EnviroKidz Koala Crisp Cereal

Gluten free cereals are not as easy to find as I thought they would be. Really who would have thought Rice Krispies weren’t GF or for that matter that they contain HFCS? For quite awhile we were only eating Rice Chex, which I still love and eat, but I wanted some variety and something fun for my son to eat. I’m sad he doesn’t get to enjoy the yumminess of Lucky Charms and all those other over sweetened cereals, I know that doesn't make sense since he'll be much more healthy without them. EnviroKidz is my answer for having variety and giving my son some sweet (but healthy sweet, no HFCS here) cereals. The Koala Crisp has a great chocolate flavor and will even turn your milk chocolate. I haven’t yet made rice krispie bars from them but I imagine they will be delicious when I finally do. I buy these big bags at Lee & Dad’s but you can get them in the box size at the Co-op and Rosauer’s. So far I haven’t been disappointed with any of the EnviroKidz cereals but my next favorite is the Amazon Frosted Flakes.

I've been keeping my eyes peeled for the new gluten free Chex cereals and so far I have only found the GF Corn Chex at Rosauer's. Since Montana seems to always be a bit behind hopefully we'll see them by the end of the summer. If you spot some let me know!

Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies

We recently went on our first long road trip as a family of four and since food can be an issue I did a lot of baking so we’d have snacks. One treat I made was oatmeal raisin cookies and it was my first GF oatmeal cookie attempt. They turned out OK but were crunchier than I like and they spread a bit more than I wanted. I decided to give it another attempt with Jill Elise’s (the wonderful cook at Hey That Tastes Good) oatmeal sandwich cookie recipe. I was a bit paranoid on the cookies spreading situation so I didn’t add any butter (because butter makes GF cookies spread) and instead I used 1 C of Spectrum shortening. I also substituted Gluten Free Mama’s Almond Flour for Jill’s brown rice flour mix. My first batch didn’t spread at all, not the first time this has happened to me, so I flattened the dough with my hand to help it out. The flavor is delicious and the texture reminded me of gluten filled oatmeal cookies, they were heavenly. This is THE oatmeal cookie recipe, I promise. The next time I made these I used the full stick of butter and I added 1.5 cups of raisins since I like my cookies raisiny. I also like to make up words. This last batch was beyond perfect and they didn’t last long in my household.


Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 ½ c Gluten Free Mama Almond flour (or use your favorite)
¾ t xantham gum
½ t salt
½ t baking powder
½ t cinnamon
1 stick of butter softened
½ c shortening
1 ½ c packed brown sugar
½ c white sugar
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
3 c gluten free oatmeal
1 ½ c raisins

Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and sift or mix well. In another large bowl beat the butter and shortening until smooth then cream in the sugars and beat for 2-3 minutes to get a fluffy look from the mixture. Add in the eggs and vanilla mixing well. Add flour mixture in three parts mixing well with each addition. Add oatmeal then add raisins until incorporated. Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes at 350F.

The picture I have, sorry it’s not very good, is of the oatmeal cookie sandwiches so if you’d like to give them a try here’s the delicious filling recipe.

Vanilla Filling
½ stick of butter softened
¼ shortening
1 ½ c powdered sugar
2 t vanilla

Mix everything in your mixer beating on high until smooth and fluffy.

You can find certified gluten free oats at Led & Dad’s IGA, I did a happy dance when I saw them there and I hope no one was watching me. I really must be an interesting person to observe when I'm food shopping with all the talking to myself that I do and of course the dancing. You can also get them at Oak Street Natural Market and Rosauer’s Huckleberry Market. I haven’t seen them at the Food Co-op yet and I believe L&D’s has the best price.

S'Better Chicken Fingers & Honey Mustard

Some nights when I don’t have the desire to cook or just don’t have any time I really miss being able to grab something quick to eat or to call the hubby and ask him to grab something on the way home. I have found something to help me out on these nights and it doesn’t hurt that they are delicious. S’Better makes Chicken Strips you can find at Oak Street Natural Market and they are worth every penny. One box feeds us with a few left over for hubby to take to lunch the next day. The quality of chicken used is great and my fear of finding a chicken tendon in it so far has not happened. I have some weird food issues, it’s just who I am. We all like the taste and texture of these, just like gluten filled chicken strips, and my son happily eats them and will also ask for more.

Because we avoid HFCS I’ve been having a hard time finding condiments and have decided to start making a lot of my own. Honey mustard is one of my favorite dressings/dipping sauces and I found this lovely recipe at allrecipes.com submitted by Mary Ann Benzon.

Honey Mustard Dressing

¼ C mayonnaise*
1 T prepared mustard
1 T honey**
½ T lemon juice

In a small bowl whisk together all of the ingredients. Store covered in the refrigerator.

*A lot of mayonnaise has HFCS so be sure to read the label, I use Hain’s Safflower Mayonnaise.
**You can substitute Agave nectar for the honey, it tastes just as great but is more runny.

Gluten Free Pizza in Billings

Yes, that’s right. Gluten free pizza in Billings, how did I not know sooner? We found ourselves in Billings for a wedding reception and I figured this was a great time to try out ZPizza. I was very happy to see on their webpage that the pepperoni and chicken sausage are MSG free and that they are organic, what refreshing options. We stopped by for takeout on a Saturday evening, with two little kids we weren’t up for eating at the restaurant, and ordered the pepperoni and ZBQ. It smelled so great on the drive to our hotel, it was all I could do to wait. I will say I was not disappointed the ZBQ was delicious and I easily polished off 3 pieces. The crust is thin and crispy, almost flaky in a way. You can tell it’s GF because it’s not your typical chewy gluten crust, hubby said that’s a good thing because you know you’re getting the right crust. The next day we met up with family for lunch and we went back to ZPizza and enjoyed their outdoor seating. My sister in law and I were eyeing up the Casablanca and everyone else enjoyed the standard cheese and pepperoni. It was also a delicious pizza though I prefer the ZBQ. We had a great experience and we will definitely be going back again.

A couple notes for when you enjoy some ZPizza. The gluten free crust is only available in the small size and separate plates and silverware are kept for the GF customers. This is especially nice if you’re ordering a salad.

Now for the mouth watering pizza!

The Casablanca

The ZBQ

No Fuss Gluten Free Breakfast

I like making breakfasts that consist of more than cereal when I have time. Unfortunately I don’t usually have time so it’s a great treat in our house, well at least to me it is. This was a quick and easy breakfast and an excuse to review some gluten free products.

Kinnikinnick Cinnamon Buns were half of my quick breakfast. I let them thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then heated them in the microwave for 30 seconds, they tasted great and only had a mild GF texture. To accompany our cinnamon buns we had Applegate Farms Breakfast Sausage that I happily found at Rosauer’s. I’m not a big breakfast sausage kind of girl, a horrible experience with bad sausages has ruined me for life, but I’m always willing to try new things. I heated these in a fry pan and due to my sausage disaster I have to get them nice and crispy in order to find them edible, as you can see in the picture. I really liked these sausages and so did my husband and son. They were a hit and now I keep them stocked in the freezer.

Cheeseburger Skillet Dinner

I work full time out of the house and I need as many quick and easy recipes as I can get. I love to cook and bake but some, OK most, days I only have 30 minutes to get dinner on the table and this recipe is one that meets my needs. We all like this meal, my 2 year old will eat an adult sized portion and even my dad who doesn’t like macaroni and cheese loves this recipe. This is most definitely a favorite in our house.

Cheeseburger Skillet Dinner
(Adapted from cooks.com)

1 pkg GF Mac & Cheese*
½ to 1 lb ground beef
½ C chopped onion
2 C frozen corn**
1/3 C ketchup***
¼ C water
½ t Dijon mustard
¼ t garlic powder
1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Prepare the macaroni & cheese as directed on the package.
In a large skillet brown the meat and onion the stir in the corn, ketchup, water, mustard, and garlic powder. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 8-10 minutes or until the corn is crisp-tender. Reduce heat to low and stir in the cheddar cheese. Add the macaroni & cheese to the meat and mix well, cook another couple minutes or until it’s heated through.

*I use Annie’s GF rice mac & cheese. You can find it at Rosauer’s but I purchase it through Amazon since it’s cheaper. I do add 2 T of butter to the noodles and then only add about 2T of milk, I find it to be too runny if I at the ¼ C milk like the directions ask for. I have also used the Namaste mac & cheese for this recipe and it gave it a great kick, you can purchase this at Rosauer’s also.

**The original recipe called for frozen mixed vegetables so experiment if you’d like. I like the sweetness of the corn.

***Be sure you use GF ketchup, we also avoid HFCS and we love Annie’s Naturals Organic Ketchup. This is another product I order through Amazon but I know you can get it at Lee & Dad’s, the Coop, and Rosauer’s.

The picture doesn't quite do it justice but trust me this is worth trying.

My son didn't want his plate left out of the picture taking. This is serving one of his three total.

Sweet Pea Bakery

I about fell out of my seat when I heard Bozeman has a bakery that offers GF baked goods. Could this really be true? I frantically searched the web, as if the information will suddenly disappear since I’m looking for it, trying to gather some information and this is what I found. Sweet Pea Bakery offers a few GF options. The Flourless Chocolate Torte and the Flourless Chocolate Espresso Torte are two wonderful options. The New York Cheesecake and Key Lime Torte can also be made with an alternate GF crust if you call ahead and order it. Then there’s the all-chocolate version Opera Cake that doesn’t use wheat flour. The options are wonderful! They do state on their webpage that flour is used in their bakery and if you have a severe allergy you should order ahead of time so they know to be extra careful.

I couldn’t wait to sample a treat so I ordered two 4 inch chocolate tortes to help celebrate my mom’s birthday. Not only were they cute but they were delicious, not too sweet and enough chocolate to make this chocolate lover happy. We split the first four ways and it was enough, you don’t need a lot.