Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies

I would like to try this with ghee or coconut oil instead of butter, but as of this moment, I am still eating butter although not any other dairy product.

I found this on simplyrecipes.com and made the following alterations [in brackets]. Delicious. (Especially the dough!)

3 cups flour [substitute Pamela's gluten-free flour mix]
1 cup organic granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup soft butter [try ghee or coconut oil]
1 egg, slightly beaten [flax seed egg substitute]
3 tbsp cream [unflavored coconut yogurt]
1 tsp vanilla (I use gluten-free)
[zest of one lemon]

Chill. Roll 1/4 thick and cut out cookies. Bake on ungreased sheet at 400 for 5-8 minutes just until edges are slightly brown.

The lemon zest and sour cream [coconut yogurt] made these so good!

   

Shepherd's Pie

Sam's diet doesn't include potatoes but ours does. We are just going to have to learn to love this without the cheese.

 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/30-minute-shepherds-pie-recipe/index.html

Easy Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Cream Puffs

I found this recipe for easy cream puffs in the Our Best Bites cookbook and substituted coconut oil for butter and tapioca flour for wheat flour, but they were too flat, so I added in some almond flour which perked them up and made them delicious. And they look exactly like regular cream puffs. I think they were still a little on the greasy side so next time I will use a little less coconut oil and a little more flour. http://www.ourbestbites.com/2008/04/tutorial-cream-puffs/ The cream filling is coconut cream from the top of a can of Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk, chilled, and whipped with a fork with a little organic honey and some Trader Joe's Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract. I got the idea from this blog: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2012/01/16/chocolate-frosting-shots/ The ganache is organic honey (not much) and equal parts cocoa powder and coconut oil, microwaved to melt everything together, then chilled to harden it.

Spicy Sweet Potato Soup

My friend, Lori, sent this to me from a chef she used to work with. Thanks, Lori!

Mineral rich Grade B Maple syrup is cheaper than Grade A because it is not as refined; thus there is more flavor. Canned coconut milk works well in this soup because it is richer, however any dairy or non-dairy milk can be substituted with equally great results. If you don't care for spice but want to retain the smoky flavor of the chipotle chili, remove the stem and all the seeds and add only the skin of the chili.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Yield: 5 Cups

2 Medium Sweet Potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces (large chunks), about 4 cups
1/2 Medium Spanish (yellow) Onion, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces (large chunks)
2 Cloves Garlic, peeled
1 ½ cups of water plus more to adjust consistency if necessary
1/4 Cup plus 1 Tbsp of Grade B Maple Syrup or ¼ Cup Agave Nectar (I used less and it was still sweet)
½ Chipotle Chili in Adobo (found in Hispanic section of Grocery Store) (I used dried chipotle chili powder)
2 Tbsp Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice or Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Cup Canned Coconut Milk
1 tsp Sea Salt and 1 tsp Black Pepper to taste plus more if desired
Green Onions, thinly sliced, to garnish

Place Sweet Potatoes, onion and garlic in 4-quart plus-size tightly lidded pot and add the water. Bring to boil and reduce heat to medium. Cook until Potatoes are tender–about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly to make handling easier. Transfer to blender and add maple syrup, chipotle chili and coconut milk  and puree until smooth. Return mixture to heat and bring up to almost a boiling point. Turn off heat and add lime juice and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with sliced green onions.

NOTE: Using 1/2 of a chili (as directed) is perfect if you don't like spicy food (gives it a 'kick' but not too much).

My note: This was too sweet for my tastes so next time I will use less syrup.