Wheatless Foodie

People who can eat anything sometimes ask, “What can you eat?”   Here’s what my family is eating this week.   Naturally, we’ll be enjoying gluten free versions of those foods that would ordinarily be made with wheat. Sunday:   Sausage and Mushroom Scramble ; gluten free pancakes made with Pamela’s Gluten Free Baking Mix Monday: Chili and Gluten Free Cornbread Tuesday: Roast Chicken with potatoes and carrots (roasting extra chicken to use on Thursday); Orange& Hazelnut Salad (without the turkey) Wednesday: Spaghetti, garlic bread and green salad Thursday: Chicken Soft Tacos (using leftover chicken from Tuesday) Friday:   Beef Pot Pie (homemade with gluten free crust) Saturday:   Soup and Sandwiches on Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread What are you planning for this week? Cindy

My husband loves meatloaf and has developed an especially delicious recipe that we all enjoy.  He tried several recipes then chose what he liked most and combined them into one fabulous meatloaf recipe.  He uses quick cooking gluten free oats instead of breadcrumbs.  Gluten free breadcrumbs would probably work, but the oats give the meatloaf a nice texture, as well as the nutritional boost of whole grains. Quick cooking oats are more finely cut than old fashioned oats.  If you don't have access to quick cooking gluten free oats, you can pulse old fashioned oats in the food processor. Fred's Meatloaf (gluten free) 3 lbs ground meat (we use two parts lean ground beef to one part ground turkey) 1 ½ cups Gluten Free Quick Cooking Oats 2 cups milk of your choice (we use almond milk) 2 eggs 2 Tablespoons canola or olive oil 2 medium onions, preferably sweet, chopped 2 cups mushrooms, chopped 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 1 tablespoon Balsa...

My childhood Thanksgivings always included canned jellied cranberry sauce.  You know, the kind that you can push out of the can and slice.  There's nothing wrong with canned cranberry sauce, but making cranberry sauce from fresh cranberries is so easy.  And I think it tastes better.  I like the chunky texture of my homemade cranberry sauce and the not-too-sweet tartness of it.  And best of all, it can be made a couple of days ahead of time. Cranberry Sauce 1 12-ounce bag fresh cranberries (nearly 2 cups) 1 1/2 cups sugar 1/2 cup water Combine ingredients in a 2-quart saucepan.  Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.  Remove cover, stir, and simmer (uncovered) for 5 to 10 minutes.  Mash cranberries with the back of a large spoon.  Allow to cool, store in the refrigerator in a covered container. Printable Version

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I was blessed to grow up surrounded by family, and we always gathered at my grandparents’ home for Thanksgiving. Grandma made a delicious traditional feast that was enjoyed by the three generations gathered around the table. I loved getting together with family, grandparents, an aunt, uncles, and cousins. After I was married and we had our daughter, my husband and I moved to another state. We’ve had a good life, but we always miss our families during the holidays. We couldn’t travel during the holidays much, because that was the busiest time of year for my husband’s employer. He had Thanksgiving day off, then usually had to work the remaining three days of the “holiday weekend”. Fortunately, my parents were willing to travel to be with us on Thanksgiving. They have kept up this tradition every year for over twenty years now, and having them here for this holiday makes it that much more special. We are always grateful for their loving p...

I never met a summer squash I didn’t like, or a tomato either for that matter. The summer garden that my family helped me plant this year is overflowing with squash and tomatoes. Beans too, but that’s a story for another day. I got the idea from Mike Eberhart’s gluten free blog to make “bases” that can then be used in other recipes. The idea is to start with a set of ingredients, cook them, then use the resulting “base” as an ingredient, or a sort of sauce, in other dishes. Using what I had, which were onions from the grower’s market and lots of tomatoes and summer squashes from my garden, I made this “base”: Tomato Zucchini Base Sauce 2 onions, chopped and sautéed in a little olive oil. 8 cups diced, peeled and seeded tomatoes 8 cups diced summer squash (zucchini, yellow crookneck and patty pan) Salt and Pepper to taste Combine and simmer until all veggies are cooked. Store in refrigerator for up to 5 days, or store in freezer. Here’s how I’ve used it so far: Eaten as-is – sort o...