Author: thesweetcaffeine

 

If you’re anything like me, morning is not your friend.  Whatever I can do to make it run more smoothly I try my best to do.  Now I used to skip breakfast all together and just chug a cup of coffee but that started to not work out so well, i.e., tired, cranky, dizzy spells, etc.  And the only thing I feel like eating in the morning tends to be food that includes some sort of nut butter so when I have the chance, I make these.  The kids even love them but I usually substitute a few mini dark chocolate chips for them as the cocoa nibs are not sweet at all.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups of Bob’s Red Mill gluten free rolled oats
• 1 1/3 cup coconut flakes, toasted (unsweetened, again I use Bob’s)
• 1 cup ground flax seed (you guessed it, Bob’s)
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 1/2 cup almond butter
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1/4 slightly heaping teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 chopped dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup cocoa nibs

Directions:

Throw all of that stuff into a large mixing bowl and initially stir with a large wooden spoon or spatula.  Fold as best as you can then use hands to fully incorporate.  If mixture is too sticky, add a little bit more of the oats until it holds.  If it is too dry, add a little honey.  The trick to making the balls is to first squeeze them tightly then roll.  I hide store them in the fridge and have two or three for breakfast.

 

If you have a few plum tomatoes, some cherry tomatoes, a head of cauliflower, a few cloves of garlic, chicken stock, a touch of half and half and parmesan, gluten free bread and a few spices you can make the most ridiculously delicious homemade soup with croutons.  I am so mad I didn’t double this recipe but now I know for the next time.  And yeah, I didn’t get a picture of the glorious cauliflower before blending due to the fact that my daughter was having her normal late-afternoon melt downs.  We’ve all been there.

Ingredients:

• 6 plum tomates, cut into about 4 slices each
• 10 cherry tomatoes, halved (you can certainly use just plum tomatoes,  I just had to use up some things I had lying around. Just add another 2 plum tomatoes to replace the cherry tomatoes)
• 1 small head cauliflower or half of a large
• 6 cloves garlic, whole
• 2 cups organic chicken stock
• 1/2 cup organic half and half (you can always replace with almond milk if you are dairy free)
• 1/3 cup parmesan (can be omitted if you are dairy free, I am assuming nutritional yeast would be a good substitute here)
• 4 slices gluten free bread
• 2 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• Spices:  kosher salt, cracked black pepper, dried basil and fresh rosemary, all to taste.
• honey to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Place tomatoes and garlic on a brimmed baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt, pepper and dried basil.  Sprinkle the garlic cloves around the pan.  Toss chopped cauliflower around with some olive oil, salt and pepper and add to another brimmed cookies sheet.  Throw them both in the oven to roast.  After about 10-15 minutes, take the tomatoes out of the oven and remove garlic and set that aside.  Replace tomatoes in the oven.  Roast both veggies until nicely browned and fragrant.  Feel free to occasionally toss them around.   This will take anywhere from a half hour to 50 minutes.

While the veggies roast, you can make your croutons.  Cut up 4 slices of your gluten free bread of choice, I used Trader Joe’s multigrain gluten free bread, and set aside.  Heat about one tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter over medium flame.  Add a pinch of kosher salt, black pepper and a bit of chopped, fresh rosemary.  Toss until browned and crispy and try not to eat these all before topping your soup with them.

Remove from oven and let cool for a few.  Once cooled a bit, place the cauliflower into your Vitamix or blender of choice and blend with one cup chicken stock until completely creamy.  Add in roasted tomatoes and half and half and blend on high until completely incorporated.  You can either heat in the Vitamix or move to a soup pan (which is what I do).  Heat over medium-low flame and add about one more cup of chicken stock, the parmesan cheese, a drizzle of honey then taste.  Season accordingly and it is ready to serve.  Enjoy!!!

 

 

Summer time always brings around one of my most favorite fruits, the peach.  I love them just as is, in pie, in cobblers, in crisps, as salsa, basically any which way you can use them!  Today I experimented and came up with this gluten-free allspice cake topped with peaches and blueberries.  It is absolutely delicious and perfect along that afternoon cup of coffee or tea.  And although you have probably never eaten cake with a knife, I recommend it this time so that you get that sweet peach in each and every bite.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour (I suggest Bobs Red Mill One to One)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup butter, softened (this is half a stick)
• 1 cup organic cane sugar or granulated
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/3 cup almond milk
• 2 to 3 peaches sliced into wedges, not too thick
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• pinch of organic cane sugar

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Using a springform pan, trace the bottom on a piece of parchment, cut parchment and set aside.  Spray the springform pan with coconut oil, place parchment along the bottom of the pan and spray just a tad more and set aside.

Slice peaches and set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda, allspice and salt.  Whisk and set aside.

In a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until lightened.  Add eggs, almond extract, vanilla extract and lemon juice and mix on high-speed until the batter is nice and light in color.  Beginning with the flour mixture and ending with same, alternate between the flour and almond milk until completely blended.

 

Pour the batter into the springform pan.  Top with peaches, blueberries and a sprinkling of sugar.  Put into the oven for approximately 50-60 minutes.  The top with brown lightly and should spring back when done.

 

Allow to cool for about five minutes on a rack before removing the outer ring.  Allow to cool completely before moving to your serving dish.  Top with a little confectioners sugar and serve.  Enjoy!!!

 

I can’t lie.  My small family of four ate an entire pork loin this evening and the blame lays entirely on the Instant Pot.  I have made pulled pork more times than I can count but have always used my slow cooker.  Don’t get me wrong, the slow cooker did do a nice job but this dinner was just amazing and the best part is it took the meat only 45 minutes of cooking with 10 minutes of steam release.  This meat was a pork loin, not a pork butt which I usually use and has way more fat, and it came out tender and with so much flavor.  I did sear it first which you can do in the Instant Pot but I still prefer my stainless pan over flame for that job.  And the glaze?  Don’t get me started.  It’s savory,  a bit sweet and the perfect amount of hot.   Please don’t mind the photos as I find it difficult to make any pulled meat look pretty as well as I had both of my kids running a muck and can only do so many things at once.  I’m sure you’ve all been there.

Rub for Pork:

• 2 teaspoons rubbed sage
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar (I love organic cane sugar, it’s a little thicker and has a slight molasses flavor)
• 1/2 heaping teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 heaping teaspoon garlic powder

Combine the rub ingredients and rub your pork loin and let rest for a few minutes while you work on your potatoes (see below).  Preheat a stainless pan over medium high heat and sear all sides of your pork loin.  Pour 1 cup beer, I used Glutenberg pale ale, into your Instant Pot.   Place your seared pork loin on top of the beer, close lid, hit the manual button and select 45 minutes.  The Instant Pot will do the difficult work.  Once it has finished cooking allowing the steam to release on its own for 10 minutes before releasing the remainder.  Remove the pork from the pot and pull apart with forks.  Toss with glaze or in my case, I tossed only mine and my husband’s in the glaze and used BBQ sauce for the kiddos.

Roasted Baby Potatoes: 

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Toss baby potatoes with a little light olive oil, four thickly sliced cloves of garlic, a nice pinch of kosher salt, a little fresh or dried rosemary and thyme to taste and some freshly cracked black pepper.  Place on a baking sheet or baking pan and toss in the oven for about a half hour.   Check for doneness with a fork, they should be tender but not mush.

Chipotle Balsamic Glaze:

Grate half a yellow onion and cook in a small sauce pot until caramelized.  In a Vitamix, or blender of choice, pour in 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 chipotle pepper in adobo (add more if you love heat) 2 tablespoons honey.  Blend on high until smooth.  Add the mixture to the pot with the onion and reduce over a low flame for about 10 minutes.  Return the mixture to the blender and blend until smooth.  Set aside for use when meat is all done.

 

That’s it!  Great dinner and pretty quick and easy.  Enjoy!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I often purchase large containers of fresh fruit when on sale and Trader Joe’s happen to have big, beautiful, organic blueberries for such a great price that I couldn’t pass them up.  My kids, especially my daughter, loves to snack on the fruit but we often can’t finish the entire amount before they start to turn.  This is when I use them for baking so they don’t go to waste.  Today’s experiment was gluten-free blueberry muffins with streusel and a little lemon drizzle.

 

Ingredients: 

• 2 1/2 cups Bob’s One to One Gluten Free Flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1/4 cup light olive oil or avocado oil
• 1 cup almond milk
• Juice from 1 lemon and zest from same
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

Streusel Topping:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• dash of cinnamon
• dash of salt
• 3 tablespoons gluten-free flour

Lemon Glaze:

• 1/3 cup confectioners sugar
• zest of one lemon
• juice from half lemon
• a few drops of almond extract (optional, a little goes a long way but it adds delicious flavor)
• Stir in a few drops almond milk until it reaches desired texture

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Line 15 muffins cups with parchment liners and set aside.

Make the streusel first.  Melt the butter then add the sugar, cinnamon and salt.  Then add the flour, using a fork to mix until you have crumbles and set this aside.

Melt the butter and mix with olive oil and set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the gluten-free flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside.

In a liquid measure add the cup of almond milk, juice of the lemon and vanilla.  (this will make an odd texture and that is OK)

In another large bowl whisk together the melted butter, oil, lemon zest and sugar.  Then add the eggs and whisk until lighter in color.  To this bowl, beginning with the flour mixture, add 1/3 of the flour and mix.  Then alternate with the almond milk mixture until you have a little flour left.  Toss the blueberries into the last of the flour mixture before adding to the batter so they don’t sink to the bottom of your muffins.  Fold in the blueberries until incorporated.

Add the batter to your muffin tin, dividing it equally.  Top with streusel and place into the preheated oven.  Bake at 5 minutes at 425, then lower the temp to 375 for approximately 12 to 15 more minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Remove from tins after only a few minutes as gluten-free flour tends to get gummy if you let it cool in the hot muffin tin for too long.  Allow to cool before drizzling with lemon glaze, if desired.

Enjoy!!!