Gluten Free Pantry Favorite Sandwich Bread Mix

My grandma gave me this bread mix last month and I've been hesitant to try it... mostly due to the fact that every other gluten-free bread mix I've tried was a complete waste of time. They were all nasty. Today I decided that I would just make it. 
I don't have a heavy duty mixer or a bread machine, so I used my own two hands (and a wooden spoon) to mix the dough. I was a little worried when I let it sit for 35 minutes and it never rose. I stuck it in the oven anyway. Well, I guess it didn't need to rise in the pan because (to my relief) it rose plenty in the oven. I pulled it out, cut it, and put a big slab of butter on it, and guess what? I really liked it! I would recommend this mix to anyone. I would just say to not expect the dough to rise much (or at all) before you put it in the oven.  

Blackened Chicken and Cilantro Lime Rice

(Beware. This is spicy. If you do not like spicy foods, you will not like this recipe.)

Ingredients

• 2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
• ½ Teaspoon of Paprika
• ¼ Teaspoon of Salt
• ¼ Teaspoon of Pepper
• ¼ Teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper
• ¼ Teaspoon of Onion Powder
• ¼ Teaspoon of Cumin
• 1 Teaspoon of Olive Oil
• 2 Cups of Low Sodium Chicken Stock
• 1 Cup of Rice
• Juice and Zest from One Lime
• A Dash of Salt and Pepper
• 2 Tablespoons of Cilantro, chopped

Instructions

1. Combine all the dry seasonings in a small bowl. Mix them together and then season both sides of each chicken breast.
2. Add the teaspoon of olive oil to a large pan or skillet. Heat the olive oil for a minute over medium/high heat. Add the chicken breasts to the pan. Cook for seven minutes on each side with the lid on.
3. Add the chicken stock and rice to a medium sauce pan. Bring to a simmer over medium/low heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for twenty minutes with the lid on, until all the stock has been absorbed.
4. After the chicken breasts have cooked all the way through, remove them from the pan and let them rest for seven minutes before slicing them.
5. Add the warm rice to a large bowl. Toss in the lime zest, lime juice, salt and pepper, and chopped cilantro. Mix to combine.
6. Serve the sliced chicken breast on top of the rice. If you find the blackened seasoning too spicy, you can add a quick and easy avocado cream sauce to cool it down.
7. Just place the flesh from an avocado along with two tablespoons of Greek yogurt in a food processor and puree until smooth.

Serves: 2-4

Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Baking Mixes

One of the first truly delicious gluten-free goodies I ever had came from a Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Mix. It was so good in fact, that I was afraid it wasn't really gluten-free.

Each of these mixes produces a delectable gluten-free treat. I only have ONE complaint. My complaint is that the cookie mix (while delicious) produces cookies that are thin and fragile. I have better success making my own cookies from scratch with Jule's flour. 

I have no complaints with any of the other mixes. My favorite mix happens to be the devil's food cake mix.  The other day I made cupcakes from the yellow cake mix, and I think I made a wise decision not to add frosting, because I gobbled those bad boys up so fast.

I've seen these mixes in practically every grocery store I've been in, so they are pretty accessible. If you'd like to check them out online, here's a link:
http://www.bettycrocker.com/products/gluten-free-baking-mixes

Enchilada Casserole

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup diced onion
8 ounce can of tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. chili powder
3 tbsp. softened butter
6 corn tortillas
4.5 ounce can olives, drained and chopped
2 cups grated monterey jack cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brown ground beef with onion for about 5 minutes. Drain excess fat. Stir in tomato sauce, water, chili powder, and olives. Simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes. Spread butter on tortillas. Set aside. Using a 2-quart round casserole dish, layer first meat sauce, then cheese, then finally tortillas. Repeat several more times, ending with the meat sauce and cheese on the top. Bake 20 minutes or until heated through and bubbly. 

Annie's Rice Pasta and Cheddar Mac and Cheese

How many gluten-free macaroni and cheese brands have you tried? How many of them did you actually like? I have tried several and (being the picky eater that I am), liked none. They all had something wrong with the texture and taste of the pasta, and their cheese topping was seriously disgusting. However, there is ONE brand that I not only like, I LOVE! That would be Annie's Rice Pasta and Cheddar Mac and Cheese. The pasta is delicious and the cheese tastes like Kraft's mac and cheese! 

It's pretty easy to find in your local grocery store, but you can also buy it online. I got this picture from Amazon.com where you can buy it also. 

http://www.amazon.com/Annies-Homegrown-Gluten-Free-Cheddar-6-Ounce/dp/B000CQ01NS

If you'd like to see more of the gluten-free products that Annie's offers, you can visit their website at:

http://www.annies.com/products/Gluten-Free-Pasta-Snacks

Facebook Group

If you'd like to follow us on Facebook, here's the link:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/130389633689861/ 
There are currently a lot more recipes on there than I have on here. (I started the group before I started the blog.)

Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies only have 4 ingredients and are completely FLOUR-LESS. You heard me right; they have ZERO flour in them. 

Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter (can use natural peanut butter)
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 egg

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients. Place on cookie sheet in balls 1 inch apart. Do not need to smash down. Bake for 5-10 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet before removing. Enjoy!

Life Tastes Good Again Waffle Mix

This Pancake & Waffle Mix makes beautifully fluffy waffles and pancakes. They hold together well and are super easy to make. As the brand signifies, they taste great! Below is a link where you can order them. I haven't had their other products, but I'm sure they are worth trying!

http://www.eatingglutenfree.com/store-products-EGF-WW1-Wonderful-Waffles_17794083.html

Oatmeal Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 cup Milk
3/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Quick Cooking Rolled Oats
3/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Oat Flour
2 Tbsp. Sugar
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
2 beaten Egg Yolks
1 Tbsp. Cooking Oil
2 Egg Whites

Directions:

Heat milk until hot, stir in oats and let stand for 5 minutes. Combine remaining dry ingredients in a mixing bowl then add the oat/milk mixture. Add the egg yolks and oil into the mix. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then fold into batter. Makes eight 4-inch pancakes. 

*Recipe retrieved from the back of Bob's Red Mill Oat Flour. 

Gingerbread Men

These cookies are so soft and have a great unique flavor.

INGREDIENTS:

The foundation:

• 1 1/2 sticks lightly salted butter, softened
• 1 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 orange, zested

The dry ingredients:

• 4 cups Jules Gluten-Free Flour (plus 1/2 cup additional for rolling, if needed)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon ground dry ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

The wet ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup dark molasses
• 1 lemon, juiced

DIRECTIONS:

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, add the butter, sugar and orange zest and beat until smooth, 5 to 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, dry ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Whisk to blend. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, molasses and lemon juice.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

When the butter and sugar are integrated, lower the speed of the mixer and add the dry ingredients. Add the egg mixture and when blended, remove the bowl from the machine. Divide the cookie dough in half. Press the first half of the dough in between 2 sheets of waxed paper or plastic wrap and chill for 15 minutes. Repeat with the second half. This step will make it easier to finish rolling out the dough when it has chilled. It will also mean you only have half of the dough getting warm as you roll it.

Lightly flour a flat surface. Use a floured rolling pin to gently roll the first half of the dough about 1/2-inch thick. Lightly flour the cookie cutter(s) and cut the shapes, making as few scraps as possible. Use a metal spatula to gently transfer them, cookie by cookie, (the cookies should be similar size) to a baking sheet. Repeat with the other half of the dough and transfer them to another baking sheet. A note about crowding the tray(s): these particular cookies can spread a little. Leave room between the cookies. Better to use 3 baking sheets with fewer cookies than to crowd them on 2 trays. Bake until brown around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes.

Bisquick Pancake Mix

This post is for all you pancake lovers out there. Bisquick's gluten-free pancake mix is the perfect alternative for gluten-free pancakes. My husband says he likes these better than "regular" pancakes because they don't fall apart as easily as glutenous pancakes do. The taste and texture is great. So go out, get yourself this pancake mix and make yourself some pancakes! You won't be disappointed. Trust me. 

http://shop.glutenfreely.com/Bisquick-Gluten-Free/dp/B0045KDDU0 

Homemade Gravy

Tonight I made pork loin with mashed potatoes and gravy. I make my gravy from scratch, and to make it gluten free is pretty easy. All I do is take the drippings from the meat, add salt to taste, and add a couple of spoonfuls of brown rice flour to it. (You can add however much you want to make it as thick or thin as you want.) Enjoy!

Chebe Cinnamon Roll Mix

I think this picture is pretty self-explanatory. Did these cinnamon rolls taste nasty? No. These cinnamon rolls actually had a decent taste; however, what I am looking for when making cinnamon rolls is more of the perfect texture (and shape) with a great flavor. In order to stand these up straight, I had to lean them against each other. They were crunchy and chewy. You will not find these on my grocery list anytime soon. Ha.

Bob's Red Mill Cornbread Mix

This is a GREAT gluten-free cornbread mix. I honestly can't tell the difference between it and regular cornbread. Okay, well the last time I had gluten-filled cornbread would have been back in 2007... but my husband says he can't tell the difference either! This is a winner!

Sweet-and-Sour Chicken

Ingredients:
2 large chicken breasts
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
Cornstarch
1 egg beaten with 1 Tbsp. water
1 C. sugar
1/3 C. vinegar
1/3 C. ketchup
1/4 C. chicken broth
1 tsp. salt 
2 Tbsp. gluten-free soy sauce

Directions:
Cut chicken in pieces and sprinkle with garlic salt. Let sit one hour. Dip in cornstarch, then in beaten egg. Fry in hot oil until brown. Place in casserole dish. Combine sugar, vinegar, ketchup, chicken broth, salt, and soy sauce. Microwave for five minutes, stirring mixture halfway through. Pour over chicken and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes, until the sauce is thickened. Makes 6-8 servings.