Quiche

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.

 

$$$$ What’s a mom to do???

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

<>

 

More recipe links to try…

I’m surfing. Kill the Gluten has some treat recipes that look easy and yummy (and like they would fix a major chocolate emergency). Look at February 14 post for peppermint patty chocolate cookies (need to check gf on the candy); and the closely posted chocolate pie.

<> We just finished with one birthday and we have 4 more in the next 30 days, so I’m kind of OD on “treats” right now. I need a few more healthy/savory things to try, and I’m still not in very good control of balanced meal planning GF style. But these two are on my radar for a future “easy, kid friendly desserts”.

<>Also. Kate from Gobsmacked has a fantastic looking ice cream sandwich posted today…….yummmmmm !

 

“Would you like some cake?”

Five simple words.  Host some parties and it becomes almost robotic.  It’s the polite thing to ask.  Of course I would like some cake.  Or girl scout cookies at the office.  Or a piece of pizza.  Or a slice of ice cream cake.  Except now I know that the answer to that question is “no thank you”.  But sometimes, when I see everybody else enjoying the festivities and food, I just stand there, with my mouth hanging open, silent.  Then when the silence is one millisecond too long, the person who asked the question realizes that they wish they hadn’t asked and this uncomfortable exchange involving my frustration and the other person’s awkward feelings plays out.  I’m still trying to figure out what I can and can’t eat, and reeling from the mistakes I make that leave me feeling sick more often than not.  But so much of celebration and gathering in our culture involves food and communal eating.  When you can’t eat what everyone else does, you’re kind of the loner.

I need to learn how to answer the cake question and stay part of the party.  I could say I’m on a diet.  And nobody would believe me.  I could say I just ate, until I have to spend more than 2 hours in one place (thus refuting the “I’m on a diet” explanation).  I think I might have to go web surfing when I have time and see what other people have had to say about this one.

For anyone who wonders, I really don’t care if you eat the cake in front of me.  I don’t  even care if you ask me if I want some.  I just want to be a part of the party.

 

Winter Squash Soup

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.

 

A GREAT Resource

I found this website today.  It’s sponsored by CSA.  It lists GF “safe” and “forbidden” foods by manufacturer.

<>This alone is enough to make me want to go get one of those phones that lets you use internet anywhere.  Imagine standing in the grocery store with kids and actually being able to figure out what you can eat! <>

 

Firehouse Restaurant

We don’t get to eat out often.  Twice in a week is a record in quite a while.  Tonight was MUCH better.  The FireHouse Restaurant in Harrisburg PA was very accommodating.  I called in advance (ok 4 times) but was unable to talk to anyone because they are so busy.  But when I got there, I told the hostess who alerted my server.  She helped me with the menu.

When the food came to the table, I thought…uh oh….it was pan seared tuna and rice, but the vegetables looked like they were drenched in soy sauce.

I asked the server if I could have a new plate with the steamed vegetables one of our dinner mates had.   It took a while, and I was really hungry and started chewing on the gf bread I brought from home just in case.   When she came back,  it was a totally new plate, without the rice.  She said that she called and asked her husband who was Thai and a chef (but not working in the restaurant that evening), and he told her to give me a new plate, have them cook me new fish, and not serve the rice because he knew that their particular rice blend had gluten in the seasoning!  They re-served me a whole new dinner!

I still feel kind of off from yesterday’s sushi mess, and I’m hoping that more of my experiences are like this one today.

 

Why are restaurants so hard?

Dear sushi god…..

(a letter from a lost and wayward sushi sheep soul)

Please make there be sushi without gluten.  So many of my favorite foods are gone.  Nothing tastes the same as it used to be and it’s SO hard to be safe when I eat.

I was saddddd today because I got sushi from a Japanese place in the city and introduced my young secretary friend.  She liked it and it was so much fun.  And then I ate almost all of mine and realized that the filling in each of the rolls had a long stick of imitation crab meat.  Now my belly hurts.  ::: Tears:::  WHY is there gluten in everything good?

Dear sushi god, is there sushi that doesn’t have gluten?  If there is, what does a little girl order at the sushi restaurant to not get sick and still enjoy good food?

From a sad sushi lover.

P.s.  Why don’t they have wheat free soy sauce in restaurants?  It’s such a pain to carry sauce with you and so hard to be prepared all the time.

<> (ok I’m feeling sad and a tad frustrated today…it’s Friday and everything is hard)

 

Sushi

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!

 

Hershey’s Products

Living where we do, it’s obviously easy to find Hershey products when you’re having a chocolate fit.  I’ve been reading the labels and they’ve been surprisingly difficult to decipher.  I treated a patient who worked for a Hershey plant, and she didn’t know either.  So, I dabbled in the web tonight.

GF Steve posted in 10.07…

When we were at the store last week, I saw a new Reese’s product – Reese’s Whipps.  I finally got around to calling Reese’s (Hershey’s) today and was quite disappointed in their gluten free list.  The rep was very helpful, but said he can only confirm the following products are gluten free (and sadly, Reese’s peanut butter cups are not on the list).  Why the hell is it so hard to make food without gluten?

Hershey’s Chocolate Bar
Hershey’s Chocolate Bar with Almonds (which is good!)
Hershey’s Kisses (I presume the regular ones only)
Jolly Rancher hard candies and lollipops
Hershey’s Cocoa
Hershey’s baking chocolate – semi-sweet and unsweetened
Hershey’s chocolate chips – semi-sweet
Hershey’s chocolate syrup

Hershey’s gets an F for not having more items without gluten.

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I’m with you Steve.