dairy free mac n cheez - DELISH!

i landed upon the cheese please blog when i was searching for dark chocolate lavender cookies, which is another post for another time - yes i have mastered GLUTEN FREE dark chocolate lavender oatmeal cookies, and decided to follow the blog, even though i dont eat much cheese - since its full of dairy n all.

thank goodness i did because not very soon after, this gem of a recipe was posted. ive been patiently waiting to try it and finally the stars aligned and my friend natalie and i made it this past weekend.

Oh.EM.gEE

it was BEYOND amazing. 

in fact, there was literal squealing along with jumping up and down 

in the kitchen when i tasted the cheez. 

I followed the recipes called for ingredients using rice milk, gluten free brown rice pasta, and more spices than the called for amts - esp the turmeric cuz thats super great for the liver! (cuz its me, and im absolutely incapable of measuring anything out thats powdered, which baffles natalie when it coms to baking - meh, it always works out!)

we served up our divine mac n cheez on a bed of fresh spinach and juicy pan seared pork chops - cooked in a splash of applecider vinegar, a splash of beef broth, with salt and pepper sprinkled on both sides

the spinach added a lovely green to the palate and some nice fiber and the pork chop was the perfect protein compliment as it added a hearty umph to the mac n cheez, we both felt that chicken/fish/beef just wouldnt have complimented the same. 

it made tons of 'cheez'. both natalie and i had a tupperware leftover to keep in the fridge. so far i have spread my 'cheez' on toast and dipped beanitos brand bean chips into it. SOOO FRAKIN GOOOOOD! 

enjoy! and youre welcome. 

roasted butternut squash

cashews being smithereened

the rice milk, all seasonings, lemon juice and yeast

cashews + liquid + squash...

...and dairy free cheez is born!!

cheez added to rinsed gf brown rice noodles (still in pot)

beautisima fabuloso dinner is SERVED!

the best part of any great meal? leftovers!! just look at that creaminess! 

Sage Sausage "Stoup"

Stoup= a mix between soup & stew

We tried this recipe last week. I forgot to get a picture but it tasted sooooo good! Everyone should try this...even the little ones can help make it. Will loved tasting the carrots while I was chopping them (don't worry, I didn't use those ones!).

Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 5 hours
Servings: 6

Ingredients:

1 lb Sausage
1 1/4 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 onion, diced (I only sliced mine)
3 cups sliced carrots
3 cups green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used canned)
1 cup fresh or frozen corn (I used canned)
6 cups chicken broth (don't use chicken bouillon, it makes it too salty)
1 tsp beef bouillon granules
1 cup orecchiette pasta

Directions:

1. In medium skillet over medium heat crumble and cook sausage until brown. Stir in sage, thyme and garlic. Transfer to slow cooker. Add onion, carrots, green beans and corn. Add chicken broth and bouillon. Cover and cook on low 5 to 7 hours. One half hour before serving, turn heat to high and stir in pasta. Cover and cook 30 minutes or until pasta is tender. Enjoy!

Tip: Next time I make this meal I'm going to switch out the pasta and use red potatoes instead. The pasta just didn't seem to fit. It was still good but just felt like something was missing.

peppermint stick chocolate cake

once upon a time, about 2 weeks ago, i stumbled upon this blog post and new immediately that i needed to consume this peppermint stick cake. i decided to wait until i was in CO for xmas to make it. i pretty much followed the instructions on the original blog post.

my mom completely smashed to smithereens some mini candy canes while i made the cake. i used devils food chocolate cake mix, betty crocker style, cuz that was what was in the cupboard. i seriously contemplated using red velvet but decided to save that for another day. 

the cooling cake

as usual, i modified it a bit- following the cake recipe on the box exactly, i substituted the oil for applesauce, cuz that was what was in the cupboard, baby food plums would have been preferred. it was chunky applesauce, grimace, but turned out to not matter at all. i baked it in a 9x13 pan, cuz that was what was in the cupboard. anyone sensing a theme here?



while the cake was cooling (for hours) i whipped up the pint of whipping cream. i added a lid full of peppermint extract. i didnt do all that 'keep the bowl cold' bs while whipping. and i forgot how long and annoying it is to whip a pint of whipping cream. just like the directions on the original blog post said, once it started to get a lil firm i added the candy cane smithereens, they dissolved pretty quick and mixed in just fine. i used all the candy canes we had, it was about 1/2 cup but not quite.

the bottom layer

apparently 'hours' were not long enough for the cake to cool cuz it was still warm and sticky when i tried to cut it into layers. but appearance was not my desire, consumption was, so i didnt care about what it would look like. i cut it in half down the middle of the cake pan, and then cut those halves in half thru the middle to create 2 thinner 'layers'. really it ended up being more like chunks of cake due to the not cool enoughness. so now i had 4 layers to work with, i put the worst looking one on the bottom, slathered on the cream, then another, more cream and then the third layer and most attractive layer and then doused the entire thing in all the cream that was left. yes that means the 4th layer aka cake chunks, i had wasnt used.

getting creamed up

slathering all the surfaces

the cake was divine. the cream was not overly-sweet nor heavy nor thick nor rich like frosting ewww i hate frosting it was fresh, minty, light and perfectly complimented the warm extra moist thank you applesauce chocolate cake. i did not add any sugar to the cream, the candycanes were more than enough in the sweet dept.

i ate a bunch right then and put the rest in the fridge. i continued to eat it every day for breakfast and midnight snack. the third day was actually the best. the cake was ridiculously moist and all that wonderful mintyness had completely been absorbed by the cake. yummmmmeeeeee

i repeat, presentation was not of concern! 

definitely making this easy peasy delish cake again. except next time ill do a gluten free one, cuz thats whats in MY cupboard! ;-)

thank you cybele at candy blog for this fabfab idea!!

ooey gooey chocolatey chewy brownie mix- healthy

healthy brownies. really?! yes. because i said so. 

gluten egg wheat dairy nut bean free = healthy!! ;-)

these brownies are made by the cravings place. i get them at the local grocery store, but i live in one of the healthiest eatings places in the universe, portland OR, consult the website to see if you too can obtain this yummyness at your locale.

these are by far my fav brownies in the healthy-for-you-realm, and ive tried a lot of brands. and they are not lying when they say ooey gooey chewy- the batter is so thick you cant really pour it into the pan, at all, you have to scoop and scrape, and the lick the spoon.

 i follow the recipe on the back of the bag, except that i ALWAYS add peppermint extract. however much you desire, i use a lid full, its a tiny lid on a tiny lil extract bottle. stir it in taste it and add more if you want. i always bake in the 9x9 pan.

if i have it on hand, i use applesauce or plums - babyfood style, instead of the oil. i still use some of the oil, just not all, cuz your brain needs the fat from the oil to function properly. serious. i always use olive oil,  cuz its the best for you- dr school hasnt made me biased at all, if you arent used to baking with olive oil it might take some getting used to, it def adds a different flavor. not bad, just different.
**by all means do NOT use vegetable oil, i repeat: DO. NOT. USE. VEGETABLE. OIL.  (ever) it is very very unhealthy for you. very.

the batter all 'smoothed' out

anywhoo back to our brownies. i like to serve them warm and ooey gooey with fresh fruit poured all over, esp raspberry compote, or even better served with a side of  dairy free hemp ice cream, i heart the vanilla and mint chip and choco fudge flavors, muchas. tastes better than real ice cream, imo.

the back of the bag has lots of ideas for modifications.





enjoy your brownies, im going to go enjoy mine now! happy healthy baking!

look at all that ooey gooey yummyness calling your name. yup, thats a melted chocolate chunk staring at you. 

ps im pretty much anti baking from scratch, why bother when theres a bag like this sitting in my cupboard?!

the ingredients of the brownie mix

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Chicken Zucchini Casserole

So the other night I was STARVING! I had just gotten back from out of town and hadn't gone grocery shopping. I had the following ingredients in my fridge and I threw them together and it turned out AMAZING!!! Everyone scraped the pan clean.

Preheat oven to 375

Ingredients:
Zucchini (enough to cover the pan with thin slices.)
Bread Crumbs or Toasted Bread
Onion
Garlic
Cheese

Chicken
Italian seasoning or basil, oregano, garlic salt, and pepper
Olive Oil



Put olive oil or veggie oil coating the bottom of the pan.

Layer bread crumbs or toasted bread at the bottom of the pan.
Add Freshly chopped onions and garlic on top
Layer zucchini on top of that.
Sprinkle some more onions on top

Marinate chicken in olive oil and italian seasoning
grill it ( I used a george forman)
Cut it into strips

Put chicken on top of zucchini
Spread the rest of the bread crumbs on top
Cover in cheese (optional)

Bake for about 7-10 minutes.
Broil for 3-5 minutes

Eat!

Zucchini Bread! Seriously some of the best!

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 1/4 cups white sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated zucchini
• 1 cup chopped Walnuts, Chocolate Chips
  

Directions

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.