GF Gaia Cookies (not Skratch, but from Scratch)

We all have needs and cookies are on my list of needs some days. Today is one of those days and after I tweaked this recipe to fall in the gluten free category, tomorrow may be too.

Lotsa "-free" crackers and bread

Click over to News from a Nimrod for recipes I created yesterday. If you are in need of or want to try making gluten-dairy-corn-sugar-soy-egg-FREE crackers & bread, here is your chance. These kitchen creations were probably the reason I was in my pajamas until noon yesterday and covered in all sorts of flours.


This is not a recipe from The Feed Zone.

Still cooking...

Seriously, I am. I'm simply revisiting recipes made in the past. SEE (It's at the bottom of the post).

Oh and HAPPY 2013!

Lamb and Chickpea Stew

Lamb Beef and Chickpea Stew, page 167

I've been absent from here, but not absent from my kitchen OR The Feed Zone. Jonathan has been traveling, we traveled as a family for the Thanksgiving holiday and I even was able to go on a little trip last week too. Soccer has finished, Futsol has begun and we are in the early months of Odyssey of the Mind*. I love this season of Waiting and as the world seems to swirl with excitement and hustle, I'm trying to pause each day and be still. I'm successful some days and not so much others.

This recipe is perfect for a chilly day. It is warm and filling and rich and yummy! Chas even gave it a 5. Well, the meat part with rice. He avoided the onions and chickpeas. I knew I had a better chance of success with Chas if I used beef, so I purchased extra lean stew meat instead of lamb. If you are new here, you need to know that Chas is a bit of a plain rice and meat kiddo. It's ok, we have rice in our house almost always.

While I'm still on a bit of a tangent, here are two kitchen tools I use often. The top one is perfect for coating the pan with oil. My sweet friend in Boulder, Dita, gave it to me. I love it, but I love her more. And the ceramic knife, not a fancy one, is always sharp. Another friend, Jock, turned me onto ceramic knives when we were at his Rwanda home for dinner one night. He's the coach of the Rwandan cycling team. Make sure to check them out. SO proud of them. It's been heart warming to see the success they are having, after watching the years Jock and other have dedicated to the program. We {heart} Team Rwanda!

TO THE STEW...

I added the spices to the meat as it cooked. I like to think it adds more flavor to the meat itself. Anyone know if this is true?

 I used large chunks of onion, so the non-onion-loving people in my family could remove them from their bowl and add them to mine.

Kombucha.
I brew my own.
It tastes apple cider vinegar-y.
Yum.

Simmer. Simmer. Simmer. This is the part where I had to add extra water. I didn't soak the bean overnight. I used chickpeas from the can.

I mentioned that I went on a little trip myself last week. I'll share more about it in the next post, but let's just say that I was able to meet some people I'd only communicated with in the cyber world and another that thought I'd only racing on television or in Triathlete, not chatting about our kids, products we like and past Australian politicians.


Kitchen Action
Lacking in Pantry: Nothing
Additions, Subtractions or Method Changes: lean beef instead of lamb & less onion
What I'll try next time: I'd like to try it with lamb, but only when I know I can either trick the boys or feed them something else
How it Scored:
Jonathan: 4
Elliott: 4
Chas: 5 (meat and rice only)
'becca: 4.5

*I coach, Chas is on a team and YOU score major points if you participated when you were in school. Any other OMers out there? Any of you go to world competition? I did. Not only am I a Nimrod, I'm a a bit of a nerd too. I try to wear it well.

Apple (Peach) Crisp

Apple (Peach) Crisp, page 256

Our family hopes you had a fun Halloween and enjoyed some treats and maybe even a few tricks. My boys woke to a hallway of fake spider webs and glow in the dark bugs to dodge on the floor. They made their way under the webs to the table for pancakes and vanilla steamers turned orange and then a trip to the dentist. Clean teeth for a sweet celebration. Yes. I am that mom.

Autumn is in full swing and the bins of apples are overflowing at the grocery & farmer's markets. Pick up a few extra and make this dish for a healthy, sweet treat this weekend. As expected, yes, it's delicious!

I made this GF. I typically don't use an all-purpose GF flour or bread mix as the recipe suggests. Instead, I mix my own, using flours I buy in bulk. Below you will see the mixture of flours I used. 

(clockwise top left) Mixing up the dry ingredients, grated butter added, smashing in the butter by hand, dry ingredients and butter mix

oat-flour-sugar-spices-butter mix and my very favorite apples ~ Honeycrisp. Ready to mix, then bake and eat. Yum!

Kitchen Action
Lacking in Pantry: Peaches, but I was making apple, so it worked out just perfectly.
Additions, Subtractions or Method Changes: GF sub for 1/2 flour: 1/4 C rice flour, 1/4 C tapioca flour, 3 T almond meal. I reduced the butter from 1/2 C to 1/4 C (Remember I'm a momma not a pro, gotta make those cuts where I can, but never sacrificing taste or using margarine, always, always the real thing.)
What I'll try next time: Walnuts, I'll add walnuts and maybe even a mix of different apples, granny smith and honey crisp and gala.
How it Scored:
Jonathan: 4
Elliott: 3.5
'becca: 4.5
Chas: 2.5

Orzo and Basil Salad

Orzo and Basil Salad, page 153

I do not have a single picture of this recipe. Instead I'm sharing one of our favorite treats and then I'll get to the recipe. This picture is from a recent food & wine pairing party we hosted. It's something I discovered a few years ago and have done my best to share with anyone willing to eat with me.

Extra Sharp White Cheddar and Honey

Have you tried it? Is is a favorite? Do you kids like it? What kind of cheese do you like best? Local honey? Lavender honey? Clover honey? Truffle infused honey? "Off the shelf does it really mater what kind" honey?

Please do tell, because I want to know. And really, I probably need to know.

On to Orzo and Basil...

I followed this recipe well. I used the suggestions for substitutions and some of the additions too. Only, I didn't eat any of it. I trusted Jonathan and Elliott and the empty bowl. I didn't eat any, because I used Orzo and I'm unable to eat the kind I had. I've not found a GF Orzo except online. I've not see it at my local grocery or at TJ's. Maybe I could try it with arborio rice? Gluten Free readers, what do you think? 

In the corner of page 153 the time given for this recipe is 10 minutes. It's quick FZ pals, very quick. Here's my hint, cook the Orzo in the morning when you are fixing this, put it in the fridge for the day and it'll be perfectly ready to mix with the other ingredients and be called dinner.

Kitchen Action
Lacking in Pantry: Not-A-Thing
Additions, Subtractions or Method Changes: Nothing. Well, I used canned beans.
What I'll try next time: Use a GF pasta.
How it Scored:
Jonathan: 4.5
Elliott: 4

Pasta and Herb Soup

Pasta and Herb Soup, page 172

Exhibit 1)

 Exhibit 2)

 Exhibit 3)

 Exhibit 4)

By the time you viewed Exhibit 2, you could tell the changes had begun. I'm guilty. Guilty for not following the recipe as printed.

Defense: I had grape tomatoes that needed to be used, so I used them. All of them. My tomato use was far greater than the 1 tomato, chopped the recipe listed. I also used more onion and probably more veggies. That means I probably used more broth too. Would I still be considered guilty if I say I just doubled it?

Nope. Especially since we had it for dinner more than one night and lunches in-between.

Kitchen Action
Lacking in Pantry: 1 single tomato
Additions, Subtractions or Method Changes: extra veggies, lotsa extra veggies. I used rice pasta, not wheat pasta to make it GF.
What I'll try next time: triple it?
How it Scored:

Jonathan: 4.5
Elliott: 4
'becca: 4.5 (hot and cold)
Chas: to the left eating ham & a bread stick. He saw the tomatoes I put in it and made his decision before tasting. One day, one day, I keep telling myself.