Mock “Oreo” Cheesecake March 8, 2010

Well, one thing I had to give up when I went gluten free was Oreo chocolate sandwich cookies. It was hard to see my husband dunking and twisting apart the popular treat.

We had a dinner party to attend last week and I was asked to bring dessert.

(I think most of my friends know I like to bake, so usually volunteer me for that task. But, I never mind one bit and it gives me just another reason to use my favorite kitchen appliance: the orange KitchenAid.)

I whipped up this “Mock Oreo Cheesecake.” The dessert fed 10 people and even one piece was left for our host to keep for a morning treat. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

These KinniTOOs from Kinnikinnick Foods don’t   have quite the distinct flavor of an
Oreo, so I don’t usually eat them plain, but for a cheesecake crust….

 

Beautiful!

 

Crust

• 1 package chocolate KinniTOOS

• 2 Tbsp. melted butter

Use food processor (or plastic bag with rolling pin!) to finely crush entire package of cookies. Add to melted butter, then press into springform pan. Let sit in refrigerator while prepping cheesecake filling.

Filling (as seen on Teri’s Kitchen)

• 4 packages (8-ounces each) cream cheese, softened
• 4 large eggs
• 1-1/4 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Sour Cream Topping

• 2 cups sour cream
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350° F. Beat cream cheese in large bowl of electric mixer just until smooth (can use hand mixer). Add eggs, sugar, lemon and vanilla. Beat just until well blended. Pour into chilled crust. Bake for 50-55 minutes in a 9-inch pan or 40-45 minutes in a 10-inch pan, or until center is set.

Meanwhile, combine sour cream, sugar and vanilla for topping in a medium bowl. Blend well. Cover and refrigerate until cake is done. Remove cake from oven. Let stand for 15 minutes. Spoon topping over cake from center to within 1/2-inch of edges. Return cake to oven and bake for 5 minutes. Remove cake from oven. Place on rack and cool completely.

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, or up to 2 days before serving. Run a knife around the outer edge of cake to loosen from pan. Remove ring from pan and slice as desired.

I just loved how beautiful the strawberries looked!

Some fresh strawberries, and the cheesecake was complete! Enjoy!

The Perfect Pasta

Here in small-town Wisconsin, it can be  hard to come by gluten-free products; and much less, ones that don’t taste like cardboard.

Frank’s County Market in my little village of East Troy has changed that trend and I am eternally grateful.

One of the Market’s newest additions is pictured at left: Schar pasta. For all you gluten-free readers, this is the BEST pasta around. It is a combination of corn and rice, which prevents the issues 100-percent rice noodles sometimes have. I’ve tried the other gluten-free brands and they’re not bad, but if you’re tired of thick, starchy water and soggy noodles, Schar is the box to look for on your grocery shelves.

Or, better yet, ASK your grocer to carry it. Frank’s carries lasagna noodles that I use often, but one day on a whim, I asked the gal if they would maybe get in some penne noodles. Sure enough, a couple weeks later, Schar appeared in the gluten-free section. I was thrilled! Now that’s what I call “customer service.”

My favorite way to eat these is to boil the noodles, drain them, then add a little browned butter, salt and pepper. Pure pasta heaven!

I’ve also “ad-libbed” a pasta bake with the Schar noodles, which turned out delicious and my husband agreed! First, I boiled and drained the noodles. I then stirred them with some tomato-basil pasta sauce and browned ground beef. I put the mixture in a stone casserole,  and finally, topped the dish with mozzarella, asiago and parmesan cheeses. The casserole was put in the over at 350 degrees for about 1/2 hour and was an easy, satisfying supper!

In the future, I will be posting some of the amazing gluten-free chicken dishes my husband has made for me, but we both keep forgetting to take pics. The dish is devoured before we remember! Until next time, thanks for reading and keep enjoying the celiac life, creatively.

Fabulous Flour February 22, 2010

This is it, fellow gluten-free friends: FABULOUS FLOUR!

When first eating without wheat, I suffered terrible baking withdrawals. I tried different flour blends, different mixes and was never satisfied. About 3 or 3 months ago, however, life changed! I found this blend recipe online and decided, “All right. One more try.” And, God was good! It’s amazing.

The first big test was my mom’s almond poppyseed bread. PERFECT! And, I used the regular recipe, just substituting this blend for the flour. I called my mom on the phone with more excitement than she’d probably heard in a long time. To others, a perfect loaf of bread is nothing to do jumping jacks over; for me, it was a major accomplishment!

I can’t take the credit, however. A fellow WordPress blogger, Kate, aka Gluten Free Gobsmacked, is the author of this great flour blend. See the link here:

http://glutenfree.wordpress.com/my-gf-flour-blend/

But, for a fast reference, here’s the blend recipe:

SINGLE BATCH OF GLUTEN FREE FLOUR BLEND: (4 1/4 cups of flour)

• 2 1/4 cups superfine rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato starch
• 2/3 cup tapioca flour
• 3/4 cup sweet rice flour
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons xanthan gum

DOUBLE BATCH OF GLUTEN FREE FLOUR BLEND: (8 1/2 cups of flour)

• 4 1/2 cups superfine rice flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 1 1/3 cups tapioca flour
• 1 1/2 cups sweet rice flour
• 2/3 cornstarch
• 4 teaspoons xanthan gum (or 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon)

TRIPLE BATCH OF GLUTEN FREE FLOUR BLEND: (12 3/4 cups of flour)

• 6 3/4 cups superfine rice flour
• 3/4 cup potato starch
• 2 cups tapioca flour
• 2 1/4 cup sweet rice flour
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 2 Tablespoons xanthan gum

Don’t forget the Xanthan Gum.. That’s the KEY ingredient in getting your flour to be like regular flour. This is the “glue” missing when you’re gluten-free. Kate’s cookie recipe on her site is also very good, so if you get a chance try those. I made them with mint chips at Christmas time.. Yummy!

This flour is great to mix up a big batch at a time and store in a sealed container. I just put together a triple batch and now it’s handy, even if my husband is making a recipe and needs 1/4 cup, or a scant for breading. Enjoy!

Mo’s Irish Pub February 7, 2010

Last night, a group of friends, along with Jonas and I went to see the “Dead Sea Scrolls and the Bible” exhibition at the Milwaukee Public Museum. I highly recommend it, but plan to stand and wait, esp. if you go on a Saturday evening.

After that, we walked a few blocks downtown to Mo’s Irish Pub. I had checked out the menu beforehand, so I had some idea of what I would order. And, it worked perfectly. I told the waitress I was gluten free, and she was very accommodating. I had the Corned Beef/Cabbage plate with steamed carrots instead of cabbage (yuck!) and it was served with baby red potatoes. The food was delicious, and best of all, I could enjoy a date night out with my hubby and friends without having to inconvenience anyone. Thanks Mo’s!

A chocolate Sunday afternoon

Our friend Olivia came by for lunch today, and she requested I make some of her favorite buttercream frosting. Well, we couldn’t just have frosting, so I whipped up a batch of chocolate cupcakes, from the new Betty Crocker Devil’s Food Gluten-Free mix I had in the cupboard. Mmm…. just like the orginal.

We didn’t really bother “officially” frosting them. The three of us just stood around the kitchen putting some frosting on one, then devouring without regard to the pretty Valentine’s cups I even used! But, I took the liberty of making on “pretty” just for you.

The mix is simple to use: Just follow instructions on the box.

For the buttercream, I mixed about 3/4 stick of butter, 1/2 bag of powdered sugar, some milk and vanilla. I used a little more vanilla than normal, so the vanilla flavor really stood out. But, I loved it and think I’ll do it that way more often!

Enjoy!

Let’s get creative… February 4, 2010

Today I decided to move into the next decade of the 21st Century by having some fun with technology. Hence, a blog!

I am gluten free and  just in this first year, have had many adventures. Along the way, I’ve found some great success with baking/cooking, a variety of products, and places to eat out and enjoy food! I’d like to share these with the cyber world, and help others learn to live without wheat in a world of white bread.

Hope you can join me on this adventure. I think it will be quite the ride!