Oven burgers

Oven burgers: Because making burger patties is a pain in the ass, and so is firing up the grill. I know this one is a little weird, but it works. Got the idea from my sister.

Flatten ground beef into a square/rectangle on a cookie sheet lined with foil. It will shrink as it cooks so make it a little larger than you want the patties. Season with salt and pepper.

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes. Cut into squares. 

The burgers come out juicy and delicious. 

Travel meal: quesadillas

Fun fact: Did you know that the Mission Street Taco tortillas fit perfectly on the Dash mini griddle?

Makes for a pretty decent travel meal.

Refried beans + taco seasoning + greens. Sandwiched between 2 tortillas and topped with avocado.

Not bad for cooking without a kitchen.

cinnamon sugar donuts

There is always a higher chance of donuts on Sunday mornings. Today we got cinnamon sugar donuts. You expect a baked donut to be a little dense, but these are fluffier. Can't decide which I prefer.

Cinnamon Sugar Donuts

1 c. gf flour mix

2 T. brown sugar

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. cinnamon

1 egg

2 T. oil

1/2 t. vanilla

1/2 t. vinegar

1/2 c. almond milk

Topping: 1/4 c. sugar + 1 t. cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350. 

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. 

Transfer the batter into a sandwich bag and clip a corner. Pipe into a greased donut pan. These rise quite a bit- the batter should be level with the center indentation. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Spray the top of a warm donut with cooking spray and dunk it into the bowl of cinnamon/sugar. Do this twice for each donut.

Makes 6 donuts

the best and easiest peanut butter cookies

I've made a lot of peanut butter cookies. Of all the recipes I've tried, this is the best. And easiest. No flour & naturally dairy free. 

Peanut butter cookies

1 c. peanut butter*

1/3 c. brown sugar

1/2 t. salt

1 egg (or, 1 T. flax seed meal + 3 T. hot water)

1/4 t. vanilla

1 t. baking soda

1/4 t. cinnamon (optional)

chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350. Beat the peanut butter and sugar for 2 minutes. Add in the rest of the ingredients and beat until a dough forms. The dough may be slightly crumbly. Form into balls, place on a greased cookie sheet, and flatten with a fork. Bake for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will be really soft but firm up after they cool.

The dough freezes well. I freeze it on wax paper in the flattened balls and take out a few at a time.

*If you spray the measuring cup with cooking spray, the peanut butter will come out easier.

Sheet pan chicken and broccoli

My go-to dinner for when I'm busy, tired, worn out, cranky, etc = a sheet pan lined with foil + meat + veggies. 

This version had:

chicken thighs + ground thyme, paprika, garlic, salt, and pepper

frozen broccoli + a spray of olive oil, salt, and pepper

Baked at 350 for 30 minutes. Or until the chicken is 165.

The broccoli cooks in the chicken juices and also gets a little charred on top... so good.

Cranberry nut donuts

Continuing the donut trend... my mom makes these cranberry nut bars every Christmas and I tried them in donut form, with much success. They didn't last past breakfast. Adapted from the recipe on the back of the cranberry bag.

Cranberry Nut Donuts

1 egg

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/2 t. vanilla

2 T. olive oil

1/4 t. salt

1/2 c. gf flour

3/4 c. finely chopped fresh cranberries

1/4 c. finely chopped walnuts

Beat the egg with a whisk. Stir in the sugar, oil, and vanilla. Stir in the flour and salt. Stir in the cranberries and walnuts. Spoon into a sandwich bag, and cut the corner out. Pipe into a greased donut pan.* Bake for 10 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Dust with powdered sugar.

*I attempted to stretch the batch to make 6 donuts, but as you can see from the first picture they turned out a little skinny. Makes 4 chubbier donuts, as you can see in the second picture.**

**I ran out of cranberries and substituted some finely chopped blueberries in a second batch. Equally delicious.

P.S. I tried this recipe with baking powder to get a fluffier texture, but the overall opinion was that they are better without.

Banana donuts

Banana muffins... but make it a donut. Because why the heck not?

Banana donuts

Mix in a bowl:

1 really ripe banana, mushed with a fork

1 egg, beaten

1/4 c. oil

1 t. vanilla

1/2 t. vinegar

1/4 c. brown sugar

1 c. gf flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

Pour the batter into a sandwich baggie and cut off the corner. Pipe into a greased donut pan. Top with cinnamon sugar, walnuts, chocolate chips, etc.

Bake at 350 for 13 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 6 donuts