Sweet Potato Skins

Idea from here: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2015/01/22/loaded-baked-sweet-potato-skins Yes, it’s a pretty basic recipe. Those are my favorite though, since it makes me feel like even I could handle it. Ha!

(serves 6)

3 yams or sweet potatoes
oil (we use Pompeiian usually)
cheese/toppings of choice

Poke a few holes around each potato with a fork. Preheat oven to 400F place potatoes on a tray or baking dish, and bake for one hour. Once the potatoes are done, slice each in half lengthwise and scoop out about 2/3 of the flesh (save this scooped-out flesh). Preheat oven to 430 F, and brush the skins with oil. Place on a baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and re-stuff with filling. You can also add cheese (Sargento 4 Cheese, or Crystal Farms.. Daiya for the dairy-free little dude) at this time. Place under the broiler, and broil 3-4 minutes or until cheese shreds have melted.

I have a feeling that in addition to the cheese, I’d stir in a little garlic, maybe some cut up bacon or ham. 🙂

No Bake Granola Bars

Gluten-free, dairy-free, Feingold Stage 1, and no nuts so they’re safe to take to school. Bless the creator of these snacky treats. http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/no-bake-gluten-free-granola-bars/

Ingredients

2 cups (200 g) certified gluten free old fashioned rolled oats (Bob’s Red Mill)

1/2 cup (60 g) certified gluten free oat flour (can just process fashioned rolled oats into flour in a blender or food processor)

2 cups (60 g) gluten free crisp rice cereal (like Erewhon brown rice cereal)

1/2 cup (40 g) unsweetened coconut chips (large flakes)

4 tablespoons (56 g) virgin coconut oil

1 cup (218 g) packed light brown sugar (C&H or Domino for us)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup (168 g) honey (not clover honey)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (McCormick)

Directions

Line an 8-inch square baking dish with crisscrossed sheets of unbleached parchment paper, with the paper overhanging all 4 sides of the dish, and set it aside. In a large bowl, place the rolled oats, oat flour, rice cereal and coconut chips, and mix to combine well. Set the bowl aside.

In a medium-size heavy-bottom saucepan, place the coconut oil, brown sugar (or coconut palm sugar) and salt, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture liquifies and comes to a simmer. Cook, undisturbed, for 45 seconds more, and then remove from the heat. Add the honey and vanilla, stirring constantly until the mixture stops bubbling. Allow the mixture to cool slightly, until no longer hot to the touch. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients in the large bowl, pour in the warm sugar mixture and mix throughly, working quickly to prevent the warm sugar from sticking to the bottom of the bowl. Continue to mix until all of the dry ingredients have been absorbed into the mixture.

Transfer to the prepared baking dish and press very firmly into an even layer. Allow to sit at room temperature until cool and set before lifting out the bars by the overhung pieces of parchment paper. To speed the cooling and setting process, you can place the baking dish in the refrigerator. Place the bars on a cutting board and, using a large, sharp knife, cut into 12 rectangles. Wrap each bar separately and store at room temperature until ready to serve.

Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

Though I must admit, I can’t help but wonder if this could be achieved in the crockpot instead. Crockpot is much less scary. *hehe* But hooray for a recipe where we don’t have to alter anything to make it safe for us! http://www.budgetbytes.com/2010/10/roasted-chicken-with-root-vegetables/ (definitely worth checking out for the step by step photos)

Ingredients

1 (8 lb.) chicken
1 lb. carrots
1.5 lbs. red potatoes
3 med. turnips
1 med. onion
1 med. sweet potato
1 whole bulb garlic
2 med. lemons
5 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 tsp dried thyme, divided
to taste salt and pepper

Instructions

Allow the chicken to thaw, if frozen. Remove the neck and gizzards, rinse well, and allow the chicken to come to room temp.
Meanwhile, wash, peel and chop the vegetables into large chunks. The lemons can be quartered but not peeled. The garlic bulb can be broken up into individual cloves but does not need to be peeled (easy!). Simply remove any extra papery outside bits.
Place all of the vegetables, half of the garlic cloves and half of the lemon pieces in the roasting pan. Drizzle 3 Tbsp of olive oil over the veg, along with 1 tsp of thyme and some salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
Preheat the oven to 425F. Sprinkle half a tsp. of dried thyme inside the cavity & stuff with the remaining pieces of lemon and garlic. Place chicken on veg & pat dry. Drizzle the remaining 2 Tbsp of olive oil over the chicken and smear it all over the surface. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ tsp of thyme, salt and pepper.
Place the roasting pan in the oven and roast at 425 for 45 minutes. Remove it, reduce the heat, stir the veggies, and roast for another 45 minutes. Check temp. If the chicken is not up to 160 degrees, roast for an additional 45 minutes or until 160 F. Allow the chicken to rest 10 minutes prior to carving to let the juices redistribute.

Chocolate Pumpkin Pizookie

Since the deep dish cookie pie was such a hit, I’m betting this will be too. And as a bonus, it’s Stage 1! (The deep dish cookie pie was on hold until we can get apples back in.) (Found here: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/10/24/its-a-chocolate-pumpkin-pizookie/ ) Adding our brands in italics…

2 cans white beans or garbanzos (drained and rinsed. 500g total, once drained)(any that lists only beans/water/salt)
1 cup quick oats (Bob’s Red Mill GF is likely what we’ll do. Not officially on the list, but good remarks in the forum, and a lot of their other products have been officially researched and okayed)
1/4 cup pureed pumpkin (or butternut squash or sweet potato)(plain pumpkin puree from a can should work.. NOT the pie filling)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract (any that’s just vanilla & alcohol.. McCormick’s is labeled GFCF)
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 and 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp vegetable oil or coconut oil
1 and 1/2 cups brown sugar (C&H or Domino for us)
1 cup chocolate chips (Enjoy Life, to keep it GFCF & therefore safe for all of us)

Blend everything except the chips very well in a food processor (NOT a blender). Blend until it’s super-smooth. Mix in chips, and pour into a pan. (I used a 10-inch springform pan, but you can use a smaller pan if you want a really deep-dish pie.) Cook at 350F for 35 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

Southwest Roasted Corn

Taken from here: http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/04/southwest-spiced-corn/ Altered to fit diets/family size.

Ingredients

• 6 ears fresh corn
• 4.5 Tbsp Earth Balance butter sub, room temperature
• 1.5 tsp cumin
• 3/4 tsp chili powder (use more cumin/black pepper while stage 1)
• 3/8 tsp garlic powder
• 3/8 tsp salt
• about 1.5 tsp lime zest
• 3/8 bunch fresh cilantro (optional-we’ll likely do dried)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the room temperature butter and spices in a bowl. Use a microplane or a fine holed cheese grater to scrape the thin, green zest from half of the lime and add it to the bowl. Use a fork to whip the butter and spices together. If using fresh, roughly chop the cilantro and stir it into the butter mixture.
2. Remove the husks and silk from each ear of corn. Tear off four pieces of foil, making sure that each is big enough to tightly wrap around the corn. Smear the butter and spice mixture over the surface of each ear of corn, then wrap tightly in the foil.
3. Place the seasoned and wrapped ears of corn on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. Allow the corn to sit a few minutes, or until it is cool enough to handle. Squeeze lime juice over the corn before eating, if desired.

Breakfast Bowls

This site’s on a roll. http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/06/country-breakfast-bowls-freezable/ Here’s how we’ll switch it to be Stage 1-Friendly, and as available for Elliot (GFCF) as possible.

Ingredients

3 lbs. russet potatoes
1 Tbsp olive oil (plus enough to cook eggs)
1 tsp smoked paprika cumin
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt
Freshly cracked pepper
9 large eggs
2 Tbsp butter (we cook our eggs w/ oil so they’re casein-free in case the little guy decides to try some)
1½ cups salsa (optional, won’t do with the Stage 1 kiddo)
1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash and cut the potatoes into one-inch cubes. Place the potato cubes in a large bowl and add the olive oil, smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper. Toss the potatoes until they are well coated in oil and seasoning.
Line a baking sheet with foil and give it a light spritz of non-stick spray. Spread the potatoes out over the baking sheet so they are in a single layer. If they don’t fit, prepare a second baking sheet and divide the potatoes between the two. Roast the potatoes in the preheated oven for 45min to one hour, or until they are tender and golden brown. Stir the potatoes once, about half way through.
When the potatoes are close to being finished, crack the eggs into a large bowl and gently whisk them. Scramble eggs in large skillet over med-low heat until they are mostly solid, but still moist in appearance. Be careful not to over cook the eggs at this point because they will cook further upon reheating the breakfast bowls.
To assemble bowls, divide the roasted potatoes between 5 bowls (no way are we getting leftovers – ha!). Add salsa to the bowls of those who want it (not Feingold Stage 1). Divide the scrambled eggs among the bowls and then top with about ¼ cup of shredded cheese for those who can have dairy (or add Daiya on Elliot’s).

Variation: Dice ham to add in the eggs as well. We know Elliot gets closest to eating eggs that way, plus it would make it more of a full meal.

PB Banana Dessert Quesadilla

My kids will think they’ve gone to heaven. Ha! Seen here: http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/05/peanut-butter-banana-quesadillas/

Spread a tortilla (flour for most of us, corn for GF Elliot) w/ peanut butter. Slice a banana very thin and put the slices on one half of the tortilla. Sprinkle with chocolate chips & fold closed. Cook on med-low heat until magically delicious.
(Brands we use: Azteca tortillas, Jif PB, Guittard chips for us dairy-eating folk, Enjoy Life chips for the dairy-free little dude)

Roasted Veggies/Fruit

Again inspired by Budget Bytes. http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/02/natures-candy/ Here’s the ingredients she used:

Ingredients

1 large sweet potato
2 medium apples
2 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp dried basil

Wash, peel, & cube sweet potato. Cube apples. Place into bowl. Add EVOO & spices and toss until well-coated. Spread in a single layer on baking sheet. Roast @400 for ~30min.

Rowan can’t do apples yet, but we could make doubly many sweet potatoes. Or use carrots. Or people in the comments mentioned using pineapples or chickpeas. And then once he’s got apples added back.. oh it’s on. 🙂

Roasted Eggplant w/ Tahini

Another interesting recipe from the budget bytes site. http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/06/roasted-eggplant-lemon-tahini-dressing/ Here’s the ingredients & how we’d need to change it.. it really wouldn’t take much.

Ingredients

1 medium eggplant (about 1⅓ lb.)
2 Tbsp olive oil
Handful fresh cilantro or parsley leaves (we’d probably just go ahead and add the dried spices to the dressing)

DRESSING

3 Tbsp tahini
3 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp lemon juice
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp cumin
⅛ tsp cayenne pepper (use black pepper, or more cumin, while in Stage 1)
¼ tsp salt

Slice eggplant, brush w/ EVOO, roast @ 400. Mix up the dressing & drizzle it on the cooked veg. Enjoy!

Black Bean Quesadillas

http://www.budgetbytes.com/2012/02/hearty-black-bean-quesadillas/ Adapted from here based on what I know my family will eat.

Ingredients

1 (15 oz.) can black beans
1 cup corn kernels
1 clove minced garlic
¼ bunch fresh cilantro (or use flake)
2 cups shredded cheese (some dairy-free for Elliot)
spices
10 taco sized tortillas (corn or flour, depending on who it’s for)

Instructions

1. Drain the can of beans and rinse lightly. Place the beans in a large bowl along with the corn.
2. If using fresh, rinse the cilantro, remove the leaves, and chop roughly. Add the cilantro, garlic, and spices to the bowl with the beans and corn. (Which spices will depend on where Rowan’s at on Feingold.. we’ll use onion powder for sure, since only Elliot will eat actual onions but we like the flavor. Cumin & black pepper will likely go in there while we’re doing Stage 1. Paprika & other peppers will have to wait until we’ve tried them.) Stir until mixed.
3. Set aside a half cup of filling for Elliot (mix with Daiya cheese if desired). In the main bowl, add 2c Sargento 4 Cheese Mex blend and stir until fully mixed.
4. Place a half cup of the filling on one side of each tortilla and fold over. Cook in a skillet on both sides over medium heat until brown and crispy and the cheesy filling has melted.
5. To freeze the quesadillas, simply fill each one and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the freezer for one hour to solidify the quesadillas and then transfer to a freezer bag. To reheat either microwave (for a soft quesadilla) or cook in a skillet on low heat (make sure to use low heat so that the filling has time to thaw and melt before the outside burns).