And so we tried the Brownie Mix

Yep, that Betty Crocker has been BUSY. Boxing up all those GF mixes of cake and you know then, that we HAD to try the brownies. Right? right. It only seemed fair.

$10 for two mixes is ree-dic-u-lous, however. But I am not extravagant in my other spending right now, so it seemed like cheap entertainment. Pan of brownies, vs. the movies. Brownies win. It’s cheaper. And yummier, and I can watch a movie I already own.

The mixes are beautifully packaged, I will give them that.

I went to the BC website and used the “no butter” instructions. Seems to be working out just fine.

I so less than three brownies.

Gluten Free Cake Mix-review

Betty Crocker’s gluten free offerings finally hit the shelf in my neighborhood. We were so excited to see this:
We tried the yellow cake mix after trying to choose between cake and brownies.

The cake
(with frosting)  won.

I made the mix with flax egg  replacement and the butter replaced with coconut oil. That makes the resulting cake -vegan- and has the added advantage of not stirring up any of my allergic reactions.

The resulting “cake” was pretty good. The flavor gets a 3 on a scale of 5, but I think it’s because I didn’t put in enough vanilla.

So the verdict on buying GF cake mixes off the shelf? Nah. It comes down to the part where it’s four times the cost for the same results. It was just “okay”. Not spectacular. And certainly not four times better than what we already do for “cake” here at cabbagenets.  I have to say, though, being able to open a box and not having to measure everything out was fun.

The off the shelf mix makes an 8 x 8 pan of cake, or 12 cupcakes. This will be fine if I need it in a pinch to take somewhere. Maybe good to have on hand for emergencies… but I won’t keep it on my shelf as a staple item. I won’t pay $3 extra for the box. I can’t eat the pretty box.

Just sayin.

Culver’s Flavor of the Day

Menehune-Brownies

The menehune are small persons believed to inhabit Hawaii. In Europe they call them “brownies”. Or hobbits, or gnomes. 

These are just delicious.  Gluten free, dairy free, soy free, egg free goodness, and the menehune here just love them. 

• 1/2 C potato flour
• 1/4 C brown rice flour
• 1 C sugar
• 6 T cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 C palm shortening
• 2 eggs <replaced with flax and hot water>
• 2 tsp vanilla

Stir, put in oiled 8 x 8 pan. Sprinkle 1/2 C chocolate chips on top. Bake at 350 for 25- 30 minutes.

Sweet potato-lentil Stew

Okay. Let’s try this one too. 

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• 2 tablespoons safflower oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 medium celery ribs, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
• 2 cups dried brown lentils, picked over and rinsed
• 2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cut in 1/2-inch dice
• 1 package (9 ounces) frozen cut green beans
• 1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• Coarse salt and black pepper
• Plain low-fat yogurt, for serving

1. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high. Add onion, carrots, celery, and bay leaf. Cook, stirring, until vegetables are softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and curry powder and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more.
2. Add 7 cups of water and lentils. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 10 minutes. Add potatoes and continue to cook, covered, until lentils and potato are just tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Add green beans and tomatoes with juice. Cook until warmed through, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Add cilantro; season with salt and pepper. Serve with yogurt.

Fabulous Stuffed Potato Rolls

Why can’t Martha cook like me? Seriously. This is the modified version of her canneloni potoatoes…

 I am going to try while I am on vacation. I can’t wait. 

Rolled and Stuffed

• 3 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound each)
• 1 1/2 C mozzerella cheeze -shredded. 
• 3/4 cup diced Fuji apple (skin on)
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• 1 piece (2 ounces) Parmesan cheese, half grated and half shaved
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• oil, or cooking spray for the pan
• 1 tablespoon  oil
• 1/3 cup chopped toasted walnuts (about 1 ounce)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375. Wrap 1 sweet potato in parchment, and then in foil. Pierce several times with a fork. Bake until tender, about 1 hour. Let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 350.
2. Meanwhile, peel remaining sweet potatoes. Using a mandoline or a chef’s knife, cut potatoes lengthwise into very thin slices until you have 30 slices. Trim each to a 2-by-4-inch rectangle.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add half the sweet potato slices, and cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, place slices on a baking sheet to cool slightly. Repeat.
4. Remove peel from baked sweet potato, and puree the cooked flesh in a food processor until smooth. Add cheese, and puree until smooth.
5. Transfer potato-cheese mixture to a large bowl. Stir in apple, chives, grated Parmesan, salt, and pepper.
6. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with oil, or cooking spray. Place 1 heaping tablespoon filling in center of a sweet potato slice, and roll up. Place, seam side down, in dish. Repeat. (Cannelloni can be refrigerated, covered, overnight; bring to room temperature before baking.)
7. Brush oil over cannelloni. Bake until heated through, 10 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle  shaved Parmesan.

Layered Taco Bake

Today’s Martha post of “everyday food” has a list of meatless maindishes. I am making this one, http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/best-tortilla-and-black-bean-pie?backto=true

with some modifications. Always with the modifications. Oh well. At least I still get to eat and be sort of creative in the kitchen. This sounds really good.  I added some cilantro too, because it always goes with tacos at this house. 

Taco Bake

• corn tortillas
• 1 tablespoon  oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno chile, minced (remove seeds and ribs for less heat)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 2 cans (15 ounces each) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 12 ounces stock, or 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn(optional)
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
•  1 handfull of chopped cilantro
• 2 1/2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzerella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If the tortillas are too large, use a paring knife, to trim tortillas to fit a 9-inch springform pan, using the bottom of the pan as a guide. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno, garlic, and cumin; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add beans and stock (or water) to skillet, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until liquid has almost evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in corn (if using), chopped cilantro and scallions, and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Fit a trimmed tortilla in bottom of springform pan; layer with 1/4 of the beans and 1/2 cup cheese. Repeat three times, using 1 cup cheese on top layer. Bake until hot and cheese is melted, 20 to 25 minutes. Unmold pie; sprinkle with scallions and more cilantro. To serve, slice into wedges.

NOTES: add sliced zucchini, fresh spinach leaves, or other veggies in the stir-fry stage, to “beef” up the mixture.

MORE NOTES:

Okay, so here’s how it went. The corn tortillas at my market were tiny and my springform pan is huge. So I split the difference. I cut the tortillas into 1/4ths and used the rounded edge pieces to go around the outside of the layer, and used the straight tortilla strips to cover the middle, overlapping them like lasagna noodles. 

I didn’t have garlic, but will add it next time. I sauteed the onions, and added the beans, an ENTIRE package of fresh spinach leaves and 2 smallish zuchinis sliced and diced to the stirfry mix. I LIKE THIS RECIPE a whole lot.

Cup of Cake

Got 3 minutes? have some cake. 

Mix:

• 4 T sugar
• 4 T GF flour mix (I used potato starch and rice flour) 
• 4T cocoa
• 1 egg (I replaced it with flax meal + HOT water)
• 3 T hemp milk
• 3 T oil 
• 3 T choc chips

Pour into a large coffee mug. Cook 3 minutes in the microwave on high power. Drizzle some frosting on it. Poof Cake. 

Butterscotch Rice

This is from a recipe card from grandma’s recipe box. Sounds fabulous. It is gluten free, but clearly not dairy free.

Butterscotch Rice- original recipe circa 1955

• 1 1/2 C scalded milk
• 1/3 C rice
• 2 T butter
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 C brown sugar

Put thoroughly washed rice into a double boiler and add the scalded milk. Cover and cook until rice is tender. Blend the butter, brown sugar and salt in a saucepan and heat over a slow fire until sugar is melted. Stir into hot rice and finish cooking. Pour into molds or dish. Chill and serve with plain or whipped cream.

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Butterscotch Rice – GF CF

• 1 1/2 C hemp milk
• 1/3 C rice
• 1 T palm shortening
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 C Brown Sugar

It sounds so good!

Soup Soup Soup

This is great for a rainy cold weekend lunch. Guess what we are having today? It’s great over a bowl of rice, too. (SOME!!!)people at my house insist on meat in their diets… I could care less and don’t really eat meat. So this is good either way. Sometimes I just get out two giant pots on the stove and make both versions at the same time.

Freezes great.

Veggie Veggie Soup

• 1 lb chicken thighs – cut into bite sized pieces (optional)
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 box of Pacific chicken stock
• 3 peeled and chopped carrots
• 2 peeled and chopped potatoes
• 1 C frozen chopped spinach
• 1 1/2 C frozen chopped broccoli
• 1 can cut green beans
• 1 peeled and chopped zucchini salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning
• 1 T oregano
• 1 T Italian seasoning

Cover chicken bits with a little water- 2 cups?maybe. simmer until cooked through. Add all the veggies and chicken stock. Add seasonings. Simmer an hour, or until the carrots are cookedto your liking.