Easy Toffee aka 'Christmas Crack'

Normally this recipe is made with saltines on the bottom layer. Since I'm gluten free I couldn't use the regular crackers and I haven't seen any gluten free alternatives here in Belize. However, I recently found a gluten free Rice Biscuit Cereal and decided to see if they would work in this recipe and they did!

Oh my goodness does this treat live up to it's nickname. I couldn't stop eating it until it was all gone! I have to add this to my Christmas treats for next year!!!

Easy Gluten Free Toffee

Ingredients:

3 cups Gluten Free Rice Biscuit Cereal (or Rice Chex)

1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 bag semi sweet chocolate chips (apx 2 cups)

optional:

salt

pecans

Instructions:

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

*Line cookie sheet with rice chex

*In a saucepan using medium heat, combine butter and brown sugar. Stir constantly. When it comes to a boil, slowly pour mixture over rice chex and spread with a spatula to cover. (Don't worry about being perfect!)

*Bake for about 5 minutes

*Remove from oven and cover with chocolate chips, let them sit for a minute or two and then use a spatula to smooth out the chocolate.

*Top with nuts and/or salt 

*Refrigerate until set.  Then cut or break into pieces.

I used the nuts with a bit of salt sprinkled on top...YUMMO! Enjoy!

White Chocolate Peppermint Bark

 

A friend of mine posted a photo on Facebook of this holiday treat.  It's a simple recipe in theory.  All you do is melt the chocolate and sprinkle crushed peppermints on top. I know, I didn't pulverize all the candy.  I left some of it in chunks...I liked it that way!!  

I had some white chocolate here at home I decided to give it go.  But, then I read about how difficult it is to melt white chocolate.  Since we don't own a microwave my first attempt at melting white chocolate had to be done using the double boiler method.  It seized up on me because some water got into the chocolate. Thankfully, Google helped me figure out what to do... so I followed the advice to add small amounts of butter until it was back to the right consistency.

I only made a small batch for my test run but it was too rich for Tom and I to finish it off in one sitting.  So it had to be stored in the fridge because the chocolate gets very soft if left at room temperature here in Belize. I will be trying this again.. it was very tasty!!

Banana Pancakes

When I saw that my friend Kay posted these gluten free pancakes on Facebook I knew I'd be giving them a try!  This recipe is based on the modifications Kay and I each made when we tested the pancakes.

Banana Pancakes
1 ripe banana
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
A pinch of salt

Mash the banana up well. Add in eggs and blend. Add salt and vanilla. Lightly oil or spray your pan and fry on low to medium heat for about a minute or so on each side.

Enjoy!

Pineapple Salsa

Making this salsa was very simple.

I used half of a fresh pineapple, diced (about 2 cups)
1 medium size red onion, diced
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
Plus the juice of 1 lime.
Mix until combined.

I let it sit overnight in the fridge.   It can be eaten with tortilla chips or you can serve it with chicken or fish.  But, no matter how you eat it...it's yummy!

Tasty Tuesday...Arepas

 

 

 

 

 

Last night we had breakfast for dinner!  We do this from time to time just because it's easy and with just the two of us easy is best.  This recipe comes from The Gluten-Free Bible.  The cost of the flour here in Belize was only about $3.37USD.  I was thrilled to find it in our local store.  I thought I was just buying white cornmeal so you can imagine my surprise when I read through the recipe and then looked at the flours in my pantry and discovered that I had actually purchased this specialty flour.

I will definitely be making these again...Tom and I both thought they were very tasty!

Arepas

1 1.2 cups instant corn flour for arepas (also known as masarepa, masa al instante, or harina precodica)

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 to 2 cups of hot water

1/3 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend (I used half cheddar and half Monterrey jack)

1 Tbsp butter, melted

Fillings: scrambled or fried eggs, cheese and salsa

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Mix flour and salt in medium bowl.  Stir in 1 1/2 cups water.  Dough should be smooth and moist but not sticky.  Add more water by tablespoons if needed.  Add cheese and butter.  Knead until dough is consistency of smooth mashed potatoes.

2. Preheat heavy skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Grease lightly with butter or oil.  Break off a piece of dough about the size of an egg, roll the dough into a ball.  (If dough cracks or seems too dry, return to bowl and add additional water by tablespoonfuls.)  Flatten and pat into 3-4 inch round disc about a 1/2 inch thick.  Immediately place in hot skillet.

3. Cook arepas 3 to 5 minutes per side until browned in spots.  Transfer to baking sheet.  Bake 15 minutes or until arepas sound hollow when tapped.

4.  To make breakfast sandwiches, split arepas b piercing edges with fork as you would English muffins.  Fill with, eggs, cheese, and salsa as desired.  Makes 6-8 arepas.

Note:  Arepas are best served warm; day-old arepas are best toasted.  Arepas may also be frozen for future use. 

----------------

Alida's notes:  It took 1 1/2 cups of hot water plus 2 Tbsp for me to get the right consistency.  It is hard to regulate the temp on our oven so mine actually baked at 400F for 15 minutes until  they were golden and sounded hollow when I took them out of the oven.  I had a little trouble with sticking when they were in the cast iron skillet before going into the oven.  I may try my non-stick skillet next time.  I am looking forward to making these on a regular basis.  They could be used to make egg McMuffin type sandwiches with sausage or ham.  Such a great gluten-free alternative to English Muffins.

Coconut Sugar Body Scrub

 I love using this scrub!

The recipe is very simple:

1 cup of sugar

1/2 cup of coconut oil

Stir until blended well.

The recipe can be doubled to fit whatever size container you choose to use. This luxurious scrub can be used in the shower or bath. I put some on my wash cloth or just use my hand to rub it into my skin.  It leaves skin feeling soft and produces a healthy glow. I use it a few times a week.  And it's a perfect gift...easy to make and simple to package but it can have a great impact on the receiver!

Homemade Peanut Butter Cups

These look yummy and fairly easy to make...click here for the recipe.

Tasty Tuesday...gluten free pancakes

Pancakes are one of the things I am really really good at making.  I have used the same recipe for so long that I have it memorized.   So last night we had breakfast for dinner.  Do you ever do that?  It's one of our favorite meals!

I wanted pancakes so I decided to give my recipe a try with my gluten free all-purpose flour mix and it worked!

I have some tweaking to do to get the exact measurements on the liquid because I just kept adding until I had the consistency that I wanted.  But here is the basic recipe:

Gluten Free Pancakes
1 cup gluten free all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp vanilla
1  1/4- 1 1/2 cups low fat milk (or water), keep adding until you reach desired consistency depending on how thick you like your pancakes.

Mix dry ingredients together.  Mix wet ingredients together.  Add wet mixture all at once to dry ingredients.  Stir until moistened.  Batter may have some lumps in it.  Makes 6 medium sized pancakes.

Enjoy!

Crock Pot Cheesecake

Another Pinterest find.  I think that if I replace the pulverized graham crackers with almond flour then I will have gluten free dessert that everyone can enjoy along with me. This is going on my list of things to try!  Click here for the recipe.

Tasty Tuesday...Crunchy Primal Crackers

I saw these on Pinterest and will give them a try when we get back to Belize...I love crackers and these sound like they will be pretty tasty and very easy to make!!

Crunchy Primal Crackers

Ingredients:
2 cups raw blanched almond slivers
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp dried dill
1 egg whisked
2 tbsp olive oil


Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a food processor mix nuts, salt and dried dill until nuts reach desired consistency. For textured crackers, leave nuts in tiny pieces. For smooth crackers, blend until nuts reach a flour-like consistency.
Add egg and oil and pulse just until incorporated.
From here, you can shape the crackers in one of two ways:
For a thin, crunchy cracker flatten the dough between two sheets of parchment paper (sold in the same aisle as plastic wrap and aluminum foil) then use a rolling pin to get the dough as thin as possible. Remove the top sheet of parchment paper and set the other (with the dough on top) on a cookie sheet. Use a knife or pizza wheel to cut cracker shapes.
Or, for a thicker cracker with a rounded shape, wrap the dough in a large piece of parchment paper and shape it into a log about 9 inches long and 1-2 inches tall. Use a knife to slice thin pieces of dough into crackers. If the dough is too soft, put it in the freezer for 10 minutes, then cut.
Bake crackers for 10-12 minutes. Let cool completely before eating.

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

 

I heard that Dominoes Pizza now offers a gluten free crust.  But, there is no Dominoes here.  So we have to make our own crusts that are safe for me to eat.

When we first moved to Russia a good pizza was hard to find.  So I learned how to make it myself.  I made the crusts and the guys chose the toppings.    That was part of our Friday night ritual.  And we were happy with my recipe.  But that was before I went gluten free...so it is time for a new recipe.

Our other issue is that Tom has been trying to avoid tomato based sauces.  That part was easy to fix.  I bought some fresh basil and made a pesto sauce.  

I found several different pizza crust recipes online.  I chose the least complicated one I could find and then I had to modify it based on what I had on hand. 

Almond Flour Pizza Crust

2 cups almond flour

2 eggs

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp spaghetti seasoning

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp olive oil

Mix all ingredients together.  The dough will be the consistency of cookie dough.   Place dough on wax paper and put another piece on top to roll out thinly.  Transfer to greased pizza pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes and take out of oven and add the toppings* of your choice.  Return to oven for for another 8-10 minutes.  

*I used pesto sauce as the base, then a thin layer of mozzarella, and finished it off with pepperonis.  

This crust had a soft cracker-like texture.  And we really enjoyed it.  It will not be the same as the pizza crusts you are used to but it is tasty and very filling.   The photo above shows the pizza I made...I took a bite before I remembered that I needed a picture.  Enjoy!

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

Have you ever had cake that was made without flour?  Until last week I didn't know such a thing was possible.  My friend, Jadine, treated me to a piece of this yummy chocolate cake.  I was so excited to actually have a tasty dessert that is also gluten free.  She emailed her recipe to me and I was able to bake it last night.  All of the ingredients are easy to find here in Belmopan without going to the health food store or needing to drive to Belize City or Spanish Lookout for an item.

The texture is just like a regular cake and the taste was divine!  Next time I will make some frosting but this time:

I topped mine with powdered sugar...

Spencer loves to top brownies or chocolate cake with peanut butter and chocolate syrup...

He was absolutely thrilled with the cake.and had to have seconds...

If Tom and I had not told him that there were black beans in the mix I don't think he would have noticed the difference. He was just happy to have cake.  He even asked me to invite him over the next time I experiment with a new recipe.  I sure am grateful to have two taste testers who are always enthusiastic about trying new things.




Black Bean Chocolate Cake
1 3/4 cups black beans, cooked, drained and rinsed
5 large eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
6 Tbsp coconut oil
3/4 cup brown sugar
6 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. water

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9" cake pan.
Mix together cocoa, baking powder and soda in a small bowl. Set aside.
In a larger bowl, beat the coconut oil (or butter or margarine) until
fluffy.  Add 2 of the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each
addition.
Put the beans, the remaining 3 eggs, vanilla, sugar, and salt into a
blender or food processor and blend/process until the mixture is
smooth.  Add this mixture to the oil/egg mixture and mix well.
Stir in the dry ingredients and water and beat on high for 1 minute or
until smooth.
Pour into pan and bake 30-35 minutes.  The top of the cake should be
rounded and firm to the touch, and the cake should be pulling away
from the sides of the pan.

Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cookies

Ten days of being gluten free.  What a milestone.  For the most part it is fairly easy.  I just eat real food.  Meat, veggies and fruit.  Every now and again I have to face up to thoughts of "oh I can't eat that" but, thankfully, it has not been a major ordeal.  Tom even checked labels when buying me a candy bar last night...he came home with a plain milk chocolate Hershey bar. And it was perfect!

It is amazing to have energy again.  It is so wonderful to feel less pain...I never would have imagined that wheat would be factor in my dealing with fibromyalgia.

I got an email last night with a recipe for gluten free chocolate chip cookies and I am looking forward to giving them a try.  I realized as I was reading over the recipe that I have actually had gluten free cookies before.  I made them for the first time back in 2005 when we were in Russia and wrote about giving the recipe away to our friend Alexei.

Super Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

1 egg

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of peanut butter

Mix all ingredients together.  Roll into balls and flatten with a fork in a criss cross pattern.

  Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.   

You could even put a square of chocolate or a Hershey Kiss on top if you like!

I found the same recipe on AllRecipes.com here.

Enjoy!

Going Gluten Free in Belize...

 

Gluten free baking supplies can be found here in Belmopan!  I thought I was going to have to take a trip out to Spanish Lookout to find everything I need.  Thankfully, that was not the case.  

I found the tapioca starch and the rice flour at Fansico, a Chinese owned grocery store, and I found the Xanthan Gum at Ultimate Herbal Health Food Store.   I was shocked to find the Xanthan Gum...totally shocked.  But so relieved that I didn't need to order it online and try to have it sent here.  

Tom is the bread eater in our family not me.  So I thought I could just eat meat, chicken, fish, veggies and fruit and be okay.  And then I remembered how much I love pancakes, pizza and pasta.  That epiphany almost weakened my resolve but I knew I had to soldier on.  

After spending time googling recipes I got overwhelmed.  We live on a modest income and cannot afford to do too much experimenting with expensive ingredients.  I need to make every cent count.  I stumbled on a simple recipe for an all-purpose gluten free flour and knew I was headed in the right direction.

All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour

3/4 cup rice flour

1/4 cup tapioca starch

1 tsp xanthan gum

I started a Gluten Free board on Pinterest to collect recipes and tips.  My quest for ingredients started on Saturday.  I knew where to get the rice flour and 'lo and behold' right next to it was the tapioca starch.  The xanthan gum was harder to find...fortunately, we finished up in the counseling office yesterday early enough for me to head over to the health food store.  I found coconut flour, almond flour and even a gluten free baking mix on the shelf.  I asked about the xanthan gum and the girl found it quickly.  Success!  

Last night I was able to make a batch of 'test biscuits' using the all-purpose gluten free flour mix recipe.  I tried them once before just using rice flour without the tapioca starch or the xanthan gum and they came out dry and heavy.  They were much improved over my previous effort but I will do one more test run before posting that recipe.

My plea for help on Facebook got me connected with a friend of a friend who told me about some other ingredients to look for and is going to pass along some recipes as well.  I was taken aback by how many people know someone who is gluten free.  I didn't want to do this at first.  I didn't want to be difficult to feed when we are away from home, and I just didn't want to be different.  Yet, I have to take care of myself...I have lived with the pain of fibromyalgia for far too long.  I had told myself that there was nothing more I could do or take than what I was already doing.  But, I was wrong. 

After a week of taking some new vitamins and eating gluten free I am already experiencing less pain and more energy.  And I know that it will only get better the longer I stay away from gluten and continue down this path toward better health.  

So, if you have any gluten free recipes or tips to pass along I am open! 

Cream Cheese Pancakes...

Are you looking for gluten free or low carb pancakes?  If so, you should give these a try!

One of the articles I read on Fibromyalgia and diet suggested that some of us with fibromyalgia could benefit from a gluten free diet.  Before making a complete switch I decided to do some research to see what I could and couldn't eat.  

I started a collection of gluten free recipes on Pinterest and this one sounded like a winner.  The recipe was very easy to follow and the pancakes very simple to make.  Well, I take that back... I did find them a little difficult to flip at first and it took a few pancakes for me get the hang of it.

You can find the original recipe here.  Being outside of the US it is not always easy to find specialty ingredients, like Stevia, as the recipe calls for.  So I used cane sugar instead and added vanilla.  So my recipe is this:

Cream Cheese Pancakes

2 ounces of cream cheese

2 eggs

1 tsp of cane sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Put all ingredients in the blender or (use a stick blender) and blend until smooth.  Let rest until the bubbles settle.  Pour desired amount of mix into a hot pan, lightly greased, or sprayed with cooking spray.  Cook a few minutes until golden on the first side and then flip and cook for another minute or so.  Makes 4 medium sized pancakes.

***

I read through some of the comments on the original recipe post and saw that others had made modifications to the recipe as it suited them. One person used mascarpone cheese and protein powder which she said made them a little fluffier.  Another person used honey instead of the stevia.   Some people omitted the sugar altogether.  I may play around with the recipe a bit more myself.  I liked them but wanted the texture to be more like a traditional pancake.  These were more like a crepe to me.  I may try adding a bit of rice flour in my next batch and see how that turns out.  

If you give them a try or have other suggestions let me know!

Corn dogs, Cake Dogs or Cup Pups?

Have you ever had one of those days where you forgot to defrost the meat 

and needed to think of something quick and easy for dinner?

 Well, I have... and this was one of those days.

I call these Corn Dogs Without A Stick... but, Tom calls them Cake Dogs or Cup Pups.

Actually, no matter what you call them, they are easy to make and tasty to eat!  

I mixed up 1 box of Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix according to directions on the box, poured the mixture into muffin tins and then added sliced hotdogs in each one.  The first photo above just shows one slice of hotdog in each muffin but I used one hotdog cut in thirds in each muffin.  It takes 15-20 minutes to bake and voila!  You have dinner.  I topped mine with honey mustard but Tom ate his plain.

So what would you call them?

Tasty Tuesday...Spiced Chai Mix

A few weeks back my mother in law sent me this recipe along with a gift to help me out with the ingredients.  Last fall I was blessed with a care package from my friend Sharon that had cardamom in it.  I remember us joking about needing to find a recipe with cardamom in it so that I would be able to use it.  You can imagine what a pleasant surprise it was to see it listed among the spices needed in my mother in law's recipe!

After gathering up the rest of the ingredients I put this mix together on Sunday.  I love the taste of this tea.  It is so comforting to sit with a cup while I slowly wake up in the morning.  Or it is also great as a relaxing treat at the end of the day.

Spiced Chai Mix

3 cups non-fat dry milk powder

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup unsweetened instant tea

3/4 cup vanilla powdered dairy creamer

1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. cardamom

1/2 tsp. ground cloves

Directions:

Combine in a food processor and process until powdery.

Store mix in an airtight container.

Makes about 5 cups of mix.

To serve:

Stir 2 Tbsp of mixture into a mug of hot water.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday...

Mexican Green Rice Salad 

Ingredients

3 cups cooked rice

1 – 9 oz package fresh spinach

1 small bunch fresh cilantro

the juice of one lime

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 jalapeno, diced very fine (optional)

Method
1. Take fresh spinach, in batches, and pulse in food processor until finely chopped. Add cilantro to food processor and pulse until finely chopped also.
2. Add cooked riced, chopped spinach and cilantro, lime juice, olive oil and diced onion to a large bowl. Add jalapeno if using. Toss to combine. Serve room temperature or chilled.


I have this recipe pinned on Pinterest and if I can find spinach and cilantro at the market today this will be part of the menu for tonight's dinner!

Tasty Tuesday- Cream of Something...

There are many times when we cannot find exactly what we want here in the markets.  Times when we can find it...but it is outrageously expensive because it is imported.  And times when it was available a month ago but not now.  Those are the times when I turn to my cookbooks or get online to find a substitute.  As I was looking through recipes that I have saved on Pinterest I found one that will come in handy for sure.

Cream of "Something" Soup Mix

photo from One Orange Giraffe

 

 recipe

1 cup non-fat dried milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup bouillon, your choice of flavor (if you have cubes you have to smash them up)

4 Tablespoons freeze dried minced onions 

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried thyme or parsley 

1 teaspoon pepper

For the equivalent of one can of condensed cream soup,

 mix 1/3 cup dry mix with 1 1/4 cup water.

 Cook until thick.

I have most of these ingredients on hand so all I need to do is run to the store for some bouillon and I can make a batch today.  If it works it will be a money saver for sure!  If you have recipes for other dried mixes just let me know...I would love to give them a try.

Tasty Tuesday

Since we had Spencer with us for the holidays I decided to do a Russian style feast on New Year's Eve. 

 If you ever get a chance to visit Russia over a holiday being there on New Year's would truly be a treat. The celebration there has been called a Super Holiday.   Think Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, the Fourth of July and New Year's Eve all combined.  Typically gifts are exchanged this night, families are all gathered together, children and some adults will dress up in costumes, and the fireworks displays are just unreal!

It was just the three of us so I only made a few things. I started the night before with preparing this Poncho cake.  I will have to reveal how to make it later because I want to test out a few different things before I post the final recipe.  We will make the sacrifice of taste tasting until we get it just right!!  The cream was perfect...I just want to work on the sponge recipe before posting it.

It is basically a vanilla and a chocolate sponge cake cut up and soaked in a sour cream mixture then covered with the same mixture and drizzled with chocolate.

I think it turned out great!
Poncho Cake

and though my camera gave a yellowish tint to the photo you can still see the inside here...

The next morning I got up and made this Vinegret Salad

click for recipe

Crab Salad

This one is very simple:

1 can of corn, drained

1 can of crab meat

1 cup of cooked rice

4 Tbsp of mayonnaise

mix it all together and refrigerate for at least two hours before serving.

Olivier Salad

click here for recipe

The Olivier is very popular in Russia and each woman has her own recipe for making it.  

I used chicken in mine and added in corn...one of our language school teachers made it that way.

It is also best to prepare a day ahead.

  It really tasted yummy on the second day!

and finally I made Plov (Pilaf)

Click for recipe

I used chicken and added raisins...my friend Djamila from Azerbaijan makes it that way.  I didn't have all of the spices listed in the recipe.  Again each woman would make it differently depending on what she is used to and has on hand.  I used mace, marjoram, cardamom, ginger, salt and pepper.  Just a little of each gave it just the right taste that we all remembered from that evening at Djamila's house.

It was a fun night for us...celebrating our second New Year's Eve in Belize,

 eating Russian food, and watching the American celebration on tv!