Kinda sorta but yet, not really

Hello again. Sorry for the lack of posts over the last month. It's not like I didn't have great recipes to post or stories to tell. With all that has been going on at work, I have been physically and mentally exhausted every day.

My company's annual banquet was February 2nd - it went off without a hitch again this year and I had my second successful GF meal at the Pheasant Run Resort. The Man and I had a great time but I could barely move on Sunday (too much dancing). Then I had a...visitor...from hell, which caused me to miss a day of work and be in monstrous pain for 3 days.

Oh, and the sewer backed up into the basement.




We have another full-company meeting this coming Friday. I am hoping that once I get through that, life will go back to normal, as will my posting schedule.

So, now my excuse-making is over.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day. The Man sent me a dozen multi-colored roses at work (for the first time, I might add!) and I made a delicious shrimp scampi with pasta for our dinner that evening. But the dessert was stupendous and I can't believe it went together as well as it did. I didn't get home until 5:30, so the fact that we ate this at 7:30 says it all.

The title of this post? I was craving black forest cake. I didn't have any kircsh in the house so I did the best with what I had.

The Man and I split one since this is kinda rich. Sorry for the crappy picture. Tried to take it too late in the day and my arms were shaking after whipping the hell out of the ganache.



Cherry-Stuffed Chocolate Cake with Milk Chocolate Ganache
From The Vault and my head

For the cake:
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate
3 tbsp water
5 eggs, separated
1/2 cup sugar
A pinch of salt

For the cherry "stuffing:"
1 bag frozen sweet dark cherries
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup water

For the ganache:
12 ounces milk chocolate
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 stick unsalted butter

To make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a half-jelly pan and line it with parchment paper. Then butter the paper and set aside.

Chop the chocolate for the cake and combine it with the water in a double boiler over low heat. Stir occasionally until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Allow to cool.

In a mixer bowl, beat the egg whites with the salt until they hold soft peaks. Add 1/4 cup sugar and continue to beat for 3 minutes.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar until the mixture is very light.

Combine the chocolate with the yolks, then gently fold in the egg whites. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 15 minutes or until the cake is firm to the touch.

To make the cherry stuffing:

Combine the cherries and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the cherries are soft; lightly mash the fruit with the back of a spoon. Add the sugar and cornstarch and stir until dissolved; turn the heat to low and continue to stir until the mixture becomes thick. Remove from the heat.

To make the ganache:

Bring the cream and butter to a boil in a saucepan; remove from the heat and then add the chocolate (chop first). Whisk until smooth and then refrigerate until thickened. Note that this recipe will make a lot more ganache than you need; I recommend a nice brownie to use the rest up (hopefully coming sooner than later).

To put the whole thing together:

How you do this is up to you. You can slice the cake into 3 pieces or you can do what I did, which was to use a biscuit cutter to cut 6 circles and save the leftovers for snacking. If you do the circles, you will have 2 small cakes.

Place the first layer on a plate (either 1/3 of the cake if you sliced or 2 separate circles). Spread some cherry stuffing on top of the first layer, then spread some ganache (I layered pretty thick with both, but that's up to you). Place the next cake layer on top. Again spread cherry filling and ganache. Place the third layer on top and spread with cherry filling and ganache. Chill for an hour before serving. Serve with whipped cream.

More breakfast

I can't believe I didn't post this!

I love granola. My teeth don't.

I used to make my own because the granola I liked to buy had clusters. My teeth are falling apart. Clusters weren't a good thing.

As I mentioned in my last post, I got my hands on some gluten-free oats. I had a few servings left in my last bag of Bakery on Main granola, so I decided to make some.

Happy, happy day.

I can't do the clusters - I am afraid I'll break another tooth. If you like clusters, add 6 tbsp of honey to the mix.

Nutty Fruity Granola

3 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
3 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp flaxseeds
1/2 cup hulled sunflower seeds
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cherries
1 cup dried apples, crushed into small pieces
1/4 cup butter
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

Combine the oats and seeds in a large bowl. In a saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar together, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the cinnamon and vanilla.

Pour the butter mixture over the oats and seeds; toss to coat. Spread on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.

Add the raisins, cherries and apples and stir to combine. Store in an airtight container.

I'm alive...really, I am!

I have been slacking here of late, for which I apologize. But I have really good excuses.

Excuse #1: With the wet and heavy snow we received a couple of weeks ago, The Gidge managed to get herself full of mats. I have been working on getting those out after work and on weekends. I have 2 more (right behind her ears, the poor thing) to get out and then we're finally done.

Excuse #2: My company's annual banquet is on February 2nd and I am in charge of planning it, as usual. Because of it, I am behind at work, so I am putting in time both in the morning and after work every day, just to keep my head above water.

Excuse #3: I have been falling back on my tried and true recipes for meals because quite frankly, I am brain-dead and exhausted because of Excuse #2.

Excuse #4: I am trying to learn Microsoft's Expression Web because I have another work project that involves this program.

Excuse #5: See Excuse #3. Replace #2 with #4.

Excuse #6: Migraines, ears plugged (ergo dizziness on and off) for weeks now.

I am such a whiner.

I haven't forgotten about any of you and think daily of posting something - anything - just so the world is aware that I haven't died.

I managed to pull 2 recipes out of the Vault this weekend and convert them - both breakfast-related.

When my parents were here visiting, I found the Bob's Red Mill gluten-free oats. I was afraid
to open the package because I knew that once I did, I would be oatmealing the hell out of everything. I really want to make my favorite meatloaf recipe (which calls for oats) but I wanted sweet breakfasty goodness before I did that.

So I bet there will be meatloaf this week, since I got the goodness out of the way.

This first recipe doesn't call for oatmeal. But oh, my. I ate half the cake by 2 PM today and it didn't come out of the oven until 9:30!

Sorry for the crappy picture.

The second recipe is going to have to wait for another day because.......zzzzzzzzzzzz.....

Cranberry Almond Coffee Cake
Adapted from The Vault

Filling:

2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
1/2 cup water
2/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 tbsp cornstarch

Cake:

3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
1/4 cup potato starch
1 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Topping:

1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown rice flour
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup sliced almonds (or other nut of your choice)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8" round cake pan and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the cranberries and water. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes or until the berries are softened. Add the 2/3 cup sugar and cornstarch. stir well to dissolve. Continue to heat over low heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture has thickened to a pie filling consistency.

In a mixing bowl, sift together 3/4 cup brown rice flour, the tapioca starch, potato starch, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Cut in the 1/2 cup butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.

In another bowl, combine the milk, egg, and vanilla. Add to the flour mixture and mix until blended.

Spread half of the cake batter in the prepared cake pan. Spread the cranberry filling over the dough (I sprinkled a thin layer of almonds here, too) and then spread the remaining batter over the cranberries.

In yet another bowl (and I don't have a dishwasher yet!), combine the remaining sugar and brown rice flour. Add the remaining 2 tbsp of butter and cut in until the mixture is crumb-y. Stir in the almonds and then sprinkle the topping over the top of the batter.

Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 20 minutes or so because that filling is HOT ON THE TONGUE. And the tender inner flesh of the mouth.

You get the idea.

Tradition

Every time I think about the word "tradition," I hear the cast of Fiddler on the Roof singing in the background.

My first New Year's Day in Illinois was spent with The Man and two loaves of pizza bread, with which we used to make, well, pizza bread. He'd watch football and I would either read or crochet.


We did the same for the next three years. We kind of got away from it for some unknown reason but I decided at 5:00 this morning that it was time to bring this tradition back. The Man is playing in a euchre tournament this afternoon, but I am following through on the pizza bread, reading and crocheting (no football, thank you very much) until he gets home, when he will have his pizza bread.

This is one of the recipes from The Vault that I have no idea where it came from. All I can tell you is that it was damn good back when and it's nearly as good in this gluten-free form.



Pizza Bread
Adapted from The Vault

1 1/2 cups warm milk
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup sorghum flour
3/4 cup tapioca starch
1/2 cup potato starch
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 1/2 tsps xanthan gum
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Combine the yesat, milk and sugar is the bottom of a mixer bowl. Allow to sit for 5 minutes so the yeast activates.

Add the flours, xanthan gum, and spices. Mix with a paddle attachment until well blended. Add the olive oil. Cover and place in a warm area to rise for 1 hour.

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Pour the dough into a greased loaf pan and bake for 60 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Slice into 1/2" thick slices and top with your favorite pizza toppings, bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees for serving.

As promised

Any other time that my parents have come to visit (it's a 4 hour drive so it doesn't happen more often than once a year), we'd eaten at home a few times, but mostly went out to eat. Well, that's certainly over and done with.

Since they arrived Thursday night, I have cooked a lot. What's weird is that I honestly don't recall making these types of meals for them EVER. I made the pear coffeecake, which turned out well, my favorite pork roast-bread and potato dumplings-sauerkraut meal (also mom and dad's favorite - we have to force ourselves to stop eating or we will stuff face until we're sick), shrimp and parmesan pasta with GF no-knead bread....

We've eaten well. I've probably gained 5 pounds because I haven't eaten this well in quite a while. And I have beautiful leftovers in the fridge. I am really looking forward to frying up the last of the dumplings in butter - oh so good.

As I had mentioned yesterday, I made the dessert I had presented at Christmas Eve, with one change - I made it in a round cake pan and sliced it into wedges instead of cutting out circles with a biscuit cutter. The Man and I were so full from dinner that only mom and dad ate any, but I will get my turn today.

So. Here's the recipe for that dessert.

Chocolate-Panna Cotta Cake with Cherries
Adapted from The New Best Recipe and Rebecca Reilly's Gluten-Free Baking

For the cake (Rebecca's recipe, a few technique tweaks by me):

2 tbsp potato starch
6 tbsp sifted unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp cornstarch
3 eggs, room temperature
6 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and clarified

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly butter an 8" round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Mix together (I sifted them together) the potato starch, cocoa powder and cornstarch.

Ribbon together the eggs, sugar and salt (she has an explanation of this in her book, but it's pretty long so I am not going to retype it - sorry). Add the vanilla and reribbon. Add the cocoa mixture in thirds, folding in after each addition. Fold in the clarified butter.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan.

For the Panna Cotta:

1/2 cup whole milk
1 2/3 tsp gelatin
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
6 tbsp sugar
A 2" section of vanilla bean
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup frozen cherries, chopped

Pour the milk into a medium saucepan. Evenly sprinkle the gelatin over the milk and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

While the gelatin is softening, split and scrape the vanilla bean and place the seeds and pod into the heavy cream.

Prepare an ice bath by placing 4 cups water and 2 cups of ice in a large bowl.

After the 10 minutes are up, heat the milk and gelatin over low heat until the mixture reaches 135 degrees, whisking briskly. Remove from the heat and whisk in the sugar and salt until dissolved. Add the heavy cream to the saucepan.

Pour the panna cotta through a strainer into a bowl small enough to fit into the ice bath bowl without getting any water into the bowl. Add the cherries. Whisk briskly until the mixture has cooled to 45 degrees.

*********

Pour the panna cotta over the top of the prepared cake. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. Slice into wedges and grate dark chocolate over the top for serving.

Mysterious

How is it possible that I am thinking of things to post about every day while Just Not Dinner was not in existence, which drove me nuts, and then since the day it came back, I haven't posted squat!

Very mysterious.

It's not that I didn't have anything to say, or recipes to post. The hectic pace of getting ready for the holidays just got in the way.

But now we are really back.

I made a scrumptious gluten-free dessert for Christmas Eve dinner with The Man's family, but I neglected to take a picture. Even brought the camera with me.

Luckily, I have a parental invasion occuring as I type, and after telling my father about the dessert, he said that it sounded really good. So I have the first half cooling and will begin the second half shortly.

So that will be coming posthaste.

But I also have a delicious coffee cake to share. This is one of those Vault recipes that I dug out recently because I have an abundance of pears taking up space in the fridge. Gotta use them somehow, right?

Pear Coffeecake

Adapted from a recipe in The Vault

2 cups thinly sliced pears

3 tbsp packed brown sugar

1 tbsp + 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp cardamom

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp ginger

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1/4 cup tapioca starch

2 tbsp cornstarch

2 tbsp almond meal

1 tsp xanthan gum

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp kosher salt

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp butter, softened

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Grease an 8" baking pan (I used a rectangular pan because it was handy, and it affected the thickness because the batter was more spread out. Keep that in mind). Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a small saucepan combing the brown sugar, 1 tbsp lemon juice, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and pears. Cook over medium heat until syrupy (5 minutes or so), stirring frequently. Set aside to cool.

Sift together the brown rice flour, tapioca starch, cornstarch and xanthan gum. Add the almond meal and set aside.

Combine the milk and 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and granulated sugar. Add the egg and vanilla, beating well. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat well after each addition.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread out until it reaches the sides (dough is kind of sticky so be prepared). Spread the pear mixture over the top of the batter and then top with the almonds.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.

We're BAAAAAACK!

I gots all the Christmas presents I need.

Another day to go back to bed & pull the covers over my head

Today started out as any other. The Gidge got me up about 5 AM because of the whole dependent-on-me-for-potty-access thing. I took my allergy pill, brewed up a cup of chai, and sat down to catch up on what’s happening on the web.

I decided about 8 AM to make myself a kick-ass frittata for breakfast. Smoked salmon, spinach, fontina…can’t go wrong there! I whipped everything up, got it into the oven and sat down to read.

Things went downhill quickly from here.

At about 8:45, I pulled the stainless steel pan containing the frittata out of the oven and placed it on top of the stove while I got a knife, fork and plate.

I grabbed the handle of the pan. Without a hot pad or towel.

Yes, people, I did. Did any of you catch the last post before the original Just Not Dinner went “poof?” I talked about needing to be wrapped up in bubble wrap. Tri-ply bubble wrap.

Well, in this case, it would have melted to the handle and to my skin (and I am not sure which would have been worse).

I can’t close my hand right now – I have first degree (thank god that’s all) burns running across my fingers between the top and middle knuckles and again between the middle and bottom knuckles. I also have a nice red stripe across the bottom of my palm.

If this doesn’t prove that I am accident-prone, I don’t know what does.

But I had a damn good breakfast, anyway. I just whimpered in pain between bites.

Smoked Salmon Frittata with Spinach and Fontina

1 tbsp butter
½ cup onion, diced
6 eggs
½ cup milk
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp horseradish
1 cup fresh spinach, chopped
4 oz smoked salmon, chopped
½ cup grated fontina cheese
¼ tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In an ovenproof skillet, melt the butter over low heat. Add the onion and allow to sweat until the onion is soft but not browned. Remove from the heat and add the chopped spinach and salmon.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, mustard, horseradish, salt and pepper. Pour over the mixture in the skillet. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and then gently stir to combine all ingredients.

Gently place the skillet into the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is browned and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and slice into wedges for serving.

Beware the hot handle, people. Beware.

For the GF cookie tray: surprise package cookies

While I used to enjoy these cookies each Christmas season, they were more important to The Man and The Stepson. I skipped making them last year because of the whole unfamiliar-with-gluten-free-flours thing, but I decided that since I have had other cookie successes, I could slam-dunk this one. And I did. Gluten-eating taste-testers gave these two thumbs up.

Surprise Package Cookies
Adapted from The Vault

½ cup butter
½ cup sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
½ tsp vanilla
1 tsp GF baking powder
1/3 tsp kosher salt
2/3 cup white rice flour
1/3 cup tapioca starch
¼ cup cornstarch
2 tbsp sweet rice flour
1 ¼ tsp xanthan gum
1 pkg Andes Candies

In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars together. Add the egg and beat well. Add the vanilla.

In another bowl, sift together the flours, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture until completely incorporated. Refrigerate the dough for at least 3 hours.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. With rice-floured hands, shape a tablespoonful of dough around 22 candies, forming rectangular cookies. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the cookies just begin to turn golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

When the cookies have cooled, melt the remaining Andes Candies and drizzle over the cookies.

Point taken

So, after I published the last post, I ended the evening of December 13th with the most priceless kluty move of them all – I accidentally deleted my blog!

I stared at my laptop monitor in horrified fascination, mouth agape, thirty milliseconds after I pressed the “Delete My Blog” button.

I thought I was deleting the test page I had created last March when I was playing around with templates. I had no clue I had selected the wrong blog for deletion.

My heart in my throat, I finally found the “contact Blogger email thing” and started to pray really hard. I had no idea how much I loved Just Not Dinner until it was no more.

I have read around the Net that Blogger is amazingly slow in responding to requests such as mine. I had hoped that my plea was pathetic enough to warrant a quick response as my immediate family kind of uses Just Not Dinner as a way to keep up with me. I covered another base by posting to Blogger’s Help Group thingy.

It’s been a few days now and I haven’t even gotten an email from a Bot yet. So I have decided that for now, I must carry on with the show, even though I don’t have my archives, comments, etc.

When I get my original blog back (please, please, please be soon), I will transfer the upcoming posts to that and everything will be as it should be.

I hope.

Oh, the agony

Someone needs to encase my ass in bubble wrap before allowing me to even get out of bed.



But before I get to that, the damn Christmas tree is done. I made applesauce-cinnamon ornaments, screwed hooks into walnuts, and strung popcorn and cranberries.

Never again with the popcorn thing. Never again.

Besides, The Gidge has been pretty good about leaving the tree alone after I sprayed everywhere she could reach with Bitter Lime.



And now, without further ado...

How many people do you know that allow their cat to get its mouth on the fishing line you are using to make a popcorn and cranberry garland? And allow said cat to TAKE OFF WHEN THE DOG COMES TROTTING UP, while your fingers are wrapped up in said fishing line?

That left a mark. It's still healing after nearly a week.

Yesterday, while making the bed and simultaneously playing with the dog, I ran full-tilt-boogie into this. The post hits me (yes, this has happened more than once - you'd think I would learn already) right at the spot where the thigh meets the hip.






That left a mark, too. A nice purple, green and black one.



I went to the post office at lunch today to pick up some mail and get a shipping box. While pulling the mail out of my post office box, which is well above my head, the box bit my finger, which would not stop bleeding.



Get the idea?

Bubble wrap, people. I need some.

My innards have not been up to par, either. I have been existing on yogurt, bananas and cream of rice, trying to get back to normal after god-knows-what threw my digestive system off. It's possible that while cooking for the boss on Saturday that I didn't wash my hands well enough after touching her bread and glutened my klutzy butt. Or I have a touch of some stomach bug. Leaning toward the bread and klutzy butt, though.



Anyway.

Tonight I decided that I needed REAL FOOD. To hell with what my stomach might feel like afterward. I rooted through the freezer and came out with some salmon, then poked through the potato bin and the crisper drawers. And ended up with dinner.






Clementined Salmon with Roasted Root Vegetables & Broccoli



For the salmon:
2 large salmon filets
1/4 cup clementine juice (about 2 clementines)
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp GF soy sauce
Salt and pepper

For the roasted veggies:
1 large potato, cut into 3/4" pieces
1 large parsnip, cut into 3/4" pieces
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets
2 tbsp olive oil
Sea salt and pepper
Asiago cheese (optional)



Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.



In a medium bowl, toss the potato and parsnip pieces with the olive oil. Pour them into a baking dish. Place into the oven and roast for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes have lost their "raw sheen" and are just barely becoming fork tender.



Place the salmon filets into a baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine the clementine juice, honey and soy sauce. Pour the mixture over the salmon and set aside. Place into the oven after the vegetables have been in the oven about 15 minutes. Spoon some of the clementine mixture over the top of the salmon every 5 to 8 minutes.



Steam the broccoli until just barely fork-tender. You can do what I did - use the microwave. Those new steam bags can be a handsaver when you don't have a dishwasher, like me.



When the potatoes and parsnips have begun to brown, add the broccoli to the mix. Continue to bake until the broccoli just barely browns and the salmon is cooked through, about 10 minutes (more if your salmon filets are pretty thick).



When serving, sprinkle the vegetables with asiago cheese, sea salt and pepper to taste.





Oh. Did I mention that I also broke a nail the other day? Better get a triple roll of that bubble wrap.

The only time you will see me eat gravy

At some point during my childhood, I had a bad gravy experience. I remember doing my normal drowning of the mashed potato mound on my plate, taking a huge bite, and spitting the mouthful back out.

Was it overly salted? Generally nasty? I dunno. I was maybe 10 when this happened, so I have been essentially gravy-free for 26 years. Except for the gravy in beef stew.

I haven't had the inclination to make stew in several years. The furnace at my office has been uncooperative for a week, so we froze until yesterday, when my co-worker and I decided that we were being stupid and went home to work for the rest of the day. Today, I am feeling a bit under the weather, so I am snuggled up with The Gidge, tea and my laptop, plugging away at the work pile that only seems to get taller every day.

The thought struck me about 9 AM - something to nosh that isn't a lot of work but sticks to the ribs.

Have I mentioned that it's very, very cold outside?

On a side note, The Gidge was introduced to real, measurable snow on Tuesday night. The Man and I had a good belly laugh because she ran around like an idiot. Her little black face was white with snow because she kept shoving it into the cold stuff. We take her out with her little white coat and pink booties - particularly this morning, when it was only about 10 degrees. As long as she's got the boots and the coat happening, she romps through the snow like a pro. Take those off and she pussyfoots her way to the area we shoveled off for her use and then, with a long-suffering look at me, trudges her way back to the door.

Yes, we shoveled the grass. The snowfall we received Tuesday night comes up to her armpits....legpits....ah hell, her tummy.

Back to food. I had things lurking in the fridge from last week's organic delivery that needed to be used: parsnips, potatoes, carrots, onions. I had green beans from the garden that I had frozen during the summer. Ah, the makings of stew!

I also had a little bit of merlot in a bottle on the counter. I was all set. So I whipped up a batch of no-knead bread and set it to rise (no way was I waiting 18 hours - I set the bread proof cycle on my oven and popped it in there for 4 hours before baking).

Gotta have crusty bread to sop up the stew gravy.

Sorry for the crappy picture - forgot to take one until I was preparing to put the leftovers in the fridge.

Beef Stew - My Way

For the CrockPot

1 pound beef stew meat

3/4 cup diced onion

1 cup diced carrots

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp salt plus a pinch or so

1 cup diced parsnips

1 cup diced red potatoes

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup green beans, cut into 1" pieces

1/2 cup cornstarch

2 cups beef stock

1 cup red wine

1/2 tsp ground thyme

2 bay leaves

In a large skillet, melt the butter and olive oil together over medium heat. Add the stew meat, a pinch of salt, and onion; cook until meat is browned and onion is tender (about 10 minutes). Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cornstarch; toss to coat. Add the mixture to the CrockPot.

Pour the beef stock and wine over the meat mixture. Add the the remaining ingredients and then stir together. Cover and set the CrockPot to cook for 6 hours on high heat.

Don't forget to fish out the bay leaves before serving.

For the GF cookie tray: santa's whiskers

Yesterday, I came up with a solution for the Christmas tree/The Gidge problem. I swung by the local dollar store on the way home, loaded up with cheap cinnamon and applesauce, and went home to make ornaments.

It's actually pretty easy. You combine two 2.12 bottles of cinnamon with 1 cup of applesauce, mix into a dough, roll it out, and cut into shapes (poke holes in the tops using a straw in order to hang them later). Then you have to either let them dry for days, flipping several times a day, until they are dry all the way through, or you can do what I did, which was heat the oven to 250 degrees, throw them in there, and let them dry with some help. I tried the hang-out-and-dry method, but because of my allergies and Vester's asthma, I keep humidifiers running at all times throughout the house. So when you have 50% humidity going on, that's not exactly the best environment to dry out dough.

One of the ladies at the beauty parlor I go to (believe me, it's a beauty parlor, not a "salon") has a bow-making thing so she made me a huge bow to go on top of the tree.

The ornaments are dry now and I have to run back to the dollar store to get a ton more ribbon (I bought some that says "I believe in Santa" that's red, white and silver - the normal colors of my tree) so I can get the ornaments strung in preparation for hanging. Oh, and we need to put screws in the tree base so I can put down my tree skirt.

Did I mention that before? Mysteriously, when the tree was taken back downstairs last year, the screws that tighten the stand disappeared. So our tree is waving in the breeze right now. I caught Baby climbing the inside the other night because the whole thing was moving.

Anyway, once the tree is done, maybe I will feel like hauling out the rest of the indoor decorations.

The weather has been uncooperative this weekend as far as outdoor decorating goes. When I went to my GF support group meeting this morning, it was cold. When I left the meeting at about noon, it had been snowing a bit but was changing over to sleet. It took me 45 minutes to get home because I couldn't drive any faster than 30 mph the whole way or the SUV started to slide.

It's now 7:46 PM. I took The Gidge out to go potty a few minutes ago and it's raining. On top of snow and sleet. The deck and brick patio are sheets of ice. I have a very bad feeling about this - remember, I have advanced osteoporosis and am the biggest klutz in the world. I am tempted to see if The Man can find a sled downstairs or in the shed so I can PUSH myself across the deck.

After drying out the last of the ornaments this morning, I made my first attempt at de-glutening my Santa's Whiskers recipe. I will say that it took a lot longer to chill than the gluten version so I ended up chucking it in the freezer for an hour (after refrigerating for 6) to get the dough firm enough to slice without mushing the log.

Success once again! The only thing I would do different is add more vanilla extract, so I increased the amount in the recipe below.

Santa's Whiskers

From The Vault

The amounts may seem weird here - this is a third of the original recipe because I am the only one that eats these cookies, so I sure as heck don't make the whole batch.

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup shortening

1/2 cup sugar

1/16 tsp baking soda (a good pinch)

1/16 tsp kosher salt (a good pinch)

1 egg

1 tbsp milk

3/4 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup white rice flour

1/3 cup tapioca starch

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup sweet rice flour

1 1/4 tsp xanthan gum

3/4 cup maraschino cherries, drained well and finely chopped

1/2 cup coconut

In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, shortening and sugar on medium speed for two minutes. Add the baking soda and salt. Beat until combined and then add the egg, milk and vanilla.

Sift together the white rice flour, tapioca starch, cornstarch, sweet rice flour, and xanthan gum. Slowly add the flour mixture into the butter mixture, beating well. Add the chopped cherries and mix well. The dough will turn pink, so don't freak.

Now comes the fun part. This used to be pretty simple. And then there are gluten-free flours.

Place a large piece of waxed paper on the counter. Scoop large spoonfuls of the dough into a log-type shape. Sprinkle all available surfaces with coconut and press it into the dough, gently. Once you get the top and sides done, use a rubber scraper or spatula to carefully lift the dough in order to get coconut on the bottom. Once the entire roll has been coated in coconut, use the waxed paper to roll it into a 1-1/2" by 8" to 9" log. Twist the ends to seal and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, but overnight is probably better. Or you can put it in the freezer until the dough is firm to the touch but not frozen solid.

When you're ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment.

Remove the dough from the fridge and slice it, using a sharp knife, into 1/4" slices. Lay the slices on the baking sheet about an inch apart. Bake for 10 minutes or until the coconut has begun to toast, the edges are barely browned, and the middle of the cookies seem firm to the touch.

Makes about 36 cookies.

One says "Brrr..." and one says "Bring it"

I haven't been creating any new stuff lately. Most evenings this week have found me snuggled up on the couch under my favorite pink blankie, with a cat and a dog, alternately reading a book (currently John Grisham's Playing for Pizza) and staring at the Christmas tree that hasn't gotten any further than being hauled upstairs. Oh, and packing face from the big bowl of Jelly Bellys I have sitting right next to me. Addicting, those little things are.

We brought the tree up and plugged it in last weekend, but I decided to wait to decorate it until I knew what The Gidge was going to do. I already had to spray the bottom branches with Bitter Lime to keep her from chewing on them and thus electrocuting herself. We don't need any more "Christmas Vacation" scenes around here than what occurs normally.

After 6 days, she pretty much leaves it alone. But I am wondering if I am going to need a gate or something to keep her away once the ornaments go on.

The Gidge has a better wardrobe than I do. She has been wearing little dog hoodies and sweaters for several weeks now, but this morning I pulled out the big guns. And after viewing what ensued, I added a bunch of extra velcro tonight - I couldn't believe that a small was so HUGE. Mom doesn't know it yet, but when she and my father come down in December (with my dishwasher!), she is going to fix this the rest of the way.

With the area I live in, I figured I should go with the flow with the caption language.

GO PACKERS!

For the GF cookie tray: butter cookies

I have been using the gluten version of this recipe for years to make spritz cookies, which are probably my favorite Christmas cookie, next to Santa's Whiskers. Last year, I bypassed this one because I didn't really know how to play with the various gluten-free flours yet.

That was last year. This is now.

In October, Ferrara Pan's Red Hots were gluten free. So I picked some up back then with the plan to make these cookies. They may still be - I don't know. I wasn't taking any chances.

Also, you can certainly purchase colored sugar - but it's a heck of a lot cheaper (and safer - what the heck is the "wax" that's on the labeling of every package? Why does sugar need WAX?) to make your own. An added bonus is you can make only as much as you need. Just put a scoop of white sugar in a bowl, add food coloring, and stir (add more coloring to get your desired depth of color). Spread out on a plate to dry and you've got colored sugar to decorate your cookies with.

These cookies are very tender and buttery with a hint of sweetness and a kick (the red hot) at the end. If you have patience (I don't), you can press the dough through a cookie press. I started out that way but the press mysteriously grew wings and flew when the dough wouldn't stick to the cookie sheet.

Christmasy Butter Cookies

GF'd from the Vault

1 cup white rice flour

1/3 cup tapioca starch

1/3 cup cornstarch

1/3 cup sweet rice flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp xanthan gum

1 cup powdered sugar

2 sticks unsalted butter (at room temperature)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

Green decorating sugar

Red hot candies

In a medium bowl, sift together the white rice flour, tapioca starch, cornstarch, sweet rice flour, baking powder and xanthan gum. Set aside.

In a mixer, combine the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Slowly add the vanilla and almond extracts. Add the egg. Mix well. With the mixer on low (unless you like the ambience of flour on your walls and cabinets), add the flour mixture by spoonfuls until well combined. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove the dough from the fridge. Have a couple of nonstick cookie trays handy (ah...the reason for the dough not sticking with the press. Duh.). If you are using a press, now's the time and heaven help you.

For the rest of us, scoop small amounts of dough and roll into 3/4" balls. Place the balls about 1 1/2 inches apart on the cookie tray. When you have filled the tray, use the pads of your fingers to gently press down the top of each ball so it's flat and the cookie is about 1/2" thick.

Sprinkle each cookie with green decorating sugar and place a red hot smack-dab in the middle. Bake for 8 minutes or until the cookies are just barely beginning to brown.

Makes 52 cookies.

Another turkey to remember

Happy Thanksgiving! May you enjoy good food, good friends, and wonderful family.

Some of you may remember last year's turkey debacle. If not, here's the link to that particular post.

This year....THIS YEAR....I am thankful that we again were just the three of us and not a houseful of family. Because we had another turkey issue - the opposite end of the spectrum. I bought our 10-pound turkey this past Friday and put it into the freezer.

At 5 AM on Monday, I removed it from the freezer and gently placed it in the refrigerator.

At 5 PM on Wednesday, I poked a finger into its side and it "mooshed," which told me it was defrosting nicely.

At 11 AM today, I went downstairs and got the turkey from the fridge. I carried it reverently up the stairs. I patted it as I prepared to remove the packaging.

The )(*@&#& was frozen solid. See if I am nice and gentle next year. Next year, I am giving that bastard a solid kick with a steel-toed boot before cooking it.

So, that's how the turkey saga started. There's more.

The Man and The Stepson went for a free breakfast and planned to be home by noon. The Man had a grill to fire up.

At 10:30, when I began to prepare the dressing, I pulled the celery out of the fridge. It drooped like a bassett hound's jowls. What the hell. So I called The Man, who had to stop and get libations anyway, to pick up some more celery. I called every 10 minutes for the next hour and a half.

At noon, he called and said they were on their way home (the place that they were at is a half hour away) and that he would get the damn celery, damn it.

At 12:45, the two walked in the door. I immediately went to work chopping and slicing onion and the damn celery. I put together the dressing and scalloped corn and finished prepping the %*#@&^ turkey (which I defrosed in the microwave, by the way) with butter under the skin, oranges, garlic, and onion in its butt (it deserved it, don't you think?), and olive oil, salt and pepper on the outside of the skin. I handed it off to The Man to place on the grill.

An hour later, The Man came in the house and said, "honey." Oh, hell, now what?

The grill had dropped down to 175 degrees. Yes, people - instead of baking in an hour, I had an essentially raw turkey after an hour over the coals. I had already preheated the oven in anticipation of baking the side dishes, so I hauled out the roasting pan, trudged outside, and grabbed the $%&#@ bird. And put it into the oven. At which time I noticed that nothing else was going to fit with the huge roasting pan I just bought (premonition, perhaps?).

Good God. Is this day over yet?

Thank goodness I sprung for the convection oven/microwave two years ago. I heated that gift from heaven up to 425 and put the dressing in it. Then I fired up the toaster oven to 425 and popped in the scalloped corn.

And prayed.

It all worked out in the end. The Man, The Stepson and I are all rotting on the couches, watching "Christmas with the Kranks." We are recovering from pigging out and I am already contemplating the pie to come.

Sure as heck hope that your Thanksgiving dinner went a little better than mine.

One recipe leads to another

I had a taste in my mouth. Have you ever had that happen? You start thinking about something you want to cook or bake and you just...taste it.

Most of this was due to Alton Brown's Good Eats show on pomegranates. I love pomegranates. On the show, he makes pomegranate molasses. Since my local grocery stores don't run to that wonderfully thick, sweet syrup, I decided to follow his recipe and make myself some.

And then smear it, with a few additions, on a pork tenderloin. Oh, my goodness, was it good. The only fly in the ointment was a overly-large piece of black pepper that lodged itself in my throat about halfway through dinner. I coughed and wheezed and sweat and cried. And my throat and tongue swelled - not enough to warrant a trip to the emergency room, but enough to cause painful swallowing and tongue movement for a few hours. Thankfully, I had the presence of mind to pop an allergy pill and snort some antihistamine as soon as I got that piece of pepper gone.

And then I took a warm tea bath to soothe myself.

And sipped warm apple cider while reading a rot-my-brain romance novel while relaxing to the sound of the ocean (thanks to my alarm clock).

I have a tenderloin left. I am almost afraid to eat the leftovers LOL.

Pork Tenderloin with Black Pepper and Pomegranate Molasses

2 pork tenderloins

1/2 cup pomegranate molasses

1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 tbsp dijon mustard

1 tsp horseradish

Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Either oil a baking dish or place a layer of foil in the bottom (I missed this all-too-important step and had a hell of a time getting my Le Creuset baking dish clean - don't forget to do this!) before laying the tenderloins (slightly spaced apart) in the dish. Sprinkle lightly with kosher salt.

In a small bowl, whisk together the molasses, pepper, dijon mustard, and horseradish. Brush a generous layer on the tenderloins and then place the baking dish in the oven. Every 15 to 20 minutes, brush some more of the molasses mixture over the tenderloins. Bake until cooked all the way through (185 degrees) - time will depend on the thickness of your tenderloins. Mine took an hour and 15 minutes.

I hate carbs

As you may have noticed, I have been eating a lot of them lately. With the holidays just around the corner, I better cut way back - now. Because I weighed myself today and I have gained five pounds.

Oh, the horror.

And I have such wonderful goodies planned, too. So if I manage to control myself, I will ease back on the sweet stuff for a few weeks and see if that's going to fix the weight issue.

We worked on barn teardown yesterday morning. I had to leave at 10:30 because of the whole cooking-for-the-boss thing, but I got in a solid two and a half hours. The guys got the rest of the walls torn down and all we have left now is to pick up garbage.

Thank heaven. I am ready for it to be over.

While doing prepwork for the boss' menu yesterday, I prepped this for myself. I had seen something similar somewhere on the web and thought it sounded good, but naturally I had to do my own thing.

I have to admit to a deep sigh when I looked at the potato-less plate. But there are other wonderful nummies out there for me to eat, too.



Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Chicken for One
adapted from the web - somewhere

1 good-sized boneless, skinless chicken breast
5 large spinach leaves, rinsed and dried well
1 ounce Fontina cheese, thinly sliced
1 roasted garlic clove
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Olive oil

Place the chicken breast between two pieces of plastic wrap and take out your aggressions on that bad boy - pound it flat, to about 1/2" thick. Remove the top piece of wrap and lightly sprinkle the exposed side of the chicken with salt.

Squeeze the roasted garlic on top of the salt and spread across the chicken. Then layer the spinach leaves and Fontina on top of that. Using the piece of wrap that's under the chicken, tightly roll the chicken, twist the open ends of the wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour.

When ready to eat, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle 1 tbsp of olive oil in the bottom of a small baking dish. Remove the chicken from the fridge, take off the plastic wrap, and place in the baking dish, rolling all sides of the chicken in the oil. Bake for 15 minutes.

Serve with wilted napa cabbage...or a baked potato...or a rice dish like risotto...or another tasty carb...

Sigh.

A pain in the rear becomes something good

The Gidge had to go. At 4:30 this morning. I took her out and because we don't allow her outside alone when it's dark, I stood outside and froze while she debated if she was going to step paws on the frosted grass to actually GO. The answer on the first round was "hell no." So we came inside, put on a little pink and brown coat and her pink booties and tried again. And again, "hell no."



So we came in to take off the booties, hooked up the retractable leash, and went for a walk. Still nothing.



It had been 45 minutes of mostly being outside by this point. I was starting to get seriously ticked with The Gidge. My ears were frozen, my nose was running, and my toes were cold. When we got back from the walk, I hooked her back up to the lead and prayed.



Still nothing. Good God.



Out of desperation, I fed her an hour early, which I am probably going to regret later. But by golly, SHE POOPED.



While all of this was going on, I came up with an adaptation of a Vault recipe and once I had feeling back in my fingers, started making a delicious breakfast.






Baked Banana Doughnuts with Chocolate Glaze
from The Vault



2 1/2 tsp yeast
1/8 cup lukewarm water
3/4 cup slightly warm milk
1/6 cup shortening
1 egg
1 cup mashed banana (about 2 large)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup brown rice flour
3/4 tapioca starch
1/2 cup teff flour
1/2 cup sweet rice flour
2 1/2 tsp xanthan gum



Pour the water into a mixer bowl and add the yeast. Allow to bloom for 2 minutes. Add the milk and shortening; mix for 2 minutes.



In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, teff flour, sweet rice flour, and xanthan gum. Set aside.



In a small bowl, combine the mashed banana and egg. Pour into the yeast mixture and mix for 2 minutes. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl, until all of the flour is incorporated. The dough will be somewhat loose and sticky.



Line your working area with plastic wrap; spray it with cooking spray. Place the dough on the prepared plastic wrap and then cover with another large piece of plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray (spray side down). Use your hands to pat the dough down to 1/2" thick.


Spray your doughnut cutter/2 different size biscuit cutters/drinking glass and shot glass with cooking spray. Cut the doughnuts, removing the centers. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour.



Heat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the doughnuts for 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Glaze with chocolate glaze.



Chocolate Glaze



3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp light corn syrup
1/4 tsp vanilla



Put the chocolate chips, butter and corn syrup in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each 30 seconds, until all is melted together. Add the vanilla and stir. Dip the doughnut tops into the glaze while it (and they) are still warm.

I got 16 doughnuts out of this batch. You may get more or less depending on how large you make them.

Ah, hell

I am a bad, bad daughter. Not only did I forget (without forgetting - does that make sense? Got busy and forgot to call, but I didn't FORGET) my mother's birthday just over a week ago, but I forgot to mention this:

Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Yes, I was born on my my parent's first wedding anniversary.