Jul 19, 2014 | Dairy Free, Egg Free, Nut Free, Sauces & Seasonings
This one is a great all-around seasoning for just about anything in the Tex-Mex arena. It’s a great stand-in for taco seasonings in a package or to be used for quesadillas.
3 tbsp (45 g) Cumin
2 tbsp (30 g) onion powder
2 tbsp (30 g) Cayenne
2 tbsp (30 g) Paprika
2 tbsp (30 g) chili powder
1 tbsp (15 g) Oregano
1 tbsp (15 g) Cilantro
1 tbsp (15 g) garlic powder
Mix and use liberally on food! Note if you want a non-spicy version (such as the one I use for the kids and wife), leave out the Cayenne.
Jul 17, 2014 | Appetizers, Egg Free, Entrees, Nut Free
I blame my father for my love of hot and spicy food. He served in Taiwan in the USAF during the Vietnamese War and learned to love both Asian and spicy cuisine. But like most GIs who came back with that craving, the closest they could get over here was Mexican – and an Americanized version at that.
That said, I’m not sure how this recipe was developed. All I know is that my mother taught me the recipe and always cautioned me when I did it for the family to not use too many jalapenos. Frankly now, my mother wouldn’t be able to handle the heat since I have spiced it up a tad!
1 lb. BLSL chicken thighs
2 lbs. (~1 kg) Velveeta cheese, cubed
2-3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 red onion, diced
2 tbsp (30 g) Cumin
1 tbsp (15 g) minced garlic
1 tbsp (15 g) hot chili powder
1 tbsp (15 g) paprika
1 tbsp (15 g) oregano
1 tbsp (15 g) cilantro
1 tbsp (15 g) cayenne pepper
2 jalapeno peppers
Dash or more of Habanero Tabasco
Doritos or corn chips
- Fry up your chicken, cubed, along with the spices and onions added to the mix.
- Cube the cheese block into roughly an inch to half-inch cubes. Put it into a large crockpot.
- Dice up your tomatoes and then finely dice the peppers. Add both to the crockpot.
- Drain any excess juices from the meat that you don’t want and add the meat to the crockpot.
- Turn the crockpot to high for about an hour. Stir occasionally and after an hour, reduce the heat to medium for about another hour.
Serve in a bowl with corn chips or Doritos.
Note: Once the cheese has completely melted, it is simply a matter of how thick you want the dip to be.
Jul 15, 2014 | Breakfast
It’s usually pretty tough to do baking that is GF. But I was able to alter a recipe that gave me enough pancakes to save in portions (about 24 for breakfast. Obviously this one is not spicy, but it is nonetheless tasty for sure!
Banana Oat-Walnut Pancakes
2 cups (480 g) certified GF oatmeal
2 cups (480 g) GF all purpose flour
1/2 cup (120 g) brown sugar
1 tbsp (15 g) baking powder
1 tsp (5 g) baking soda
1 tsp (5 g) xanthan gum
1 tsp (5 g) ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cup (360 g) plain yogurt
1 1/2 cup (375 ml) skim milk
4 eggs
1 tbsp (15 ml) vanilla extract
6 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup (125 g) butter, melted
1/2 cup (120 g) walnuts
- Mix all the wet ingredients using a stand mixer. Start with the mashed bananas, then follow with the yogurt and the rest.
- Add in the flour and all the other dry ingredients except for the chocolate chips.
- Don’t put your griddle much higher than 300 degrees F. Use a quarter cup measure for each pancake – add the chocolate chips in about half of the pancakes. The pancakes need to be set very well before flipping otherwise they will tear.
Ingredient Notes-
Bob’s Red Mill GF All Purpose Flour is what I used to use, hence the need for xanthan gum. Remember to check the ingredients for gluten – you’ll probably have to get the oatmeal, walnuts and xanthan gum at a specialty grocery store.
I now use the Sobey’s generic brand of GF flour, which already has xantham gum included.
Jul 12, 2014 | Egg Free, Entrees, Nut Free
This recipe is a fave of mine and the family. And easy to convert from gluten-filled to GF!
Cajun Chicken Alfredo
Alfredo sauce (see below)
Cajun Seasoning (see recipe here)
Chicken (I like BLSL thighs – more flavour)
Red onions, julienned
Garlic, minced
Broccoli
Tomatoes, diced
Green onions, diced
Bacon pieces
GF pasta (typically linguine, but you can use whatever you like)
- Cook your chicken with some of the Cajun Seasoning, red onions and minced garlic.
- At the same time, make your Alfredo, cook your pasta and steam your broccoli.
- When the chicken, pasta and sauce are done, plate in this order: pasta, sauce, chicken (strained if you don’t want the dish too runny), broccoli, tomatoes, green onions and bacon.
- Enjoy!
Note: If you want a non-spicy version, season the chicken with Oregano, Basil, Parsley and maybe some seasoning salt. If you want Gluten, then don’t worry about Label Hawkin!
Quick Alfredo
1/2 cup (125 g) butter
8 ounce (225 g) cream cheese
2 tsp (10 g) garlic powder
2 cups (500 ml) milk
6 ounces (180 g) grated Parmesan cheese
- Melt butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat.
- Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring with wire whisk until smooth.
- Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out lumps.
- Stir in Parmesan and pepper.
- Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency.
- Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long.
If you want to try something different, simply add in your favourite GF spaghetti sauce to make it a cajunsteakpenneRose Alfredo after the sauce has started to thicken. I did this recently using steak instead of chicken with broccoli instead of the diced veggies and bacon – Outstanding!
Jul 10, 2014 | Dairy Free, Egg Free, Nut Free, Sauces & Seasonings
Cajun Seasoning
2 1/2 tbsp (40 g) Paprika
2 1/2 tbsp (40 g) Cayenne
2 tbsp (30 g) garlic powder
1 tbsp (15 g) onion powder
1 tbsp (15 g) oregano
1 tbsp (15 g) thyme
As an interesting side note – my brother-in-law loves this seasoning. Every time I make a batch, I do the measurements in cups instead of tbsp, etc.
At any rate, for his 40th birthday, I actually put together a spice jar of it for him and attached a label. I thought you guys might like a gander at the label.
