Super Easy Sweet Sticky Rice w/ Mango

The mangos we've been getting lately have been so sweet and ripe and delicious that I knew we had make this for dessert one night!  There are tons of mango sticky rice recipes out there and I've tried a few different ones, but have decided for the time and effort involved this is simplest way to go if you're in the mood for this flavor combo.

2 cups uncooked sticky rice
4 cups water
1 can coconut milk
1 cup sugar (more or less - adjust to taste)
2-3 ripe mangos (or more if you like lots of mango!)

Bring the water and sticky rice to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until done.  Meanwhile combine the coconut milk and sugar in a bowl large enough to contain the rice.  Once the rice is done, stir it in to the coconut milk sugar mixture.  Let sit, stirring occasionally, until the rice comes to room temperature.  Dice up the mangos, place them on top, and go to town!

Kale Chips

It seems like kale chips are all the rage right now.  I know Jessica tried to make a batch once that ended up a disaster, so I was intrigued to try them myself.  I had a beautiful bunch of kale just sitting in the fridge so I decided to see what all the fuss was about.  After reading through countless recipes online (all of which are basically the same), here is what I came up with:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Wash and dry the kale.
Tear it into bite size pieces.
Coat the pieces with extra virgin olive oil.  I wish I had a misto sprayer to assist with this step, but alas, I don't.  I drizzled some on the kale and tossed/coated them all by hand.
Set the pieces on a foil covered (b/c I enjoy easy clean up) baking sheet.  It works well to set them curly side down so they form little tents.
Sprinkle with salt/pepper/seasoning of your choice.  We went with Salt'n Spice - it sounded fun for the maiden voyage.
Bake for 10-15 minutes
WATCH THEM CLOSELY!  Smaller pieces might be done faster so you'll want to pull them out.  You DO NOT want them to get brown at all - it will make them taste yucky instead of delicious.

Fresh out of the oven!

They turned out AMAZING!!  All crispy and yummy.  Even 3 year old Jenna loved them.  In fact she and I sat there and ate the entire first batch in no time flat.  Good thing we had enough for a second batch so we could take some pictures and share with Joey!  Just writing about them makes me want more...better run to the store...

Cilantro Buttered Corn on the Cob

It's summer and that means corn on the cob! My Kroger had 6 corns for 2 dollars so I got 'em, took 'em home and boiled 'em.  I wanted them to be a little spiced up (more so that Taylor wouldn't be upset that the only thing I was making for dinner was corn on the cob (it was just one of those days...))
So I found a nifty recipe for Cilantro Butter which was perfect since I had a little tupperware full of chopped cilantro left over from some fresh salsa I had made earlier in the week.

Cilantro Butter (enough for 6 ears of corn)

2 Tbs room temperature butter
1 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
pinch of salt
1/8 tsp cumin
1/8 ground chipotle pepper (I left it out since I didn't have it)

Mix it all up in a little bowl and shmear it all over your hot corn.  Mmhmm mhmm good!

Make you banana pancakes, pretend that its the weekend now...

(Jack Johnson anyone?)
                                    

Sorry for the blog post hiatus. (reason pending) But I have some things to add! First off, Banana Pancakes! I made the Yummy Muffin recipe yesterday with my newly acquired almond flour, and loved them but I still had some over ripe bananas to use and with it being Fast Sunday today, I was craving some good hearty breakfast-for-dinner food.  So I headed to the web for some banana pancake recipes.  A lot of recipes were 3 ingredient banana pancakes made with just egg, banana, and peanut butter or vanilla or salt, and I was like ummm I need a little more substance than that.  I found a great recipe called Gluten Free Banana Pancakes and just tweeked it a bit.  Here is my version:

1 1/2 cups oat flour (I just ground some up quick oats in my little food processor)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 banana, mashed
1 cup milk, and a little more if the batter gets too thick
1 egg
1/4- 1/2 tsp cinnamon (to taste)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

(makes about 15 medium sized pancakes)

In medium bowl mix together oat flour and baking powder and salt Add the mashed banana, milk, egg, cinnamon, and vanilla.  Mix until combined.  Melt a little butter on the griddle and spoon the batter one.  Cook 3-4 minutes on one side and then flip.  I kinda pressed them down with the spatula once I flipped them to make them a little thinner because they were looking quite beefy.  I had to add a little milk to the batter in between batches because it thickened up as it sat there.  Serve with syrup, peanut butter, yogurt or applesauce.  Or, if you are my husband, top them with texas sheet cake. *eye roll*

I quickly snapped a picture before he was able to destroy the evidence!

Tuna Patties and Sweet Potato Pancakes

Dinner in the Round

Natalie sent me a recipe for sweet potato pancakes that we were excited to try--KC's favorite food is sweet potatoes.  We paired them with tuna patties and the result was what we ended up calling "dinner in the round." 

Paleo Sweet Potato Pancakes

• 1 Giant Baby Yam (or several normal yams…whatever)
• 1 onion finely diced
• 3 eggs
• 1-2 Tbls of Coconut Flour (This is just a binder- you can use whatever flour is on hand)
• Dash of Nutmeg (for a different flavor try smoky paprika or chili powder)
• Salt and Pepper
• 1/4 cup of coconut oil

Instructions

1. Bake the yam at 350 for about 45 mins (varies depending on size). You do not want it to get soft all the way through. You want it cooked soft enough to pierce but staying firm enough that a knife will not go all the way through easily (think al-dente pasta)
2. Place the yam in the fridge until it is cool enough to work with.
3. Peel the yam. Use a box grater or the grating attachment to a mixer to grate the yam into "hashbrown" style strings. (Be careful- it mushes easily but this recipe tastes better with some texture.)
4. Season the grated yam with the coconut flour, nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste.
5. GENTLY mix in the diced onion
6. Beat the eggs and pour into the yam mixture. Use a fork to gently toss the egg into the yam.
7. Melt the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
8. Spoon 1/4 cup of yam mix into the coconut oil gently pressing to spread and flatten into a pancake shape. Repeat for as many pancakes as your skillet will comfortably hold.
9. Flip when the first side is crispy and browning.
10. When both sides are done remove onto paper towels and sprinkle with sea salt.

These were so delicious.  I used regular size sweet potatoes.  I peeled them first and put each one in the microwave for four minutes, and then put them through my food processor.  Worked great.

Tuna Patties

2 cans of tuna (7 oz.), drained
2 eggs
1-2 Tablespoons pickle relish
1/2 cup grated cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise (enough to kind of hold it together)
coconut oil

Mix ingredients together, except for the coconut oil.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Form patties and cook in the oil for 2-3 minutes per side.  We served them with Garlic Lemon Aioli.

Garlic Lemon Aioli (from Everyday Paleo Family Cookbook)

1/2 cup Mayonnaise
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Mix and serve.

Chicken Pillows are Back!

Chicken pillows are kind of like a dirty little family secret--we all love them, but hate to admit that we love something made of cream cheese and chicken wrapped in a crescent roll and dipped in butter.  It just doesn't seem right.  We were afraid that this family favorite had not made the jump to our gluten-free lifestyle, but surprise--it's back!  My friend, and mom to one of my favorite kindergartners, Emily, came up with this gluten-free reboot of the chicken pillow.  Her filling is a little more fancy than mine (really--sauteed mushrooms in a chicken pillow?), but I just went with 8 oz. cream cheese, chicken and chives.  Either way, they are great!

Biscuit dough
2 1/4 c flour (I used king Arthur's GF flour mix)
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 c butter
1 egg
3/4 c milk
Mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Combine egg and milk and stir into flour mixture until combined. Knead 10 times.

Chicken filling
4 oz. softened cream cheese
2 Tbs melted butter
3 c cubed cooked chicken
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 Tbs milk
2-3 Tbsp chopped green onion
Blend butter and cream cheese. Stir in remaining ingredients. Roll out dough thinly, but thick enough that you can work with it not tearing too much. Put a spoonful of chicken mix in the center of the dough and fold the remaining dough around it. Turn folded side down onto a baking sheet, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with crushed glutino pretzels. (You can season the pretzel crumbs to add flavor, if desired). Bake at 350* for 25-30 minutes.
Variation- I like mine with both chicken and mushrooms. Chop and sauté mushrooms and add to the chicken mixture.

I used Corn Chex for the topping.  When I do it again, I think I will splurge and get some gluten-free corn flakes. We also like ours with a little gravy on top.  I made this gravy with some of my own chicken stock, cornstarch and a little sour cream.  Yum!

Cool Rhubarb Dessert

I love rhubarb.  It's the first thing ready in the garden which is always so exciting after winter!  This recipe is one of my favorite ways to use it, and is different from the strawberry/rhubarb flavor profile you usually see!  As a side note, this is also the first time I've used an all purpose gluten-free flour.  I had to - I wanted the crust, and didn't feel like experimenting with an almond flour option.  Do what you will with it.

Crust
1 1/2 cups gluten free all purpose flour
3/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine the ingredients, spread in a glass 9x13 baking dish and bake for 20 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Rhubarb filling
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
4 cups sliced rhubarb

In a saucepan bring the ingredients to a boil, then simmer five minutes, stirring frequently.  Pour over the crust.  Put in the fridge to chill.

Additional ingredients
vanilla instant pudding (I use the big box b/c we like a thick pudding layer!)
milk - to make the pudding
cool whip or whipped cream
1/4 cup toasted coconut (stir coconut in a pan over medium heat until toasted)

Once the crust/rhubarb layer is chilled, make the pudding according to the package directions and spread over the rhubarb layer.  Spread the cool whip or whipped cream over the pudding layer, and top with the toasted coconut.  Chill until you're ready to serve it!