March 5, 2008
Last week I made quiche. I used the Gluten Free Pantry quick mix and tried to follow their recipe on the back of the box. The recipe has major typos in it and I had to modify, but the quiche was fantastic. My husband even liked it, gf and all.
<>It was delicious. All from leftovers in the fridge. My kind of meal.
February 26, 2008
As the primary consumer in our household and the one who has ALWAYS bought all the food (excepting public school lunches and my husband’s lunch trips to the hospital cafeteria), I’m looking for advice/tips/HELP from those who have been GF longer than I.
What do you do to control the food budget? Trying to buy gf foods that I know I can eat safely is expensive – the packaged stuff. I wasn’t good with meal planning before this, and now it’s killing our budget. A lot of my attempts at gf food haven’t been all that stellar, and my husband and older son are picky eaters. When I make something gf and it’s not great, they end up eating something else. Then I either eat too much because I feel guilty wasting it all (NOT what I need), or I throw it out because it goes bad (NOT what my food budget needs). Produce, dairy, and meat are outrageous in the Northeast, as I’m sure it is everywhere. Tomatoes were $5.99/pound this weekend, and milk was $3.29/0.5 gallon.
My husband would be happy if I took over as Family CFO, but if I can’t get a handle on the food bills and still keep everyone’s palates satisfied, we might end up living out of a shoebox.
How does everyone else do it? Does anyone have a sample family menu plan that they would be willing to share? Not just dinners but lunch, etc, and how itt fits together on a budget? Thanks in advance for any advice 
Jenn
<>
February 16, 2008
My brother and sister in law brought the best butternut squash soup for my son’s birthday party today.<> She got the recipe from weight watchers cookbook and we modified it to be gluten free.
1 (2-2.5 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and coarsely chopped
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 slice gluten-free bacon, diced
3 cups gluten-free chicken broth
freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 teaspoons minced fresh sage, or 1.25 teaspoons dried
Place the squash in a steamer basket; set in a large saucepan, over 1 inch of boiling water. Cover and steam until tender, about 15 minutes.
In a large non-stick saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat, heat the oil. Saute the onion and bacon until the onion is light golden, about 5 minutes. Add the squash and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the squash is very soft, about 10-15 minutes.
Transfer the squash mixture to a food processor; puree. Return to the saucepan and add the pepper; heat to serving temperature. Serve, sprinkled with sage.
<><> The recipe didn’t call for it but we like it with fresh grated parmesan or other hard cheese on top.
<><>Enjoy. We will.
February 7, 2008
We made sushi at home tonight. I bought nori wrappers, and the ingredients to make the rice. I cut up mango, avocado, cucumber, and put out some shredded carrot, cream cheese, and some scrambled egg. The baby didn’t like it but my 8 year old did. That’s a good, easy gf meal that we can eat as a family, and use leftover odds and ends of vegetables at the same time! And the sushi wraps and rice are shelf stable, so I can keep them on hand!
February 3, 2008
Yet another web find. Gluten Free Steve (glutenfreesteve.wordpress.com) notes that he called Smuckers on 01.23.08 and found out that ALL of their jams, jellies and preserves are gluten free! I’m with Steve…GO SMUCKERS! Feed the kids, feed me.
January 13, 2008
Had tests this week including CT with dye and endoscopy. Haven’t been really hungry. We made a crock pot of chicken vegetable soup: a little cubed chicken, diced potatoes, carrots, celery, corn, and onion; topped off with gluten free chicken broth. This was another winner…thus, a new category: crock pot meals.
If I keep organizing like this I will have my own web-cook-book in no time!
January 8, 2008
After several edible (and a few not as lucky) attempts, this weekend I found a set of directions for preparing polenta from scratch that was really good. Bob’s Red Mill brand polenta in the 24 ounce bag had directions for stovetop cooking.
It takes 30 minutes stovetop and another 10 or 15 minutes to set but comes out with a good consistency. I put salt, pepper, and a little leftover grated fresh cheese in it. You could season it with just about anything!
I just discovered that Bob’s Red Mill Website has recipe lists for all of their grains. Some of the choices for polenta were cornbread, creamy polenta, italian polenta, grilled tomato polenta, and polenta stuffed peppers. Will have to revisit this one.
http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipe/ingredient.php?pid=132
Kids didn’t like this one. Oh well. They’ll deal. Maybe with tomato sauce next time.
January 1, 2008
New Year’s Day: I made GF pancakes this morning and everyone liked them (even a visiting 7 year old)! Pamela’s GF baking and pancake mix.
I made pizza for a treat out of Gluten Free Pantry’s bread dough. That turned out well too…definitely not instant (you have to let the dough rise), but good. Too bad I only bought one box of that and it was on vacation. I haven’t seen that product in a local store yet. I found the pizza dough today in the local Giant! (1/4). The store nutritionist said they just started carrying it!!!! Hooray for family treats that we can all eat.
December 30, 2007
Made chili with Bob’s Red Mill 13 bean soup mix (I need to check on that one, the ingredients are just beans but the package has that line about being processed in a facility that processes wheat, nuts….). Good. Everybody ate it. Even the toddler.
This GF cornbread recipe worked well:
http://glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com/2006/11/slice-of-warm-cornbread-on-cold-night.html
December 30, 2007
