"It looks like something washed up on shore.."

Last night Scott and I attended my first ever gluten-free cooking class!  It was pretty fun, and I learned quite a bit.  The class took place in a local health food store called Earth Fare.  A local gluten-free baker named The Thoughtful Baker led the class on how to prepare gluten-free pizzas.  Unfortunately she wouldn't divulge her secret recipe for GF pie crusts, but I certainly learned some unique ways to decorate a pizza!  One of the more unique ones was a fig, bleu cheese, and caramelized onion pizza.  Scott and I both agreed it was rather bizarre, but we were thrilled to have tasters of each pie created. 
We also tried our first vegan pizza!  Check out the pictures below. 

*The pizza on the left was a salad pizza topped with toasted prosciutto.

The pizza on the right was the vegan pizza made with fire-roasted pepper sauce, non-dairy cheese, and caramelized onions.

And today I tried a brand new recipe!  Two years ago I wasn't even as remotely creative in the kitchen, but now I'm all about trying new things.  Ever since beginning this new gluten-free diet, I've become extremely interested in expanding my palate. 
A little bit of deprivation breeds awesome creativity! 

Today's recipe?  Chicken Sausage with Kale. 
If you're anything like me, kale may as well be from another planet.  Upon reading the recipe I even said something silly like, "Isn't that from the ocean?".  The good news is that kale and kelp are two very different birds.  Kale is something of a cross between a wild cabbage and collard greens.  [Collard greens... Man, I MUST be in the south]  It's a thick, leafy vegetable that's super-packed with nutrients and antioxidants, and is considered an anti-inflammatory. 
I figured I'd give the recipe a go.  

The basic ingredients were organic chicken sausage, kale, white beans, onions, garlic, chicken broth, and grated Parmesan cheese.  Although the recipe was rather time-consuming to prepare, it was relatively basic, only being seasoned with salt & pepper and some crushed red pepper for heat.  Scott and I were both satisfied with the outcome of the dish.  I smiled my entire way through the meal because I knew how good it was for us.  Protein, fiber, protein, and more fiber. 

Let me know if you'd like the official recipe.  Certainly a healthy dish for consideration.

Thanks for reading.  =)

Vermont will follow me forever.

It's high time for a new post!  I'm ashamed of myself for letting it go so long..  Would you like to know the true reason why I haven't been posting faithfully?  Simply this:  I now have a new e-mail account, and this blog is under my old one.  So every time I want to blog, I would need to sign out of my existing account and access my old one.  It would take all of three seconds, but yes; I'm that unindustrious at times. 

But I couldn't let it go any longer!  Two weeks ago I created an amazing batch of gluten-free cupcakes and today, my first batch of homemade granola.  I couldn't stand not to share this with the world.  So here we go.

A week or two ago, Scott and I had good friends over for dinner.  Although the four of us have spent some time together, we'd never had them over formally for a meal.  So I knew I had to create something wonderful for dessert!  Being an avid fan of King Arthur Flour [a bakery extraordinaire out of Vermont], I looked to them for help.  I squealed with delight when I stumbled across a recipe online for "Salted Vanilla Caramel Frosting".  I whipped up a decadent batch of their gluten-free chocolate cupcakes, and slathered them with this heaven-sent frosting.  The cupcakes were a HIT!  If you like the idea of "something salty, something sweet", then this recipe is for you!  Think chocolate-covered pretzels.  The frosting recipe was slightly more time-consuming than just confectioner's sugar + butter, but it's 10x better than any Betty Crocker frosting in a can.  [And trust me.. I like Betty Crocker]

A little sea salt and chocolate sprinkles on top made these a huge success: 

And also, today I made my first [ever] batch of homemade granola.  I guess I got Scott hooked on it, since I've been tearing into GF granola like it'll save my life.  So today's batch wasn't with gluten-free oats, but they can easily be substituted.  It was a simple coconut-almond recipe for granola that I found online, but I took some creative licensing.. I usually do.  I added some molasses, some Turbinado sugar [sugar in the raw], and a bit of extra salt.  Salt is my key secret ingredient.  Even in baked goods.  Some recipes call for unsalted butter, but I laugh in the face of danger. 

As a gift, I was given a small bottle of King Arthur's Vanilla Butternut extract.  I add it to things like French Toast to give it a sweet, buttery "something extra".  Today's granola was no exception.  Let's just say that the granola, as it was baking in the oven at 325, filled the air like potpourri.  I think Scott will be thrilled.  If you're interested in the recipe I used, let me know.  Otherwise, here are some photos.

It would be grand to make a life out of baking and creating. 
It truly would.