Corn Bread - Gluten Free

Even my gluten-loving family enjoys this corn bread recipe! It's a winner with all of us.

1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup masa (corn flour)
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 cup rice flour (I've used brown or sweet white)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 TB sugar
1/8 tsp xanthan gum
2 cups milk plus 2 TB apple cider vinegar (or 2 cups of buttermilk)
2 beaten eggs

Mix together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix together the milk and eggs in a separate bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until they are smooth. Quickly stir in the melted butter.

Pour batter into a greased 10x13 baking dish. Bake at 400* for 20 minutes or until the edges are a golden brown.

This recipe will also work without the xanthan gum. The texture will just be more crumbly without it.
Masa can be found in the ethnic section of the grocery store, with the Mexican foods.
This bread does not store well. You'll have to break out the honey-butter and eat it now!
This is a wonderful option for gluten-free stuffing at Thanksgiving.

Brazilian Cheese Bread

Jenny suggested that I try these lovely little bites after she had them with some friends. I was looking for some gluten-free breads (gluten-free anythings!) and this fit the bill. I must say that they are wonderful! They look good, taste good, smell good...I forgot that they were gluten-free.





Rather than try to create something that has already been done so well, I must direct you to a favorite site: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2011/02/quick-brazilian-cheese-rolls-pao-de-queijo-2/ Our Best Bites is a terrific food blog that Kali introduced to me. They are worth the time to check out.





Happy gluten-free bread!

Bean Salad

This is a family summer favorite. I especially like to take this salad to picnics because I don't have to be concerned with mayonnaise getting too warm. It is best assembled the night before to allow the vegetables to marinate.

Dressing:
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cups extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup or less sugar
choice of seasonings, depending on what's ready in the garden: oregano, thyme, chives, mixed seasonings

Salad:
2 cans of sliced green beans, drained
1 can yellow wax beans, drained
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

Gently combine the vegetables in a large bowl. Stir together the dressing with a whisk and pour over the salad. Cover and refrigerate to allow the flavors to meld. It's always better the second day.

Sweet Creamed Corn

This is a delicious accompaniment I came up with for all of Scott's smoked meats. It was inspired by The Smoking Apple's sweet butter corn. (Also inspired by Robert Irvine's recipe for Creamed Corn).

Warning: consuming too much of this will kill you. It would be difficult to make a vegetable any worse for your health than this corn. That being said, you would die very happily.

6 ears/servings of corn (I cheated and used frozen since it's April)

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 Tablespoon salt

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 Tablespoons butter

If frozen, cook corn according to directions on package, then strain off any additional liquid. If using fresh, husk the ears, place in a pot with enough water to cover the corn, and bring to a boil. Boil for 10-15 minutes before removing the corn to cool, then cut the kernals off.

While corn is cooking, add the cream to a saucepan and reduce by 1/3 over low heat. Remove from heat and add the butter. Whisk in salt and sugar, then fold in the corn before serving. Serve warm.

Cowboy Beans

1-2 pounds ground beef
1 large yellow onion, chopped
left-over cooked beans: pinto, black, white
1 or 2 cans of pork and beans
ketchup
mustard

Brown 1-2 pounds of ground beef in a large fry pan. Drain fat and add one chopped, yellow onion, cooking until translucent. Add to the pan any drained, left-over beans from previous meals. (Pinto, black, pink, great northern all work well.) Stir in one or two cans of pork ‘n beans. Add ketchup and mustard to taste. Heat through and serve. Children love it because this is what cowboys eat! Husbands love it because its hardy and filling.

Sarah Smith's Spinach Dip

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayo

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed & squeezed dry (I used 1/2 of a bag of fresh spinach. I couldn't find any frozen spinach and I love fresh spinach in salads, but Ben and I cannot go through the whole package before it goes bad:)

1/2 cup chopped scallions

1/4 cup shredded carrots

green food coloring optional

In medium bowl combine sour cream, mayo, basil, black pepper, garlic powder, & salt; mix well. Stir in Spinach, scallions, & carrots; blend well. Tint green if desired. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.

Jalapeño Pepper Poppers

One of the CNAs at Logan Nursing and Rehab told me about this delectable treat! All you need are fresh jalapeño peppers, cream cheese, and bacon. I cut the peppers in half, cleaned the seeds out, applied the cream cheese, put the 2 halves together, and wrapped them up in 1 slice of bacon.

Cook at broil for 10 minutes or until bacon is browned.

Quinoa with Chard and Cheese

This recipe was an adaptation; I was looking for ways to incorporate quinoa. I rarely have all of the ingredients for a recipe, so I have a tendency to use what I have on hand. This time it was delicious!

I had been trying to find ways to use quinoa because it is good source of protein. I have read that it is the only complete vegetable protein. Does anyone have a good recipe for quinoa they would share?

Olive oil

1 diced yellow onion

1 tsp minced garlic

1-2 cups left-over, cooked quinoa

2 generous cups chopped Swiss chard

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

In a large skillet, cook the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent and frangrant. Stir in the quinoa to heat it up. Add the chard next and cook over medium heat until the leaves are wilted. Remove skillet from heat and add parmesan, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.

Chicken Salad

Ben and I are busily packing to get ready to go up to the office. Here is a recipe I like that we will be eating on the road tomorrow. I included the biscuits in the picture because we will be eating the chicken salad sandwich style. I hope you guys like it!

2 cups diced chicken
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup cashews
1/2 cup grapes
1/4 - 1/2 cup ranch dressing
1/4 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Mix it all together. Add ranch a little at a time until moist!

Black Beans and Rice

This is our favorite beans and rice recipe. It's one I've gradually modified from a Food Network recipe. It's best served with roasted chicken and mole.

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 cup diced green chillies (preferably New Mexican)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 tablespoon cumin
• 1 cup white rice*
• 2 cups black beans, drained
• 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes (preferably homegrown)
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Heat oil in a pot over medium/high heat and stir in chillies, onions, garlic, bay leaves, and cumin. Stir and cook about 8 minutes.

Stir in rice, black beans, tomatoes, water, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Cook for about 40 minutes or until rice is tender.

*I always try to make this with brown rice. Don't! Brown rice takes waaaay too long to cook. If you want to use brown rice, I recommend cooking it separately and adding it into the dish towards the end.

Roasted Carrots

There are few vegetables that make it into our family's coveted category of "least offensive vegetable". This is one that everyone enjoys and it's so easy! I have been making this long enough that I no longer remember the original source.

2 pounds prepackaged baby carrots

2 TBS olive oil

1/2 tsp salt

Adjust oven rack to the center position and preheat to 475*. Toss carrots, oil and salt in a roasting pan. Spread into a single layer and roast for 12 minutes. Shake pan to toss carrots; continue roasting about 8 minutes longer, shaking pan twice more until carrots are browned and tender. Serve as a side dish while they are hot.

Notes: Be sure to thoroughly drain the carrot package.

I have also used fresh garden carrots; the trick here is to make sure that the carrots are cut into a uniform size and thickness.

I love to use garlic salt as the seasoning.

Refried Beans

Thanks to Jenny for lingering in the kitchen to calculate this recipe and actually get it recorded. It's been a standard in our family since about 1991; it originated from a friend in the ward: Cynthia French. It's just delicious!

4 cups dry pinto beans, sorted and cleaned
6 cups chicken stock
2 tsp garlic (2-4 cloves)
2 bay leaves
2 large yellow onions, coursely chopped
2 TB ground cumin
2 TB dry cilantro

In a large saucepan, cover beans with enough lukewarm water to cover the beans generously, by about 4 inches. Allow the beans to soak and rehydrate overnight. In the morning, drain and rinse the beans; return them to the same pan. Add remaining ingredients and bring the mixture to a simmer. Turn the heat down low, cover the pan and allow the beans to cook slowly. Cook the beans for 4-8 hours, or until they are tender. (This time will depend on the freshness of the beans.) Check the fluid level periodically, to ensure that the beans are just covered with stock, adding more water if needed. (Nothing smells worse than burned beans!)
When the beans are tender, remove the bay leaves and add salt to taste. (Salt is added last to prevent toughening of the bean skins.) The level of the liquid should just be visible through the beans. If there is excess liquid, drain it off, reserving it for later if needed.
Traditionally the beans are now "refried" in hot oil in a frying pan and mashed. However, we have just used a blender, omitting the extra oil. A traditional blender, food processor or stick blender all work very well. Drain the beans if you like thicker beans; add more liquid if you prefer them thinner.
I love to double or triple this recipe, freezing portions for later use. They are great to have on hand. Also, the chicken stock can be replaced with water for the cooking and the addition of chicken boullion at the end of the cooking time.
Delicious!

Dilled Rice Salad

Perfect side dish for a hot summer day! This recipe originates from a pamphlet published by the USA Rice Council.

2 TB white wine vinegar
1 TB lemon juice
1 TB vegetable oil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cups cooked rice, cooled
1 medium-sized red pepper, chopped
1/2 pound snow peas, julienned

Combine vinegar, lemon juice, oil, dill, salt and pepper in a large bowl; whisk to combine well. Add rice, red pepper and peas; toss. Serve chilled.

We used brown rice for a terrific nutty flavor. I would suggest a bit more dressing to rice mixture, also. Sugar snap peas substituted for snow peas very well.

Some of our later variations included left-over cooked pinto beans, tomatoes and celery. They've all been great.

Double-corn Polenta

Okay, my photograph doesn't make it look like much. But it is heavenly!! The perfect summertime side dish. And best of all - it's so stinkin' easy. This recipe comes from the book "The 150 Best American Recipes".

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe tomatoes
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• coarse salt
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 cup medium-grind cornmeal
• 1 1/2 cups cooked corn kernels
• 2/3 cup loosely packed fresh mixed herbs, like parsley, chives, oregano, basil, coarsely chopped
• 2/3 cup parmesan cheese
• 4 large basil leaves for garnish

1. Chop tomatoes. Toss with the olive oil and salt. Set aside

2. In a saucepan boil together water and cream. Add butter and then salt to taste. Whisking constanty, add cornmeal in a slow steady stream. Keep whisking until the lumps disappear. Reduce heat to low and simmer while stirring until polenta is creamy and thick about 20 minutes. (It was more like 5 when I did it.)

3. Fold in corn, herbs and cheese. Top with the tomatoes and basil leaves. Serve immediately. (Makes 6-8 serving)