Gluten/Dairy Free Brownies

This recipe was sent to me from a friend of my mom's.  I adjusted her recipe just a little.  These were really easy to make and are pretty tasty. The kids and I really liked them. Chris wasn't a huge fan.


Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients:
1.5 cups dairy free chocolate chips, melted (we use Enjoy Life brand)
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
4 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder*

Directions:
1.  Melt chocolate chips and set aside.
2.  Add 2 eggs and the beans in a food processor or blender until pureed (we love our Ninja!).
3.  Add last 2 eggs and pulse to combine.
4.  Place melted chocolate, sugar and baking powder in processor or blender with bean mixture and pulse until combined and smooth.
5.  Pour batter into a greased 9x13 pan.
6.  Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until set.

*If you like your brownies more dense and less cake-like use 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder.

I think this recipe would make pretty good cupcakes - or even a cake!

Gluten Free, Dairy Free Granola Bars

Made these today on the recommendation of my mom and sister.  Mama found it online and it's an adaptation of a recipe from Ina Garten.








Granola Bars
Ingredients:

• 2 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup sliced almonds (I used walnuts)
• 1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
• 1/2 cup flax seed
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (Earth Balance) or coconut oil
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2/3 cup honey
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups of dried fruit/seeds/add-ins (I used 1/2 cup raisins, a few cranberries that were left in the bag, 1/2 cup dried dates and 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350.  Butter and 8x12 inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper.
• Toss the oatmeal, almonds and coconut together on a sheet pan and bake for 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.
• Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the flax seed.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 300.
• Place butter, syrup, honey, vanilla, salt and cinnamon in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Cook and stir for a minutes, then pour over toasted oatmeal mixture.
• Add in the fruit/seeds/add-ins and stir well.*****
• Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.  Using a piece of parchment paper lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan.  
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, until light golden brown.
• Cool for at least 2-3 hours before cutting.

I wrapped mine individually - easy to grab for a quick breakfast or snack.

*****I wasn't thinking when I did this step and added the chocolate chips in with everything else.  The hot liquid melted the chips but it didn't cause a problem with the final product.  The flavor is there you just can't see the mini chips.  

Favorite Gluten and Dairy Free Snacks

Just thought it would be helpful to list the things Savannah enjoys for snacks that are gluten and dairy free.

• Hormel turkey pepperoni - I got our current pack on sale at Aldi but I'm sure they can be found at Food Lion and Harris Teeter.
• Popcorn - we pop ours on the stove top using coconut oil and adding a little bit of salt once it's popped
• Rice krispy treats - I try to keep individual portions in the freezer.
• Fresh fruit - we do a lot of oranges, apples, bananas and grapes right now.  I can't wait for the Spring so we can have yummy berries.
• Baby carrots - these are hit and miss.  She especially loves the teeny tiny ones.
• Peanut butter banana bites
• Smoothies - like this one, or one of these, or this one, or this one,
• Nuts - she likes most everything she's tried but we typically stick with pistachios and peanuts
• Peanut butter on a spoon - our kids LOVE this!
• Raisins, cranberries
• Peanut butter cookies - again, I keep these in the freezer.
• Chex cereal - they have some really good flavors now that are gluten free!  Our favorites are the honey nut and cinnamon.
• Plain potato chips
• Corn tortilla chips - she tried guacamole the other night and liked it.  Occasionally she'll eat salsa or dip that I've made
• Yogurt - yes, this is dairy....but it doesn't seem to bother her.  And, she doesn't get it all the time.  Maybe once a week.  I either make some or I will buy a plain, greek yogurt.  I like Fage.  We have recently been using this in place of sour cream.  Delicious.  For snacking I usually mix in a little honey or homemade jam or fresh fruit.

Frozen Peanut Butter Banana Bites

Frozen Peanut Butter Banana Bites
Ingredients:

• 2 large bananas
• 1/4 peanut butter
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (we use Enjoy Life brand - dairy, nut and soy free)
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup milk of your choice (we use vanilla almond)

Directions:

• Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper or parch­ment. 
• Slice bananas into coins about 1/2–3/4 inch thick. 
• Spread a lit­tle dol­lop of peanut but­ter on top of each one. 
• In a small bowl, com­bine the choco­late chips and milk. Microwave in 15 sec­ond incre­ments until you can whisk them together. You want it to be a dipable con­sis­tency, not spread­able. Add a splash more milk if nec­es­sary.  (we did this on the stovetop since we are without a microwave)
• Dip the banana chunks using a fork as a lit­tle choco­late coat­ing fork­lift, dip­ping them into the melted choco­late. 
• Place choco­late coated bananas on the pre­pared sheet and place in freezer until com­pletely frozen (3–5 hours). 
• Remove frozen banana chunks from the sheet and store in a freezer container.

original source:  http://nomnomnomblog.com/2011/05/11/a-taste-of-summer-and-a-new-video/

Gluten and Dairy Free Peanut Butter Cookies

Gluten and Dairy Free Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients:

• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350°. Cream the peanut butter and sugar in a bowl.  Beat in the baking powder, and add the egg. Mix until it is all well combined.  (It might work best to hand-beat this instead of using an electric mixer)
• The dough will be sticky, so be prepared to get your hands messy. Roll some dough into a ball. (How big? That depends on you. I have found, however, that the smaller these cookies are, the better they hold together. Eat two instead of one!) Roll the ball into white sugar. Line a baking sheet, covered in parchment paper, with sugary balls of dough.
• Bake in the oven for about ten minutes. You will know the cookies are done when they feel coherent, but still a little soft. Take the tray out of the oven and let the cookies rest for at least five minutes. Afterwards, carefully transfer them to a cooling rack. After ten minutes or so, they will have hardened and be glistening with sugar.

I usually keep a few of these out and freeze the rest for later.

Gluten and Dairy Free Rice Krispy Treats

Rice Krispy Treats


Ingredients:

• 4 Tbs Earth Balance Butter (we buy the soy free kind) OR 4 Tbs coconut oil (YUM!)
• 4 cups mini marshmallows
• 4 cups crispy rice cereal

Directions:

• Heat dairy-free butter or coconut oil on low heat until almost melted.
• Add marshmallow and heat slowly in a large saucepan, with little to no stirring, until the marshmallows are almost melded together. Be patient.
• Stir gently until the marshmallows resemble marshmallow cream. The marshmallow cream should be light and fluffy. If you heat too quickly, it will become tough and sticky, making for a tough treat. If using coconut oil, it will seem like the oil is not stirring in at first, but gently continue to incorporate it in until you don’t see any more in the edges of the pan.
• When it is creamy and the butter or oil is blended in, turn off the heat, and pour the rice cereal into the pan, gently blending the marshmallow with the cereal until evenly distributed.
• Pour into any kind of greased pan and let cool .

We cut these into individual size pieces and wrap in freezer paper.  Having a stash in the freezer makes for a quick and easy snack.  Our kids will eat them frozen!

Strawberry Ice Cream

This homemade strawberry ice cream is DELICIOUS!
The consistency is unlike any other homemade ice cream I've had before....even days later.
It's creamy and perfect. 

Strawberry Ice Cream Like Ben and Jerry's
Ingredients: 

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar, divided
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk (we used whole)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 

Directions
1. Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup sugar in a mixing bowl, set aside in fridge for 1 hour.
2. In large mixing bowl beat eggs until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
3. Gradually add 3/4 cups sugar, mixing well. Stir in milk and vanilla and mix well.
4. Add strawberries with juice and mix well.
5. Gently stir in whipping cream just until combined.**
6. Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions.

**I actually think Chris beat the whipping cream in and then folded in the strawberries. We believe this may be why it turned out so creamy.

Also, we made this and let it set in the freezer overnight. We didn't want to wait but it was definitely worth it. Do it....wait....you won't be disappointed.

Quick Cinnamon Croissants

I'm sure this idea isn't original but I "made it up" tonight when I had a couple extra refrigerated croissants. 

Ingredients:
Refrigerated croissants
cinnamon sugar (I mix my own in a Pampered Chef shaker for ease of use)


Directions:
Roll out croissants.
Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on dough.
Roll up, from biggest end to smallest end.
Sprinkle a little extra cinnamon sugar on the rolled croissant.
Bake at 375 for 11 minutes, or until just browned on top.
Enjoy while still warm.

Told you it was easy!
I handed one to Silas and he said, "Mom, is this a cinnamon roll?  how did you make it so fast?!"

Soft, Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

A good chocolate chip cookie recipe is important.  We started making this one back in the Fall and fell in love with it.  The dough is good, the warm cookies are good, a day later (if there are any left) they're good!

Original source:  Tasty Kitchen user "nwmama"
Prep time:  15 Minutes
Cook time:  9 minutes
Makes:  24 cookies (or more depending on how much you spoon out)

Ingredients:
1 cup Butter, Softened (2 Sticks)
1/4 cups Sugar
3/4 cups Light Brown Sugar, Packed
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 package Vanilla Instant Pudding, (small Box)
2 whole Eggs
2 1/4 cups Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 package Chocolate Chip Morsels

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

I use my Kitchen Aid stand mixer and it works great on making this batch up.  A hand mixer or a strong arm and a spoon will work as well!

Add softened butter, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla and pudding packet into a large bowl, mix well. Add eggs and mix well. Add flour and baking soda and mix well. Add the chocolate chips and mix well.

Put by heaping tablespoonfuls (I usually make mine smaller) onto a cookie sheet and bake for 9 mins. (you may have to adjust your time based on your own oven but 9 minutes should get you close) Cool on wire rack and store in airtight container to keep cookies fresh and from drying out.

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Want to have cookies ready to bake at a moments notice?  This dough freezes beautifully!
Mix dough and spoon out onto cookie sheet but instead of baking, stick in the freezer for 15-30 minutes, or until cookies are individually frozen.
Place in freezer bag and toss in freezer.
When you get the urge for a fresh baked cookie run to the freezer (to get your pre-cookie workout in) place desired amount on cookie sheet and bake 9 minutes at 350!

Fast Fruity Delight

Here's a healthy snack that's quick to put together.

Prep:  10 minutes, plus refridgerating
Makes:  4 servings

Ingredients:
3/4 cup boiling water
1 package (3oz) raspberry flavored gelatin
2 cups frozen raspberries
1 cup thawed cool whip

Directions:
Add boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl; stir 2 minutes until completely dissolved.  Add berries; stir until gelatin starts to thicken.
Stir 1/2 cup gelatin mixture into cool whip with whisk until well blended; spoon into 4 small dishes.  Cover with remaining gelatin mixture.
Refrigerate 15 minutes or until set.

Change it up.  Mix and match gelatin and fruit flavors!