Rice Pudding

Now, this picture doesn't look like much, I know, but it is one of the most delicious breakfasts I have ever put in my mouth. Randomly, I was inspired to make this because someone on twitter said they were having rice toast, which really doesn't have anything to do with rice pudding.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1/2 cup plain yogurt (I used homemade)
1/2 cup milk (I used goat)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cocoa powder
zest from half an orange
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp. coconut oil
honey, for garnish

Directions:

Dump the rice into a small saucepan, and add milk and yogurt.  Turn the heat on low, and let simmer.  Beat your egg, add, and stir.  Add cinnamon, and cocoa powder. Zest an orange in, and add the coconut oil.  Stir until everything is well blended. Let simmer 10-15 minutes or until nice and toasty warm.  Pour into a bowl and top with a tsp (or more, to taste) of local wild honey. 

Makes 2 bowls of heavenly goodness. Oh, and gives you a great way to use leftovers, meaning you are saving money. 

Gluten Free Chicken 'N Dumplings

If my mama is reading this, she's gonna have a heart attack.  'Cause I spent my whole childhood loathing chicken 'n dumplings.  But she taught my kids to like them, and then we went gluten-free, and we've all had tummy troubles... it just seemed like the thing to do..

So Mom-- sit down, I am voluntarily making, and will be eating chicken 'n dumplings. Do you wanna come over and take a picture?

Now I'm sure that this recipe could be easily adapted for the crockpot so that it's not so time consuming, but I wasn't organized enough this morning to make that happen.

So this has been a 7 hour or so recipe.  (With cheating as I'll describe below.)

Hopefully if you want to make this, you'll have a freezer full of chicken broth  like I do. Otherwise, that's an extra step that can't really be shortcutted.

Soup Ingredients:
2 gallons homemade chicken broth
3 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
1 cup milk (I used raw goat's milk)
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 tsp thyme
1 tsp salt
2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp chopped bay leaves
1/2 tsp. parsley
1/2 cup frozen spinach

Dumplings:
This is where I cheated! I used Gluten-Free Cooking School's recipe that I found here for drop biscuits.

Directions:
Take out a big 'ol stock pot, and place the frozen chunks of chicken broth in. Turn the heat on low, and forget about it for 30 minutes or so until it has time to turn once again to liquid.

Add the carrot, celery, thyme, and chicken thighs.  Keep the heat on low, and cook for hours, or until the chicken just about falls off the bones.  Once you get to that point, start making your biscuit dough.  When your dough is made, turn the oven on 350.  Remove chicken from soup and shred.  Keep bones and skin to make more chicken stock!  Return the chicken to the pan, and add the remaining spices, spinach, and milk.  Stir gently and then bring to a boil.  Taste and make sure you like the seasonings, adjusting if necessary.

Using an ice cream scoop, scoop up a bit of the biscuit dough and drop it into the pan.  I started out using full scoops and then realized my dumplings were gi-normous, so I switched to half scoops towards the end.

 You may have to gently stir a bit to make sure they are all able to float to the top.  Then take the whole pot and put in the oven. I cooked it for 35 minutes, but you may actually want to cook a little longer. I just couldn't wait anymore.. the suspense was killing me.

And now I am for certain... I DO LIKE CHICKEN N DUMPLINGS!!!


Serve in a bowl and get ready for a nap after.

Fermented Brussel Sprouts (Yes KIDS eat them!!)

Since I've gotten back on track with fermenting things again lately, I started wanting to experiment a little, even though I have in the past mostly stuck with a recipe.  For some reason, the idea occured to me that brussel sprouts are kinda like little cabbages, and with proper fermentation, would taste like little round bites of saurkraut heaven.  So I picked up a pound or so of fresh ones and got started.

Fermented Brussel Sprouts

approx 1 lb fresh brussel sprouts, washed and cut in half
1 tbsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. whey
2 cloves fresh garlic, peeled, and smashed
2 tsp. dried fresh dill
water (preferably filtered)

In a large (quart size) mason jar, add your brussel sprouts, then all other ingredients.  Seal, and label the top with the date. The dating is very important so that when you are tired and can't remember what the heck day you did this anyway, you can figure out how long they have been fermenting.  Leave sitting out on the counter for a week. Open and taste. Be careful when you open the jar as it will fizz a bit like a well shaken soda.  If they aren't sour enough, re-seal and leave out longer. If they are good, stick 'em in the fridge. If you are vegetarian or dairy intolerant, you can skip the whey and up the salt.

Entire prep time for this was about 5 minutes.  The look on my daughter's face when she tried one made it worth about an hour of prep time-- she looked like she'd one the lottery. Noone else is allowed to touch the jar. Guess I'm gonna have to get more brussel sprouts... 'cause anything that makes the kids ask for veggie snacks instead of processed food is a winner in my book.

Gluten-Free Salmon Patties... Delishousness

So my most recent craving: salmon patties.  I think, at this point, I no longer ask why I crave random things.  Although I do believe this one was directly related to me making some wasabi mayonnaise and wanting something to dip in it.  I don't think either of my kids had ever had the pleasure known as a salmon patty.. and it was a hit with both!

Ingredients:
1 14.75 oz. can salmon
1/2 onion
1 1/2 stalk celery
1 cup rice chex
2 eggs
1 tsp. dill
1/2 tsp. garlic
1 tsp. lemon zest
1/4 tsp. black pepper
dash salt
1 tsp. lemon juice

Dice up your veggies finely.  Smash up the rice chex (I used a mortar and pestle.) Then throw everything in a large mixing bowl and mix well. With your hands.  If you're not into the ooie gooie type of hand mixing, get a child to do it.  Form patties of desired size, I made mine about hamburger size, but do whatever floats your boat.  Stack them neatly in a plate or flat pan and stick in the refrigerator for an hour or two. 

Once you're ready to cook, heat a large skillet with some oil in it. I used olive oil.  Add the patties until pan is full... just like pan frying burgers.

Cook for five minutes on each side.  Serve hot.. plain or with dipping sauce and lemon wedges. Shown here with brussel sprouts, quinoa, and wasabi mayo.

Smoked Turkey Fried Rice

Ever have a day when nothing in your kitchen seems destined to actually come together to make a meal?  That was me the other day.. then I dreamed this beauty up.  The whole family couldn't get enough!


Ingredients:
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp. Hungarian paprika
2 cups rice
7 cups chicken broth
1 smoked turkey wing
3 chicken quarters
1/4 cup chopped black olives
2 popsicles (more if desired)
2 stalks celery
1/2 pint grape tomatoes
5 small sweet peppers
2 tbsp. coconut oil

This sounds like a lot.. but came together in about an hour and a half, two hours tops, and I managed to accomplish other things in the meantime (as you'll see.)

You need a really big pot and a large frying-type pan.  Go ahead and chop all your veggies.  Now, turn on the heat  (medium) under the really big pot, and add 2 tbsp. of olive oil.  Let it swirl around for a minute, and add your chopped onion. Cook for about two minutes, then add your garlic and give it a quick stir.  Add the paprika, and stir again. Let it sizzle together for a couple of seconds, and then add your rice. Stir the rice often and saute it for about 2 minutes. Add your chicken broth.  Reduce heat to low.  While the rice is getting acclimated to the chicken broth, chop up that smoked turkey wing and toss it in there.  If you haven't done so already, you need to start defrosting those chicken quarters.  (I forgot in this instance.)  Now stop, take a breath, and open the popsicles for the kids (you wondered what those were for, didn't you?)

Flip the defrosting chicken, and stir the really big pot.  Empty the dishwasher.  Now, add your celery, tomatoes, and sweet peppers to the pot.  Stir it gently to mix everything together.

Now take your chicken that is hopefully defrosted by now and get it ready for the frying pan.  Melt your coconut oil in the pan and sprinkle salt and pepper on the chicken.  Get the coconut oil hot-- medium to medium high heat.  Add the chicken.  Cook for five minutes before flipping.  Use a splatter screen or shoo small people and animals out of the kitchen.  Meanwhile, go recycle the grocery bag that mysteriously appeared just now in the kitchen floor.  Come back, and flip the chicken again.  Cook until you can poke a knife in it and the juices run clear (not pinky clear.)  Remove chicken from the pan and drain if so desired.  Peek at the rice. Is it reducing? If not, you may want to crank up the heat a bit.. just keep in mind you'll have to stir more often to keep from burning the bottom.

Shred the recently fried up chicken.  Toss it in the pot and mix it all up, also adding the olives.  Once the rice is ready (I always taste it to tell for sure) serve it up with sour cream and hot sauce as condiments.

This was gone so so quickly... I don't even think we had leftovers.

Ranch Dressing

Now my kids both eat salad.. my two year old delights in it despite trying to avoid most things green. But one thing the hubby and both kids agree on is ranch dressing. My husband even dips pizza in it!  For a long time, bottled ranch has been a non-negotiable in my house.. the barest mention of it brought hard stares and mean looks, all pointed in my direction.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but have you ever read the ingredients of one of those bottles?  I can't pronounce half of it.  And while I do believe in salad dressing and veggie dip, I don't believe it has to be full of crap.  

Salad dressing is good for you, actually, a little fat with your vegetables helps your body absorb the nutrients.

So last night I got all experimental and made some homemade ranch dressing:

The verdict?? I WON I WON I WON!!! I never have to buy Ranch dressing again!! 

Once again, Mommy is victorious! (Good thing none of them read my blog....)

So here, go make you some:

1 cup buttermilk

3 serving spoons full of plain yogurt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. rice vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. dried dill (I dry my own.. so I had to scrunch it up tiny)

1 tsp. dried parsley

3/4 tsp. powdered garlic

tiny sprinkling of salt

Stir well. You can play around this to make it thicker (add more yogurt) tangier (add more vinegar) etc.  I'm gonna try a spicy version next. :-)

Non fried Refried Beans

Ah ! The joy of a quick dish when you plan ahead! For this I used beans I had previously soaked, cooked, and thrown in the freezer, onions I had chopped and frozen, AND chicken broth I had made and frozen.

My family often enjoys Mexican night... but I've never mastered refried beans from scratch, even when actually frying them.  But today is my lucky day, because I have some deliciousness working that will be unrivaled.

Or something.

What I tasted a minute ago was quite good.

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups pre-cooked kidney beans
1 cup chopped red onion
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
1 piece bacon, cut up
1 tbsp. dried cilantro
2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. sea salt

In a large pot, throw it all together.  Stir up.  Bring to a boil and then turn down to low to let the flavors meld.  Cook when everything reduces to mush. Pre-cooking and freezing the beans seemed to give these beans the exact texture I wanted.. like refried beans at the Mexican joint down the street.. but they had a heck of a lot more flavor.