Ginger cookies

It's Christmas Eve and I'm out of cookies!

That's okay. I made some more. Ginger cookies this time. No molasses, here. Just a bright, spicy ginger flavor.

I had made the dough and was rolling it up into balls when I noticed the egg still sitting on the counter. I had forgotten to add it in! They were a smidge dry, but
they are still delicious. I would probably make them without an egg again, maybe decreasing the flour to 3/4 c.

Ginger cookies

2 T. shortening
2 T. Vegan I can't believe it's not butter
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
fresh grated ginger, I didn't measure
1 egg
1 c. GF flour mix
1/8 t. salt
1/8 t. baking soda
1/8 t. baking powder
1 1/2 t. ground ginger
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

For the outside of the cookies, mix in a small bowl:
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. ground ginger
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using a hand mixer, mix the shortening, "butter," fresh grated ginger, and sugar. Beat in the egg.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Dump the dry ingredients into the sugar/butter/ginger mixture, and mix well.

Form balls of dough and flatten them down a little bit. Dip each side into the sugar/ginger/cinnamon mixture, and place them on a greased baking sheet. These cookies do not spread at all. They will pretty much come out exactly how they were placed on the sheet.

Bake them for 12-15 minutes, until the edges begin to brown and the tops are set.

Makes 8 cookies.

Kale quinoa salad

This year, for my man's family Christmas, in an effort to decrease the stress, he catered BBQ. Yes, the BBQ place has a gluten free menu, and I've eaten there before with no problems, but I also wanted something absolutely safe to eat.

There were quite a few vegetarians and vegans in attendance, so I wanted to at least bring a side that would meet their needs. Us folks with dietary restrictions gotta stick together! We joked that amongst the meat and potatoes and beans, it was the only green thing on the table. I think it was very pretty!

Kale and Quinoa salad

You can really toss in any veggies that are in the fridge. I used:

chopped kale
chopped fresh cranberries
chopped purple cabbage
1 can of black beans, rinsed
sliced almonds
cooked quinoa, cooled
salt + pepper
olive oil
juice from 1 lemon

Stick it all in a bowl, place a lid on it, and shake it around.

There were no leftovers, but I made another batch and ate it with some chicken a couple of days later. Yum.

Travel meals, this week

Do you remember when I said that I might be done traveling for the year?
I was wrong. One more week, and THEN I get some time in my own bed, with my cat, with my man, with my family, with friends.

This week has been lonely, probably because it's so close to the holidays and everyone is having fun back at home without me. Such is life, sometimes.

I booked a hotel room with a kitchen this time, which makes life so much easier.

Here's what I'm eating:

Breakfast: Eggs and kale, with avocado. Plus fruit and cucumber slices.

Lunch: I am forcing myself to eat veggies, since I've been happily grazing on cookies and potato chips for the last few weeks. So I'll have salads on salads on salads.

Monday- Travel day. Packed a salad with any veggies and a leftover burger patty on top, to clean out the fridge. Didn't get to eat it until 4pm.
Tuesday- Salad with no meat because my feet hurt at the grocery store the night before.
Wednesday- Salad greens with leftover chicken and veggies on top
Thursday- Same thing as the day before.
Friday- Travel day. Snacky lunch of pretzels and an apple.

Dinner:
Monday- Long day. I originally planned to have an Amy's frozen dinner but since I had lunch so late, I snacked on pretzels and and apple.
Tuesday- Chicken and veggies
Wednesday- Pasta with meat sauce
Thursday- Leftovers
Friday- Back at home! Dinner at my nephew's birthday party, so I'll probably pick up an Amy's frozen dinner.

Snacks: GF Pretzels + peanut butter from the hotel breakfast, apples, larabars

For reference, the grocery list:
Amy's frozen dinner
Eggs
Kale
Salad greens
Avocado
Fruit
Pretzels
Chicken thighs
Frozen broccoli
Frozen peas
GF Pasta
Spaghetti sauce
Larabars
Prunes
Wine
Water

Bring from home:
Travel kit
Seasonings for chicken
Garlic
Frozen chopped green pepper

Clever leftovers, salad edition

Sometimes, when I'm not sure what to do with dinner leftovers, I put them on top of salad greens. Ha! I'm so clever! I'm getting rather bored with salads over here, so I'm finding ways to get some variety.

Obviously some things work better than others, but cold leftover meat and veggies almost always taste great on top of a salad.

I feel like I'm winning the cold lunches game right now.

Chicken and veggies

Y'all know I'm so happy to have a kitchenette in my hotel room. It's lightly equipped, so meals have to be simple, but simple is good!

Tonight I cooked chicken and veggies. I planned ahead and brought the seasonings from home, then today after work I went to the store and bought some chicken thighs and frozen broccoli.

I'm not used to cooking on an electric stovetop, so I tend to get the pan too hot and have to quickly turn it down to avoid setting off the smoke alarms.

Chicken and veggies

Turn the pan to MEDIUM heat. Add in 2 chicken thighs, 1 clove of chopped garlic, and 1/2 of a chopped green pepper. Sprinkle with 1 tsp ground thyme, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, and salt and pepper. Let that cook for a minute before adding in frozen broccoli, straight from the bag, and then throw in some torn kale from the fridge (because there's a huge bunch in there).

Let that all cook merrily for a while. If it starts to look too dry, add in a little bit of water and cover. Again, I'm paranoid I'm going to set off the hotel smoke alarms.

When the chicken is cooked through, shred it into smallish pieces with a fork, and let the veggies get a tiny bit of char on them. I'd let them get more charred at home, but, again, smoke alarms.

There ya go, a simple meal on a Tuesday.

Travel salad without meat

I went grocery shopping this evening after a very long day, and walked across the store and back before I realized I forgot to get lunchmeat for my salad tomorrow. Being on the opposite of the store, with my feet and back hurting, I said screw it. I can go without meat for a day.

I grabbed a little salad kit, although I did not use the packets of dressing, cheese, or spices. I was mostly interested in the assortment of greens to add a little interest.

For protein, I boiled a few eggs and tossed one in. When I cut into the avocado in the morning for breakfast, I'll add the other half to the salad.

Not the most exciting thing, but I'll get my greens.

This salad contains:
kale
greens from the salad kit
sundried tomatoes from the salad kit
boiled egg
sliced cucumber
avocado
olive oil
salt and pepper

I layer everything in the order listed above, and add the olive oil to a corner instead of drizzling over everything. This way, it stays in a localized area and doesn't wilt the greens. The kale is on the bottom and can handle an overnight soak in olive oil.

Happy Monday, I'm going to finish this glass of wine and unpack.

Peanut butter cookies

For some reason this year I've been really into making cookies. Peanut butter cookies are my favorite.

I like this recipe for a peanut butter cookie, because it doesn't use any butter or shortening, instead using all peanut butter for a stronger flavor. Plus it's naturally dairy-free.

Peanut butter cookies:
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 egg (or, 1 T flax seed meal + 3 T hot water)
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 c. GF flour mix
1/2 t. baking soda
1/8 t. salt

With a hand mixer, beat together the peanut butter and sugar. Add in the egg and vanilla. Mix in the flour, baking soda, and salt. The dough will be oily. Form into small balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with foil, for easy cleanup. Press a fork into the dough at 90 degree angles. (This is required).

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until the bottom of the cookies have started to brown. Top with chocolate, if desired. (I did half and half, but this is recommended)

Makes 1.5 dozen smallish cookies that freeze well.

colorful, non-boring salad

Hi there. This is a salad.

I don't particularly like salads, but my body does. So I try to eat them as much as I can. Usually for lunch, because if I pack it, I have to eat it.

There's only so much salad you can eat before it gets boring.

Sometimes, I try to mix it up with lots of colors.

This one has
kale
lettuce
shredded carrots
purple cabbage
walnuts
tomato
fresh cranberries
avocado
salt, and pepper.

Dressing is extra virgin olive oil with a few drops of balsamic vinegar.

Not too bad for something I sometimes have to force myself to eat!

chocolate chip cookies, dairy free

I found out late tonight that my day tomorrow will be more mellow than expected. So, at 10pm, it's okay to make cookies, right?

Right.

I haven't baked lately, especially not since I've decided to avoid dairy, so I've been experimenting. So far, so good. My waistline may not eventually agree but hey, it's the holiday season so cookies at 10pm are ok, right?

Right.

*sips wine*

I like that these are not overly sweet, so that you can actually taste the chocolate, salt, and vanilla. These are a little crispy, a little soft, and way too good.

GF Dairy free Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 T. shortening
2 T. Vegan I can't believe it's not butter*
1 egg
1/4 t. vanilla
3/4 c. GF flour mix
1/8 t. salt
1/8 t. baking soda
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
2/3 c. Enjoy Life chocolate chips 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Using a hand mixer, mix the shortening, "butter," and sugar.
Add the egg and vanilla, and mix it well.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add them to the wet ingredients and mix them together, then stir in the chocolate chips.

Place balls of dough on a cookie sheet lined with greased foil.

Bake them for 8-10 minutes, until the edges begin to brown and the tops are set.

Makes about 12-16 smallish cookies that freeze well, if they last that long.

*Currently experimenting with this. So far, it's a decent substitute for butter, both as a spread and in baking.

Cranberry Almond Biscotti

These crisp little cookies are a mix of tart and sweet, and are delightful.

Great with coffee or tea or just by themselves, they also make a darling small gift. I think the shape makes them seem more special than regular round cookies.

This recipe makes about 10 biscotti, depending on how you slice them. I always eat the shorter end pieces as "quality control," so realistically this makes about 8 cookies.

Cranberry Almond Biscotti

2 T. butter*
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1/2 c. GF flour mix
1/2 c. almond flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 t. grown cinnamon
1/4 c. chopped fresh cranberries
2 T. slivered almonds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the butter and sugar. It can be difficult to cream small amounts of butter and sugar. I use a hand mixer and a deep bowl. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until everything is nicely mixed.

In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well with the hand mixer.

Stir in the cranberries and almonds.

The dough will be wet. Scrape/pour it on a greased cookie sheet (lined with foil to assist with cleanup). Shape the dough into a big oval. If it is sticky, it's helpful to wet the spatula with hot water and use it for spreading.

Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the pan from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Let the biscotti cool for 10 minutes.

After cooling for 10 minutes, carefully cut the giant cookie into inch-thick strips at an angle and spread them out on the cookie sheet. Return the pan to the oven to bake for another 20 minutes.

Remove them from the oven and let them cool. They should be firm and crispy.

If they're still a little soft and cookie-like, you can enjoy them just the way they are, or stick them back into the oven.

The end pieces are usually fine, but the larger middle pieces might not be crispy enough. Flip them on their sides so the bottoms don't burn, and return them to the oven for another 10 minutes.

*Trying to avoid dairy, instead of butter I used the vegan "I can't believe it's not butter" and it worked well.

travel meals, this week

Ok folks. This might be my last week traveling this year! I packed my crock pot and had time to plan a menu beforehand, so here's what I'm eating:

(Making gluten free travel meals look good)

Breakfast: scrambled eggs with ham and kale. Plus oranges and carrots

Lunches: There was no microwave onsite, so I had to make cold lunches.

Monday- Travel day. Stopped at a gas station and got an EPIC bar and little packet of almonds. Ate that with an apple I brought from home. I was pretty hungry when it got to dinner time.
Tuesday- Salad with shrimp and edamame
Wednesday- Kale salad with edamame, carrots, and ham
Thursday- Wednesday lunch on repeat
Friday- Travel day. Meat roll ups with the last of the ham and kale, plus a carrot.

Dinners:
Monday- Salad with shrimp and edamame
Tuesday- Crock pot beef + a baked sweet potato
Wednesday- Chili and cornbread, brought frozen from home
Thursday- Leftovers from Tuesday.
Friday- At home, stir fry

Snacks: Apples + nuts

For reference, the grocery list:
eggs
kale
spring salad mix
bell pepper
sweet potato
lime
oranges
carrots
apples
stew beef
frozen cooked shrimp
ham lunchmeat
frozen edamame
nuts

Bring from home:
travel kit
crock pot + liner
seasonings for the beef (bay leaf, Worcestershire sauce, garlic)
frozen chili and cornbread
chopped celery

Travel meal: Kale + salad accessories

Isn't this salad pretty?

It's got kale + some spring mix, edamame, carrots, and sliced ham with lots of pepper. Plus olive oil and lime juice for a dressing.

I feel like some shredded purple cabbage or dried cranberries would be really good here, but unfortunately when you're traveling, the large jar of craisins in your pantry is not available.

So, you enjoy your pretty salad anyway and life goes on.

Oy, happy Friday Eve.

Reviving wilted kale

Y'all know I'm a fan of kale. As dark leafy greens go, it has a mild flavor and a good crunch and lasts longer than, say, spinach, which gets slimy so fast.

As sturdy as it is, often the big bunch of kale in my fridge will begin to wilt after a few days.  Fortunately, wilted kale is easily revived.

All you do is tear the greens from the stems and submerge in cool water. If the water from the tap is not very cold, stick it in the fridge.

After 20 minutes or so, the leaves will perk up.

Then, just lay them out to dry and you've got perfectly good kale again.

I hate throwing out food, and am so satisfied when I can bring wilted greens back to life.

Travel meal: crock pot beef

Sometimes, it's worth taking up valuable suitcase real estate to travel with the crock pot.

It's chilly outside, I'm traveling all week, and a hot, safe gluten free meal after a long day is such a mood booster. There is a mini fridge and microwave in my hotel room, and that's all I need.

Well, that and the ingredients.

I have my trusty travel kit and planned ahead, so I brought a few ingredients with me to avoid buying full-size versions at the grocery store (crock pot liner, bay leaf, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce).

Crock pot beef:

Put into the crock pot, in this order...
crock pot liner
1 carrot, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
2 peeled garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
1/2 lb of stew meat
1/4 of a green bell pepper, chopped
1 big kale leaf, torn into pieces
1/4 c. Worcestershire sauce, transported in a small, leakproof container
pepper
a few glugs of red wine
enough water to make the liquid level just hit the kale

Set it to low when you leave, put up your Do Not Disturb sign, and come "home" to a delicious, hot meal and a hotel room that smells amazing. The only thing missing is my cat.

I ate it with some mashed sweet potato.  Not bad for no kitchen, eh?

Travel meal: non-boring salad

Can you tell I'm tired of eating the same old salad?

This one has cocktail shrimp, cubed baked sweet potato, edamame, and a big squeeze of fresh lime juice. All accomplished in a hotel room, thanks to frozen shrimp and edamame, and a microwaved baked potato.

That's basically the whole recipe, but here's the rest. There is a specific order to assembling this, I swear.

Non-boring hotel room salad for lunch the next day:

Nestle some torn up kale into one side of the container. Then add in shelled edamame next to it. Next add spinach greens and baked sweet potato, cooled and cut into cubes. Plus carrot slices and leftover cocktail shrimp, tails removed.

Pour some extra virgin olive oil (from the travel kit) into the corner with the edamame and kale, and sprinkle salt and pepper on top. Roll a lime around on the counter and cut in half. Tuck one half of the lime into the container.

The kale can take an overnight soak in the olive oil, but the spinach will wilt, so be sure to nestle the kale in the corner and pour the olive oil directly on top. Store it kale-and-olive-oil-side down in the fridge.

Prior to eating, squeeze the lime juice on top, replace the lid, and shake it up.

So much better than a crummy pre-packaged salad.

gf birthday cake

I quietly turned 35 yesterday. I spent the day relaxing, without any fanfare, and it was pretty great.

When my brother and sister-in-law found out that I didn't have a birthday cake, they went to two different stores to find me one. Isn't that sweet?

We didn't even take it out of the grocery bag before lighting the candles, lol. 

It was delicious. So delicious that we each had a small piece, then we each got another small piece, and then I ate another small piece.

I sent the rest home with them so I wouldn't continue to stuff my face. My niece-in-utero could use the calories, right??

I would have simply gone without a birthday cake if it wasn't for them. It's so great that things like this exist, and I'm grateful that they went to the trouble to search for a gluten free cake for me.

Feeling very loved. 

Small batch cornbread

Cornbread is one of those things that can round out an otherwise light meal. Sure, soup is good, but soup PLUS CORNBREAD is better.

This basic cornbread recipe makes a small batch; about 4-6 servings, depending on how big you slice it. Plenty for one person, plus leftovers. This freezes very well, too. 

Cornbread

1/2 c. cornmeal

1/2 c. GF flour mix

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. water

1 egg

2 T. light olive oil

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.

Measure the water into a glass measuring cup, then add the egg and olive oil and mix well with a whisk. 

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and mix well.

Pour into a small greased baking dish. I use a 6-inch round glass dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Perfect with chili, soup, or with a happy drizzle of honey.