Wheatless Foodie

I’ve become interested in the concept of “functional foods”, that is, foods that offer specific health benefits above and beyond providing our bodies with calories, macronutrients and micronutrients. A great deal of research is being done on a great many functional foods. It’s an interesting field of knowledge. Coconut oil is one of the new foods in my family’s diet. Up until recently, I’ve used mostly canola oil or olive oil, and occasionally butter when preparing meals. Over the past few months I’ve noticed that several of my favorite food bloggers use coconut oil in their recipes. Most of the food bloggers I follow are interested in healthy foods, so I began doing some research on coconut oil. Coconut oil is an edible oil extracted from the meat of mature coconuts. There are several means of extracting the coconut oil, and the method used determines the quality of the finished coconut oil. I’m using organic, extra virgin coconut oil from Nutiva , which is cold pressed and mini

Apples are a sure sign that autumn is underway. We are blessed to have an apple tree in our backyard. The apple variety growing on our tree isn’t very good for eating fresh out of hand, but it’s great for baking. I began working on this apple cake recipe last year and after several attempts, I still felt that it just wasn’t good enough to share. I’ve made it several more times this fall, and I’m finally happy with it.  Recipe development is like that. Sometimes it can take a dozen revisions, as was the case with this recipe for apple cake. I don’t have the energy I used to, either, so as happened with this recipe, it took over a year to make it enough times to get it right. It makes me miss those days of working in product development when I had a staff of technicians to which I could hand the recipe revisions (and who cleaned up afterwards). About the topping: I’ve made the cake several times with the topping added to the batter before baking and with the topping added about h

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 Balsamic vinegar 1 tables

Gravy is easy to make if you have some stock, broth, and/or pan drippings to work with. But if you don’t or just want the convenience of canned gravy, it can be difficult to find ready-to-serve gravy that doesn’t contain gluten. I’ve found one brand of gluten free ready-to-eat gravy, and my entire family likes it. Imagine Foods’ Savory Beef  Flavored Gravy comes in shelf stable cartons, contains no gluten, and it’s delicious. I buy Imagine gluten free Beef Gravy locally at the Bellingham Food Co-op , but it’s also available directly from Imagine Foods . (I'm not receiving any form of compensation for this blog post.  I just really like the product.) Cindy

I love having leftovers for dinner, because it means not having to cook that night. Sometimes, however, there are just little bits of several things left in the fridge, not enough of any one thing to make a meal for four out of. That’s what happened this week. I decided to clean out the refrigerator and make stew in the crock pot today. The stew began this morning with the delicious pot roast that Fred had made for Sunday’s dinner. It went into the crock pot with a large carton of beef broth. After lunch I added a few scrubbed, sliced carrots and a few scrubbed diced red potatoes (no peeling needed), and some sliced mushrooms.   Later this afternoon the leftover cooked vegetables from the refrigerator were added. As dinner time was nearing, the house smelled so good! The stew looked good, but I decided to thicken the broth into gravy using a roux. A roux consists of butter and flour, usually in equal portions, that are cooked for a few minutes in a pan over medium heat. The ro

The original version of this recipe for layered dessert bars has been in my family for a few decades.   They’re quick and easy to make and can be made with any number of substitutions based on what is available in the pantry the day you’ve decided to make them.   I’ve converted the recipe to gluten-free by replacing the graham crackers with crushed gluten free cereal.   You could use gluten free graham crackers or cookies as well. I’ve also reduced the amount of butter by half from the original recipe.   Feel free to add back in the extra butter if you feel the need.   Also, I’ve tried making it without the egg, but it holds together better with the egg than without. Gluten Free Layered Dessert Bars ¼ cup butter (1/2 stick) 2 cups crushed gluten free cereal, gf graham crackers, or gf cookies 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips 1 cup butterscotch chips (make sure the brand you’re using is gluten free) 1 cup shredded coconut (I use unsweetened that contains no sulfites, but swee

 Gluten awareness has increased dramatically in the last few years.   Food manufacturers are producing more gluten-free products, and there are several food companies that only manufacture gluten-free foods.   It’s become trendy to be following a gluten-free diet.   While there are those who have been advised by a doctor to give up gluten, there are many people giving up gluten without a doctor’s diagnosis.   Why? Celebrities have helped make gluten-free eating popular.   Some claim to have followed a gluten free diet to lose weight, and others are doing it because it makes them feel healthier.   And when a celebrity does something, people pay attention. With all the delicious gluten-free baked goods on the market, changing out all the wheat containing foods in one’s diet to the gluten-free versions will not result in weight loss.   However, weight loss can result when giving up high fat, high sugar, and highly refined foods in favor of fruits, vegetables, and lean sources of prote