In Fresh from Elizabeth’s Kitchen, author Elizabeth Kaplan utilizes her abundance of culinary education credentials and sincere care throughout her cookbook on each and every page to give us a variety of family-friendly gluten-free recipes. You can enjoy her well thought out personal recipes in a box form her own Gluten Free company, The Pure Pantry.

Elizabeth has a flair for developing recipes and cooking. She has a real eye for capturing “the moment”; the book is full of captivating still photography that invites you into her world, her family, and her kitchen.

I was pleasantly surprised at the range of recipes this book offers with a full chapter devoted to one of my favorite meals, breakfast. She presents so many ideas she makes breakfast fun all over again.

I tried out the recipes for Quick Cranberry Nut Coffee Cake, Lentil and Root Vegetable Soup, Asparagus and Leek Risotto, Sticky Toffee Pudding with Warm Caramel Sauce, and they all turned out absolutely delicious!

In my estimation, this book is one of the finest gluten-free cookbooks available. I also can not say enough about a woman who can run a family, run a company and write her own book.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

When Fats Domino wrote the song “I found my thrill, on Blueberry Hill”, I don’t think he was talking about the health benefits of eating blueberries, but perhaps he just didn’t know the facts.  Blueberries are a super food.  A healing fruit that is high in antioxidants, blueberries provide vitamin C, B complex, vitamin E, vitamin A, copper selenium, zinc, and iron.  An Ohio State University study published in 2009 found that blueberries shrunk the size of tumors and significantly improved survival rates in an animal research project.  A compound in blueberries has also been found to prevent colon cancer, according to a 2007 study jointly conducted by scientists at Rutgers University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The study’s lead researcher, Bandaru Reddy, PhD., said, “This study underscores the need to include more berries in the diet, especially blueberries.”  Maybe Fats Domino would have had a different name had he actually eaten blueberries?  Anyways, for those of us who want the thrill of nourishing our bodies with the top super foods, blueberries should be added to the list.

Gluten-free/Dairy-free alternatives

Ingredients:
2 cups The Pure Pantry Organic All Purpose Baking Mix
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup coconut oil or butter
1/2 c. brown sugar or coconut sugar
3 large eggs, beaten, or egg replacer
1/2 cup sour cream or sour cream substitute
3 tablespoons milk of choice (rice, almond or regular)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups organic blueberries, preferably fresh but frozen can be substituted if defrosted and drained

Crumb Topping:
3/4 cup The Pure Pantry Organic All Purpose Baking Mix
1/3 cup coconut oil or butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar or coconut sugar

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F.
Combine baking mix, salt, and nutmeg in large mixing bowl.
In a medium mixing bowl beat coconut oil (or butter).  Add brown sugar (or coconut sugar) and cream together.  Add eggs one at a time, blending after each addition.  With mixer on low, add sour cream (or non-dairy substitute), milk, vanilla and lemon zest.
Gently fold in blueberries with spoon.  Pour into greased bundt pan or 9 x 11 inch baking dish.
Prepare crumb topping by blending coconut oil (or butter) with baking mix and sugar until mixture resembles pea sized crumbs.  Sprinkle crumb mixture on top of cake.
Bake for 30 minutes or until tester comes out clean.  Cool before serving.

Gluten-free/Dairy-free Option/Vegan Option
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
4 medium leeks
2 celery ribs, including leaves
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
4-5 medium yellow potatoes
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 cups leek stock (made from leek stocks)
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon Tumeric
2 tablespoons butter, or butter substitute such as coconut oil
1/4 cup The Pure Pantry Organic All-Purpose Baking Mix
1/2 cup milk of choice, unflavored (rice, coconut, or regular 2%)

Instructions:
Cut off dark green stocks leek where it begins to turn pale green.  Wash stocks thoroughly.
Place in stock pot and cover with 6 cups water.  Add 2 ribs celery and 1 teaspoon salt.  Simmer over low heat for 1 hour.
Cut white part of leek in half.  Wash sliced leeks in a large bowl of cold water, separating layers with your figures to flush out the dirt.  Drain well in a colander.  Slice leeks into ½ inch pieces.
Cut potatoes into ½ inch cubes.  Place 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat.  Add olive oil, leeks and onion.  Sauté until onions are soft.   Add potatoes, salt, and pepper, wine, leek stock and bay leaf.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, about 15 minutes until potatoes are tender.
Discard bay leaf.  Melt 2 tablespoons butter (or butter alternative) in a 1-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then add flour and cook roux, whisking, until golden, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add 2 cups simmering stock (from soup), whisking vigorously (mixture will be thick), then whisk mixture into remaining soup and return to a simmer.  Whisk in milk of choice.
Blend soup in batches in a blender until smooth about 1 minute per batch, transferring to 4-quart saucepan. Serve chilled or hot.  If serving chilled, let soup cool to room temperature and place in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Snack Basket –  A Cornucopia of Gluten-free Choices

By Elizabeth Kaplan

“There is nothing to eat in this house,” says my twelve year old son,  just returning from a full day at school.

“Gee, I just spent $300 at the store, “ I reply, baffled that the starving child cannot find anything.

Take two, enter three year old son, “I’m hungry!” he says.  He opens the pantry door and starts pulling items off the shelf searching for something to snack on.   “I want this!” he says, holding up a bag of marshmallows left over from our camping trip. Why didn’t I dispose of those at the campsite?

Take three, fifteen year old daughter walks in the kitchen.  “Mom, can you make me a snack?”

“Not now honey, please help yourself to something,” I say as I am finishing up an email.

“There’s nothing to eat in this house,” she says as she gazes into the refrigerator.

This is a common scene in kitchens of families with growing children, especially when food allergies limit the choices they can have.  What I figured out was my children needed to find snacks in an organized place, otherwise they just did not know what to eat.   So along came the concept of the snack basket at home.  It sits on our counter.  Since I work, I restock it in the morning so that when the kids get home from school, it’s their go to place for something to tide them over until I muster up the energy to cook dinner.

What goes in the gluten-free, allergy-free snack basket?

Fresh Fruits: I always keep fresh, washed organic apples, banana, and oranges or whatever is seasonal as the main choice. Blueberries, cherries, strawberries and grapes  I’ll put in a small bowl within the basket.

Dried fruit and nuts: trail mix, (if your kids are nut free, there are some nut free trail mixes, try Enjoy Life’s) almonds and pistachios in the shell, dried apricots, dried apples and dried cranberries.   Purchase or make your own if you have a dehydrator.

Handy packaged snacks:  I usually do not purchase smaller packaged items for both earth’s sake and economics.  However, I have found that our 3 year old is under the impression that if it comes in a little box or fancy wrapper, it must be something special.  They are also so easy to have on hand for a grab and go snack.  So, I break down and purchase organic raisins in little packages and gluten-free bars, occasionally.  I also place organic fruit leathers in the basket.    Our three year old adores the fruit and veggie purees in squeezable bags.   The great thing about these is that your child is getting  two servings of fruit and/or veggies in one snack.  If your child isn’t keen on veggies, the blends of fruits and veggies have more of a fruit than a veggie taste and are also high in fiber.   The gluten-free bars that we enjoy are Luna’s gf varieties, Lara Bars and Zing bars. Since we have soy, peanut, dairy and gluten allergies in the house, it is difficult to find bars that don’t have at least one of these ingredients!

Oatmeal Cookies: loaded with fiber and low in sugar, Wholegrain Oatmeal Spice Cookies are great to keep on hand.  The children and I prepare them in mini format and freeze them.  One mini cookie (1/3 the size of a regular cookie) has only 20 calories,  less than .5  grams of fat, and 1 gram of sugar.  The kids know that they need to have one piece of fruit or a portion of nuts/trail mix before they can help themselves to one or two cookies.  (At least that is my belief, naïve as it may be.)  Another great recipe using the Oatmeal Spice Cookie Mix as a base is Cherry-Almond Oat Bars.  These bars boast healthy ingredients and are easy to prepare.  Children can easily make them on their own and ask parents for help to place them in the oven.  Recipe below.

Chex Mix:  For an after school treat or a party snack, I make Agave-Almond  Chex Mix, recipe below.  There are many varieties of Chex mix to create and kids have fun participating in the process.  I place some of it in a bowl in the snack basket and store the rest in an air-tight container.

Gluten-free Pretzels:  Glutino makes tasty gf pretzels in a variety of sizes and shapes.  They disappear very quickly at our house so I sometimes mix them into a Chex Mix to extend their life.

Creating a handy, organized space for snacks will help your children make healthy snack choices, ease the burden on parents of constantly being the short order cook, and help you to engage your children in preparing their own food.  Here are a couple of recipe ideas for snacks that you and your children can make together in large quantities and freeze, if desired.

Snack basket recipes:

Wholegrain Oatmeal Spice Cookies from The Pure Pantry

Gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free, dairy-free/vegan optional

All you need is:

1 package The Pure Pantry Wholegrain Oatmeal Spice Cookie Mix

¾ cup butter or coconut oil,

2 eggs (or egg replacer)

1 teaspoon vanilla.

Add raisins if you like.

Directions are on the package.

Simple and satisfying.

Cherry-Almond-Oat Bars

 Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Soy-free, Vegan optional

Ingredients:

1 package gluten-free Oatmeal Spice cookie mix from The Pure Pantry

½ cup orange juice

½ cup raw agave nectar

1 large egg beaten (or equivalent egg replacer)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or coconut oil

1 cup chopped raw almonds

¼ cup ground flax meal or ground almond meal

½ cup dried cherries (can substitute dried cranberries, blueberries or raisins)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Spray an 8 inch square baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Place Oatmeal Spice cookie mix in large mixing bowl.  Make a well in the center and add the orange juice, agave nectar, egg, oil and whisk until just combined.  Stir in almonds and dried cherries (or other option).
3. Spread the batter evenly in the pan to the edges.  Bake until lightly browned, about 25 minutes.  Cool in the pan.  Invert onto a cutting board.  Using a sharp knife, cut into 12 bars.  Wrap individually in foil or plastic wrap.  Bars can be stored in airtight container for up to a week and can be frozen for up to three months.

Agave -Almond Chex Mix

Image courtesy of General Mills Chex Recipes

Gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, egg-free

Ingredients:

6 cups gluten-free Rice Chex or Honey Nut Chex

1 cup dried banana chips

1 cup whole raw almonds

¼ cup butter or coconut oil

1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar

¼ cup raw agave nectar

1  teaspoons ground ginger (optional)

1 cup flaked coconut (unsweetened)

½ cup dried cranberries, pineapple, or papaya

Instructions:

1. In a large skillet melt butter or coconut oil with brown sugar and agave over medium heat, stir in ground ginger until mixture comes to a boil.
2. Place cereal, banana chips, and almonds in skillet and stir until evenly coated for about 3 minutes.
3. Stir in coconut and dried fruit and continue stirring over medium heat for 3 minutes until cereal begins to brown.
4. Spread on cookie sheet covered with parchment paper to cool.   Store in covered container.

Blackberry-Nectarine Crisp

A fantastic do-ahead dessert for entertaining or just the family.