How to Quick Brine a Gluten Free Turkey

I've never been a huge fan of turkey breast... until now. It wasn't until I decided to take the plunge and try a "brine" on a turkey breast did I understand what all the fuss was about.

It makes some durn good turkey!

I think the reason I never really liked turkey breast meat was because it was always incredibly dry to me. Dark meat has always been my favorite, but now I think that might just change.

Brining a turkey breast doesn't have to be a chore. Thanks to my friend Holly I learned a super quick & easy method of brining. You'll still need about 8-12 hours to allow the turkey to soak in all the goodness from the brine, but actually making the brining bath can be super easy:

Easy Brine for a 7-8 pound Turkey Breast:
1/2 cup sea salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
2-3 tablespoons peppercorns
2-3 tablespoons dried onion flakes
2 teaspoons dried garlic powder
Whatever other spices/flavors you want to add: apple cider, orange peels, bay leaves, etc...

Fill a large stockpot about halfway full of hot, filtered tap water. Add the salt and stir it up until the salt has dissolved in the water. Add all the other ingredients and then add several bowlfuls of ice to completely cool the water. Add your turkey breast to the stockpot. Add enough cold water to cover (if you don't have enough already. Place the stock pot in the fridge for 12-24 hours before cooking the turkey.

To Roast the Turkey Breast:
Remove the turkey breast from the brine. Rinse it off with cold water and pat it dry. Place in a large roasting pan, breast side up. Rub the meat & skin of the turkey with melted butter. Roast for 20 minutes per pound in a preheated 350 degree oven. (Some people say that's too high a temp to roast a turkey, but it's always worked fine for me! I'm a little nervous to roast it at a much lower temp due to food safety issues.) To help the turkey brown, make a basting mixture of 1/2 cup melted butter (I used ghee), 3 tablespoons maple syrup, 3 tablespoons soy sauce (or soy sauce substitute like coconut aminos or chickpea miso tamari -- this is what I used!). Pour or brush basting sauce over the turkey after 30 minutes of roasting and then baste the turkey again every 30 minutes or so until the turkey breast has reached an internal temperature of 165 degrees.

The drippings & basting mixture make a really awesome gravy too! :-)

To Make Gravy:
Pour pan drippings/basting mixture from turkey into a medium sized pot. Whisk in about 1/4 cup of sorghum flour or brown rice flour. When the mixture starts to thicken slowly whisk in 2-3 cups of gluten free vegetable or chicken stock. Because the basting mixture uses maple syrup & the soy sauce (or soy sauce substitute like I used) it should be naturally a rich brown color. Whisking the gravy constantly will help you to have a smooth delicious gravy. If you need to thicken the broth more, mix about a tablespoons of brown rice or sorghum flour into about 1/4 cup of additional broth, until it's smooth and then add it into the gravy, so you won't have lumps!

For an excellent video gravy tutorial, visit Gluten Free Girl & The Chef!

Happy Gluten Free Thanksgiving Everyone!

Carrie

Easy Gluten Free Bolognese (Meat) Sauce Recipe

Spaghetti is a comfort food at our house. I really like a a hearty meat and tomato sauce. This is the type of sauce we generally had over spaghetti when I was growing up. Michael's mom makes a similar sauce, although she basically just serves a simple meat chili over spaghetti.

Mark Bittman's "How to cook everything" is one of my favorite cookbooks. The techniques are simple and encouraging for home cooks. Who cares how you cut your onion, just make sure it's diced somewhat evenly and it will turn out fine... especially in this delicious sauce.

I love sauces and soups that really have to simmer. The prep work takes about 30 minutes, but then you leave the sauce alone. The flavors will simmer and dance in the pot while you get the chance to catch up on that book you've ignored for a week...or maybe the laundry. (Personally I'd pick the book! :-P)

Prepare all of your ingredients before you start to cook. It makes life easier. Trust me.
 Chop your veggies and the bacon. Open the crushed tomatoes.... then enjoy the process of cooking!

Some recipes take time and this is one of them. A slow cooker would be perfect for this if you need to leave the house... but there's something innately comforting and homey about having a pot of stick-to-your-ribs spaghetti sauce simmering on the back burner.

While your sauce is cooking you'll have time to mix up a few loaves of gluten free french bread. Let them rise and on the counter and by the time your loaves have baked and cooled... it will be time for dinner!

Ragu Meat Sauce, Bolognese-Style
adapted from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman
free of gluten, soy, and options for dairy-free
printer-friendly recipe

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, minced
1 carrot, peeled and minced
1 celery stalk, minced
1/4 cup minced bacon
1/2 pound lean ground pork (or use all beef)
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 cup dry white wine (or reserved juice from the canned tomatoes)
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes, drained (reserve juice, if needed instead of wine)
1 cup beef or chicken stock, preferably homemade
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup cream, half-and-half, or milk (We just left this out altogether and added an additional cup of tomato juice to the sauce)
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:
Dust off your favorite cast iron dutch oven. Add the olive oil to the pan and allow it to get hot enough to sizzle a drop of water. Add the minced bacon, onions, carrots, celery (and garlic if you live in my family). Saute for about 5-8 minutes or until the bacon has rendered fat in the pan and the onions are beginning to brown. Add the ground beef and ground pork (we used all beef) and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes until the meat has browned through and there is no pink showing. While the beef is cooking, using a wooden spatula break up the meat so it is in very small pieces. Once the meat has browned add the crushed tomatoes and white wine or reserved tomato juice and the beef stock. Turn the heat to very low and allow the sauce to simmer for at least 2 hours and if you have time... let that sauce simmer for 4-5 hours. The sauce will have a much deeper flavor if it's allowed to simmer for 3-4 hours. If you're using cream, milk, or half and half, swirl it into the sauce right before serving and allow it to heat through. Serve it over gluten free pasta, rice, raw zucchini noodles, lightly sauteed spinach, or even on top of french bread for "manwiches" etc... just eat this stuff up and enjoy every bit of it! :-) Serve with shaved parmesan on top if you’d like, or if you’re dairy free sprinkle on some blanched almond flour! You’ll be amazed as how much it tastes like finely grated parmesan!

Enjoy!

30 Days Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals: Day 29 - Iris' Chickpea Tomato Sauce

Welcome to 30 Days Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals!

Today's post is written by Iris author of the blog, The Daily Dietribe.

Day 29 - Iris' Chickpea Tomato Sauce

Pasta was a staple at our dinner table growing up. Once I began eating gluten-free, I started cooking a lot of rice, quinoa, and sweet potatoes. But since more companies have begun to make delicious gluten-free pastas, this is once again something I can enjoy on a regular basis.

There are a number of brands out there: some are decent, some are downright awful, and a couple are fabulous. Bionaturae is my favorite brand thus far, although this won't be the right one for you if you avoid soy, as I know Carrie does.

Carrie's Note:
Different types of gluten free & soy free pastas that I've found include:

• Ancient Harvest quinoa pasta
• Tinkyada Pasta
• DeBoles pasta
• Sam Mill's gluten free corn pasta
• Schar's gluten free pasta
• Mrs. Leeper's gluten free rice pasta
• Notta gluten free pasta
  

But there are plenty of other brands for you to try. I'm sharing a pasta sauce with you, but it could also work just as well over rice, chicken, or tofu. I like this sauce because it's quick and easy, but also because it's high in protein. I use chickpeas so that I can eat my pasta and not have to think about adding a protein component to the meal.



Iris' Chickpea Tomato Sauce

1 15.5 oz. can chickpeas, drained
1 6 oz. can marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
4-5 cups fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup fresh basil
1 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup grape tomatoes
1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
1/2 cup pasta water*
2 Tbsp. olive oil

* If you're making this sauce for pasta, save 1/2 cup of your pasta cooking liquid. If not, you can just use water.

Directions:
1. Put chickpeas, basil, tomatoes, 1 Tbsp. of olive oil, and 1 Tbsp. of water in blender or food processor and puree.
2. Heat a large saucepan over medium-low with 1 Tbsp. of olive oil. Add spinach and saute just until wilted, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the chickpea puree, artichoke hearts, olives, and pasta water. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
4. Add the tomato sauce and stir in until it's heated through.
5. Serve hot over pasta, rice, chicken, tofu, etc.

Serves 4

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About Iris
Iris began writing The Daily Dietribe when she first started eating gluten-free over a year ago. In addition to sharing her gluten-free recipes, she writes about her experiences as a weight-loss counselor and her own struggle with weight and binge eating disorder. Iris got her MA in psychology, but then realized she wanted to become a registered dietitian so she could help others find a healthy balance with food. She’s going back to school now to get her MS in nutrition.

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Stay tuned tomorrow for Day 30 of 30 Days Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals. We'll have a fantastic recipe from Lauren of the Celiac Diva and there will also be a fun giveaway to celebrate 30 Days of Gluten Free Q&E Meals!

30 Days Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals: Day 9 - Erin's Easy Pork Chops

Welcome to 30 Days Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals!

Today's post is written by Erin author of the blog, Gluten Free Fitness.

Day 9 - Erin's "Not Really a Recipe" Pan Cooked Pork Chops

I am not known for my recipes. If anything, I am known for my lack of recipes.

I have a belief that cooking is much less intimidating when you look at a recipe as a guideline rather than “you must do this with this ingredient and it is set in stone or you explode!”

Perhaps I also tend to the dramatic at times.

When you are thinking about creating an easy gluten free dinner, the last thing you want to worry about is if you have an obscure ingredient. If you learn a technique of cooking one item, you can then use that same technique to cook other items as well.

This is a very easy method of pan cooking a protein source (in this case boneless lean pork chops) and creating a sauce to go with that meal.

For the pork chops:

• Season both sides of the chops with spices you like. I used a rub that I mix and keep on hand in the pantry-a combo of garlic powder, cayenne, onion powder, sea salt, cracked pepper, paprika, and just a touch of stevia powder. You can certainly use a prepared pork rub (check labels for hidden gluten) or simply salt, pepper and a bit of garlic powder would be just fine. Don’t stress, use what you have on hand.

• Preheat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat with a tablespoon of coconut oil (or olive, or what you have on hand) Cast iron skillets are super versatile and a great addition to your kitchen if you don’t already have one. And they’re cheap.

• Sear the pork chops over medium high heat for approximately 5-6 minutes per side, dependent upon the thickness of your chops.

• While the chops are cooking, gather the ingredients for your sauce. I am a big fan of sauces made like this, in various forms:
  

A combination of vinegar, a no sugar added fruit preserves, and some spices.

• This night I had apricot preserves. I grabbed that out of the fridge. I noticed I had some feta cheese, so I grabbed that too. Out from the cabinet came the apple cider vinegar and we’re ready to roll.

• When the chops are ready, remove them from the pan and let them rest.

• Reduce the heat to low. The cast iron will retain the heat very well.

• Add to the pan the preserves (about ½ cup or so, depending on how much sauce you want to make,) and as it melts in the pan use a wooden spoon to move it around and scrape up all the good browned bits from the chops.
  

• Add about ½ cup of vinegar, and about ¼ cup of feta cheese. Stir until all combined, and it comes to a bubble. The vinegar will reduce and the sauce will get thicker. Add a couple shakes of garlic powder and sea salt.
  

• Taste it. Don’t burn your tongue. Adjust flavors if you need to. If you want less intense flavor you can always add a little water.

• Return to chops to the pan and let simmer for 5 minutes.

• Those 5 minutes are enough time to steam up some broccoli, and boil some quick cooking rice if you’d like.
  

(My food photos are horrific. We were too hungry to wait to try again, so these had to do.)

Enjoy! You can use this same method for cooking poultry, beef, or even fish. Use whatever flavors you have on hand to make your sauces. Easy-peasy, quick, inexpensive, and naturally gluten free!

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About Erin:
Nutrition, fitness and fun. These three things guide Erin in her journey through this world. She holds her Master’s degree in Physical Therapy, and Bachelor’s in Health Science. More importantly, she was diagnosed with celiac disease for over 5 years ago. She is an advocate of solid gluten free nutrition and sound fitness habits to improve quality of life and health. On her blog Gluten Free Fitness, Erin writes informative articles that make it easy to implement healthy habits and have a great time while you do it. Check out Gluten Free and Fit 101 for lots of great information to get you started on a gluten free and fit lifestyle.

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Stay Tuned for Day 10 in 30 Days of Gluten Free Quick & Easy Meals. Tomorrow will feature a comforting tomato soup with herbed croutons from Ellen of I am Gluten Free.

I Blog Real Food with Diane from The W.H.O.L.E. Gang

I have the privilege of sharing a recipe today on Diane Eblin's wonderful blog, "The W.H.O.L.E. Gang." Diane's blog is an incredible resource of healthy, organic, naturally gluten free recipes. I love Diane's simple approach to good, healthy eating.

Diane has spent the entire month of May sharing recipes from over 20 thoughtful food bloggers who believe in eating REAL food. Driven to action by Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, Diane decided to share her own Food Revolution on The WHOLE Gang. Since Diane began her 30 day campaign at the beginning of May 20+ bloggers have jumped in and shared their best recipes and tips for healthy eating.

My recipe today is simple, basic, and one of my husband's favorite. A very easy fresh marinara sauce with homemade meatballs made from local, grass-fed ground beef.



Fresh Marinara Sauce
Created by Carrie @ Gingerlemongirl.com
Free of Gluten, Soy, Corn, & Casein.

4-5 fresh medium sized organic tomatoes
3-4 cloves garlic
1/2 sweet onion, roughly chopped
6-8 leaves fresh sweet basil
4-5 leaves fresh oregano
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon honey (optional)

Directions:

In your high-powered blender add tomatoes, garlic, onion, basil, and oregano. Blend until very smooth (the sauce will look very pink at this point! No worries!). Heat olive oil in a medium sized saucepan. Carefully add pureed marinara sauce to olive oil. Cook on med-high heat for 15-20 minutes until the sauce cooks down slightly and turns red. Ideally you could cook this sauce for several hours on low heat if you wanted a full flavored sauce and had the time to cook it. But for a quick meal simmer the sauce for 15-20 minutes. Right before serving stir in freshly ground black pepper and sea salt. Add a teaspoon of honey if you like your sauce to have a tiny bit of sweetness. Serve sauce immediately over cooked gluten free pasta, rice, potatoes, etc…


Quick & Easy Homemade Meatballs
Created by Carrie Forbes of Gingerlemongirl.com
Free of Gluten, Soy, Corn, & Casein.

1 pound local, grass-fed ground beef -or- ground sirloin
3/4 cup gluten free rolled oats, pulverized in your blender
3 tablespoons ground flax seeds
1 egg
1 teaspoon garlic granules or a minced garlic clove
1 dash Greek seasoning (or your favorite gluten free seasoning mix)
pinch sea salt & ground pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions:

In a large bowl mix ground beef with pulverized gluten free oats and ground flax seeds. Mix in egg and the remaining seasonings. Rolls ground beef into small meat balls about 1″ in diameter. We usually get about 18-20 meatballs out of this recipe. Heat olive oil in a large heavy bottomed (or non-stick) skillet. Add meatballs to hot skillet. Cook meatballs for several minutes on each side to let them brown evenly and cook through. Serve meatballs over gluten free pasta, rice, or potatoes and cover them with freshly made marinara sauce! Enjoy!


Carrie's Notes:

- These meatballs & the marinara sauce freeze beautifully. If you have time to make several batches of each recipe, you’d have a really quick, easy, & healthy meal stored away in your freezer.

- If you use ground sirloin for the meatballs (as we do) they will be extremely lean and may stick to the pan unless you add additional oil or use a non-stick or very well seasoned cast-iron skillet.

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To read more about my tips & hints on eating more REAL food, please visit The W.H.O.L.E. Gang!

Raw Apple & Banana Sauce Recipe

I used to be an applesauce fanatic. During college I constantly bought those little cups of pre-portioned apple sauce servings. It seemed like a frugal option at the time. (And hey, I always reused the cups, so I figured that justified the purchase! :-)

But especially in the last year I've become very wary of extra ingredients (either for flavor, color retention, or longer shelf life) that are added to storebought canned & jarred goods. I was reminded of this when I stopped by the grocery store today to pick up a few things for my husband who has a bad bout of the stomach flu. I looked at the jar of unsweetened applesauce and I noticed while it didn't contain added sugar, it did contain erythorbic acid, a type of ascorbic acid or in layman's terms: manufactured Vitamin C. A food additive used to preserve color in canned goods.

Vitamin C is a really good thing. Especially when you are trying to build immune health! But to get Vitamin C in the form of an extremely processed food additive isn't the best way. I worry about how this additive was manufactured. What it was made from? Where did it come from? Will it be metabolized the same way that natural Vitamin C is in our body. I don't know.

I looked at the jar of applesauce and decided I could do better than that. How hard would it be to go home and throw a regular apple in the blender and make a raw applesauce without any super processed additives? It wasn't hard at all.

From now on when I need applesauce I won't be buying it in a jar. This was so easy to prepare and so delicious!

So often we choose what we think is the faster way to make food. The easier way. The way that's most convenient. Yet, so often it can be just as easy & convenient to make at home.

If you've never made a raw applesauce (which you could also just consider an apple smoothie!) I really suggest you give it a try. I love that you don't waste any of the apple. Simply remove the seeds & core and toss in the rest, skin and all! (Note: If you have a Vitamix - you lucky duck- just toss in the whole fruit!)

Voila... instant, raw, healthy, delicious, vegan, naturally sweet & gluten free applesauce!



Raw Apple & Banana Sauce
An "unrecipe" by: Carrie Forbes @ Gingerlemongirl.com
Free of gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, sugar, and a ton of other completely unnecessary things!
Printer friendly recipe.

3 large apples, any variety, preferably organic, cored & cut in large pieces
1 banana
1 pear, cored and cut into large pieces
1/2 cup water (may not be needed if you own a Vitamix)
1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

In your high-powered blender (or your Vitamix and I'm seriously jealous if you have one) add cut up apples, the banana, and the cup up pear pieces. With regular high powered blender: add water & blend with fruit. Blend on highest speed until smooth and the consistency of applesauce. Pour apple & banana sauce into a jar and stir in lemon juice. (The lemon juice will help to retain the light color of the sauce.)

Serve applesauce chilled with cinnamon sprinkled on top!

**In a Vitamix you MAY be able to leave out the additional water needed to help blend the sauce. In my high-end (but not a Vitamix) blender, I needed the water to help break up the fruit and blend into a smooth consistency.

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 Cheesy Imposter (Gluten Free, Casein Free, and Soy Free "Cheese" Sauce)

There are days when you just need a warm bowl of macaroni and cheese.

Except for that little fact that you've realized cheese (along with gluten and soy) seems to hurt your tummy. And you know, that whole low carb thing...

Well sometimes the low carb thing has to sit on the sidewalk for a day or two days, or maybe a week...
And until you feel like eating another bowl of cauliflower... Tinkyada will have to do.

So what do you do when you want a bowl of mac and cheese... but you can't have cheese anymore?

Do you pout? Do you sob? Do you fuss? (We fuss in the south!)

Go ahead... pout, sob, and fuss... but you can still make mac and cheese! Really! You can!!

I've tried making a dairy free "cheese" sauce before, but I never had much success. It never really tasted "cheesy" to me... and well... that has to be a priority!

So I pondered what makes "cheese" taste and feel like cheese...

* Salt -- have you ever realized how salty cheese is?

* Texture -- homemade cheese sauce has a certain texture about it.

* Pungent flavor -- depending on the cheese, especially for "cheddar-esque" sauces, there is a depth of pungent and tangy flavor.

* Color -- let's face it.. a cheddar sauce has to be somewhere in between a gentle yellow and the neon orange of our childhood... it just has too!

* Melting Factor (or "viscosity" if you are my husband) -- Along with texture, the cheese sauce has to "melt" in a certain way for it to really be a good sauce.

* Aroma -- Last but not least... if it doesn't tease your taste buds with a cheesy aroma, do you really want it?


So now that you've thought about cheese much more than you ever wanted too... here is how I came up with this recipe for a gluten free, casein free, soy free, and yeast free "cheese sauce"":

For the texture and flavor: a combination of pureed chick peas, tahini, and cashews.

For the color, flavor, and aroma: a mixture of lemon juice, red wine vinegar, worchestershire sauce, tumeric, ground mustard, garlic, and pimientos.

For consistency and viscosity: hemp milk and olive oil.

If you are on a gluten free and casein free diet, or even if you just happened to run out of cheddar and you have all these wonderful ingredients in your pantry, please give this sauce a try! I would LOVE to know what you think!!


Carrie's Cheesy Imposter Sauce
(Gluten free, casein free, soy free, yeast free)

2/3 cup unsweetened hemp milk (** see notes)
3-4 tablespoons cooked chick peas (canned is fine!)
1 heaping tablespoon tahini
3-4 tablespoons cashews (or pine nuts)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon - 3/4 teaspoon worcestershire sauce (add to taste)
1/4 teaspoon garlic granules
3/4 teaspoon tumeric
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
1 tablespoon diced pimiento peppers
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:
Place all ingredients in blender and puree until very smooth. Pour mixture into a sauce pan and heat on the stove on med-high heat for several minutes until heated through. Pour heated cheese sauce over pasta, potatoes, rice, vegetables, etc... Place leftover sauce in an airtight container and store in refrigerator. Consume within 2-3 days. We ate this "mac and cheese" with cut up pieces of our favorite all beef franks.

Printer-friendly version.

It was that good!


Carrie's Notes:

* My dear friend Clara tested this recipe for me. She added bit more worchestershire sauce and cashews and served this sauce over potatoes.

* Add more or less hemp milk to the sauce for the creaminess you need. I used hemp milk as my non-dairy milk because it is very creamy and delicious. If you do not have hemp milk available, use your favorite non-dairy milk.

* Play with the spices and flavors in this sauce. It's up to you, if you like the flavor of mustard, add more! If you like the tang of lemon juice, add more! If you don't like pimientos, leave them out!

* Add more or less chick peas and cashews to create the texture you like.

* Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce IS gluten free!

* REHEATING TIPS = If you want to reheat this sauce, make sure to store the sauce separately from your pasta or vegatables! The sauce may dry out slightly upon reheating. You can simply add additional hemp milk to restore the moisture to the sauce.

How to use homemade Gluten Free Cream Soup

Hop over to my frugal blog, Heart of a Servant for a super easy and frugal recipe for homemade cream soup and to discover all the versatile uses for this great, super easy recipe!

Here are a few recipes that use this cream soup:

Stacy's Pork Chops
Tuna Casserole
Sweet Corn Pudding
Gluten Free Gravy
Michael's Rustic Chicken Pie
Cheddar Baked Hominy

Spring Spinach Walnut Pesto (Gluten Free)

I was working at a daycare in college when I first discovered pesto! Yes, a daycare.

One of the daycare teachers was making fresh pasta with her kids and on top of the pasta she swirled on this lovely spring green sauce. I had to have some. It was so fresh and delicious! I'm not sure how much the 3 year olds enjoyed it... but hey.. you have to start somewhere right?





Last October, Natalie, of Gluten Free Mommy had a great post on her cilantro pesto grilled cheese sandwiches. They looked delicious and I was truly intrigued with the idea of using pesto on a sandwich!

I came up with this wonderful spinach walnut pesto because fresh basil and pinenuts just don't seem to be stocked at the local piggly wiggly... and with gas prices the way they are (and the fact that we are truly trying to budget)... you learn to work with what you have... and this simple fresh pesto is fantastic!!

I love the bright spring green color, and the warm, fresh flavors of the garlic, olive oil, spinach, and walnuts. These flavors work together beautifully in this pesto, which is even better the day after it is made. Even my sweet, but ever picky husband enjoyed this pesto on our grilled turkey and monteray jack sandwiches last night! "Baby, it was darn good!" (That's a true compliment coming from my sweetie folks!)

You will have to come back tomorrow for the awesome sandwich/deli bread recipe that we used for these sandwiches. If you miss Schlotzsky's sandwiches, you will be LOVING this versatile gluten free flat bread!!

This particular pesto is more like a thick pesto sauce, rather than a chunky pesto. It is divine paired with the melted monteray jack and our deli-style gluten free sandwich bread! You'll love it!




Spring Spinach Walnut Pesto

3-4 cups fresh spinach leaves
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice (juice from 1 med. lemon)
dash freshly grated nutmeg
Salt/Pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a blender. Pulse mixture until it is has a smooth creamy consistency. Serve with hot pasta, on cheesy sandwiches, over a salad, etc... Have fun and enjoy! Will keep in fridge for up to one week. Makes about 2 cups of fresh pesto.


For a printer friendly version, click here.

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Make sure to come back tomorrow to learn how to make that
fantastic deli-style gluten free sandwich/flat bread!

10th post and Stacy's Pork Chops

I feel like celebrating!!

It's my 10th post after creating the Ginger Lemon Girl blog!

Thanks so much to all of you friends who are reading and supporting me!

This has been such a wonderful outlet for my creativity in the kitchen! I never had any intention of making this a gluten-free recipe site to begin with; but I am truly enjoying learning a new way to cook and a I have a better appreciation for the meals I'm preparing.

I grew up cooking and I'm probably more comfortable in my kitchen than I am anywhere else, yet up until now; I rarely thought about trying different types of grains, using more of a variety of fresh vegetables (as opposed to my usual can of corn, green beans, or peas), preparing foods like corn and potatoes with diverse cooking techniques to produce unique flavors and textures... I guess you could say that I was sort of in a cooking rut. I'm terrific with the same things I've always made, but I didn't experiment with new foods very often. Now, for instance, I am in love with freshly julienned jicama! I love the crunch and the sweetness of this vegetable that I'd never heard of (or probably would not have dared to try) until recently. Now, I love discovering new foods, and I look forward to sharing them with you. Thanks so much for reading!

On to today's post!

One of my very favorite food bloggers is Lindsey over at the Fridge Magnet. She is a food writer for the Roanoke Times with an amazing assortment of food tastes and a great sense of humor! I'm also super jealous she gets paid to do this!! Check her out if you haven't before, even if you're not familiar with the Roanoke VA area, you'll love her writing and her stories!

Recently Lindsey posted a pork chop recipe that her friend Stacy made after a long hot day of moving. I just happened to have defrosted pork chops in my fridge ready to use, so I couldn't wait to try them!

You can find the original recipe on Lindsey's site, but I had to change some of the ingredients to make the dish gluten-free. I truly think you will enjoy it! Hubbie Michael said that he would like to try the same recipe with chicken breasts! He said he really liked the crispiness of the cornmeal and the wonderful taste and aroma of the homemade cream of mushroom soup with white wine! I don't know Stacy myself, but these chops were so good, I couldn't claim that I came up with them! Here is Stacy's recipe, gluten-free style!

Stacy's Pork Chops (Gluten-Free)

6 thick-boneless pork chops
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. seasoned salt
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup white rice flour
1 - 2 c. yellow corn meal
1 tsp. oregano (to combine with cornmeal)
1 tsp. garlic (to combine with cornmeal)
1 tsp. basil (optional to combine with cornmeal)
3 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese (to combine with cornmeal)
4 Tbsp. olive oil
* 1 recipe gluten-free cream of mushroom soup (see recipe below)
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup white wine

Preheat oven to 325.
Rinse chops. If thick, pound out to about 1/2-inch thick. Pat dry and season with garlic powder and seasoned salt. In a flat bottomed bowl, mix cornmeal, garlic, oregano, basil, and Parmesan. Dredge chops lightly in rice flour, then dip in egg, then coat with seasoned cornmeal mixture.
Heat oil in skillet and fry chops until cornmeal breading is browned. Place in a 13 X 9-inch pan and cover with foil.
Bake one hour.

(Are those some tasty lookin' chops or what! This picture does not do them justice!!)

After one hour, combine soup, milk and wine. Cover chops with soup mixture and bake for another 30 minutes.

(This was gorgeous coming out of the oven with the cream soup mixture bubbling all around with the little pieces of sauteed mushrooms clinging to the chops! Yum!!)

Serve with mashed potatoes or rice.

Those crispy, juicy chops were awesome with smashed potatoes and green beans! (Okay, okay, I know they were canned, but I was short on time, give me break!! ;-) The cream soup with wine made a super yummy and appetizing gravy!

I cannot describe to you the heavenly aroma that wafted from the kitchen when this dish was baking! I can't wait to make it again! This would be a perfect dish for company (they'd never think it was this easy!!!) Happy eating!

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The following is a truly versatile recipe for us gluten-free folks! You can make this soup as cream of mushroom (just add freshly sauteed mushrooms), cream of celery with a little sauteed celery, or cream of chicken... cheese soup, etc.... have fun with it! You can use it in place of 1 can of cream soup in any recipe!

GF Condensed Cream of.... soup

1 cup milk
2 Tbsp cornstarch
1 1/2 Tbsp butter
1 tsp MSG-free chicken bouillon
1/2 tsp sea salt
dash of freshly ground pepper

1. In a small saucepan, whisk milk and cornstarch till well blended.
2. Stir in butter, bouillon, salt, and pepper.
3. Heat to a boil, stirring frequently. Simmer on low for 1-3 minutes more to thicken.
4. Add ingredients for desired cream soup: For our recipe, I added 1 c. of sliced sauteed mushrooms and SPIKE garlic seasoning to create a Cream of Mushroom and Garlic soup.

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