We've MOVED!!

Come visit at I Made Toast

Get Ready........

We're moving!!!!!!!!

New blog coming up. I never really liked BubbleTummy.

It's completely representative of the symptoms of celiac but it's kind of negative.


So we are moving. To a blog with the best 3-word phrase in the entire world.... It's a world of happiness.



Stay tuned!

Sesame Crackers. Yes, Crackers!!

I used to love crackers. Triscuits, Wheat Thins, Cracked Wheat, Saltines, Vegetable Thins, Table Water with Cracked Pepper etc etc etc.

I remember the first time I came home sick from school when I was little and was given some saltines with butter. Such a comfort food.
Having crackers alongside my chicken noodle soup, heaping the noodles on the cracker.
Making cracker bark with crackers baked with brown sugar and butter and glazed with chocolate and butterscotch chips.

I bought some Schar Gluten Free Table Crackers in order to make the Cracker Bark at Christmas. Both times I've bought them, they've been broken which is fine since the caramel sauce will hold them together. However, since they are always broken, they really can't be used for much else.

I'm not a fan of rice crackers. They look so plastic-y. I suppose I should give them a real shot. But, now I have these which I'll continue to perfect.


I saw a recipe in a magazine for some crackers and thought they looked fantastic. Buttery, flaky etc. And only 1 cup of flour. Why not?

Sesame Crackers

1 cup (250 mL) gluten free flour mix - I used 1 part brown rice flour, 1 part white rice flour, 2/3 of a part potato starch, 1/3 part tapioca starch
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp (15 mL) sesame seeds
½ tsp (2 mL) baking powder
¼ tsp (1 mL) salt
2 tbsp (25 mL) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
¼ cup (50 mL) cold water - May be up to 1/2 cup with gluten free flour
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp (15 mL) whipping cream
Coarse sea salt and/or other toppings

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C).

2. Combine flour, xanthan, sesame seeds, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add butter and use your fingers or a pastry blender to work in butter until it is the size of small peas. Add enough water to just bring dough together and gather together in a ball.

5. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface until it is 1/16-inch (2-mm) thick or less. Use a manual pasta machine to do this if you have one. Use a 2-inch (5-cm) round cutter to cut out circles. Gather and re-roll scraps. Place crackers on a baking sheet. Alternatively, just roll out into a large rectangle and use a pizza cutter to slice them into squares/rectangles or triangles. Just dust the surface with GF flour first so you can move them.

6. Beat together egg yolk and whipping cream, and brush over the tops of each cracker. Sprinkle with sea salt or other toppings and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.

Grating frozen butter is much easier.

Trying circles...

Nice and flaky!!

Then I thought I would try rolling them out and then cutting with a pizza cutter...

Much better. Although, brush with egg wash prior to cutting. Makes it easier.

Some of the thicker crackers...

On the left, the small circles I made which are a little thicker. I also re-rolled out some of the circles into ovals which is actually the perfect thickness. 

I ate way too many. Even had a couple with butter. So delicious. I'll happily make a half-batch or a whole batch anytime. Maybe some extra sesame seeds, maybe some other flavouring in them. Who knows???

Pickle Barrel Restaurant

What to eat? So not prepared. This is why I need an iPhone!!


In another city, not too sure what I can eat and just hoping for no fast food. We decide to check out the mall and if nothing, at least I know I can have New York Fries since they only do french fries.


Just in the door of the mall is the Pickle Barrel restaurant at Sherway Gardens Mall.They had a sign right on the hostess sign saying "Allergies, please let us know" So far so good. I check with the hostess. She's not too sure and I start to scan the menu. I find a few things I think might be okay and ask to speak with someone who may know. The manager comes out and we start to talk.

I never make this much effort or bring this much attention to it. He offered to bring me a copy of what they had and he did in a few minutes and made a point to mention it to the server as well who seemed aware. A server who is aware is also new to me. It was fairly limited but that's okay, since I'm fairly picky anyway!

I chose the Grilled 10oz New York, Striploin Steak  - Premium and well marbled beef with P.B.
special spice rub. Served with grilled vegetables, baby bok choy, mini potatoes and side salad.

Just salt and pepper on the steak, the veggies steamed and salad with balsamic and oil.

What a wonderful dinner at the Pickel Barrel!!!

Gluten Free Rhubarb Coffee Cake

One of the best parts of spring. We transplanted some when we moved and it's not quite ready yet but happily, someone brought about a dozen stalks to us.

I've found some jams and other uses for it but I always loved Rhubarb Cake from Best of Bridge cookbook.

I can never admit the most common way I eat rhubarb though.

I've had a few good successes with a general gluten free flour mixture so it's time to give the cake another go. It's a very forgiving recipe since I was short on eggs and forgot the vanilla and it still turned out wonderful.

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs - I only had 1 so I used it and then 1/4 cup applesauce
1 cup sour milk ( 2 tbsp vinegar, 1 cup milk)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 1/4 cups gluten free flour( I used 2 parts brown, 2/3 part potato starch, 1/3 part tapioca starch)
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp vanilla - oops, I forgot this
1 1/2 cups rhubarb, chopped fine

Topping
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Cream brown sugar and butter, add eggs and beat well. Add sour milk, soda,salt and flour.
Mix well and add vanilla and rhubarb.
Pour into 9x13 greased and floured pan.
Mix brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle on batter.

Bake at 350F for 45 minutes.

DO NOT ADD CARAMEL SAUCE.


It makes it utterly amazing. I'm sure you don't want that. Ick....Ughh, No thank you!

Okay, I lied.


Add the caramel sauce.



Check out some other cake recipes on Gluten Free Homemaker Gluten Free Wednesday - Cake Recipes

Gluten Free @NatureValley Roasted Nut Crunch Bars

Wow, that sure is a mouthful to say. Much easier to say is I <3 General Mills. The poor USA/CANADA border patrol. They must know me by now for how much shopping I do over the river in the US.

Anyways, General Mills. I love them for their Chex. Their Betty Crocker Mixes. The upcoming Gluten free Bisquick mix this summer which I CANNOT wait for. www.liveglutenfreely.com

And now, their granola bars.

To be honest, I thought it was the granola bars that they were going to have. Much to my surprise, it's actually whole almonds, sunflower seeds and peanuts.

A nice sweet treat. Granted, it looks just like something you can make at home. I had to check the label a few times since it looks like there are faux Rice Krispies in them but it's from the corn flour I think. Anyways, I certainly don't have a packaging plant in my house which is why I love these. So easy to throw in the purse to have as a snack which is definitely one of the hardest things about this.

 


So good!!!

Another Gluten Free Pasta

Another attempt at pasta. I enjoyed the Schar pasta that I had
bought much more so than the Tinkyada which had no flavour whatsoever.
The Schar pasta, as I've written about was good but really didn't heat up well. It sort of
defeats the purpose of making a big batch of sauce if it's not easy to
have noodles to eat.


That's one thing I haven't done in a while. Make my own sauce. Soon though.


I was told about a bakery nearby that had gluten free products according
to a sign in their window. So naturally, I was excited to go. I've been
there before and it was full of warm, crusty Italian rolls and breads.
I asked about the gluten free products and they pointed me to the only
things they carried. Corn pasta and spelt pasta. So they were 1 for 2,
I guess, since spelt is not allowed. Nor would I even try it if I could
since I don't particularly like the word "spelt". That's me. Super
picky but yet a food snob.


I bought a package of the penne and put it away at home along with all the other pastas I've picked up and have yet to try.


A whiff of homemade tomato sauce one day made me crave pasta though and I decided this would be the package I would try.

"The Le Veneziane corn pasta gets its characteristic golden color from its rich natural carotenes (vitamin A). This corn pasta has a delicate and gentle taste that allows it to work
with any sauce. It taste just as good as (some say better than) regular wheat pasta.

Le Veneziane corn pasta embodies Italian pasta making traditions at its best."




This was good.  Really really good. I didn't taste too
much of a corn flavour but this might be my new go-to pasta. Easy to
cook, not too starchy, not mushy, not brittle. As Goldilocks would say,
" It was just right".


I made the whole package and the leftovers, I rinsed in cold water to stop the cooking, then put a
little olive oil on the noodles so they wouldn't stick. I had a really
good feeling about the pasta. Threw some sauce on top and brought it to
work the next day for dinner. My gutsy Move of the Day? Not bringing
any other meal to eat. If this didn't heat up well and turned into
mush, I would have absolutely nothing to eat other than my snacks.


And.......










It was fantastic heated up as well. All in all, just like normal, eating for one meal and having great leftovers.




Now, I think it might be time to start making my own tomato sauce again.

Gluten Free Chocolate Mint Brownies

St Patrick's Day. Day of the Sugar Cookie with Green Icing. Or not.

I wasn't sure I would have time to make them and then I spotted Chocolate
Mint Brownies on the homepage of  www.allrecipes.com

Hmmmm. Could I? 

I've been meaning to make Gluten Free Turtle Brownies from The Baking Beauties for a while now.
Even bought the caramels but not the pecans.

Her brownies, my mint nanaimo custard/icing filling and chocolate topping.

Nanaimo???
What's that?

Happy St Patrick's Day!!

Gluten Free Tortillas

I had a craving for fajitas today.

I hate corn tortillas. Dilemma.

I'm sure they are perfectly lovely for some people but I like my nice soft flour tortillas that don't have the texture of sawdust.

I've tried a commercially sold brown rice version but wasn't that impressed with it's thawing capabilities.

I found this recipe on the Forums. When I first found out about celiac, I pretty much lived on these kinds of forums. Living Without.... Tortilla Recipe  
It's about halfway down the page.

This one is from the folks at Living Without magazine I've changed it up a little since I'm not a bean flour girl.

Gluten Free Tortillas
Gluten-Free Flour Tortillas
MAKES 6-8 TORTILLAS.

1 cup white rice flour
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca flour
1/3 cup fava bean flour  ( I used sorghum )
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 TBs vegetable or other shortening
3/4 to 1 cup warm water

1. Combine all of the dry ingredients, then cut in or work in the shortening using a pastry blender or two knives or your hand.
2. Add the warm water, starting with 3/4 cup and mix well.
3. Continue to add water until a soft, cohesive dough is formed.
4. Heat a comal, tapa or griddle to medium heat. Then, form a ball of dough into a flattened disk, cupping the outside edges a bit to form a round.
5. Using a bollilo or rolling pin, roll into a round disk about 1/8 inch thick and about 8 inches in diameter or to your preference.
6. Bake one at a time on a hot griddle until the surface bubbles. Turn only once, the first side should have brown flecks.
7. Bake until the second side has slightly browned - should brown in a very short time.
8. Keep warm in a tortilla keeper or wrapped in a cloth until served.
Note: Will freeze in a sealed plastic bag for up to three months.

One of the posters who has made tortillas forever uses a tea towel to push down on the bubbles that form. 


Finally. Tortillas that taste just like flour tortillas. I made one into a quesadilla right away and it was fabulous. I froze them between parchment after this.

Later, we made fajitas and the first two I heated in foil in the oven after a very quick defrost. First one was great, by the time I was ready for the second one, it had kind of hardened again. I tried to heat it back up but it didn't work.

I had to try again. I took one out of the freezer and put it in the microwave, with a little dish of water and then heated it for about 30 seconds.Worked wonderfully this time. It was pliable during filling, eating and then even a few minutes later when I checked the end of it.

Pasta!!!!!

I've had pasta 3 times since I've been gluten free. I love pasta. Love to go for Penne with Tomato Sauce. I'm so plain... but why mess with a good thing.

I haven't been to a restaurant to try their rice pastas yet though.


I've tried Tinkyada and found that it had no flavour. The texture was fine but it just seemed strange, like something was missing.

Then I tried Schar penne and I've had that twice now. It's a fantastic substitute for me although it didn't heat up the next day very well but that could be my technique so I'll have to try again.

Ahhhh Scones.....

I was driving through the States, just outside San Francisco when we stopped in at Whole Foods to buy some dinner items. I found the Whole Food's brand of Cranberry Orange scones. This was before I really started baking my own gluten free items. Very dry. Not a ton of flavour. Certainly not great at room temperature and well, we didn't have access to a microwave.

I torment myself. I read the King Arthur Flour blog. Sometimes just for the photos. The photos can be mouthwatering. They recently had a blog post on Gluten Free Brazilian Cheese Bread which I really want to try since I had some at the Farmer's Market on Granville Island in Vancouver.
But prior to that, some time ago, bookmarked and saved was a recipe for Scone Nibbles or a copycat version of Starbucks scones. http://www.kingarthurflour.com/blog/2009/06/10/a-tasty-nibble-an-ideal-nosh-sugar-glazed-mini-scones/

Now, I made some focaccia last week with a gluten free bread flour mix and didn't label it. So of course, what did I accidently use when I made these scones? Yeah, that's right. Oh well, they were still amazing. I really can't complain.

I didn't have enough chocolate chips or vanilla extract so I used my white chocolate chips with some butterscotch extract and then some amaretto flavouring for the glaze.

That's right. White chocolate butterscotch scones with amaretto glaze. So much yum!

Maple Grove Gluten Free Pancakes

Mardi Gras. Fat Tuesday. Pancake Tuesday.

Bring it to my mouth!

I've tried another pancake mix before and they just did not turn out. I was happy to find Maple Grove Gluten Free Pancake Mix at the store and it was in the regular food section as well. Not in the Natural Foods area. Sweet!

Looking good.

You can't really see it but mine are more square-ish.

I can't even begin to tell you how good these were.

They do have soy flour in them so I don't know that I would buy them again but for $2.79, if you can eat soy, they are worth it.

Picazzo's Pizza Review

One day I saw a link to Picazzo's Gluten Free Menu and knew that one day I would go there.
And one day last fall, I did.
Driving through Arizona, led me to Flagstaff to stay for the night.

I asked for the gluten free menu and a beer! My first Bard's Tale beer. It was just like drinking a microbrewery beer.

I ordered the garlic bread and the server asked if I wanted some marinara sauce to dip it in. Oh, heck yeah! My first garlic bread in months. It's a little heavier than you might be used to but it was still great.




 I also ordered pizza. Of course. Now I could have ordered any kind of specialty pizza but I just wanted a good old fashioned Pepperoni Pizza.

Nice and thin crust. Covered in parm.
I just wish they were closer. Franchise anyone?










Y'all need to get some!

Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Review

I was driving through the southern states last year and wasn't able to have a lot of the regional foods. South Carolina and its hushpuppies and honey butter were particularly tempting but I could only watch as everyone around me ate them.

I found Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Mix and thought I could make some hushpuppies out of that. Changed my mind and just decided to first try it as cornbread. Just add eggs, oil or butter and milk and mix it up and pour in the pan. It really doesn't get much easier. I added some Cajun spice which was nice. I think it's a little more on the sweeter side of the cornbread scale though.  

Also made some Honey Butter for the cornbread. 1/2 cup of butter with 2.5 tbsp of honey mixed in. 

Y'all need to get some. 

Vintage Lemonade

You've never had lemonade like this before.

Vintage Lemonade

Ingredients

* 5 lemons
* 1 1/4 cups white sugar
* 1 1/4 quarts water

Directions

1. Peel the rinds from the 5 lemons and cut them into 1/2 inch slices. Set the lemons aside. I use my thick vegetable peeler.

2. Place the rinds in a bowl or pitcher and sprinkle the sugar over them. Let this stand for about one hour, so that the sugar begins to soak up the oils from the lemons.

3. Bring water to a boil and then pour the hot water over the sugared lemon rinds. Allow this mixture to cool for 20 minutes and then remove the rinds.

4. Squeeze the lemons into another bowl. Pour the juice through a strainer into the sugar mixture. Stir well, pour into pitcher and pop it in the fridge! Serve with ice cubes.

 

Vintage Lemonade from allrecipes.com

Gluten Free Nanaimo Bars

Some holiday traditions should really be done all year round. The Nanaimo bar is always around the house at the holidays. Normally made with graham cracker crumbs, I had to make a change this year and there's no difference whatsoever. Other than no tummy ache!!


From Wiki: "The Nanaimo bar is a dessert of Canadian origin popular across North America. A type of chocolate no-bake square, it is named after the West-Coast city of Nanaimo, British Columbia. It consists of a wafer crumb-based layer, topped by a layer of light vanilla or custard flavoured butter icing, which is covered in chocolate made from melted chocolate squares.[1] Many varieties are possible by using different types of crumb, flavours of icing (e.g. mint, peanut butter), and types of chocolate. Two popular variations on the traditional Nanaimo bar involve mint flavoured icing or mocha flavoured icing."


I used these:


They worked fantastic but are slightly difficult to find.
Since my Sugar Cookies turned out so well last time, I think I might bake a few a little bit more and then crush them. I'm sure I will find a place for the rest of the cookies that are made. The first batch didn't last long at all!

A Gluten Free Holiday

Ahhh, holiday baking.

Well, some things worked. Some things didn't. Some just need some more work.

On the " Wow, I can't believe I can eat this again " list:
Nanaimo bars - mint
Sugar cookies
Peanut butter balls
Nutchos
Truffles
Fried Rice
Wontons
Chicken Balls
Cinnamon buns

On the "needs more work" list:
Egg Rolls - I need a better deep fryer and they needed to be a little thinner and cook a little longer. Still delicious though.


Plus the usual stuff for different holiday dinners:
Grilled steak and lobster tails
Glazed Ham
Roast Beef and Gravy


Sadly, I have no real pictures of it all. Other than these:

mmm, Perogies

I've only had perogies once in my life before these. Safeway Potato and Bacon. Boiled and then fried in bacon and onions. Bacon fried in onions. Onions fried in bacon. I think that's why I enjoyed it so much.

So why would I even want them now that I can't have them? Because I can't have them.
I looked around the Internet. Found an American supplier but it was really difficult to find out where they were actually sold. Okay.... Seems there is a Canadian vendor at a farm market northeast of Toronto. I don't feel like driving.

Found a couple recipes on different blogs and after my favourite bakery, GF Patisserie in Cochrane, Alberta, made some, I decided to try it.

Made the mashed potatoes for it with bacon and onion and honestly made 4 times too much but I was more than happy to eat it. It was incredible.

I used the dough recipe from The Celiac Husband but substituted my own flour mix. My mix already has the xanthan in it so I didn't use quite that much. Here it is:

Dough:

1 3/4 cups GF Patisserie Flour Mix
Some more for dusting
3 teaspoons Xanthan
2 large eggs
1 tbs. sour cream
1/2 cup water; more as needed
Butter
Salt & pepper

In a large bowl, combine the flour, eggs (Beat them first), sour cream, and 1/2 cup of water. If dough is sticky, add more flour.
While you fill the perogies, put 5 qt. water on to boil.
Drop the perogies in batches into the boiling water, stirring occasionally. When they float to the top, cook for another minute.
Fish them out with a spider and put them in a bowl. Sauté in butter, simply add some salt and pepper.

Here's the flour mix I used:
1 part brown rice flour
1 part white rice flour
2/3 part potato starch
1/3 part tapioca starch
Add 3/4 tsp xanthan gum for each cup of flour you create.


Bacon & Potato Filling:

3 medium starchy potatoes
2 tbs. unsalted butter; more as needed
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely minced 2tbs. freshly grated cheese
BACON!


Ready? Wanna see?




Sour Cream anyone?

Now, to be honest, I didn't cook them right away. Laid them all out flat on a parchment lined cookie sheet and slid them in the freezer overnight. Bagged them up in individual serving.

Now, they are all ready to go whenever I want some. Kind of like going shopping at the grocery store in the freezer aisle. How great is that?


So, the leftover scraps? Rolled them out super thin to make a Chinese wonton. Deep fried them. Just as practice for when I want to make a Chinese meal. Yum.

Rolled Sugar Cookies

When I went to a Farmer's Market early this year, I saw a booth with gluten free baked goods. They had some sugar cookies and I think I paid about $5 or $6 for about 8 of them. One bite and that was enough.

If this was what I was in store for, I was already ready to quit.

Christmas time for me, always includes Sugar Cookies. Nice colorful frosted sugar cookies.

For the last few years, I've used one from Allrecipes.com. This one.

With a few changes, I was ready to go!

I scaled it down to 30 cookies but it still made closer to 40.


Ingredients

* 3/4 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1/2 cup icing sugar
* 2 eggs
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2-1/2 cups gluten free flour mix*
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt


*Bubble Mix - 1 part brown rice flour, 1 part white rice flour, 2/3 part potato starch, 1/3 part tapioca starch and 3/4 -1 tsp xanthan gum per cup

Directions


1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. The recipe says 400F but my first batch got a little dark. Roll out dough on gluten free floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Here they are after they've cooled.




Look at the texture! It looks real!


Sugar Cookie Icing is the one I use. I tripled it for this recipe which was the perfect amount.
* 3 cups confectioners' sugar
* 6 teaspoons milk ( I had to add a little more to get it thinner)
* 6 teaspoons light corn syrup
* 1/4 teaspoon almond extract or to flavor to how you like
* assorted food coloring

Directions

1. In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.
2. Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.



And then try not to eat all of them.

Sundried Tomato and Basil Cheese Dip

Oh the colors... perfect for the holidays. The creamy white cheese, the fresh green basil and the dark red sundried tomatoes all combine to create a festive party appetizer.

I'm always asked for the recipe and it really couldn't be simpler.

I make it two ways. There's the classic way and there's the messy way. Go for whichever one you prefer.
I don't even have any exact measurements for it in fact.


Havarti cheese, fresh basil, sundried tomatoes ( not the ones that are oil-packed ), garlic, salt and pepper. Sound easy enough?


Let's get started.

Boil a couple cups of water and let the tomatoes rehydrate for about 10 minutes while you work on the basil and garlic.

Rinse and dry your basil and pull off all the leaves. Roll them up and then chiffonade and chop the basil into small pieces.

Take your garlic cloves and peel them and then mince them all up. I'd use 3 cloves for this size piece of cheese. I only used 2 here and found it could use a little more.



Now that your tomatoes have soaked up some of the water and become grown-up tomatoes again, drain and chop them up. My knives are never sharp enough so I cut them into pieces with scissors sometimes.

Time to make the cheesy dip!!

Toss your tomatoes, garlic and basil together and season with salt and pepper to taste.


Here's where the 2 ways to make this come in.

You can lay the cheese in a nice bowl and spread the tomatoes and basil over top. We're going to microwave it until it's nice and melty so then you can dig in and get a nice cheesy smear.


Or

You can coarsely cut the cheese into small cubes and mix it into the tomatoes and basil. This way, when you melt the cheese, it's all mixed up for you.


For a party, the first way is more presentable but I like to make this and then freeze some and the second way makes this a little easier.

Stick it in the microwave for about 1 minute or until it's all nice and melty.

To finish it off, if you don't have a nice gluten-free baguette all sliced and ready to go, I like Rice Works Sea Salt Crisps.



Grab a crisp and smear some cheesy dip all over it!

Check this out for more party ideas!!



Enjoy!!