Gluten Free Family of Six

Peanut butter cookies with a hershey's kiss on top

2009-11-27T19:23:00.000-08:00

So simple! My kids love these! These are my emergency snack for my daughter if we are going somewhere that will have desserts that I know she won't be able to have.

1 cup creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup semisweet morsals OR enough hersheys kisses for each cookie 16-20 depending how large of a cookie you make.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.. Stir together 1st 5 ingredients in med. bowl until well blended. Stir in choc. chips, if using them instead of the hershey's on top.

Drop dough on cookie sheet 2 inches apart. I round them out.

Bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes or until puffed and lightly browned. If using the kiss on top, remove pan from oven place kiss on top push down just slightly and it will mold there. Not too hard or the choc. will melt. Let cool. ENJOY!!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

2009-11-12T13:55:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Money Saving Mom, I got this FABULOUS recipe! I took hers and made mine gluten free style! Wow! YUUUMMY! I had taken the kids 3 large pumpkins that we had for the fall and cooked them today. I got about 14 pints of pumpkin to use so I thought I would start with these muffins. Here is the recipe:

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 (16 oz.) can pureed pumpkin I used FRESH pureed pumpkin
1 1/2 cups oil
3 cups flour -gluten free
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 package chocolate chips

I added 3/4 teaspoon xanthum gum and 1 teaspoon vanilla

Gluten free flour mix comes from the Book Gluten Free Baking I use it as my staple...it is the best I have found so far...you make it with 2 cups brown rice flour, 1/3 cup tapioca flour and 2/3 cup potato starch (use stone ground for all) I use Bob's Red Mill and it works fine.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and oil until smooth. Add in dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake 16-20 minutes at 400 degrees. Makes 24-30 muffins.

More Gluten Free Coupons!!

2009-11-09T12:59:00.001-08:00

Go here to access more organic and gluten free coupons from Mambo Sprouts. Each coupon is $1.oo off 1

HOT*** $1.00 off coupon Gluten Free!!

2009-11-09T12:40:00.000-08:00

Sign up here for the Gluten-Free Choices email newsletter and you’ll be able to print a coupon for $1/1 of the following gluten-free products:

Gluten Free Arrowhead Mills
DeBoles Pasta
Tropical Source
Gluten Free Café
Imagine Soup
DREAM products

It seems that there is no limit to this coupon and it doesn't expire until 12/31/11!!

Peanut butter bars.....Yum!

2009-10-11T14:45:00.000-07:00

My mother in law recently shared this recipe with me and the kids...including the big kid LOVE it!
They are peanut butter bars and very simple to make.

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup Karo syrup
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1 cup dry powdered milk

Mix all ingredients together and put in an 8x8 pan in the fridge. Cut and enjoy. We haven't tried this yet, but you could also roll them into balls and dip them in chocolate. I am thinking this will be fun for the holidays and put some sprinkles on them!

A Budget Spreadsheet FREE

2009-08-24T09:24:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let you know about a free budget spreadsheet that I just found online. It is formatted as an Excel spreadsheet that you can easily customize to suit your budgetary needs. This spreadsheet allows you to enter your targeted budget, your actual expenses, your fixed monthly expenses and more. I've found it useful and I think you will too. You can sign up to get it here

A Yummy Summertime Favorite

2009-08-20T11:14:00.000-07:00

This is a yummy recipe that I have adapted to be gluten free. I just have found some great noodles...but the package got thrown away before I could get the name of them. They are on sale this week at Whole Foods, so my plan is to go get more...many more packages. I think these are the best noodles I have found so far since being gluten free. They claim to be not mushy and that is what made me want to try them. A lot of the brown rice noodles and even the corn noodles can become really mushy. These were just like regular wheat noodles, not mushy at all. They were yummy!
Ok, for the recipe: And by the way, I don't measure my ingredients very often, so you just need to go by taste.

For the tomato sauce:
Several diced tomatoes
salt
basil
oregano
minced garlic
pepper
olive oil
Mix all together and if possible set in fridge for a few hours.

Cook noodles according to package directions, drain, rinse well. Put into a large serving bowl. Pour tomato mixture on noodles add chopped black olives and feta cheese. Toss, serve and enjoy!

Gluten Free Dessert Coupon!

2009-07-30T08:57:00.000-07:00

Get a free coupon for one of Betty Crocker’s new Gluten-Free Dessert Mixes ($4 value). Follow the instructions below to get your coupon today. If you’re not sure your local store will carry the product view the product locator page go here.

Call General Mills Consumer Services number at 1-800-446-1898 and select option #4 on the main menu.
Tell the customer service representative on the line that you are interested in the free gluten-free baking coupons.
You’ll be asked a few questions regarding your household’s consumption of gluten and then you’ll be asked for your address so they can send you the free coupon.

Thanks, The Centsible Shopper!

Yummy Fruit Smoothies

2009-07-28T13:02:00.000-07:00

The kids were really wanting a snack early this morning and so I decided to throw together a smoothie for them.

Ingredients:
Strawberries
Blueberries
Apple juice (no sugar added)
Yoplait vanilla yogurt

Put all in the blender and enjoy!

Ice Cream Cone Smores

2009-07-28T12:14:00.000-07:00

My kids love a good ole microwaved smores for an afternoon snack. Since going gluten free, I haven't gotten the nerve to spend 5-7 dollars on a small box of gluten free graham crackers. Yesterday, we tried an experiment....drum roll please....lol! We took a gluten free ice cream cone (these were on sale for 2.50 a box of 12 at Organic Harvest last week) I put a marshmellow in the bottom, topped some chocolate chips on it, then put another marshmellow (we used the large ones) on top and microwaved 10 seconds, stopped when the marshmellow was puffy, let the air go out then added another 8 seconds or so. The marshmellow looked like ice cream on top, but it tasted yummy like a smores! The kids loved it!

Any good sandwich brands?

2009-06-16T19:30:00.000-07:00

I love bread! This has been a huge stuggle for me since my daughter was diagnosed with Celiacs. I have yet to find a good gluten free bread. They are so expensive to buy and be terrible to go to waste. I have found that Whole Foods Sandwich bread is ok for french toast, or toast, or grilled cheese, but to just make a big, juicy sandwich with meat, cheese and lettuce that is soft and moist, I have yet to find. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Kinnikinnick claims that they have a moist and soft bread. Has anyone tried it?

Gluten free rice crispy treats

2009-06-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

My daughter is the only one we know in our family who has Celiac's. She is only 8 years old. Still a kid. What kid doesn't like rice crispy treats. So yummy, so simple!

Recipe: Gluten Free Rice Cereal (You can't use Kellogg's because it contains malt flavoring)
1 bag of marshmellows
1 stick of butter

Optional add ins: sprinkles, mini m&m's, chocolate chips, peanut butter, etc...

Chex Gluten Free

2009-06-01T12:49:00.001-07:00

Oh the possibilities! Do you know all the different recipes that you can make with these varieties of Chex Cereals? Oh so many! Not to mention the yummies for breakfast! Thanks General Mills! This is the response I got when I called and spoke with General Mills Directly. One of the GREAT things about these cereals being gluten free is that they don't cost any more than regular cereals.

Dear Jennie :

Thank you for contacting General Mills regarding our new line of gluten free products. We are committed to creating the highest quality products for our consumers. Feedback such as yours helps us achieve this goal for the future.

In addition to Rice Chex, the following gluten free products will be in national distribution beginning June 1st:

· Betty Crocker Gluten Free Yellow Cake Mix

· BC Gluten Free Devil’s Food Cake Mix

· BC Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Brownies

· BC Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix

· Corn Chex cereal

· Strawberry Chex cereal

· Honey Chex cereal

· Chocolate Chex cereal

· Cinnamon Chex cereal

We appreciate your loyalty and hope you continue to enjoy our products.

Sincerely,

Harry Kendall

Consumer Services

The G Diet

2009-05-15T06:41:00.000-07:00

I was just showing EB this video (here) of Elizabeth Hasselbeck talking about her diagnosis and living with Celiac's Disease. It is always encouraging for EB to hear that other people live with this too. The exciting thing is that there is more and more awareness of Celiacs now. Lots of yummy things you can make that are gluten free! I am definately going to check out this new book.
We are in the middle of a kitchen renovation, but as soon as we are finished, I plan to post lots of my yummy recipes that we eat!

Yeah Betty Crocker

2009-05-14T20:38:00.000-07:00

I am so excited! I just have learned that Betty Crocker is coming out with some gluten free mixes. I am hoping the price point is good too! Can't wait to taste them! You can check it out
here. I have found some really terrific recipes for cookies, cakes and brownies, but you just can't beat the quick mixes when you don't have the time to make it from scratch.

Giving it another shot

2009-04-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have not been blogging much over the last few months. I have been spending much of my time on other people's blogs trying to learn how to save big on my grocery bill. Going gluten free is very expensive. Buying all the different types of flours, mixes and such. I have learned a lot more over the last few months and would like to share some of my recipes and favorites. I will also probably throw in some money saving tips as well, as this has become a way of life for me. Please check back soon as I will be updating more often. Hope this helps you on your journey's to be gluten free and maybe debt free!!

Chocolate Chip Muffins

2008-10-22T06:47:00.000-07:00

Since going Gluten free, I think breakfast and lunch are the hardest. We used to eat chocolate chip muffins, pancakes, toast, toaster strudels, waffles, oatmeal, grits, biscuits, etc... all of which are off limits for someone with Celiacs. I have been searching to find some good substitutions for these things. One of which is the chocolate chip muffin. I have used this mix several times from the gluten free pantry, each time tweeking it a little until we have come up with something we really like. Even I like it. It is really tasty. The kids love it and don't know the difference from the old ones. Here are some pics.

To the mix I added an extra 1/2 teas. vanilla, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/3 cup cocoa, and 1/2 cup chocolate chips. YUMMMMMM!!

Diagnosed with Celiac's Disease

2008-10-11T19:41:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, here I go again. I really don't have time to keep up my other stuff and now I am starting yet another blog! Well, I am finding out that there is a lot to living a gluten free life and I have been keeping a notebook with all my information, I might should keep a blog to keep it all together.

The diagnosis:EB,7, and my oldest was having stomach aches for 2 years. She was being treated for reflux. She was on 3 different medications bid and was still having stomach aches. Finally, this summer, her GI doc. did some blood work which showed a positive marker for Celiac's Disease. Then Aug. 1, 2008 she had an endoscopy and it confirmed the diagnosis. For the first couple weeks, I was torn what to do...just put her on the gluten free diet and all the rest of the family eat normally, or put the whole family on a gluten free diet. I tried for several weeks to keep it all separate but have found it to be much too challenging. You would have to have a separate toaster, strainer, peanut butter and butter tubs, I think you are getting the drift. A person with Celiac's cannot have anything with wheat to come in contact with something they may eat. This became too challenging to keep separate. Plus, in my reading and research, I found that eating a gluten free diet, you can help a lot of conditions. Chris, my husband has a very bad back and sees a chiropractor weekly. When he mentioned to her about EB, she said she eats a gluten free diet and it would truly help him as well. We have all been doing much better sticking to the gluten free diet. EB gets NOTHING with gluten in it. We are doing our best to eliminate it from our diets as well. EB is doing fantastic on it. She has always had "itchies" on her skin and it felt really rough. Well, now her "itchies" are gone and her skin is as smooth as her baby sister's. She will ask me when we are somewhere, please mommy, I don't care if my tummy hurts, I would like to have a brownie. I have told her we have worked too hard to get to this place and I think it would not be a good idea to go and mess it up. She understands. She has been such a good sport about it.