whole lot!
Printer-friendly recipe.

Turkey:
3-5 pounds of turkey legs (about 3-4 large turkey legs)

Eastern NC BBQ Sauce: 
1 cup white vinegar
1 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce (like Tobasco)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

Cook & Prepare the Turkey Barbecue: 
Place turkey legs in a 4-6 quart slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours until meat is "falling off the bone" tender. Carefully remove turkey legs from the slow cooker and place on a large platter. Remove fat surrounding turkey meat. Remove bones & tendons from the turkey meat (this can be a bit tedious depending on the turkey leg). Chop meat as fine as you prefer. In eastern NC, the meat is often chopped quite fine. Place in a large bowl for storage.

**Carrie's Notes: Make sure to strain and save all the broth leftover in the slow cooker from the turkey! That's instant bone broth you can use in recipes through the rest of your week!

Make the Eastern NC BBQ Sauce: 
To make the sauce, simply place all sauce ingredients into a large mason jar. Place the lid on the jar and shake vigorously to combine. Pour desired amount of sauce over the prepared turkey barbecue and stir to combine. Use as little or as much as you desire... we LOVE a lotta sauce!! Store any remaining sauce in an airtight jar or container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Serve the barbecue with homemade coleslaw and cornbread or use as a sandwich filling!

2012 Raleigh Gluten-Free Expo & Weekly Menu

Yesterday, Sunday August 12th, I had the privilege of being a vendor at the FIRST Raleigh, NC Gluten/Allergen Free Expo! The event is coordinated by Nikki Everett of ECHO Event Solutions. I plan on sharing a post later this week with all of the highlights of the event, but I wanted to mention today that the event was just awesome!

Nikki did a fantastic job planning the event. It was in Cobblestone Hall in downtown Raleigh, NC. Honestly, I was a bit hesitant at the beginning, because as long as I've lived near the Raleigh area, I had never heard of Cobblestone Hall. But I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty of this little jewel in downtown Raleigh. The facility was beautiful, it was a great location, surprisingly there was parking in and around downtown that was pretty easy to find!

I had the pleasure of visiting many fellow gluten-free bloggers and friends and meeting a lot of people in the Triangle area who are new to being gluten-free. I received many hugs and smiles and loved meeting people who actually live in the same area I do. I can't wait to share about all the wonderful vendors and bloggers that I met there!

If you ever have an opportunity to attend a gluten-free expo near you, go! It's worth the money, you'll not only get endless amounts of delicious and safe gluten-free foods and beverages, you'll get a chance to meet a huge variety of people who share similar gluten-free struggles and yet celebrate their healthy gluten-free lifestyle!!

A used bookstore SCORE this weekend!!! I've been wanting a paper copy of
Well Fed for about 6 months! I couldn't believe it when I saw this used copy for $12!
Also, I almost bought a copy of Cake Wrecks a few weeks ago at a major
bookstore, but it was nearly $28 dollars... this used copy? SIX dollars!! 

Michael and I also spent the first part of the weekend travelling to Roanoke to see my Dad. The Star City was beautiful as always, and even though it was a very quick overnight trip, we had a REALLY good visit with my Dad. He's looking better every time we see him. He is facing months of recovery, so I know that at times he's frustrated with all the obstacles he faces in the next few months... but overall he just seemed to be in good spirits and I'm thankful we were able to go up and see him! Thank you all for continuing to ask about him and for constant thoughts and prayers.

I didn't have a lot of time to prepare a menu on Sunday. This will be a slight challenge, as we really need to "shop from the pantry and freezer" this week... so we're gonna get creative around here!

This Week's Menu

• Monday -- Leftover pork carnitas from dinner out on Sunday (would love to try to make them from scratch with this recipe) 
• Tuesday --  A hugely modified, gluten-freed version of this recipe for Moravian Chicken Pie -- I used a "Gillian's" wheat-free and gluten-free frozen pie crust, served with a romaine salad dressed simply with salt, pepper, oil, & raspberry balsamic vinegar
• Wednesday -- bunless ground beef burgers served on romaine lettuce with a side of steamed carrots
• Thursday -- slow braised lamb shanks served with baked sweet potatoes and creamed spinach 
• Friday -- out to dinner for a girl's night out with friends! Hubs will have to fend for himself! 
• Saturday -- leftover slow cooked beef stew from the freezer 

Chocolate Cherry "Milkshake" -- a green smoothie in disguise

Basically I just wanted chocolate a few nights ago... then I wanted a milkshake... then I decided just to make a healthy version of a chocolate shake... I had frozen cherries in the freezer from a friend. I had spinach. I had raw cacao powder. I had bananas. I had almond milk. All that stuff + ice = mmmmm. Unexpectedly mmmmm.

This one's a win! It's a green smoothie in disguise. You can add more greens if you like. It's quite sweet with the stevia and fruit, so you could definitely pack in some more spinach or kale. They will never know... it's chocolate, so it's supposed to be brown... they'll never guess that's partially from the greens as well.

Michael also likes this with a few tablespoons of peanut butter thrown in for good measure. I, however... am the purist... just give me the chocolate and the cherries.

Chocolate Cherry "Milkshake" 
Gluten/Grain-Free, Dairy/Casein-Free, Soy-Free, Vegan, No-Added-Sugar
Created by Carrie Forbes of Gingerlemongirl.com

1/2 medium banana
1/2 - 3/4 cup frozen, pitted cherries
1-2 handfuls baby spinach
2 tablespoons raw cacao powder (of course if you don't have this laying around just toss in some Hershey's cocoa powder!)
1/2 cup almond milk
3-4 ice cubes
few drops liquid vanilla stevia

Add all to high powdered blender and blend on high for 1-2 minutes until thoroughly creamy and resembles a dark chocolate milkshake. Makes 1 large serving -or- 2 small servings.

This Week's Menu - Kindle Cooking!

I never thought I'd say this.... but I am now the proud owner of a kindle. And I loooovvvvvvvveeeee it. I really didn't think I would love it. But I seriously loooovvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee it. I mean I really, really love it.  So far I've read three four books (I got it on Wednesday)... not listened to them... but actually READ them! I honestly haven't done that in years. Sad to say.

And on top of that.... I found a few super great deals on cookbooks I could download on my kindle... so another thing I never thought I'd do? I cooked from the kindle.

When I've actually had the time to do it in the past few months I've started cooking all of our meals on Sundays. My friend Angie has done this for ages and I've done it occasionally in the past few years... but now it's become the norm.

So Sunday while browsing through "Fix, Freeze, Feast" on my kindle -- which is actually more of a "freezer" cookbook, I found ideas for nearly all of our meals this week. It's become a running joke between my dietitian & I that ONE day soon (I've been saying that for probably a year now) we'll have a deep freezer... and it still hasn't happened (but it WILL! One day soon!).... so while I couldn't really take advantage of the freezer part of the recipes... it gave me great ideas for the week.

This Week's Menu: 

• Monday: Chicken Zucchini Casserole... I've been obsessed with this recipe ever since my friend Betty made it for Michael and I a few months ago when we went to visit. The casserole I made last night is a super altered version that includes chicken, rice, and no eggplant. I actually substitute zucchini for the eggplant when we have made it closer to the original directions. 

• Tuesday: Austrian Pork Goulash -- From Fix, Freeze, Feast served with steamed broccoli

• Wednesday: Simple Slow Cooker Beef Stew -- 1 pound stew beef, handful of baby carrots, half an onion roughly chopped, handful frozen peas, 2 chopped red potatoes, about 3 cups beef broth, salt & pepper... literally thrown into the slow cooker and cooked on low for 8 hours... 

• Thursday:  Chicken hash with red potatoes, green peppers, and onions  -- idea from Fix, Freeze, Feast

• Friday:  Mustard-Oregano Pork Chops -- From Fix, Freeze, Feast with garden peas & sauteed zucchini

Breakfasts: I made "regular" bagel sandwiches for hubs to take to work with him (this was cheaper than buying the frozen ones he really likes! lol) and for myself I used the same hash brown ingredients for the chicken hash above, but used eggs in place of the chicken for a breakfast hash for myself to take to work. 

Lunches: are leftovers! 

Desserts: fresh fruit... this has been my dessert of choice lately (we won't mention the fact that I ate nearly ALL of the grain-free, no-sugar-added chocolate cake -- that's a dangerous cake, especially when you add raspberry preserves on top!) my friend Heather gave me some ripe kiwi, which I haven't had in years so kiwi and peaches are my favorite this week!

Do you have a favorite kindle cookbook?? Please share! And so you're in the know... my slow cooker cookbook coming out this fall will be available for the kindle, nook, etc... so if you've become an e-cookbook lover, you'll be good to go! :-) 

Gluten-Free, No-Sugar-Added, Chocolate Fudge Cake

really horrid phone camera pic of some seriously awesome cake.
please don't judge the book by it's cover on this one...
trust me... you want to make this cake!

Wow... it's been a while... it feels rather like when you spend a prolonged period at home or on vacation and you're not the one driving... then when you get back in the car on Monday morning to head to work it feels strange... 

I've missed you. I've missed blogging... but I'm ready to come back! 

My Dad is very, very, very slowly on the mend. We are still traveling every other weekend to see him in the hospital. And it's been a joy to see him slowly progress. Some days are better than others both physically & mentally for him. He has a very long road ahead with many, many steps of recovery along the way... and we pray the end result will eventually be a heart transplant. It will be quite a journey to that point.... but I believe in him. 

In lighter news... I'm also a fan of cake. Densely, richly chocolate cake. My friend Jaime W. makes this amazing gluten-free, flour-free chocolate cake. She brings it to local gluten free potlucks and I might as well forget about portion sizes, sugar intake, or my calorie content for the day. It's all out the window if she brings that marvelous cake. 

My friend Heather invited us over for dinner the other night and I instantly wanted to make cake... which is odd since I haven't felt like cooking or baking in months... but suddenly I wanted to make cake. And I wanted a low-sugar, but super chocolate-y cake. I remember seeing a version of Jaime's cake in Paleo Comfort Foods, but it didn't contain ANY added sugar and I thought surely that must taste horrible.

But I decided to give it a go. I didn't want to use as much butter or eggs as the recipe called for... so I played and came up with the following version. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as we have... it's definitely better cold (it's AWESOME cold! Richly dense and super delicious!) but almost like a sponge cake when warm... so you can pick how to enjoy it...

(Additional Note: This cake is EXTREMELY rich, fudge-y, and not very sweet. It almost has a coffee overtone (which we loved!)... but I don't think it would appeal to children because of the lack of sweetness and due to the hint of bitterness from the intense dark chocolate.) 

and another really awful phone camera pic of this marvelous
cake... I probably need to apologize to the cake...
she's truly much more stunning in person...
and strangely enough I rather like the retro feel
of these sort of 70's orangish pictures...
moving on...  :-P

Gluten-Free, No-Sugar-Added, Chocolate Fudge Cake
Adapted from the version in Paleo Comfort Foods
Free of gluten, grains, soy, and added sugar
Printer-Friendly Recipe

The Good Stuff:
1/4 cup butter or coconut oil, melted
1 bag (11.5 oz.) 60-75% dark chocolate chips

Wet Ingredients: 
5 large eggs (preferably at room temperature)
1/2 cup applesauce
1/4 cup almond milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients:
1/4 cup coconut flour
* 1/4 teaspoon corn-free baking powder (optional)
* 1/2 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Using a double broiler on the stove or a glass bowl in the microwave, melt the chocolate chips and butter together. In another large bowl whisk together the eggs, applesauce, almond milk, and vanilla. Very, very slowly & gently whisk in a small stream of the melted chocolate and butter into the egg mixture. If you add the hot melted chocolate too quickly it will cook the eggs, so do it very slowly and gently. Mix the melted chocolate, butter, and egg mixture until it's thoroughly incorporated. Whisk in the dry ingredients. Pour cake batter into a greased pie plate or cake pan. If you want to serve the cake on a platter make sure to line the cake pan with parchment paper so you can remove it easily. Place in 325 degree oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. The time can vary depending on the temperature of your oven and how wet the batter is. The cake will be completely done on the edges and a toothpick inserted in the middle should come out MOSTLY clean, there will be some crumbs. Allow cake to cool completely on the counter (the edges will pull away from the pie pan and look as if it's shrinking a bit -- that's okay!) before transferring to the fridge to chill overnight. Slice and serve!


Carrie's Notes: 

• I have no idea what you can use in place of coconut flour, sorry I can't offer a substitution! If you would like the full sugar version that doesn't use coconut flour, try this cake recipe. 
• I have no idea what you can use in place of the eggs in the cake... the eggs are very important here. For a dense egg-free gluten-free chocolate cake, try this one. 
• The baking powder will help the cake rise a little more, but it's not necessary if you choose to leave it out. For a homemade version of corn-free baking powder, check out this recipe. 
• Also the chili powder adds just a hint of kick to the cake, which is awesome... but if you're not into awesome, you can leave it out too! 
• I just baked the cake and served it out of a glass pie pan, which I think works well! And it's pretty!  
• I recommend refrigerating the cake overnight before serving. It will be a dense, rich, dark chocolate-y cake. 
• If you prefer it warm, it will have more of a sponge-cake type texture and is still quite good... but I personally prefer it cold!