Mixer Love

I love the delicious swirl! This is one of my favorite sights :)

Gluten Free Shepherds Pie

I like easy things. I don't know about you, but I have a full time job, a 10 month old baby boy, a hungry but supportive husband, and there never seem to be enough hours in the day. So when it comes to preparing dinner for myself and my gluten free family, I want something fast. I want something fresh and tasty. I want something easy peasy.
(yes, I realize I said "easy peasy").

Shepherds Pie absolutely fits that criteria!
All it takes is the following:
     2 cans of Mixed Veggies (there's no reason this should cost more than $1.50)
     1 lb of hamburger (I only use half of this - saving the other half for another meal)
     3 medium sized baking potatoes (I like Russet, but you could also do 6 red potatoes)
     1 cup cheddar cheese. (more if you want, but I usually use 1/2 of a 2 cup bag)
          (optional 2-3 heaping Tbs sour cream, 1-2 Tbs butter)-for potatoes
          (Dairy Free:  GF Chicken broth-just check your labels)-for potatoes

*a note about hamburger: Make sure that it is 100% beef. You could use other meats too- lamb, ground turkey, etc. But you have to be careful to make sure that your meat is Gluten Free.
ALWAYS CHECK YOUR LABELS!!! If it says "spices" or "modified food starch" (and does Not say 'from corn') then don't purchase it. Chances are, you will be fine. However, if they added "seasonings" but don't want to tell you what they added, you can't know for sure that the "spices" were not contaminated with gluten.
Please, ALWAYS CHECK YOUR LABELS. seriously.

Back to work.  Set your oven to 350 F.

Fry up your (safe) hamburger. Season it fantastically. (try garlic salt, onion, oregano, parsley, whatever you want!) After you drain the hamburger, use the same skillet to warm up your veggies.

*you could buy frozen or fresh veggies, but I'm going for speed and convenience here, so I just drain the water from the cans that I buy and toss the veggies in the pan to simmer. There's really no need to cook these, I just like to get the hamburger juices and spices all over and toss them around with a spatula.

At this point, I would grab your potatoes and rinse them off. Always rinse your potatoes, because ew. They grew in the ground after all.
Poke a bunch of holes in them with a fork. Here's where I take the super easy way out: I microwave mine. You can peel and boil yours or bake them for an hour if you feel like it, but listen here, Ain't nobody got time for that.
I microwave mine (just hit the potato button a couple of times). They will be just as cooked. I promise. When they are done, let them cool a minute.

Grab a baking dish. Spread your meat and veggie mix evenly. By the way, if you feel like adding some cheddar to this mix, I think you should follow your heart. I encourage that.

In a bowl, mash your potatoes up. I like to use a spoon and give it a rough mash one potato at a time. These suckers are hot! As I mush them, I slide some of the skin off. There is no good reason to do this except that I don't particularly like the way they taste. Obviously I'm super healthy.
I once heard @ReeDrummond, the #PioneerWoman say that peeling potatoes is against her religion and she likes to keep the skin on. (I adore her). Anyway, this is sort of my lazy mashing process:

If you are a "Type A" individual who likes perfectly smooth mashed taters, that's lovely. I encourage you to grab a mixer and set it to low and have at it. But that's not my style. I only save that effort for baking or special occassions, like Thanksgiving.

So let's fast forward. If you go the dairy free route, this is where you should put in the chicken broth. Pour it 1 Table spoon at a time until you acheive desired creamy-ness.

If you choose the sour cream path, mix in your sour cream and butter and some salt and pepper.

After your potatoes are mashed and adequately seasoned, spread a thick layer over your dish of meat and veggies.  Finish it with the remainder of your cheese.

Bake it for 20 min, or until the cheese has a little brown around the edges.

I could have kept this in there longer, but I am impatient and hungry.

I hope this easy version of Shepherd's is tasty and satisfying to you as well. It has certainly become one of Our household favorites!

Pizza-Pizza!

I use Bob's Red Mill to make Pizza dough. There are several options out there of course.
We used to buy the Udi's circular pre-made dough (found in the freezer section at Bi-Lo and Harris Teeter- Publix no longer carries them, to my knowledge). And while those were delicious, it was $5 for only 2.
So now, we buy Bob's version. It can be made without egg and it only needs to rise for 20min. But here's my favorite part:  It makes up to 4 personal pizzas!

Here's how:

For this Pizza demonstration, I have already followed the package instructions given by trusty Bob.  {Add the yeast to some warm water/ let it sit 10min...mix in egg, olive oil and Bob's mix and stir....make 2 blobs of dough and cover for 20min}

Decide how you would like to lay it out. I like to spread it out all thin into two large rectangle pizzas. (that is the most convenient baking sheet I have on hand but you can use whatever you have)

When you spread it out, Keep your hands wet with water. Unlike when you work with Regular gluten-filled floury dough, this stuff is extra extra sticky. Keep your hands wet when you spread it out.

Bake it preemptively for 8min at 425F.

After this, you can put whatever toppings you want on it!

When you are satisfied with your toppings, go ahead and bake it for another 15 or 20min!


     I made this one with portabello, mozzarella, onion, chicken, mushrooms, and basil-pesto base...Yummy!

This one is my husband's favorite: Red sauce base with mozzarella, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, etc.!

Here, I'm showing it before and after pepperoni (because I am a pepperoni Freak!)

The crust is perfectly crisp and the dough itself does not taste gritty! Love this stuff!

Gluten Free is... GOOD?

Going Gluten Free is not Just a fad.

Deciding to pursue a gluten free diet is actually saving lives.

1 out of every 133 Americans has been diagnosed with full blown Celiac Disease, while 1 out of every 24 has either a gluten intolerance or allergy.

10 years ago, that statistic read 1 out of every 6,000.

Celiac Disease is the most common genetic disease in America today. It effects your duodenum.
What the heck is that?
It's that space where your stomach ends and your small intestines begin. This part of your body is lined with feelers, sort of like hairs, that absorb nutrients. (We call these villi)
With Celiac, when you eat foods with gluten in them, your villi are stripped and can no longer absorb nutrients from your food.
(Picture a new tire being rubbed raw, even becoming bald by rough terrain)

That is where the problems begin. Symptoms of Celiac (even intolerance) can show themselves in so many different ways.
Some people are suddenly and dangerously anemic. Many people suffer with Chronic Irritable Bowel issues (constipation or diarrhea or both!). Some get migraines while others are lactose intolerant. Still, some people even have itching, peeling skin. Symptoms can also cause victims to lash out with nutty mood swings or make you infertile. Few unlucky people may have all of these issues.
Not everyone with Celiac has any of these issues (there are many more symptoms not mentioned here).

That is why it can be very difficult to diagnose. Ultimately, it can lead people to diabetes and other life threatening complications.


So if Celiac specifically causes so many problems, how do you fix them?
The sad news is, there is no cure for Celiac Disease. Following a strict GLUTEN FREE DIET is the proven way to mend your damaged body.

So where do you begin?
There are many blogs out there that speak to those who live a life free of gluteny goodness. This is just one of them.
I highly recommend  http://www.celiaccentral.org/Celiac-Disease/21/ (the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness) for information that is easy to understand and relate.

Celiac.org and Celiac.com are also great resources.

If you are just starting out and basically all that you know is that you can never ever eat sour dough bread or sheet cake or zaxby's celebration special, or a chicken quesadilla from taco bell ever again, I want you to stop for a second.
Take a deep breath.
(exhale)
It's going to be ok.

The best news of all is that there are alternatives for literally Any food that you can think of!

I am here for you.

You don't have to "live without". You just need to learn to substitute.
It's been more than two years since I have dropped the gluten. I have never felt better in my life! No, I don't eat those things anymore (although sometimes I dream that I accidentally go through the drive thrus at those particular restaurants), but I have learned to cook in a different way. It's the same, but it's different.

I'm here to tell you that eating gluten free food doesn't have to be disgusting. Although, I consider myself a realist; I know that there are some pretty gross gluten free foods out there
I'm also a very honest, picky eater. I have the right to be. I am an American after all. :)

Here is why this blog exists: I will post what I eat, along with how to make it. I will be honest about how delicious or gross it is and I will be happy to share insights along the way.
My dream is to one day open up an all gluten free bakery in the Charleston, SC area.
That is how good my GF cooking and baking is.

Seriously.
So with a little help, I feel confident that you can get a handle on making GF yummy too.

Let's do this!