Nutella Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill All Purpose GF Flour Mix
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup sugar

8 tablespoons unsalted butter or Earth Balance, at room temperature
15 oz can of  Pumpkin Pie Mix  (like canned pumpkin but with a bit of sugar and spice added to it already)
1/8 cup ground chia seed
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered egg replacer
4 TBL warm water
1/8 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

12 - 24 teaspoons Nutella

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with greaseproof liners and set it aside.
• In a large bowl, place the flour,  baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and sugar, and whisk to combine well. In a separate bowl combine the chia seed, powdered egg replacer and warm water.  Let stir and let set until thick.  Cream the butter and add in the chia seed/egg replacer mix, pumpkin pie mix, maple syrup and vanilla. Combine the wet and dry ingredients until well combined. 
• Fill the prepared muffin cups to just under the lip of the liners with batter.  Drop a teaspoon or two (according to taste)  of Nutella onto the top of the muffins.  Use a tooth pick to swirl the chocolate into the top of the muffin batter.
• Place the muffin tin or baking sheets with muffin cups in the center of the preheated oven and bake until lightly golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean (30 minutes).
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the cups (or muffin tin) before serving.
  
  Inspired by: http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/chunky-apple-muffins/

Steak Sandwich with Peppers & Onions

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb flank steak, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro leaves
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 poblano or Cubanelle pepper, thinly sliced
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 sm whole wheat submarine rolls (or to make GF, use a teff wrap or gf bun)
• 4 slices reduced-fat provolone or Swiss

Directions

1.

Heat oven to 350°F. Combine steak, cilantro, and garlic in medium bowl and toss to coat.

2.

Heat large frying pan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add steak and cook, turning twice, until edges are lightly browned but center is still pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3.

Coat same skillet with cooking spray and add onion, bell pepper, chile pepper, and salt. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until peppers are soft, 7 to 8 minutes.

4.

Put rolls on baking sheet and lay 1 cheese slice on each. Warm in oven until cheese melts, about 5 minutes.

5.

Add steak and onion-pepper mixture to rolls and serve immediately.
Source: http://recipes.runnersworld.com/Recipe/steak-sandwich-with-peppers--onions.aspx

Apple Maple Muffins

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups (210 g) high-quality all-purpose gluten-free flour
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup (100 g) sugar, plus 2 tablespoons more

8 tablespoons (112 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup (240 g) dairy free sour cream (I use Follow Your Heart Vegan Sour Cream) 
1/8 cup ground chia seed
1 1/2 teaspoons powdered egg replacer
4 TBL warm water
1/8 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups (200 g) peeled, cored and diced firm apples (I used Honey Crisp) – about 2 medium-sized apples
Lemon Juice
1 tsp lemon zest
cinnamon
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with greaseproof liners and set it aside.
• In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and sugar, and whisk to combine well. In a separate bowl combine the chia seed, powdered egg replacer and warm water.  Let stir and let set until thick.  Add to the flour mix, the butter,  sour cream, egg replacer mix, maple syrup and vanilla, one at a time, mixing to combine after each addition. Set the bowl aside.
• In a separate medium-sized bowl, place the diced apples, and add a sprinkle of ground cinnamon, about 2 tablespoons sugar, lemon juice to just coat, lemon zest and the cornstarch, and mix gently to combine. Place 2/3 of the diced apples (about 1 cup apples with cinnamon, sugar and cornstarch) in the batter, and mix until evenly distributed throughout the batter. Fill the prepared muffin cups about 3/4 of the way full with batter and smooth the tops with wet fingers. Place 3 to 4 of the remaining diced apples on top of the batter in the cups, and press in gently to secure them.
• Place the muffin tin or baking sheets with muffin cups in the center of the preheated oven and bake until lightly golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean (30 minutes).
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the cups (or muffin tin) before serving.
  
  Inspired by: http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/chunky-apple-muffins/

Peach Blueberry Pie

1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca (reserve one to sprinkle on pie crust bottom)
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
3 pounds peaches, peeled and sliced (6 cups, about 6 peaches)
12 ounces blueberries (2 cups)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
1 homemade or store-bought double-crust pie dough
1 large egg, separated, white lightly beaten or veganaise/creamer blend
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, 5 TBL tapioca, and salt. Add peaches, blueberries, and lemon juice and toss to combine; let sit 15 minutes. Lightly flour a rolling pin and work surface and roll out half the dough to a 12-inch round. Place in a 9-inch pie plate and sprinkle with a tablespoon of tapioca. Pour in fruit filling and dot with butter.

Roll out remaining dough to a 12-inch round and place over fruit filling. Trim excess and crimp edges to seal. In a small bowl, lightly beat egg yolk with 1 tablespoon cold water or use a TBL of Veganaise with a tsp of creamer. Brush top of dough with mixture of choice. With a paring knife, cut several small slits on top to vent. Set on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until crust is deep golden brown and juices are bubbling, about 60 minutes. (Tent loosely with foil if crust browns too quickly.) Let pie cool completely on a wire rack, about 3 hours.

Based on a Martha Stewart Recipe. Altered slightly to accommodate my modified diet.

Quick Coleslaw

Ingredients:

16 oz. Packaged coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)
1/2 cup Vegenaise (or lite mayo)
1 TBL cider vinegar
1 TBL sugar
1/2 tsp celery seed
1 tsp Penzy green goddess herb mix (green onion flakes, sugar, sweet basil, celery flakes, minced garlic and dill weed)
coarse salt and ground pepper to taste

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine everything but the coleslaw mix. Add cabbage and toss to combine.

Maque Choux

A great side dish to accompany jerk chicken.


8 medium ears of fresh corn
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
1 small green sweet pepper, chopped (1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons margarine or butter
1 medium tomato, cut up
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper

Remove the husks from corn; scrub with a stiff brush to remove silks. Rinse. Use a sharp knife to remove corn from cobs, cutting two-thirds of the way to the cob. Scrape cobs with a dull edge of a knife. (You should have about 4 cups.)

In a 3-quart saucepan cook onion and green pepper in margarine or butter about 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in corn, tomato, salt, black pepper, and red pepper. Cover and cook over low heat about 20 minutes or until corn is tender. Season to taste. Makes 6 side-dish servings. 


(Found this recipe from an on-line forum, no credit was given as to who created it. It's pretty delish though!)

Orange Creamsicles (DF, EF)

1 cup of non dairy yogurt, plain or vanilla (I used a coconut based yogurt)
1 cup of orange juice pulp free
1/8 cup of maple syrup
3 drops orange oil (extract)
1/4 tsp of vanilla extract

Blend all ingredients in a small food processor, pour into popsicle molds and freeze. Eat and enjoy!

*Makes four popsicles.