Today's Gluten Free Eats

My last post was of my surprising results at GF baking, bread and brownies! That makes me so happy. But that wasn't all we ate of course. Here's our menu for the day:

BREAKFAST:

Pumpkin Pie Millet and apple slices with "chia juice"

PUMPKIN PIE MILLET based on this great recipe at sugarfreemom.com

ingredients:

• 2 cups water
• 3/4 cup millet
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• pinch of sea salt
• 2 Tbs plain yogurt
• generous splash of real vanilla
• 1/4 cup real maple syrup

method:

Cook 3/4 cup dry millet in 2 cups of boiling water until water is absorbed, about twenty minutes. Add canned pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, a pinch of sea salt, plain yogurt and maple syrup and mix well.  Serve warm with fruit or vanilla yogurt if desired.

Pumpkin Pie Millet...yum!

"Chia Juice" is a scoop of chia seeds in some home made grape juice I canned this summer. Stir for one minute, then let sit for five. The seeds get kind of gelatinous. Mister loves his chia juice!

LUNCH:

Carmelized Onion Burgers with Secret Sauce, Cottage Cheese, Monterrey Jack cheese slices, fresh broccoli

I had intended on eating tuna salad for lunch for some odd reason, just sounded good. My husband was home and requested a burger, and after making one for him I had a hankering for one myself.  His had Swiss cheese, but I like sharp Cheddar. The "Secret Sauce" started out with mayo and then I added a whole bunch of spices and some nutritional yeast. When I made mine, I kicked it up a notch with an extra dose of Emeril's Essense and a splash of Sweet Thai Chili Sauce. Mmmmm. 

"Dessert" was plain yogurt sweetened with honey, a splash of vanilla and a sprinkle of cinnamon. 

SUPPER:

Chili and Sticky Rice, veggies and homemade ranch dip, GF Brownies

No recipe for this...I grabbed a frozen chunk of leftover chili out of the freezer, dumped it in the crockpot, added some great northern beans and a generous splash of tomato juice and set it on low to cook for a while. Sticky Rice is glutinous rice (but not the kind of gluten that causes problems) and is steamed in a bamboo rice steamer. It's like the rice they use in Sushi. We love to dip it in our chili or just eat it plain. Not really a low glycemic index food, so I don't eat a lot of it, but man is it ever good. The GF Brownies were so delicious! You can read about these yummy brownies here. Then go make some, you won't be disappointed!

Our Gluten-Free Table Today

I have to admit I have not planned well for meals this week...I've gotten lazy over the last several days weeks months to be honest. And I surely wasn't prepared for planning gluten-free meals! What a blessing kind and generous friends are, let me tell you. Each day, I'm kind of "flying by the seat of my pants" and trying to pray about what to make, but it is so easy to just slip into "well, what sounds  good right now?" (along with the new "and how do I substitute the gluten ingredients in it?"). It's a process. 

Today, I am quite certain gluten should not be a part of my diet, and my son's for sure, and most likely my daughter's. I accidentally consumed something with gluten in it last night and I have felt terrible all day...the same way I felt after absentmindedly eating Hidden Valley Ranch - tired and hung-over-ish, no motivation aside from a strong desire to crawl back into bed and sleep. Blech. I don't think there's much gluten-containing foods worth feeling like that. Well, except for cheesecake, maybe. And my mom's Old Fashioned Cream Pie....

Other clues are that my son was, although active and boyish, not "spastic" and driving me out of my gourd all day. His BM today looked more like a normal one, his face looks less bumpy. And, for my daughter, the doctor's office called and said her TSH test was a little elevated and they want to recheck in eight weeks. I so want to save her from ending up like me so if her diet is contributing to the elevated TSH, tiredness, brain fog, etc. then I want to fix it now while she is young! I also need to really watch for soy, although we don't eat as much soy as we used to. Just something else I need to be vigilant in watching for when reading labels.

We ate fairly well today, I think:

• Breakfast was scrambled eggs and fresh apple slices. I like sharp cheddar melted on top and smothered in homemade salsa and sour cream (the eggs, of course!)
• Lunch was Millet Meatballs in Quinoa Rotini Pasta and homemade spaghetti sauce, sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan cheese and a side of fresh veggies. Very tasty! I was a little unsure if I'd like the Qunioa/corn pasta, but it was practically like "real" pasta. I love that it is made with Quinoa!
• Supper is in the oven right now:  A hybrid Tater Tot Casserole. I quit buying canned soups ages ago, so it was a cornstarch-thickened gravy made with beef broth, sour cream  and nutritional yeast, browned ground beef, and green beans.  I am not sure if Tater Tots are safe yet (and I don't have any in the house, anyway), so I made mashed potatoes to put on top. All in one lovely, cast iron skillet too. Love those one-dish meals!

Here's how I made the Millet Meatballs (I just threw it together, so measurements are not guaranteed to be accurate!)

Millet Meatballs

ingredients:

• one free range egg
• 1/4-1/3 cup of leftover cooked, seasoned millet
• 1/4 pound or so of ground beef
• Miss Tink's House Seasoning
• 1-2 Tbs nutritional yeast
• 1-2 Tbs olive oil or fat of choice

method:

Whisk together egg, Miss Tink's, and nutritional yeast. Add millet and mix well, then add ground beef and mix very well. Form into meatballs. Gently heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet and brown meatballs on all sides until cooked through, or brown all sides then finish cooking in a 350 degree oven until cooked through, about 20 minutes. These can be seasoned however you like, of course...more garlic, some spicy hot pepper, even add shredded vegetables like carrot or zucchini. The kids and I loved them and there were none left over! I forgot to count how many it made, but my best guess is about 15 walnut-sized meatballs.

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I can't think of anything to go with our supper tonight, and honestly don't really care to make anything else. I just want to get done with the day and crawl into bed, into my nice, fragrant, freshly laundered flannel sheeties. I just love Fall!

Good Gluten-Free Eats to you!