Mini Cheesecakes

This is an quick and yummy way to make individual cheesecakes.  You can use whatever kind of gluten free cookies you would like for the crust.  I like to use Glutino's Vanilla Creme cookies.  You can also make your own pecan/pretzel crust.  Top the cheesecake with your favorite pie filling, or fresh berries. They look fancy, and yet you can whip them up in a flash!  This recipe makes 24 cheesecakes.

Gluten free cookies
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
Fresh Berries
Strawberry/Raspberry sauce or pie filling (make sure it's gluten free)

Preheat oven to 325º.  Place cupcake liners into cupcake pan.  Pull apart the vanilla creme cookies, and scrape off the creme center of the cookies.  Using just half of the cookie (without the cream), place it into each of the cupcake liners.  (Each cookie makes a crust for 2 cheesecakes.)

Mix the cream cheese and sugar together in a medium mixing bowl.  Add the lemon juice and vanilla and beat it until combined.  Add the eggs and mix well.  Using a spoon, drop batter onto each cookie, about 1/2 full.

Bake for 20 minutes.  Cool.  Top with fresh berries and raspberry or blueberry pie filling.  You can also blend some fresh strawberries/raspberries and mix them with a little powdered sugar for the topping.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note:  The cheesecake picture above has a homemade nut/pretzel crust in it.  I just blend up pecans and gluten free pretzels.  I add a little sugar.  Then I melt some butter and mix it in until it's moist.  It's my favorite type of cheesecake crust!

Beefy Vegetable Noodle Soup

This hearty soup is colorful and delicious!  It's a one pot meal that is quick to put together.  I love that it uses leftover roast beef and gravy!  My kids aren't huge into soups, but they all loved this one!  It is also perfect to grind up into baby food because it full of veggies, meat and noodles.  My baby loves it as much as anyone!  It is adapted from Valerie Phillips "Beef Vegetable and Noodle Soup" in her Soup's On! cookbook.  (Which is a great find!  It has a lot of soup recipes that are naturally gluten free, or easily adaptable.)

2 cups leftover roast beef, diced
1/2 cup leftover gravy (GF of course!)
1 (16 ounce) pkg frozen mixed vegetables
2 cups frozen diced O'Brien-style hash browns
1 (14.5 ounce) can petite-diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried onion
6 beef bouillon cubes (Western Family is gluten free)
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon sugar
6 cups water
salt to taste
pepper to taste
2 cups GF brown rice spiral pasta

Put everything except the salt, pepper and pasta into a large pot.  Bring to a boil.  Add pasta and cook until tender, stirring occasionally.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Take out bay leaf prior to serving.

Spinach Apple Salad

This is a quick 3 ingredient salad I put together in a rush.  My kids don't love salad and this one they actually ate, so I thought I'd post it.  It's hardly blog-worthy, but as I've said before, my recipe blog is as much for me as anything.  I like to keep a record of recipes we like and will make again.

The Red Wine Vinegar Salad dressing is delicious on many different salads.  My sister likes it on wraps as well!

Spinach
Apples, diced
Pecans
Red Wine Vinegar Salad Dressing

Red Wine Vinegar Salad Dressing

1 cup canola oil

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons dry mustard

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Blend well.