Old Fashioned Country Biscuit

For the lightest biscuits, the less you handle the dough, the better. A delicious country classic; like mom used to make!

2 cups GF flour blend, plus 1 T. extra for dusting

1/2 t. salt

4 t. baking powder

1/4 t. baking soda

2 T. butter, chilled and chopped into pieces

2 T. coconut oil, chilled

1 cup buttermilk or sour milk

Preheat oven to 450˚F.

Combine all dry ingredients and whisk together. Add the butter and coconut oil and work into the dry ingredients quickly, using a pastry cutter or fork. Do not allow the fat to melt. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Stir just until the dough forms a soft, moist glob. It should be sticky. But it still needs to have enough body to be able to form a very soft dough that you can cut into loose biscuits. We are not making hockey pucks here!

Plop the ball of dough onto a tea towel that has been dusted with the extra flour. With floured hands, very gently knead the dough 4 or 5 times and gently pat down  into a mound that is about 1 1/2 inches thick. Again, do not overwork the dough!

Cut biscuits with a floured drinking glass or 2.5 to 3 inch biscuit cutter and  arrange them, touching each other, in an unbuttered cake or pie pan.

Bake 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden and flakey (not doughy) when pulled apart. They should read around 205˚F on an instant read thermometer.

Makes: Eight biscuits.

Notes: For a shortcake biscuit to be used with berries and as dessert, add a

little extra sugar to the recipe and sprinkle extra sugar on top of the

biscuits just before baking.

This recipe is from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free."

To watch a slide show "tour" of the cookbook, click this link:

Youtube slide show "tour" of book here:

Spring Has Sprung...Healthy Spinach Bisque

Leeks and spinach give this silky soup its vibrant green color... and also an abundance of antioxidants. Potatoes lend an appealing velvety texture. Perk up your health with this bright Spring time soup!

¼ cup olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 large leeks, white and pale green parts only, diced and cleaned

1 T. fresh thyme or 1 t. dried thyme

Salt to taste

Freshly-ground pepper, to taste

4-6 cups GF vegetable or chicken broth

3 cups organic potatoes*, diced

16 ounces spinach leaves, chopped

1/2 cup milk or milk substitute, optional

Garnishes: yogurt, sprigs of fresh herbs, chive blossoms

Sauté onion and leeks, in olive oil over medium-low heat for 15 minutes until wilted. Add thyme, salt and pepper and stir well. Add broth and potatoes, cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Add spinach and simmer 3 more minutes.

Remove soup from heat and puree using a hand held immersion blender, or puree in batches in a blender or food processor. Return soup to stove and place over low heat.

Add milk, if using, and heat through. Add additional water or broth if a thinner consistency is preferred. Garnish, if desired, and serve warm.

Makes: Six to eight servings.

Notes: *I always use organic potatoes. Produce that grows in the ground such as potatoes, are frequently more contaminated by agricultural chemicals.

This recipe is available in my newest gluten free cookbook: The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free, which is available at www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org

Pork Carnitas Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa

What do you do with tomatillos, or those ugly little green tomato-looking things with husks on them? You make a wonderful tart and savory green salsa that is great with pork carnitas.

This is classic Mexican food at its best. And also my favorite go-to taco recipe. Enjoy!

Carnitas

2 1/2 pound organic pork shoulder, cut into chunks

3 t. dried oregano

2 t. fresh ground pepper

1 t. sea salt

1 t. ground cumin

1 onion, cut into chunks

3 whole garlic cloves

Juice of three limes

12-16 GF, organic corn tortillas

2 ripe avocados, sliced

Fresh cilantro

Fresh cabbage, finely shredded

Rub all spices on the outside of the pork and place seasoned pork in the bottom of a slow cooker.  Toss the onion and garlic on top of the pork. Squeeze the lime juice over the top.

Slow cook about 8 hours until meat is falling apart.  Drain the meat and shred the pork with a fork.

Serve with warm corn tortillas, tomatillo salsa, avocados and garnish with cilantro and cabbage.

Tomatillo Salsa

1 pound tomatillos, husked, halved, broiled/grilled until soft (5-10 minutes)

1/2 cup onion

1 large clove garlic, optional

1 cup cilantro leaves, loosely packed

1 T. fresh lime juice

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

Puree the broiled/grilled tomatillos and the remaining ingredients in the food processor until smooth. Cool in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Makes: Entire recipe of tacos and salsa makes enough for 8-10.

This recipe is from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free."

To watch a slide show "tour" of the cookbook, click this link:

Youtube slide show "tour" of book here:

Grapefruit Olive Oil Cake

Now this recipe really intrigued me…so I made it with some slight modifications. Again, I am finding that I need to be more aware of the very high glycemic index of many gf foods.

Tangy, tart, moist, gluten free and dairy free!

(Adapted from http://www.wheatfreemeatfree.com via A Good Appetite by Melissa Clark and original recipe from  http://smittenkitchen.com/2011/02/blood-orange-olive-oil-cake/)

1-2 grapefruit/s
1/2 cup agave syrup
1/2 cup sugar free Blue Diamond almond milk (or other non-dairy milk) 
3 large eggs
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or 1/4 cup olive oil + 1/4 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup grapefruit juice
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup brown rice or quinoa flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup arrowroot starch
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Zest one of the grapefruit (I used a microplane) and stir the zest into the agave, allowing it to steep to infuse the syrup.

Juice one of the zested grapefruit to yield 1/3 cup of juice. Mix the juice with the milk and add to the grapefruit zest-infused honey, mixing with a whisk. Mix in eggs and oils.

Sift and whisk the flours, baking powder and soda and salt together in a separate bowl.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet, gradually stirring, until there aren’t any lumps left and the batter has thickened.Pour batter into a 9-inch square pan lined with parchment paper or an oiled 9 inch springform pan or a bundt and bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature on a wire rack.

For more recipes from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free", go to:   http://www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org

 

Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

This is a moist bread that holds its’ shape and tastes wonderful! Using the coffee can option* makes it a unique bread and very user friendly for slicing bread for sandwiches or muffins.

3 cups GF flour blend
3/4 t. additional xanthan gum

¼ cup milk powder

1 T. sugar

1½ T. dry yeast granules

1 t. salt

2 eggs, room temperature

1¼ cups water, warmed to 115-120˚F

1 t. apple cider vinegar

3 T. olive oil

Place all dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and blend with a whisk. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, water, cider vinegar, and oil. Mix wet into dry ingredients and beat for at least two minutes.

Fold the mixture into an oiled muffin pan for rolls OR pour into an oiled 1# metal coffee can. For the coffee cans, you may opt to dust the insides of the cans slightly with flour blend, also. Fill no more than half full. Set aside in a slightly warm area free of drafts to rise approximately 30-40 minutes, or until doubled in size.

Bake in a 350˚F oven for 15 minutes for rolls or 30 minutes in the coffee can. Test with instant read thermometer until breads are 200-205˚F in center. Allow to cool before removing from the muffin pan or coffee can and/or slicing. Slice the bread, easily following the grooves made on the bread by the coffee can. PERFECT for buns, English muffins, etc.

Notes: *Acquire 1# metal coffee cans and empty out the coffee. Rinse and dry the can and use a can opener to remover the inner ring near the top of the can. Oil the can well and fill half full with bread batter.

Makes: Two coffee can loaves or 12 rolls.

This recipe is from my cookbook: "Delicious! The Very Best of Gluten Free and Wheat Free Cooking. It is available at:   

http://www.celacdiseaseinfo.org