Shrimp & Cream Cheese Dip

This dip is always a bit hit for parties, get-togethers, football games, etc.  It's quick and easy to put together!

8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
Cocktail sauce (McCormick is gluten free)
Cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined, chopped
GF Crackers

Spread softened cream cheese on a large plate.  Pour your favorite cocktail sauce on top and spread around.  Top with chopped shrimp.  (I buy frozen medium shrimp, thaw it and chop it up.)  I like to use Nut Thin Crackers.

Pot Roast with Carrots

This is a our favorite Sunday meal!  It's cooks all day while we're at church.  I serve it with mashed potatoes and gravy.  I use the drippings from the roast, add water and beef bouillon and thicken it with a corn starch and water mixture.

3 1/2 pound beef roast
1 large onion, quartered
salt & pepper
garlic powder
3 bay leaves (optional)
baby carrots

Place the roast in the crockpot.  Season with salt and pepper, and a little bit of garlic powder.  Put 3 bay leaves on the roast.  Add the onion quarters.  Cook on high for 2 hours.  Add the baby carrots, and season with salt and pepper.  Turn down to low and cook for 6 - 7 more hours.  Use drippings to make gravy.

Corn Bread and Honey Butter

I love to serve warm corn bread and honey butter with Chili on a cold wintery day!  If you prefer a smaller amount, just half the recipe and use an 8 x 8 inch pan.

2 cups corn meal

2 cups featherlight flour

1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

2 cups milk

2/3 cup canola oil

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400º.  Spray 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.  Combine corn meal, flour, xanthan gum, sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.  Combine milk, oil and egg in small bowl; mix well.  Add milk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until blended.  Pour into prepared pan.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Serve warm.

Note:  Make sure the corn meal is gluten free.

Honey Butter

1/2 cup butter

1 tablespoon honey

1/3 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Whip the butter until it's fluffy.  Add the honey, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla.  Beat until smooth.

White Sandwich Bread

This bread is delicious!  It's a gluten free dream!  I love eating it hot out of the oven!  Yum!
This recipe is an adaptation from eatingglutenfree.com

3 cups GF flour

¼ cup sugar

3 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1 ½ teaspoons salt

¼ cup dry powdered milk

1 ½ tablespoons yeast

1 ¾ cup warm water

¼ cup oil

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

3 eggs

Mix flour, sugar, xanthan gum, salt and powdered milk together in bowl of a stand mixer.  Dump the yeast on top of the dry ingredients, but don’t mix it in.  Combine water, oil, and vinegar in a separate bowl.  Pour on top of yeast, and let sit 3 minutes.  Mix together on low speed.  Add eggs.  Mix until combined, then beat on high speed for 5 minutes.

Grease 2 regular loaf pans with shortening.  Pour batter in pans, and let rise for about 20 minutes.  As bread is rising preheat oven to 375º.

Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto counter/cutting board.  (Yummy eaten when warm!)

Let cool completely, then slice and place in refrigerator or freezer.

Note:  When it's cool, I like to put it in a ziploc bag and leave it on the counter the day I bake it and the next day.  I love the taste.  If you keep it more than about 4 days, put it in the freezer.

Caramel Popcorn

This is one of my husband's favorite treats!  In fact he's the one that makes it!  I love this caramel popcorn because it is soft and gooey!  Although if you let it sit it hardens up a little.  I got the recipe from my neighbor Allison.  She likes to use 3 bags of microwave popcorn, instead of the kind you pop yourself.  Both work great.

2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup corn syrup
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cube butter
popcorn

Pop 1 cup dry popcorn and place in a large bowl or pan.  In a saucepan, bring sugar and corn syrup to a boil.  Add sweetened condensed milk and butter.  Boil for 1 minute.  Pour over popcorn.  Stir and serve.

Black Bean Corn Salsa

This is a fresh tasting dip served with tortilla chips!  It's a standby appetizer for parties, football games, and get-together's in our home!  It's also a tasty way to add more beans into your diet!

1 15 oz can Black Beans, rinsed and drained
1 11 oz can White Shoepeg corn, drained
2 - 3 diced Roma tomatoes
Cilantro, chopped  (about 1/4 bunch or to taste)
1 - 2 Avocados, cubed
Juice from 1 Lime
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix and serve with tortilla chips

Dutch Oven Peach Cobbler

This is one of our favorite dutch oven desserts!  It is by far the best peach cobbler recipe that I have ever had.  The original recipe comes from a scouting magazine article and was created by H. Kent Rappleye, the International Dutch Oven Society president.  I just changed the flour to use gluten free flour, and added xanthan gum and it works great!

INGREDIENTS

2 cans (32oz) peaches

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup tapioca

2 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp vanilla

Topping

1 1/2 cups featherlight flour

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 pkg (3 oz) peach jello

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup cold butter

1/2 cup honey

2 eggs, beaten

Sauce

1/4 cup featherlight flour

3/4 cup peach syrup

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/3 cup butter

1 tsp lemon zest

1/4 cup lemon juice

DIRECTIONS

1. Drain the peaches, setting the juice aside for later use. Mix together the peaches, brown sugar, tapioca, cinnamon, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla in the dutch oven.

2. Topping: Mix together the flour, xanthan gum, Jello, lemon zest, baking powder and salt together in a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter until mixture becomes coarse. Add in the honey and eggs and stir into mixture. The mixture will be very coarse and thick.

3. Drop the topping by spoonfuls onto the peaches. It will look like dumplings. Cook for 45-50 minutes. Remove the dutch oven from the heat and allow cobbler to cool while making the sauce.

4. In a small Dutch oven, mix the flour and peach syrup until smooth; making sure there are no lumps. Add in the brown sugar, salt, butter, and zest. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring often until the sauce thickens. remove the mixture from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Pour the sauce over the cobbler in the Dutch oven and serve with vanilla ice cream if desired.

Note:

•  I like to use the dutch oven liners shown in the picture below!  They make cleaning up so much easier!

Zucchini Rings

My husband loves Zucchini Rings!  He likes them dipped in ketchup!  You can also use this batter to make Onion Rings!

1 beaten egg
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons oil
3/4 cup featherlight flour
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
Zucchini, sliced (about 1/4 inch)

Beat egg.  Add milk and oil.  Stir together.  Add flour, xanthan gum and salt.  Whisk.  You want it to be the consistency of pancake batter.  If it's a little too thick, add some more milk.

Heat about 2 inches of oil in a deep frying pan, on medium to medium high heat.  Coat slices of zucchini in batter one at a time, and place in hot oil.  Fry until golden brown, turning once.  When you pull them out of the oil, place on a plate with several layers of paper towel, to absorb the some of oil and cool.

Pear & Goat Cheese Salad

I like the way the ingredients in this salad combine to make a tasty flavor!  The goat cheese moistens up the salad, so you don't have to put salad dressing on this, but you certainly can if you'd like.

Green leaf lettuce
Goat cheese
Pears, peeled and cubed
Dried blueberries
Pecans, chopped

Cheese Sauce

A favorite meal at our house is a Baked Potato Bar.  One thing we like to put on them is cooked broccoli with cheese sauce!

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons featherlight flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Melt butter in a saucepan.  Add salt and flour and whisk for 1 minute, until flour is heated through.  Stir in milk.  Cook on medium, stirring constantly until sauce thickens.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Take off heat.