Getting ready for "The Everything Gluten-Free Baking Cookbook"

In just over a month my 3rd book will be released from Adams Media. The book is entitled, "The Everything Gluten-Free Baking Cookbook" and I'm absolutely THRILLED about this collection of recipes. If you pre-ordered the book you should already be receiving a notice saying it will ship earlier than expected!! 

My first love in the food world is baking. I love to bake. I love making cookies and cupcakes and baked chocolate donuts and fresh loaves of bread... warm, sweet fruit pies in the summer and gingerbread for Christmas! With full chapters on pie, cookies, cakes and cupcakes, holiday recipes, and even a whole collection of recipes for bake sales and potlucks!

This book will have 300 gluten-free baked goods recipes. From many of your favorites on this blog (all updated and made easier!) such as the best chocolate chip cookies to peanut butter cupcakes to streusel-topped blueberry muffins... This book is not only a compilation of my best recipes over the years, but also includes a chapter for gluten-free vegans and vegetarians, and those who are both gluten-free AND low glycemic. This means many of the recipes in this book will work without eggs, dairy, or soy.

This collection is truly the cookbook I've always wanted to create. I'm so proud of the recipes in this book along with the fantastic photography taken in my very own kitchen by an amazing photographer, Jennifer Yandle of Jennifer Yandle Design and Photography. All the pictures both in the book and up there on the cover: they were created and baked in my kitchen.

This book has a 6 page photo insert, something many of you have been asking for! I wish we could have included a picture for each recipe, but then the book would probably be $50! :-) I think the recipes we photographed represent all of the recipes in this book very well! I hope you will take the opportunity to go ahead and order this book while it's less than $15.00!! Right now it's selling for $14.04 on Amazon, over 26% the list price of $18.99.

Are you as excited about this book as I am? I hope so!

Review: Pillsbury Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Pillsbury contacted me several weeks ago about working with their new promotional campaign for their brand new line of gluten-free baking doughs. To be honest, at first I was slightly hesitant. I know many of my readers prefer to make things from scratch. And generally I do too... 

BUT the longer I've been gluten-free, I've realized the more I long for shortcuts. Not all the time, but for those times when company's coming over unexpectedly, or when you just want a chocolate chip cookie! Shortcuts can be really helpful and when you're gluten-free they are not always readily available. So I agreed to participate in the paid campaign. This is my first compensated review and I can tell you, that no matter what I agree to review, the food will be reviewed with utmost honesty and integrity.

Also once I have reviewed all three products, I will have a baking set & Pillsbury product giveaway, sponsored by Pillsbury. So stay tuned!

So last week I received the 3 Pillsbury gluten-free doughs in the mail.  It's been a busy week and I wasn't sure when I was going to get a chance to try them. If you've been reading this blog very long you know my husband Michael loves chocolate chip cookies. Today I thought I'd give them a whirl.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the plastic container of dough is how much it actually looked like MY cookie dough! Same color, similar consistency. I do recommend taking the dough out of the fridge and allowing it to come to room temperature before baking. It's much easier to handle that way.

The dough was very easy to work with and we got right around 2 dozen small cookies (about 1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie). We baked them for around 11 minutes and allowed them to cool on the parchment paper for several minutes before trying them.

Really, I was skeptical. I honestly didn't expect these cookies to be ANYWHERE near as good as my homemade cookies. But in spite of my reservations, I really liked them. I mean I really liked them! I went back and looked at the ingredients and told Michael that I thought they must have borrowed MY gluten-free cookie recipe! The cookies are really good. Michael really liked them too (although he would NOT say they were better than mine... I think he was just being nice though! lol)

The cookies end up being a bit more greasy than the cookies made from my homemade dough, but I absolutely would not hesitate going out and buying this Pillsbury gluten-free chocolate chip cookie dough.

Charlie was really intrigued by the aroma of the cookies as they came out of the oven... I had to stop him from climbing on the table a few times.

**************
UPDATED: 8/7/2013, 10pm
Jenny G. a reader on facebook requested the ingredient list on the cookies, which I meant to include in the post.

Ingredients: Brown Sugar, Rice Flour, Semisweet Chocolate Chips (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural flavor), Water, Palm Oil, Canola Oil, Sugar, Corn Starch, Modified Potato Starch, Contains 2% or Less of: Eggs, Modified Tapioca Starch, Salt, Baking Soda, Xanthan Gum, Natural Flavor.

CONTAINS: EGG AND SOY; MAY CONTAIN MILK INGREDIENTS.
***************

So overall, I'm really impressed with these cookies. They are crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle. They are soft and have a chewy crumb. They were honestly much better than I thought they would be. And I kinda hate to admit they were just about as good as my homemade version. A neighbor stopped by to drop off a dish while these cookies were baking and she loved them too. She even took a few home with her... and she's not even gluten-free!

Pros:

• Easy to make, you don't have to add ANY additional ingredients
• Resealable container, which makes the dough easy to save for later, you can easily just make a few at time, if desired. 
• Tastes great! DOES NOT "taste" gluten-free!
• Would be great for parents to make with kids, super easy to assemble and bake. 
• Perfect for travel or to make when visiting friends or family. Easy to suggest to friends & family to have for you when you come to visit. 

Cons:

• A bit more greasy than homemade gluten-free chocolate chip cookies
• High sugar/starch/calorie content -- but this is generally the case with just about any gluten-free processed sweet treat

Good job Pillsbury!

GLG Disclosure: 

Full disclosure: this article is financially supported by Pillsbury®.

The product samples and product stock photos were also provided by Pillsbury. 

However, the opinions in this post are completely my own.

July Self-Care Retreat 2013 - Exploring Self-Care through Faith and Meditation

Over the past month a beautiful group of bloggers and readers have shared their thoughts on self-care. What it is, why it's important, best practices, etc...

Mid-way through the month I shared my own thoughts on what self-care has really meant to me in the past few years. Exploring my own spirituality and emotional health has been very important and has helped to shape the ever-growing person I am today. 

Through this month I spent time doing several guided meditation sessions with Iris Higgins (you MUST check out her new website: yourfairyangel.com) along with a few metta meditation sessions on youtube. (Youtube is a wonderful tool for free meditation resources!) 

For me, meditation has become one of my favorite methods of radical self-care. Meditation, done with a thoughtful teacher, has a way of helping me to better understand my own thoughts and feelings. Meditation has a way of quieting my mind and letting me see the "why" behind many of my frustrations and challenges. 

I often draw while I'm meditating. It helps me to focus and it gives me an actual "picture" of the feelings I'm working through. 

The sketches above were done while I was listening to the 1st meditation in Iris's 3 Day Chrysalis workshop. (If you scroll to the bottom of the Workshop page, Iris has the meditations in a podcast format, so you can listen and participate yourself!) 

I had a lot of deadlines this month, so I didn't set a list of primary goals to accomplish. But I really thought about all of the different ways I practice self-care and how much they have made a difference in my life the past few years. 

I have such a different perspective on problems than I did a few years ago. I have a much more positive outlook on life now than I used too. I feel so much happier than I did before! Much of this has been due to really wonderful counseling and wellness coaching from Cheryl Harris, the host of this amazing July event. But I also know, that a lot of it is due to finally being truly present in my life and working through issues as they come. No more ignoring things I don't like...no more resistance to change... no more hiding from my own feelings. 

As I look back on how life has changed for me in the past two years one thing that stands out to me is that REAL change takes time. Real change takes a lot of practice and patience and willingness. Real change takes communication. Real change takes exploration. And for me that hasn't always been easy. As Cheryl wisely told me in our last session, "We all have our "stuff" to work through." And I feel like I can really look back over the past two years and see real change. I can see that I deal with problems as they arise instead of putting them on the back burner and letting them simmer. I'm present to experience the blessings of each day, instead of dreading the challenges I might face.

Self-care is a process. A humbling, beautiful, and raw process... but the gradual results are priceless. Exploring life with joy instead of fear is one of the most abundant gifts I have ever been given.

Do you want to know more about how you can incorporate self-care into your own life? Please check out the thoughtful posts by all of the fellow bloggers and readers who participated through this month's event: 

Our fantastic group of bloggers:

June 28th:  Cheryl of Gluten-Free Goodness
July 6th: Valerie of City Life Eats
July 13th: Shirley of Gluten Free Easily (GFE)
July 20st: Iris of My Fairy Angel (you probably also know her from The Daily Dietribe)
July 27th Kate of Eat, Recycle Repeat
Aug 3rd Carrie of Ginger Lemon Girl

My Self-Care Goals 2013 GF Goodness

Guest Post from Linda on Self-Care

July Self-Care Goals on City|Life|Eats

Wrap up and July Challenge on Eat, Recycle, Repeat

13 Self-Care Lessons from the Masters GF Goodness

Guest post from Linda

Debi of Hunter’s Lyoness on Unconditional love

City Life Eats on Infusing some new into yoga

Iris of Daily Dietribe on Letting Go

Carrie of Ginger Lemon Girl with 9 Things that Make Me Feel Happy & Calm My Spirit

Cheryl of GF Goodness on Re-Writing the Story

Carrie of Ginger Lemon Girl on Emotional and Spiritual Growth

Kate of Eat Recycle Repeat on “How to Surrender”

Cheryl of GF Goodness on Depression and Self Care

9 Things That Make Me Feel Happy & Calm My Spirit

photo by Michael Forbes -  June 2013

1)     Listening to spiritual and/or inspirational acoustic music

Little in this world can change my mood like music can. Finding music that can reach your deepest, darkest places is pivotal. Figure out what is meaningful for your body and spirit. Whether it's hip hop, classical, death metal (my husband!), country, pop, celtic, kid's songs, christmas music... whatever genre it is, use it to help you feel better on rough days. 

2)     Going to the drug store and spending an hour reading funny birthday cards

There are always days when finding joy is hard. Simply going to the store and reading silly, funny, knee-slaping cards can ALWAYS bring a smile to my face. My husband and I often make a point of visiting the card aisle when we go grocery shopping. 

3)     Writing a real note and snail-mailing it to a friend

Because everyone, I mean EVERYONE, appreciates small hand-written notes. Whether it's a brief sentence or a full letter, you are sharing a small part of your day with someone else. It's an offering of love both to you and from you. 

4)     Slowly walking to my car in the hot, hot sunshine after spending all day in an overly air-conditioned office.

Learning to notice abundance, even in small, "everyday" things like the warmth of the sun is a priceless gift. Once you start noticing the gifts around you, others will notice them as well. Abundance is everywhere. 

5)     Reading the website: "What Money Cannot Buy"

The little things in life are truly the most valuable. When we learn to enjoy the smallest of blessings (finding a fork in my drawer at work during lunch time, when I thought I was completely out of utensils!), it makes the big blessings seem even bigger, and gives every single day endless possibilities. 

6)     Taking a LONG hot shower

The power of water can be unimaginably refreshing and rejuvenating. Soaking in hot water eases muscle tension, clears nasal sinus passages naturally (oh to breathe in allergy season!), and can clear your mind. 

7)     Making Michael an unexpected cup of hot chocolate or a batch of his favorite chocolate chip cookies.... just because

Doing small things for those who love us, especially on days when life seems blue, can be uplifting and energizing. Love the people who love you. Even when you don't feel like it. It can make a world of difference. 

8)     Baking bread or making cupcakes for other people... just because

I've always enjoyed baking and sometimes I just need the rhythmic physical-feel of baking bread or making cupcakes. Often, I don't even want to eat them, I just enjoy the act of making them. (However, don't leave me alone with a fresh loaf of bread and butter...) Sometimes, even for someone like me who rarely enjoys anything "physical fitness" related, the "physical-ness" of making something like cupcakes or bread is soothing and brings me a lot of joy. 

9)     Watching incredibly cheesy, happy-ending inspirational movies on Netflix

Need to watch something mindless, yet happy & heartwarming? Check out the inspirational movies on Netflix. Seriously, sometimes we just need to remember there ARE happy endings and not all pets die at the end of movies! Laughing at cheesy dialogue is also ridiculously fun!

What are things that make you happy & calm your spirit?? I'd love to how others relax and find peace!

Book Giveaway: I'm a Celiac's "Gluten Free Family Approved Recipes"

Enchilada Casserole page 50, from Pam Jordan's "Gluten Free Family Approved Recipes" 

I am a simple cook. I love shows like "Chopped" and "Cupcake Wars" and "Masterchef"... but honestly I'd never want to compete in them. Because my cooking isn't gourmet, it isn't fancy, it's just good food for hungry bellies.

And that's what I love about Pam Jordan's lovely little cookbook called, "Gluten Free Family Approved Recipes." This wonderful cookbook has over 50 recipes that Pam uses regularly in her home. They are a mix of completely homemade simple meals and meals that use gluten-free shortcuts like Italian dressing mix, taco seasoning, etc... Another awesome thing about Pam's book... it has a slow cooker chapter! And I'm kinda partial to slow cooker recipes! :-P

Every single recipe has been shared and enjoyed at her family table with three hungry kids and her husband.

"One Dish Wonder" pg. 41 from Pan Jordan's "Gluten Free Family Approved Recipes" 

So far I've tried the "One Dish Wonder" on page 41, a really awesome chicken meal that shows you how to make the main dish + 2 sides in one casserole dish. I loved this meal. Pam shows you how to cook all three parts of the meal in one dish by making them side by side with different seasonings. I actually just layered the dish because I was short on chicken. But the flavors in this meal are spot on! Pam called for GF Italian dressing seasoning, but I didn't have any... so I used half a package of dry Ranch dressing mix instead and it was AWESOME! I can't believe I've never thought to use the flavors of a dressing mix in a casserole. We loved this!

We also tried the Enchilada Casserole on page 50 (see the top picture in this post). It uses jarred gluten-free enchilada sauce (I had never used it before! YUM!), corn tortillas, and ground beef (we used ground turkey since that's what I had on hand). This was a really good casserole. Michael said it was like a "Mexican" lasagna and that's what I thought too. We will definitely be making this again.

Pam's book is a real bargain. As a matter of fact, you can buy it for your kindle right now for only $3.99 from Amazon. A STEAL for an entire book of tested recipes that really work the first time you try them! The next recipe on my list to try is the Pear Cobbler. Pears are my favorite fruit and I've never thought to try them in a cobbler, so I know that will be absolutely delicious!

Would you like to win a print copy of Pam's awesome book? 

Here's how: 

The Giveaway Nittygritty:

• 1 brand new printed copy of Pam Jordan's cookbook, "Gluten Free Family Approved Recipes"  
• This giveaway is open to everyone. 
• One entry per person.
• Enter by leaving a comment below on this post AND please include a way for me to contact you -- your email address preferably.
• The giveaway begins July 25, 2013 and ends on July 29, 2013  at 11:00 pm eastern daylight savings time.
• No purchase is necessary.  Odds of winning are based on the number of entries.  
• The winners will be randomly chosen and will be contacted by email.  The winners will have 24 hours to respond.  If the winner does not respond, a new winner will be randomly chosen.

GLG Disclosure: 

Pam sent me a free printed copy of her book to review, if I chose to do so. This is not a sponsored post and I did not receive monetary compensation. The opinions in this post are completely my own. The giveaway copy of the printed book will be provided by Pam Jordan.