Dinner doesn't have to be difficult to be Delicious!

This Memorial Day we're having some good ol' BBQ the EASY way.
Inspired by my bestie who doesn't like to spend too much time in the kitchen...what follows is a DELISH dinner that is easy, GF and super yum!
On the Menu
Pulled Pork

Gotta love the West Wing!

Potato Cakes
American Flag Pudding

This pulled pork recipe is handed down (or I guess over since we're the same age) from a friend of mine from work ...you might recognize her from TV :)

Hub's Favorite Pulled Pork
12 oz of A&W Root Beer (NOT DIET) per 2lbs of pork
1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (we use Pat's Ho-Made)
Pork Roast

Put root beer and pork in crock pot for 7hrs
Drain, shred, add bottle of BBQ Sauce
Voila...awesomeness




Crispy Potato Cakes
1/2 cup chopped onions (I used pre-chopped from the produce section)
3 Tbsp bacon bits (I used turkey bits)
1 oz shredded cheese
2 cups mashed potatoes (chilled)
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

Set oven to 425
Saute onions with bacon bits until carmelized, place in freezer for a few minutes to cool (this helps patties form)
In a mixing bowl add all ingredients except bread crumbs and mix
Separate into 6 equal patties
Coat both sides in breadcrumbs and bake for 12 minutes on each side

American Flag Fruit Pudding
2 pkgs of Your favorite Jell-o pudding flavor (white) follow directions on box
1 cup blueberries
3 cups chopped strawberries

this one is pretty self explanatory
we used some white icing for the stars :)

I'll gladly pay you Tuesday for a Hamburger Today

I'm an Udi's fan.

I like their sandwich bread, I lurve me some of dem dere chocolate chip cookies, and their breakfast muffins are a fave when I need a quick breakfast or we're putting out a Sunday morning brunch.

So when I saw their new hamburger and hot dog buns, it was a no brainer...they went straight into my shopping cart.

We tried the hamburger buns one night for cheeseburgers and fries and the hot dog buns held our favorite sausage from Al Fresco...we love the Sundried tomato flavor!

I gotta say, for me, these buns are a let down.
Now I will follow that up by saying...for the past few years I've just gone without eating bread on my burger, brat, dog or sausage...so perhaps I've grown accustomed to eating them that way and the "bread" just didn't sit well with my stomach. The buns were a bit more dense than I expected, and that may have contributed to that "heavy" feeling in my stomach.

I guess I'm falling more in line with my philosphy of..."you don't HAVE to eat it just because it's offered in a GF option." It IS nice to know their are choices out there, but the next time I have a burger and desperately want the bun too...I'm gonna stick with the lighter, tastier version from Schar.

How do you eat your burgers and dogs?

Who are the people in your neighborhood?

In my previous post, I mentioned our cashier, Sarah. She can tell by the groceries in our cart whether or not our boys will be home, if we're trying out a new recipe AND that we follow a gluten free diet. She's not the only one at our local store to notice. Several of the managers and baggers ask about the products we buy, and why we buy them, too. This weekly "educational" opportunity has turned into a blessing for one of their co-workers who was recently diagnosed with Celiac. Now, everytime they see a new product in my cart, they ask about it. When Thanksgiving came around, they asked me what products they could stock in the store that would make it easier for me (and her) to enjoy our holidays.
She and I exchange recipe ideas and taste-test horror stories, and I have several new blog readers lurkers. *Shout out to all my WRPers*

Educational moments pop up all over my neighborhood. I work in a local theme park as a sign language interpreter and there are goodies and snacks in just about every break room on property. I always graciously decline the offer of a cookie or crackers and dip..."It's not you, I'm gluten free."
Now I've worked with some of these folks for nearly 10 years so they've seen my ups and downs over the years so of course they ask..."does that help you?"
And so the educational opportunity begins...we talk food, we talk poop, we talk pain-free living...and inevitably someone says..."that sounds like me."
I'm quick to remind I'm no doctor, I don't even play one on tv (although one of my co-workers does), but if they're experiencing symptoms, it's worth a talk with their doctor. More often, someone says,"Hey, I know someone who has to eat GF"...and another lurker is born :)

We visit some local restaurants as a fam and all the servers know I'll be grilling them about their grilling techniques and what is in their sauces. We've frequent our regular haunts often enough that now they come to me..."hey we just got this in...try this new sauce and let us know what you think...my sister's kid was just diagnosed with celiac, what's your blog link again?"

Heh...I just realized I made my neighborhood sound kind of creepy with a buch of lurkers loitering about ;)

The moral of the story?
Wear your GFness on your sleeve...you never know who is lurking about :)



a sweet litle side note...
I'm a CODA and grew up just loving Linda Bove on Sesame Street because she is Deaf, like my parents are, and because she was on TV, my house didn't seem quite so weird to the other kids on the playground. I had the opportunity to meet Ms. Bove when I interpreted a conference in Philadelphia...definitely took the opportunity to thank her for influencing kids everywhere, hearing and Deaf, that the "people in your neighborhood" are ALL people, whether they can hear or not.

And I'm sorry you're all singing this silly song now
well...not really sorry, but you know what I mean :)

Put some FUN in your Green Beans!

Anyone who knows us, knows we like to give thanks...with all the trimmings :)
Our favorite time to grocery shop is right after Thanksgiving when turkeys go on sale. We buy a few and put 'em in the deep freezer so we can give thanks all year long.



crunch em up so they sprinkle!

 Well you also know that you can't have turkey without the green bean casserole...turkey and green beans are soul mates :) In the past, we've made our own french fried onions which turned out great, but can be a bit of a time suck if you're just having a turkey feast on any old weekday after work. This year, we decided to have a little more fun...FUNYUNS are Gluten Free and a perfect quick topping for a scrumptious green bean casserole.

Now I understand, something you buy in the processed, crap food aisle may not be your number one choice to sprinkle on your green beans. Sarah, our regular cashier, noticed them in our cart and gave me a raised eyebrow...but sometimes concessions need to be made for convenience sake :)

I don't really follow any specific recipe for my casserole


Mix in your Funyuns, bake at 350 for 45 min to an hr



• 1lb or 2 of fresh green beans, snapped and quick boiled
• 1 can of progresso cream of mushroom soup
• 10 sliced baby bella mushrooms
• salt and pepper to taste
• as many crushed funyuns as you deem necessary, half mixed in, half sprinkled on top

Another hit with the fam...but this MAY be because they had funyuns to snack on afterwards :)

Try it out...let me know what you think :)

More Bang for your Butternut Buck

I lurve me some butternut squash...but I always pass it up in the grocery store unless it's pre-cubed.

Well fear the squash no more, I did a little research in my Madhur Jaffrey cook book, and they're much easier to handle than I thought and were the star of two meals I made this month.

First, the prep.

Cut the stem from the bulb of the squash and peel.

Slice the peeled stem into 1/4 or 1/2 inch slices, then cube.

Scoop the seeds out of the bulb and peel and slice in the same manner.

*I did not peel and slice the bulbs as they inspired me to make a stuffed butternut squash bowl*

The cubed squash was used in a yummy winter curry I brought to a gathering of fellow staff from Ananda Yoga and Massage. Several of us follow a gluten-free diet and some are vegetarian and this was a great dish to share. It was also another excuse to use my tamarind concentrate and new mortar and pestle ~smile~

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1/2 tsp black mustard seeds

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne

4 cups cubed potatoes

4 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash

1 1/2 cups water or vegetable stock

1 Tbsp. tamarind concentrate

2 cups fresh chopped tomatoes

1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro

Heat oil in a medium saucepan and add mustard seeds. Once the seeds pop, add the onions and saute until translucent.

In a small bowl, combine garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, cardamom, salt and cayenne. When onions are translucent, add the spice mixture and cook 1 minute while stirring. Add potatoes, squash and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook until veggies are barely tender (15 min).

In a small bowl, dissolve the tamarind in a few tablespoons of the hot cooking liquid then add to the vegetables. Add tomatoes, chickpeas and cilantro. Cover and simmer for 10 min.

Serve on rice if desired, add some plain yogurt or fresh cilantro to the top.

Now...what did I do with the squash bulbs?

Well I add this to my long list of "Mommy made it up" dinners.

I've been using this phrase, "Mommy made it up..." for years when I'm asked what's for dinner,  and my daughter will tell you, these MMIU recipes are the BEST dinners and she says I should write a book :)

Ingredients (to the best of my recollection)




3 squash bulbs, seeded (not peeled)

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 zucchini squash, cubed (not peeled)

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 package shitaki mushrooms, chopped

1/4 c parmesean cheese



1 slice Muenster cheese

(check out these vegan cheese options)

Heat oil in medium sauce pan and saute onions and garlic until the house smells so good even the neighbors want dinner. Add zucchini and let cook for 1 minute, add mushrooms and parmesean cheese and stir to coat. Remove from heat.

before heading into the oven for an hour and half nap

Place 1/3 slice of Muenster cheese in the bottom of each squash bowl.

Stuff each bowl with mushroom mixture and cook at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hour under ventilated tin-foil tent.

Let me tell you , this is UBER nom nom nom.

The squash cooks up just right and keeps all the other veggies moist during the cooking time. The whole fam enjoyed it and it's on the MTAL (make this again list)

Enjoy

An ode to Brinner, Pumpkin Pancakes

Today's post is en hommage to a friend and fellow blogger Jennifer. Several weeks back she posted a recipe for Pumpkin Pancakes that I just KNEW I had to convert to a gluten friendly version. They are super yum and although we had them for Breakfast on a special Sunday morning, they would definitely make a great Brinner (breakfast for dinner).

These are the ingredients from Jen's original recipe

• 2 cups Bisquick
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 2 T sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1-2 dashes pumpkin pie spice

This is how I adjusted the recipe to be allergy friendly (not just gluten-free)

• 2 cups Gluten Free Bisquick
• 2 T ground flaxseed in 1/3 cup warm water
• 1 1/2 - 3/4 cup Almond milk
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 2 T sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1-2 dashes pumpkin pie spice

Blend all ingredients until well combined. note* I used more milk than the original recipe called for and this may be due to the nature of the GF bisquick,  but you can always start with less and add more as Jen suggested.

I cooked these in our cast iron skillet with a bit of butter to give them a nice crispy outside and they were a hit with the fam. Very tasty with a bit of syrup or agave nectar, and savory with a sprinkle of salt and pepper...so they go either way and are a nice alternative to potato pancakes.

Everybody Poops

Everybody poops right?

OF COURSE THEY DO

At what age to we stop talking about poop? I mean, when you're born your mom talks about your poop all the time, heck your momma probably cheered for your poop...somewhere around the 22 month mark,  the word poop becomes taboo in conversation.

If you're anything like my family, scatological humor sneaks in to dinner conversation (or sneaks out as it were) sometimes and rather than chastise, I play along and heck, we have happy dinners.

Perhaps THAT's what made me less afraid to talk about poop when it came to my symptoms. My poop was the one thing doctors just couldn't "fix" when they tried their barrage of treatments for my symptoms. "Maybe that's your normal," they'd say.
AHEM
IF YOUR POOP AIN'T NORMAL, YOUR BODY IS TRYING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING.

Back to our regularly scheduled font.
So its come as no suprise to me these past few months that poop is a common theme in other people's symptoms too. People close to me, WHO KNOW ABOUT MY POOP...  and they never thought to ask if gluten could be an issue.

I declare 2012 TALK ABOUT YOUR POOP year.

If everybody does it, then it's not weird right
who knows...you may just learn something
maybe you'll learn too much...and I apologize for that...but on the premise of "erring on the side of WOO HOO I had a good poop"...I say talk about it and just do your best to forget the mental images that don't serve you.

Honestly
If you've been living with abnormal poop
this may be diarrhea, this may be funky color, foul odor, weird consistency, texture, timing...whatever doesn't fall into an eat - poop cycle...then start talking about it.

The stool should be one, long smooth evacuation if the colon is not spastic, impacted, constipated or dehydrated. Each bowel movement should be in one piece, about the shape of a well-formed log, tapered at the end. Some websites say it should be of the size of a banana. From my experience, the product of a good, cleansing bowel movement is much longer, almost as long as two bananas end by end. This makes perfect sense because the stool should be an exact replica of the internal space of your colon.

You can talk to me about it...I'll keep it quiet email me.
talk to your doctor about it
talk to your walking buddy about it, your co workers, your spouse, your best friend
talk about poop

it's important
and it could just change the way you feel!