I'm back and an update

This blog has been silent for too long and I apologize to anyone that may still be out there :)

A little over 2.5 years ago we added a third kid to our house and I think I lost my mind.  It has been crazy juggling three kids, still is at times, but it is getting easier.  I've been falling back on easy recipes and have done very little experimenting with food so that has added to my silence.

After my pregnancy my body decided to get a bit out of whack and I finally pursued trying to figure out what was going on within the past few months.  After doing an IgG food intolerance test I found out my body can not handle egg protein.  I am also supposed to avoid cane sugar and fruit within 8 hours of each other.  Let's just say I took the no-egg very hard and have found the fruit and sugar combo to be difficult to avoid.  I have cut the eggs out completely and recently started a paleo diet to help with weight loss so at this moment I'm not eating any sugar including fruit.  I feel great so this is something I want to pursue and it means I'll have some recipe testing and adapting to work on which will hopefully lead to more posts.

Peanut Butter Cookies - GF/DF

I have been meaning to post this recipe for quite some time now and since I've thought about it several times I thought I had already taken care of it. Apparently not because when I tried to find the recipe on my blog rather than in my cookbook it wasn't here! My apologies for not sharing this sooner.

I think these are one of Hubby's favorite cookies because he likes to eat them. I like to eat all cookies so I guess that means all are my favorite. They are bound to be good because when I took them to a neighborhood BBQ they were all gobbled up. Ha! People DO like gluten free dairy free food!

 

Peanut Butter Cookies - Gluten and Dairy Free

Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book

1/2 C Earth Balance or butter if you can have it

1/2 C Peanut butter

1/2 C sugar

1/2 C brown sugar

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t baking powder

1 egg

1/2 t vanilla

1 1/4 C GF flour mix

1/2 t xanthan gum

sugar for rolling (about 1/2 C)

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a mixer blend the butter and peanut butter until a bit fluffy. Add the sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, and baking powder until combined. Add the egg and vanilla combining well then add the flour and xanthan gum.

If the dough is hard to handle you can chill it in the refrigerator for an hour but I don't usually need to do that.

Roll the dough into a 1" ball then roll in the sugar to coat it and place on a cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. If you want a thicker cookie leave as is (this is my personal favorite) or you can flatten the dough with a fork making a criss-cross pattern. Bake for about 8 minutes and allow them to sit for a minute before transferring to a cooling rack.

Five on Black Brazilian Grill - New GF Restuarant in Missoula

Missoula can finally brag about having a entirely gluten free restaurant.  Woohoo! 

The new Five on Black Brazilian Grill is located at 325 N Higgins Avenue.  Check out their website and stop in to support them.

Catalyst Cafe in Missoula

I just heard about another restaurant in Missoula that offers gluten free items.  The Catalyst Cafe & Espresso Bar has their GF items marked on the menu and they offer GF toast and english muffins.  I can't wait to give them a try the next time in Missoula.

The Catalyst is located at 111 N Higgins Ave and can be reached at 406-542-1337.

Gluten Free Peanut Butter & Jelly Muffins

I've been a bit lazy on the cooking front lately.  Everything I make has been old stand-by's even though I have piles of recipes I want to try.  Maybe the spring weather will get me a bit more driven to try some new things.  Maybe.

I needed to whip together some muffins for the kids' lunch and after a quick search for flavor ideas I settled on PB&J muffins.  I was nervous that they were not going to work out because I really just threw things together but a miracle happened and they were delicious. 

PB&J Muffins - GF/DF

This made 9 muffins for me

1 1/2 C gluten free flour (I used Gluten Free Mama's Almond blend)

1/2 T xantham gum

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1/3 C granulated sugar

1/3 C brown sugar

1/3 C butter - use Earth Balance sticks if DF

1 t vanilla

2 eggs

1/3 C peanut butter

1/2 C soy milk

Your favorite jelly, I used elderberry

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a bowl sift together the flour, xantham gum, baking powder, and salt.  In a mixed cream the sugars and butter.  Add the vanilla and eggs, mixing thoroughly then add the peanut butter and milk mixing thoroughly again.

Add the flour mixture until well combined.  Fill 9 muffins tins 1/2 full then place a dollop of jelly in the middle.  I used about 2 teaspoons of jelly for each muffin.  Top each muffin with the remaining batter and smooth the edges to make a seal.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until done, the tops will be nice and set.

Cupcake Mountain Cupcakery Update

Well it was short lived but Cupcake Mountain Cupcakery no longer offers gluten free cupcakes.  I'm not sure if there were cross contamination issues or what.

Gluten Free Cupcakery, Smiling Moose Deli, and MSU options

We can add more locations to get gluten free foods to our Bozeman area list and I can't wait to give them a try.

Cupcake Mountain Cupcakery is Bozeman's first Cupcakery.  They offer gluten free cupcakes and have delicious looking cupcakes on their web page.  I don't know if they always have GF options on hand or not so you may want to call before stopping in.  You can find them at 218 Nth 7th Ave or call at 406-577-2787.

Smiling Moose Deli offers gluten free sandwiches served on a 7" Sweet Escape's GF hoagie roll.  It does cost an additional $1.50 for the GF option but we're used to that by now.  They have breakfast and lunch sandwiches plus the tomato basil and vegetable soups are GF along with the SMD Meat Chili.  If you want something lighter they have a create your own salad with chicken salad or tuna salad or the Ty Cobb and Italiano are also GF options.  The GF dressings are ranch, blue cheese, balsamic vinaigrette, and low-fat orange rosemary.  Ask for their GF menu and you'll see at the bottom they state they practice extreme caution when preparing GF foods and to allow a few extra minutes.  They are located at 2631 West Main.

MSU also has some GF treats that are popping up.  The Sweet Shop has GF cookies that are prepackaged and not from the Fat Cat Bakery on campus.  Avogadro's has GF cookies and brownies for sale and the Union Market has a shelf near the cashiers that has prepackaged GF options like Veggie Bootie, Glutino pretzels, soups, and kind bars.  It's slowly getting better on campus.

And last I need to share some sad news to those who don't already know, Neptune's Brewery is no longer offering their GF beer at The Dock because well The Dock is no longer there.  It's now a gaming parlor.  Last time I tried you can still get their GF beer on tap at Neptune's Brewery in Livingston, call ahead to make sure they have it on hand.