T minus 7 days until Thanksgiving supper…

Turkey Day  is happening at Casa Metcalf this year.  Yep, that’s right; David and I are hosting his family.  I can’t wait to host everyone in our new house and have an excuse to cook.

So, what are we making this year?

Turkey on the grill: David did such a great job with the turkey last year, so I see no reason to change the preparation method.  Also, grilling our bird, frees up our oven for more baking.  David plans on brining our bird 24 hours in advance.  David has also mentioned covering the turkey with bacon while grilling.  I won’t argue with that.  After much debate, we went with a fresh turkey from Publix.  I had grand plans that we would get a local turkey, that lived a happy and freely roaming life, but the price tag was too steep ($120!!).  Does that make me an awful person?

Brussels sprouts: I just can’t get enough of those little bites of goodness!  Maybe with a little pancetta?  My friend, Hannah, tried brussels sprouts with grapes recently, something I saw in Real Simple.  I’m interested.

Canned cranberry: I could attempt making cranberry from scratch, but I’ve always preferred the canned version as I grew up with the oddly smooth cranberry on orange slices.  Fortunately, canned cranberry’s GF.

Mashed Potatoes with baby red potatoes, skin on.  I love the texture the skin adds.

Butternut Squash (my mother-in-law’s recipe)

Stuffing: This is adventurous, and we’ve never GF stuffing before, but we’re going to try a recipe, substituting Sally’s Sandwich Bread for real bread.  Of course our stuffing will have sausage in it!

Apple & Pumpkin Pie (Thank goodness for Whole Foods’ Gluten-Free Bakey Pie Crusts)

I will be serving (but not making) pecan pie and dinner rolls, courtesy of Sally’s Bakery.

I’ve also learned that when hosting Thanksgiving, it’s not just the actual Thanksgiving dinner that you have to think about.  The Metcalves will be with us from Thursday through Sunday, so just a turkey and some cranberry won’t last us.

Here are some other items I’m going to make to keep our bellies happy when the last bit of turkey has been consumed and there’s no more pie left for breakfast:

Granola and pumpkin bread for breakfasts and snacking

Chicken chili for lunches, once the leftovers run out

Honey mustard chicken for a weekend dinner.  It’s just so easy.

What are you planning for your Thanksgiving feast?  What are your favorite gluten-free holiday recipes?

Yes, it’s pumpkin time again.  It’s been over a week since I last wrote about baking with pumpkin, so it’s time.

Last week, I went to a South American wine tasting and was given the task of bringing a dessert.  Of course my first idea was, pumpkin cookies!  Sometimes I wonder if I’m pushing too hard on the pumpkin thing: maybe not everyone sees pumpkin as the ideal sweet treat.  But, I went ahead and made the pumpkin cookies.  Sure, it would have been easier to make a batch of Betty Crocker GF brownies, but it’s fall and we need pumpkin.

When I made these cookies, I wasn’t sure what the response would be.  I brought a few to my friend, Jen, who assured me that she liked them.  (I didn’t actually see her eat the cookies though, so I wasn’t sure how truthful this statement was.

So, at the wine event that evening, I was nervous as to how these oddly shaped orange balls would go over with everyone else, especially the guys in the group.  My pumpkin doubts were quickly wiped away, as the pumpkin cookies were devoured.  I would watch a person eat one, then grab another, and a little while later, another.  I couldn’t believe how quickly they were disappearing!  I had to make sure I got my fill of the goodies before they ran out.

Success?  I think so.  They’re not the most beautiful cookies, but they were a crowd pleaser.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
  1 1/2 cups sugar
  1 egg
  1 cup canned pumpkin
  1 tsp. vanilla
  1 cup white rice flour
• ½ cup sorghum flour
• ½ cup tapioca flour
• 1/ cup amaranth flour
  1 tsp. baking powder
  1 tsp. xanthan gum
  1/2 tsp. salt
  1 tsp. nutmeg
  1 tsp. cinnamon
  1 cup chocolate chips

Mix flours, xanthan gum, salt, and baking powder and spices in a bowl.  In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, pumpkin, and vanilla. Add dry ingredients (flours, etc.) to creamed mixture; mix well. Add chocolate chips; mix thoroughly.

Drop by teaspoons onto well-greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutesor until lightly browned. Remove from cookie sheets while warm and cool on racks. Makes 3 1/2 to 4 dozen cookies.  Enjoy!

Note to Gluten-Eaters: If you want to make this recipe with gluten, just use 3 cups of regular flour in lieu of the other flours and omit the xanthan gum.

Any more pumpkin ideas for me?

Quinoa: A staple at Casa Metcalf

Quinoa is a go-to item in my weekly meal planning.  Not only is it yummy, but it has many nutrients and lots of fiber so we can definitely call it a super food.  I love this seed/grain as you can take it in many different culinary directions.

I’ve enjoyed it for breakfast, with cinnamon, blueberries and strawberries…

Quinoa goes well with edamame, red onions, and local cherry tomatoes…

You can make a hearty quinoa dish, similar to risotta with fresh tomatoes and parmesan cheese…

My friend, Mary Stuart, has introduced me to Costco and when I accompanied her on a recent trip to this mega-store, she pointed out the large bags of quinoa to me.  Of course I added the hefty bag to the cart.  We’ll be eating a lot of quinoa in the next few months.

Who knew Costco had quinoa?

Earlier this week, I made a batch of quinoa with sautéed onions and served it as a side dish with honey mustard chicken.  Of course I doubled the recipe so for lunch all week, I’ve been enjoying my quinoa with roasted sweet potatoes and Brussels sprouts.  Mmmm…

Last week I tried a new quinoa combo.  I made the Gluten Free Goddesses’ (also known as one of my favorite blogs, Karina’s Kitchen) recipe for Quinoa Salad with Pears, Baby Spinach, Chickpeas and Maple Vinaigrette.  Quite a combination, right?  It was so delicious and the textures worked really well together.  I particularly enjoyed the toasted pecans.  (I just toasted mine on the stove with a little olive oil on medium high heat for a few minutes.  You want to toss them as they cook to prevent uneven cooking.)

Gluten-Free Goddesses’ Quinoa Salad: (Serves 4 as a main dish, 6 as a side)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup organic quinoa
  Sea salt
• 2 good handfuls of organic baby spinach leaves, washed, drained
  1 large ripe pear, washed, stemmed and cored, cut into pieces
  1/2 cup chilled chick peas, rinsed, drained
  Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
  A handful of pecans, pan toasted and salted to taste
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  3 tablespoons golden balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Place the quinoa in a saucepan or a rice cooker. Add 2 cups fresh water, and a pinch of sea salt. Cover and cook on a low simmer until all the water is evaporated and the quinoa is tender- roughly 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and dump it into a large salad bowl.

Toss is the pear, spinach, and chick peas.

Mix in a separate bowl the maple syrup, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  Pour on salad and toss gently.  Add S & P to taste.

Enjoy!

Note: If you want the leftovers to keep during the week, I would suggest adding the spinach on an ‘as needed’ basis or even just using it as a bed on your plate for the rest of your salad.  Then it won’t get soggy during the week.

Not only did I make this dish for dinner, but the next night I enjoyed Mary Stuart’s version of the same recipe.  Of course she and I both thought sweet potatoes would go well with the dish.  She also made an amazing GF quiche but more details on that later…

What do you like to add to your quinoa?

I heart Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix.  If you are new to the gluten-free world, Pamela’s is a must-purchase for you.  This is an easy go-to mix for making pancakes, waffles, chocolate chip cookies, and other yummy treats.  The folks at Pamela’s have a great recipe and you can add minimal ingredients to their base mix in order to make a delicious baked good.

David's Saturday morning specialty: Pamela's Pancakes

While I love experimenting with my own flour combinations when baking gluten-free, sometimes you just need something quick and easy.  Pamela’s is just that…oh, and it tastes yummy too.  Even my brother, who is the biggest gluten-eater I know, loves homemade chocolate chip cookies with Pamela’s.

Another thing I heart is baking with pumpkin.  Pumpkin muffins, pumpkin cookies, and pumpkin bread are all at the top of my list of favorite sweets, especially as we enter the cool weather months.  I find that baking with pumpkin adds moistness (for a lack of a better word) and sponginess to gluten-free treats.  Last week, I wanted to make a quick and easy pumpkin bread and I found this recipe on Pamela’s website.  Perfect!  I didn’t even make the Crumble Nut Topping and it was delicious.  I also like making this pumpkin bread with chocolate chips, if I really want to please my sweet tooth.  Since I was serving the pumpkin bread with soup, I went the more savory route and omitted the chocolate chips.

Pumpkin Bread with Crumble Nut Topping

4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup of canned pumpkin
1-1/3 cups Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves

¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Topping: (optional)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup of nuts (sliced almonds, walnuts, pecans)

Beat together butter, sugar, egg, and pumpkin. Add remaining bread ingredients and mix together. Gently mix in chocolate chips.  Pour into a greased loaf pan (8 x 4). Mix nut topping ingredients and smooth evenly over batter to the edges. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or when toothpick inserted comes out almost clean.

Enjoy!

Fall reminds me of many things:  My Dutch oven, Roasted Veggies, Chili,  and all things Pumpkin…

But the cool weather also makes me think about granola.  Don’t ask me why I make the connection between a specific season and granola because I pretty much eat this yummy snack year round.  I heart granola, in a big way.  I’ve had my go-to granola recipe for awhile, but while David was away last week, I was itching to try out a new recipe.

I found a granola recipe in Sara Foster’s Fresh Every Day cookbook that implements a distinctly different cooking process than Mark Bittman’s, which I’ve followed in the past.  I was intrigued by the use of maple syrup, and cooking the ingredients on a baking sheet instead of the roasting pan.  (I didn’t feel like digging the roasting pan out of the back of the cabinet.)

This recipe might be my new favorite and I plan on making a big batch when David’s family comes to Atlanta for Thanksgiving.  Perfect for a simple breakfast on a day where there will be much eating in the later hours.

I made a few changes to the original recipe, but stuck to the basic methods.  It is delicious, crunchy, and the coating of oil, syrup and honey worked really well.  I’ve been putting my granola in my cereal, on my yogurt, and my new favorite: on Breyer’s Dulce de Leche ice cream.  Amazing!

Granola Version 2 (Inspired by Sara Foster’s Fresh Every Day Cookbook)

Makes about 7 cups

Ingredients:

• 3 cups gluten-free oats
• 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut (sweetened is fine too)
• 1 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds, cashews, pecans and sunflower seeds)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ cup canola oil
• ¾ cup maple syrup
• ¼ cup honey
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ½ cup dried raisins

Preaheat oven to 275.

Spread the oats, coconut, and almonds on a large baking sheet with sides.  Sprinkle with salt and bake for 12-15 minutes, until lightly toasted, but not darkened.  Stir occasionally while cooking.  Remove from oven and transfer ingredients to a large bowl.

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray pan with PAM.  Stir maple syrup, honey and oil together in a small bowl and pour over oat mixture and toss to coat evenly.

Spread granola greased baking sheet and bake for 22-27 minutes, until the granola is crispy and golden brown.  Stir several time throughout cooking process.

Let granola cool completely on the baking sheet, breaking up large clumps before it cools.  Once it has cooled completely, add raisins and cranberries and toss.  Store in an air tight container or freeze.  Enjoy!

I’m excited to announce my latest article just came out in Atlanta’s Finest Dining Magazine. Not only am I happy that I’ve gotten published again (woohoo!), but I’m also thrilled that a mainstream magazine is committed to giving attention to the gluten-free community.

Please check out my article, “Enjoying the Seasonal Bounty.”  Isn’t “bounty” such a great word.  I have to give my friend Mary Stuart credit for the use of bounty associated with local food.  We get to share in the bounty of what our local farmers harvest, even in these swelteringly hot summer months.

Thank you, Farmers (Paige, Justin, Joe, Judith, Nicholas, Gretchen, John, Ashley, Stephanie, and many others), for working your tails off so we can eat your delicious food.

“Meals from a Gluten-Free Kitchen: Enjoying the Seasonal Bounty”

One of the best parts about being on the Shore (besides lots of reading), is the cooking and eating.  During the summer months, there are so many fresh veggies that meal prep is pretty minimal.  Last week we enjoyed many laid back dinners, but one of my favorite meals involved homemade crab cakes.  I can never get crab cakes at restaurants because they’re breaded, so it’s an extra special treat for me to enjoy a summer crab cake.  We happily ate them for two dinners.  (Side note: Urban Pl8’s crab cakes are GF!)

Gillian's Gluten-Free Bread Crumbs

We bought fresh crabmeat at Edward’s Seafood in Onley.  When you buy the best crabmeat, you don’t want a lot of filler in your cakes, but you do need enough to bind it together.  I bought Gillian’s Gluten-Free Bread Crumbs at Herbal Instincts Natural Food Market in Onancock (141 Market Street).  They have an amazing selection of gluten-free goodies, including Udi’s bagels, Pamela’s cookies, quinoa as well as organic meats.  A great place for Mom and me to stock up.

Herbal Instincts Market (Onancock, VA)

I’ve written about crab cakes before but I experimented a different recipe here.  I briefly referred to Mark Bittman’s crab cake recipe, but of course I wanted to add Old Bay and didn’t particularly want to use scallions to my crab cakes so I changed it up a little bit.  Here’s what we did:

ESVA Crab Cakes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb jumbo lump crab meat
• 2 teaspoons Old Bay
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons Gillian’s bread crumbs
• Less than ¼ cup mayonnaise (depends on how mayo-y you want your cakes)
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• s&p
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix crabmeat, egg, Old Bay, mayo, dijon, salt, pepper, and bread crumbs in a bowl.  Refrigerate mix for about 30 minutes.  Remove mixture from fridge and make into tightly packed cakes.  (About 4-6 per pound of meat, depending on how big you want them.  I find them easier to flip if they’re smaller.)

Heat nonstick pan on medium high heat.  Add butter and olive.  Let melt and butter bubble.  Once bubbling has subsided, add cakes to pan.  Cook for 5 minutes (until nicely browned) and flip, cooking for another 5 minutes.  Serve warm.

We enjoyed our crab cakes with homemade deviled eggs, fresh corn and tomatoes, both grown on our road.  A truly local meal!

Perfect.  (And obviously, there was wine too, served by our favorite bartender.)

Dear Mini-Food Processor,

You have been a wonderful kitchen gadget for our family.  Making hummus with you has been a favorite Sunday activity.  Your salad dressings are delicious and you always know just the right amount to make.  The perfect size for a batch of pesto, you’ve been a great friend in our tiny apartment.  Even though we keep you on the top shelf, almost weekly I stand on my tip toes, grab you, and put you to work.

You’ve been working overtime recently, as we’ve had an endless supply of basil.  Thank you for your hard work.  You never disappoint.  Even when I fine a large chunk of garlic in my hummus that you forgot to chop up, I don’t mind because I know that I ask a lot of you.

I have a confession to make, Mini Food Processor.  You’re going to have a new home.  It’s not that we don’t love you, but it’s time for us to buy a bigger food processor.  You will always be our first and I  have many fond memories of our time together.  Now that we’re moving into a home with a more spacious kitchen, it only seems right to buy a larger model.  I’m looking forward to working with our new food processor, chopping onions and other veggies, but just know that you will never be forgotten.

Your new home with the Williams will be much more spacious than the living conditions you’ve had for the past year.  Meredith will take good care of you, I promise, and make many yummy foods with you.  Keep chopping away.

Love,

Betsy

Basil Dressing (in the Mini Food Processor)

This is a great dressing for salad and delicious to add to other summer dishes. Lighter than pesto, so it absorbs better into whatever you’re making.  Also, let’s be honest: Sometimes I’m a little cheap to make pesto.  Pine nuts are pricey so this is a solid alternative to pesto and not as rich.

Great to use with:

• Roasted potatoes
• Pork chops
• Grilled bone-in chicken breasts
• Tossed in a cold quinoa salad
• Salad dressing

Ingredients:

• 1 cup tightly packed basil leaves
• juice from ½ a lemon (add more if you want it to be more tart)
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons parmesan cheese
• 2 cloves garlic
• s&p

Put all of the ingredients, except olive oil, into food processor and mix.  Once blended, add olive oil.  If you want it to be more liquid thank thick (less like pesto and more like salad dressing), add more olive oil and white wine vinegar and less cheese.

Other Great Uses for the Mini Food Processor:

Hummus

Pesto for pasta or pizza

Recently a group of us hosted a luncheon to celebrate my good friend, Mary Stuart, and her baby that’s on the way.  On a steamy, summer day, it can be difficult to create a menu.  When it’s hot outside, we’re not looking to eat heavy, rich, foods.  Instead your food should be light and refreshing.  Also, this luncheon was not at my house, so I had to take transportation into account when planning.  I  didn’t want to be assembling my dish upon arrival, so my ‘quinoa for a crowd’ actually tastes better when made a day in advance.

As the name implies, this recipe makes a lot of food, and I always make too much food when I’m playing host.  Leftovers are delicious and this quinoa makes for a great lunch during the week.  In our Atlanta group of friends, I’m not the only gluten-free eater, so we labeled the items for the luncheon that were gluten-free and kept them at the beginning of the buffet line, in order to best avoid contamination.

Quinoa for a Crowd (Serves about 10-12)

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups quinoa
• 5 cups vegetable broth (or water)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoons salt & ¼ teaspoon pepper

• 1 red onion
• 1 bag frozen, shelled edamame
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes

Vinaigrette

• ½ cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 table spoon white wine vinegar

Rinse and drain quinoa if package instructs you to.  (Some do and others don’t.)  I have a very fine strainer that I use for rinsing my quinoa.

Heat olive oil on medium heat.  Add quinoa and stir for a minute while cooking.  Add 1 cup broth and stir while the quinoa absorbs the liquid.  Once liquid is absorbed, add 3 more cups.  Lower heat to medium-low.  Let cook, stirring occasionally.  Add salt and pepper.  Add more liquid as needed.  You’ll know the quinoa is done because it will ‘pop.’  Not like popcorn, but you’ll see that the quinoa becomes bigger and there will be a little line in the middle of each grain.  It will take about 20 minutes for quinoa to cook.  (Unlike risotto, I think it’s hard to overcook quinoa.)

Remove quinoa from heat and let cool to room temperature.  Meanwhile, finely chop red onion.  Heat shelled edamame (according to cooking instructions on bag).  Drain and let cool.  Cut tomatoes in half.  Put onion, edamame and tomatoes into a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk lemon juice, honey, olive oil, white wine vinegar and Dijon mustard.  Taste.  Depending on how tart or sweet you like your food, add more honey and olive oil (for sweetness) or add more mustard or lemon juice (for tartness).  This is completely about your flavor preference.  I find that anytime I make a vinaigrette, I keep sampling it until I’m content with the flavors.  (Not very precise or scientific, I know!)

Once your quinoa has cooled, add the grain to your large bowl.  Mix with tomatoes, edamame, and onions.  Add your vinaigrette and toss.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  If your salad dries out a little, just add some more lemon juice or olive oil before serving.

As I mentioned, this quinoa, is the gift that keeps on giving, so I brought the leftovers to a dinner that same night.  Still delicious.  And I ate it for lunch the next day.  And the next.

Another highlight of the luncheon was the chicken salad that my friend Meredith made, using one of Emeril’s recipes.  I loved the cashew and apple combination.  Salty, sweet and tart, all in one.  Not too much mayo either.  You can see this naturally gluten-free recipe here.  (The only change Meredith made was omitting the parsley.)  Of course, thoughtful Meredith even remembered to bring gluten-free crackers for the chicken salad!

What do you like to make when cooking for a crowd?

I know it’s summer when I find any excuse to slip tomatoes into our meal.  Once you’ve had great, fresh, local tomatoes, you can never buy a grocery store tomato again.  These tomatoes from Crystal Organics Farm are the real deal.

Bright red slicers…

Heirloom tomatoes…

Cherry tomatoes…

Last week we had a tomato overload in the Metcalf house but I didn’t get sick of this seasonal treat.  Here’s what we made:

Quinoa with edamame and cherry tomatoes

BLT’s

And of course the family favorite, tomato pie.  One of the easiest recipes, the key to making this delicious dish is using huge, beautiful, summer tomatoes.  No excuses here.  This is truly a seasonal recipe.  A great centerpiece to a summer meal, I like to serve tomato pie with corn on the cob and a salad.  David likes to eat the leftovers for breakfast.

Tomato Pie…

Tomato Pie:

Ingredients:

• Gluten-free pie crust (I use Whole Foods Bakehouse, but of course you can make your own too)
• 4 large tomatoes, cut into extra large slices
• 4 tablespoons Chopped basil
• 4 green onions, chopped
• S&P
• 1 cup mayo
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Heat empty pie crust in the oven at 350 degrees.  Remove crust from oven and let cool completely.

Place one layer of tomatoes in the pie crust.  Sprinkle with s&p and add basil and green onions.  Add remaining tomatoes in another layer.  Mix cheddar and mayo in a bowl and spread evenly on top of tomatoes.  Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes, until cheese/mayo starts to brown.

(The juicier the tomatoes, the more watery the pie can be.  Don’t be dismayed if it’s not beautiful when you slice and serve the pie.  It’s still delicious!)

Happy Cooking!  What are some of your favorite tomato recipes?