I like to make these at barbecues and in place of French fries as a healthier alternative. They are gluten-free and grain-free. They also make a great side dish.

INGREDIENTS:

½ c orange juice

¼ c oil

(optional) ½ tsp of:

ground ginger

garlic

salt

pepper

Cayenne pepper to taste (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Combine orange juice and oil and reduce by simmering over the stove.

3. Add seasonings.

4. Thicken over the stove. Add cayenne pepper if you’d like.

5. Cut sweet potatoes into “fries.”

6. Bake approx. 25 mins on a greased dish. Toss halfway through with ingredients.

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

Nut Butter Rice Crisps

This is fun, easy, and absolutely loved by people of all ages. Kids have fun making this and you can add variety. Terrific snacks for your child’s lunchbox!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup creamy nut butter (peanut, almond, etc.)

½ cup room-temperature honey (or ½ cup honey and ½ cup maple syrup)

Gluten-free rice crisps (¾ cup to 1 cup)

1 tsp vanilla

DIRECTIONS

1. Mix all in a bowl, and if it’s not sticky enough, roll with your hands into a ball, then add more nut butter. You can add more honey, but it will be sweeter.

2. Roll into 1-inch balls and place on a cookie sheet.

3. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

4. Remove and store in Ziploc bag. They can be kept either in the fridge or in the pantry, where they will stay softer.

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

INGREDIENTS

Chicken breast halves

1 c VEGENAISE mayonnaise

1 tbsp paprika

¼ tbsp cayenne

2 tsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Char-grill chicken breast halves quickly and then bake in 350-degree oven for about 30-40 mins.

2. Chop chicken up into fine or large pieces, according to preference.

3. In a bowl, mix 1 c mayonnaise, 1 tbsp paprika, ¼ tbsp (or to taste) cayenne pepper, and 2 tsp olive oil.

4. Mix up and save extra for another meal.

5. Add mayo to create your desired consistency.

6. Serve on GF toast or as a salad.

Miranda Jade

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

Gluten-free crêpes are great for special occasions and holiday brunches. You busy gluten-free cooks can make a stack of versatile gluten-free crêpes ahead of time. Use a blender to make really fast and easy crêpe batter. Wrap and freeze them for a fast and convenient special-occasion dessert.

Serve with raspberry sauce, or your favorite fruit sauce, and add a dollop of whipped cream, or a dusting of powdered sugar, for an easy and delicious brunch dish.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

Crêpe Batter:

1 1/4 cups milk OR your favorite dairy free milk substitute

2 large eggs

1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour mix (Use your favorite blend – see tips)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder

Light olive oil or canola oil to grease skillet

Raspberry Sauce:

1 pint fresh raspberries OR thawed, unsweetened frozen raspberries

1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/2 cup gluten-free powdered sugar

Garnish:

1/2 pint fresh raspberries for garnish

1 cup whipped cream for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Crêpe Batter:

1. Pour milk and eggs into a blender pitcher or a medium mixing bowl.

2. Add gluten-free flour mix and salt.

3. Blend just until combined and smooth. The batter should be the consistency of thin pancake batter. Add more milk, one teaspoon at a time if the batter is too thick. Batter can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for one day.

To Cook Crêpes:

1. Heat a low-sided 8-inch skillet or crêpe pan over medium high heat. Add 1/4 teaspoon oil to the skillet and brush to coat the bottom of the skillet. (Do this before making each crêpe.)

2. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into the heated skillet. Swirl the skillet until the bottom of the pan is covered with batter.

3. Cook the crepe for about 1 minute- the crepe should be barely moist on top. Use a thin spatula to loosen the edges of the crêpe, slide the spatula under the crêpe and gently flip it upside down. Cook for about one more minute, just until golden and transfer crêpe to a cooling rack or plate. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Raspberry Sauce:

1. Puree raspberries, lemon juice and sugar in a blender. For a seedless sauce, strain raspberry puree through a mesh sieve.

2. Cover and refrigerate or freeze. Makes about 1 1/4 cup strained sauce.

To Assemble Crêpes:

Drizzle 1 tablespoon raspberry sauce over each crêpe and roll up. Drizzle more sauce over rolled crêpes and garnish with whole raspberries and whipped cream (optional).

Yield:  Eight 8-inch crepes (serves 4 to 8 )

Tips:

1. Use a blender to make really fast and easy crêpe batter!

2. Make crêpes ahead of time. Wrap each cooked crêpe individually in plastic wrap and place all in a freezer bag, label and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw and warm in a 300 degree oven about 5 minutes before serving.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

m.t.

Try this yummy granola recipe from JustPoppin.com TM. We want to thank them for this delicious recipe.  This granola is really good and is a perfect snack. Try it with some yogurt and French Toast for breakfast too!

INGREDIENTS:

3           cups Popping Sorghum popped (and any un-popped or partial popped grains – “Old Maids”*)

1           cup gluten free old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1           cup sliced or rough chopped almonds

½           cup shredded coconut (preferably unsweetened)

¼           cup unsalted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) or shelled sunflower seeds

¼           cup PLUS 2 tablespoons agave nectar

2           tablespoons pure maple syrup

2           tablespoons canola oil

½           teaspoon kosher salt

1           cup dried fruit (such as cherries, apricots, dates, figs, cranberries, raisins or currants)

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350^oF. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the oats, Popped Sorghum, almonds, coconut, pepitas/sunflower seeds with the agave nectar, maple syrup, oil, and salt.

Bake, tossing once, until golden and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes.

Add the dried fruit and toss to combine. Let cool.

TIP: The granola will keep for up to 3 weeks in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

* For this recipe, it is OK to include any sorghum grains that remained un-popped or partially popped from the popping process as they will toast in the oven and add crunch.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.Info

http://shop.justpoppin.com/

k.m.

Just Poppin’s Organic Popping Sorghum Grain is a product I was very excited to test. I could not believe that there could be a corn alternative—that is so available for my gluten-free friends and visitors to enjoy.

When we popped it, it looked like miniature popcorn. It was actually rather cute, and not at all less tasty for this. In fact, it was bursting with flavor, and much more so than popcorn. It became a conversation piece.

Just Poppin Organic Popping Sorghum Grain is slightly sweeter than popcorn with a true popcorn taste. It is low in calories and fat-free, gluten-free, and best of all, free of hulls that get stuck in your teeth like popcorn! Although sorghum is smaller than corn, it has more protein.

You can do so much with this tasty treat. You can simply pop it for a movie or make a whole dessert out of it. How about homemade Moose Munch, folks? Yes, this is what we made. It was fabulous and everyone loved it.

Another one of my testers made popcorn treats for her son’s birthday. She popped the sorghum, added honey, bits of nuts, and mini chocolate chips. She put all of it in a glass dish. After about 10-15 minutes, she cut 2”x 2” squares and put them out for all the kids to have fresh.

You can use Just Poppin’s Organic Popping Sorghum Grain to make Indian, Spanish, Italian and  French dishes. It all depends on what spices you use with it. You can be as creative as you want. For our Indian take, we added a little curry and cumin. Simple! For my evening sweet tooth I added a variety of cinnamon, nuts and currants. Delicious!

The first time I popped the sorghum grain, I was in shock. The little popcorn look-alikes were amazing to see. My husband loves popcorn but doesn’t do well with corn, so he is thrilled about this product. Until you try making some of Just Poppin’s Organic Popping Sorghum Grain, you truly don’t know what you’re missing.

Families are constantly in need of healthy snacks for children’s lunches. At the end of the school day, you’ll often find those healthy snacks still sitting there staring back at you uneaten. Place a small bag of popped sorghum in your children’s lunch box and watch it disappear.

Now, for those of you wondering about using the Popping Sorghum Grain in a hot air popper, here is what Buck, the owner, had to share:

“ Tina- I found a class of hot air poppers that actually work with the sorghum. This is HUGE news, Tina. We’ve had so many people asking about it but every hot air popper we tried blew the grain everywhere – it was like rolling around on the beach. You’d find those little buggers in places you didn’t know you had! It turns out that I kept buying poppers that had the same basic design which did not work with the sorghum.

However, I stumbled across a style of hot air popper that works great with my Popping Sorghums.  It blows the grains around in a circle, as opposed to the poppers I had been using which have a piece of mesh at the bottom center, and the air blows straight up through it. This circular motion keeps the grains in the popper until they can pop – it works like a dream.

So if anyone would like to try the sorghum grain in a hot air popper (and that’s the only way some folks will pop) then take a look inside the popper to see if you have the right style. They may have to look at a few before they find one that’s right. FYI, the 2 bestselling hot air poppers – the one by Orville and the Presto Pop Lite – are the WRONG style for our Poppin Sorghum product.

If anyone does try hot air popping, be sure they let the popper run a full 1-2 mins BEFORE adding the grains. If they add the grains to a cold popper and turn it on, it will dry out the grain before it pops and they’ll have a much lower yield. Also, no one is to worry about a little smoke at the beginning – just the nature of the beast.”

I can say that whenever I popped popcorn in a hot air popper, I felt it always lacked taste. I was eating airy cardboard at best. Well, Just Poppin sorghum keeps its sweet flavor when popped per the instructions above. Yummy!

Popped in a little oil or in a hot air popper per Buck’s instructions above, this is a great treat, snack, gift, and a unique find for us here in the gluten-free arena. You can try it yourself by ordering it at http://shop.justpoppin.com.

This amazing company has gone one step further to ensure they are processed in a gluten free environment ( not gluten on the premises).  Thanks Buck!

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

Author Mary Capone teaches us fine classic Italian dishes from her roots in the Italian Countryside.
Upon reading The Gluten-Free Italian Cookbook, I felt a sense of warmth from the author as she opened her heart and the doors to her “world”—her past, her family, and her heritage. Mary grew up in New York in the kitchen and around an Italian table with family meals being the excitement of the day. Platters of food adorned the table, and laughter and love, which was in every dish.

Mary’s travels in Europe after college brought her to her roots, her love—Italy. Crossing the border she knew instantly she was at home. When she returned to her father’s village, she was taught the secrets of simple Southern Italian cuisine, which she brought back to the States, opening “Marie’s Crêpes”—European crêpes made to order.

Mary started having signs of an auto-immune disease shared by her grandmother, who eventually died from the disease. Mary was told it was genetic and nothing could be done. She spent years searching for solutions. As with many celiacs, she finally diagnosed herself, had the blood test performed, and it was confirmed. She had celiac disease. She began to regain her health as she began eating gluten-free.

The gluten-rich diet of her ancestors was her new nemesis. Rather than looking at all she must avoid, she yearned for recreating those lovely dishes in a cuisine she could eat—one by one. The transformation evolved in her own kitchen as she created healthy gluten-free alternatives.

In 2005, with a recipe book full of one-of-a-kind dishes exuding the flavor, aroma, and love of Italian food, Mary opened the Wheat-Free Gourmet Cooking School in Boulder, Colorado. The spirit and joy in her cooking school is what inspired her to share her recipes with the gluten-free community.

Each of Mary’s recipes has a concise yet personal prelude setting a lovely scene for the forthcoming dish. Each story reflects on the pleasure and love she imparts now to the reader. Not only is this a cookbook you’ll treasure and have on your shelves to use for years to come, it is a story, a life story Mary shares openly. Her personality shines through—a peaceful, artistic culinary soul. I for one feel as if I made a friend, by owning this book alone.

The dishes in The Gluten-free Italian Cookbook are nutritious, earthy, truly Italian, and bursting with flavor. I get a sense of the aromas just reading the recipes. Each one offers a dairy-free version simply explained and well-tested. She has vegetarian options as well. Many beautiful photographs accompany the book as well as a hint of family, scattered amongst the pages, letting the reader in on her family album.

This is a cookbook devoted primarily to gluten-free Italian meal options, not just desserts.  With dishes such as Eggplant Caponata (Caponata di Melanzane), mushrooms and Olive Tapenade Crostini, Aunt Caramel’s Baked Stuffed Artichokes (Carciofi con Pane e Salsiccia), Our Daily Bread, Seafood Pizza and Mary’s Traditional Dairy-Free Ricotta, one is never at a loss for a culinary adventure resulting in an aromatic and love-filled meal—from Mary’s heart to yours.

This is one of the most pleasurable “reading” cookbooks I have had the opportunity to have, read, and own. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone looking for a healthy alternative to cooking—simple gluten-free. “Mangiare bene, bere bene e’ vivere bene.” To eat well, to drink well, is to live well. This is how Mary likes to live her life, and shares a part of that living through this cookbook.

I give this book a thumbs up, Mary is a delight and it is HIGHLY recommended by me! 
Tina Turbin
www.glutenfreehelp.info

Submitted by : Mckenna Barlow paleomac@gmail.com

I love pancakes but sometimes the sweet ones make me over eat!  So,
I have made up this savory version using root vegetables instead.  My
husband really liked them and said they were excellent as leftovers too

Ingredients:

1/2 celery root peeled, grated
4 parsnips peeled, grated
1/4 purple onion totally minced to a pulp
1 1/2 cups almond meal (poured a bunch of almonds in my vita-mix and let
‘er rip- much cheaper than buying it but the cheapest place is Trader Joes)
4 eggs
2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp ground coriander (see comment above)
1/4 cup hot horseradish
couple squirts of hot sauce and sea salt to taste

Create:
Mix everything together
Medium Heat use coconut oil and make pancakes like normal (4inch diameter
1/2 inch thick)
Cook for about 5 minutes each side

Enjoy!

Mckenna Barlow

Tina Turbin

www.glutenfreehelp.info

My wonderful on-line friend and professional, Rebecca Subbiah RD, LDN and CPT-has shared this incredible recipe with us and I have to give her 100 full credit as she has a side story to share: Korean TV shows and lots of food are a match made in heaven. I fell in love with thin Korean pancakes the moment I saw it at Dr Ben Kim’s website. But as always I keep putting it off to do other recipes and projects. I also tweak the recipe and change a few ingredients. I like this pancakes because they are easy to digest and friendly on the stomach.

Recipe adapted from Dr. Ben Kim with slight alterations:

Makes 10-12 pancakes

1 cups yellow mung bean

½ cup jasmine rice

1 zucchini (about 12 oz)

1 tsp unrefined sea salt

t
½ red bell pepper

3 green onions

1 cup mung bean sprouts

½ onion

½ – 2 cups filtered water

½ tsp unrefined sea salt

Virgin coconut oil (to cook)

To serve:

¼ cup soy sauce

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar or rice vinegar

chili oil, to taste

Directions:

Soak the mung beans and the rice in water overnight with 1 tbsp of whey, yogurt, buttermilk, kefir, lemon juice or vinegar.

Now cut the zucchini in matchsticks and place in large bowl with the salt

Toss the zucchini, then set aside and let it sit for one hour to draw out the moisture.

Then, seed and diced the red bell pepper and chop the green onion.

Peel and cut the onions into medium dice.

To blend the mung bean mixture, drain the mung bean and the rice and place in a blender along with the diced onions.

Add 1 cup of water and blend.

Then slowly add about ¼-½ cup of water while the mixture is blending.

Then check the consistency. It should have the consistency of a pancake batter.

Add the salt and blend again.

Transfer to a large bowl.

To prepare the pancakes, squeeze out the liquid form the zucchini and add these to the pancake batter.

Fold in diced red bell pepper, chopped green onion and mung beans sprouts until combined.

To cook the pancakes, heat a large stainless steel ( I used about 9-inch) pan or cast-iron pan over medium- high heat.

When the pan is hot, add the oil.

Swirl the pan to coat the whole surface with the oil.

Ladle the pancake batter into the pan, about 4-5 inches in diameter are good or even smaller.

Lower the heat slightly.

Cook until you see bubbles on the top of the surface.

Then with an offset spatula, flip the pancakes and cook for another couple of minutes.

Then transfer to a plate.

Do the same with the rest of the batter, adding coconut oil for every batch.

To serve the pancakes, combine the soy sauce, vinegar and chili oil.

Serve with the pancakes immediately.They are best when hot.

Some of the pancakes will stick to the pan but loosen the pancake with the offset spatula before flipping.

But if the pan is nice and hot, and if you add enough oil, the pancakes won’t stick at all.

Leftover pancakes can be kept in an airtight container and reheat in the oven until hot. But they’re still best then cooked a la minute.

I used about 1 ½-2 tablespoons of oil in cooking the pancakes (about 2 medium ones). 

The pancakes are not oily at all and coconut oil is actually the most suitable oil for cooking. So, don’t worry about the fat/calorie content and they won’t go rancid or oxidized. 

These pancakes taste better when they are thinner (thinner than the photo).


Rebecca Subbiah RD, LDN, cP
  http://chowandchatter.com

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

This is a yummy snack all on its own or served with your favorite fish for “fish and chips” with a twist! This dish make a healthy appetizer if you use them to dip into fresh soup.

INGREDIENTS

2 (8-oz.) garnet yams or sweet potatoes, halved lengthwise, cut into 3/4-inch-wide wedges
2 tbsp ghee or unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp garam masala
¼ tsp each coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil for brushing

DIRECTIONS
1. Place yam wedges skin side down on a large microwave-safe plate. Cover with vented plastic wrap. Microwave on high 3 ½-4 mins, or until almost tender. Let cool.
2. Heat an outdoor gas grill, or prepare coals for a charcoal grill for direct grilling over medium-high heat. Add yam wedges.
3. Grill yams, keeping the grill lid closed as much as possible, until lightly charred, 6 to 8 mins, turning as they brown.
Serve with a delicious sauce or condiment of choice!