Post-Thanksgiving Day roll call

Being that I absolutely love cooking for others (& myself), I love hosting a holiday dinner. And being gluten-free, we all know it makes it so much easier and more relaxed when I know all the food came from my kitchen and my ingredients. I always ask guests to bring drinks and I will take care of the food. The last thing I want is for my kitchen and food to somehow get contaminated with something someone else brings. I would rather spend the extra money and do the food myself and be able to relax. Of course I miss the days when people would bring dishes to share, but I just don't want to risk a holiday dinner in bed with a tummy ache.

I always have to decide on my menu a week in advance, chart out my shopping list by grocery stores, and then make a schedule of exactly when I need to start each dish the day of the dinner. Compulsive? maybe. Organized? usually.

Thanksgiving 2010 menu:

Starters:

Baked brie with cranberries and crackers - yum!

Roasted pumpkin seeds - yum!

Wine - enough said.

Dinner:

Honey Baked turkey - felt kind of blah about this. I only bought the turkey so that my guests wouldn't feel cheated of turkey and I didn't want to mess with bones, raw poultry and gluten, so I went with the safe bet...but I was not a fan. I should have picked up that pre-cooked half-turkey I saw at Trader Joes.

Garlic and ginger salmon - I made this myself, and just baked salmon on a bed of fresh spinach, slathered with a quick sauce of olive oil, fresh ginger and garlic.

Mashed potatoes - my usual super sinful mashed potatoes, always a hit, and a day's worth of calories.

Balsamic roasted root vegetables - I took this recipe from this month's Southern Living. It is made in the crockpot with sweet potatoes, parsnips, carrots and dried cranberries. Came out great and loved the ease of doing it in the crockpot and just leaving it alone. I think I will repeat for xmas.

Cream corn - again, this is sinful in fat and calories and quickly eaten.

Roasted brussels sprouts - simple and tasty. Green was definitely needed to round out this meal of yellow and orange.

Cornbread stuffing - I kind of made this up as I went along. I made the cornbread the night before (using Bob's Red Mill gluten-free cornbread mix), cut it into cubes and let it dry overnight, then added cooked carrots, boy choy, onions, sage and veggie broth...turned out surprisingly good.

Gravy - I made gravy using the Gluten-Free Girl's method, but used veggie broth, and added chopped parsley right at the end, before serving.

Cranberries - I use the recipe on the package and it always turns out good and simple. I love using leftovers on my eggnog pancakes, and this morning's eggnog French toast.

Dessert -

Pumpkin pie - I make this mostly from scratch with a real pumpkin (roasted seeds for a starter) and a crust from Whole Foods, served with a side of freshly whipped cream - yummy!!

Mascarpone and sweet cream cheesecake - I decided on this just days before, after I saw this recipe from the Gluten Free Traveler. I made a crust using graham crackers from the Grainless Baker...super fabulous!!!

What were some of your hits and misses this Thanksgiving?

Ringing in the holiday season with eggnog French toast

With Thanksgiving over and done, it is now officially the start of the holiday season, and what better way to start than with a post-Thanksgiving day breakfast of eggnog French toast, and it couldn't get any easier.

Now that I discovered I can easily find Udi's bread at my local Trader Joe's, I don't feel like I have to hoard it as much until I make a special trip out again for more. I felt like I could use my bread stock more freely. Funny, the things we do when we are gluten-free. I also happened to be well-stocked with eggnog, and had leftovers cranberries which go perfect with french toast or pancakes.

Eggnog French Toast

2 eggs

1 1/2 cup of eggnog

1 t. of cinnamon

10 slices of gluten-free bread (I used Udi's)

butter, or oil for greasing pan

Melt butter (or oil) in a pan or skillet over medium heat, and warm the oven to 200';

Meanwhile, mix the eggs, eggnog and cinnamon in a bowl;

Dip each slice of bread in the egg mixture for 5 seconds to allow to soak and place in the warmed heated pan/skillet, or a plate until you have room on your pan for the next batch;

Cook and flip until each side is slightly browned and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet or large baking pan to keep warm until you are finished with the 10 slices.

You can avoid that last step if you plan on eating them straight out of the pan.

For my french toast, I served it with a side of leftover cranberries and a sprinkling of powdered sugar, but they would also be tasty with maple syrup, a side of fresh, sliced fruit, or just on their own.

For another delicious eggnog breakfast, try my eggnog oatmeal pancakes.

Happy breakfast!

Winner of General Mills giveaway!

The winner of the General Mills care package giveaway is Briana!

Congratulations!!

I spy Udi's at........

Trader Joe's!!

How fantastic...to be walking by the fresh bread section, which I usually ignore and see shelves full of Udi's gluten-free bagels and bread. That made me one happy girl!

So nice that I can now just stop by TJs and not make a special trip to other stores where it is even more expensive...yeah for Udi's!! It is so nice to find all I need in one place.

Reindeer Chow

Peanut butter, chocolate, sugar.......who can resist that combination? Not me! Reindeer Chow is super easy, naturally gluten-free, quick to prepare and a delicious snack that will make it impossible to stop yourself from taking more. What could be better?

My friend, Jennie, is the one who introduced me to this sinful snack. Jennie has a great blog, Tuffet, with an amazing list and pictures of her recipes. Please note, she is not gluten-free, but with some tweaking we can make some of her recipes work. But this recipe is naturally gluten-free, so it makes it even easier!

Reindeer chow can also be found as being called Puppy Chow and Muddy Buddies by Betty Crocker and Chex cereal. Though many of these recipes call for butter, and instead of butter I just double the peanut butter.

This makes a great after school snack or a festive bowl of munchies for holiday get-togethers.

Reindeer Chow

1 cup of creamy peanut butter

1 bag of milk chocolate chips

7 cups of Chex cereal (I used Corn, but Rice or Honey Nut would be great too)

2 cups of powdered sugar

Melt the peanut butter and chocolate in a large glass bowl in the microwave for about a minute, stir and another 30-45 seconds, until smooth;

Add the Chex cereal and combine;

If you had a lid for your bowl, add powdered sugar to your bowl, if not place the cereal mixture and sugar into a 2-gallon resealable plastic bag, and shake to coat;

Place on wax paper to cool, and if you can control yourself from eating it right away, store in the fridge in a sealed container.

'Tis the season....almost!