Holiday Probiotic Banana Cranberry Brulee Muffins or Bread Gluten Free

If you are looking for a great gluten free holiday treat.  This one is AMAZING!  Banana is the base of this recipe and combined with Organic Dried Cranberries, Pro biotic Cranberry Brulee Kefir, and filled with Toasted Coconut.  Gluten Free or not these are delicious.   The consistency is spot on and they won't make you feel guilty this holiday season!  Even better- they are super easy to make!

Ingredients
1 Box Gluten Free Pantry Muffin/Scone Mix (can't find it-use a vanilla muffin or cake mix)
2.5 bananas Mushed up- just use a fork and mush until fairly smooth
1 cup Cranberry Brulee Kefir (can't find Cranberry Brulee- use cranberry, coconut, vanilla or blueberry)
1 cup Coconut
7 Tablespoons Soft Butter ( if you want to lighten it up more you can substitute half the butter with applesauce)
2 Eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup powder sugar

Preheat oven 350.

Mush up banana, Soften butter (use 6 tablespoons in muffin/bread mix reserve 1 tbsn to toast coconut) eggs slightly beaten, and 1 cup cranberry brulee kefir.  Then add mix and 1/2 tpn vanilla.  Mix well until smooth and not so bumpy!

Then take coconut and 1 tablespoon butter and medium heat toast coconut and set aside.

Take muffin pan or bread pan and fill 1/4 way.  Then top with toasted coconut and fill the other 1/4 way.

Bake at 350 for 16 minutes or your toothpick comes back clean.

Top with a dried cranberry and dust with powder sugar!

Enjoy!!!!

Totally Veggie: Ratatouille over Spaghettis Squash

With all of the storms and "hunkering" down, Ratatouille has been playing on television.  Tripp and Finn really wanted to make this for dinner.  When the storm settled, we set out to the grocery store and they helped me select the ingredients.

Shopping list/Ingredients:

1 Small Eggplant diced

1 Green Pepper diced

1 Yellow Pepper diced

3 Beefsteak Tomatoes diced

1 Medium Onion diced

1 Green Zucchini diced

2 Tspn Fresh Thyme chopped

4 Leaves Fresh Basil chopped

2 tspn Fresh Parsley chopped

3 tspns Crushed Garlic

1/2 cup Olive Oil

3/4 tspn salt

1/4 cup water

Start with 1/4 Cup olive oil, 1 tspn Garlic, and Chopped onion, 1/8 tspn salt over medium heat for 5 minutes.  Add eggplant, 1/8 tspn salt and sautee for 5-7 more minutes until eggplant is soft.  Spinkle with 1 tspn Parsley. Set aside.

Then take 1/8 cup olive oil, 1 tspn garlic, and Yellow and green Peppers, sprinkle with 1/8 tspn salt Sautee for 5 minutes until peppers are soft. 

Then take 1/8 cup olive oil, 1 tspn Garlic, Chopped Tomatoes, 1/4 tspn salt, 4 leaves chopped Basil, 1 tspn chopped thyme, and 1 tspn parsley.  Simmer 7-10 minutes until tomatoes start to form a sauce.

Then Take Zucchini, 1 tspn garlic, 1/8 tspn salt, 1/4 cup water and steam zucchini, and sprinkle with 1 tspn thyme.

The kids loved making a ratatouille design as they called it with each layer.  They decided how they wanted to layer and build their ratatouille design.  However, you can toss it all together and serve. 

We served over spaghetti squash.

Spaghettis Squash

Slice in half, scoop out seeds, and cook 1 spaghetti squash for 45 minutes at 375 in the oven.  

Remove and Take fork and pull out the "spaghetti." Put in serving dish and

serve!

Enjoy!!!

Beautiful Sunday Roast Chicken

Roasted chicken is a delicious delight especially for Sunday Dinner.  This Chicken recipe requires about 
90 minutes of cook time and a watchful eye.


Preheat the oven to a temperature of 375ºF.


To start cooking your Sunday Chicken, remove the giblets, wash and clean the chicken with cold water, and pat dry.


Marinade:
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic
1 tbsp fresh tarragon
1 tbsp fresh thyme
1 tbsp fresh rosemary
1 tbsp fresh sage
1 tbsp fresh parsley
1 half lemon 
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper


Dress Chicken by coating the chicken with 1/3 marinade then sprinkling the following all over (this is a great job for the kids to help with-
make sure they wash their hands thoroughly before and after) Prepare inside the chicken cavity and out.
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp paprika
.5 tbs grated lemon peel

After chicken is prepared, place in hot oven.  Then add 1/4 cup your favorite balsamic  vinegar and 1/4 cup red wine (preferably one you like to drink).  Shake marinade and pour  over chicken every 20 minutes.  After marinade runs out then spoon or basted with liquid  at the bottom of the baking pan. As a rule of thumb, cooking time equals 20 minutes per pound of meat plus an additional  10 - 20 minutes at a temperature of 375ºF.  Most chickens are 3-6 lbs.  On average, a 5lb  chicken will need to be roasting in the oven for at 110- 120 minutes . A 5 lb chicken will serve between 4 - 5 people. To check, Insert the meat thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken's thigh,  without touching the bone. When the chicken is done, the meat thermometer temperature  will reach 180ºF.   When finished dress your plate with the other half of the lemon and serve! Enjoy! Until Next time!

Tripp and Finn In The Kitchen: Gluten Free Super Easy Broccoli Cheese Soup

My husband loves broccoli cheese soup.  Since becoming gluten free- I haven't made this soup.  Today I experimented and we loved it!  If you like broccoli cheese soup try this easy recipe.  It took about 15 minutes and done!

Ingredients:
Carton of low sodium chicken broth
1 Cup Skim Milk/Low Fat Milke
2 Crowns of broccoli
5 Slices Jalapeno Cheese
2-4 oz Sharp Cheddar Cheese
1 Tbsp Butter
4 Cloves Garlic (1 Tbsp Minced Garlic Fresh or 1 Tsp Garlic Powder)

Mom's Jobs:
Break apart/Chop Broccoli- (Kids can help if you just pull apart)
Chop Cheese

Kids Jobs:
Pull apart Broccoli
Push Buttons on Blender or Cuisinart

Put stove on Medium Heat and Add butter and Garlic. Melt Butter and then Add Broccoli and Broth.  Cover and heat for 5-7 Minutes- Until Broccoli Is softened.
Take Mixture and put in Cuisinart or Blender.
Pour back into pot and add milk and cheese cook for 3-5 More minutes on Medium Heat Covered and Stirring Occasionally.  Serve and Enjoy!!!!

We loved this and so easy to make!


Until Next Time...


Holly, Tripp, and Finn

Tripp and Finn In The Kitchen: Game time Good eats

It’s game day.  Start early.  Take your roast beef and start preparing for half time sandwiches. I like to use a large loaf a ciabatta bread If you GF, I like to buy Udi’s rolls and toast or bread and make paninis.

• 2 Lb Roast Beef
• 2 tspn fresh minced garlice
• 1 tspn fresh pepper
• 1 tsn peppercorns
• 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive oil
• 1/2 tspn salt
• 1/2 cup roasted peppers
• 1/2 cup red hot cherry peppers
• 3 pickles diced
• 2 tbsn Ketcheup
• 1 Tbsn Mayonaise
• 1/2 tspn relish
• 1 large cabatta loaf or for gluten free- udi's rolls are yum, toast and go!:) Or use bread and create paninis.

Directions-

Moms Jobs:

In a mixing cup add 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 tspns garlic- rub all over roast beef. pushing garlic into the roast beef. Now salt and pepper.  The take out medley pepper and pepper again.  Also take 1 tson peppercorns and push all across the top side of your roast beef.  Put it in the oven and cook 2 hrs on 325. Let meat rest and slice with electric knife or very sharp knife.  Pull out all of the sandwich toppings and get ready to create a halftime delight!:)

Tripp and Finn Jobs:

Help “create” the sandwich. Layer roast beef, roasted peppers, hot cherry peppers (hold on half if a little too spicy for some), pickles.  Spread Ketchup, Mayonaise, and relish on the bread.  Fold and pass over to Mom to slice the sandwich creation.

Enjoy!  Until next time... Holly, Tripp, and Finn

Tripp and Finn In The Kitchen: Easy BBQ Pulled Pork

This is a great dinner during the  week.  Low maintenance and everybody loves

Ingredients 

• 1.5-2 lb boneless pork tenderloin
• Your favorite bbq sauce
• 1/2 tbspn brown sugar
• 2 tbsn bbq rub- I like Emeril’s bbq rub- but any kind will do.
• 1/4 tspn salt
• 1/2 tspn pepper

Directions- this is so simple mom you are on your own

Moms Jobs:

• take pork tenderloin out in am and put in crock pot
• Salt, pepper, rub the pork tenderloin,
• put 1/4 cup of water and brown sugar in bottom of crock pot
• cook all day

When you get ready for dinner, take your favorite bbq sauce and fork and shred!

You can do a lot with this-

You can serve pulled pork by itself, make sliders, do bbq pork nachos or quesadillas!  Tonight we are going to have mashed potatoes, apple sauce, and simple green beans with bbq pulled pork.

Enjoy!  Until next time... Holly, Tripp, and Finn

Cha Cha Chicken Salad :)

Chicken Salad is one of those things there is so many ways to make and all of them are GOOD!  This is one of my favorites for Lunch or dinner during the week.  Today i am going to use the leftover chicken form Chicken pot Pie and Make a savory chicken salad.

Ingredients

• chicken chopped into bite size pieces
• 3 celery stalks chopped
• 2 tbsn mayonnaise
• 2 tspn white vinegar
• 1 cup grapes quartered
• 2 tbsns Parsley chopped finely
• 1/4 tspn salt
• 1/2 tspn pepper

Directions

Moms Jobs:

• Chop everything

Tripp and Finn’s Jobs:

• Mix it up and put it in the fridge! This is so refreshing- especially for the hot heat we’ve had! 

This is so easy- especially if you already have chicken made and delightful over salad and boys love with crackers.

Enjoy!  Until next time... Holly, Tripp, and Finn