They're here!

Yes, it is true.  All those celiac patients out there can now have rice krispie treats!  General Mills has developed a brown rice based Rice Krispie that is gluten-free.  This is one cereal we thought at the beginning that Scott would be able to have in its regular form, but not so, it had malt in it.  In fact most breakfast cereals have malt in them.

I haven’t found these at our stores yet but we will be trying them. Brown rice is better for you for sure, but I’m not convinced it will pass my taste test in the marshmallow squares.  We’ll see.

Here is the website for Gluten Free Rice Krispies - with recipes of course!

Makings of a Great, Easy Dessert

I’m not sure how I stumbled across this recipe, but I am so glad I did.  It is super easy, tastes like a dream and has very simple ingredients.  The original recipe appears here, but we eliminated most of the ingredients because we like our pudding pretty plain.

Crock Pot Caramel Rice Pudding

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked rice (cooked a day ahead if possible)
• 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
• 1 tsp vanilla

Mix all ingredients in the slow cooker and heat on low until rice absorbs most of the liquid.  We like to stop it while it is a little “soupy” which makes it nicer when we reheat it later.  If you cook it the whole way initially it can get a bit dry if you reheat it.  It’s also delicious cold.

Using day old rice give you grains that don’t stick together.  Leftover rice is fine.  I have made it with newly cooked rice and it tastes fine, it just is clumpy.

I find my canned milk and sweetened condensed milk at discount stores for under $1 each which makes this recipe really reasonable – less than $3 for twelve or so servings.  And very satisfying.

Frugal, Fantastic Taco Bake

Well, that picture kind of looks awful, but let me tell you it tasted wonderful!  I found this recipe in Cook’s Country magazine back when we subscribed and four years later I finally tried it.  You can see a picture of it on their website here but can’t view the recipe unless you are a member (which costs money.)  I made major changes to the recipe and it was still great.  They used Ro-Tel tomatoes which we don’t like and more cheese and meat than we needed.

Those of you going gluten free know that Mexican food is your friend as long as you skip the flour tortillas and find (or make) a gluten free taco seasoning.  The only gluten free taco seasoning that we have found in the store is Ortega.   We used to make our own taco seasoning to make life easier but when we had the last baby we kind of ran out of time.  We’ll go back to it eventually and I’ll post the recipe.  It is cumin heavy and that is pricey.

Here is the recipe as I cooked it:

Taco Bake

• 2 11 oz cans organic diced tomatoes (purchased at Amelia’s for 50 cents each)
• 2 cups refried beans (from our freezer, recipe can be found here)
• 1 T hot sauce
• 1/4 C salsa (whatever you like)
• 2 C shredded cheddar cheese (purchased for $2/lb at Amelias)
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 pkg Ortega taco seasoning (we never use the whole thing, only half)
• 12 El Paso Taco Shells (.99 at Amelias)

To make:

1. Preheat oven to 475 (yep that high.)
2. Drain juice from one can of tomatoes and save.
3. Combine one can tomatoes, beans and hot sauce and spread in bottom of 9×13 pan.  Sprinkle cheese over top.
4. Cook beef until brown.  Drain off fat and add tomatoes, salsa, taco seasoning and tomato juice.  Cook again until mixture is nearly dry – about 8 or 9 min on my stove.
5. Place taco shells into bean mixture upright so you can fill them.
6. Put in a little cheese and top with meat mixture.
7. Cover pan with foil and bake for 10 minutes or until bubbly.
8. Remove foil, cover with remaining cheese and bake until melted – about 5 or 6 minutes.  Enjoy!

That’s it.  Not a hard recipe and it makes a lot of food.  We had it with homemade apple sauce, skilled cooked apples and peas.

So I saved a bundle with finding these ingredients at Amelias and using homemade refried beans.  All the kids ate it and hubby and me!  Here is what was left at the end after 5 people had dinner (you can see my Christmas kitty trivet through the glass pan):

Leftovers for lunch!

Remember to be safe, check your labels, and contact the manufacturer whenever you have a question.

2 3/4c toasted coconut
4 egg whites
1c white sugar
1t ground cinnamon
1/2t almond extract

1,  Toast coconut for 5 to 7 minutes on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven.
2.  Lower the oven temperature to 250 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3.  In a large bowl whip the egg whites until they for soft peaks.
4.  At low speed,  gradually add the sugar, cinnamon, and extract to the egg whites.
5.  Fold in the coconut by hand.
6.  Drop by the tablespoonful onto the parchment, spacing 2 inches apart.
7.  Bake until dry and able to peel off easily, about 20-25 minutes.
8. Move to a cooling rack and allow to cool before eating.

http://www.liveglutenfreely.com

With a full list of the products here:

http://www.liveglutenfreely.com/products/default.aspx?WT.ac=HomeTab_Products_GetList

From what I saw of the list the most exciting item is going to be the Gluten Free Bisquik.  This was a go to item for quick wholesome meals and has been sorely missed as part of our pantry.  Once we find it in a local store I will post a review for you.

The next day, earlier in the morning than I expected, I received a call back.  What sweet words they were to hear that they use modified cornstarch and those of us with gluten issues are safe to eat it.  The representative also followed up by saying that they use cornstarch in all of their products and at the moment all are gluten free.  When asked when they would update their labeling to say so, she didn’t know but wished they would do so soon.

Another mysterious modified foodstarch mystery solved.  Enjoy Sweet Baby Ray’s products with your next cookout.

You can check it for yourself on their FAQ:

http://www.berksfoods.com/Faq.aspx

Made by the Goddess Cookie Company and baker Caryn Sheckler, they are made with only the finest ingredients, with no junk or fillers.  They are free of a number of common allergens including peanuts, oats, wheat, dairy, casein, soy, and trans-fats.  They are, however, almond based, so if you have a nut allergy they should be avoided.  For those of us without one, the almonds give a wonderful texture with a thick outer crust surrounding a moist chewy center.  If the label had not listed almonds as the main ingredient I would have had no reason to suspect it.

In the case of Kali, she had a hearty ginger taste with chunks of ginger.  This is what we should expect from every gingersnap.  It is rich, mouth filling, with a spicy warm taste that lingers comfortably long after every bite.

Besides Kali, there is also Venus (Double Chocolate), Freya (Currants and Spices), Tara (Coconut), and Arasy (Apricot and Cinnamon).  And, for those Vegans out there, Kali, Freya, Tara, and Arasy are all safe.

In the end, the pack of cookies I bought never made it home.  Instead, I ate them on the ride back. As for Mister Ed’s pronouncement, I agree:  They were the best gluten free cookies I’ve had so far.