Another Gluten Free/Dairy Free COR (Clean Out Refrigerator) Casserole

I didn't realize how much time had passed since my children were toddlers until I started staying with my daughter to help with her two girls.  Those two little stinkers can find more to get into in a day than this old woman can keep up with :)   Especially since they seem to sleep in shifts which leaves this grandma "pooped" most of the time ;)

They are definitely keeping me on my toes and trying to get meals on the table for ten people (I cook for my parents as well as my own family) on a daily basis is beginning to become a little overwhelming.  I miss the days of having my children home to help, since the only one around during the day and early evening is my youngest son Ferrell and he has his hands full keeping up with all of the outside work that needs to be done.  He also tries to be available for my parents whenever they need something and to be honest I don't know what I would do without that special young man :) 

Meals are becoming slightly "hodge podge" and probably not very well balanced if I actually took the time to think about it, but I think that for this season of my life that is perfectly okay.  Now that Amanda is starting to feel some better I am hoping to become a little more organized and maybe even replenish my freezer with already prepared meals.  

I made another COR Casserole (Clean Out Refrigerator) over the weekend that was a big hit, so I thought I would share the recipe with you.

I haven't decided on a name for it yet, but it is gluten free and can also be dairy free by using soy cheese.

Cooked beans (I used what was left over from a previous meal.)
Cooked gluten free pasta
Salsa (homemade works fine)
Browned ground beef
Grated Cheese  (I made a separate casserole for the girls with soy cheese that was also very good)

I combined the beans, pasta, and ground beef together in a casserole dish and added enough salsa to make it "juicy".  I then added grated cheese to the top and cooked at 350 degrees until it was heated through.    It was very good, but my son Caleb recommended that I add a layer of crushed tortilla chips either as the bottom layer or on the top with the cheese.  He felt like that would be the "finishing touch" to make it a family favorite.   Served with a salad it made a deliciously, filling meal and was soooo easy.  Hope you enjoy!

Gluten Free Lasagna

This is a "made up on the spot" recipe using things I had on hand at the time.  It turned out really well and tasted delicious. 

The night I made this I actually made two variations.  One of them was dairy free for the girls.  Both were very good. 

I will say that you need to be sure that no one in your family is allergic to tomatoes or eggplant before serving this dish as my youngest grandaughter had an anaphylactic reaction after eating this.  The E.R. personnel feel certain it was tomato, but her pediatrician thinks it could possibly have been the eggplant.  Both tomatoes and eggplant are in the nightshade family. 

Gluten Free Eggplant Lasagna

Two eggplant thinly sliced lengthwise
Sphagetti sauce (homemade works fine)
Ground beef (browned)
Cottage cheese
Mozzarella cheese (grated)
Parmesan cheese (grated)

Lightly spray your lasagna pan to prevent sticking.  Then place thinly sliced eggplant in the bottom.  Mix sphagetti sauce and ground beef together and cover the eggplant.  Next put a layer of the cheeses and repeat until all ingredients are used.  Make sure to end with cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees until the eggplant is cooked through and tender. 

Dairy Free variation

Follow above recipe, but replace the cheeses with a dairy free alternative (soy, etc.). 


Enjoy!

Gluten Free/Dairy Free Potato Soup Recipe

We eat a lot of soup around here and Potato Soup is one of my favorites.  I thought I would share our recipe.  This recipe feeds my family and most of the measurements are approximate since I rarely measure when making soup.

Potato Soup

4 cups chicken stock (I use my homemade from the freezer)
6-10 medium potatoes cut into small pieces
1 large chopped onion
2 cloves garlic chopped
salt, pepper, parsley, and celery seed to taste

Put all into a stockpot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and let simmer until potatoes and onions are tender.   Thicken with cornstarch and water.  (You can use milk if you do not have dairy free family members). 

Enjoy!

Recipes

In the midst of all the craziness around here lately, I've still managed to do a little canning.  Thought I would share a few of our favorite recipes.  A lot of my recipes don't actually call for processing in a canner.  I am comfortable with that, but feel free to process them if you feel the need.


SQUASH RELISH

10 cups squash (shredded)  ( use yellow squash)
1 big bell pepper (chopped or shredded)
4 large onions (chopped)
 4 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons celery seed
2 1/2 tablespoons turmeric
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Mix first three ingredients well and add 3 tablespoons salt and let set over night or at least 10 hours.  Put into colander and drain.  Combine last five ingredients in pot and bring to a boil.  Add squash and simmer for 30 minutes.  Put into jars and process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner. 

PEELED PICKLES

8 cups peeled and sliced cucumbers
2 bell peppers (sliced)
1 large onion (sliced)
1 1/4 cup vinegar
4 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons celery seed

Put cucumbers, peppers, and onions into a jar.  Mix other ingredients and pour into jar and refrigerate.  Keeps for several weeks.

SWEET PICKLES


cucumbers
vinegar
sugar
alum
turmeric
salt

Soak whole cucumbers in salt water (1/2 cup to 1/2 gal water) for 48 hours.  Remove and cut off ends.  Slice and put three tablespoons alum to each gallon of cucumbers.  Add enough water to cover.  Let stand 24 hours and drain.  Place back into churn or glass containers and cover with vinegar.   Add 2 tablespoons powdered tumeric to each gallon of pickles.  Let stand 24 hours.  Drain vinegar and put pickles back into containers.  Put a layer of pickles, then a layer of sugar until jar is filled.  Be sure top layer is sugar.  Let stand 24 hours.  Takes about five pounds of sugar per gallon of pickles.  The sugar will turn into syrup and the pickles will keep for months on the shelf.  I usually make mine in gallon jars and put some into quart jars to keep in the refrigerator. 


Enjoy!!!

Rainy Day Trials and A Fudge Recipe

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that I was thankful  this week did not have many things to take us away from home, so I should be able to get a lot accomplished.  Well, so far, this week has definitely not gone as planned. 

Yesterday, Amanda and I took my mother to see a dear friend of hers that is a cancer patient in the hospital in Tupelo, which is about an hour and twenty minutes from our home.   We left at 11:30 a.m. with the full intention of being back home by around 3:30 p.m. which would still give plenty of time to do some laundry and make supper.

In theory that sounded great, but what we didn't count on was the pouring down rain (for which we are very thankful) and the windshield wipers quitting on us as we were traveling home in the middle of the pouring down rain. 

We were blessed to make it to a friends house where we could wait until the rain slackened to a steady, semi-gentle rainfall instead of a downpour.   As we left my friends house (she lives about an hour from us), we creeped down the highway with our flashers on while talking to my son that is a mechanic in another town.  

He happened to know a mechanic that worked in a nearby dealership so we stopped there and they were able to give us a temporary fix that got us home.  Hopefully, my son will be able to get the needed parts today, so that we can get the van fixed up.  I am so thankful for good friends, mechanics, and God's watchfulness over His children.

We were able to get home between 5:00 and 5:30 p.m. and my children all graciously volunteered to eat last nights leftovers.  The menu plan (thankfully) got thrown out the window again, but I am not complaining.  It's little adventures like this that make life interesting :)

Oh, I forgot to mention that when we stopped at the dealership in West Point, I ran into a friend of mine that I have not seen in a couple of years.  We've recently stayed in touch through facebook, but I had no idea where she worked.  It was really wonderful to see her again.

And in case anyone is curious about where my wonderful sixteen year old son was while all of this was going on.  Well, he was babysitting two toddlers.  Yeah, he had his hands full :)

Last night I got a call from the lady that I sometimes milk for and she had some excess milk she wondered if I would be interested in having and I think you already know the answer to that question ;). 

Today I will be deciding what to do with the extra four gallons of milk in my refrigerator.  I'm thinking I will freeze some of it for soap, make ice cream with some, and I'm thinking goat's milk fudge is in my near future :)

Oh yeah, life is good.

Here's a simple Fudge recipe to try!

Chocolate Goat's Milk Fudge (from Goat's Produce Too!  The Udder Real Thing, Volume II)

3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups goats milk
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup baking cocoa

Optional:

1/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup walnuts

Place sugar and cocoa powder in a large pan.  Mix well.  Add milk.  Bring to a boil.  Boil gently until mixture reaches the soft ball stage.  Remove from heat.  Stir in vanilla and butter.  Add peanut butter and nuts if desired.  Beat by hand until thick and pour into buttered 8" x 8" pan.  Cool and cut into squares.

Clean out the Refrigerator Mexican Casserole

Usually when I plan our menu for the week I make sure there is enough for us to have leftovers for lunch and quite often I make enough to freeze for another meal.  Since last weeks menu plan sort of got "tossed" and this week I didn't make a menu plan we have had a "hodge podge" assortment of meals.  Last night is an example.

As supper time approached I was trying to decide what to make for my family.  I found myself doing what I frequently fuss at my children for doing and that was standing in front of the refrigerator with the door open while I blankly stare at the contents.   I finally decided that I had enough leftovers to make a casserole.   I did and it was delicious.  So here's the recipe.

Since I was using leftovers I didn't measure, but am listing an approximate amount of each item.

Clean out the Refrigerator Mexican Casserole

3 cups cooked rice
1 cup corn (with liquid)
1 pound ground deer meat (browned) (you could use beef or chicken)
Salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, (really any spices that you like)
3 cups give or take gluten free picante sauce

I put all of this into a casserole dish and mixed it with enough picante sauce to make it as "liquidy" as I wanted.    Bake at 350 degrees until everything is heated through.

If I didn't have dairy free family members I would have topped this with cheese before baking, but instead those of us that eat cheese added grated cheddar to our serving.   We also had leftover baked beans and chips with homemade salsa.  

My refrigerator is now clean and we had a tasty (if somewhat strange), frugal meal as a result. 

Beans

I know that there are a lot of people that have an allergy to beans, but "so far" that is not an issue for our family.  We love beans and eat a lot of them around here, so I thought I would share some of our favorite ways to eat them.

To start with I usually keep several quart bags of already cooked  and seasoned beans in the freezer to use in various recipes.   To cook the beans for the freezer I rinse them and then soak them overnight in water and kefir (or lemon juice, vinegar, whey, etc.) using 1 tablespoon of kefir per cup of water used for soaking.  After soaking I rinse the beans again and put in a stockpot with enough water to cover the beans.  I add chopped onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and any other seasoning that sounds good at the time.  I cook them until the beans are tender.  After cooling, bagging and freezing the beans they are ready to use in a variety of ways.

Some of the recipes I use beans in are:

Chicken, Rice, and Bean Casserole
Beans & Rice
Bean Dip
Burritos
Soup
Beans and Cornbread
Crockpot Baked Beans
Taco Salad
Stir Fry
Eggs, Rice & Beans

Beans are very economical and a really good choice for those on a tight budget.   Below are a couple of recipes that we like using beans.  Hope you enjoy!

BEAN DIP

I simply take a bag of precooked beans from the freezer and thaw.   I then take my stick blender and blend the beans until smooth.   At this point you can add different things to the beans before eating (cheese, salsa, sour cream, etc.).   The beans can be eaten with chips or spread on soft tortillas for a bean burrito.  

CHICKEN, RICE, and BEAN CASSEROLE

Amounts will vary depending on the size of your family.  This is what I used.

4 cups cooked rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped chicken
2 cups cooked beans (drained)
milk (as needed)
Mozzarella cheese
salt & pepper to taste

I use leftover rice from the freezer, thaw and mix with chicken broth (you can use more or less), chicken, and beans.  Stir together and if too thick add milk (or more broth) to give a "juicy" texture to finished casserole.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Place in casserole dish and cover with mozzarella cheese (or whatever cheese you have on hand).   Bake at 350 degrees until casserole is hot and cheese is melted. 


*I usually mix several types of beans (pinto, red, kidney, and northern) together when cooking for the freezer.

Delicious Homemade Sloppy Jo's

I have never cared much for Sloppy Jo's and that goes double for Sloppy Jo's made with canned sauce.  Last night changed that!  I made Sloppy Jo's that, not only my family loved, but I loved them too.   Thought I would share my new FAVORITE Sloppy Jo recipe.

Homemade Sloppy Jo's

ground beef (approximately 2-3 pounds)
1 large diced onion
3-4 diced garlic cloves
1 small can tomato paste
1/4 cup honey (can substitute sugar if desired)
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup brown sugar (can be omitted)
2 cups salsa (I used my homemade salsa that I canned last summer)
3 tablespoons mustard (I used Dijon)
1/2 tablespoon molasses

Cook ground beef with garlic and onion until meat is done.  Drain excess grease.  Combine remaining ingredients and add to meat in skillet.  Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes.  DELICIOUS!!!!

Pancake Toppings

Many, many years ago when my children were very young and I was just beginning to learn more about doing things from scratch and ways to save money, I began making my own pancake syrups and toppings. 

When I was growing up pancakes were a rare treat and when we did have them they were always eaten totally saturated with a store bought pancake syrup.   After I was married with children of my own, my cousins wife, (Anita @ http://www.busyhandsbusyminds.blogspot.com/) shared with me her recipe for making HER OWN pancake syrup.  For me, at the time, that was totally unheard of and I HAD to give it a try.  Since then there has been no turning back. 

I have come to realize that there are many, many ways to enjoy pancakes and (for me anyway) they DO NOT involve saturating them with store bought syrup.  I thought I would share some of things that I enjoy as a topping for MY pancakes.

Chopped fresh fruit

Nutella with a little whipped cream

Homemade pancake syrup (occasionally)

Homemade Blueberry or Strawberry fruit syrup

Peanut Butter

I'm sure that there are many, many other wonderful pancake toppings, but these are the ones we most often use around here.

Here's the recipes for my homemade syrups.


Pancake Syrup

I'm not sure what happened to the original recipe I got from Anita, but I'm pretty sure this is close to it.  Anyway this is how I make my syrup today.

sugar (amount varies depending on how much you want to make)

water (Use half as much water as you do sugar.  Ex:  3 cups sugar, 1 1/2 cups water)

molasses (For three cups sugar I use 3 tablespoons molasses

vanilla (For three cups sugar I use 2 teaspoons vanilla)

maple flavoring (I use half as much maple as I do vanilla.  For three cups sugar 1 teaspoon maple)

Mix together in saucepan on stove and bring to a rolling boil to dissolve sugar.  If you like a runny syrup you can turn it off at that point or you can continue to simmer for a little longer to thicken.  Don't cook it too long though or you may end up with hard candy :)

You can make as much or as little syrup as you like.  I usually make a good bit and store it in empty pancake syrup bottles (from my mother) or empty ketchup bottles in the refrigerator.  You can use any flavoring you like, this is just my preference.

HOMEMADE FRUIT SYRUP

3 cups fresh or frozen fruit (thawed)
1/2 to one cup sweetener (sugar, honey, etc.)
Fruit fresh (optional)

I place all of this in my Vitamix blender and run it on high for a couple of minutes.  I've never tried it, but I'm sure you could use a regular blender just as well.  My favorite fruits for syrup are blueberries and strawberries.  I'm seriously considering making some with a few of the plums that I still have in the freezer :)

In addition to saving money by making our own syrups, I also don't have to worry about whether are not they are gluten free.  For our family that's a big plus.

Delicious Green Bean Casserole

I was looking through my recipes yesterday looking for "something different" to prepare for my family and ran across my recipe for Green Bean Casserole.  This is the same basic recipe that you find on the can of French Fried Onions you buy in the store with some slight changes to make it gluten free.  In my opinion these changes make it MUCH better.

Since I have gluten sensitive family members I make my own Cream of Mushroom Soup and also my own French Fried Onions which is what I think makes this dish taste so much better than the way I used to make it.

I started with the French Fried Onions.  These can be made ahead of time and stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator, unless you're like me and can't quit eating them :)

2 or 3 big sweet onions
enough milk for soaking the onions
1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons salt
pepper
flour (I used cornstarch, but any gluten free flour will do)
oil for frying

Mix flour, salt, and pepper.  Slice onions and separate into rings.  Dredge in the flour/seasonings mix and fry until golden brown.  Drain.  (Try not to eat to many, because you will need them for the casserole topping :)

Next I made the Cream of Mushroom soup.  This can also be made ahead and frozen in one cup portions which is approximately the equivalent of a can of soup.

1 pound mushrooms (I used canned)
6 tablespoons butter
2 cups broth (I used turkey, but you could use chicken or vegetable)
2 cups milk (whole, low-fat, rice, soy)
6 tablespoons flour (I used cornstarch)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
salt to taste
pepper to taste

Saute mushrooms in olive oil and set aside.  Next melt butter in a large pan and once the butter starts to bubble add your flour and spices.  After the sauce has cooked for a few minutes add milk and broth and stir until the sauce thickens.  When this has thickened add mushrooms.

Green Bean Casserole

Green beans (If using fresh you need about 2 pounds.  I used about 3 cans.)
1 tbsp. gluten free soy sauce

Drain the beans and place in a large casserole dish.  (If using fresh green beans, cook 4-5 minutes until they are bright green).  Mix in the soup and soy sauce and top with the french fried onions.  Bake for about 35 minutes at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly.

Simple Smoothie Recipe

We drink a lot of breakfast smoothies and since I've recently been asked to share my smoothie recipe I thought I would share it here.  This is a simple, basic recipe.  There are many, many ways to make a good smoothie and it's really hard to mess them up. 

Simple Smoothie

1/2 cup milk (whole, low-fat, rice, almond, soy,
                      any kind will do)

1 cup yogurt (I use plain or vanilla, but you can use
                     whatever you like)

fruit of choice (ex:  2 ripe bananas, 1/4 cup strawberries,etc.
                          I usually use fruit from my freezer)

1 teaspoon honey (or your sweetener of choice)

1/4 cup ice cubes (I omit the ice cubes when using
                            frozen fruit)

Place all ingredients into a blender and mix until smooth.  I have an immersion blender that I use a lot of the time, especially if I'm only making one smoothie.  There you have it!  Smoothies made simple!

Pineapple and Ham Casserole

I know I've been posting a lot of recipes lately, but for some reason I have really been in a "cooking mood" as my Mama would say.  Since I always love to try new recipes I thought maybe some of you would too. 

This is a recipe I got from my sister-in-law years ago and it's one of my husbands favorites.  I don't make it very often because it's a little sweet for the rest of the family,  but my husband loves it, so I do make it on occasion.

Pineapple and Ham Casserole

4 large cans pineapple tidbits, drained (save the juice)
2 cups shredded sharp cheese
2 cups sugar
12 tablespoons flour
2 cans chopped ham
Ritz cracker crumbs
2 sticks butter

Spray baking dish with non-stick spray and mix first two ingredients together and pour into baking dish.  In separate bowl, blend with spoon 12 tablespoons pineapple juice and 12 tablespoons flour and 2 cups sugar.  Pour over tidbits and cheese.  Sprinkle 2 cans chopped ham over pineapple mix.  Cover with Ritz cracker crumbs.  Melt 2 sticks butter and pour over cracker crumbs.  Bake at 325 degrees for 25 or 30 minutes.

You can substitute any ham that you may have on hand.  It will take about 2 cups.  We use gluten free pretzels crushed in place of ritz crackers to make this recipe gluten free.  You can also use less butter than the recipe calls for or a butter substitute if you like.

Fried Dandelions

Since Spring is almost here, I thought I would share a "different" kind of recipe with you.  Last year was my first time to try these and I was pleasantly surprised by how good they were.   Dandelions are very good for you.  If you research them you will find that they are high in Vitamin C and also good for other things like the liver.  Anyway, we seem to have a natural abundance of them around here and so rather than kill them, I decided to put them to good use.  The first year I made Dandelion syrup which was very good.  It tasted a lot like honey, but it didn't last long before it became granulated, so instead of syrup I decided to make Fried Dandelion Blossoms last year.

RECIPE

Step one:  Go into your yard (or your neighbors if they don't mind :) and gather as many Dandelion blossoms as you think your family will eat.  You are looking for the yellow flowers, not the white puff balls :)

Step two:  Rinse them in cool water.  Handle them gently and don't let them stay in the water very long, because they will start to close on you and you need them to be open.

Step three:  Lay them on paper towels and gently pat dry and begin heating your oil for frying.

Step Four:  Lightly batter them just like you would okra, squash, or green tomatoes.  Since my son is gluten free I use cornstarch and salt & pepper.  If putting them in a milk & egg mix before coating remember to handle gently.

Step Five:  Fry them until they are golden brown, remove from heat, and drain on a paper towel. 

Step Six:  Eat and enjoy!

My children were very skeptical about this and thought I was crazy for feeding them "grass", but I persuaded each one of them to give it a try.  Everyone of my children (even the most skeptical) ate several of them and actually thought they were good.  The taste really isn't that much different from fried okra.   If you use older, bigger blossoms there may be a slight hint of bitterness, but I really didn't notice it much and probably wouldn't have noticed it at all if I were not really paying attention to every detail so that I could argue (I mean persuade ;) my children into trying them.  They did not seem to notice any bitterness at all.

There are other ways that you can enjoy Dandelions this spring.  In addition to frying the blossoms you can also eat them raw in a salad.  The greens (when picked young and tender) are also good in a salad or cooked as you would turnip greens.  (The older leaves will be bitter.)   Look them up on the internet and you will find all kinds of interesting recipes and nutritional information.  Hope you get the opportunity to give Dandelions a try at your house this spring.  I definitely plan to.

Homemade Gluten Free English Muffins

Anyone that has ever tried a gluten free biscuit knows that they just "ain't the same" as a "real" biscuit.   Even though I have always made my biscuits from scratch when Bisquick came out with a gluten free biscuit mix I decided to give it a try.  Well, if you're not thinking of them as an old fashioned biscuit they really aren't bad, but who can afford to buy the stuff?  Like most gluten free, pre-packaged items it's expensive.  I decided that I needed an alternative for my sweet son that absolutely loves bread.  Giving up "good" homemade bread has been the hardest part of being gluten free for him. 

Fortunately, over the last couple of years I have played around in the kitchen enough that we have come up with some pretty good breads that he is pleased with.  Yesterday was another example.  I've always liked to have breakfast foods cooked and in the freezer simply because I'm not a morning person and cooking breakfast is just "not my thing".   In addition to fruit and cereal, the rest of my family has a choice of muffins, pancakes, and breakfast sandwiches.  Caleb, due to being gluten free, has been stuck pretty much with fruit, muffins and pancakes because we had not found a good biscuit or English muffin substitute.   Yesterday I decided it was time to experiment again and I came up with a very good English muffin and it seems to work quite well as a breakfast sandwich, even after being frozen.   I found the recipe on http://www.iamglutenfree.blogspot.com/ and adapted it a little bit.  I am very pleased with the result.  Instead of using the flour blend she has listed I used one that I keep  on hand.  It uses basically the same ingredients, but mine doesn't have potato starch and sometimes it has brown rice and sometimes it doesn't depending on what I have on hand when I mix it up.  It worked great though and the muffins were delicious.   My cooking time was a little bit longer as well.  *I don't have muffin tin rings so I used foil to make little pans to bake them in. 

Gluten Free English Muffins

1/4 cup sorghum flour
1/4 brown rice flour
1/4 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/4 cup potato starch
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tsp. salt
1 scant tsp. quick rise yeast
1 tsp. cooking oil
3/4 cup + 1 tbsp. warm water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray muffin tin rings with nonstick spray and dust with rice flour.

Mix dry ingredients in bowl of mixer.  Add oil and water and mix until just blended, scraping down the sides to make sure you incorporate all of the dough.  Then beat on high for another two minutes.  Spoon dough into tin rings.  Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Be prepared:  they will not be browned on the top, but they will be browned on the bottom. 

IMPORTANT:  Let cool before splitting and eating (delicious toasted or untoasted).


*When Caleb first had to go gluten free I learned to make hamburger buns for him.  Since I didn't have any pans the right size my Dad made me a wooden mold the same diameter and depth of a hamburger bun.  I take foil and fold it over the round mold and up the sides to make individual pans.  Spray them with cooking spray and they work great!

Gluten Free Dessert Idea

This was a spur of the moment dessert that I threw together Saturday afternoon and surprisingly it turned out wonderful.   I'll share with you what I did although I don't have an exact recipe, because I was making it up as I went along.

The first thing I did was take inventory of my kitchen cabinets.  I discovered a bag of marshmallows, 3/4 bag of chocolate chips, and a box of Rice Chex cereal.

I melted half of the marshmallows with butter, added enough Rice Chex cereal to "smush together" to press into the bottom of a  baking dish to form a "crust".  I then melted all of the chocolate chips with the rest of the marshmallows and about a tablespoon of butter and spread it on top of the "crust".  I topped that with dry Rice Chex cereal and sort of "smushed" them into the gooey chocolate/marshmallow mix already in the pan.   After they had cooled a little bit I sliced them into bars.  It was quick and easy and very, very good.

Ham Pot Pie

I cooked a large ham yesterday, so for supper we had Ham Pot Pie and Salad.  It was soooo good that I thought I would share the recipe.  Since I didn't have an actual recipe to go by, I'm just putting what I did.  You can use any vegetables that you have on hand.  Quantities will vary depending on your families size.

Ham Pot Pie

2 tablespoons butter (or butter substitute)
1 onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
chopped ham
cubed potatoes  (I used three large ones)
sliced carrots (I used about a cup of baby carrots sliced thin)
1/2 cup ham broth
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch  (If you're allergic to corn, tapioca starch should work fine)
Milk (rice or soy milk will also work)
Boiled eggs (I used three.  Eggs can be omitted if you have food sensitivities)
Biscuit dough (I used gluten free)

Melt butter in skillet and add chopped onions and garlic.  Cook until tender and translucent.  Add potatoes and carrots, 1/2 cup ham broth and 1/2 cup water.  Cook until potatoes and carrots are tender, adding more water as needed to keep vegetables from sticking.  When vegetables are tender add chopped ham (mine was actually shredded) and enough water to cover meat and vegetables and let simmer while you mix cornstarch with enough milk to make a paste.  Add to vegetables and ham.  Let simmer a few minutes while it thickens.  Depending on how "juicy" you want your pie you may need to add more water.  Add seasonings if desired.  My ham and broth was salty enough that all I added was a little pepper.   Pour into deep casserole pan and add boiled eggs.    Mix biscuit dough and drop by spoonfuls on top of filling.  Bake at 350 degrees until biscuits are browned.

Peanut Butter Muffins

Muffins are one of the things that I try to keep baked and in the freezer.  They heat up quick and are "almost" as good as fresh from the oven.  These peanut butter muffins are usally a hit with everyone that tries them.  I honestly cannot remember where I got the original recipe for these, but I think it was from an old cookbook my mother had.  Anyway, as always, I make changes as needed to fit whatever ingredients I have on hand and also to adapt to gluten free.

Here's the original recipe.

Peanut Butter Muffins

1 3/4 cups sifted flour (all purpose)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk

Sift together flour, soda, and salt.  Mix sugar with peanut butter until well blended.  Beat egg and add to peanut butter mixture.  Beat until smooth.  Add flour alternately with buttermilk.  Beat after each addition until batter is smooth.  Spoon batter into a well-greased muffin pan.  Bake at 350 degrees until done.  This makes 1 loaf or 12 medium muffins.

Cheeseburger Soup

A while back I purchased a new cookbook on Amazon titled "Make it Fast, Cook It Slow."  All of the recipes in it are either gluten free or easily adaptable to gluten free.  I decided to try the recipe for Cheeseburger soup last night and I have to say it was delicious.  I admit that I only used her recipe for a guideline though.  I didn't have some of the things on hand so this is how MY recipe ended up.

1 pound ground deer meat (browned)
4 cups beef broth
1 onion (chopped)
2 garlic cloves (chopped)
4 potatoes ( peeled and cut into small pieces)
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
1 cup milk

The original recipe is designed to be cooked in the crockpot, but since I waited so late to start mine I just did it on the stove.   My family loved it so much I think it will become a regular around here. 

Oh, I also made a pot of rice and the soup was really good over the rice.  I know that isn't exactly a balanced meal, but oh well :)

If you decide you're interested in having the "Make it Fast, Cook it Slow" cookbook by Stephanie O'Dea I would appreciate it if you would help me out by shopping through my Amazon link in the sidebar.    It's a really great cookbook with lots of delicious recipes that are not too complicated for the average person, which is exactly what I need :)

Homemade Turkey Rice Soup

I had a craving for this soup a couple of days ago and just had to make it for lunch.  It is soooo good!


Homemade Turkey Rice Soup

2 cups turkey stock  (freezer)
2 cups water
1 cup chopped turkey (freezer)
1 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 cup uncooked rice
3 carrots chopped
salt, pepper, parsley, onion salt, celery salt to taste


All measurements are approximate.  Feel free to experiment.

Put all ingredients into pot together and cook until carrots and rice are tender.  I usually cook it on low for a while to let all of the flavors mingle really well.  This soup is one of our family favorites and it also freezes well.

Gluten Free Haystacks

My children love homemade candy and haystacks are one of their favorites.  During the Christmas holidays I adapted my recipe so that it would be gluten free for Caleb.  It was really good and has ended up being a favorite of everyone.  During Christmas I made both gluten free and non-gluten free haystacks, but the last time I made them I only made the gluten free ones and had no complaints.  I haven't been making many sweets lately, but I think it's time to fix that :)  Here's my recipe for gluten free haystacks.

Haystacks

1 - 12 oz. bag gluten free butterscotch morsels
1 cup gluten free miniature marshmallows
1/2 cup gluten free peanut butter
1 cup peanuts or pecans (optional)
Chex cereal (I've used both Corn and Rice Chex.  Both are gluten free.)

Melt butterscotch morsels and peanut butter slowly and then add marshmallows.  Cook slowly until marshmallows are partially melted and add Chex cereal.  (I add enough to be plenty crunchy, but not so much that it won't stick together).  Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper and allow to set until firm.  Enjoy!