Counting these as Blessings and Giving Thanks for:
1. Seeing "proofs" of Every Day Poets first print anthology, including the proof pages where my poem, "Grace Unexpected" will be in print! Woohoo!
2. The editors at Every Day Poets who give constructive criticism whether they are sending me a rejection letter, or a "please revise, and resubmit" letter.
3. Two Sunday School teachers who made my day yesterday afternoon. When I said I needed help, they jumped in and created solutions for today's Sunday School session.
4. Watching three toddlers at play yesterday evening at a double family birthday party.
5. Giving swinging rides to two twin boys (one at a time) and smiling with them.
6. My daughters are thankful for the fun they had playing with their twin cousins who led them on a merry chase upstairs and downstairs, shrieking with delight.
7. The double 80th birthday party yesterday.
8. My oldest played soccer with two of her cousins, and had fun getting muddy. Soccer isn't her usual game, but she liked it.
9. Finding out that one of the older girl cousins is/was an Irish Step dancer, and having the girls all show each other some of their dance steps.
10. Seeing family that I haven't seen a while.
11. Enjoying the beauty of someone else's nearly finished construction project. My husband's cousin, who hosted the party, is building his own home with the help of his talented wife and his Dad. The tile work is gorgeous, the floor plan is open and welcoming, and the place is wonderful.
12. Feeling re-energized about our home projects. That pesky upstairs bathroom isn't finished yet, but it will be soon (we hope). Then we have a messed up sliding glass door to replace, carpet to pull up in three places, new paint, closet shelves, the downstairs bathroom with its water damage, and when all that's done, we might work on the fireplace. Oh, and the roof, and one of the foundation posts . . . those actually need to be done sooner rather than later. The joy of living in a 60 year old home is that there is always something to do. Boredom is never an issue.
13. Operation Christmas Child!!! We love this project!
14. Shopping for Operation Christmas Child with my daughters and my mom this afternoon. We have so much fun filling up our shoebox containers with goodies for children in need. We pick out toothbrushes, toothpaste, hairbrushes and barrettes, and then . . . the fun happens. Scarves, hats, shirts, toys, dolls, teddy bears, colored pencils and paper can call be stuffed into those containers, and we get so much joy out of deciding what each of our boxes will hold. As we go through the store, we each have our own container to fill up, and each one gets something a little different.
15. Seeing my youngest daughter write a card to go with her shoebox of gifts this year.
16. A homemade folded flip origami toy with special drawings going into a shoebox.
17. Making vanilla brownies with chocolate chips. Yummy!
18. A wonderful gracious friend having us over for a "chili" party.
19. A house full of cooking smells.
20. God gives us the gift of giving.
Scripture Blessings: "We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness." Romans 12:6-8
Showing posts with label Cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cooking. Show all posts
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies - dairy free
Chocolate Chip Brownies for food troubles – gluten free, dairy free, corn free (if you use my mix)
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.Grease (with canola oil or spray-on – read the label first) a 9X13 baking pan
3. Mix Dry Ingredients listed below:
2 cups Gluten free flour mix
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon guar gum
½ teaspoon salt
4. Mix Wet Ingredients separately:
½ cup canola oil
1 and ½ cups light brown sugar
2 tablespoons agave nectar or honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (yes that’s TABLEspoon)
5 tablespoons water - may need more depending on consistency – need to test this out again.
5. Mix Dry and Wet ingredients together
6. Add in 12-14 oz chocolate chips.
7. Make sure you’ve greased the pan (I don’t always remember this part first)
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Check like you would check brownies or cake for doneness. (is that a word)
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.Grease (with canola oil or spray-on – read the label first) a 9X13 baking pan
3. Mix Dry Ingredients listed below:
2 cups Gluten free flour mix
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon guar gum
½ teaspoon salt
4. Mix Wet Ingredients separately:
½ cup canola oil
1 and ½ cups light brown sugar
2 tablespoons agave nectar or honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (yes that’s TABLEspoon)
5 tablespoons water - may need more depending on consistency – need to test this out again.
5. Mix Dry and Wet ingredients together
6. Add in 12-14 oz chocolate chips.
7. Make sure you’ve greased the pan (I don’t always remember this part first)
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Check like you would check brownies or cake for doneness. (is that a word)
The Recent Chocolate Chip Cookie Celebration
Just yesterday, it took my husband three taste tests to determine which batch of cookies cooling on the racks were his "regular" cookies. This is an awesome success for me in my "trouble"-free cooking! It is also a worry . . . because now I really have to make sure my cooking stays separate. I may even have to "gasp" not cook "regular" cookies anymore.
The funny part about my husband's "regular" cookies is that the only different thing is the flour mix. I make his cookies with egg replacer instead of eggs as well because he has some trouble with eggs, garlic and dairy. We don't replace the butter in our cookies very often, because finding margarine that we can eat is a laughable process. However, I do have a cookie bar recipe that works with oil instead of butter or margarine. I'll try to post that one too.
As you may notice with all my recipes, there is no one, true way yet . . . the experiement process is still taking place. The flour mix I used happened by accident because I was out of my own, and my mom handed me hers, which didn't have arrowroot meal in it by accident so . . .
Gluten-Free, Egg-Free, Corn-Free, Rice-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Flour Mix used (I think – have yet to duplicate Grandma’s mix):
22 oz. Sorghum flour, and 22 oz. Garbanzo and Fava Bean flour mix from Bob’s Red Mill.
All mixed together in a large container.
Dry Ingredients:
2 and ¼ cups flour mix
2 teaspoons EnerG dry Egg Replacer
1 teaspoon guar gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
Wet Ingredients:
1 Cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
¼ cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
14 oz chocolate chips (more than a usual size bag)
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix Dry Ingredients.
3. Mix Wet ingredients separately.
4. Mix dry and wet ingredients together.
5. Mix in the chocolate chips.
6. Drop the dough by spoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
7. Bake in the 375 degree oven for 8-14 minutes, depending on the size of the cookie.
Note: this is just a recipe from the back of a chocolate chip bag with a few replacements. I don’t really make my own without starting from a recipe from somewhere.
The funny part about my husband's "regular" cookies is that the only different thing is the flour mix. I make his cookies with egg replacer instead of eggs as well because he has some trouble with eggs, garlic and dairy. We don't replace the butter in our cookies very often, because finding margarine that we can eat is a laughable process. However, I do have a cookie bar recipe that works with oil instead of butter or margarine. I'll try to post that one too.
As you may notice with all my recipes, there is no one, true way yet . . . the experiement process is still taking place. The flour mix I used happened by accident because I was out of my own, and my mom handed me hers, which didn't have arrowroot meal in it by accident so . . .
Gluten-Free, Egg-Free, Corn-Free, Rice-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Flour Mix used (I think – have yet to duplicate Grandma’s mix):
22 oz. Sorghum flour, and 22 oz. Garbanzo and Fava Bean flour mix from Bob’s Red Mill.
All mixed together in a large container.
Dry Ingredients:
2 and ¼ cups flour mix
2 teaspoons EnerG dry Egg Replacer
1 teaspoon guar gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup brown sugar
Wet Ingredients:
1 Cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
¼ cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
14 oz chocolate chips (more than a usual size bag)
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix Dry Ingredients.
3. Mix Wet ingredients separately.
4. Mix dry and wet ingredients together.
5. Mix in the chocolate chips.
6. Drop the dough by spoonfuls onto cookie sheets.
7. Bake in the 375 degree oven for 8-14 minutes, depending on the size of the cookie.
Note: this is just a recipe from the back of a chocolate chip bag with a few replacements. I don’t really make my own without starting from a recipe from somewhere.
Gluten Free Recipes and Stuff
So many friends have asked for my recipes, and ask me how I actually cook with 20+ foods to avoid, so even though this blog has been primarily about my writing life, I am going to have a few posts about my cooking life.
It kind of makes sense, since it does affect what I write . . . I don't usually every portry my characters eating much . . . just realized that a few days ago.
So, for starters, there is the flour mix. Gluten-free, Corn-free, rice-free, and mostly soy-free cooking doesn't happen with a single package of flour picked up at the grocery store. There are flour mixes available, but usually they have one of the above flours in them, or tapioca or potato flour. My daughters and I have some minor issues with tapioca flour on an occassional basis so I don't cook with it. Potato flour is an acquired taste, and we haven't acquired it yet.
In the past I've used a combination of Bob's Red Mill flours, and flour I've picked up at the health food store in bulk packages. These are a few of my favorite flours and flour type additives:
"Sweet" white sorghum flour
Garbanzo Bean and Fava Bean flour (mixed together in a Bob's Red Mill package)
Arrowroot Meal
Amarath flour
Almond Meal
Flaxseed Meal
And I've tried Teff flour . . . but think it's best in tiny amounts.
Quinoa - like it cooked like rice, but not in it's flour form.
The flours I actually use on a regular basis:
Sorghum Flour
Garbanzo Bean and Fava Bean flour
Arrowroot meal
Why: Because these three flour mixed together in equal amounts seem to make a good cooking base for most recipes. Recently, I discovered that I could use a lot less Arrowroot and get a better flavor for cookies, pancakes and bread - so I am experimenting with percentages right now.
Amarath flour is awesome, but my oldest daughter has an allergy/intolerance to it that we discovered after a year of cooking with it.
The reason I use the whole "allergy/intolerance" is that often people think that "intolerance" means picky eater, or that certain symptoms go with either an allergy or an intolerance: like rashes are only with allergies, and IBS/digestive troubles only come with intolerances.
Our experience: We get both rashes, and digestive troubles (stomach through bowels) with most of our "trouble" foods and we have "intolerances".
We've also had sores in our mouths (feels like I have weeping wounds in there), headaches, and fatique (yes, this is a measurable symptom). I once slept over 24 hours after eating freshly caught trout . . . my parents thought they were going to have to have the rangers give me a helicopter ride out of Bowron Lake Provincial Park in B.C., but I woke up tired, crabby, and determined to canoe and hike the rest of the trip. I highly recommend canoeing and hiking now, but I avoid most fish.
Anyway, all grouching aside, allergy free cooking can be an adventure in experimentation, just one ingredient at a time. If you or someone you love needs to cook differently, try to see the bright side of it. Keep looking for the flour mix, or the ingredients list that works best for your needs and for your taste buds.
It kind of makes sense, since it does affect what I write . . . I don't usually every portry my characters eating much . . . just realized that a few days ago.
So, for starters, there is the flour mix. Gluten-free, Corn-free, rice-free, and mostly soy-free cooking doesn't happen with a single package of flour picked up at the grocery store. There are flour mixes available, but usually they have one of the above flours in them, or tapioca or potato flour. My daughters and I have some minor issues with tapioca flour on an occassional basis so I don't cook with it. Potato flour is an acquired taste, and we haven't acquired it yet.
In the past I've used a combination of Bob's Red Mill flours, and flour I've picked up at the health food store in bulk packages. These are a few of my favorite flours and flour type additives:
"Sweet" white sorghum flour
Garbanzo Bean and Fava Bean flour (mixed together in a Bob's Red Mill package)
Arrowroot Meal
Amarath flour
Almond Meal
Flaxseed Meal
And I've tried Teff flour . . . but think it's best in tiny amounts.
Quinoa - like it cooked like rice, but not in it's flour form.
The flours I actually use on a regular basis:
Sorghum Flour
Garbanzo Bean and Fava Bean flour
Arrowroot meal
Why: Because these three flour mixed together in equal amounts seem to make a good cooking base for most recipes. Recently, I discovered that I could use a lot less Arrowroot and get a better flavor for cookies, pancakes and bread - so I am experimenting with percentages right now.
Amarath flour is awesome, but my oldest daughter has an allergy/intolerance to it that we discovered after a year of cooking with it.
The reason I use the whole "allergy/intolerance" is that often people think that "intolerance" means picky eater, or that certain symptoms go with either an allergy or an intolerance: like rashes are only with allergies, and IBS/digestive troubles only come with intolerances.
Our experience: We get both rashes, and digestive troubles (stomach through bowels) with most of our "trouble" foods and we have "intolerances".
We've also had sores in our mouths (feels like I have weeping wounds in there), headaches, and fatique (yes, this is a measurable symptom). I once slept over 24 hours after eating freshly caught trout . . . my parents thought they were going to have to have the rangers give me a helicopter ride out of Bowron Lake Provincial Park in B.C., but I woke up tired, crabby, and determined to canoe and hike the rest of the trip. I highly recommend canoeing and hiking now, but I avoid most fish.
Anyway, all grouching aside, allergy free cooking can be an adventure in experimentation, just one ingredient at a time. If you or someone you love needs to cook differently, try to see the bright side of it. Keep looking for the flour mix, or the ingredients list that works best for your needs and for your taste buds.
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