Gluten-free Easter Brunch

Here is a menu that is easy to make ahead so you can enjoy the Easter festivities!  Make the Frittata in advance by blending all the ingredients and placing them in the springform pan in the refrigerator prior to baking.  Pop in the oven about an hour before you are serving brunch.   The gluten-free Raspberry Scones can be made the day before as can the Citrus Brunch Cake.  The Quinoa Mango Avocado Salad is a breezy recipe that can be make in under 20 minutes.  Happy Easter and Happy Gluten-free Entertaining!

Baked Asparagus Red Pepper Frittata

Gluten-free

Serves 8

2 tablespoons olive oil

¾ cup red bell peppers, finely chopped, or ¾ cup tomatoes, finely chopped — juice drained off

¾ cup onion, finely chopped

5 spears asparagus, washed, trimmed and sliced into ½ in. pieces

1 garlic clove, minced

5 large eggs or 5 egg whites and 2 whole eggs, beaten

1 cup ricotta cheese or low-fat cottage cheese

1/3 cup Elizabeth’s Flour Blend (recipe here) or 1/3 cup The Pure Pantry Gluten-free All-Purpose Baking Mix

1 tablespoon fresh basil

1 10 oz pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

½ t. sea salt

½ t. pepper

Spray 9 inch spring form pan with cooking spray.  Preheat oven to 350˚ F.  Place olive oil to large skillet and heat over medium heat.  Add red bell pepper, onion, asparagus and garlic. Sauté until tender for about 2 minutes.  Remove from heat, drain any excess liquid and cool.  In a mixing bowl combine beaten eggs, ricotta and baking mix until well blended.  Add basil, chopped spinach, salt and pepper, cooked vegetables and crumbled feta cheese.

Pour mixture into prepared spring form pan, place pan on baking sheet.  Baking for 45-50 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes before cutting.

Quinoa Mango Avocado Salad

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegan option)

¾ cup quinoa

1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 ½ teaspoon curry powder

1 mango – peeled, seeded and half of it diced, the other half sliced for garnish

3 green onions, chopped

½ cup slivered almonds, lightly toasted

1 avocado, sliced for garnish

Instructions:

Place chicken stock, quinoa, garlic, salt and pepper and bring to boil over high heat.  Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook until all water is absorbed, about 10-15 minutes.

Let quinoa cool.  Place cooked quinoa in a medium serving bowl and stir in curry powder, mango and green onions.  Sprinkle with toasted almonds, garnish with mango slices and avocado slices and serve.

Gluten-free Raspberry Scones

Gluten-free/Dairy-free

Recipe from “Fresh from Elizabeth’s Kitchen: Gluten-free & Allergy-free Recipes”

Makes 8-10 scones

Ingredients:

2 cups Elizabeth’s Gluten-free Flour Blend  (cookbook recipe) plus 2 tsp. baking powder

OR 2 cups All Purpose Gluten-free Baking Mix from The Pure Pantry

½ cup millet flour or almond flour

½ cup butter, chilled, or coconut oil, chilled

2 eggs or egg replacer

2 tablespoons agave nectar, preferably Nature’s Agave Amber variety

¾ cup fresh raspberries

½ cup So-delicious Coconut Milk Creamer (dairy-free) or regular cream

Raw sugar for topping (optional)

Instructions:

Preheat over to 375˚F.  Grease cookie sheet and lightly dust with baking mix or rice flour.

In a large bowl add the baking mix (add baking powder if using Elizabeth’s Flour Blend) and almond or millet flour.

Cut butter or coconut oil into small pieces with knife.  Add to flour mixture.  Blend butter with a fork or your fingers until it resembles course meal.  Add eggs (or egg replacer) and agave nectar, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.  Wash and drain fresh raspberries.  Fold in raspberries. Dough will be sticky.

Lightly dust a work surface and hands with rice flour or baking mix. Turn dough out onto work surface.  Knead lightly and pat dough into an 8 inch circle shape and place on parchment paper on a baking sheet.  Score top of circle with knife, creating 10 wedges but not cutting all the way through dough.  Or, using a large spoon drop approximately ¼ cup dough onto greased cookie sheet, 3 inches apart.

Place coconut milk creamer or regular cream in small bowl.  Using a pastry brush, generously brush cream on top of scones.  Sprinkle with raw sugar.  Bake for 25 minutes or until scones are golden brown.  Cool completely.  If you created the 8 inch circle, cut into 10 scones and serve.

 

Easter Citrus Brunch Cake with Lemon Strawberry Glaze

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

½ cup coconut oil at room temperature (or non-hydrogenated shortening)

1 cup organic sugar

2 eggs (or equivalent egg replacer)

2 tablespoons honey (or agave nectar)

1 t. vanilla

1 T. lemon zest

1 T. orange zest

2 cups Elizabeth’s Gluten-free Flour Blend (cookbook recipe)  or organic All Purpose Baking mix from The Pure Pantry

1 t. baking powder

3/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350˚F.

In a large mixing bowl, cream coconut oil  and sugar in electric mixer.  Add eggs (or egg replacer), one at a time, mixing until well blended.  Add honey or agave nectar and vanilla.

With fine grater, grate the yellow skin of a lemon until you have 1 tablespoon.  Add lemon zest to mixing bowl.   Grate the skin or an orange until you have 1 tablespoon.  Add orange zest and blend in both citrus zests.

With mixer on low setting, add baking mix and baking powder Blend until combined. Add water and blend until smooth but do not over mix.   Pour into  greased 4 cup (small) bundt pan or 10 inch cake pan for 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.   Cool.  Turn out onto plate.  Pour Lemon Strawberry Glaze on top and garnish with fresh strawberries.

Lemon Strawberry Glaze

½ cup lemon juice

½ cup agave nectar

1 tablespoon strawberry jam

1 T. lemon zest

1 cup powdered sugar

Instructions:

Stir together lemon juice and agave in medium mixing bowl.    Add lemon zest and strawberry jam and whisk to combine.  Sift in powdered sugar and blend together.   Pour glaze over cake.

What is Easter without beautiful flowers?   Here are a couple flower arrangement ideas.  The first one  is from my friend Jennifer Cole of Jennifer Cole Florals. She has an amazing knack for designing creative and gorgeous arrangements for weddings, showers, events and home entertaining.   I love the bright poppies and the use of star jasmine which will bring a spring time fragrance to the whole room.  Check out her blog at: http://jennifercoleflorals.com/blog/.

Photo courtesy of Jennifer Cole Florals

 

This is also a great Easter table idea from Jenny Steffens Hobick’s blog: http://jennysteffens.blogspot.com/.  I love the use of live potted daffodils and easter eggs.  Jenny has fabulous entertaining ideas, although she is not a gluten-free cook, I get a lot of inspiration from her.   Photo from Jenny Steffen’s blog.

 

I was recently in a new shop in Encinitas called Olive and Baker and was so excited they carry infused organic olive oils! Of course I couldn’t taste all theirwonderful offerings because the only thing they had to sample them with was, of course, regular bread. Then I remembered the delicious Foccacia bread I used to make before I had to go gluten-free. I purchased a bottle of their Tuscan Herb Blend — which boasts fresh flavors of an Italian herb garden: oregano, rosemary, sage, and garlic. Decided I had to create a gluten-free foccacia bread recipe to dip into this fabulous oil!

Focaccia makes a nice appetizer served with special oils like Olive and Baker’s or can be served at dinner with soup or salad. It also make a nice gift — wrap it up pretty and give it to someone with a small bottle of speciality olive oil.

Tuscan Focaccia Bread

Gluten-free, Dairy-free option

1 ¾ cups luke warm water
2 ½ teaspoon active dry yeast (1 packet)
2 teaspoons raw organic sugar
1 organic egg, beaten
3 tablespoons organic olive oil, divided
2 cups organic brown rice flour
½ cup organic potato starch flour
½ cup organic sorghum flour, corn flour or amaranth flour
3 teaspoons xanthan gum
2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary, divided
2 teaspoons freshly chopped garlic, divided
2 teaspoons freshly chopped oregano, divided
½ shallot, thinly sliced into rings or half rings

Optional toppings:
6 sundried tomatoes, chopped
6 kalamata olives, halved and pitted
¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

In an electric mixer fitted with dough hook combine the luke warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes. In a medium mixing bowl combine brown rice flour, potato starch flour, sorghum flour, xanthan gum and 1 teaspoon sea salt. Add beaten egg and 2 tablespoons olive oil to yeast mixture. Stir in the flour mixture, ½ a cup at a time.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a linen towel and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until it is double in size. Or, place dough in bread machine and set for “dough” setting.

Once dough has risen, grease your hands with olive oil and knead 1 teaspoon rosemary, 1 teaspoon garlic, and 1 teaspoon oregano into the dough. Press dough into 9 x 12 baking pan, and let it rise in a warm place for an additional 30 minutes, covered with a linen towel.

Preheat oven to 350 ˚ F. Brush the top of the bread with remaining olive oil, top with shallot rings, the remaining rosemary, garlic and oregano and any of the optional toppings, except the Parmesan cheese which should be grated on top after baking.

Bake the focaccia for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting rectangular pieces. Serve with a blend of olive oil and balsamic vinegar or an infused olive oil.

Bourbon Spiked Gravy

Gluten-free/Dairy-free options

 

This is an old family favorite and we can’t eat our turkey without it!

Makes 2 cups

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil

2 tablespoons All Purpose Baking mix from The Pure Pantry or 2 tablespoons arrowroot

½ cup turkey pan juices, defatted and strained (if not available use 1 tablespoon gluten-free chicken bouillon in ½ cup hot water)

1 cup white wine

¼ cup water

¼ cup bourbon

2 cups chicken or turkey stock

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 

1. In a 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter or coconut oil, add the flour and whisk continuously for two minutes.  Add the turkey pan juices, wine, water, bourbon and stock.  Stir to combine.
2. Bring to boil for about 5 minutes until reduced to 2 cups.
3. Add sage, salt and pepper.  Can be made up to 3 hours in advance. Reheat when ready to serve. 

 

 

Thanksgiving Menu — Gluten and Dairy Free

Preparing an allergy free Thanksgiving Menu can be a challenge if you are not sure about what substitutes to use.

Here is a menu plan and recipes that will make your holiday effortless and, most importantly, delicious!

 

Menu

Soup Course-

• Carrot orange ginger soup with toasted pumpkin seeds  Recipe>>
• Cheddar-Chive Biscuits with Daiya Cheese  Recipe>>

Salad Course-

• Pear, persimmon and walnut baby green salad with balsamic vinaigrette  Recipe>>

Dinner-

• Sweet potato casserole with pecan cinnamon crunch topping  Recipe>>
• Green beans with sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts Recipe>>
• Southern cornbread stuffing with chicken apple sausage Recipe >>
• Roasted Turkey
• Bourbon Spiked Gravy  Recipe>>

Dessert-

• Apple cranberry crisp with coconut vanilla “ice cream” Recipe >>
• Pumpkin Agave Pie  Recipe >>

       

More Recipes coming soon!

 

Sweet Potato Casserole

with Cinnamon Pecan Crunch Topping 

Serves 6

Ingredients:

3 lbs sweet potatoes

1/4 cup orange juice, preferable freshly squeezed from 1 orange

2 large eggs* (see notes on omitting eggs)

2 tablespoons coconut oil or butter, melted

2 tablespoons agave nectar, preferably Nature’s Agave Amber variety

1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg (preferably freshly ground)

Topping:

½ cup Elizabeth’s Gluten-free Flour Blend (recipe in “Fresh from Elizabeth’s Kitchen” cookbook) or The Pure Pantry All Purpose Baking Mix

¼ cup firmly packed golden brown sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ cup coconut oil or margarine

½ cup chopped pecans

1       Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 3 pounds of sweet potatoes in baking pan and bake until all are tender, about 1 hour.

 2       Butter 8×8 inch square baking dish.  Scrape sweet potato pulp from skins into large bowl.  Using electric mixer, mash sweet potatoes.  Add orange juice, eggs,  melted coconut oil or margarine, agave nectar,  cinnamon and nutmeg.  Beat until smooth.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Spoon potatoes into prepared dish.

 3       Combine baking mix, brown sugar, and cinnamon in medium bowl.  Add coconut oil or margarine and cut in until mixture resembles course crumbs.  Mix in chopped pecans.  Sprinkle topping over potatoes.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Serve warm.

*To omit eggs, increase coconut oil or butter to ½ cup and add ¼ cup more baking mix to potato mixture.