Reader Favorites - Laura's Caramel Raisin Pudding Recipe

Every now and then I'll have a reader who is kind enough to send me a favorite family recipe. These cherished memories on faded & stained index cards and old envelopes mean so much to me. My favorite recipes at home are those written out by my great grandmother and saved in a small notebook. She clipped tons of newspaper recipes from the 30's - 60's and I have a lot of them. (Do not call Hoarders on me... you better not! lol)

To see Great-Grandma P's scribbled notes, the soft paper of recipes that were well used & loved... it's a wonderful memory of her. Reader Laura sent me a similar recipe not too long ago. She said that she remembered her mother & grandmother making the recipe and she now had the recipe on an old index card. She thought the recipe was probably from the 50's and it was still one of her favorite desserts and super easy to make gluten free. Laura used my master baking mix for the flour in this recipe and she said it tasted just like her grandmother had made it. You can't get a better compliment than that!

Do you have an old family recipe you would like to share? If you need help making it gluten free or just want to share it with my readers, please email me!

Laura's recipe uses an old technique to make a dessert pudding underneath a simple crust. A similar technique is used in this wonderful old chocolate cobbler recipe featured several months ago. If you make Laura's recipe and take a picture, please share it with me! Thank you so much for sharing some of your family memories with me Laura!

Laura's Caramel Raisin Pudding
free of gluten and soy
printer-friendly recipe

Pudding Ingredients:
2 cups water
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon butter or margarine
3/4 cup raisins

Batter Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup Master Baking Mix -or- gluten free bisquick
1/2 cup milk -or- non-dairy substitute

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To make the pudding: In a large saucepan mix together the water, brown sugar, and butter. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in raisins. Pour brown sugar/raisin mixture into a large greased baking dish. In another bowl mix together batter ingredients. Drop batter by tablespoons into the pudding. Bake for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Serve warm. Especially good with ice-cream!

{Gluten Free Review} Enjoy Life Crunchy Cookies

A few weeks ago Enjoy Life contacted me again to see if I wanted to try one of their newest product lines, an allergen free crunchy cookie. They also have a line of "soft" gluten free, allergen free cookies and to be honest I don't really like most of them. They are a bit too soft, kind of mushy, and the flavor is odd.

So with a bit of hesitation we tried the crunchy cookies. They come in four flavors, Crunchy Sugar Crisp, Double Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip, and Vanilla Honey Graham. So far, Michael and I have tried the double chocolate chip and the sugar crisps. Michael loved the double chocolate chip. As a matter of fact, I had two cookies from the box... he ate the rest of them. These have a distinct "oreo" type flavor to them and they are definitely crunchy & crisp. We loved them. The other flavor we've tried are the sugar crisps. I really like these a lot. Michael hasn't tried them because they don't have chocolate in them. However, my vanilla loving self has really enjoyed the crispness and flavor of these cookies. I would definitely buy either of these two flavors. I don't know what the retail prices for the cookies are (most likely, much more expensive than you would pay for a box of Chips Ahoy)... but I'd probably pay up to $5 a box.

These are very tasty cookies, but don't expect health food here. After a gluten free flour mix, the 2nd ingredient in nearly all of these cookies is evaporated cane juice (that sneaky "healthy" name for sugar). The serving size is 2 cookies and they average 110 calories a serving. So be mindful of your serving. I have to say, while I generally could eat a whole box of anything sugary and crunchy, I am satisfied after eating 1 or 2 of these cookies. They have a great crunch and a satisfying sweetness.

A few other products by Enjoy Life that I like quite a bit: their new chocolate granola and their allergen free chocolate chips & chunks!

To make the lawyers happy: These cookies were provided to me free of charge from Enjoy Life for review on my blog. I was not paid or endorsed for this review. My unbiased opinion of these cookies were not in any way influenced by the Enjoy Life company.

wordless wednesday - maya's perfect balance

This picture of Maya completely cracks me up. Apparently some furry animal in our household almost knocked this kitchen chair over, so it's teetering between the floor and the upright laundry basket...and Maya decided that the clean towel sitting on the balanced chair would make the perfect place to sit. How it didn't fall over, I will never know... :-) I love cats!

Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin Teabread/Muffins Recipe

On an outing with a good friend on Friday afternoon I found a "Breadman" bread maker at a favorite thrift store. It's an older model and by looks alone, I think it had barely been used. For $6, I figured it wasn't a bad investment if it worked. I washed the machine out thoroughly with hot, soapy water and attempted a gluten free loaf. It worked great for the sandwich bread! I couldn't find a full operating manual online, so I'm still playing around with the machine to see what the best cycle will be for my gluten free sandwich bread. I'm also trying to tweak a few recipes so I can come up with a gluten free "bread machine" recipe for you that works really well.

But I also wanted to prove that I could use this kitchen appliance for more than just one thing! I have an extremely tiny kitchen with barely any counter space -OR- cabinets.... so for this appliance to earn a spot, I have to be able to use it for a variety of different recipes! My husband suggested making cake. :-) He's a smart man.

Instead of cake, I decided to go on a healthier route and try a "teabread" -- I don't really know what signifies a teabread from a quick bread from a cake... but I liked the sound of it. I attempted one recipe from this popular vegan cookbook... but it was a flop. The batter was very wet and it just didn't work well in the bread maker (it's probably a great recipe for an oven -- just not the bread maker!). So instead, I went back to baking with the gluten free flours I know and created my own recipe. This is a variation of my standard gluten free cake recipe and I love the texture of this bread. It's just lightly sweetened and the aroma of cinnamon while it was baking made me smile. This is a soft, unassuming bread that pairs perfectly with a cup of Earl Grey.


Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin Teabread -or- Muffins Recipe
created by Carrie Forbes of www.gingerlemongirl.com on 8/1/2011
free of gluten, soy, dairy/casein, and rice
Printer-friendly recipe
Makes 1 small 8 1/2"  x 4  1/2" loaf, 12 muffins, or makes about a 1 lb. loaf in the bread maker.

Dry Ingredients:
⅔ cup sorghum -or- millet flour
⅓ cup arrowroot starch
⅓ cup garfava flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon xanthan gum

Wet Ingredients: 
½ - ¾ cup almond milk
¼ cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add In’s: 
½ cup raisins
⅓ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions:

For OVEN: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease loaf pan or line a muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl whisk together all dry ingredients. In a smaller bowl whisk together all wet ingredients, using ¾ cup of milk. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix together until fully combined. Pour batter into loaf pan or into a lined 12 muffin tin. For loaf bake 25-35 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack, then slice & serve if in loaf pan. This lightly sweetened bread is delicious with a cup of hot tea!

For BREAD MAKER: I used my breadmaker to make this bread on Sunday. I mixed up the ingredients by hand because it’s a very easy recipe and poured the batter breadmaker loaf pan to bake only. Follow the above directions as for oven, except only use ½ cup milk in the wet ingredients. Use the “bake” cycle on your bread machine and bake for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. The first time you make this, check on the bread every 20 minutes or so just to make sure your breadmaker doesn’t bake hotter than mine does. Cool on a wire rack, then slice & serve. This lightly sweetened bread is delicious with a cup of hot tea!

Here was my first batch of gluten free sandwich bread straight from the bread machine. It was a really good bread. Once I get the measurements just right, I'll share the recipe with you! :-)

This Week's Menu with my first exercise plan

Had a great conversation with my nutritionist, Cheryl on Sunday morning. I shared that it can really be a challenge for me to fit in menu planning (and following it) ALONG with exercise into my daily routine and to do them both WELL. Cheryl suggested that maybe I should come up with an exercise plan along with my meal plan. That made a lot of sense to me. So my goals this week are to follow both plans as well as I can.

Our meals this week, like always, are simple. I don't have time to be a "chef" and fuss over fancy meals. I think that is why using the slow cooker really appeals to me. I love the idea you can toss ingredients into a pot, turn it on and 4-8 hours later there's a meal ready! No mess, no hassle, no fuss.

I'm hoping to make a "baked oatmeal" casserole in the slow cooker when I get home this afternoon so that I can have a ready made breakfast the rest of the week. I haven't had much success in making oatmeal dishes over night in the slow cooker (they always become a soggy, gooey, burned mess!) -- but I can throw something in to cook for two hours without any problems! :-)  Lunches this week (as always) are leftovers, sandwiches & fruit, or soup made in the slow cooker.

This Week's Snacks & Breakfast:

• chocolate hemp shakes
• baked oatmeal
• boiled eggs
• steamed veggies with rice
• celery with peanut butter or almond butter
• rice cakes with peanut butter or almond butter
• mixed nuts

This Week's Menu:

• Sunday - slow cooker rotisserie chicken, roasted potatoes, and steamed broccoli
• Monday - Heather's Chili (leftover from freezer)
• Tuesday - GF sandwiches (GF support group meeting tonight!)
• Wednesday - Salads with grilled chicken -OR- out to eat with our nephew
• Thursday - Breakfast for dinner (gluten free pancakes or toast, scrambled eggs, turkey bacon, fruit)
• Friday - Red & Ready Spaghetti with steamed broccoli or green beans
• Saturday - Slow cooker beef stew

This Week's Workout Schedule: 

GOAL this week -- work out at LEAST 3 times, and if all goes well, 5 times. 

• Monday - 45 minutes cardio = 15 minutes treadmill, 15 minutes ARC trainer, 10 minutes recumbent bike, 5 minutes row machine
• Tuesday - 45 minutes -- 3 mile walk with Leslie Sansone video
• Wednesday - 45 minute water aerobics class
• Thursday - 60 minute workout with trainer
• Saturday - 1-2 hour outdoor walk and/or 45 minute Leslie Sansone video