Cinnamon Breakfast Rolls

If you've read through my GF page you'll see that I keep a few mixes on hands for emergencies or when a recipe calls for it.  I don't use them often but they help me mix things up a bit.  Get it?  Mix things up?  Once or twice a year I make Cinnamon Breakfast Rolls for the family.  To be honest, I don't really eat them myself as I'm not a huge sweets fan, but they needs something different occasionally and this fits the bill.

I found this recipe in one of my trusty Southern Living cookbooks, which are truly the only cookbooks I ever need.  This particular one is called "Cooking for Christmas" and this recipe has been a real hit in our home.  You can also find the recipe online at My Recipes which I do find myself visiting when looking for something specific.  Remember that I said in the past to not be afraid to substitute?  Well, don't.

For this recipe I substituted Bob's Red Mill vanilla cake mix which I purchased at Big Lots (yep, Big Lots) for a ridiculously low price and Pamela's Artisan Flour.  Also, I cut the flour portion down to 4.5 cups instead of 5.  I actually think we could have done 4 cups and been fine.  This recipe does not really rise like it does when you use regular wheat flour, so don't be disappointed!  I promise, they taste great regardless of whether they have risen or not. 

This is a make-ahead and chill recipe.  We made enough to make two pans full and have had them two mornings in a row.  If you walk into my house right now you'll smell fresh coffee and yeasty cinnamon rolls which are cooking right now in the oven.  Mmmm.......

Simple Family Feasts - White Bean Chicken Chili

Yesterday got away from me.  It did.  The time changed, which always throws me for a loop.  After church, I worked on a website for a non-profit that works with orphans and then spent a few hours double checking the nearly 200 orders for the son's Boy Scout troop fundraiser.  This blog posting was ever on my mind but I never put into words.  So, for the sake of my sanity, I'll pretend this is Sunday, November 2.

My intent the last two days was to make cheeseburgers and fries.  But, as the cold settled on Nashville and the leaves created a soft carpet of color on our lawn, I have only wanted warm comforting foods like shepherd's pie and soup.  Yesterday I pulled out another old favorite at our home - White Bean Chicken Chili.    Now, I have said this before and I'll say it again, but I typically use dried beans and I though sometimes I use store bought broths, more often than not I make my own. 

If you soak 1 cup of white beans overnight, then put them into the crock-pot with the other ingredients, they will turn out perfectly as this recipe calls for  8-hours of cooking.  In addition, I purchase rotisserie chickens from Whole Foods.  The chickens cost $8 and I simply pop them into the freezer as soon as I get home.  When I am ready to use one, I pull it out and simmer it in a 5 quart dutch oven with at least 3 quarts of water for about 45 minutes with a lid on but slightly open.  Once I am finished boiling the ENTIRE chicken, I place the broth into the crock-pot.  After the m
eat cools, I pull it of and add it to the pot as well and discard of the carcass.  There is something very earthy to me in using the entire chicken.  It keeps me in mind of where my food comes from and is a great lesson to my children as they assist me in the kitchen.

In a few days I'll be adding blog postings that talk about eating organic on a budget as I am trying to get our grocery down from it's embarassingly high amount to a more managable amount since I have left my full-time job to be at home with the children once again.  In anticpation of this, I thought I would guestimate the cost of this meal which was served with tortilla chips and shredded cheese.  The entire meal with the sides was at a cost of $18.  My family of 4 ate well with three of us having two servings.  There is at least one serving remaining in a small container in the fridge for someone's lunch.  I daresay a family of 5 (or even 6) could easily eat well on this recipe, but for these purposes I'll call it at $3 per serving. 

Now, I would like to get this per serving cost down even lower.  I didn't have time to make the cornbread last night, so I think if I substitute cornbread or the tortilla chips and if I purchase a pack of bone-in thighs instead of the convenience of the rotisserie, I think I can do it.  Stay tuned for more on cutting our grocery bill!

Though I am looking for the savings, I am thankful for the abundance in our home.  And thus, I shall leave you with this....

Great GF Biscuits

So, you know we began eating gluten free in our home about 8, maybe 9, years ago. Since then I have experimented with different gluten free biscuits and tried other folks' gf biscuit recipes. This morning I made Almond Flour Biscuits from Kelly over a The Nourishing Home. They were a hit. 

Note:   The recipe says they make 8 biscuits.  I had a house full of family so I doubled the recipe.  Hmmm....they must be 8 REALLY BIG BISCUITS.  I ended up with about 30 biscuits that were exactly the same size as our Applegate Farms Chicken and Maple sausage patties. 

In addition to the sausage, I served them with some fresh Bob's Red Mill Rolled Oatmeal, blueberries, Stonyfield Farms French Vanilla Yogurt and fresh dark raw honey.  A breakfast feast, to be sure.  I will definitely makes these biscuits again.  Thanks Kelly! 

Hoe Cakes on the Horizon

I'm not a food blogger.  There.  I said it.  I've been blogging about food on and off since 2008 but I AM NOT a food blogger.  In fact, far from it.  I'd go so far as to say I suck at it.  I just don't have the perfectionist gene in me and food is typically an organic affair in my home.  No, not in the way that it is grown (okay, that too) but in how I prepare it.  Though I have lovely Williams-Sonoma measuring cups and spoons and handy-dandy Pampered Chef batter bowls (both sizes, thank you), I find it difficult to pull them out with any regularity.  In fact, forgive me if I've told this to you before, until I was about 14 years old I had NO IDEA that measuring cups existed.  My mother had them but she never used them.  Same for a chopping board.  What she had was an instinct about food.  She chopped onions in her hands - with a sharp knife - and so do I.  There was little perfection in the presentation and Gordon Ramsay would have cringed at her plating skills - though I have no doubt she could have run rings around anyone on any cooking show.  This, my friends, was how I learned to cook.

With those things said, it has been my dream for many years to write a cookbook.  I'm in the beginning stages.  The beginning stages look like a series of hand-written recipes of my creation that are going into a book (thank you Becky Higgins and Project Life).  You see, every day I open my spice cabinet to pull out salt or turmeric or garlic or thyme and I see a hand-written recipe for my Mother's yeast rolls.  It was written later in her life when things such as writing had become so difficult for her but it is still her handwriting that I had come to know so well.   My children may not want things in my handwriting.  Who knows?  But, I am giving this gift to them regardless.  The gift of handwritten recipes from their childhood that they can do with what they wish.

 

So what about the hoe cakes?  Tonight I wrote my first recipe in my new cookbook.  It's something I cook ALL OF THE TIME.  Hoe cakes.  A simple bread to go with dried beans and whatever I harvested that day from the garden.  These are a Southern treat though I have no doubt they are found in other parts of the US and greater world (did you read my post on white beans and universal consciousness?) They are also simple and imperfect and there is rarely one left on the table by the end of the meal.


The recipe goes something like this.

 Prep Time:  10 Minutes
Cook Time:  6 Minutes each batch
Serves:  4 (recipe is easily doubled)

1 cup yellow non-gmo corn meal
1/4 cup flour or baking mix (I use Pamela's GF Baking Mix)
1 tbs sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup mayonnaise or 1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tsp butter

Mix all ingredients together.  Heat 1 tsp butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat.  Drop batter in heaping teaspoons into skillet.  Lightly pat down with spatula to make thin disks.  Cook 3 minutes or until browned (I like golden brown - you may prefer it darker).  Flip cakes and cook an additional 3 minutes.  Remove and place on towel lined plate.  Repeat with remaining batter.

Soul Food

I am catering a party in two weeks.  Here is the menu I came up with.  

Mammaw's Fudge Sauce

Mammaw (AKA Nathan's grandmother) grew up with her Mother making a fudge sauce for cakes. She lost the recipe and was given this one by an acquaintance. It is just like her Mom's and it is nothing short of Divine!

1 12 oz. can Evap Milk

2 cups sugar

3 tbs cocoa

1/4 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 salt

Heat milk and sugar to boil. Stir constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add other ingredients. Sauce should thicken. Serve with cake (or alone if you are my husband).

A Simple Meal

March 6, 2012

So last night we had a very simple meal. Baked potatoes which cooked for 1 hour on 400.   I marinated a pound of boneless thighs in a mix soy sauce and  honey mustard dressing (no corn syrups or bad oils) which I purchased at WF.  After about an hour I cut the chicken into 1 inch size pieces and threaded them on 6 skewers.  I cooked them for the last 25 minutes that the potatoes were in.  Then I sauteed 2 coarsely chopped bell peppers and an onion that had been tossed in olive oil with salt and pepper.  They were sauteed on low as you do not want to cook olive oil at a high temp.  Also, you want the veggies cooked but crispy.  By cooking on low you will find they cook perfectly.  A healthy delicious meal!

Okay, so not the world's best instructions on dinner but sometimes it doesn't have to be hard.  Dinner can be both simple and delicious.  I know I tend to go for really hard recipes at my home - much to my own peril I have to say.  To be honest, I usually way overthink my meal planning and food plans and am in a very serious reevaluation process of how I have been doing things here at the homestead in regards to grocery shopping and meals.

So, grab a few fresh veggies, stick a whole potato in the oven and marinate some chicken and life will look much better.  Oh!  Don't forget the wine!  I am finding that wine is really such a superb way to get me through dinner prep time!

I want there to be no peasant in my kingdom so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday.  -Henry IV

Blueberry Muffins

September 21, 2010

We have needed a quick grab and go breakfast for the days we are running a wee bit behind. My husband - the one who is usually quite content to eat ANYTHING that I put in front of him - suggested muffins. What kind of muffins honey? Blueberry. I can do that. Piece of cake or muffin, that is. So, I went to my "go to" source - Pamela's Products website.

I've made Pamela's muffins before and they are tasty (as is everything using Pamela's). I had also been perusing other GF websites on the quest for a delicious GF Blueberry Muffin. I used Pamela's muffin recipe with a couple of changes for a delicious muffin!

I will say that my food photography is still in the works and they did get a little browner than I would have liked, but that was due to the brown sugar/butter mixture I put on top, which BTW I will not do again!

Enjoy!

2 cups Pamela's Baking & Pancake Mix

1/4 cup melted butter, or oil

1/2 sour cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup frozen blueberries

Yield: approximately 6 to 7 muffins

Mix first 6 ingredients together. Add blueberries.  Mix gently.  Spoon 2/3 full into muffin pan using muffin cups. I STRONGLY urge you to use the cups. Pamela's baking mix turns out incredibly moist crumbly treats and you want the cup to keep the mess down! Bake in preheated 350º oven for approximately 25 minutes. Makes 10 to 12 muffins.

These may be the best blueberry muffins I have ever eaten. They are certainly the best I've ever made!

Chicken Korma

August 28, 2009

Last week when I was perusing the TINY organic section of our local Kroger, I came across a "new" item. It was a jar of Tikka Masala sauce by Seeds of Change.

Hmmm...I should try it. I did and we were not disappointed. Last night we had:

Basmati Rice (Lundburg - favorite)

Chicken Legs, Chickpeas and Onions simmered in the Tikka Masala sauce

Sauteed Spinach

Snowflake Rolls from Whole Foods

The "house wine of the South" - Sweet Tea.

Folks, this was such an easy dinner. In fact, the prep work was approximately 20 minutes total for the entire dinner. I did all of the preparation prior to our long and lovely walk down the Shelby Bottoms greenway. It was such a great night. After returning home all I had to do was turn on the stove, sit down with my guys to watch Harry Potter and Sorcerer's Stone and wait for it all to finish cooking.

So, here is how it went down:

In a large skillet, I placed 6 Trader Joe's organic chicken legs. I drained a can of chickpeas and poured them into the skillet with the chicken. I VERY coarsely chopped an onion (I used yellow) and added that as well. I then poured the jar of sauce over the entire creation. I placed a lid over the dish. To cook, turn on medium high for approximately 5 minutes to get the heat flowing. Once you hear the chicken begin to sizzle, turn it down to low and allow to cook with the lid on for approximately 25 minutes. Keeping the lid on will keep the natural juices in the the dish and tenderize the chicken.

I prepared the organic Lundberg Basmati Rice according to the directions. I usually saute the dry rice in butter for a few minutes prior to adding water, but I did not last night. So, measure your rice and water. Add them to the pot and turn on the heat.

The spinach was a last minute creation. Unfortunately for us, I am not cooking with as many fresh ingredients as I did prior to working/moving/ etc. and I am trying to get back to that, but last night I used a bag of organic cut leaf spinach. I melted a tbs of butter over low heat in a small skillet, then added the spinach. I then covered and allowed it to gently simmer. The spinach has so much natural liquid in it that adding additional water is not necessary. Once the other dishes were near completion, I added approximately half a cup of sour cream, salt, pepper, garlic and curry (all of the spices were "to taste.") Just before taking it out of the pan, I added a few cubes of mozzarella cheese. This was SO tasty.

All of the dished should be stirred once or twice during the cooking process.

I don't always want to cook fresh bread, so I keep these fab snowflake rolls on hand and they went well with dinner.

Have fun cooking and finding some simple dishes that offer a short prep/cook time for tasty, healthy dinners.

What's For Dinner?

January 8, 2009

Organic Green Beans, Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower and an Organic Meatloaf.

Green Beans:

2 10oz bags of frozen organic green beans

1 tbs bacon grease

1/2 onion, coarsely chopped

1 tsp salt

Cover with water. Bring to boil. Turn down to medium low. Simmer for 1 hour

Meatloaf:

1 pound organic ground beef

1/4 onion, finely chopped

1 tbs organic ketchup + 1/4 cup (William Sonoma is delicious)

3/4 cup cut oats

1 egg

1 tbs salt

1/4 tsp garlic

1/4 tsp paprika

black pepper

1/3 cup pureed organic sweet potatoes

Mix well. Bake in oven preheated to 350 for 30 Minutes. Take out of oven and cover top with 1/4 cup of ketchup (or more if desired).

Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower:

1/2 Cauliflower, coarsely chopped

2 large potatoes, sliced

1/4 onion, diced

1/4 cup sour cream

1/4 cup shredded cheddar

1 tbs salt

Pepper to taste

Veggie broth

Cover with water. Bring to boil. Reduce to simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes. Drain.

Okay, this is where it gets sketchy as I started talking to Noah! Mash drained vegetables to desired consistency. Add sour cream and cheddar, salt and pepper. Stir. Slowly add veggie broth, stir and do this until you get the consistency of potatoes you like.

Growing up in the South, Mashed Potatoes are a no brainer. For years I stuck to a very traditional recipe. However, as I have gotten older and my stomach issues have increased, in addition to an overall desire to be healthier, I have experimented with recipes and this is one of the best ones I have come up with.

Serve these things will a tall glass of iced sweetened decaf tea (Luzianne, of course) and enjoy.

Chicken Risotto

September 15, 2012

1 lb. chicken breast tenderloins, chopped into chunks
1 cup arborio rice 
1 large bell pepper (any color), chopped
1 32 oz. box chicken stock
2 tbs. butter
1 tsp salt
pepper to taste
1/2 tsp thyme
Up to 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese or parmesan cheese

Melt butter in large skillet.  Add chicken and pepper.  Cook on med low for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally (can be allowed to brown if desired).  Add the rice.  Stir.  Pour 1/4 of the stock into the skillet.  Add salt, pepper and thyme.  Bring to boil.  Turn down to low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add 1/3 of the REMAINING stock or 8 oz.  Repeat previous step (turn down, cover and simmer).  Repeat this process two additional times.  When adding the remaining stock, add the cheese as well.  Keep on low or warm and stir until cheese is fully blended in dish.  After 15 minutes turn off and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes (still covered) to set dish.  Enjoy!

Gluten Free Chicken and Dumplings via Pioneer Woman

January 5, 2012

After years of making traditional Southern style chicken and dumplings I stumbled across the Pioneer Woman version of C/D and decided to give it a whirl.  Due to the fact that I am nearly incapable of following a recipe without taking a shortcut of some kind, I made the following changes to the recipe.

1.  I did not add the tumeric.

2.  I was out of carrots - so sans carrots.

3.  I used Pamela's Baking Mix (GF) in place of flour.

Now let me say that I was VERY nervous about these dumplings.  Not that I did not believe that delicious dumplings would be the end result - because much like my belief in faeries I did believe these would be tasty.  No, I was nervous that the hubs would complain as his favorite food in the entire world is C/D and he loves his Mother's very traditional Southern version.

Okay, deep breathe.  He LOVED them.  In fact he said "these aren't my Mother's but they may be the best I've ever had."  Wow.  I have to say that I am not a C/D fan but I also loved these as did Noah and Arwyn though they have never enjoyed them before!!!!  I'm thrilled.  Now, if only Arwyn had not nearly died during dinner resulting in a call to 9-1-1, the evening would have been perfect!

Here is a link to this fab recipe:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/12/chicken-and-dumplings/

Food for thought:

As for those grapefruit and buttermilk diets, I'll take roast chicken and dumplings.
Hattie McDaniel

Home Made

January 12, 2012

There is very little so satisfying as opening the freezer door and pulling out a jar of chicken broth that I made.  I often resort to purchasing commercial chicken broth.  My broth of choice is Kitchen Basics though I will also take Whole Foods 365 broth.  But the best broth is mine.  

Before I started the makings of a tasty, healthy, healing broth I quickly prepared home made muffins for the family.  Today's muffins are holiday ham and cheese and I used leftovers from the past few days.  Once the muffins were in the oven I turned to the real work of the broth.

A few days ago I purchased a package of whole cut up chicken which I thoroughly washed today before using.  I added 1/2 of the pack of chicken to a 5 quart dutch oven.  I very coarsely chopped a stalk of celery, a carrot and half an onion.  I added 3 turns of salt and 3 turns of pepper from my Pampered Chef grinders and filled the pot with water - leaving approximately an inch of room from the top.

I brought the pot to a boil and then turned the chicken down to simmer with the lid on.  The chicken simmered for 45 minutes.  After allowing the chicken to cool for approximately 15 minutes, I removed the chicken from the pot and set aside.  Using a mesh strainer I strained the broth into a large Pampered Chef mixing bowl with a handle.  Next I poured the broth into 4 quart jars and placed on the counter until cooled.  Once cooled, the broth went into the freezer for later use.

So...what happened to the chicken?  The chicken will be used tonight in an Asian marinade and be stuffed into rice paper for spring rolls.  Sounds like a lot of work?  It's not.  It is also a very inexpensive way to prepare stock.  Normally for that amount of stock, I would pay around $3.00.  By preparing my own stock (keep in mind I still have half of a pack of chicken remaining) I am cutting the cost of my broth by half.  How?  I will get the equivalent of at least 2 boxes of stock plus the meat from the chicken (a $16.00 value) for the $4.92 I paid for the entire pack of whole cut up chicken.  What a deal!!!!

Food for thought:

We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are.

-Adelle Davis

Interruption

August 18, 2011

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for a gluten recipe.  You may be wondering why I posted a glutinous recipe this week on my blog.  The last couple of months we have reintroduced gluten into our diets.  My son is having a Celiac's test....today in fact....and I had to gluten him up.  We have not had wheat flour in our diet everyday but many days over the last couple of months.

Here is what I can report from the change in our diet.  I have gained more weight, my migraines have returned, I can't remember anything and I have word salad, my daughter - who suffers from eczema - has shown significant  compromise in her skin issues and my son's digestive issues have returned....there may be changes in other areas that I am just not seeing. 


I went back to a GF diet this week and am fully committed to return to it.  I am anxious to get the family back to a GF diet as well and get our health back on track.  I am not an advocate of all people being on GF diets, however, if you are experiencing things with your health that cannot be attributed to a specific illness or diagnosis, considering eliminating wheat/gluten from your diet and see what happens.

Chunky Chowder

August 11, 2011

1/2 Stick Butter

Small Onion, Coarsely Chopped

1 Celery Stalk, Finely Chopped

1 Medium Potato, Coarsely Chopped

6 oz. Kernal Corn (fresh or frozen)

1 Cup Chicken Stock (I prefer my own if I have some in the fridge - if not then I only use Kitchen Basics)

1/2 Cup Milk 

1/4 Cup Monterrey Jack Shredded Cheese

1/4 Cup Sharp Cheddar Shredded Cheese

1 Tsp Salt

Pepper to Taste

Saute the onion and celery in the butter on medium until tender, approximately 7 minutes.  Add potato.  Cover and turn to low and saute for 5 additional minutes. Add broth and milk and bring to a boil.  Turn down to simmer and cover - allowing for steam to escape.  Simmer for 10 minutes.  Puree 1/2 of the vegetables and return them to the soup.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Serve!

How Sweet It Is

June 8, 2011

I find that when I read about folks considering going gluten free, there is a resistance because they think it will be difficult to eliminate white flour from the diet.  It's not.  Tonight we had white bean chili and Mexican cornbread with green chilis and cheddar cheese.  Very filling, tasty and best of all, no gluten.  I am also working to eliminate most of the rice flours from our diet, or at least from mine.  My son needs them just for things like sandwiches, but for me, I would love to eliminate it for my diet!  So, here I am, saying, how sweet it is to be gluten free.

Cornbread Salad

May 31, 2011

Tonight I am attending a Thirty-One area training to help me continue to grow my business. (www.mythirtyone.com/danacroy).  We were asked to contribute a dish and I am taking Cornbread Salad.  This is my version based on a great Southern Living recipe (where many of my best recipes come from!)

1 pan cornbread - use your favorite recipe for an 8x8 pan or an 8 inch round cast iron skillet
1 bunch of green onions - chopped
1 head of iceburg lettuce - chopped  ( you can use a more nutritious lettuce but as I was being budget conscious, well...)
2 cups of shredded  mexican cheese or sharp cheddar
1 jar of Kalamata olives
6 ounces of Ranch dressing ( I like Brianna's)
3 tomatoes - chopped

Prepare your cornbread, bake, then cool.  In a large bowl or trifle dish  spread 1/3 of the chopped lettuce, add , 1/3 of the cheese, 1/3 of the olives, 1/3 of the tomatoes, and the top layer is 1/2 of the cornbread (crumbled) repeat one time.  After adding the second repeat the process one final time though this time there is no cornbread to add (only 2 cornbread layers).  Drizzle the ranch over the dish and chill until ready to serve.

Mama's Yeast Rolls

March 30, 2011

I spend a lot of time talking to folks about food and many are surprised to know that like a good cast iron skillet I am a fairly seasoned Southern cook.  One of the things I love about regional foods, whether it is Southern or Chinese or Indian, is that the same dishes circulate through a region for ever and ever, amen.  A good example of this is some of Paula Deen's recipes.  When I first discovered Paula Deen and began reading her cookbooks I was shocked to see that many (and I mean many) could have been taken right out of my Mother's kitchen.  All of the great food I had been raised on had apparently been handed down through generations of cooks - Mothers, Grandmothers and even from slaves.  And, not only had it been handed down but it was a circular handing down that spanned an entire region - in this case the South.

The recipe I'm sharing today is another example of that.  These are the yeast rolls that often graced the dinner table on Sunday afternoons in my childhood home.  Those are dinners that I remember fondly.  The youngest of four children, I had nieces and nephews by the time I entered Kindergarten.  So family dinners included my siblings, their spouses, their children, friends who had stayed over Saturday night and often extended family members as not only did my Mother serve a wonderful table but my parents had the wisdom to install a pool for their large family.

We had all but forgotten those yeast rolls as the last years of my Mother's life found her unable to navigate the kitchen in which she created many meals.  Then, my oldest sister gave us all the family cookbook that her Mother-In-Law had created with her own siblings.  Lo and Behold!  There was an identical yeast roll recipe.  The same no rise yeast roll recipe that makes your mouth water and want to Praise Jesus on Sunday afternoons was there in print.  Now, here it is for you.

1 pack dry yeast

2 cups warm water

4 cups flour (I use pamela's baking mix)

1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup melted butter

Mix all ingredients.  Spoon into greased muffin tins.  Bake on 425 for 25 minutes.  Watch them starting at 15 minutes to ensure they do not brown too much.

Penne Pasta with Italian Sausage

December 10, 2010

2 Boxes Ancient Quinoa Rotini

1 Package of  Mild Italian Sausage 

1/2 Large White Onion - Coarsely Diced

1 Jar Emeril's Roasted Gaaahlic Pasta Sauce

1 Can Crushed Tomatoes

1/2 cup Milk (I prefer whole for this recipe)

1 Cup of Parmesan Cheese

Salt and Pepper to Taste

(As always, check your sauces and meats prior to cooking to ensure GF standards.)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice uncooked sausage in half lengthwise.  Remove casing.  Cook in lightly oiled skillet or on griddle.  I use a cast iron griddle on my stove for this.  Cook on medium low for 10 minutes, turn, then cook an additional 10 minutes.  Saute onions until tender along with the sausage.  Meanwhile, cook pasta to box directions.  Drain.  Mix sauce, tomatoes and milk.  Salt and Pepper to taste.  Transfer pasta to a 13x9 baking dish.  Pour tomato mixture over pasta.  Add cheese.  Now that the sausage has cooled cut into 1 inch pieces.  Add to dish.  Toss dish well coating all of the pasta ensuring that all ingredients are mixed well.  Bake for 20 minutes.  I usually serve this with salad and my cheesy scones.

Puffed Pancakes

September 26, 2010

3 Eggs

1/2 Cup Pamela's Baking Mix (or other GF baking mix)

1/2 Tsp Salt

Pinch of Sugar or a Couple of Drops of Agave

1/2 Cup Milk

Beat eggs until light.  Add milk and continue to beat.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Bake in an oven preheated to 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Serve to hungry family with toppings of choice (fruit, maple syrup, honey, etc.).  Enjoy!