Recipes

Have I mentioned before that I love peanut butter?  Well, I do.   The other day I was craving the combination of peanut butter and chocolate (again!) so I decided to make peanut butter brownies.  I used a recipe from Epicurious as my guide for this experiment, and I must say this dessert turned out very yummy.  These brownies had the perfect balance of peanut butter and chocolate goodness.  The peanut butter was not overpowering.  The brownies sank a little in the middle after I took them out of the oven, but I only used ¼ teaspoon of xanthan gum when I made them.  In the recipe below I’ve changed that amount to ½ teaspoon.  This extra xanthan gum should deal with Read More »

This side dish is sort of the unique Irish twist on mashed potatoes. Though most versions of this recipe seem to call for cream, we toned it down by adding yogurt instead, and cutting down the amount of butter used. Light and creamy, with chopped green onions, and our further addition of fresh cilantro, our version of champ is a great twist on a simple dish. Read More »

Gluten-free shamrock sugar cookies are buttery good, easy to make and a charmin’ St. Patrick’s Day cookie.

You will need a small (about 3/4-inch diameter) shamrock cookie cutter to use as a stencil on your cookies. If you can’t find this type of cookie cutter you can make your own stencil by tracing and cutting a shamrock shape on a plastic kitchen mat (available at most stores in housewares.)

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

For this recipe, you will need:

• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract Read More »

Did you remember to Spring forward Sunday? I can’t believe it is this time already!  I am so excited about it being light later, that I really don’t care about the hour of lost sleep.  Make sure to ask me how I feel about that in a couple of weeks when my schedule is all screwed up, okay?

With Spring, comes St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. I don’t quite celebrate St. Patrick’s Day the way I used to, and my body thanks me for that.  This St. Patrick’s Day, perhaps I’ll indulge in some green eggs & ham or Pistachio Cheesecake (just happens to be green), instead of green beer.

Read More »

I have lived in Northern California for over a decade and I have never made cioppino until last week. I have no idea why; maybe it seemed intimidating, even to me! After having it at a friend’s house over the holidays and seeing how simple it was, I knew it was time for me to tackle it.

The recipe she used was this one from Giada de Laurentiis which was delicious, of course, but one thing she (my friend, not Giada) complained about was the availability (and cost) of the fish stock. Since I often make seafood risotto with chicken stock, I was curious if I could pull it off for cioppino as well.

After making it last weekend for some friends, the results were unanimous; the chicken stock not only made the broth lighter but it was less salty. I decided to use the juice from the canned clams to add some extra flavor. With the exception of the halibut and the crab (it’s high season for Dungeness right now), the other fish was frozen (shrimp and scallops) or from a Read More »

Yes it is possible to microwave delicious puddings.

No that isn’t a typing error in the title.

When I first got married I remember someone told me how to make a sponge pudding in the microwave. This recipe became a regular treat for us and now that we have four children, this ticks all the boxes for a family pudding: cheap, very quick, and very tasty.

The good news is, it works gluten free too!

The name that the family has given this pudding over time is Two Four Two Four Pudding – when you read the (imperial) quantities for the recipe you will see why – easy to remember the quantities so that you can impress someone by making a pudding from memory! Read More »

If you didn’t already know, Betty Crocker does gluten-free cake, cookie, and brownie mixes now. Actually, these have been around for a while, but I’m honestly not a fan of Betty Crocker. Or cake mixes in general for that matter. But if I have to use a cake mix, I’m more than likely not going to eat it, so I usually go for Duncan Hines if it’s on sale or Pillsbury, whichever is cheaper.

A few days ago I realized that February is half over and I hadn’t posted anything since January, so I decided to try out the box of Betty Crocker Gluten Free Devil’s Food cake mix that had been sitting in my pantry for many weeks. I bought it on sale to use for something, I forget what, that I obviously never used it for. I was also in the mood for something chocolate. And easy. Cupcakes made from a mix are

Imagine my excitement when I read that this month’s Daring Cooks’ Challenge had a Mexican theme! You know that I have a love affair with all things cullinarily Mexican. Maranda of Jolts & Jollies was our January 2012 Daring Cooks’ hostess with the mostest! Maranda challenged us to make traditional Mexican Tamales as our first challenge of the year!

I found it interesting that our local Whole Foods, which tends to carry produce from around the world, much of which I’ve never even heard of, did not carry dried corn husks. Before freaking out and making a trip to the city to check the International Market, I thought about the ethnic diversity of the people in my town.  I teach at an elementary school where 27% of our students are hispanic.  Surely, these families do not shop at Whole Foods to get ingredients for their ethnic dishes.  Where do they go? Read More »

Over the last three and a half years I have had the opportunities to do many reviews of great products. I truly enjoy doing reviews of cookbooks, and gluten-free products, and I’m looking forward to do more in the future along with any culinary based items (kitchen appliances, tools, etc.).

I love kitchen gadgets. Here are a few of my “must-haves”  items: Chef Knife, Stand Mixer, Mixing Bowls (different sizes), Prep Bowls, Boning Knife, Steamer (pan/bamboo basket), Zester, Grater, Silicone Whisk, a good set of Non-Stick Pans, Cast Iron Skillet, and a Crock-Pot. There are plenty more items, however this is a great starting point.

Two of my favorite companies for kitchen products are EdgeWare and Le Creuset. I mean, don’t well all hope to own their products?? I was sent one of each of the following products to test out and review and I have to say, I am honestly in love with both of them. And, now two lucky winners will have a chance to win one of the following prizes (one winner for the Zester, and one for the Farm Fresh Steamer!)

First up we have a fantastic Zester from EdgeWare – The V-etched Better Zester! Here is what their website has to say about it: Read More »