ChrisMASH time was here...

Good morning dear readers. Are you in a puffy detox from the holiday festivities like I am? That sounds too sugar coated and believe me I am ready to rid the sugar from my diet. How about a more truthful statement of current status: “I am in holiday party aftermath from the constant eating, drinking, family overload.” Truth hurts, I know. You can just consult my waistline and bags under my eyes.


Sorry darlings, that may have been too harsh of reality to bring to you first thing but I imagine you are in a quazi similar boat. If not, I am in envy of you.

Hopping back to the family frenzied days and nights, I was of course asked to bring something to our potluck Christmas dinner. I chose mashed potatoes. No not the box kind that comes in a horrifying dried flake form. I boil my own thank you very much, and add a little extra somethin’ somethin’. No shocker to you all I am sure. It was a great compliment when my cousin Meredith turned to me at the dinner and asked what I did to spruce the taters up. At least I hope it was a compliment. They seemed to be a hit though because there wasn’t a dollop left!

Before I bounce to the recipe I have a confession friends... I used to be buddy-buddy with those boxed flakes. We all had to start somewhere right? I thought attempting the “homemade way” would be too much work. I also served those processed puppies with “Minute Steaks” that I thought only needed to be cooked for one minute. When I saw that they still didn’t look down I went ahead and threw in one more minute on each side just to be safe. No, I have never lived that one down.

So, I think I have come along way. This recipe is simple and not at all scary. I wanted to make 'southern' mashed potatoes but after looking at the heart clogging recipes I decided to dumb the butter down and dish up a delicious digression. It is still rich and heavy but hey it’s the holidays! Add gravy if you like, but this dish can stand on its own two feet!

Home-style Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients
• 8 yukon gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ cup low fat cream cheese
• 3 tbs butter
• 3 tbs half and half
• Kosher Salt
• Pepper
• Chicken Broth (optional)

Directions

Place potatoes in a stock pot and cover with water (I added half broth half water more flavor). Boil for 20-25 minutes, then drain.

Add all remaining ingredients back to the stock pot. Top with warm potatoes. Mash until desired consistency. I like mine to have a slightly thick texture.

Salt and Pepper to taste. YUM!

Oh, and you can always work off the calories by enjoying a long bike ride with Santa’s gift…

You don’t eat no MEAT?

Well, I didn’t for a while. Now, every here and there. Going straight vegetarian helped me sort out things digestively and while I still mainly want veggies for the main course, I will eat meat here and there. I preface that when I do, it is free range and organic. Being vegetarian and reading all the horrific stories, anything but doesn’t exactly appeal to me anymore.

But, this blog isn’t about my opinions on that and you know very well by now that I am all about good food!

That said, let me tell you about my latest infatuation with my slow cooker. The name of that little gem almost says it all! Slow cooking. Slow simmering. Slowly soaking up savory and sumptuous flavors and letting off a slow steam of juicy fragrance. My life is pretty “go, go, go” so anything that involves the word slow without actually slowing me down makes my ears perk.

From harvest soups to porkchops (recipe to come) my slow cooker has been working overtime. Don’t feel sorry for it though my dear readers, it has been thanking me for finally filling it to the brim and giving it a work out. My husband and son have been praising me too. Sorry slow cooker, I’m taking some of your credit.

The last couple weeks have had me bopping about to Christmas lunches galore and frankly I have been missing my precious hour at home! To relax of course, and to prepare a home cooked meal. Yesterday I had those miraculous moments of freedom and decided I had to take advantage and use the ol’ cooker. First thing that popped in my head? Greek Chicken and Potatoes. From where? No clue. But it sure made one heck of a spontaneous decision into a delicious, inexpensive, and healthy home cooked meal.

You know I am a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants and ignore deviate from a recipe kind of gal so it’s no surprise that I winged it right? Oh being so reckless never tasted so good. This recipe could feed four quite heartily. I am happy it was just the two of us last night so now I have leftovers. Yiayia watch out, this may give you a run for your euro.

Slow Cooker Greek Chicken and Potatoes

Ingredients

• 1 package free range chicken quarters
• Free range chicken broth (I used Pacific, half carton)
• 4 potatoes, peeled and quartered
• 4 lemons
• Oregano (a LOT)
• Salt
• Pepper
• Good Olive Oil (I am Greek, I have to specific the “good” part)
• 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced



Directions

Peel and quarter your potatoes and place them in the bottom of your slow cooker. Pour chicken broth over them until it almost covers the tops. Add the juice of one lemon and coat with a heavy layer of pepper and oregano, then lightly sprinkle a teaspoon or two of kosher salt.

Place chicken quarters in a small bowl and add about 3 tablespoons olive oil and the juice of 2 lemons. Rub with oregano, pepper, and a little salt on the skin (or remove skin if you like and massage right into the chicken). Add the chicken on top of the potatoes.

Slice your last lemon thinly and top chicken quarters. Add garlic to top it off. Cook on high for 4-6 hours. I let mine cook on high for 5, low for one.

Try not to eat the entire pot in a sitting I dare you! In fact I have to apologize because we gobbled so quickly that I forgot to take a pretty picture of the final product. Trust me, you'll understand once you make it. And Yiayia, I am coming for you….

Christmas Carols & Candy Cane Crumbles

Ah the holidays are upon us. I have Christmas music blaring from all speakers of my house, car, and office and am burning down my multiple pine scented candles to the bare bottom. My kettle is brimming with Christmas teas and my fridge busting with Christmas brew. But amidst the poinsettia laden playground in my house, is a more prominent tradition…making sweet, after sweet, after sweet. Christmas cookies, candies, and cakes are swarming my recipe box. This is the way I like to spread my Christmas cheer!

As I believe I mentioned before, fate brought a couple of gluten free, Greek neighbors when we moved. Crazy right? Myrsini has been helping me brush up on my Greek and I am helping her map through America’s maze of gluten free recipes, blogs, and books. We planned to meet last weekend to go Christmas shopping for her house and decorate with all the bulbs and baubles of the holiday. A couple stops and bursting shopping bags later we arrived back at her house armed with holiday gear. Since it was a Friday afternoon, we were setting up Christmas décor, and my 7 year old was feigning for weekend sugar, we knew we had to make some sort of treat. Bonus of a gluten free Greek neighbor? A ready made gluten free brownie mix to play with together.

While I trimmed the tree, my neighbor Myrsini and my son Mitch got to working on the brownies. It would be my first foray with Pamela’s gluten free brownie mix and I was eager to taste test! They decided that they were going to make mini brownie cupcakes, a concoction that was formed in Mitch’s brain and concurred with Myrsini’s direction in the kitchen. The highlight was the two trying to figure out why the dough looked dry…they skipped the oil and water part of the directions. No worries, the blonde saved the day!

Topping the Tree with our neighbor!

After much hand mixing, throwing of dough, dotting each other’s noses, and much taste testing, we patted the mix into Winnie the pooh baking cups, and let them rest peacefully in the oven.

I have never put brownie mix into baking cups but i have to admit it was one of the best/least messy gluten free baking experiences I have ever had. Well, at least the time in the oven…I suppose I cannot discount the before and after bouts of hilarity.

Case in point, Pamela’s brownie mix was deliciously delivered in muffin cups. Some mixes can get gritty but I have always had success with Pamela's mixes. The brownies were crammed with sweet chocolate taste, and had the perfect dense and moist texture. Baking them in individual cups made them easy to serve and kept me from devouring half the pan (it's bad to do that right? right?) It didn't stop me from licking the bowl though. And spoon. And dough off my nose. Sshh don't tell Santa.

I think I will be recreating them this weekend with maybe chocolate icing and candy cane crumbles…Who’s with me!?

Gobbling Gluten Free

Gobble Gobble!

Can you believe that Thanksgiving is just a couple days away? It is even more shocking to me since my husband and I will be hosting for the first time this year. What would possess me to take on the challenge of my large and everyone-in-charge holiday extravaganza? Well, currently it looks as though we decided to put in a dance floor in our new house since our dining room and living room furniture have not yet arrived. In other words, we have a boat load of space to entertain! I will be busting out the collapsible tables, autumn linens and stuffed turkey décor and boasting a mish mashed spread of Greek/American cuisine.

That said, you may wonder what on earth does one eat gluten free on holidays. Last year I posted some tips and reminders here: I'm Not Going Cold Turkey

For those of you recently joining the g-free club, don’t fret about these upcoming soirees. My best advice is to be prepared. Call your host and see what the menu will consist of and make a list of things that you know you can glutinously consume sans gluten. Turkey no stuffing. Pile on that cranberry sauce but check into the gravy before pouring because flour may have been used to thicken. When in doubt, cart along your own gravy or sides! No shame in wanting delicious sauce over your gobbler just like the others. Hey, I carry my own soy sauce in my purse to Asian restaurants with no shame! And what better reason to offer to bring something?

I myself have decided to tackle a gluten free pie this Thursday. After much thought, I decided to try out a ready made gluten free pie crust since I will be prepping both tables and other dishes this year. I found one at whole foods that looked delicious, and with a little homemade love in the center I think we could have an easy recipe headed your way! I will keep you posted on the turn out.

In the meantime, Rudi's sent me a delicious Hazelnut Sage Stuffing recipe to share!

Hazelnut Sage Stuffing

Rudi’s Gluten-free stuffing by Chef Dan of Renegade Kitchen!

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf Rudi’s Gluten-Free Multigrain Bread
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 whole yellow onion, chopped
• 1 bulb fennel, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 tablespoons sage, minced
• 1 pound Cremini mushrooms, chopped
• salt and pepper
• 1 ½ cup veggie stock
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup chopped hazelnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 250 degrees.

2. Cut the loaf of bread into rough cubes, anywhere from 1/2 inch to 3/4¾inch pieces. Spread the bread cubes over a cookie sheet and toast them in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until they’re light brown and slightly crisp on the outside.

3. Set the bread aside and turn the oven temperature up to 350 degrees.

4. Heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium heat and cook the onion, fennel, and garlic until they’re slightly translucent, about 5-7 minutes.

5. Add the sage and mushrooms and cook everything down for 10 minutes, or until the veggies are 50% of their original volume. Season everything with salt and pepper as you go.

Makes one 9 x 13 dish.
Prep Time: 40-50 minutes
Baking Time: 15-20 minutes

Happy Thanksgiving dear readers!! I am so thankful for YOU!!

Prones & Cake

I will not call myself careless or irresponsible. I prefer saying I am prone to my flaws like it isn’t something I can necessarily help. I am currently prone to accidents (those walls move and that carpet jumps up when I walk), losing things (I KNOW I set it right there), OCD tendencies (those spots on the counter multiply against me), and well I am sure some other things. However, when one of my “prones” turns into a devastating situation that I somehow miraculously recover from or learn a lesson, I make sure it doesn’t reoccur. Those “prones” are funny like that huh?

Where am I going with this? My losing things prone (I am kind of making a new noun here but I think it works for this piece. Feel free to borrow) got me in a huge mess today. I thought I lost my engagement ring. I don’t think I have ever been so distraught. I couldn’t fathom how something so priceless, so irreplaceable was gone.

After turning everything in my world upside down over a something that turned my life right side up, it was found. It’s a crazy story, but hey, I know you’ve come to this blog for the food. Which I don’t blame you ‘cause I kind of enjoy it myself. So I’ll get to the goods.

When Greeks lose something we pray to St. Fanourios to help us find it. I am not kidding you, it works. As thanks we bake a cake. I know it’s a shocker that us Greeks decided to lope eating into this mix. But all the more reason to break out the pans and preheat the oven. And as you might have guessed, the recipe is very old and so not gluten free. That won’t stop me from giving thanks!

I crossed my fingers that my gluten free “thanks for helping me find my ring due to my losing things prone” wouldn’t fall short. That blessed dude found something very dear to my heart.

I think I would have made ol’ Fanourios proud and would have loved to share a slice with him. It was a last second cake so easy substitutions were necessary. It kind of had a sponge-like texture if you will. My husband had a slice, I had a slice, and then our new neighbors popped in as a surprise and enjoyed it as well! Get this…they’re Greek too!

Welcome to America Myrsini!

Here is the original recipe that I based mine on. Surely he wouldn’t want me to bake a cake and not eat it right? My fanouropita is below!

http://www.sprint.net.au/~corners/Aug97/StFanourios.html


Gluten Free Fanouropita (cinnamon, walnut cake)

Ingredients

• 3 ½ cups gluten free flour mix (I used Pamela’s baking mix)
• 1 tbs vanilla
• 1 tbs cinnamon
• 12 tbs orange juice
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup water
• 2 tbs organic sugar
• ½ cup grated lemon peel
• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Directions

In a large bowl combine your gluten free flour mix and cinnamon.

In a medium bowl beat oil, sugar, orange juice, lemon peel, and water. Add to the flour mix and beat very well. Fold in your walnuts.

Grease a medium round pan (I used earth balance) and pour in the batter.

Bake at 350 F for 30-40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown or when your toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake.

Remove and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Say an extra little thanks to that wonderful Saint that helped you with your lose things prone.

Plate, slice, and chow! Add a little dusting of confectioner’s sugar on top if you so please. My husband isn’t a huge fan so I omitted.

*It is said the cake tastes best if left for 24 hours, but who on earth can wait THAT long? Hehe

Kale Coma

Miss me? I am sorry I have been away. Between moving into my new house, getting cooking supplies unpacked, and well, a busted phone which holds the camera I have been relying on, I had a minor hiatus. No worries though because I am back in business and October happens to be my favorite month. Pumpkin shavings will adorn my side porch tomorrow as I chisel my spooky designs for my front porch Halloween décor. Butternut squash will be bursting with bold flavors in my oven. Apples happily sit piled in my fruit bowl and all the doors will be open letting the beautiful breeze brush my hair off my face as I feverishly cook for our weekend camping trip.

Back to the present day though. I arrived home today without one clue on what to make. Being that we attended a concert last night something warm and comforting was definitely on the menu. That and I have been in a tizzy to use anything that might expire while we are away. I despise wasting food. Maybe that is the reason I glutinously cleaned my plate today…Sure, I will go with that.

For produce I had to use up a large bushel of kale. My boiling pot is still MIA so brown rice would serve as a nice bed. And comfort? That comes in the form of a gooey, cheesy, sauce. I have made vegan cheese sauces in the past with great success but I really didn’t want to prep too much. With the basic ingredients in mind I threw together the one below and behold, a success was whirred up in my vitamix.


Cheesy Kale & Brown Rice

1 bushel of kale, stems cut off
2 cups brown rice
Cheese sauce (see below)
Vegetable broth
Pepper to taste

Easy Peezy Cheezy Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons earth balance, melted
• 2 tablespoons ground pepper
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• ½ cup nutritional yeast
• ½ cup vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup cashews, chopped
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions:

Prepare brown rice and set aside. I used boil in a bag brown rice because of my time crunch.

Prepare cheese sauce:

Add all ingredients in the vitamins and blend on high until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. It will be very thick but no worries, it will thin when added to recipe.

In a medium saucepan add about half cup vegetable brown and warm. Add cheese sauce and stir. Keep adding a little vegetable broth until it becomes thinner in consistency. I like a thick creamy sauce so I didn’t add a lot but if you like thinner add more.

Add kale to the pan and coat with the sauce. Saute until tender, about 10 minutes. Add rice and combine. Serve with a dash of ground pepper on top! MMMMMM.


Enjoy!! Confession, I had two helpings. I blame it on my tiny Halloween plate!

Busted

Brief post to say that my blog posting will be back to normal now that I have a new phone! My old phone got in a fight with our new kitchen floor and lost. Shattered screen, no more photos...nothing. OUCH! I am back in the game though and my pots and pans are finally stocked. Stay tuned for a recipe soon!