Ok, I said I would try to do a picture a day but I didn’t promise they would be great food;). Today was a Starbucks kind of day!
Category Archives: Food
A Little Dinner Out
So tonight we stopped at Red Robin in Turlock on the way home from the family Christmas celebration.
Did you know that they have a gluten free menu? I got a mushroom burger on a gluten free Udi’s bun. It was pretty good! I should have gotten mayo on it though;). I got the fries without the seasoning (the seasoning has gluten;). The strawberry daiquiri helped with the slightly dry bun;).
Gluten Free Donuts!!!
Ok, donuts are a huge holiday tradition with us! We do donuts for Hanukkah and Christmas morning every year since NerdDad and I got married. I was afraid that going gluten free was going to be the death of such a beloved tradition. So I went in search of a gluten free recipe. The first one I tried was not good at all. These on the other hand were a big hit!!! I based it off of recipe I found over at Food.com but then made a few changes.
Ingredients:
2 eggs , beaten
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
5 cups home made gluten-free rice flour mix
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons xanthan gum
Powdered sugar for tossing (I think I used 1/2 cup)
Process:
Mix all the wet ingredients together and in a separate bowl mix the dry ingredients. Then fold them together (don’t use a mixer. Then let it sit for at least 15 minutes. I mixed them before dinner for Hanukkah and let them sit the whole time. Then heat up a pot of canola oil to medium heat.
I do a small test and when it immediately sizzles the oil should be ready. Then I use a small scoop (I think it is about a tablespoon of dough) and put a few scoops in the oil. Don’t over crowd the pot! It is about 3 minutes for each ball to cook. You may have to flip them to get them cooked evenly. I take the finished balls and place them on paper towels to drain while I put the next bunch in. Then put the drained donuts into your bowl of powdered sugar and roll (ok, really I do more of a bounce;).
And that is it! Fab donuts!!!!
A Refreshing Treat
I have a small Starbucks problem but I want to be a little healthier and a little frugaler. So I decided to start making my own blended drinks. I love the Rocket/single serving blender
I put in crushed ice, coffee (that was cold & leftover in the frig), left over creamer, a shot of chocolate sauce and blended. Then I topped it with low fat chocolate whipped cream. Delish! A cheap and easy way to replace my Starbucks frap!
Can’t go wrong with steak!
Ok, so I still take stinky pictures. This New York steak tasted way better than it looked!!! After NerdDad was done cooking it on the flat griddle I halved some grape tomatoes and threw them on the griddle. I paired it with a salad and it was so good!!!!
Food Pic a Day!
So I have decided to do a sort of 365 project. Every day I will post a picture of food from my day! Today we let the kids each decorate a gingerbread panel. This is the Nerdster’s. It is pretty cute and he ate a lot of candy while he was doing it;).
I love the candy rocks and candy covered sunflower seeds that I got at Winco.
A Chemical Free & Clean Microwave!
Ok this may seem silly and obvious but go with me;).
I really dislike a dirty microwave. And yet things tend to over flow
or explode in the microwave. Then it is miserable to clean…Well it
is if you don’t use my tricks;).
For a general griminess, take a wet sponge, pop it in the microwave
for 45 seconds. But for a more intense mess have no worries! Mix a
little baking soda with water. Then rub the paste on the walls of the
microwave. Then put a very wet sponge in the microwave for 1 minute.
It works even better if you can add lemon juice to the mix.
After you are done microwaving the sponge ( in both cases) just wipe it down!
Marzetti Simply Dressed
I am a salad dressing snob! There, I have admitted it! Now I am not so much of a salad dressing snob that I make it but I am picky.
I already love Marzetti’s dips, both sweet and savory. So when I got the opportunity to review Marzetti’s Simply Dressed salad dressing I was very excited!
See I have been having a weird dilemma. I recently gave up wheat so first off I had throw out a ton of my bottled sauces and dressing. Now I have to scour labels and I miss bread (especially croutons in my salad). It is also amazing how much bread add in a salad with fat and mouth feel. So this is where I was coming from when I entered the grocery store to buy a bottle of Marzetti Simply Dressed.
To start with there are so many flavor choices!!! And even better, every one except the soy based one is gluten free! So I looked closely and considered my options. I steered away from the vinaigrette choices since I have been missing the fatty mouth feel. Then I spotted it. It had a glowing light behind it. It was the Blue Cheese dressing.
I was not raised eating any kind of blue cheese much less having it in salad dressing. But as I have gotten older I have started adding little bits of blue cheese to things but it still can be over powering. But I have just been craving cheese so I decided to risk it. So I got the Blue Cheese dressing and a spring greens salad mix to give me a touch of bitter to cut the fat.
I took my eagerly bought wares home. To my greens I add a little apple that was left over from the children’s lunch, some dried tart cranberries and some candied pecans. I added a drizzle of Marzetti Simply Dressed Blue Cheese Dressing. First I tasted the dressing by itself. It was pretty smooth with a creamy taste. There were little bits of the crumbly cheese. When I ate it with the greens there was a nice compliment between the bitterness of the greens and the creaminess of the cheese. But when you had the apples with the dressing it was complimented by the tang of the cheese. For the first time since I gave up bread (a couple of months ago) I didn’t miss the croutons!!!!!
So what is my final thoughts on Marzetti Simply Dressed salad dressing? Umm, go buy it! It was so delicious just like every other Marzetti product I have ever tried. It is a good price and a great product! I look forward to trying all of their gluten free options.
How about you? What do you look for in a salad dressing?
I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Simply Dressed review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.
Chocolate Chip & Raisin Rice Pudding
So NerdDad and I recently went wheat free (not so much the kids) and I am still trying to emotionally deal with that;). When I started thinking about making holiday food I quickly realized that I didn’t really have much in the way of fab desserts. So I decided to resurrect the rice pudding. But the problem is that I knew that NerdDad wasn’t a big fan. He said it tends to be dry and not sweet. Well, I rectified those problems! I also made them smaller by cooking them in souffle ramekins.
NerdDad says they are very tasty and have almost a bread like consistency that may come from the Jasmine rice that I use. But I am sure you can use any kind of white rice.
Ingredients:
6 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup raisins
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
4 cups cooked Jasmine rice
Preheat your oven at 325 degrees. Butter your ramekins and the add sugar and cinnamon. Turn until it the cinnamon and sugar covers the butter and dump the excess. Beat with a whisk the eggs until slightly frothy. Then whisk in the sugar until smooth. Then add the cinnamon, vanilla and salt. Then whisk in the milk. Stir in the rest of the ingredients.
Then ladle everything into your ramekins and place them on a cookie sheet. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a knife placed 1/2 way toward the center comes out fairly clean. The same procedure if you bake it in one large baking dish.
So I was lucky to get all my great dairy for this recipe from Smart and Final! But why am I talking about that now? Well because of Smart & Final’s “Help Our Teachers, Help Our Kids” (#
Students & families collect Real California milk seals from select First Street products, then teachers submit seals. Each seal counts as one sweepstakes entry. Teachers who submit 100 seals get 25 Scholastic books or $25 school supply gift card. Each teacher entrant gets one Scholastic book. The California Milk Advisory Board is going to announce winners in February.
(This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for#collectivebias #CBias. While they provided the subject all the words and thoughts are mine;)
Meal Plan Monday 11/27
I can’t believe that we have passed Thanksgiving and are now hurling towards Christmas! Is 2011 speeding by too fast for anyone else? Since we went to my Mother in law’s for Thanksgiving we don’t have any delightful leftovers so I will probably make a turkey next week;). Here is my plan. What is yours?
Monday- Zuppa Toscana
Tuesday- ham, mashed potatoes, broccoli
Wednesday- Going to Chili’s for the Kids’ Eat Free deal!
Thursday- BBQ steak, mashed potatoes, broccoli
Friday- Hamburger Helper for the kids