I received this cookbook to review in the mail a week or 2 ago.  Things have been crazy here, so I have just really had a chance to read it this week.  Gluten-Free Every Day is written by Robert M. Landolphi.  Robert is a 1991 graduate of Johnson and Wales University with a bachelor of arts degree in culinary arts & food service management.  His website has a lot more information about him, the book and other fun stuff.

I am very impressed with the recipes in this book.  There are over 100 easy recipes.  I have yet to make any of them, but plan on doing that this coming week.  The ones that really jumped out at me to put on my must make list are:

• Cheddar & Sour Cream Chicken Strips
• Smoked Gouda Polenta (remember my dinner out at Aqua Terra?)
• Chocolate Oatmeal Peanut Sqaures
• Raspberry Coconut Bars
• Almond Cookies
• Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits
• Carrot Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

If I had the time today, I would have made the Carrot Cake.  I have all the ingredients on hand, so you never know.  😉  I will make sure to update & share my results once I make these recipes. 

A bonus in this book is an explanation on gluten-free flours, nut meals & starches; how-to toast, caramelize & zest; using prepared gluten-free foods and some brands; links to gluten-free resources.

This book would be a wonderful addition to your cookbook collection. 

Aaron had an appetizer contest yesterday at work.  He asked me to make my Buffalo Chicken Dip.  This dip is always a hit, so I agreed.  🙂  I put the dip together and made some minor changes (used BW3 mild sauce instead of the Red Hot, light cream cheese,  and 2% shredded cheddar).  He brought chips, celery, sour cream, salsa & sriracha sauce to accompany the dip.  🙂  Well, he just received an email that the dip won for “Best Dip”!!  How exciting is that?

The recipe was originally shared with my by my sister, Kelly. 

The Examiner is always looking for good people to write for them.  They have all kinds of categories and areas that you can specialize in.  I write under the Food & Drink category, specializing in gluten-free.  If you are interested in submitting an application, just follow this link.  If you do apply, please make sure to use me as a referral; my examiner number is 15655. 

The first place I read about kale chips was on the Kath Eats Real Food blog.  I thought it was a little odd, but I soon saw that others in blog world were trying them out as well. 

I bought some kale last week and thought, what the heck, I’ll try these.  I prepped the kale by washing & drying & removing the stems.   I tore into more manageable size pieces and then spread out on a cookie sheet that I had sprayed with Pam.  I then sprayed the kale with Pam and seasoned with parmesan cheese, a little freshly ground pepper & sea salt.  I baked at 350 for approximately 10 minutes and then let cool slightly.

I cleared my mind and made sure that as I was going to take my first bite that I wasn’t expecting the kale chips to taste like anything I had previously tasted.  I knew if I had a preconceived idea of what they would taste like, I would most likely not care for them.  I took my first bite.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Tasty!  These went perfectly with my ham, Swiss & sriracha sandwich and salad.  I went on to make several more batches for lunch throughout the week.  Super simple to make and healthy, too!

Thanks, Kath, for yet another great, healthy idea! 🙂 

If you have a second, check out my new article on Gluten-free Pizza in Columbus. 

I don’t know if I have mentioned it here or not, but I am currently training for a half-marathon that is coming up in October.  I have never run in a race before, unless you want to count a 5K walk/run that I did in 3rd grade when we lived in New Jersey.  No worries, I am going to run in a 10K this month to “break the seal” and see what the hoopla is all about before the big day in October.  I started running on & off in the Spring of 2008.  I really started to get more into it in December of 2008 and have never looked back. 

Now that I have been increasing my mileage and running more than an hour at a time, I needed to find some kind of “fuel” to eat before or during my run.  I am a sucker for jelly beans, so when I saw that Jelly Belly made Sport Beans, I knew I had to try them.  All Jelly Belly beans (sports & regular) are gluten-free per a phone call made to the company in June 2009.  Some of the regular beans are labeled “gluten-free”.  I have not seen the “gluten-free” labeling on the Sport Beans yet. 

The 1 oz bag of Sport Beans are only 100 calories and contain carbs, electrolytes & vitamins B & C.  There are 6 different flavors, 2 of which also contain caffeine, if that is your thing.  These are a great, portable product to help keep your energy level sustained during those longer runs or bike rides. 

Skinny Cow Chocolate Truffle Bars are made by Dreyer’s (Edy’s) Grand Ice Cream.  Dreyer’s (Edy’s) is a company that won’t hide gluten on their label and that makes them “Kim friendly”.  🙂  I saw a $1 off coupon for these bars & made sure to keep it in my purse in my envelope should I happen upon these bars or a sale on them.  Skinny Cow makes 6 different types of bars, all of which are labeled “Gluten-free” on their web site! 

• Fudge Bars
• Mini Fudge Pops
• French Vanilla Truffle Bars
• Chocolate Truffle Bars
• Vanilla & Caramel Dippers
• Vanilla & Mint Dippers

So far the only one I have tried is the Chocolate Truffle Bars.  This treat is very smooth & creamy & full of chocolate flavor.  I have to say that I am shocked and very impressed that this bar only has 100 calories!  (2 Weight Watcher’s Points).  While I don’t count calories or limit my food intake, I do watch what I put in my mouth, especially when it comes to “extras”.  The size of this bar is very decent.  You don’t feel like you are eating a “mini” treat or “diet” dessert. 

If you are looking for a cool Summer treat, this is a great one!!  🙂 

Don’t forget to stop by & check out my new Examiner articles:

Gluten-free cool & refreshing pistachio cheesecake

Gluten-free ice cream in Columbus

Worthington bakery goes gluten-free

Welcome to the first full week of July!!  Now, let’s hope we can get some July weather to go along with it.  This rain & cold weather has got to go!!  Yesterday, on the 4th, I was in jeans, tee & jacket for most of the day & added a sweatshirt to watch fireworks at night!  BRR!  I really feel bad for the girls at swimming lessons.  Their lessons are at 9:45 AM and it certainly hasn’t been warm out.  The pool is heated, though, so it was like bath water the other day.  Makes it hard to get in the swing of Summer when it is so cold! 

This week is going to be a busy one.  Mary, my mother-in-law, is recovering nicely from her ankle surgery, but still needs lots of help.  She is still not allowed to bear any weight on either foot, so walking is out.  We will be preparing several meals to help this week and spending lots of time over there as well.  We are happy that we are able to help out during this tough time.  Hannah also has ice skating starting back on Wednesday nights again, making that night busy, busy!  Jon will have tournament baseball games this week.  Schedule is not up yet.  Nice, huh?

Sunday ~ Rotisserie Chicken (Meijer’s House brand is gluten-free!), baked potatoes, peas & salad

Monday ~ Shrimp Scampi over penne pasta, broccoli & salad (Mary & Mack’s house)

Tuesday ~ Grilled Chicken w/ BBQ Sauce, roasted butternut squash, asparagus & salad (Taking Enchilada bake and salad over to Mary & Mack’s)

Wednesday ~ Mary & Mack’s Cheese Ravioli with marinara, broccoli & salad (Not GF…Aaron will take over to Mary & Mack’s; Hannah & I will eat on the run after ice skating, perhaps Chiptole?)

Thursday~ Bourbon Chicken, brown rice, green beans & salad (Taking BBQ pulled pork to Mary & Mack’s).

Friday ~ Mexican Pizzas, black beans & salad

Saturday ~ Leftovers or breakfast for dinner

Baked Goods

Betty Crocker Yellow Cake/Cupcakes

Pamela’s Bread

Hope you all had a happy & safe 4th!

Here is a video from the finale that Aaron & his buddy set off last night:

Jon went to a Cleveland Indians game on Wednesday night.  I packed him a dinner to take in (Progressive Field allows you to bring in small, soft sided coolers or lunch boxes).  He had plenty to eat & didn’t have to chance eating something that might make him sick.  He went to get a drink and noticed that there were Lara Bars by the cashier in section 160 (lower bowl)!!  How exciting is that!?!  He didn’t see how much they cost, unfortunately.  He didn’t get one because I had packed him plenty to eat, but it is nice to know that there is something there that is good for you & gluten-free if you are hungry or just want something to snack on!  Jon said that they have tons of flavor options, too! 

Speaking of Lara Bars….I had 2 new flavors (well, new to me) the other day.  Coconut Cream Pie, which I thought was good, but not spectacular.  The other flavor was Chocolate Cherry and that, my friends, was spectacular!  Wow!  I can’t even tell you what my favorite flavor is now.  LOL!!  If I had to rate my top 10, this is how they would go:

1. Peanut Butter Cookie
2. Chocolate Cherry
3. Pecan Pie
4. Cashew Cookie
5. Lemon
6. Coconut Cream Pie
7. Jocalat Chocolate Coffee
8. Gingersnap
9. Cinnamon Roll
10. Jocalat Chocolate

Now, I haven’t yet tried the Key Lime Pie or the Chocolate Coconut, so I can’t say that one of those wouldn’t replace one or more of the ones listed above. 

So, if you live in Cleveland or go to Progressive Field for any event, seek out those bars! 

We have a busy day planned today, but I wanted to take a minute to wish you all a safe & happy Fourth of July!  I hope that you all get to have fun in whatever you do today.  Enjoy all that fantastic Fourth of July food!  I think the corn-on-the-cob & watermelon are my favorites!

We are going to a brunch at Mary’s (mother-in-law) today to celebrate Nathan’s (brother-in-law) & Emily’s (sister-in-law) birthday!  Their birthdays are 2 days apart! 

Later this afternoon/evening, we will be making the trek to right outside of Cincinnati to watch fireworks!  Can’t wait! 

I hope you all enjoy your day!

When I first read this post over on Gena’s blog, Choosing Raw, I just knew that I had to take the bananas I had sitting out & place them in the freezer to make this “ice cream”.  I took two, perfectly ripe bananas, peeled them, cut them into large chunks & place in the freezer.  I kept them in the freezer all day (about 6+ hours) and took them out after dinner to make my “ice cream”.  I placed the frozen bananas in my food processor and let her rip.  A word to the wise (hopefully wiser than me)….hold onto the FP!  Those frozen banana chunks will have that FP hopping all over the place!  I think I nearly scared the pants off of Hannah & Aaron!  LOL!!  I pulsed for a few times & then let it run for 5 minutes.  What I was left with was an amazingly smooth & creamy soft-serve like treat. 

I topped my creation with chocolate chips (kind of defeats the raw part of this, but oh well, I am going for gluten-free for the time being, maybe raw down the road 😉 ). 

For all those out there who have to be dairy, lactose or casein-free, this is the perfect dessert (sans chocolate chips).  Just top with some fruit or maybe coconut or savor alone.  YUM!!