Gluten Free Travel Blog

I think I first had taboulleh shortly after my husband and I first started dating. On a visit to his parent's house, his mom made it as a side dish served alongside a really good marinated and grilled leg of lamb. I loved both dishes and have made them many times over the years. However, I altered the taboulleh recipe once our younger son was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. I started making it with quinoa instead of bulgur wheat. (The irony is that my son doesn't eat it anyway, but I still always make it with quinoa since it's so healthy and adds a great source of protein.) Sometimes I use white quinoa, and sometimes I use red, as shown below. (There's also black quinoa, but I don't know that I've ever seen that at the store.) The cool thing about this traditional taboulleh recipe is that you can customize it however you want, adding or leaving out ingredients that you like/don't like. For example, I've seen some recipes that add a bit of crushed garlic. Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups water or chicken stock (I always use chicken stock -- or even bone broth -- for extra flavor, protein, and... Read more →

A couple weeks ago a recipe in the Wall Street Journal caught my eye (this is my all-time favorite publication, and, yes, they do occasionally have recipes!). They called it Smoky Strata, and it's a fairly simple recipe combining bread, eggs, tomatoes, onions, milk, ricotta and Parmesan. I decided to adapt it to be gluten free, of course...and also added chicken sausage for extra protein and flavor. I also omitted harissa, so my version isn't really "smoky" or spicy. It's a bit like a lasagna but with bread instead of lasagna noodles...and a lot more eggs than a lasagna would have (however, it's not an eggy breakfast dish, but rather a hearty lunch or dinner). Most of these ingredients you will probably have on hand already, and the others are easy to find. Here is my adaptation of this rustic, tasty meal that is sure to please everyone... Ingredients: 3 Tbsp butter 1 large Vidalia (sweet) onion, finely chopped 2 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp black pepper 1 tsp paprika 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes, drained 2 large chicken sausages (or 6 smaller link style sausages), diced or crumbled. You can also use pork sausage if you prefer. 1/3 cup... Read more →

Well, we're a month into the New Year...a challenging time for many of us who had good intentions to once again eat healthier this year, only to find preparing healthy gluten free meals is easier said than done on most nights. Whether you're rushing home from work, taking the kids to a practice, or attending a meeting in your community, dinner plans can get squeezed. You may find you don't always have time to plan and shop for your menus, much less prepare a variety of nutritious gluten free meals each week. And if you're trying to lose weight or achieve other health goals (build lean muscle, reduce body fat, lower blood pressure), you're probably wondering how you should change your dietary habits to achieve your various goals. It can be frustrating, but believe me, you’re not alone. Sticking to a healthy, gluten free eating plan isn’t always easy. But the good news is that, no matter where you live, you can now access the help of a trained professional who can remotely guide you in your health, fitness, and dietary goals. The Follow My Nutrition Plan lets you work remotely with a trained professional to create a custom meal... Read more →

We hosted some friends of ours for dinner on New Year's Eve, and I was looking to make a dessert that was a bit out-of-the-ordinary...something a step up from the usual tried-and-true favorites. So I looked through my dessert recipe binder, where I store the dozens -- maybe hundreds -- of dessert recipes I've collected over the years. I ran across one for Chocolate Bread Pudding, something I've enjoyed at restaurants but never made myself. I don't know where this recipe is originally from, as it's from a page I ripped out of a magazine years ago. In order for our Celiac son to be able to enjoy it, I tailored the recipe to be gluten free. This was easy, as all ingredients called for are naturally gluten free, minus the main ingredient, bread. For the bread, I simply substituted Canyon Bakehouse's 100% Whole Grain Country White Bread. Here is the recipe. I was so happy with how it turned out. It is not overly sweet but has a wonderful chocolate flavor. It's also quite easy and can be made earlier in the day and kept at room temperature. Ingredients: Butter for pan 4 eggs, plus 4 additional egg yolks... Read more →

I'd never really tried Eggplant Parmesan until I was well into adulthood, so it's no surprise my sons won't give it a fair shot. But I love it. So when I saw some beautiful eggplants in the grocery store last week, I got a craving. I rarely make it, and I figured I'd go to the effort even if my husband and I were the only ones who would enjoy it. The great thing is...I almost always have all the ingredients for this recipe on hand, except for the eggplant. I'd gotten a fantastic tip from an Italian friend years ago...she told me to slice the eggplant thin and let it soak in milk for at least several hours before preparing the recipe. This is supposed to take the bitterness out of the eggplant. And it totally works! The recipe that follows is just adapted from the recipe we use for Chicken Parmesan, and I essentially "wing it." So I don't have measurements. It depends on how much you're making. I found that one eggplant is plenty to make a 9 x 12 casserole of Eggplant Parmesan for four people. Here are the steps I follow. 1.) Preheat oven to... Read more →

It had been a while since I'd made scones, and since I had both buttermilk and gluten free cinnamon chips in the house (Hershey's brand is gluten free), I decided I'd whip up a quick batch earlier this week. Of course, you can customize these gluten free scones to your taste, using cinnamon chips (my favorite), chocolate chips (my husband and kids' favorite), or even blueberries or nuts. Ingredients: 1 3/4 cups all-purpose gluten free baking flour (choose your favorite blend -- I've used many different kinds over the years) 1/4 cup sugar 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 2/3 cup buttermilk 1/3 cup butter, melted 3/4 cup chocolate or cinnamon chips, berries, or nuts Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt). Melt the butter and then, once it cools a bit, stir in the buttermilk. Add the butter/buttermilk mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients until combined. Add the chips, berries, or nuts. Scoop 12 large spoonfuls of the batter onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into a scone comes out... Read more →

Every so often I like to share a recipe that I think will have wide appeal. This recipe, a combination of several different recipes I revised, is sure to be a hit at any summer gathering. I was a little nervous about how these Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Blondies would turn out, since I didn't follow any particular recipe exactly, but I have to say they were delicious -- and very well received by my relatives at a family get-together yesterday. As always, people were shocked they were gluten free. The blondies were made with chocolate chips (I used the new Simply Delicious ones from Nestle, which are made with only 3 ingredients and free of the 8 major allergens), but you can substitute gluten free vanilla chips, butterscotch chips, or even peanut butter chips. Always verify the gluten free status, because not all products are gluten free. Ingredients: 2 cups packed brown sugar 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted 2 large eggs, beaten 3 tsp vanilla extract 2 cups gluten free flour (I used Cup4Cup) 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 1/2 tsp finely ground sea salt 2 cups chocolate chips Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease inside... Read more →

Something unique happened at our son Ryan's Blue and Gold Banquet for Cub Scouts this past weekend. For those of you who don't know, the Blue and Gold Banquet celebrates the anniversary of scouting, and most packs celebrate with a dinner and entertainment for the scouts and their families. This year, our son and the other scouts in his den were being honored for earning their "Arrow of Light," the highest honor in Cub Scouts. They will be crossing over into a Boy Scout Troop next month, so this was the last gathering as part of the Cub Scout pack. For the past few years, the pack has had a Cake Contest as part of the festivities at the Blue and Gold dinner. There are various categories (most creative, most patriotic, most chocolate, and many more...sometimes they even include best "allergy free" cake). The idea is to have the boys help in the preparation and decoration of the cakes. In past years we've made a penguin-shaped cake (Ryan loves penguins) and a flag cake (a sheet cake decorated with vanilla buttercream icing and with strawberries and blueberries for the stars and stripes). The flag cake won for Best Allergy-Free Cake,... Read more →

On St. Patrick's Day this year, I made the usual corned beef in a slow cooker -- and resurrected the Irish Soda Bread recipe I'd made a couple years ago. We were having company over (including a boy named Patrick), so I wanted to make sure to include this Irish tradition as part of the meal! The recipe I'd followed a couple years back was from All Recipes (I love that site -- I adapt a lot of recipes from there to make them gltuen free). It's called Irresistible Irish Soad Bread, and it's a fitting name. It is irresistible -- and perfect ANY time of the year! I personally like the recipe, because it's plain -- it doesn't call for caraway seeds or raisins. The result is a slightly sweet bread with a nice texture that's good served with a meal -- or even sliced thin for sandwiches (although it's just a tad bit crumbly). And shame on me for forgetting (yet again) to take a picture! I followed the All Recipes recipe to a "T," but of course substituted gluten free flour, cup for cup, for the regular "all purpose flour." This year, I figured I'd try the... Read more →

If you haven't already over-indulged in Holiday treats -- and if you're looking for a fun gluten free dessert to take to a party or bake with your kids -- I have just the thing: Gluten Free Whoopie Pies. And it couldn't be easier. Basically, what I did was buy Betty Crocker's gluten free chocolate cake mix and follow the directions on the back of the box, as if I were making a cake or cupcakes. But instead of spooning the batter into a cupcake pan, I used a new Whoopie Pie baking pan I recently purchased through a fundraiser at my son's school. I had been so excited seeing this cool gadget in the catalog. I had thought, "How fun! Now I can make my own Whoopie Pies so that my son can FINALLY have one that's safe for him to eat!" Although the Whoopie Pie pan did not come with baking instructions, I merely reduced the baking time from what was detailed on the Betty Crocker box. If you don't have a Whoopie Pie pan (I don't expect many people do!), a simple Internet search turns up plenty of places to buy them. Amazon.com has Wilton nonstick one... Read more →

Last week I shared a recap of my recent conversation with Denise Baron Herrera, VP of Food and Beverage at Burton's Grill. They've got one of the best Gluten Free Menus around, with more options being added all the time, including gluten free seasonal specials. Hopefully you'll have a chance to visit one of the expanding list of Burton's Grill locations soon. In the meantime, the folks at Burton's shared a great gluten free recipe with me, one that makes a perfect appetizer for a Holiday get-together...or even a Super Bowl Party a month later! Gluten Free Caramelized Onion Dip 8 oz Cream Cheese, room temperature 1 cup Sour Cream 1 cup Mayonnaise 2 tsp kosher salt, diamond crystals 1 tsp black pepper 1 tsp granulated onion 2 cups caramelized onion, chopped Put the first six ingredients in the food processor and mix. Once ingredients are combined, transfer into a bowl and fold in rough chopped onions. If you are making a large batch, you can mix with a hand or standing mixer. Enjoy! Read more →

If you haven't heard of Amie Valpone and you're gluten free, you'll want to get to know her. She's a personal chef, culinary marketing consultant, professional recipe developer, food writer, and blogger at The Healthy Apple. And because she herself is gluten free, developing gluten free recipes that pack a healthy punch is her specialty. Amie has a way of taking ingredients you may not have tried (but you know are good for you!) and turning them into amazingly delicious (and quite simple) creations. She and I are both involved in the new Simply Gluten Free magazine, whose first issue -- dedicated to cooking gluten free for the Holidays -- just hit homes and newsstands last week. I recently asked Amie to share a favorite gluten free recipe with me -- one that was easy, healthy, and kid-friendly. Her Rainbow Swiss Chard and Lemon Stir Fry's colorful hue appeals to kids and adults alike, and it's a great way to sneak some Swiss Chard, that's LOADED with vitamins and minerals, into your diet. Combined with the lemon juice and lemon zest -- and a few scallions and pine nuts - this dish is the perfect one-dish meal! I loved it...it... Read more →