Easy {Gluten-free} Naan

This is a super simple, easy way to make delicious gluten-free Naan. Start with a package of Bob's Gluten-Free Pizza Crust Mix. Follow package directions on how to prepare dough using water, yeast packages, eggs and olive oil. Note: I had to add some additional GF flour to my mix to get dough to right consistency.

You will also need 1 stick – ½ cup of butter and some additional gluten-free flour for rolling out the dough.

While dough is rising, set oven to 500 degrees. Place stick of butter in a Pyrex bowl and melt in the oven. Keep a close eye on the butter. You just want butter to melt, not burn.

Once dough has risen, spread GF flour on a Silpat liner (or on your counter if you do not have a liner). Keep a bowl with GF flour within reach. Take a small handful of dough, place it on the Silpat and sprinkle with GF flour. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to apprx 1/4” thickness. Use a rubber spatula or basting brush and coat cookie sheet with butter. Place dough on buttered cookie sheet and brush the top with another coat of melted butter. Repeat the process with all the dough remembering to add GF flour to the Silpat as needed to keep dough from sticking.

Place cookie sheet with bread on the top rack of the oven. Keep a close eye on your bread while it cooks. You want for it to brown and slightly burn, but not for it to become hard like a hockey puck. Bread will bake for approx 7 minutes but be sure to check and make sure you are not over or under cooking the bread.

Serve your gluten-free Naan with your favorite Indian dish. Naan also freezes well for future use.

Enjoy!

Bountiful Baskets

This morning I got out of bed at 6:20am after only 3 hours of sleep ( a great story for another time) to pick up my Bountiful Basket at 6:30am. Bountiful Basket is a food co-op that operates with volunteers to purchase produce at deeply discounted prices and then distributes that produce evenly among participants. For $25 (plus a 1st time $3 donation fee) I got all of this organic produce! A large bag of grapes, 6 bananas, 4 heads of lettuce, 6 tomatoes, garlic, celery, 2 zucchini, a head of cabbage, 2 butternut squash, strawberries, a cantaloup, and a pineapple!

Looks like I'll be eating lots of fruits and veggies this week. :-)

To find out if this opportunity is available in your area check out http://www.bountifulbaskets.org/ .

Caprese Salad

Nothing says summer to me like fresh Caprese salad. Fresh tomatoes are one of my favorite parts of summer. I'm so happy to fresh tomatoes growing on my patio this summer - and that they are actually growing! I have several waiting to rippen and lots more buds ready to grow. I also have an eggplant, jalapenos, basil, thyme, cilantro and chives.





The best part of a Caprese salad is that they are so simple!

• Slice a fresh ripe tomato


• Sprinkle tomato with sea salt & pepper


• Top with slices of fresh mozzarella


• Drizzle with aged balsamic and a litte evoo


• Top with fresh basil from your garden


• Enjoy!

North Carolina Pulled Pork

North Carolina Pulled Pork. This is true BBQ to a Southern girl.

In the South BBQ is noun, not a verb. We have "cookouts" and we eat "BBQ."
BBQ is not firing up the "grill".
BBQ is not sweet sugar sauce you slather on a slab of meat.

In Virginia and to our North Carolina neighbors to the South, BBQ is slow cooked pulled pork perfectly balanced with a tangy vinegar and hot sauce. Since the time I moved away, I've frequently had intense craving for true barbecue (which is odd because I didn't eat a whole lot of BBQ when I did live in the South).

When I was in Texas a couple weeks ago a friend suggested we go out for BBQ. I was thrilled. But to my disappointment, in Texas BBQ is beef brisket and not pulled pork. Now I'm not dissing Texas BBQ, I was just hoping I would have found one of my favorites. Since then I have had this recipe on my mind.


North Carolina Pulled Pork (a slow-cooker version)

1 - 3lb Bone-in Pork Roast Shoulder
1.5 Cups Apple Cider Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Hot Sauce (I used Louisianna)
1.5 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
1 teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper

In a small bowl, mix together bottom six ingredients. Place pork roast in slowcooker and set on low for 10-12 hours. I choose to trim the extra fat off my roast. It was plenty marbled and there was close to a good pound of fat that was easy to cut off. (This is probably causing my true Southern friend Sara who taught me everything I know about Southern cooking to gasp. I'm pretty sure throwing away pork fat is a crime in her book. In fact, even if she is okay with me removing the extra fat, I'm sure I was suppose to save the fat for something else such as collard greens. But it's too late. The fat is gone.)

Roast will be tender and easily fall apart when ready. Remove roast from liquids and place in a casserole dish. Gently pull the roast apart with fork and knive (or if your me, just use kitchen scissors). Pour 1.5 cups of liquid over shredded pork, discarding the rest. Don't be affraid to add more vinegar or hot sauce if needed!

Serve pork on a toasted [Gluten-free] bun topped with fresh Cole Slaw. Side of roasted sweet potato fries is highly encouraged.



Enjoy!

Pick Your Poison

I attended an event Monday night for alcohol infused cupcakes at Marquee night club. Baketenders Robyn and Taryn of Pick Your Poison Bake Shop made the perfect cupcake concoctions. Cupcake flavors included: strawberries & champagne, Guiness, margarita, Jäger Bomb, drunken pineapple, Jack N Coke, and last but not least, red wine velvet.

Of course this gluten-free girl didn't do any actual pastry tasting, but I did try out some of the amazing frostings. The frosting is the best part anyway, right? Guiness and the strawberries & champagne frosting were both amazing, however, margarita won my heart with it's salty sprinkled top.










Pick Your Poison Bake Shop in Las Vegas sells a dozen cupcakes for $14 and offers free delivery. Perfect for a birthday celebration or a new twist on wedding cake!

For more information you can find them at http://www.facebook.com/PYPbakeshop or email at
pickyourpoisonlv@gmail.com


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

{Gluten Free} Veggie Pizza

I've tried several gluten free pizza over the past several months - mixes, frozen crusts, pre-made crust from Whole Foods deli. I've actual enjoying quite a bit of pizza at home because it's so quick and easy. So far my favorite pizza crust has been Nature's Highlight Brown Rice Pizza crust. It's thin and crispy. It's a bit more rice-y in flavor but I've become quite fond of the texture. I found these crust in the freezer section of Whole Foods.

Artichokes

Things I've been loving right now. Vegetables. Lots and lots of vegetables. I've been particularly fond of these delicious flowers right now.


Yep, that's right. Artichokes are actually the flower of a thistle plant. If you missed my post on how to prepare artichokes last year, check it out now - I Love Artichokes!

Enjoy!

Chilled Shrimp Salad

It's getting hot here in Vegas which mean I want to use the stove less and less. This tasty shrimp salad is sure to keep you nice and cool in the summer and can be prepared in a matter of minutes.

Chilled Shirmp Salad

2 cup Shrimp, cooked, peeled and deveined
1/4 of a large Cucumber, peeled and diced
3 stalks Green Onion
1 large Avocado
2 tbs Mayonaise
1/4 cup Greek Yogurt
1 tbs fresh Dill

Mix together the above ingredients in a large bowl. Serve over a bed of greens with fresh tomatoes. Told you it was easy!


Enjoy!

{Gluten Free} Breakfast Sandwich

I have been traveling lots the past couple months - mostly work, but a little bit of fun, which kinda explains my lack of blog posting lately. I'm finally back home with only a few short trips worked into the summer which feels nice.

First thing I loaded up on upon getting home is vegetables! You just never seem to get enough fresh ones while on-the-go. I think my grocery trip was all produce and included lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, avocado, artichokes, carrots, celery, mushrooms and a cantaloupe. The non-produce selection consisted of Greek yogurt, frozen shrimp, cheese, and pasta sauce. What can I say, I'm a veggie lover!

I also whipped up this little gluten free breakfast sandwich. I use to love Egg McMuffins when I was traveling. For being fast food they are relatively healthy. But now that I can no longer have gluten, Egg McMuffins are off my go to list when traveling. Luckily for me breakfast sandwiches made at home are even better than the drive through.

For this sandwich I used a toasted Glutino English Muffin, 1 egg + 1 egg white, melted cheese, and slightly seared prosciutto. Delicious!

Enjoy!