Caramel Corn

Since we're going on a trip this weekend, we made a batch of caramel corn for a snack. We used this recipe here, but made just a half recipe.

Apparently we took it too literally when it said to boil for five minutes without stirring. It burned a bit on the bottom of the sauce, so next time I think we’ll stir occasionally.

Other than that, it turned out pretty good!

Chicken Alfredo Pie

I made a Chicken Alfredo Pie for my friends who just had the baby, and I made an extra one for Tim and me!

It’s quite similar to my spaghetti pie, but with chicken instead of beef and with alfredo sauce instead of tomato sauce, although I’m thinking those changes are pretty self-evident!

My spaghetti pie recipe calls for 8-10 oz. pasta, but I've been doing less recently and it's been working better. I now do about 6 oz. cooked rice noodles.

Frugal Baby Gift Idea

This is completely off the topic of gluten free, but it is a frugal idea.

My friends just had a baby girl last week. She is just a gem, so cute and small. They named her a good Old Testament name: Hannah.

Since I took Hebrew in college, I made her a name placard with Hannah written out in Hebrew, a Bible verse from Hannah’s prayer in I Samuel, and a little picture of a girl. What do you think of it?



It only cost me $1.50 for the frame and time. I think it’s pretty neat, but I love the Hebrew language. It’s read from right to left, and it’s so beautiful written and spoken.

Even if you don’t know Hebrew, you could make a name placard with the meaning of the baby’s name, a Bible verse to go along with the name’s meaning, and a picture.

In my Adult Sunday School (the young married group), it’s good to have a frugal baby gift idea, because people keep having babies! We’re expecting one more this month, one in November, and one in February. That’s all I know about for now, but I’m sure there’ll be more!

Weekly Menu

Here’s our weekly menu:

• Monday – Chicken Alfredo pie
• Tuesday – Tomato soup and sandwich
• Wednesday – Pizza
• Thursday – Barbeque chicken
• Friday – On the road
• Saturday lunch – Sandwiches
• Saturday dinner – Somewhere in Chicago

We are going to Dubuque, IA, on Friday and then heading to Chicago on Saturday. I have a friend in school there, so I’m looking forward to visiting with her!

Traveling can be hard to do gluten free, but it’s more difficult on the “dining out” budget for me. This weekend we’ll probably do fast food on Friday for dinner, pack a lunch for Saturday, eat out somewhere nice for Saturday dinner, and then have breakfast and lunch at our friend’s house on Sunday. Hopefully we’ll make it home in time for dinner.

Check out Org Junkie for her yummy Thanksgiving menu. I guess in Canada it comes earlier!

Hope over to Gluten Free Goodness to get some more gluten free menus.

Pepperoni Pasta

After being inspired by a link I found on Org Junkie, I made this pepperoni pasta.

I sautéed some onions, celery, and carrots in olive oil with 3 cloves of crushed garlic. Once they were tender I added a cup of Carrie’s cream soup base, a can of mushrooms, and some turkey pepperoni. Of course I added salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

Then I tossed in 8 oz. of cooked Tinkyada brown rice pasta.

I added some parmesan cheese and Frank’s Red Hot just before I ate it. It was so simple and naturally gluten free. We’re definitely having it again!

Yummy Gluten Free Brownies

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Mix (or sift) together:
1 cup brown rice flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

In a separate bowl, mix together:
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Melt together:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup unsalted butter

Slowly pour the melted chocolate/butter into the eggs while beating on low with an electric mixer.

Add the dry ingredients and beat on medium until combined. Pour batter into a greased 9x9 pan and smooth flat with a spatula. The batter will be quite thick.

Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

I created this recipe for my mom. She doesn’t eat wheat, potatoes, tapioca, or sorghum, along with a bunch of other foods. And since she doesn’t keep xanthan gum in her pantry, wheat-free baking is a challenge for her.

She called me a few weeks ago and asked if I had a good gluten free brownie recipe. I pulled out my trusty Bette Hagman cookbook, but her brownie recipe called for potato starch, tapioca flour, and xanthan gum. So that was out of the question!

Hopefully this recipe will work for you Mom. I hope you like it!