Gluten Free Mom

Order your Gluten Free Gingerbread Houses

It is our traditions such as decorating Gingerbread Houses that bridge the times before we went gluten free with our current life style.  

We have made Gingerbread Houses since my kids were old enough to stick a piece of candy in some frosting and pop it on the roof of a house.  

 

The first year after my GFT's diagnosis with Celiac Disease we did not make Gingerbread Houses.  My GFT is big on tradition, so she noticed the omission in our Christmas plans.

The next year I bought glutinous houses and made sure we all washed our hands well.  We don't eat them!  But by then our entire mantra was "gluten is bad" so the houses made with glutinous flour seemed bad too. 

Then one year I made the entire house from scratch!   Satisfying but a considerable amount of effort!

So last year when I heard about the bakery in Rhode Island that sold pre-made allergy friendly gluten free Gingerbread Houses, I almost feel out of my chair!  

 

 

A and J Bakery in Rhode Island makes allergy friendly Gingerbread House Kits. Each kit includes pre-baked pieces of a Gingerbread house, allergen free candy and non-edible decorations.  The kit is free of gluten, peanut, tree nut, soy, egg, sesame and dairy.  They are baked in a dedicated nut- and gluten-free facility.   They sell for $30.00.   

 

 

 

 I ordered my kits on Monday.  I emailed the bakery at the same time to see if they sell them anywhere in Seattle (last year they were sold at Savory Moment in Redmond, but they are not selling them this year).  I received an email back from the bakery within 30 minutes telling me there was not a retail location for them this year in Seattle, but that my houses had already been shipped!  

 

 

 

I have absolutely no financial interest in this company, and I paid full retail price for our houses.  I am just so thankful for this easy solution to one of our Christmas traditions that I wanted to share it with you!

 

Let me know if you have made Gluten Free Gingerbread Houses and send me photos if you have or are making them.  With your permission I will post them on my website!

Recipe for Gluten and Casein Free Pumpkin Pie

Yes, I know Thanksgiving is just around the corner and with the threat of snow and some kind of a food worker strike, I will be shopping tomorrow!   While I was making my list, thought I might re-post my pumpkin pie recipe! 

I am the only one in the family that cannot have both gluten and dairy, so  I make two pies, one that is gluten free but contains dairy and another version that is dairy free as well. 

Pumpkin Pie (easily adaptable for casein free)

Flaky Pie Crusts:

 

There are more and more GF ready-made pie crusts available.  I have to admit that I will use them when I can find them.  Whole Foods has a beautiful crust but last time I looked it contained dairy. 

Lately, we have been using the Gluten Free Pantry Pie Mix and I have to say I have been very happy with it.  Super easy to make and bakes up a very nice and flaky pie crusts.  These mixes are pretty easy to find at most grocery stores but you can also order them from glutenfree.com - your online source of gluten-free food for your Celiac Disease diet!

Here is the recipe if you want to make it from scratch:

 

This makes a double crust. If you are going to all of this work, you might as well make two crusts. You can bake two pies or save half of the crusts for later.

• 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour mix - ***For the gluten free flour mix we used 2 cups brown rice, 2/3 cup potato starch, and 1/3 cup tapioca starch. We actually triple this recipe, add it to a big container and use if for almost everything.
• 3 T sweet rice flour
• 2 t sugar
• 1/4 t salt
• 9 T cold unsalted butter (we used Earth Balance to make it casein free)
• 1 jumbo egg
• 1 T cider vinegar

Mix together the gluten free flour mix, sweet rice flour, sugar and salt.

Cut the butter into chunks and using your fingertips work the butter into the dry ingredients until you have a coarse meal. 

Make a well in the middle and add the egg. Add the vinegar.  Using a fork, mix from the center out until you have a soft dough.

Divide in half and refrigerate if too soft to roll out.

For the pumpkin filing:

This is for a single pie filing. Double it if making two pies.

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 large eggs
• 1 can (15 oz.) pure pumpkin
• 1 can (12 fl. oz.) evaporated milk  (Use Almond Milk for a Casein Free Pie)

 Mix sugar, cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves in small bowl. Beat eggs in large bowl. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

Pour into an unbaked pie shell.

Bake in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.  

What will eat besides the pie!  Some in my family would think that pie and a side of mashed potatoes is enough, but we will also have a Deep Fried Turkey, Cranberry Chutney, Strawberry Spinach Salad and I am making rolls with the Betty Crocker Bisquick Pancake and Baking Mix, Gluten-Free) which we actually really like. 

 This is my Mom's recipe for Cranberry Chutney:

l   can whole berry cranberry sauce

1  small can crushed pineapple

l/2   cup chopped pecans toasted

1/4  cup chopped celery

Combine all ingredients in a medium bow.  Chill until ready to serve.

Still looking for a good stuffing recipes.  Any suggestions?

Our Favorite Gluten and Casein Free Snack Bars

Hi!  Sorry I have not posted in so long.  In the normal course of events, I took the summer off but this fall I "went back to school" so have been too busy to post very often.  I am on winter break now and have so much to share so I hope to pass along a lot of information before I resume classes late January.

To start with, here is a recipe for our New Favorite Gluten Free Snack bar.  This recipe started one morning when I was staring at a box of Perky's Crunchy Flax cereal wondering what in the heck to do with it. 

We do not eat much cereal anymore but I am too frugal to waste anything!

After a quick search on the internet, I found this recipe and it has become a family favorite. 

 I make it once or twice a month. 

The kids love it as an after school snack and it works ok in a lunch box.  The bars hold together much better if they are cold so they will fall apart if left in a lunch bag for too long!

It is far better than any bars you can buy and really pretty healthy.

The original recipe was posted on the Enjoy Life's Blog.  I changed it to suit our taste and family as follows.  Most notably I doubled the recipe!  They hardly last a week as it is!

 

Our Favorite Gluten Free Snack Bars

 

6 Tablespoons Honey

4 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

1 Tablespoon Coconut Oil

1 Cup Peanut Butter

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Generous Pinch or Two of Salt (omit if using salted nut or seed butter)

3 Tablespoons Ground Flaxseed Meal (I use Bob's Redmill)

2 Cup Certified Gluten Free Quick or Rolled Oats  (I use Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Whole Grain, Rolled Oats, 32-Ounce Bags (Pack of 4) and I actually do order this by the case from Amazon.com.  We love it for breakfast, these bars, oatmeal cookies . . ..)

1 Cup Enjoy Life Foods Cereal Perkys Crunchy Flax  z OR Perky's Rice Cereal

1 Cup Gluten Free Mini Chocolate Chips - Use Dairy Free Chips for a GF and Casein Free treat such as Enjoy Life Foods Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips Gluten Free 10 OZ)  (BTW - I do not order these by the case from Amazon because I would eat all of them!)

In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the two sweeteners and the oil, and gently warm over low heat while stirring until the sugar crystals have dissolved. This should just take a couple of minutes.

Stir in the peanut butter, vanilla, and salt until smooth. Remove from the heat. Allow the mixture to cool for a couple of minutes.

Stir in the flaxseed, followed by the oats and cereal.

Let the mixture cool for few more minutes (so the chocolate chips will not melt) and then stir in the chocolate chips.

The mixture will be crumbly, but that is okay. Press it firmly into an 9 x 12 pan (put your had in a sandwich bag with a little oil on it to press it in). Make sure it is packed in there nicely, and then place the bars into the regrigerator to chill for 30 minutes to an hour.

Cut into bars. They will be very hard when they first come out of the refrigerator but loosen up as they get warm. Store them in the refrigerator to keep from getting too soft. 

Email me any new recipes that you have to share at jamie@glutenfreemom.com!