Going gluten free can be really difficult. For some things it is like learning how to cook all over again. It can be overwhelming trying to figure out what to eat and what tastes good and what weird ingredient do I need, now!
The hardest year, for me, was the first! There wasn’t anywhere to get a gluten free pizza! It was rare to have a night off from cooking and very few places offered gluten free options, let alone, a gluten free menu! I hated to cook and I cried a lot! I hated that I had to now cook EVERYTHING! Once I got over feeling sorry for myself and got used to cooking, it got easier!
No funky ingredients and nothing weird here. The biggest thing is watching your ingredients (reading labels) and making needed substitutions.
Meals that are naturally gluten free or need slight substitutions
Easily gluten free meals, most of these are naturally gluten free or with slight substitutions. Substitutions aren’t hard, but it may take practice. Read labels and make sure the ingredients are free of ALL gluten ingredients! No: wheat, rye, barley, *uncertified oats (If it doesn’t say certified gluten free it may be highly contaminated with gluten!), *all forms of malt (Malt vinegar, malt extract, malt syrup, etc. Most malt in the United States is made from barley!), kamut, graham, durum, spelt, emmer, farina, farro, einkorn, and triticale.
This is a large salad that would make a nice light mealLasagna Toss
This is my favorite way to make lasagna! It is so easy! The only substitution is using gluten free noodles! My preferred noodle for this recipe is Tinkyada Brown Rice Spirals
I hope these recipes and ideas help you to make dinner time a little less stressful!
When I was first diagnosed I went through all of my recipes and moved all my casserole recipe cards to the back of my card file. After discovering this soup base and getting the hang of making soup as part of making dinner; I added casseroles back into our menu plans.
I love this cream soup! I keep this soup base mix in a container so I can make it quickly for any recipe. I have modified it a little bit, the original recipe was from Bette Hagman. The original recipe added dry bouillon to the mix and I don’t. Waiting to add the boullion makes it possible to easily flavor it for chicken or beef.
I have been using this container for 12 years. It has a small crack; I think it is time for a new container!
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Better than Bouillon is my favorite! It must be kept in the refrigerator, once it is opened.
Mix the dry ingredients and keep in an air tight container until ready to make cream soup.
Making the Soup
In 1/4 C water stir 3-4 Tbs mix (How many Tablespoons you use, depends on how thick you want it).
Put the mixture in a sauce pan and add 1 cup water and 1 tsp Better Than Bouillon and stir. Option to add butter at this stage. Stir and thicken on med-high.
At a Gluten Intolerance Group Conference, several years ago, I got to hear Jules Shepard of GF Jules speak. She talked about how food is emotional. We have emotional attachments to the foods we enjoy. Usually because of who made it or when it was eaten and the memories surrounding the circumstances where the food was eaten and with whom. Sometimes, what we long for most is the memories that eating that particular food brings up in our minds and hearts. Gf cooking and recipes have come a long way in the 12+ years I have been gluten free. Almost anything you want to cook can be found.
My Grandma didn’t drive. She had been a pretty bad car accident and refused to drive after that. So, every 2 weeks my mom would drive to downtown Salt Lake City where my grandma lived and take her to do her shopping. During the week, Grandma took a cab to and from work but it was hard to get all the other things done. I often went with my mom on these shopping trips. We went to lunch and often it was to Pepperidge Farms Restaurant (I think that is what it was called. . . it was Pepperidge something.) It was my favorite restaurant to go to with my Grandma. They had the best French Dip sandwiches!
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This is one of the things I have missed a lot in going gluten free! I was so happy to find some gf baguettes! The perfect bread for doing French Dip Sandwiches!SCHAR | Baguettes- [Gluten Free]
This is the perfect bread for making gf French Dip Sandwiches as well as hoagies. They make a smaller version that is about half this size but it is close to the same cost as buying the long ones. So, we get the long ones and then cut them in half.
Cut them in half and then in half again like so. Then, they are ready to put on a baking sheet or stone. (I love cooking with stoneware! If you have cooked gluten on them make sure you either replace them or cover them with tin foil when cooking anything that is gf. Stoneware holds onto the gluten because it is porous.)
Cut 1/2 of a large onion, 1 green pepper and mushrooms into slices. Put some butter in the bottom of a frying pan and sautee your veggies. I don’t measure my butter but I probably start out with about 3 Tbls butter to keep them from burning and to add flavor. You could do oil to make it a little more healthy. Salt and pepper veggies to taste. Add more oil or butter if needed.
You need to get your water boiling. I did 8 cups of water and 8 tsp of Better Than Bouillon Beef Base to make our Au Jus and some salt and pepper to taste. After the Better Than Boullion has been mixed in (dissolved) I turn the temperature down to low.
I do extra au jus because if I don’t, we always run out and I am scrambling to make more. Adjust the amount for what your family likes and uses.
I like the roast beef from Costco, the Kirkland brand, found in the meat and cheese (Deli) section of the store. (Deli sliced lunchmeat- pre-packaged)
I throw the lunch meat into the broth. This way the meat is warmed up and they share flavors. I put 3 slices per sandwich.
Toast the bread on broil until just golden brown. This should only take a few minutes 2-3, keep an eye on them. (I have started dinner on fire on broil, before! Huge bummer especially when gf bread costs so much!) The toasted bread is perfect for soaking up the au jus and not falling apart, too much.
I remove the “tops” from the baking sheet. I load up the “bottoms” with the meat, using tongs to do so. Then I put cheese slices on top of the meat. We used Monterrey Jack this time, but you could do Swiss, or Mozzarella. Broil until cheese is melted and then remove from oven. Load your veggies on top of the cheese. Tongs work great to place the veggies. Then place the top of your bread on to the sandwich!
With a ladle we fill bowls for dipping with the Au Jus. Dip, soak, enjoy!
Gluten Free Loaded French Dip Sandwiches
Shannon LeMmon
We cooked for 4 people and used 3 baguettes and a little more than half of the roast beef that was in the package. We put about 3 slices of roast beef per sandwich. *Prep time really depends on how long it takes you to slice the vegetables. This is what is going to take the most time and then sauteing them.
Saturday we were at the farmer’s market. We went to meet a lady that does gluten free wedding cakes. We wanted to taste some of her products and find out how much she charges. (My daughter is getting married! So, much to do!) We got there late because we were checking out reception centers on our way and we barely made it! Many of the vendors had already closed up and/or were cleaning up. On our way back to the car, we were offered free produce! Free yellow squash and zucchini. Our garden isn’t great this year and so, we were excited to get some!
Tonight we will have Lasagna Toss with yummy, fresh zucchini and yellow squash! I am so looking forward to it! I found this recipe in a church cookbook and it was easy to make gluten free! I had to switch the noodles for gf noodles and I like a mixture of cottage cheese and ricotta cheese. This recipe makes making lasagna super easy!
Lasagna Toss
Ingredients:
1 pkg gf noodles (shells or twist or shapes) 1-2 (14 oz )jar spaghetti sauce
Chunks (bite size) of fresh vegetables-yellow squash and zucchini are our favorites – Sautee or simmer with meat and sauce until veggies are soft
Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook gf pasta according to package, drain. Brown ground beef with onion and garlic, drain off excess fat. Stir in sauce and simmer until meat is cooked. Add vegetables while it is simmering. Remove 1 cup meat sauce; set aside. Stir cooked pasta into remaining sauce. Place ½ pasta mixture in casserole dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella cheese. In bowl, mix together a little Parmesan with the ricotta and cottage cheese and parsley. Spread ½ cheese mixture on top. Place remaining pasta mixture on top of cheese; spread remaining cheese and reserved meat sauce and mozzarella and Parmesan on top. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Cover and bake 20-25 minutes
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Garlic Bread
6 slices of gf bread
gf garlic spread (we use Johnny’s Garlic Spread & Seasoning) follow the directions on the bottle. Johnny’s calls for 1 cup butter but we usually cut it in half and do 1/2 cup butter and 1 1/2 Tablespoons of Johnny’s.
We toast the bread in the toaster and then put the spread on it while it is warm. So, yummy!
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