Blueberry Lemon Muffins: Practical Paleo

I haven't been able to blog about my cooking adventures in a really long time, but I finally made something so delicious and paired with enough time to rave about it that I had to take this chance while I had it!  Among needing to eat gluten-free because I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease (not Celiacs/Celiac’s) in Aug of 2010, the sous chef and I have also decided towards the beginning of this summer to embark on a Whole30 journey. 

Now, side note, if you decide that Whole30 is something you want to try, I highly encourage and, let’s face it, push you to read It Starts With Food.  No excuse; you should be able to read the tangible version or read on your mobile device (whatever that may be).

Anyway, as the two of us come off of this (second) Whole30, it’s part of the journey to begin adding certain foods back in to your diet to see how those foods affect you.  Because I strongly feel that I have certain specific foods that ail me beyond gluten, I’m taking this super slow and adding in one food item a day rather than a group of foods (i.e. grains).  Nevertheless, on the day that I made these delicious muffins, I was adding maple syrup back into my diet (I told you! Specific!).  Personally, I don’t think it matters if you are on a diet of any kind or not!!!  These muffins are amazing!!!  It certainly helps matters that they are gluten-free, grain-free, and paleo-friendly!

This recipe was made exactly as the recipe specifies from Practical Paleo.  Shameless Thank You to our friends Kevin and Melissa for getting this book for us!!!

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil, melted (Krista Kooks used butter.)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup grade B maple syrup (I used 100% pure maple syrup)
• 1 lemon, juice and zest
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup fresh blueberries (Krista Kooks used frozen, and thawed them slightly under cold running water before adding them to the batter.)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together the eggs, butter or coconut oil (remember, this should be melted), pure vanilla extract, maple syrup, and lemon juice, and lemon zest together in a large mixing bowl.  It works well to use a stand mixer fitted with your whisk attachment.  Sift in the coconut flour, sea salt, and baking soda and stir until well combined. Gently fold in the blueberries.

In a muffin tin, scoop 1/4 cup of the batter into each lined muffin cup (natural parchment muffin papers work best for lining), and bake for approximately 35-40 minutes. Krista Kooks used a silicone muffin pan which was lightly greased.

Crockpot Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

Gluten-Free Notes at the bottom of this post.

Guests are in town, you sweated and slaved over dinner last night, or you know you’ll sweat and slave over dinner tonight.  Maybe you’ll do so for both meals.  How on Earth will you provide them a decent breakfast, too?!  Easy…pull out the crockpot!

I’d previously tried another version of this recipe that Stephanie with Crockpot 365 suggested, but it was not my favorite at all.  It was good enough for the sous chef, but it was not for me.  Thus, he ate all of it.

This try, however, was certainly tasty!!!  I attribute most of the taste to the fabulous sausage that I purchased specifically for this recipe.  Jimmy Dean’s new All Natural Regular Pork Sausage is absolutely terrific!  It tastes like it came straight from a butcher.  I realize that sounds odd, but, what I mean is, it doesn’t taste like it’s made with other things than just meat and some seasonings.  When you compare the ingredients of this sausage with that of other sausage on the same shelf, above, and below, you’ll see exactly what I mean!  This stuff is amazing, and I buy it 3 at a time now   I love love love the flavor!

Nonetheless, this breakfast dish is incredible because you can put these ingredients in the crockpot the night before, and, the night morning, you have a hashbrown, egg, cheese, sausage, onion, and bell pepper heavenly dish.  I imagine this would be GREAT for kids that have a big test one day; perfect “I have a big test today” breakfast

Below is how I prepared this dish, but click here to see Stephanie’s original recipe.

Ingredients

30 oz package of plain frozen hash brown (shredded) potatoes
1 lb. already-been cooked and cooled sausage (see above note on the HIGHLY suggested Jimmy Dean All Natural Regular Pork Sausage)

1/2 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
12 eggs
1 cup skim or fat free milk
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper

Directions.
Use a  6 quart Crockpot for this full recipe.

Spray the inside of your crockpot with cooking spray. Dump in the whole package of hash browns. Spread them out with your fingers, and break up any clumps.

In a mixing bowl, mix the dozen eggs with the milk, salt and pepper, cheese, cooked sausage (make sure it’s cooled down), and diced vegetables. Pour everything on top of the hash browns.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4. This is done when the eggs are fully cooked and the edges start to brown a bit. If you want the cheese to brown and get a bit crispy on the sides, cook it longer.

Note that the edges of the dish in the crockpot did brown a bit.  Simply cut those portions off and do not serve them.  Nothing is wrong with the dish, it’s just the way the dish cooks.

Make it Gluten-Free!

• Be sure that the sausage you use is gluten-free.  The suggested sausage above is a gluten-free selection.
• Ensure that your hash browns do not have any additives with gluten.

Gluten Free Banana Nut Muffins

While I’ve never personally made banana ANYTHING, I have tasted many banana breads and muffins in my time.  That said, not a single one of them compares to this fabulous recipe; this is by far the best recipe I’ve EVER tasted!!!  It’s great that it’s gluten free, too ;)

I thought that it would be best for me to freeze all but the few mini muffins I made.  Well, that didn’t really do me any good.  I didn’t need to freeze them.  I still consumed them all within one week.  Ooops :/

Moral of the story: MAKE THESE MUFFINS! :)

Ingredients

2 cups Brown Rice Flour Mix

Brown Rice Flour Mix
2 cups extra finely ground brown rice flour, 2/3 cup potato starch (not potato flour), 1/3 cup tapioca starch/flour. It is very important that you use an extra finely ground brown rice flour, (and not just any grind) or the muffins will be gritty and heavy.

2/3 cup coconut sugar (granulated white sugar also works)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 packed cup very ripe chopped banana  (about 2 medium bananas)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk (or almond milk/milk substitute of your choice)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (substitutions include canola oil or coconut oil)
Granulated sugar for garnish, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Position rack in center of oven. Grease muffin pan with cooking spray (or three 5 x 3 -inch loaf pans).

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt and cinnamon in large mixing bowl. Add bananas and walnuts; stir to coat evenly.

Combine milk and oil in small bowl; remove 1 tablespoon of combined liquid and discard it. Beat in eggs. Add liquids to banana mixture and stir until just blended.

Fill muffin pans 2/3 full. Bake 18–25 minutes until golden brown (35–44 minutes for loaf pans). Remove from pan and serve immediately or cool on a rack.

Note: 

1. Krista Kooks much prefers coconut sugar for this recipe!  
2. Consider tossing in 1/2 tsp of allspice or nutmeg as well.  
3. Haven't tried this with flaxseed meal in place of the egg yet, but I'll try again soon!
4. Applesauce works the best in comparison to the canola oil or coconut oil.  Both subs work, but they just aren't the same.

Mother’s Day 2010

It’s time to honor Mom!  How are you planning to dine with Mom this Sunday?  Is this your first reminder that Mother’s Day is THIS weekend?  If so, I hope I can help you get ready :)  Here’s some ideas from Krista Kooks to help you enjoy time with Mom at home.  Click on any of the pictures to be directed to the original blog post. Blueberry Delight-Great for breakfast or brunch with Mom. Bacon Quiche Biscuit Cups- Also great for breakfast or brunch.

Fish Oreganata- Perfect main dish for a light lunch with Mom.Roasted Vegetables-Use this preparation method for your favorite vegetable.

Parsley-Paprika Potatoes- Delicious compliment to the 2 above.    Spring Summer Ziti-Just make a simple pasta to share with Mom.Fruit Cookie Pizza- Help Mom keep it light for dessert with this fruit cookie pizza!

Whatever you do, I hope you have a great Mother’s Day with Mom!

Blueberry Delight

Many many months ago, the sous chef and I were staying with our sweet friends Mike and Cynthia.Being the perfect hostess that she is, Cynthia made a fabulous breakfast.  I’ve been wanting to make that thing for months!  Cynthia was kind enough to share the recipe with me and allow me to share it with you :) This Blueberry Delight is absolutely heavenly, and it’s even easier than making blueberry muffins.  That said, I’m confident that these can easily be made in blueberry form much the same way a cake can be make as a cake or cupcakes.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 egg
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Cream butter, egg, sugar and salt until fluffy. Combine flour & baking powder; add to creamed mixture slowly.  Slowly add milk,  mixing well. Add blueberries & pour into greased/floured square pan.

Krista Kooks used a 9x9 square pan and lined it with parchement paper, no greasing required.  Being able to lift the cake out of the pan shortly after removing it from the oven was nice, thanks to the parchment paper.  I could eat it faster! :)

Topping

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup softened butter

Combine all 4 ingredients & place on top of batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes.
 

Breakfast Scramble

I definitely need more breakfast recipes on my blog, don't ya think? I do. Since I had some breakfast sausage left at my house from Christmas, I decided to cook up some sausage and egg combintation for my sous chef; he really loves that kind of stuff.

After taking a quick browse on FoodNetwork.com, I decided upon this recipe to give me some help. The following is my adaption of that recipe:

Ingredients

Cooking spray
1 lb. sausage
1/4 large white onion, chopped fine
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles
1/2 cup chopped cilantro leaves
6 large eggs
4 flour tortillas
Shredded Mix cheese

Directions

Heat an iron skillet and lightly spray with the cooking spray. Add the sausage and break up into small pieces. Cook thoroughly. Drain grease if any has accumulated.

Add the onion, garlic, green chiles and cilantro. Saute until the onions have softened, about 1 minute. Add the eggs. Stir until the egg is scrambled and thoroughly cooked.

Warm the tortillas in toaster oven or on top of a stove burner. Divide egg mixture equally among the 4 tortillas. Fold each tortilla up like a burrito or a cone and top each with 1/4 of the cheese.
My sous chef was very excited when he woke up to see this on the stove! If you want to anything else to this scramble, small diced potatoes would be a great addition as well. You could also add some chile peppers for some spice!

Special Waffles

Homemade Waffles! Delicious and yum! I've made homemade waffles several times since the sous chef and I have been married, and I decided to make them again this Saturday since he was playing in a Golf Tournament that day.

For recipes like these, I often turn to one of my older cookbooks, which is the Fannie Farmer Cookbook. This time, I decided to make the Special Waffles.
Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, separated
1 1/4 cups milk
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 tablespoons sugar

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl beat the egg yolks well, and add the milk and butter. Combine the flour and yolk mixture and beat until smooth. Beat the egg whites until stuff, but not dry. Slowly add the sugar, beating constantly. Mix a third of the beaten whites gently into the batter, then fold in the remaining whites very carefully. Spread 1/2 cup of waffle batter in the hot waffle iron. Bake until golden. Serve with syrup, butter, or whatever toppings you prefer!
Now, I know many people probably have an excess of waffles after a Sunday morning breakfast. We ate 4 and had 5 or 6 left over. What am I to do with that many extra waffles? Freeze them! How do you freeze them properly? Do as follows. Layer the waffles between wax paper as show below.

Then, light tuck the excess wax paper on the sides away and wrap all of the waffles in wax paper into a foil pouch. Tuck them away into the freezer. Remove waffles one at a time as needed. The wax paper will help you pull them away easily.

Enjoy!

Bacon Quiche Biscuit Cups

Ever wanted to know how to use your Pillsbury refrigerated products for more than their basic use? Yesterday morning, I made these biscuit cups before we headed off to the beach. These biscuit cups are great because they are easy to make and have an easy cleanup process. I changed the original recipe up slightly but not by much.

INGREDIENTS
Real Bacon Crumbles (I used about half of a 2.5 ounce bag. You can always cook bacon you have at home. If you do, I'd cook about 6 slices.)

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons milk

2 eggs
1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese (2 oz)
2 tablespoons chopped green onions (2 medium)
2 cans Pillsbury® Grands! Reduced Fat Buttermilk refrigerated biscuits

Extra bacon crubles for topping

Extra Swiss cheese for topping

Heat oven to 375°F. Spray regular-size muffin pan with cooking spray. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add milk and eggs, beating at low speed until smooth.

Stir in Swiss cheese and onions. Set aside.

Open biscuit cans, and press or roll each to form 5-inch rounds. Place 1 biscuit round in each muffin cup; firmly press in bottom and up sides, forming 1/4-inch rim. Place half of bacon in bottom of dough-lined muffin cups. Spoon cheese mixture evenly into cups.
Bake 21 to 26 minutes or until filling is set and edges of biscuit cups are golden brown. Everyone's oven varies, so keep an eye on these.

Sprinkle each with bacon and more shredded Swiss chese; lightly press into filling. For garnishing, cut some additional 1" slanted green onions and top them on the biscuit cups. Remove biscuit cups from pan.

These are delicious! Here's the original recipe from the Pillsbury website for the Bacon Quiche Biscuit Cups. I'm off to eat the leftovers because they are so yummy!

Homemade Blueberry Muffins

It was morning that needed breakfast today :) I decided that I needed to try my hand at homemade blueberry muffins because I've always just made them from a box. So, I searched online (big surprise) and found this recipe. http://recipes.recipeland.com/recipes/recipe/show/Blueberry_Cupcakes_or_Muffins_4300


I decided to half it since we really don't need that many muffins. What I loved about this recipe is that, even before you bake it, you can tell the batter is not as oily as boxed recipes. Both are still very good, but my tastetester claims that these are better ;)

Going into the oven!



Done and sugared :) Time to eat!