As many of you have probably noticed I just started this blog today. I've been cooking and baking for quite some time now, and I always loved to experiment and try new things in the kitchen. I was that girl that when you asked what she wanted to be when she grew up, I always thought I'd be a chef somewhere. As I got older, I realized that dream is not one easily accomplished- just like many other dreams. So, I went down a different road and made cooking and baking my hobby.

I would love to say I have wonderful memories of being a little girl and baking cookies with my mom and that's what made me love it so much. But, if I'm being honest, and brutally honest- my mom's cooking is certainly not even what you'd consider good. And, I couldn't recall the last time she baked. Let alone made something from scratch. So, off I went to see what REAL food tasted like, something HOMEMADE and delicious. After years of cooking dishes for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Birthday cakes, you name it. I was diagnosed with Celiac's.

I feel like many of us know what Celiac's is by now. Luckily for me, I found out roughly two years ago. And the gluten free food market has exploded! Ten years ago, I would've been miserable. But nowadays, it's actually not so bad. I've had the conversation with my boyfriend about, "if you could eat something with gluten and not get sick what would the first thing be?" Well, DONUTS, A CALZONE, A REAL REAL GOOD EVERYTHING BAGEL. I could probably think of a few good others that my fellow celiac friends could agree with. But, for the most part we've got it pretty good lately. I can't say I miss much, because the GF version is just as good.

So, with my new found dietary roadblock I decided to reroute my cooking and baking skills, so that I can enjoy all the good things. Don't get me wrong- donuts will never be the same, but I've gotten them pretty dang close. And some may say that's because I don't remember or can't compare to a non-gluten free donut but so be it...

Anyways, I started this blog to be able to share some of my favorite recipes that I've either found and altered to be GF or i've simply come up with myself. Unfortunately, for my fellow readers I am only gluten free. I can't give up any thing else- especially dairy. I love cheese too much. But, if you have any suggestions or make any of these recipes to be allergen free besides GF, feel free to share!

Also, as I improve on using this blog and actually now intend to share my recipes, I'll have better quality pictures and more steps photographed for those of you who end up following. If you have any questions, or you have any feedback from making anything yourself please let me know!

Thanks for reading!

Taco, Thursday?

This recipe is naturally gluten free! And, it's probably one of the easiest ones I've got, and nobody would ever know it. So, as you know I love my buffalo sauce. But I also love tacos. I've been making these taco's for a bit now and everyone but my one sister loves them! She's strange because she despises when salsa is in her food. But oh well. This was the first home cook meal I ever made my boyfriend- and he loved it! Unless he's just been lying this whole time 🤔

Anyways,  this one is a crockpot recipe. My favorite! And if you don't know, you must be told. Use crock pot liners! Those things are a life saver for cleaning up. No more scrubbing that crockpot.

INGREDIENTS:

•  1 lb. boneless chicken breast cut into quarters
• For this recipe feel free to use thick cut or thin, it doesn't make a difference.
• 1 jar of your favorite salsa. I love PACE because it's not super chunky.
• 1 packet of taco seasoning. One day I'll stop being lazy and make my own seasoning but for now, McCormick here I am.
• If you're someone who loves a bit of extra flavor, add some additional chili powder, paprika, and/or cumin.

STEPS:

1. Clean your chicken breast of any noticeable fat, and cut into quarters or halves.
2. Place chicken breast in your crockpot and dump your salsa right on top along with your taco seasoning. 
3. Give a quick stir to mix it in a little bit.
4. Set crockpot on HIGH for 4.5 hours.
5. After your 4.5 hours are up, taking a fork or two to your chicken and it shred it. It will fall right apart.
6. Taco' are ready! I personally LOVE the Dorito's Cheese Hard Shell, but you choose!

So, it's obvious I don't count calories..

Alright, so if you've looked at this page for ideas you can assume I definitely don't count my calories. Probably not the best lifestyle choice I've made, but hey it's not the worst. I'll continue to make my New Years resolution to go back to the gym. Until then, as long as nobody see's you eat it, it doesn't count right?

Luckily for me, my boyfriend loves to eat and snack just as much as I do. So this past weekend, just like any other mid 20 year old couple does, we were in bed Friday night at 8 o'clock or so. My boyfriend asleep, me watching HGTV. He wakes up, and instantly tells me about how his cousin used to make these amazing brownie cookie "things." He's not the best at describing his food- but he certainly knows when somethings good- because shit, it was delicious. So we decided instantly to run to Shoprite and get our ingredients. Unfortunately for him, this recipe became gluten free. There was no way I was going to make what I'm about to show you and NOT be able to eat it.

And the best part is... I didn't make this from scratch. No way Jose - I may be good in the kitchen but if I'm being honest. I'm not nearly as ambitious in the kitchen as I would need to be, to make this from scratch. Maybe one day, but not today. So, this is easy!And ladies... this is the first time he's actually followed through on helping me make something in the kitchen so it went even quicker!

So what's all the hype for..? These things called "Slutty Brownies!" For me, the name wasn't all that great but when I asked my boyfriend why their called that, as any other millennial would say, it's because "they're nasty."

WHAT YOU NEED:

• Glutino Brand Chocolate Cream Cookies - an entire box 😳 
• Red Mill GF Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
• 1 Egg
• 3 tbsp. water
• 1 stick butter, very soft
• Red Mill GF Brownie Mix
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 C. Melted Butter

* Of course, if the bag of Red Mill GF you use, has different instructional ingredients, follow what is on the package. Listed above, is what my packages said.

STEPS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix in a mixing bowl, set aside.
3. Prepare Brownie Mix in a separate mixing bowl, set aside.
4. Take a 12x9 baking pan, and lightly grease. Use the 12x9 or your masterpiece is going to be way way too thick. If you wish for it to be thinner than the picture I have, go for it. But definitely no smaller.
5. Pour your GF Chocolate Chip Cookie mix evenly on the bottom of your pan.
6. Next, take your Glutino ( wannabe Oreo's) and evenly place them on top of your cookie batter and give a gentle pat into the batter.
7. Then, pour your brownie batter over top the Oreo's. This part isn't what I call graceful because you'll see the Oreo wannabe's will start pulling up and sticking to whatever you're using to spread the batter with. I used the back of a metal spoon and it worked great.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until an insert comes out either clean or with few crumbs.
9. Now the bad news.... you MUST MUST MUST let these babies sit for AT LEAST 2 hours before cutting them or you'll be super disappointed.

Buffalo Chicken Continued...

Well, I realized literally right after posting that recipe that I did have an alternate way of getting my boneless wing fix all this time prior to that recipe which I only just came up with. Now, anyone who is as much of a buffalo chicken lover as I am knows theres a difference between wings and well, any other way of eating spicy chicken.

These are one of my favorites tho, Buffalo Chicken Meatballs. These puppies are tasty. Every time I bring them somewhere or make them for someone, they are a game changer. And no, I'm not just tooting my own horn here. This is a simple recipe but delicious and less messy than the wing recipe I just posted.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb. ground turkey ( Yup, I lied to you - it's turkey. ) I've made with both chicken and turkey personally like to use turkey instead of chicken because it has more moisture and a better texture. But up to you.
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• If you're like me, and love garlic feel free to throw in a half a spoonful of minced garlic as well. Trust me, it's not too much.
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder
• 2 green onion thinly sliced also known as scallions
• Black Pepper and Salt to taste
• 1 Egg
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1 tbsp. hot sauce of choice
• 3/4 C. GF Bread Crumbs - or until your mixture is just dry enough to hold a shape.

STEPS:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients until well combined.
3. Prepare baking sheet, non-stick or greased. Roll each meatball to desired size. I personally roll about 1 1/2 inch size meatballs.
4. Bake for 18 minutes, rolling meatballs roughly half way through cook time.
5. Drizzle with hot sauce of choice.

My apologizes I have no picture for this! I unfortunately haven't made these in a while, but I will update with a picture ASAP!

GF Boneless Buffalo Wings

Okay- remember when I said there are few things I miss as a celiac? Well, I forgot to mention my love for buffalo wings. And, as much as I do love good wings- its undeniable that boneless wings are about 10x better than a standard chicken wing. And lets face it, where on earth do you think you're going out to dinner and finding GF boneless wings? If you have an answer to that- you better let me know.

So this one was a little messy, but WELL worth it. And, I tend to be a little messier than most in the kitchen. Anyways, this is an easy one.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs. boneless chicken breast- cut into bite size pieces
• 2 C. GF all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 C. Milk
• 1 Egg
• Canola Oil for Frying
• 1 C. Franks Red Hot Sauce or hot sauce of choice
• 2 tbsp. Melted Butter

- If you are someone who enjoys their food very flavorful, which sounds funny because who doesn't. But, feels free to add an extra dash of the onion powder, paprika, and chili powder. I tend to do so, but this recipe is pretty perfect the way it is. 

- If you are someone who isn't the biggest fan of hot sauce or have a family member who will be eating this, who is a wimp when it comes to hot sauce- just use your judgment. It will be a sauce to toss your bites in after being cooked so don't feel like you have to follow that to the T.

STEPS:

1. Heat 2-3 inches of canola oil in skillet.
2. In a bowl, mix all your dry ingredients together; flour, salt, onion powder, paprika, pepper, chili powder. 
3. In a separate bowl mix together your milk and your egg.
4. Dip each piece of chicken into your wet mixture, then your dry. If you want extra crisp do this twice in a row for each piece of chicken. 
5. Fry until breading becomes golden brown, you may need to flip your pieces, do so as needed.
6. Set aside a plate with a paper towel to absorb excess oil from chicken.
7. In another bowl, mix together your melted butter and hot sauce to toss your wings in or to dip.

* Beware of your oil getting too hot. It will ruin the oil for the next pieces going in. This has happened to me, and it changed the color of the breading. But, I think because I cleaned my skillet once I noticed it did not effect the flavor. You will see this in the picture I have above. The photo of course is without the wings tossed in sauce. 

GF Cannoli Cheesecake

Yup- I said it. GF Cannoli Cheesecake. This was a dessert I made for Thanksgiving this year. It seemed as if everyone who ate it, enjoyed it. And honestly, it had a beautiful appearance. This was actually the first cheesecake I made without cream cheese. Sounds very strange I know. But, none the less it was very tasty. Instead of cream cheese, this recipe calls for mascarpone and ricotta- which only makes sense for that true cannoli flavor.

** Warning: this is a water bath recipe. Don't give up now.

For the Crust:

• 1 Box GF Graham Crackers. I used Pamela's because they're my favorite and I got the cinnamon flavored ones. You will either throw these into a food processor or if you're like me and don't have one I used my magic bullet and the dreadful spoon method.
• 1/2 C. Melted Butter
• 2 tbsp. Granulated Sugar

Steps:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees  
2. Best method for creating crumbs out of the crackers if you don't have a food processor is probably throwing them into a ziplock bag and rolling them over with a rolling pin. Which ever method, first step is make the crumbs!
3. In a mixing bowl, mix together your crumbs, melted butter and granulated sugar.
4. Once mixed together, grease your springform pan and press into the bottom! 
5. Prep your springform pan- place tin foil around the edges in preparation for a water bath.
6. Pre-bake your crust for roughly 10 minutes or until noticeably toasted. While this bakes lets move onto your filling.

For the Filling: 

• 20 oz of your favorite Ricotta Cheese
• 12 oz Mascarpone Cheese
• 1 C. Granulated Sugar
• 3 tbsp. GF all purpose flour
• 1 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. Vanilla
• 4 Eggs (Room Temperature)

Steps:

1. Reduce your oven temperature from 350 to 300.
2. Mix your ricotta, mascarpone, sugar and flour together on LOW. I typically use a paddle mixer for this- I tend to believe it helps reduce cracking during baking. But, I also have done it without the paddle and used the standard whisk and it was just fine.
3. Next, add your cinnamon and vanilla extract.
4. Add eggs 1 by 1 and until just combined. Remind the less air in our batter the more likely we don't have cracks!
5. Pour batter over our pre-baked crust. Place your springform pan inside a larger pan. Fill your larger pan with WARM water to about half way up the side, making sure it's not above your tin foil.
6. Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes. The center may still jiggle- that's okay. 
7. Leave cheesecake in oven for roughly 30 minutes, and then remove and cool completely at room temperature before putting in the fridge.

For the Topping!

* This step is the BEST kept secret for those of us who had a crack or two. 

• 1/2 C. Heavy Whipping Cream
• 5 tbsp. Powdered  Sugar
• 3 tbsp. Ricotta Cheese ( You will have this as left over from filling )
• 1/2 tsp. Vanilla
• Chocolate Chips! I tend to use a lot but this is all about preferences here!

1. After your cheesecake has cooled and is ready to be served, whip this topping together and evenly spread on top of your cheesecake for a finishing touch!

Also, I did experiment and try to make this cheesecake without the water bath. It worked, but it did increase my baking time and some of my honest family members said they thought maybe it was over cooked. IF you are someone who is against water baths, because well they are a pain. I suggest, baking for the recommended 1 hour and 45 minutes and using your judgement on how much additional time. Be careful, I would add additional time by increments of 5-10 minutes. This is a tricky one because the cheese's don't firm as your standard cream cheese. Just use your judgement to see how jiggle it is. 

Gluten Free CRUMB Cake, with ACTUAL Crumbs!

Hey guys!


I decided now that I've been baking and cooking with celiacs for about two years now- that I'd share some delicious meals and treats I've made. I've decided to share the BEST first. Being gluten free, isn't nearly as bad as I had initially thought it would be. Of course, we miss our sicilian pizza and the ability to eat whatever, whenever, wherever. But one of the things I never realized I was missing, until I saw someone eating it was- Crumb Cake. I never really noticed that all GF Crumb Cake, was essentially cake with sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on top. Where did the real crumbs go? You know, the crumb cake where it's more crumb than cake- the GOOD stuff.

First things first, when I started baking with GF I always seemed to be somewhat disappointed with the texture of my baked goods. That is the number 1 reason to follow this recipe as noted. Using GF Baking MIX versus All Purpose Flour is what it does to the texture of this cake. Honestly- it's to die for. My boyfriend was searching for a reason to say it was GF- and he couldn't. It holds the moisture better and already has the added baking soda:powder. Ask for the recipe and instructions below!