Gluten-Free Chia Seed Peanut Butter Oat Cookies

I don't know much about gluten-free baking. It's one of those "one day I should figure this out" kind of things...I just haven't figured out which day yet. So, when Carrington Farms asked me if I'd be interested in sharing their delicious and healthy cookie recipe that also happens to be gluten-free, I thought it was something I should try out for myself first (and then share the results with you if I liked it).

Guess what? I liked it. I liked it alot, actually. I stayed pretty true to their recipe, which can be found on the back of the current packaging for their chia seeds, I did add a little salt to the recipe (as I do 99% of the time in sweet baked goods) because it enhances the flavors. Their recipe calls for optional chocolate chips, which I considered leaving out entirely since I'm not usually one to add chocolate to my peanut butter cookies...but I figured I was already adding oats and chia seeds, so why not give it a go. But I also wanted to try them without, so I added mini chocolate chips to half of the batch.

Summer Vegetable Goulash

A couple of weeks ago, a friend mentioned that she'd been trying to make a good vegetarian version of goulash, but she hadn't gotten it quite right yet. I made a few suggestions for when she was ready to try again, and then went back to business as usual. Or not. The thought of a vegetarian goulash niggled at the back of my mind for a solid week, until I decided I needed to make some in my own kitchen.

It's funny though, because at first I thought - vegetarian goulash!? The thought was basically an oxymoron in my mind. I mean, I grew up in the Midwest, and in these parts, hearty stews and casseroles always had meat in them. When I thought goulash, I thought ground beef in a paprika-spiked tomato base over noodles that was "lightened" up by stirring through a big scoop of sour cream...and then finished with melty cheese.

But the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to try a meatless version. With the abundance of summer vegetables in evidence on my kitchen counter and table, as well as dotting the road with stands every few miles, now was definitely the time to do it.

Whole Wheat Peanut Crackers inspired by The Terminal

I first (and last) watched The Terminal all the way back in 2004, when it was just released. I remembered liking it, but I hadn't really thought much about it since. Then Evelyne came along as this month's Food 'n Flix host, and challenged (invited) us to watch it, draw inspiration, and head into the kitchen. But as things always seem to go, when I went to check it out from the library, they didn't have it. Like—at all; system-wide! It wasn't on Netflix, either. Of course this only happens to me when I proscrastinate. And procrastinator just so happens to be in my unwritten job description. So, I ordered it from Amazon.

It's the story of Viktor Navorski (played by Tom Hanks), a man without a country—temporarily, at least. As his plane lands at JFK, he is pulled aside by security and informed that a war has broken out in his homeland (invented for this movie), Krakozhia. The United States no longer recognizes it as a country, therefore, they cannot accept his passport (and subsequently confiscate it). And without a passport, they can't allow him onto US soil. So, they give him some food vouchers and a phone card, and encourage him to wait it out in the International terminal.

Well, there's a language barrier, and Viktor is a bit dazed and confused by the turn of events. Let's just say that he winds up staying in the airport terminal for longer than anybody expected. He makes it his temporary home. He works. He makes friends. He goes on a date. He enters the heart of people living normal lives around him. People root for him; well, all but one...Frank Dixon (played by the amazing Stanley Tucci, who I believe has been in about 7 of our food 'n flix movie picks!). But you'll have to watch to find out why!

Coconut No-Cream Pie

Today I'll be sharing a dish inspired by my friend Bea at The Not So Cheesy Kitchen. I was inspired by her story...the reality and shock of finding out that the things most precious in the world to her, her daughters, were born with Classic Galactosemia.

Now, I had absolutely no idea what Galactosemia was.  Classic Galactosemia is only managed through diet, by eliminating milk sugars from the diet, to be exact.  I'm not gonna lie, the thought of this scares the bejeesus out of me!  I think that I would be a complete mess upon finding out that my children had any food allergies...sitting next to them during school lunch, scouring the treats brought in for classroom parties, following them around with an epi pen.  You know, that sort of thing.

Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding

So, I might have mentioned the fact that we eat a lot of rice pudding in this house.  You know, a few times.  Here and there.  We (and by we, I mean my husband - because he makes it 95% of the time) will switch up the liquid that we use...or the sweetener.  Most often it's plain when he makes it, but sometimes if he's feeling feisty, he'll add a cinnamon stick.

When I make it, I like to add vanilla, or some citrus zest, or maybe a splash of rosewater.  With the rosewater, I like pistachios or cashews.  With anything else (or nothing else), I like to add dried fruit - Michigan cherries being my first choice.

But you know what's funny?  Strange, not ha-ha.  Until now, I have never even tried to make rice pudding using brown rice.  Whaaaa!?  I mean, why?  Nutty, chewy brown rice is my favorite, after all.  Maybe I just figured it would take too long.  You know, somewhere in the back of my brain as my hand passed over the jar of brown rice to reach the white rice nestled behind it.

It did take a little longer, but not so much longer that it mattered all that much.  And the great thing about this recipe?  It uses not only brown rice, but also rice milk, making it dairy-free for those who allergic or sensitive to it (or just don't eat it).  It's also gluten-free.  But that being said, for those rice pudding/arroz con leche lovers out there - it's still creamy and comforting!  You don't even realize that there isn't any sort of (dairy) milk in it.

Really.  Just ask my hubby who ate all of the leftovers; he had no clue that I didn't use milk in it.  I didn't not tell him because I thought he wouldn't like it that way, it just didn't cross my mind.  He was at work when I made it, so I told him there was some in the fridge - he warmed up a big bowl (and then emptied it) with nary a complaint.

Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Keywords: simmer breakfast dessert gluten-free nut-free soy-free vegan rice dried fruit pudding

Ingredients (serves 6)

• 2 cups uncooked brown rice, preferably short-grain
• 4 cups unsweetened rice milk + more as needed
• 3 1/2 cups water
• 4 tablespoons brown rice syrup (or to taste)
• big pinch of sea salt
• 1 cup dried fruit (I like to use a mix of cherries, apricots, cranberries, yellow raisins, and currents - I love the colors it brings to the dish)

Instructions

Combine brown rice, rice milk, water, brown rice syrup, and salt in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a boil, and then decrease the heat to a gentle simmer. Allow to simmer for 40 minutes, stirring often. Stir in the dried fruit and cook for 10 minutes longer.

You want it to be thick, but not stiff. If your liquid runs low during cooking, add a bit more rice milk or water. The pudding should have just enough liquid left to be "loose".

Serve with extra rice milk and brown rice syrup, if you wish.

Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

notes:

You could substitute maple syrup for the brown rice syrup, if you wish.

adapted from Allergy-Friendly Food for Families