Let’s Make it Facebook Official

 

I can honestly say that this blog gets way more traffic than I ever thought it would. Between emails, comments, followers, subscribers, direct traffic, referrals, and twitter…there are lots of you that read Gluten Hates Me.

It’s humbling. It’s exciting. And it’s one of the main reasons I write this blog. I love you guys and I love the community we create online to help support one another, gluten free or not.

So I have a question for you: Do you like me? If you do, we should make it official :)

Gluten Hates Me is now on facebook!

And apparently, you can “like” me on facebook. And because I completely judge myself based on online measurements, you should make it official…on facebook…Otherwise, how will I know? ;) Visit Here!

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Guest Posts Wanted!

I want to do a special set of holiday posts entitled 12 Days of Gluten Free Cookies…well hopefully I’ll have a snazzier name thought up, but I want to do 12 posts of great gluten free cookies for the holidays.

But I can’t do it alone!

Email me if you’re interested in hosting a day!

Let me make it up to you

 

…with pork chops.

I can’t believe I haven’t  posted since last Thursday? In all honesty, I haven’t been taking pictures either! My Dad made a delicious COMPLETELY GLUTEN FREE Thanksgiving and I forgot to document! Besides eating, I spent the whole day as my own one woman knitting machine.

It’s my first attempt at a scarf…I can’t believe how long it takes. It has definitely given me a new appreciation for my hand knit BLANKET from Alex! :)

So to make it up to you for being such a bad blogger, I thought I would share a recipe straight from my bestie sister.

Baby That’s Good Gluten Free Pork Chops

This recipe is SO EASY!

Make yourself a shallow bowl of Dijon Mustard and a shallow bowl of Gluten Free Panko Breadcrumbs (I used THESE again!). Take a boneless pork chop and dredge it in the mustard, and then in the breadcrumbs. Press the pork firmly in to the crumbs. Cover completely.

On a baking sheet, place the breaded chop, and spray thoroughly with non-stick spray. Flip the chop and spray the other side. Bake in a 325 degree oven until the bread crumbs are crisp and the pork is cooked through. You can flip halfway and spray the chop again if you like.

The result is a flavor sensation! The sweet tang of the mustard and moist pork with the crunch of the crumbs. Yum…mouthwatering really. I’m playing around with some ideas for a sandwich. Maybe the chop with havarti and arugula.

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Tomorrow is a BIG DAY for me! I’m FINALLY getting a hair cut! :)

Three Years and it feels so good…

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

It’s hard to believe that this is my third gluten free Thanksgiving!

My first year I took matters in to my own hands and made the entire meal myself!

Recap here.

My second year I went to my parent’s house and was able to spend the day with Lil’ Gluten Loves Me!

And my bestie sister made gluten free sausage balls. Recap here.

This year was pretty low key, and the only thing I was responsible for was the dessert!

If you follow me on twitter, then you already know that I was experimenting last night! The result:

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip S’mores Cookies!

I basically made gluten free chocolate chip cookies from a gluten free pantry mix and then when they were almost finished I topped each cookie with half of a marshmallow! Once browned, I removed from the oven and let cool. Then I drizzled with melted dark chocolate. Voila!

 

Buttery. Crunchy. Creamy Marshmallow. Yum!

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I’m off to bed! Parrish and I have big plans of hitting up Target at 4am tomorrow, and I have to work all day too. So I better hurry up and get some beauty sleep!! :)

Anyone else help prepare anything for Thanksgiving this year? Have a recipe you want to share? Let me know!

Life’s a Peach

 

Remember over the summer when I worked my butt off peeling and cubing those local peaches? Well…let’s just say, all that watching Glee work is paying off! :)

Say hello to my brand new favorite breakfast. I’m calling it “Life’s a Peach” gluten free oats.

In the delicious mix: 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup skim milk, 1/3 cup gluten free rolled oats (Bob’s Red Mill), 1/2 tbsp. chia powder, and 1/2 cup frozen cubed local peaches cooked and then grade B maple syrup drizzled on top with a sliver of REAL butter

Oh baby.

It’s all about those peaches.

I add them in to the pot at the beginning, so as the oats cook they thaw. Once the oats are bubbling, I start WHIPPING those babies in to submission (just like with bananas). They become so soft and so sweet, they practically melt in your mouth. The syrup is key, but brown sugar would be great. I’ve had the bowl with and without the butter, and it’s great both ways.

Best part? This bowl keeps me full for at least 4 hours!

One more day till’ Turkey Day, and I know one thing- I’m thankful for local peaches! :)

Feeling Fancy?

 

A few weeks ago I was listening to Morning Edition on NPR I heard Dorie Greenspan describing a dish from her new cookbook Around My French Table. She calls it Pumpkin Stuffed with Everything Good and I think that it really describes the dish perfectly.

Basically you take a small pumpkin,

or two, and clean it out,

Then stuff it

with a mixture made up of gluten free bread (I used Udi’s), heavy cream, cheese, bacon, and garlic. I omitted the nutmeg due to my own personal flavor palette, and I actually used half of the heavy cream it called for and substituted skim milk. It worked great! I also shredded the cheese instead of cubing, which I didn’t realize was a mistake until writing this post. It seemed fine, but I could see how cubing would be great too!

And then you bake it slowly, until the pumpkin essentially bakes in to submission and the bubbly, cheesy stuffing browns and turns golden.

You can read the full recipe here.

After you read it. Make it.

It sounds fancy. Looks fancy. But it’s dangerously easy to make and INCREDIBLY delicious. The cooked pumpkin is incredibly creamy and nutty, with the saltiness of the bacon. Mmmm…

It may even be better than the brie stuffing I made a few years ago! Although…that brie stuffing is REALLY good.

But these pumpkins…

Let’s just call it a tie :)

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What sort of stuffing will you be eating on Thursday?

I want to try out Jill’s stuffing so that I can make it for my brother at Thanksgiving. He’s new to being gluten free and he used to LOVE Stove Top.

Who needs gluten?

 

Not me.

Nathan’s hot dogs are gluten free! And totally delicious when stuffed with cheese and relish!

Add a ramekin of ketchup and mustard for dipping and you’re set.

I really, really love relish.

And yes they make gluten free hotdog buns…but I just feel like they’re a waste sometimes.

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Alright! I’m at an off-site sale ALL weekend :( Anyone see Harry Potter yet? I’m dying to go!!

Something Sweet

 

and simple!

and gluten free!

I’m not quite sure why, but I just could not stop thinking about Christmas cookies. But I’m not trying to disrespect Thanksgiving, so I added a little inspiration to my color palette.

Oh fall! How I love thee. This is the tree in our front yard, and I’m trying to soak up all the colors before the leaves are gone. (and I have to rake them)

But back to those cookies.

These little cuties are really easy to prepare. No baking necessary :)

All you need is a bag of:

Kinnikinnick KinniToos! I love these cookies, but that is seriously a strange name. I found these in the grocer’s section of our local Target, and they were way cheaper than at Whole Foods!

You’ll also need to pick up some baker’s white chocolate for melting and the sprinkles of your choice. Be sure to check your ingredients list for gluten!

Then you literally just melt the white chocolate and dip!

Once covered, sprinkle and then let set for about 30 minutes.

Voila!

Parrish really loved them! By loved them, I mean ate FIVE in one sitting.

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And now for the GIVEAWAY winner!

Congrats to

Alicia at Poise in Parma who said...

I haven't had pancakes in FOREVER (gluten issues and an unfortunate post hike stomach issue), but that pancake pen might change my mind!
My go-to breakfast of choice is savory oats: oats made with an egg and some cheese. I'll eat it any time of day!

Email me to claim your prize!!

And thanks to everyone who entered! You guys had some pretty delicious breakfast ideas :)

Weekend Update: Part Deux

 

Some of my favorite episodes of How I Met Your Mother involve what they have coined as “Slapsgiving”.

This past Sunday my bestie sister and I coined our festivities as “Snacksgiving” and it was definitely appropriate! My two favorite snackies from the day not surprisingly, BOTH involved cheese…and pork :):

Cheesy Gluten Free Sausage Balls (recipe found here)

Smoky Bacon Gruyere Fondue

Parrish discovered the best of both worlds. Dipping the sausage ball in the fondue. Bingo.

Lil’ Gluten Loves Me approved.

I’m still working on the recipe for the fondue, but I’ll let you guys know. The first time I made this fondue it was amazing. The second time I didn’t cube the cream cheese and so it didn’t meld as well, and this time (the third time) I had to add diluted corn starch to get it to thicken. I dunno. But it’s still delicious.

Dunked.

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Don’t forget!!

Don’t forget to enter in to the Gluten Free Bisquick Perfect Pancake Prize Pack Giveaway! You have until tomorrow at 8pm!!

ENTER HERE!!

Weekend Update: Part Une

 

It’s a Saturday night, around 6:45. You’ve just gotten home from a long day at work, and your significant other suggests that instead of cooking the two of you head over to a local burger joint: Only Burger. You agree because not only do you really not want to cook, but Only Burger is awesome and they make a burger lettuce wrap.

You arrive at Only Burger and the line is nearly out the door. You quickly check your twitter, because you follow them of course, and realize that it’s a celebration night for the Only Burger crew and all single burgers are half price. The crowd is in good spirits, so you decide to wait. PLUS you can smell the burgers by now. You’re hooked.

You place your order and sit down at the tiny bar to wait. The kitchen is hard at work. It’s just past 7:30 now, and you’re getting REALLY hungry. But you sip your fizzy water and watch the chefs, amazed by how quickly they turn over orders.

You notice the owner of Only Burger coming up front. He’s a really nice guy and he’s chatting up the usual customers, when you hear him say something…amazing… to a woman in line. “Would you like to go see Anthony Bourdain tonight in Raleigh? I have two free tickets and I can’t make it!” , he jokes and gestures to the crowd. The woman crinkles her face. “Nah”, she says, “We have plans.”

You and your significant other GASP, in all honesty, quite a bit louder than you meant to. The girl beside you says you should tell him you want to go. And immediately your face flushes. You are, contrary to popular belief, actually quite shy, and the opportunity for embarrassment keeps you quiet. So the girl beside you steps in. “They want to go.” she yells and gestures to you and your hunny.

The owner smiles. “You wanna go?” And you nod profusely. Yes. Yes. Yes. You want to go. And he hands over the tickets. “Have a good time.”

And that is how you get to go see Anthony Bourdain for free, in a moments notice. Well, that is how Parrish and I were able to go see Anthony Bourdain Saturday night for free!

And how we made it from South Durham to Downtown Raleigh in 20 minutes…I’ll never know. But it was a night of miracles.

And the man. No surprise.

(Source)

An inspiration. One of the best story tellers with some of the best stories. His retelling of a trip to Russia nearly had me in tears.

It was truly a great night; a memory of a lifetime. And a date night that Parrish and I will treasure.

And the burger. No surprise. It was delicious, as always.

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GIVEAWAY!!!!!

Don’t forget to enter in to the Gluten Free Bisquick Perfect Pancake Prize Pack Giveaway! You have until Wednesday at 8pm!!

Enter here.

Breakfast Anyone: A Giveaway

 

What are you going to make for breakfast today? Gluten free oatmeal? Udi’s gluten free bagel? Yogurt?

How about gluten free pancakes? Yeah. That sounds good.

And what if those pancakes were free?

Sounds better.

What if those pancakes came with a spatula, pancake pan, and a pancake pen?

Perfect.

One for me, One for you!

Gluten Free Bisquick GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!!! (yelled out loud just like Oprah)

You could win this!! A Gluten Free Pancake Kit brought to you by the kind folks at Bisquick through MyBlogSpark.

You guys know my opinion on Gluten Free Bisquick. The waffles are AMAZING. Love them. And the pancakes are good, just add a dash of vanilla.

And I have to admit it. The pancake pen is AWESOME!

It makes writing letter super easy. I went a little crazy.

And now you can play with your pancakes too!

Gluten Free Bisquick Perfect Pancake Prize Pack: provided by Bisquick through MyBlogSpark

To win:

Super Easy. Super Fast.

Leave me a comment or email me with your favorite breakfast food. Inspire me!! :)

Want additional chances to win? Tweet it! Blog it! Tell a friend! And then comment back on this post.

You have until Wednesday night at 8:00pm!

Good luck :)

Winner Winner!!

 

And the winner is…

#2 Lauren said...

I love brownies and peanut butter!! This giveaway is amazing I just found out I can't eat gluten and I am having a really hard time with it!!

November 7, 2010 7:33 PM

Congratulations Lauren! Email me for details :)

Thanks so much to General Mills and MyBlogSpark for hosting the giveaway!

But don’t be bummed if you didn’t win this giveaway, because I have ANOTHER GIVEAWAY coming at you tomorrow morning!!! But it’s going to be a quick one so check back tomorrow morning and don’t miss it!!!

Snackies

 

This Sunday my family is getting together for a pre-Thanksgiving celebration. My bestie sister and her hubby are going to Florida for Thanksgiving proper, and so we decided to get together a weekend before so that we can all celebrate! PLUS, I’d make up any excuse to see Lil’ Gluten Loves Me.

Since we’re all going to be eating “Thanksgiving food” pretty soon, we decided to mix it up and just serve appetizers on Sunday! My family is pretty big on what we like to call “snackies”. We’re each responsible for one dish, and I already have a contender!

French Onion Soup Stuffed Mushrooms

I took 1/2 packet of french onion dip/soup mix and mixed it with 1/2 block of neufchatel cheese and 1/2 cup feta cheese. Once it was blended I stuffed it into button mushrooms and topped it off with Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Panko Breadcrumbs:

I found these a few weeks ago at Whole Foods and I LOVE THEM!! But back to the mushrooms…

Once stuffed and topped, I baked them in the oven at 400 degrees until the cheese was gooey and the breadcrumbs were golden.

So good :)

Do you have a favorite appetizer?

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Don’t Forget!!!

Enter to Win the above Gluten Free Prize Pack provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark !!

You have until Friday night to enter HERE!

One for Me, One for You (Giveaway)

 

For over two weeks, I have been trying to make peppermint paddy brownies. They’re going to be the perfect blend of a brownie base with a creamy peppermint layer, topped with chocolate frosting.

The first time I tried to make them, I opened the cupboard only to realize I didn’t have any brownie mix. And since the brownie foundation is key…yeah, I never made them. Then the next attempt there were no eggs. And then today, when it seemed for sure that the stars had aligned, I realized I was out of powdered sugar.

But by that point, I had already started baking the brownies. So I improvised.

Friends, these are not peppermint paddy brownies. But they aren’t half bad.

Actually, they’re very, very good.

I’m calling them “Don’t lay a finger on my Gluten Free Butterfinger Brownies”

Want to make them yourself? Well here’s the really SWEET part, they’re super EASY! And my friends at MyBlogSpark and General Mills are going to help you out!

See, the necessary ingredient for these…BROWNIES…came about from a SWEET gift I found on my door.

I actually had forgotten about this free gift (one for me, one for you) spark, and so I was EXTRA pleasantly surprised to open the box and find this:

This prize pack provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark contains an assortment of gluten-free products like Betty Crocker, Bisquick, Chex and Larabar, a Betty Crocker Red Serving Spoon, and coupons!

And you can WIN ONE TOO!!!

But first, back to those brownies!

I baked the Betty Crocker gluten free brownies according to the box and let them cool. Then I took four mini Butterfinger bars (left over from Halloween) and crushed them with my meat tenderizer. I sprinkled the crumbs over the cooled brownies, covering it 90%. Then I stuck the pan back in the oven on broil and kept a CLOSE eye on them. Once the Butterfinger had melted I pulled them out and let them cool.

Not to toot my own horn, but… TOOT TOOT ! These brownies are good. The brownie layer is thick and fudgy and the top Butterfinger layer is crispy and buttery. Mmmmm

Want to make your own? Want to make something better? Want that SUPER AWESOME TOTALLY AMAZING COMPLETELY FREE prize pack?

ENTER TO WIN!

To win your own prize pack from General Mills through MyBlogSpark, send me an email or leave me a comment and answer this question:

What would you put on top of your brownies?

Want an extra chance to win?

Tweet it and link back in a comment!

Blog about it and get TWO additional entries!!

So that’s FOUR possible entries!!

And you have until Friday, November 12th @ 8pm!! Enter now :)

Simple

 

All day Friday I was at an off-site sale in Pittsboro, NC. I was pretty excited to make the trip because I knew I would be driving past one of my favorite food co-ops, Chatham Marketplace.

For the past few weeks I have been searching for a honeycrisp apple that isn’t the size of a softball and genetically modified. I knew CM would hook me up!

I love this apple! It’s crisp and juicy…a little tart a little sweet…NOT mealy.

Simple.

I really love doing off-site sales, even though they’re exhausting. But with perks like these:

it pretty much balances out. Handmade LOCAL relish, meaning that I was able to shake the hand of the farmer who grew it and made it! I have some pretty lucky family members who are going to get to share in this joy! :)

I wish I had more to share with you from today, but my Saturday was pretty simple. I had to work all day and I woke up a little late. I had to forgo oatmeal… :( but my toast made it up to me.

Rudi’s multi-grain gluten free bread with a dab of real butter and smooshed raspberry jam

Crispy. Buttery. Sweet. Satisfying.

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I am SO EXCITED to be off tomorrow! And thanks to a sweet little gift I received in the mail today, I will be baking a BIG surprise tomorrow. I can’t wait to share it!!