Quick Dinners

It has been way too long since I have posted and it's definitely time I try to catch up.  We have been busy just like everyone else but it's time I share some gluten free meals that get us through the crazy busy times.  People often think that gluten free cooking is time consuming and expensive but that doesn't have to be the case.  Here are seven simple gluten free meals to get you through the week. These are quick and don't require any "special" ingredients.

1. Tacos - We also have corn tortilla shells on hand. Tacos are great for picky eaters - you can use chicken, beef, pork or veggies and everyone can customize their own toppings.
2. Nachos - We like to cover a tray with tortilla chips and sprinkle chicken and cheese. If we don't have chicken we'll use black beans and corn. After the cheese is melted we add tomatoes, onions, lettuce, salsa and sour cream. It's a bonus if we have guacamole.
3. Quesadilla -  Are you noticing a theme? We almost always have tortillas, cheese, tomatoes, etc on hand. I love adding olives in my quesadilla. This is a great meatless option.
4. Eggs & Hash browns - Typically we make scrambled eggs and add mushrooms, green peppers and onions.  Serve with hash browns and fruit.
5. Breakfast Burritos - Again, those tortilla shells come in handy. Cook some scrambled eggs (feel free too add some sausage) and add your favorite toppings. Serve with fruit.
6. Chili - I rarely follow a recipe for chili.  Keep your favorite ingredients on hand so you can make it in a pinch. We like to make a large batch and save the leftovers to make chili fries.
7. Baked Potato - Bake your potatoes in the oven or microwave, I know some people wrap them in foil and cook them in a crock-pot. We often serve these with a medley of broccoli, cauliflower and carrots.  Then add cheese, sour cream, butter or salsa.  Everyone can customize it to their liking. I like to make an extra for lunch the next day.

If you don't have the time or energy to "cook" a meal pick up a Rotisserie Chicken. Make sure to check the ingredients, I know the ones at Sam's Club and Cosco are gluten free. If we happen to be out we'll pick one up and serve it with salad or mashed potatoes and warm veggies. The leftovers are great for nachos, tacos, quesadillas or making chicken salad sandwiches for lunch the next day.

I hope these ideas serve as a reminder that it doesn't have to be complicated to eat gluten free. Don't be afraid to keep things simple. I'd love to hear your quick go to meals.

Leeann Chin, Finally

It's about time. Leeann Chin finally offers a few gluten free menu items. My sister was at Leeann Chin recently and noticed they now have a couple of gluten free items. I didn't notice it on their website so I had to ask what they offer gluten gree.

Here is the response I received:
Currently the items on our Leeann Chin menu, that are gluten free, would be our white rice, Bourbon Chicken, Curry Chicken Stir-fry, Shrimp and Vegetable Stir-fry and our Red Cherry Frozen Yogurt with any of the fresh fruit toppings.

We can also prepare, upon special request, a Vegetable Stir fry made with our Hunan Sweet Chili Sauce or our Bourbon Sauce.

One more item would be to special request our Teriyaki Chicken Stir Fry to be made without the Teriyaki sauce but substitute either the Hunan Sweet Chili Sauce or our Bourbon Sauce.
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It is always nice to have a quick and convenient option. Now we can use the buy one get one coupon from the Sunday paper.

Cabbage Saute

I made this awhile ago but still wanted to post it because it is so simple to make and uses basic ingredients. We had a lot of cabbage we needed to use up so I searched for a new recipe on all recipes. Nate and I thought it was a little bland so we added some pepper and garlic salt. We also added mushrooms we needed to use up.

Cabbage Saute

Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
4 medium carrots, thinly sliced
6 cups chopped cabbage
½ cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar

Directions:
1. In a large skillet, sauté onion in butter until tender. Add carrots; cook and stire for 2-3 minutes. Stier in the remaining ingredients; bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 5-7 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Serve with slotted spoon.

As you can see we served it with baked chicken. The chicken was seasoned with a simple chicken seasoning that included garlic, black pepper and red pepper.

For more gluten-free recipes and meal ideas check out What's for Dinner Wednesday.

Beef Stew

I made this last week for St. Patrick's Day and meant to post it earlier. I decided I should post it for What's for dinner Wednesday.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. beef roast
6 potatoes
1 onion
2 cups carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 cup chopped cabbage
1 can tomato sauce (14.5 oz)
5 cups water
1 tbsp minced garlic
pepper
parsley

Directions:
Dice up beef, potatoes and vegetables. Place everything (except cabbage) in the crockpot and set on low for about 8 hours. I like to add the cabbage about an hour before we eat.
If you want to prepare it the night before you can put everything together except water and tomato sauce. Then add the water and tomato sauce in the morning and set the crockpot on low.

This is super easy and can be motified depending what you have on hand or how much you want to make. You can easily omit or add veggies depending on if you have picky eaters. My sister Katie doesn't really eat cooked cabbage so I was surprised when she ate it in the stew. We had crackers with it and had plenty for leftovers.

For more gluten-free recipes check out The Gluten-Free Homemaker's What's for Dinner Wednesday.

Beef and Rice Medley

As I've said before when I cook I rarely use recipes. I cook like my mom and my grandma using whatever I have on hand and usually don't measure ingredients. I didn't really know what to make for dinner last night, just that it needed to be something warm. When we start to get bored or I want to find something new then I turn to recipes. I went to allrecipes.com and clicked on Healthy Cooking. I noticed they had a section for Gluten-Free Recipes as well as other dietary needs. Normally I just try to adapt recipes but this will be a convenient way to search for new gluten-free recipes.

This Beef and Rice Medley recipe stood out because we had the ingredients and it looked simple. I was worried that Matt wouldn't like the diced tomatoes. After dinner he said it would have been better without onions, he's getting used to tomatoes.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup uncooked rice
• 1 cube beef bouillon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup diced green bell pepper
• 1 (8 ounce) package mozzarella cheese

Directions:
1. Place ground beef and onion in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain excess fat. Stir in water and rice. Season with beef bouillon and black pepper. Simmer 25 to 30 minutes, or until water is absorbed. Stir in diced tomatoes and green peppers. Simmer another 10 minutes, until green pepper is tender. Sprinkle top with cheese.

Since I have a difficult time making a recipe just as it is I did add some garlic and parsley to it as well.

Look for other gluten-free recipes on The Gluten-Free Homemaker, What's For Dinner Wednesday.

Slow Cooker Thai Chicken

This is a Betty Crocker recipe that we really like at our house. It is easy to put together before I leave for work and takes minimal effort when we get home.

Prep Time: 15 min.
Start to Finish: 9hr. 15 min.
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
8 chicken thighs, skin removed (2 pounds)
3/4 cup salsa
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce (Note: La Choy soy sauce is GF or you can use San-J Organic Wheat Free Tamari)
1 teaspoon grated gingerroot
1/4 chopped peanuts
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Place chicken in 3 1/2-to 6-quart slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except peanuts and cilantro; pour over chicken.
2. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8 to 9 hours or until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut. Remove chicken from slow cooker, using slotted spoon; place on serving platter.
3. Remove sauce from slow cooker; skim fat from sauce. Pour sauce over chicken. Sprinkle with peanuts and cilantro.

Serve with rice that has been cooked with canned coconut milk. The sweet rice is a really nice compliment if you use a spicy salsa.

Pepper Beef Stir Fry

I found this recipe on La Choy's website. The guys thought it sounded weird when they saw the ketchup but once they tried it they loved it.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Pure Wesson® Vegetable Oil, divided
1 large red bell pepper, chopped into large chunks
1 medium onion, chopped into large chunks
1 pound boneless beef sirloin, cut across grain into 2 x 1/2-inch strips
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 can (8 oz each) La Choy® Bamboo Shoots, drained
1/3 cup La Choy® Soy Sauce (Note: La Choy soy sauce is GF or you can use San-J Organic Wheat Free Tamari)
1 tablespoon firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons Hunt's® Ketchup
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
Chow Mein Noodles, optional (Note: Nate uses Grandma Ferdon's Brown Rice Chow Mein Noodles)

Directions:
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in large skillet or wok over high heat. Cook and stir red bell pepper and onion about 2 minutes or until crisp-tender. Remove from skillet; set aside.
2. Pour the remaining 1 tablespoon oil into skillet. Cook and stir beef and garlic about 2 minutes until browned. Add bamboo shoots and cooked vegetables back to skillet.
3. Whisk together soy sauce, brown sugar and ketchup in small bowl. Add to skillet. Stir together cornstarch and water until smooth; add to skillet. Cook until heated through and sauce thickens, stirring occasionally, about 1 minute. Serve with chow mein noodles, if desired.
Serves 4